INDIANA > ILLINOIS > MISSOURI > KANSAS

Friday, 5/14/10. Reversed the hookup lesson we had last night at Lake Haven Retreat and inchwormed a short distance down the highway to the repair shop. THANK YOU, Mr. RV-certified mechanic for replacing the ripped turbo hose.

Question: How many quarts of oil does the RV (Mercedes turbo 6 charged) take for an oil change? (Answer at end of post).

Luckily the RV is up to par again--already 1:30 pm and we have to make it across Illinois before 4:30 pm. Specifically, to get to Pocahontas P.O., 107 Park St. That's where our camera battery chargers were being sent from home. The next available time the P.O. would be open was Saturday, between 9:00am-10:00am (yes, only 1 hr).

Here we are at Carlyle Lake, Ill. for the night (didn't make the P.O. before closing). The 26,000 acre man-made lake and 11,000 acres of land are administered by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The campground area was very appealing. Tim grilled ribeye steaks for a wonderful dinner in our becoming-very-cozy RV.

Saturday, 5/15/10. Alarm!! Need to leave by 8:30am for an estimated 50-mile ride to our 1-hr window of opportunity at a P.O. in Pocahontas.

OK, has anyone ever heard of Gretchen Wilson?

FOUND THE P.O. GOT THE MAIL!! Thank you Jim!-- Pocahontas P.O.... Thank you Cory!-- Northport N.Y. The omelettes at recommended Funderburk's Grill and Gas were delish. Their motto, "Fill your tank and fill your belly."

Say goodbye to Pocahontas at 10:30 am, and get on I-70 again towards St. Louis, Missouri. Can't pass through without visiting the Arch - Gateway to the West...there it is!

The Gateway Arch was built in 1965 along the Mississipi River and is a memorial to the epic migration and settlement of the American West during the 1800's. The highlights of our visit were the Museum of Westward Expansion and riding the tram to the top of the 630-ft Arch.






Can you spot the RV parked 630 ft. below?

Where should we park for the night? Left St. Louis at 2:30pm and drove through Missouri towards Topeka, Kansas. Lake Shawnee (on the map) sounds nice. Ms. Garmin says there's a campground in that area and we phone for directions.

Grilled some turkey sausage with sides of lentils, spinach and carrots. Laundry to do and more shuffling of STUFF. It was a fun day and our spot for the night was relaxing.

Answer to question above: 13 quarts of oil.

A SONG FOR THE GRANDKIDS

5/2010

On our posted roadtrip two years ago, we had two grandsons. Since then, another grandson and a granddaughter have been added!

Hello!! Nathan, Ryan, Garrett and Megan ..

HERE'S A SONG FOR YOU TO SING (to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm")

GRANDPA, MEMAW, AND DOG MAKES 3

(E - I - E - I - O)

THEY LEFT LAST WEEK IN THEIR BIG RV

(E - I - E - I -O)

DROVE THRU VERMONT AND CANADIAN RUES

MICHIGAN, OHIO AND INDIANA TOO

GRANDPA, MEMAW, AND DOG MAKES 3

(E - I - E - I - O)
See you when we get back.. LOVE TO ALL OF YOU!
XOXO, Grandpa and Memaw

WHITE KNUCKLES

Thurs, 5/13/10. Now that it's daylight, we can see our location. If you read the sign below, it says "no overnight camping permitted." Tim says "we were only parking." OooKayy..












RVTip #3 - Don't leave your camera battery charger at home. Searching numerous stores for purchasing another results in $70+. Have the one at home mailed general delivery to a P.O. of your choice.

9:00am - Admiring the quaint farmlands, we travel along Hwy 3- passing a Great Lake - en route to the USA border. Question : How many Great Lakes are there and what are their names? (answer at end of post).




At 10:45am we reach Windsor, Canada, and cross the bridge into Detroit, MI. As we veer onto I-75 South, we notice a Dunkin Donuts (hooray!), and quickly veer off. Content with a breakfast of oatmeal and DD coffee, we veer back onto I-75 South. What's this??? With the foot to the pedal to the floor, the RV will not exceed 45-50 mph!

Surely everyone has experienced other #!@!! drivers on the road going 20-25 mph slower than the speed limit. Now we were the ones being cursed at. Having to be in Pocohontas, Ill. on Saturday (Tim's P.O. choice), an appointment was set up with a mechanic in Indianapolis for tomorrow-Friday. There was no stopping...we had to keep moving (like an inchworm) through aggressive traffic. Taking turns behind the wheel, we reached Indianapolis about 7 hours later. Have you ever seen knuckles as white as the cotton in a Tylenol bottle?














The drive was excruciating for Zack.

Lake Haven Retreat sounded inviting, so we rolled into our spot and took a breath before having our "first" RV hookup (water, sewer, electric and cable) lesson.



Night fell, so did the rain.
Need to buy more wine.









Answer to the question above: There are 5 Great Lakes... Ontario, Erie, Michigan, Huron and Superior.

HOME SWEET HOME ON WHEELS

Wed, 5/12/10. One thing we enjoy and have fun with is exploring the unknown. Don't suppose traveling in an RV should change our lifestyle, but at this moment...we feel a little spastic figuring out how to operate and set up a home on wheels. Took some time this morning to reorganize STUFF (I'll admit, the STUFF I brought along is far more than what Tim packed).


RVTip#2 - bring LOTS of two sided sticky velcro tape. Things that you like to be within reach (toothbrush holder, TV remote, bottle of wine, etc.) won't go flying when you go barreling down the road.


The area of a"Thousand Islands" has communities on both sides of the US and Canada along the St. Lawrence River with amazing homes on them. Tim's question.. "where do you walk the dog?"







We're still in Ontario and driving along scenic Rt. 2 looking for another quiet park by the water.
It's getting dark-- let's try John E. Pearce Provincial Park. It's location seems further than what it shows on the map, but we keep driving and it's getting really dark, and really late - 9:30pm. Turning down a really, really dark road towards the park, our headlights shine on a gate blocking the entrance. CLOSED.









Turning around, our headlights shine on a marker that reads "Spicer Trail." Whoa--Spicer is my maiden name. Anyway, I looked it up.. it's a 1.4km dirt trail through meadows and a centuries-old hardwood forest, passing the historic Backus/Page House (1850).










We backtracked to a main road, and while squinting in the dark, found a few picnic tables in the distance. We did not hesitate to park there.

GET READY, SET, GO!

Mon and Tues, 5/10-11/10. Green mountains, hiking, Fall leaves, maple syrup, General Stores, skiing, B&J's, .... we always look forward to staying in Vermont. This leg of the trip wasn't particularly relaxing--and we reek of Pine Sol and paint-- but the projects are done. Now we can officially begin our roadtrip. Off we go!!
















Leaving Smuggs at 10:30am. Doesn't Zack look excited?

First stop-- official RV inspection at Bucket Bob's. Second stop is the Mixed Cafe & Deli in Jeffersonville. With coffees and cookies in hand, we noticed this very unique birdhouse.



15W to picturesque Rt. 104 , then I-89 to St. Albans. Reaching the Canadian border, our passports and Zack's Health Certificate passed for entry; however, our RVDS (not for discussion) caused a slight delay.







Quebec is a French-speaking province. Took Rte 133 to Hwy 45 Nord (north). Hwy 10 Quest (West).

Over the Champlain Bridge we passed Montreal. Hwy 15 Nord to 40.


There's a Tulip Festival in Ottawa! Tim passed that by real quick.

A real important French word to know is "vente" which means "sale."











Here are a few of Tim's customized electronics for the RV ..Ms. Garmin, satellite radio and CB radio.

He has a customized nap pillow, too.
















Entering the Ontario province (English speaking), it's late afternoon and we should be looking for a place to settle. On Hwy 20 West, then 401, we jumped on the more scenic Thousand Islands Parkway.

What's this? The St. Lawrence Islands Natl Park of Canada , which consists of several mainland properties and more than 20 islands. It is the traditional territory of two distinct aboriginal cultures. The Mallorytown Landing Visitor Center and colorful trail areas look out onto the St. Lawrence River. The area is vacant for the season and seems perfect for our first RV overnighter.

So... here we will stay.
















A Dinner of grilled chicken, hash browns, and roasted beets. And wine, of course. What could be more perfect?





RVTip #1 - don't leave the back window open during a rain storm or your mattress and bedding will get really wet.







At 5:30 am, a bright light woke us up... it was really beautiful!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Sunday, 5/9/2010.

Hi MOM!! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY !! Thinking of you and Brenda celebrating the day together. To Susan and Erin, have a great Mom's Day and also to all the other special Moms out there.

Sitting here in VT thinking about how happy and blessed I am with the family I have!

Here's a photo of yesterday (green trees and mountains), and a photo of today (SNOW!) Nice and warm inside, though, as we continue our projects!

Took a moment with the atlas and tentatively planned our next 3-4 day time period. Leave VT on Tuesday en route to Ottawa. Take Rt 401 through the Thousand Islands region of the St. Lawrence River, then back into the US around Detroit.

...AND DOG MAKES 3

Thursday, 5/6/2010. When Tim asked "do you want to look at RVs?," I immediately sensed another life-altering experience. When he said "there's a few on sale," I took the bait. What was he thinking?... Celebrate the RV Centennial? (the 1st commerically produced RVs debuted in 1910)... Camaraderie? Adventure? (is there more?)...Home away from home? (one more thing to clean).

And so, here we go...a true test of our compatability. Our mode of transportation will be a bit larger, giving Tim more space to pack even more STUFF. We'll be taking a different roadtrip route, and taking Zack..thus, AND DOG MAKES 3 !!

Bye Moose! The 3 of us will miss you so!
Stay off all streets and roofs... and listen to Cory. He will feed you and rub your tummy.

So long Cory! Thanks for taking care of Moose and the house. Enjoy your garden creations, and be sure to rest your vocal cords between karoke nights at Gunthers. XOXO

This is it! We're leaving...for who knows where and for who knows how long.

We do know that Vermont is our 1st destination and 4-day stay so that we can take care of scheduled cleaning, maint&repair at our home in Smuggs.

It's 1pm, beginning mileage 2,442. Npt via 495 to Clearview Expw, 95N, 91N through Conn. and Mass.

The expansive windshield offers a perfect view, but Tim has other things on his mind. Look familiar??

Zack too? At least they trust me driving this thing.

Only one reportable mishap so far... a side compartment door flew open while cruising along a busy highway. The wildly flailing arms of an adjacent driver alerted us and we stopped to lock ALL doors.

WELCOME TO VERMONT.

Not rain, nor snow, nor RV can prevent Tim from driving through the "NOTCH." And somehow he maneuvered through the steep hills, narrow road and rather large rocks.. in the dark.

LARGE ROCK >



Via a comfortable and

safe ride, we have

arrived at Smuggs!