Our US Travels

[moonlitcoyote]

Well we finally managed to take off this afternoon about 1:pm. The gas and propane was full, we filled the water tank and away we went. The weather didn't co-operate and it started raining just as we left and hasnt stopped yet. We drove 195 miles to Walpole MA without incident. YEAH!! We did get stuck in rush hour traffic tho around Boston. The plan now is to drive from about noon until 4pm then stop for the night to make dinner, bathe the little tyke and get some sleep.

One hitch we did run into though, I never get around to replacing my heater core. So every time the windows fogged I had to blast cold air from the defrost onto it, which just about froze me to death I hope the rain stops before we hit the road tomorrow.

[tiinytina]

Good luck.. I'll be opening the dog house tomorrow to find my over heat at idle issue.... our defroster is the batch of white terry towels on the dash... LOL...

Tina

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Our heater and defroster work, but we also keep a small squeegie right where I can reach it to swipe the insides of the windows dry...works great, especially when you have 2 big mouth breather dogs filling the air with condensate...lol!

In the rain or on cold days that little squeegie is the way to go...gets the inside of the windows clear of fog and condensate in a jiffy.

We were also going to hit the road yesterday, but I hate driving in the rain.  Today is supposed to be much nicer weather so we'll be hitting the road around 9am.

Safe travels!

Kev

[moonlitcoyote]

OH Lordy, I am SOOOO LOST. We were supposed to stop at a walmart in Norwalk CT but it was so small there was no where to park. So we continued onto my next option for stopping, the Darien service plaza.. The were closed for renovation . My son tried to find me a walmart using the gps on my phone but we are now thoroughly lost somewhere in NY and the Homebago decided to start over-heating. I managed to find a big empty office building parking lot to stop and cool the rig down, so now to figure out where we are and where to go

[Froggy1936]

I have found that when you make planes to stop something always goes wrong then cascades into chaos ! I think this is the travel gods laughing at us for planning .   I have a small 12V (plugs into cig lighter)  Defroster fan blows warm/hot air Does a terriffic job at those times syestems fail to do the job  Frank

[HandyDan]

Hope you get through New York okay. All the roads lead south, but iust don't get on a road that takes you to Long Island or you may have a lot of driving to nowhere.  Get some antifreeze and keep dumping it in, you're going to need it. 

[moonlitcoyote]

Well once the rig cooled down we checked the antifreeze level and it was full, so I have no idea why it was over-heating. We managed to finally figure out how to get back onto I-95 and somehow missed NYC. We ended up going through the Bronx instead and finally found a good service plaza with plenty of truck parking in Ridgefield,NJ. .. Went inside to get some cash from an ATM for tolls tomorrow and my card was deactivated. I managed to call the banks 1-800 number and found out that the gas station I stopped at earlier today had somehow declined my card too many times so they deactivated the card. But we got it straightened out thank god, I thought I was going to be stuck here until at least Monday.

Oh yeah, when I gassed up earlier I found that I got 8.4 mpg. Better than the 6 I thought I would get but not as good as I was hoping. We did climb alot of hills though, so I am going to check it next time I fill up too.

Frank, I want one of those 12v defroster fans, any clue where you got it?

[Oz]

You can get those plug in defrosting fans at most any Auto store, most likely at truck stops, and even Wal-Mart carries them.

Call ahead to make sure so you don't waste a trip.

[moonlitcoyote]

AH, we have arrived in Rosedale MD, I am now kissing the ground thanking my lucky starts we made it this far. We headed out around 11:am today and everything was running perfectly. I cannot tell you how happy I am that we have not had any malfunctions yet. Since we got lost in NY yesterday we someone got off I-95 and ended up on the New Jersey turnpike instead, a $43 toll.. Glad I went to the ATM yesterday. DAMN ! The next toll before we got back onto I95 was another $20, no take out for us tonight .

So the driving was pretty easy keeping it at 55mph UNTIL we hit the Deleware bridge, OMG that thing is so high in the air it was like driving through the clouds. And it was so windy I had a strangle hold on the steering wheel and still was blown all over 3 lanes. I do NOT want to come back that way.

So we will probably head out about 11:00 again tomorrow and right now I think I am going to try and stop in Ruther Glenn, VA but will have to wait and see what happens. We are having difficulties finding places to park over night. We had originally stopped in Abingdon, MD today at a wal-mart but even though they had a HUGE empty parking lot, they told us we couldnt park over night.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Yeah, the tolls up north can be pretty high for an RV, since they hit you for every axle, including the ones on the tow vehicle!  Worse for us, since our RV has 3 axles by their reckoning!  Biggest toll we got hit with so far, in New York, was 37.00 bucks!  When I asked what they were smoking, that particular toll plaza not only went by number of axles, but by your total length as well...yikes!

Then there is the Jersey Turnpike, where they not only hit you for a toll coming on and off the highway, there are toll plazas every 30 miles or so...highway robbers!

The one toll I never mind paying at almost any price is the toll for the Chesapeak Bay bridge tunnel system...if you are coming from the Virginia Beach area to the northeast, this cuts off miles and miles and hours and hours and is worth every penny...and its pretty neat driving in what appears to be the middle of the ocean, then diving down under it into the long tunnels...then back up at ocean level, etc...almost feels like being in a submarine again...lol!

And don't be mad at the Walmart.  Its not the store that sets the policy, its the county.  Every Walmart WANTS RVers to park there overnight because they know we are going to go in and spend money and stock up on stuff.  Some jerky counties though don't like us RVers, or else they want us to go spend our money at campgrounds.  My guess is that the counties that don't allow the overnight parking have campground owners on the council seat!

And the same thing happened with our debit card on this last trip.  Too many gas stops in different states and they froze our account for fraud.  A phone call settled it right away, but it can be frustrating and annoying, although its nice knowing that Chase keeps our account secure so thoroughly.  We just wish they would call us before freezing the funds...since this is the fourth time its happened on our road trips...couldn't they just call us and ask if its us using the card?  There is even a note on our account about how we travel all over the country, but they still shut it down sometimes and we have to call them.

Keep on driving and have a safe and uneventful...mechanically...trip!  Its a lot warmer down south right now than it is in Maine!

Kev

[HandyDan]

You never truly know your Motorhome or the hiccups in your planning until you are at least 100 miles from home.  But, thank goodness for good fortune because we usually come through the problem okay and carry on.  Hope the rest of your travels are worry free.  There are a couple of websites devoted to Walmart overnighting.  Walmart itself is not the problem with refusal to stay in their parking lot.  As Kevin said, it is usually the local government that sets the rule.  I live within 10 miles of three Walmarts and all three allow overnighting.  There are campers there quite frequently.  They don't bother anyone and no one bothers them.  However, don't call it "camping".  You are just "resting".  Some people get bent out of shape over whether it is polically correct to lower "leveling jacks" (well, Kevin couldn't), or putting out the awning, or opening the slides (most vintage folks don't have to worry about that one!), or sitting outside in lawn chairs.  I've seen it all done at the local Walmarts and nobody seems to care except the other rv owners that think it is "improper".  I don't think I would start a campfire or dump my tanks in the sewer drain.  Good Luck with your trip.  Wish I was going along. 

[moonlitcoyote]

Thanks guys.

I did pay for and download an app for my phone on wal-mart over nighting but it was WRONG, because the one we were told no at was listed as a yes you can overnight.

Anyways, we are just taking a short break right now in VA and then we will head back out. We are only doing a short trip today because the baby is getting fed up of being buckled in all day.

[Oz]

After Washington, D.C. it's all smooth, quiet cruising the rest of the way!

[moonlitcoyote]

Thats great to hear Mark. I was extremely nervous before heading out but feeling much better now. I sure will be glad to leave the big cities behind tho. The traffic at times is awful. We are now stopped at a Flying J in Ruther Glenn VA, Got laundry done, vacuuming done, showered and now enjoying some relaxation. The weather is much nicer too.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Gotta love the Flying Js!  We actually plan our trips out west around them...X amount of miles until we pull into the next Flying J for the night, etc.

Keep safe, and fair weather, low winds, and a mechanically uneventful trip to you!

Kev

[moonlitcoyote]

We have arrived at a flying J in Kenly N.C and the weather is HOT and HUMID, but much better than freezing in Northern Maine.

No major mishaps with the Homebago BUT the homemade baseplate we had made for the car has somehow stripped out a few bolts. So hubby has been driving the car today and will continue to drive it until we arrive in Georgia where we will have more time to look into it. Small problem with the winny that I will post in the appropriate section to get help with is the smell of exhaust or gas while driving.
Tomorrow we are heading for Lake Marion SC or somewhere around there. Just 2 more days should see us in Baxley Georgia

MJ

[Froggy1936]

MJ Be extremely careful with the little one and possible exaust fumes The small body cannot handle them as well as larger people Any sign of headache and or upset stomache is bad !!  Fresh air is only cure till body processes Carbon Monoxide  posining   Serious stuff   Frank

[moonlitcoyote]

I know Frank, thats why I opened all the windows. I just couldnt for the life of me figure out exactly what it smelled like. It just seemed like a mix of things and for some reason today my doghouse didnt want to stay down so I am sure that wasnt helping. I am going to have to find some bolts for the doghouse so I can keep all the engine smells out of the winny.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Hope you missed all the rain and storms...we had a really doozie down here near Charlotte, NC yesterday afternoon. 

Our doghouse just sits in place as well, although I did find a bunch of the rubber tie downs...they look like mini versions of the ones used to hold my Jeep hood down...at a junkyard, but haven't installed them yet.  We never get any noise or fumes from it though, so it hasn't been a priority.

Keep on truckin'!  And have a safe and pleasant rest of the trip.

Kev

[moonlitcoyote]

Hubby just picked up a job in Chattanooga TN so we are going to start  heading west. He has to be there for the 10th so we should have plenty of time. Got to hit the road now.

It's 2:20pm now and we just stopped to take a break. The smell has disappeared by closing the drivers and passenger window. But I am getting really worried, I have been using cruise control the whole way but I stepped on the gas today to get up a hill and the engine started chugging. I havent done any work to the engine since I bought it so I'm thinking if/when we make it to Chattanooga I need to check things out. I dont like the chugging for sure.

[DonD]

Chugging uphill, may be the fuel filter BTDT. Easy fix.

[moonlitcoyote]

Oh what a day, I am exhausted.

It all started about 11:pm last night when the baby woke up scratching. He came down with a rash 2 days ago which I thought was just a heat rash and it would go away. When he refused to go to sleep unless I stood there scratching his back for him, I decided a trip to the ER would be beneficial. So away we went. 2.5 hours of kicking and screaming later from a boy that hates doctors and  the docs somewhat agreed that it was either hives or some sort of eczema. SO they gave him a dose of steroids and a dose of benadryl. We finally got back to the Homebago about 2:am and got the baby back into bed asleep. I managed to finally pass out about 3:00, then got woken at 7:30 from a boy that doesnt understand the concept of sleeping in.

So instead of heading out first thing this morning, we had to head into wal-mart to get his prescription filled, got him medicated and slathered with some lotion. Then fought with him for 30 minutes to get into his car seat so we could head out. Over tired munchkins are no fun to deal with.

We finally pulled out about noon, stopped to gas up and let the dogs out. Then finally got on the highway towards Georgia. We decided the best route was to go down into GA on 85 then head north to Chattanooga. After we crossed into S.C it was constant up hill, down hill. I managed to maintain 55 up hill but it was still chugging on the steeper hills.

We finally managed to pull into a wal-mart in Commerce GA about 5:30 tonight. Got dinner made, baby bathed and into bed then headed into wal-mart. We had to pick up a set of Lynx blocks (someone forgot to pack the 2x4's). Now it's 9:15 and all I want to do is sleep. Tomorrow we should hit Chattanooga TN. So I really need to figure out where we are going to park/camp out.

Good night Y'all !! 

MJ

[moonlitcoyote]

WE didnt make it to Chattanooga yet, the laundry bag was full and I needed a shower after all the heat so we only drove 2.5 hours today to a flying J. Got the laundry done, showered and enjoyed some relaxation. Tomorrow we shall reach our final destination of Hollywood,AL. Just got to hope there is a campground somewhere close by.

[4winds]

There is at least one CG just past Scotsboro,Al on Hwy 72W.  Then there is our favorite at Guntersville-Little Mountain Marina, Langston,Al.  Call me at 205-567-3663.  Ed.

[Oz]

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