Spring Fling Trip, Day 9

 

1980 Winter Olympics Ski Jumps

Wednesday, May 19, 2021 - Home, Oswego, NY - 199.6 miles, 875.4 Miles For the Trip

A quiet, but smoky night at Wilmington Notch. It is amazing how smoky a fire can be built, and almost always upwind from my trailer.

While I had only used the bathroom for one night, I stopped at the dump station since I don't have a practical way to dump at home. A slow, but uneventful trip through the Adirondacks, mostly on US 3. Before I hit US 3, Matilda (my Garmin) routed me past the foot of the ski jumps built for the 1980 Winter Olympics. I've passed them many times, but never on this road. A good view of what they look like from the bottom of the hill. Quite frankly, you have to be either crazy or very good to ski down from the top of the towers! To get an idea of the scale, check out the yellow backhoe on the hill. Sorry for the power lines - still the best image of them I've been able to get.

I stopped to get a chicken sandwich at the Watertown Walmart. While I am generally not impressed with their prepared meals, the Chicken Salad Croissant was very good.

I arrived home at 2:45. While it hit as high as 83°F on the drive, with the nearby lake cooling it was only 72°F in Oswego. Still, I only moved the essentials into the house - I'll do the rest tomorrow. 

Dinner was cheese & crackers since I ate a late lunch.

Until the next trip. 

Spring Fling Trip. Day 8

The Mount Washington Resort

Tuesday, May 18, 2021 - Wilmington Notch DEC Campground, Wilmington, NY - 281.3 miles, 675.8 Miles For the Trip

I packed up the truck & trailer, said goodbye to the neighbors & Anne & Guido, and headed out a little after 9:00AM. A longer leg than I usually like to make, but my normal DEC Adirondack campground (Lincoln Pond) isn't yet open. Wilmington Notch is next door to Whiteface Mountain Ski area which hosted the  alpine skiing competitions of the 1980 Winter Olympics. I didn't stop at the ski area, but have on past trips. The Olympics was staged all over this area.

I stopped for one photo on the way - The Mount Washington Resort. It reminds me of the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, CO where Stephen King got the idea for his novel - The Shining. Photos of the Stanley on today's page at LakeshoreImages.

After that is was cruising on 2 & 4 lane roads all the way to Wilmington. While the first route the GPS gave me was shorter, it included a ferry ride across Lake Champlain. The one I would have been routed through is currently closed, and the I87 bridge is pretty close to the next one to the North (and doesn't cost $32.00). I arrived at the campground around 3:30.

I'm in site 30 (one I picked out using Reserve America) because it was one of the deepest (30') on the site list that was available. It is pretty much impossible to get into driving North on the access road, but not too bad going South. The site next door that was listed as (20') is deeper. I'm not sure how Reserve America determines the size of the sites, but I'd fit (with the truck attached) in many of the 20' sites (my truck & trailer together are 43' long).

Anyway, a fairly level site front to back and within 1" side to side, as I said, and deep enough to leave the truck attached. A dry (no utilities) site but good sky on the solar panels. Cost is $25.25, $18.00 for the site & a $7.25 reservation fee. Two bathrooms with flush toilets, one with a single shower for 53 sites. A beautiful day, 73°F at 4:45, and in the 70's all day.

I took a short walk around the campground since I didn't do my usual morning walk. After that it was reading Old Bones by Preston & Child on my Kindle. On the drive I listened to Ellis Peter's The Leper of Saint Giles.

Dinner was A Barber Foods Cordon Bleu & a Broccoli & Cheese oven meal. One is not quite enough, two is a bit too much, but since I skipped lunch, I'm hungry enough to eat all of both of them as well as the left over Bush beans. 

Until Tomorrow - 

Spring Fling Trip, day 7

Flood Damaged Dam

 Monday, May 17, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, Day 6 - 0 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip

I did a long walk this morning, and stopped to take a photo of the flood damaged dam and a covered bridge on the road. Not a typical one, but it is covered.

After breakfast Anne, Guido & I headed out to drive to the top of Mount Washington. A pleasant drive, however just in case you need to know, it doesn't open until later in the month. We stopped on the way back for lunch, then spent most of the afternoon talking with neighbors.

Dinner was Spaghetti & Meatballs.

2021 Spring Fling Trip, Page 6

 

The Loon

Sunday, May 16, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, Day 5 - 0 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip

Well, I didn't do a good job of photographing those leaving - between breakfast, sitting around talking, and ducking a couple of brief rain bursts, I never got around to switching lenses. I had my 80 - 400mm lens on the camera after attempting to take photos of a couple of loons on the pond. By the time I managed to get to the truck and switch to the longer lens, they were pretty much out of range, but I do have one rather soft image:

My next scheduled rally is the Algonac State Park in early September, followed by the Wine Escape Rally in Niagara Falls, Ontario (if the border opens), although I will have a couple of trips during the summer.

While the rally has ended, Anne & Guido are staying until Wednesday, and I'm leaving on Tuesday, so we will still have a day or two here at Chocorua.

Dinner was Anne's Chicken & Artichokes.

Spring Fling Trip, Day 5

Saturday, May 15, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, Day 4 - 0 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip 

 Many of us had the KOA breakfast (except Don - they lost his order). After that we walked up to the office to make reservations for next year. It took a couple of tries to get it right, but we are now reserved for 6 days in 2022. I also extended my stay here one day. I thought I had reserved including Monday, but discovered that I only reserved through Sunday. Since I have a Tuesday reservation at Wilmington Notch campground in NY, I decided to extend my stay here for a day. We are still trying to adjust the $ to what was expected... 

 It is a beautiful day with sunshine and temperatures in the low 70's. After showers we had lunch, then sat around for most of the afternoon. I did make another loop around the campground to try to get some photos of people rather than trailers with a little success. After that it was back to sitting around. I started the latest Lee Child The Sentinel borrowed from Don. It is interesting to get back to a real hard covered book. For years I said I'd never read an electronic book, then got a Kindle, and now about 90% of what I read is on it. I haven't held a hard covered book in a year. A bit more difficult to read in the wind & hold in bed than the Kindle, but I still like them.

Dinner was Anne's one pot Scrimp Scampi.

 Until Tomorrow -

Spring Fling Trip, Day 4

 

The Beans & Coleslaw

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, Day 3 - 0 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip

Sorry this is late - I thought I posted it last night but it never happened.

The ceramic disk heater did a little better last night, but its greatest feature, the ability to change speed & wattage with the temperature, doesn't seem to be working. I was a bit warmer by morning with the setting I chose last night, but below the 65°F I planned on. Again, I cranked it up when I got up at 7:00, and by 8:00 it was fine.

I explored the other side of the pond during my morning walk. Lots of vacation cottages, one of which was doing tree work. They started around 7:30AM, and the chipper sounded like it was next door. Caused some early risers at the campground! I did check out the remains of the dam at the end of the pond. Many years ago the pond would have been called a lake & was 20' higher. An attempt was made to use the dam as an electric generating station, but a flood wiped it & the dam out with the lake becoming the pond it is today.

The black flies were not too bad this morning so I ate breakfast sitting at the site's glass table. The tree workers chased me inside while I was enjoying my coffee by starting up the chipper again.

I baked a blueberry pie. While we are not having a pot luck dinner, we are having spaghetti & meatballs with garlic bread supplied by Jerry (the rally host) & I'll bring the pie. While technically it is for Don, Anne & myself, anyone who wants a piece can dig in.

This afternoon Jerry did a cooking demo, making fried corn. A big improvement over straight out of the can.

After that I made another trip around the campground to try to photograph the newer arrivals. This seems to be the year of the Scamp 13. Usually there are one or two, but this year there are close to a dozen. 

While we didn't have a pot luck we also didn't have spaghetti. Jerry rightfully decided in the days of social distancing, standing in line for a spaghetti dinner wouldn't work. Instead, they made delicious baked beans, coleslaw, and garlic bread. An excellent meal followed by (at least for us) blueberry pie. Anne took the remainders home.

Many more photos at the Spring Fling page.

Until Tomorrow - 

Spring Fling Trip, Day 3

Roy, Lia, Anne, Don & Me

Thursday, May 13, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, Day 2 - 0 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip

I tried to set the Pelonis Disk Furnace for 62°F when I went to bed last night, but must have set it a bit lower - woke up to do my 7:00AM eye drops & the outside temperature was 39°F and the trailer was 55°F. I turned it up a bit, went back to sleep,  and by 8:00 it was up to 68°F.

Around 11:00 Roy & Lea stopped by. They are former students that are now living in the area. We chatted for a while, had lunch and some excellent chocolate cookies provided by Lea, and around 2:30 they headed out & Don started an on line class sitting outside the trailer in the Clam using the AT&T cell modem. It is a bit faster than the campground WiFi as well as the Verizon Jetpack.

I made a round of the campground photographing as many of the new arrivals as I could find. Today is the first "official" day of the rally.

I have started a separate page for the rally.

Dinner is just going to be a snack if anything - we had a wine & cheese get together at the pavilion (with masks except while eating) and I'm stuffed.

Until Tomorrow - 

Spring Fling Trip, Day 2

 

Site 48

Site 46

Wednesday, May 12, 2021 - Chocorua Camping Village KOA, Tamworth, 183.8 miles, 394.5 Miles For the Trip

A quiet night. The fountain in the pond at Pine Hollow is lighted - looks great at night. A little after breakfast a pair of Canada Geese moved into the pond, greatly upsetting the ones already here with their goslings. Lots of honking & chasing!

We left a little after 10:00 for the drive to Chocorua. Light rain off & on with more expected tonight here at the campground, but the rest of the week looks good. I'm in site 46, a full hookup, pond side site complete with table, chairs & a Weber gas grill. At $43.20 it is only $.20 more than last night, and a much better price. Of course that is for 5 nights & a rally discount. The Guidos are in site 48 next door.

After setting up we had some old friends visit, talked about all the Covid related changes in the last year, then finished setting up. 

I set up the Clam for the first time (other that a test in my back yard). No problems. I put my aluminum table inside & will use if for the grill if it rains during dinner. Otherwise, it will be the campground provided grill.

I took a short walk around the campground, but will not be putting in my 2 miles, at least not today. My poor Apple Watch will be disappointed! They have made many changes to the pavilion, including a new kitchen & cooking area. The septic system is not finished for the kitchen, so it isn't quite usable, but will be very nice when finished. 

We cooked Bubba Burgers & Bush Hickory Beans on the campground grill, and Birdseye frozen Asparagus, corn & carrots in the microwave for dinner.

Until Tomorrow - 

Spring Fling Trip, Day 1

 

Mom, Dad and the Kids

Anne & Guido

Me

Tuesday, May 11, 2021 - Pine Hollow Campground, Pownal, VT, 210.7 miles, 210.7 Miles For the Trip

I did my morning walk a bit early at 7:30, packed the rest of the truck & trailer, ate breakfast and gave the birds their last feeder filling for the week. The blue jays are feasting this week - about 15 of them. They go through 2 gallons of black oil sunflower seed each day. I'd starve them but I like to feed the smaller birds so I keep refilling the feeders. It will all be gone by Thursday. They even eat the suet I leave for the woodpeckers.

Since it is around 380 miles to the Chocorua Camping Village KOA where the Spring Fling is held, and I prefer to drive between 150 & 200 miles per day, I decided to break the trip into two days. We usually stay at the Broken Wheel campground in Petersburg, NY but they were not answering their phone or replying to emails to determine if they were open, so we went a couple of miles across the border into Vermont. Their web page now states they are going to open on May 7th, but we decided to try something new and made reservations at Pine Hollow. A bit more expensive at $43.00 for a water & electric site (Broken Wheel was $36.00 in 2019). I'm in site 36. It is almost level side to side and dead level front to back, with a little gravel & mostly grass. I was able to leave the truck connected. The campground looks to be a seasonal set up, with empty trailers already in at least half the sites. The owner said they are not actually open for the season, but in the process of opening. A pond or small lake with a central fountain behind the sites.

We is myself & Anne & Guido, friends that I often travel with and are in site 35 next door.

I arrived around 2:30 & the Guidos around 3:30. A little chilly out at 54°F and a bit of wind, but nice and warm in the trailer. I have both an AT&T & Verizon data connection, however the Verizon is stronger & faster so I'm using it. 

After setting up I took a couple of photos of a Canada Goose family.

More photos at today's LakeshoreImages post.

Dinner will be a shrimp something or other made by Anne.

Until Tomorrow - 

Spring Fling 2021 Trip

Getting Ready, Day 0

It has been a very quiet year, at least as far as trips with the trailer. Due to Covid, I spent the entire year home in Oswego. Since I'm now fully vaccinated, and rallies are starting up again, I made reservations for the 2021 Spring Fling in New Hampshire.

I have done some work on the trailer. I now have 3 Battleborn 100 amp hour 12V lithium batteries, about all that will fit under the rear bench seat in the trailer. I've also changed the thermostat from the finicky Dometic Capacitive Touch version to a Micro-Air Easy Touch. The Micro-Air thermostat has both Bluetooth & WiFi connectivity, as well as a much better touch surface compared to the Dometic.

This weekend was spent packing the trailer using my packing list (without it I'm likely to leave something important out). After adding everything except for a hundred pounds or so of stuff that has to wait until the day I'm leaving, I headed to the nearest CAT scale to check the truck & trailer weights:

With Trailer Attached

Steer Axle         3080

Drive Axle   3240

Trailer Axle   4160

TOTAL         10480

Truck Alone

Steer Axle 3280

Drive Axle 2540

TOTAL         5820

So:

Trailer             4660

Tongue          500

All well within ratings, although I do have to watch staying below the trailer's GVW of 5000 pounds.

Another update, at least for the truck was to replace my discontinued Garmin NUVI 3580 with a Garmin RV 890. The 890 is actually an Android 8" tablet that Garmin modifies. The large screen shows much more of the stuff surrounding your route which makes it more like the old Street Atlas PC based system I used years ago. It can also be programed with your RV information which will attempt to avoid roads & bridges where you won't fit. While this is generally not a problem for my small, low trailer, I still put the information into the unit. It also includes the POIs for the Ultimate Public Campground Project list, one of the apps I use on my phone for finding campgrounds.

So, until the first update on Tuesday -