Monday, May 15, 2017

Day 6, Monday, May 15, 2017, Thompsons Lake State Park, NY

Site 51
Monday, May 15, 2017, Thompsons Lake State Park, NY, 195.5 miles, 717.4 Miles For the Trip

We had a little rain at the start of the trip, but it cleared as we crossed Vermont & into NY. We stopped for the day at Thompsons Lake State Park in NY so we could visit with Don & Anne's daughter & grandkids. We are in sites 51 & 52, dry sites near the bathrooms for $17.25 per night.

After setting up (at least Don't trailer - I left mine attached), we all headed to see their huge house (they need it since they have two St Bernards), gathered the grandkids & headed to a diner for dinner. I had fried shrimp that were huge, but very good, along with a salad with excellent honey mustard dressing.

Back at the campground I decided it would be warmer tonight (at 8:00) for a shower than it would be in the morning. There is only one shower & it is in the family bathroom. Unfortunately, the family bathroom is unheated, while the standard bathrooms (without showers) are warm as toast. Makes for a long shower (you hate to get out) and a very quick drying!

That is about it for today, and, for that matter, the trip. Tomorrow Don & Anne will head to Binghamton, while I head back home to Oswego.

Until Tomorrow -

Saturday, May 13, 2017

Day 4, Saturday, May 13, 2017, Chocorua KOA Campground, Tamworth, NH, Day 3

Saturday, May 13, 2017, Chocorua KOA Campground, Tamworth, NH, Day 3, 0 miles, 403.6 Miles For the Trip

I slept in this morning - didn't eat breakfast until around 9:30. The loon never made an appearance last night; we almost miss the noise! While it wasn't a real warm day today, at least the predicted rain held off. It still hasn't started at 8:00PM.

We went for a 2 mile walk on a couple of the trails along the lake during the rest of the morning. During the afternoon I showed the trailer to a couple of couples, including a couple that, like me, bought an Escape 17B sight unseen that they will be picking up in October. They were glad to get a look at one before their build sheet is due.

Since we had a large lunch, we split a small pizza for dinner, after which we had ice cream & all the fixings at the KOA clubhouse. It has been a long time since I had a hot fudge Sunday!

One of the founders of the campground & cabins on the lake gave a talk about the history of the area, after which I headed back to the trailer to call it a night. No photos for the day.

Until Tomorrow -

Thursday, May 11, 2017

Day 2, Thursday, May 11, 2017, Chocorua KOA Campground, Tamworth, NH

Sites 97 & 96
Thursday, May 11, 2017, Chocorua KOA Campground, Tamworth, NH, 195.6 miles, 403.6 Miles For the Trip

It only got down to 40°F last night, and with the bright sun it was pleasant sitting outside at the picnic table in the morning. By the way, dinner was an excellent chicken, mushroom & Pasta primavera that Anne just threw together. Here is a site photo that shows both of us:

We headed out around 9:30, mostly on secondary roads across eastern NY, all of Vermont, and into New Hampshire. We arrived at Cholorua KOA around 1:00 after a stop at a Hannaford grocery store for some supplies. We are in sites 96 & 97 (I'm in 97), back in water & electric sites (with cable TV) for $39.00 per night. A bit tough to get into each site, but very nice locations right on the lake.

After setting up, we walked around the campground. There are already a number of fiberglass trailers here for the rally, including 4 Olivers. I took a few photos during the walk around:

Additional photos at today's LakeshoreImages page.

Dinner was spaghetti, meatballs & sausage.

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Day 1, Wednesday, May 10, 2017, Broken Wheel Campground, Petersburg, NY

Site 26
Wednesday, May 10, 2017, Broken Wheel Campground, Petersburg, NY, 208 miles, 208 Miles For the Trip

This trip will be to the "Spring Fling New England Rally" in Chocorua, NH, May 11 - 14. I will be meeting the Guidos at the Broken Wheel Campground in Petersburg, NY on the 10th & arriving at the Chocorua KOA on the 11th.

I got a call from Anne & they don't expect to get to the Broken Wheel until late, so I paid for & sent them directions to the site. We are in water & electric sites for $32.00 per night. The sites are grass, almost level (I had to raise one side be an inch & run up the hitch jack a couple of inches), but could leave the truck hitched.

Bathrooms are not too far away, but I don't think showers are in order - no heat & it is barely into the 50's at 3:00. After setting up I walked around the campground. Most of the sites are permanent trailers, and only a few owners escaping Florida's heat are here. A pretty location.

Dinner will depend on whether Don & Anne arrive by dinner time. If not, I'll microwave an Amy's Thai Pad Thai dinner. I just got a text from Anne that they expect to be here at 6:00, so I'll wait for them.

Until Next Time-

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Day 184, Tuesday, May 2, 2017, Home, Oswego, NY

Home At Last!
Tuesday, May 2, 2017, Home, Oswego, NY, 111 miles, 8,543.6 Miles For the Trip

Well, I'm home, and, as usual, a little late with the last post of the trip.

We had a severe thunderstorm go through Binghamton overnight, with 60MPH winds, heavy rain, and lots of trees, branches, etc down. Don lost one pine tree that was nice enough to fall in the opposite direction from the trailer. I did manage to post the Monday journal to Blogger, although I had some problems (now fixed) with the LakeshoreImages post do to internet outages.

On the way back to Oswego I stopped at Seven O's to pick up a Dometic refrigerator hinge they ordered for me. Other than that, it was a quick and uneventful drive between Binghamton & Oswego. It is much cooler here than in the South! The daffodils & narcissus are just out, and the cherry & crab apple tree are in full bloom. The grass is just about ready for the first cut. Some Spring photos at today's LakeshoreImages Page.

My first project was to pack up the parts for the new trailer that had been shipped to Oswego & send them to Escape Trailer Industries in Chilliwack, BC. $53.95 to send 8 pounds, with delivery in 8-10 days. As I mentioned in a previous post, the original pick up date for the new Escape 21 was October 6th, moved to September 20th, and again moved to August 16th. I doubt it will move up much more since they want a 3 month planning & build window.

I went to see my doctor, and my wrist isn't broken, but needs some PT to get it back to full movement without pain.

Some trip statistics -

184 days, $3,176.51 total for campsites or an average of $17.45 per night, $1828.02 for fuel (823.54 gallons) for an average price of @2.22 per gallon, 8,543.6 towing miles and a total of 11,340 combined towing/non towing miles on the truck. Average towing mileage was a little under 13MPG, and 13.8 overall MPG for the trip. So far I have slept 1,084 nights in the trailer & towed it 85,846.6 miles. I wore out the 3rd set of tires on the trailer & will have a set of Goodyear Endurance (a new, US made trailer tire) tires put on tomorrow.

While I may do a post or two on getting the trailer ready for sale, the next ( and final for the 17B) trip will be to the "Spring Fling New England Rally" in Chocorua, NH, May 11 - 14. I will be meeting the Guidos at the Broken Wheel Campground in Petersburg, NY on the 10th & arriving at the Chocorua KOA on the 11th.

Until Next Time-

Monday, May 1, 2017

Day 183, Monday, May 1, 2017, Don & Anne's, Binghamton, NY

Don & Anne's
Monday, May 1, 2017, Don & Anne's, Binghamton, NY, 164.3 miles, 8,432.6 Miles For the Trip

Another late start. I dumped the tanks & rinsed them well since I don't plan to use them again until next trip. I also made use of the free air at the campground - the trailer tires were down around 5 PSI with the lower altitude & cooler temperatures.

A very foggy drive for the first 50 miles or so, but after that it just turned into a cloudy day. Predictions for strong thunderstorms both at the campground & at Binghamton, but no rain for the trip. I arrived in Binghamton around 1:00. We sat around and chatted most of the afternoon.

The campsite photo is the front of their house. Notice the Scamp in the background. We will both be heading to a rally in New Hampshire on the 11th. As of today, I have been on the road for 6 months!

Dinner was an actual home cooked meal by Anne - chicken with artichokes.

Until tomorrow -