2019 - East

This trip ended sooner than expected because of some health issues.  The 17 days of travel we did have were enjoyable and memorable because of the people we visited and met on the way.

Travel Trivia

We drove 2,507 miles (2,236 miles towing) and got 14.4 mpg on this trip.

The total for the past 12 years is 105,455 miles driven (89,904 miles of towing) and 415 trailer set-ups.

Expectations

We expected to visit Dick's brother and sister in Vermont and then travel down the east coast to Florida (visiting family and friends along the way) and return home.  The vision was too optimistic.

Special Sights & Experiences

* Visiting with brother Dave and sister Bobbie in Milton, VT.

* Having a 2nd visit to Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park.

* Visiting the Maine Maritime Museum at Bath, ME.

* Rainbow Sweets Bakery & Cafe in Marshfield, VT ... and owner/actor Bill.

* Getting to return to three campgrounds we've stayed in before.

* Dot's Restaurant in Wilmington, VT., server Lisa, picturesque town.

* We met some delightful strangers.

* Beautiful weather ... not too hot, not too cold, not too rainy.

Disappointments

* We came home too soon.

Problems

* Fresh water tank leaking again.

* Dome shade (stained and bent) needs to be replaced.

Our Next Trip

No decision yet.

2018 - Kentucky

Travel Trivia
We drove 2,897 miles (1,593 miles towing) and got 14.4 mpg on this trip.

The total for the past 11 years is 105,455 miles driven (87,462 miles of towing) and 405 trailer set-ups.

This trip was different in that we did more trailer-less excursions than in the past.  The trailer was only connected 55.5% of the time.

Special Sights & Experiences
  * Civil War history throughout Kentucky
  * Grand Canyon of the South
  * Lincoln's birthplace
  * The Bourbon Trail
  * Downtown Paducah and the floodwall

Disappointments
  * None

Problems
  * The heat, humidity and heavy rain resulted in some uncomfortable days.
  * The rear Fantastic Fan didn't close during a rain storm at the Breaks Interstate Park.
  * Had to replace the Kobalt tire inflator.
  * Got locked out of the Durango on the last day of the trip.

Our Next Trip
We have no ideas at this point.

2017 - Southwest

It's taken three weeks to wrap our minds around a summary of this trip.

It would be easy to focus on having a flat tire on the trailer, a trip to an emergency room to treat Dick's chigger bites, multiple intense rain/hail storms, a leak in a fan frame, a detour to avoid fires in Oregon and the nine days the Durango spent in a body shop recovering from a Portland accident.  But those memories would dim many glorious memories.

The southwest is packed with adventure and many wonderful sights.  We were able to experience many of both.

Travel Trivia
We drove 8,348 miles (7,341 miles towing) and got 14.0 mpg on this trip.

The total for the past 10 years is 102,558 miles driven (83,921 miles of towing) and 395 trailer set-ups.

Expectations
We had hoped to re-visit places of past delight and travel new, out-of-the way routes ... and did.

Special Sights & Experiences
  * Traveled the Natchez Trace Parkway
  * Traveled the Gulf Coast from Houston to Corpus Christi
  * Stayed in Seminole Canyon State Park near the Texas/Mexico border
  * Lake Amistad
  * Fort Davis National Historic Site
  * McDonald Observatory
  * Bandelier National Monument near Los Alamos, NM
  * Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe, NM
  * Hovenweep National Monument
  * Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam
  * Traveled the Trail of  the Ancients (US-160)
  * Vermilion Cliffs
  * Grand Staircase-Escalante
  * Traveled the Scenic Byway 12 (including the "no berm" Hogsback)
  * Capitol Reef National Park
  * Bend and Sisters, OR
  * Stayed in a number of exceptional campgrounds

Disappointments
We had hoped to wander around in southeastern Arizona (in the Tombstone and Bisbee area) and get a closeup view of the Wave in the Vermilion Cliffs area near Page, Arizona.

We missed the first because we avoided the sweltering 110° temperatures in the area and the second because of poor planning.

Close Calls
  * Came within 13 miles of running out of gas when we filled-up at Sydney, NE.
  * Came within 0.3 gallons of running out of propane when we got home.

Problems
  * Fresh water tank has a slow leak (we knew of it before we left, have to fix it).
  * Fantastic Fan frame leaked after a heavy rain (Airstream dealer's repair didn't work).
  * Trailer tire flat caused by a screw.
  * Durango front end damage caused by a street barrier.

Our Next Trip
We're considering a new approach ... drive fewer miles and see more sights.  For example: go to a state (Kentucky?) and explore as much as we can.

2016 - Alaska

Whew!  The next time we go to the store we better take a map. Here’s a summary of what happened on the way.

About Alaska

We had some impressions and expectations of Alaska when we started out on this journey. They came from many sources, current and dated. It’s safe to say nearly all were wrong.

We made intentional stops at Tok, Chicken, Fairbanks, Denali Park, Anchorage, Kenai, Homer, Ninilchik, Seward, Glacier View and Valdez. None were alike. They varied from old to new, small to large, mountainous to seacoast, remote to bustling.

The highways in Alaska are in very good condition. They rival some of the best highways we’ve seen in the lower 48. Highway construction and maintenance is well managed and on par with the rest of the country. The horror stories we heard about the highways must have been about the Alcan Highway in Canada ... it wasn’t as bad there as we heard, but close.

There’s so much to take in up here: the geography, terrain, wildlife, weather, Russian cultural influence, First Nation heritage, economy, extended daylight, and the lifestyle. I hope we observed with reverence and didn’t offend.

We went as far north as Fairbanks and as far west and south as possible by car.

Travel Trivia

We drove 12,036 miles (10,886 miles towing) and got 14.6 mpg on this trip.

The total for the past 9 years is 92,054 miles driven (76,445 miles of towing) and 360 trailer set-ups.

The Dodge Durango (V-6) got better gas mileage than on any trip with the Chevy Trailblazer (V-8) and had absolutely no problem with mountain towing.

Expectations

We experienced something quite unexpected when we came out of Canada … we call it WWS (Wilderness Withdrawal Syndrome). We felt like we were leaving a serene retreat and being jolted by a raucous world. Guess that means we really enjoyed our journey to the Last Frontier.

Special Sights & Experiences

* Driving through a snowstorm between Ft. St. John and Ft. Nelson, BC

* Crossing Summit Pass on the Alcan

* Denali National Park

* Lake Hood float plane base in Anchorage

* Columbia Glacier and Wildlife cruise out of Valdez

* The hike to Montgomery Glacier

* The Cassiar Highway

* Seeing totem poles in Teslin, YT and Hazelton, BC

* Fraser Canyon north of Hope, BC

* Etc., etc., etc.

Useful Things

The Milepost (it’s useful in AK, AB, BC, YT and NT)

Mosquito repellent (though we only used it a few times)

Useless Things

Bear spray

Northern Lights Coupon Book

Disappointments

* We missed the midnight baseball game in Fairbanks.

* We should have taken the 12 hour Kantishna Experience Tour at Denali.

Problems

* TPMS monitor stopped displaying trailer tire pressures.

* Fresh water tank developed a slow leak.

* Rear Fantastic Fan frame leaked during heavy rain.

* A/C ran, but wouldn’t cool.

* Replaced a few internal rivets.

* Replaced a fuse in the rear Fantastic Fan.

* A few small stone chips on the car hood

Our Next Trip

We may go somewhere later this year or early next. No decision yet.

2015 - Oregon

Well now ... this was a fun trip. It was also our 11^th “long” trip and our 26^th camping outing to-date.  

Travel Trivia
We drove 6,701 miles (6,195 miles towing) and got 12.3 mpg on this trip.

The total for the past 8 years is 80,018 miles driven (65,501 miles of towing) and 311 trailer set-ups.

This trip was different in that we did far fewer trailer-less excursions than in the past. The trailer was connected to the car 92.4% of the time ... which explains the drop in fuel economy.

Special Sights & Experiences
 * Smoke-filled valleys and ash fallout in Montana
 * A dust storm in western Washington
 * Surprise connection and lunch with Cheryl Patchet in Hood River, OR
 * Visiting with family in Oregon and Colorado
 * Discovering Lassen Volcanic National Park
 * Returning to the Arches National Park

Disappointments
 * Missing a connection with our friend Adele Amos

Problems
 * Trailer tire tread separation
 * Damaged driver-side mirror

Our Next Trip
Alaska keeps bubbling to the top in our discussions. Maybe.

2014 - Canada

We’ve just finished our 10^th “long” trip. It’s time to reflect on the experience.

Travel Trivia

In the past 7 years we’ve driven 62,162 miles (59,306 miles towing) and set-up the trailer 283 times.

Trip Summary

This year we’ve driven 14,143 miles (11,263 miles towing) during trips in Ohio and Canada.

This trip we drove 11,115 miles (9,092 miles towing) and got 13.2 mpg.

Special Sights & Experiences

In Canada - we visited 9 provinces.
   * Bay of Fundy tides in St. John, NB.
   * Hopewell Rocks near Hopewell Cape, NB
   * Prince Edward Island (our postcard province)
   * North Cape on PEI
   * Fortress of Louisbourg in Louisbourg, NS
   * Cabot Trail on Cape Breton Island, NS
   * Reissers Beach Provincial Campground near LaHave, NS
   * Lunenburg, NS
   * Fort William Historical Park in Thunder Bay, ON
   * Parliament Hill in Ottawa, ON
   * Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, AB
   * We really enjoyed the scenery and the people we met

In the U.S. - we traveled through 15 states.
   * Ledge View RV Park in Lake George, NY
   * Ferry ride across Lake Champlain
   * Brother Dave’s hockey game
   * Festival of Fools in Burlington, VT
   * We chased goats, fed chickens and fixed electric fences 
            (at Kenny and Barb’s farm in Dundee, OR)
   * We visited Eric in Salem, OR
   * We enjoyed our Portland area families and got exhausted by grandchildren.
   * Mormon Tabernacle Choir broadcast in Salt Lake City, UT
   * Timberline Campground in Waukee, IA

Disappointments

We spent a lot of time driving in Canada ... wish we had spent more time sightseeing.

We were uncomfortable in Quebec because of the language difference.

Problems
Engine check light on the Trailblazer

Our Next Trip

We’re planning to review our past travel blogs and identify places we said we’d like to visit again. We’ll include places we wanted to see, but missed for one reason or another. We’ll use some, most or all of the list to create a “2015 Do-Over” trip.

This approach may sound silly, but it gives us a good reason to get back on the road to somewhere.

2014 - Ohio State Campgrounds

The Plan

"Do not follow where the path may lead.  Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

That's what we're doing this spring.  We're going to wander the state in an attempt to visit and rate every state campground.  The quest may seem like nonsense, but it's been a long, cold winter.  It's time to get outside.

Trip Summary

We left on April 21st and returned May 16th.

This trip was dramatically different from our earlier trips. For starters, we drove 2,988 miles and never left the state.

The basics

• 21 days of travel
• 2,988 miles of driving
• 2,171 miles of towing
• 13.0 mpg
• We visited 52 state campgrounds and stayed in 9 of them
• We bypassed 3 state campgrounds because they're on Lake Erie islands

Conclusions

• We probably visited at the worst and the best times. It was the worst time because we saw them out of season; most camp offices were closed and much of the spring maintenance hadn't been done early in the trip. It was the best time because we could look around at our own pace without disturbing anyone and we could observe more and more camp offices opening as we continued through the trip.

• In our opinion

             15 were exceptional

             21 were nice

             16 were not so nice

• Our opinion isn't worth much to campers because we prefer traveling to camping. We don't use most campground amenities. We're happy with electricity, water, flush toilets and hot showers, and can do nicely with just electricity and water.

• Ohio has made a huge investment in sharing its natural beauty. There are 73 state parks, 55 appear to be suitable for trailer camping. Unfortunately, the effect of current budget constraints is visible in some of the park system.

• Each state campground seemed to have its own personality. That personality was strongly influenced by the campground staff. We were welcomed warmly by district office staff, camp office staff and maintenance workers alike. Most were committed to their work and pleased to be able to do it.

• State campgrounds are generally well placed for campers, but are relatively inaccessible for travelers. Most required long drives on secondary roads.

• Area attractions presented tempting distractions during the trip. They made it difficult to maintain focus on our campground investigations.

• With one exception, we found each state campground by driving to the location of the related state park as shown on an Ohio road map. We couldn't find the Muskingum River State Campground that way.

• This was a fun trip. Now we have to figure out what to do with all we learned.