A RAMBLING: FIRST DAYTRIP OUT AFTER NOT QUITE POST COVID-19

 It has been a year and a half since we took a trip in the Roadtrek. We have taken it for two hour drives sporadically while we were on lockdown due to Covid-19 to keep it running and I have been running the engine for thirty minutes every week. It has been to the mechanic twice for inspection and maintenance, and recently had new tires put on. We had expected to be off on a week long trip the week before July 4th. We had reservations made a year ago at the campground we spend that week at every year and attend a festival that I have been attending annually since I was a boy. This year, again, like last year, that festival was cancelled. We were going to go anyway until we saw that the weather was to be high heat and high humidity with severe storms predicted almost daily where we were going. On top of that other places that we go to in the area were running on limited hours due to Covid and some were not open at all.   We decided to change the reservation and wound up changing it to next year.  But as I told Meryl, we must take the Roadtrek on a long trip even if it is only for one day and back that night.  It had to be driven and we had to see that all was working as it should be - as at some point, hopefully, this summer we are going somewhere for several days or longer.  We agreed that it would be a good idea to go to where we would have gone at the beginning of the month for the day to check things out down there for ourselves.  That daytrip took place this past week.

 Over the past year and a half with the Roadtrek on the driveway we had taken many things that we normally keep in it out. We had to start searching around the house for where they were and get it all back inside.  We filled the tanks with water. We went through every cabinet to see what was missing from a list we have of what to have in the Roadtrek. It took a couple of days to find almost all of it and move it back in. Almost all because we have a mystery disappearance.  We have three spring extension curtain rods that we put in the aisle under the bed from side to side against the cabinet doors to keep items we put under the bed when traveling. We are pretty sure that we took those out before we took the Roadtrek to have the generator serviced - along with all of the cushions so that should the generator service tech need to work inside to get to connections none of this would be in the way. It came into the house and was stacked on a large folding table.  The cushions went back into the Roadtrek at the end of June we assume - as we remember we did - took the curtain rods back into the Roadtrek and put them SOMEPLACE.  The curtain rods are not in the Roadtrek - ANYWHERE. They are not in the house - ANYWHERE.  We have looked multiple times - EVERYWHERE. Where are they? We do not know. This happens more than it should at our house. Things will disappear - really gone. I check, She checks. We both check, over and over again.  They reappear months later just where they should be and where we have both looked many times.  There is a folk tale about The Borrowers. The Borrowers come and borrow things - use them for a period of time - and then return them to where they took them from. Well, that implausible explanation is the only thing that could explain the disappearances. We are the only ones in the house - no one comes into the house but us.   So The Borrowers have the curtain rods. We have bought new ones -  silver color to distinguish them from the missing white ones. Some day we will find the white ones in the Roadtrek where they are not now.  We were ready. 

 We have been keeping stay at home hours for a year and a half. Up to early morning hours and asleep to mid-day. We started preparing for getting up early a few weeks ago so that when we got up to leave at an hour that would get us the 150 miles to where we were going we would arrive at an hour where we could do things and not be time to have dinner and then head back home.  We made it out of the house before 9 am and on our way after turning on the fridge. We thought we might avoid rush hour traffic heading toward New York City which we would loop around but had to cross two bridges to do so but wound up in bumper to bumper traffic - though we avoided the roadwork crews that start at 10:30 am to work on roads that they continually work on year after year - in the same places. Once on the New Jersey Turnpike heading south we were clear. 

Having not driven very much in a year and a half I have found in the past several months of driving more regularly locally that I tend to not drive as fast as I used to. I find myself just below the speed limit which does not make cars around us very happy. This was also my first trip in the Roadtrek that I have to wear eyeglasses to drive - and that has been a bit strange for me.  I had to focus on getting up to highway speeds with the Roadtrek as we started out and by the NJ Turnpike I was up there over 65 keeping pace with the rest of the vehicles. Once we got to Pennsylvania, the speed limit goes to 70. I have always found that with the 6L engine in the Roadtrek, it is very easy to let the speed get away from you. And with a speed limit of 70, 80 is just a small push of the gas pedal further.  Our Roadtrek holds the road and the speed very well.  Too well - and I backed down every time I glanced down at the speedometer. Of course at 75 we were being passed by some very small cars, but that was OK. We were passed by two Class Cs along the way. I told myself that we don't need to prove anything to them. 

We were heading to Lancaster County, PA. This has been my home away from home for many, many years and it always has been my go to place to relax with rolling farm fields and Amish buggies clip clopping along the road. We like to go to a particular farmers market which is a mix of locals, Amish, Mennonites and some tourists. That was were we were heading for the day - and we can easily spend a whole day there. We arrived about three and a half hours after we left - almost exactly what the ETA was from both the dash GPS and my phone's CoPilot RV GPS app. While we have been at home this was where I was missing the most. 

At the end of June, the Governor of Pennsylvania ended all Covid mask requirements.  We are both fully vaccinated, but we are both also in two high risk categories so we have maintained caution and we still wear masks when in public. With the Covid variants now on the rise and numbers going up instead of going down, we were surrounded by people of all ages not wearing masks. We were not the only ones wearing masks but where we live many are still wearing masks both inside and outside - perhaps because we live in one of the hardest hit counties in the country from Covid. It was strange to be out there with masks wearing in the minority. That was OK, though, as I was where I wanted to be. Meryl was a little more hesitant. 

The day had to be a Friday for this market to be open and this was a Friday with low humidity and a temperature that was not to go over 82. Finally, a day that was comfortable to be outside. There is little that is air conditioned at this market - some smaller buildings have A/C, most do not. There were some things we were looking for that we knew would most likely be there. Some were and some were not.  It was comfortable enough to have lunch outside at a picnic table and the hero sandwich (hoagie,sub, grinder - depending on where you are from)  that I bought from one of the stands was one of the things that I thought about all the time I was home and wanting to be here. When it is hot out, we would have gone back to the Roadtrek to eat the sandwiches with the generator powering the A/C.   We walked more than we have walked in a long time. It was a good tired.  We were there until about 5:00 pm and we headed back to the Roadtrek to go toward the restaurant I had planned to go to for dinner - with a couple of stop offs along the way. 

Dinner was another treat and something I have been looking forward to for what seems like a very long time. It did not disappoint. It is a restaurant that we have gone to many times in the past and one that I did miss not being in this area for so long do to Covid and lockdown. It serves a combination of local Pennsylvania Dutch foods and American together with plenty to eat. It is one that attracts the tourists more than most of the other restaurants that we dine in when in this area, but it reopened following being closed due to Covid - as were the other restaurants in the area closed - with dinner being served later than the other restaurants that we would have gone to that are much more local. 

After dinner we did not head right home. I stopped for gas - which was 20 cents a gallon more than it is at home and a half a tank that I filled cost $50. I like to put gas in the Roadtrek when it needs just half a tank as the total cost on the pump for a full tank is too shocking to see. Even the $50 was a bit of a shock.  We then headed to a Walmart that we knew would have things we were not finding at the Walmart at home - and they did. No special reason why other than the Walmarts at home have had empty shelves now for two years. And it delays leaving where I don't want to leave - but I have that feeling even if we have been in this area over a week. We started driving home after 10:30 pm.  

There was very little traffic heading home.  When we come home from a trip I go to a local 24 hour gas station to fill the tank of the Roadtrek back up. It is difficult getting the Roadtrek out of our driveway into the four lane, busy street in front of our house, so filling the Roadtrek at the end of a trip at home gives me a full tank of gas to have for our next trip. Miles per gallon for this trip came out to over 17 mpg - that has been better, but it was not bad. We put almost 500 miles on the Roadtrek in just the day, down, around, and back.  After the gas station it was almost 3:00 am that we got to the house and then shut the Roadtrek down. 

 One of the best things about traveling in an RV like the Roadtrek, even for just a day's outing, is that you have a bathroom with you, no matter where you are. I never really understand those who won't use the bathroom in their Roadtrek. There is not always a convenient place to stop when one is needed and too often if there is, it is not in a condition that one wants to even walk into.  Having the Roadtrek during this day trip, it came in very handy. 

Many of our readers have figured out that we don't take the types of trips that many others do. We don't much travel to be in nature - though most of the places we go to are outside. We use the Roadtrek as our traveling hotel room. We rarely cook in it  When we travel we eat out. It has always been this way when we travel. If you are on vacation, you eat out. If you are in an area where foods are different from what is common to you when you are home, you go out to try them. So to many, our trips are not that exciting, but they are to us.  We are out to relax. We would rather things not be too exciting, as given some of our "adventures" in the Roadtrek that I have written about over the past ten years now, exciting meant problems. We don't want any problems when we travel. It was good to take this trip even for a day. It has been too long since the last trip we took in the Roadtrek and it was an excellent re-introduction to packing the Roadtrek for a trip, getting in and heading off and putting some much needed miles on it after it has been sitting on the driveway with just a few two hour drives for so long. 

The title of this article starts with "A Rambling" and that is what this article has been. Just a rambling on about a great day in the Roadtrek to a place we love to go to.  There was no how to do this or that. No how to solve this problem or that. It was just a bit of pleasant rambling. There will be more articles about how to do, and there will be more ramblings.

Thanks for rambling with us! 

What's next? I wish I knew!

VILLAGE SCENE RV PARK, Hatfield, Pennsylvania

When we went to have the macerator replaced at the Roadtrek dealer/service center that we bought the Roadtrek at 8 years ago in April, we had to find a place to stay in the Roadtrek the night before. The appointment was for first thing in the morning when they opened and we could not do what we have almost always done in the past when we went there for service - leave our home in the morning of the appointment and drive the two and a half hours to get there at around 11 am for them to do and complete the work the rest of the day.  We could have stayed outside the service shop as they do have a 30 amp outlet to plug into and we would have had electricity overnight - but because the macerator was broken what we would not have was a toilet. The dealer's showroom closes at 8:00 pm and after that we would have a problem.  I started to look for campgrounds and there are a few in the area. One that I found was off in a wooded area and when I checked Google maps to see the route from there to the service shop, there was always a closed road - along the route. That was not going to work out at all - and I started wondering if I would ever find a campground for this excursion - even for just one night. Then I came across a most unlikely type of RV park - that is actually an age "55+ Manufactured Home Community and RV Park". I know that to some this brings up in their mind the image of a trailer park - but by the photos on their website and with Google Maps satellite view I was able to see the entire place - and it looked nice. The name is Village Scene (RV Park).

This is back now in February - and the appointment is not until almost the end of April.  I sent them an email and asked about availability for the night before our appointment. I got a very nice and prompt reply letting me know that they had one site available for us to stay in. If I wanted it to be held we would have to send a check for the one night stay and the site would be reserved for us.  While they have mostly permanently installed mobile homes and what I would say are called "Park Model" homes that are pre-fab homes, they also have some regular RV sites with 20, 30, and 50 amp electric service, water hook up, and sewer hook up. They do not have cable TV hook up - that is on site for permanent residents that arrange on their own for the service to be hooked up to their homes. They do have wifi across the park. The most important thing I had to confirm - though I know that I saw it on their website - was there a 24 hour access restroom - and I had hoped to have a site that was close to it. There is a 24 hour/7 days a week rest room building (that also has a laundry in it) and it is available to anyone who does not have those facilities on board their RV. Well, for this trip, that was us - and it was confirmed to me that it was indeed there and open - but the only site they had was not right next to it but four aisles away. That was no problem for us at all - as we have no issue with doing a little walking.

The RV park was very nice. The resident's trailers, mobile homes, RVs, whatever one would call them are all nice, well cared for, landscaping around them - flower beds, etc. While we were there we saw big Class A RVs and also large travel trailers. When we arrived (later than we expected as I explained in our recent Day 1 article about this trip we were greeted by a very nice woman in the office who was expecting us. She had put an orange cone in our space just in case we got there after the office closed at 4:00 pm. Our site was right across from the office. We were paid in full and she came outside to show us where our site was. We explained that we would be leaving for the rest of the afternoon and coming back that night after dinner - there was no problem at all with that. 

We only saw a few residents and no one took any notice of us. The site was a pull in, back out site - in other words the connections were on the drivers side and the opening of the site was such that puling in would put the connections where they needed to be. There was a mobile home next to the site so it was not a pull through - to get out of the space you just back out into the aisle. All sites are paved and the the aisles (or lanes) are asphalt.  As we always do when we get to a campground, we pull in and find where the Roadtrek will be level. This site was half paved with a concrete slab on one side and the other side the pavement was asphalt. This made the two slightly off in height from each other - but with the Roadtrek as it is smaller than most RVs that these sites are designed for, it was possible to drive around back and forth - adjusting this way or that - and on a slight diagonal I got the Roadtrek level. We marked where the tires were with our reflectors for this purpose and also checked voltage and polarity at the outlet box - all good! We backed out and were off for the day.

The restrooms were just where they were shown on the map. They were clean - though a bit old fashioned - toilet stalls, a shower stall, and a sink. You must bring your own paper towel and soap. It did take us a little bit - in each of our respective restrooms to figure out how the lights went on. I brought a flashlight with me and found that while the lights were not on any motion detector they had a switch box with buttons that were timers. Once you got the lights on with any of the buttons you could set it to how long the lights would stay on - a little different from what we have come across but just fine.  The walk to the building was no problem - even in the dark.

What I was very impressed with - and maybe it was because we were right across from the office was that the WIFI was exceptionally good! We were given a brochure when we arrived with the rules of the park and the wifi codes. There were two for two wifi units that cover the grounds. One was based in the office - and we had strong and good wifi in the site we were in.

We were only there one night. The location is straight off the exit ramp from the PA Turnpike north/south extension, a turn down a street with many businesses along it including stores, fast food, and supermarkets and knowing the street to turn down - and the help of the GPS we got right there in the day and had no problem finding our way back in the dark at night. The brochure we were given suggests where to park RVs in the city of Philadelphia and they are not that far and not at all like being in the city - to stay at to visit Philadelphia. This is located in the middle of a nice residential suburban neighborhood. There are no fences around the Park and no gate. The people living full time here have mailboxes in front of their mobile homes and the mailman comes directly to each to deliver mail.

While this park is for 55+ that is only for residents.  Children and families are welcome coming in to temporarily stay nightly, weekly, or monthly. There are no facilities in the way of a playground, swimming pool, or anything else like that. This is strictly stay in your RV or sit outside in your site - or leave the park and go exploring. This area is about an hour and a half from the PA Dutch Country in Lancaster County by way of the PA Turnpike.

We were both very pleased with this RV park. The electric service was good. The television using the over the air antenna was also very good and all of the major networks came in clearly as well as a number of other channels. We did not even put up the antenna but had good reception with the antenna flat on the roof. We both felt very welcome! Staff was nice from our first email contact through our stay. We would stay here again if we had to be in this area again. It was also very reasonably priced. I tend not to like to give prices because they always change from year to year but we only paid $40 for the night. That may be because we reserved the site early in the year - as the rate is now listed at $44 a night. Still a great price! This is the lowest we have paid for a campground in about five years.  And this is no "trailer park" - this is a nice place for a night or two.  Please note that they do not take any credit or debit cards. One must pay by cash or by check.

Village Scene RV Park is located at 2151 Koffel Road, Hatfield, PA  19440 and their phone number is 215-362-6030.  Click here for their RV Park webpage.

A TRIP FOR REPAIRS AND THE MACERATOR'S TALE (DAY 1)

Back when we winterized in November, we discovered that the macerator was not pumping. It ran but nothing came out. At first when we tried its usual easily heard sound when it runs was barely audible. While we have run the macerator and dumped the tanks on the driveway before (one bucket at a time) and it has never been a problem, my overly, at times, over analytical mind started coming up with reasons why it was not pumping other than the obvious one - it was broken.  We put it lower down on the incline of the driveway - no difference. We got out the Andersen Levelers and made the Roadtrek level - no difference. On the last attempt I could smell a burning smell coming from the location of the macerator under the van - and then we stopped.

Since we have some readers who I know are not RVers or who are prospective but not yet RV owners, I will explain what a macerator is. It is a water pump installed in the RV - in the case of Roadtreks since the early 2000's permanently installed under the van in the front connected to the waste tank system. There are two waste tanks in most RVs - one is connected to the water drain in the toilet - called the "Black Tank", and one connected to the water drains in the sink and shower -called the "Grey Tank". There are two gate valves that connect the tanks by pulling a handle to the waste removal system - which can be as simple as a hose that uses gravity to take the waste out of each tank, through the hose, and into a sewer hole in the ground - at a campground or other "dump" site. The other system uses a pump - which is what the Roadtrek has - and this pump has sharp, stainless steel blades that spin at high speed and macerate - chop up really fine - any waste that comes out of the waste tanks and then pumps that through a small hose out to the sewer hole in the ground. The advantage of a macerator is that if for some reason the sewer hole was higher than gravity would work to get the waste to it - the macerator is an electric pump and can pump uphill. It is also a fast way to empty (dump) each tank.  The downside of a macerator is that if it breaks then you cannot get the waste out of the tanks and also - you must never put into the waste tanks anything that the macerator will not be able to chop up - so what comes out of you is fine, quick dissolving toilet paper - such as Scott's regular house one-ply is good, but never anything really solid, no drop in bags of chemical as those bags despite what they say don't dissolve, no cleaning wipes, no hair - wraps around the shaft - etc.  Well, ours - after almost 8 years broke.

Back in February I decided that I needed to contact the RV dealer/service center that we have gone for all of our repairs, and try to get an appointment when likely there would no longer be any snow or ice to make the trip to Pennsylvania. I emailed the service rep that we have come to know very well over the years and asked for an appointment in early April. The earliest appointment they had was April 24, 2019.  We had no choice but to accept it. I provided a list of problems which at the time included the macerator not working, a vent fan lid on the roof of the Roadtrek that was stuck and would not open, and that since we were making the trip, to change the oil in the electric generator that is installed under the Roadtrek chassis.  There was no problem - they could do it all when we came. BUT we had to get there early that day - no later than 8:00 am (which right before the date of the trip they agreed to could be 9:00 am when the shop opens to start working).  Since we bought the Roadtrek there, they have always been able to accommodate us to get there around 11:00 am - leaving that morning from NY to make the near 3 hour trip one way. Only once before had they said we had to be there early for the job that needed to be done. While it is possible to stay overnight right at the service center plugged into their 30 amp electrical outlet to run the RV overnight - we would have no toilet to use - as their dealer hours are to 8:00 pm to get into the restroom. This was not going to work out too well for us. I decided we had to find a nearby campground.

There were two campgrounds to consider - one was off in the woods not too far away - but on Google maps the roads in and out always seem to show a problem with road conditions on the map.  The other is a residential motorhome community - that also has RV sites that can be taken for one night or longer up to a month. What is nice about Google Maps is you can set it to satellite view and with this I could see the entire place from above - close up. It was all pavement and grass with paved spaces for the RVs which is always nice to have. They also had a restroom open 24 hours only for those staying who did not have toilet facilities in their RV - which at that moment would be us! I will write an article about this place on its own. We contacted them for a availability for the night of April 23, 2019 and found out - much to my surprise - that they had ONE site open on that night - and if we wanted it we had to confirm it quickly. We confirmed and sent them a check in advance - payment in full for one night. All set and done!

 From then it was wait anxiously to the date we would leave - and hope that everything would go smoothly getting there and having the work done without a glitch. We had not planned to dewinterize  before we went - and would just leave the antifreeze in the plumbing. As it turned out the temperatures started to rise and there were a few 70 degree days in early April. It seemed like there was no longer going to be any freezing nights - and we decided to dewinterize - but to expedite that we would dewinterize it all but sanitize only one of the two fresh water tanks and plumbing with bleach and water. We could easily sanitize the rest when we got back after the repair trip.

After dewinterizing, I took advantage of the several nice days - when it was not raining which it still was - and still is - doing regularly - and do a few things that are done before the traveling in the RV season starts. I pulled out the ladder - I don't like ladders - and went up to the Roadtrek roof to lubricate the crank up, directional antenna. While up there - and I am rarely up there, I decided to take a close look at the vent fan lid to see what was making it stick and not open. I moved the ladder to the other side of the van - had Meryl hold is securely on the inclined driveway while I went up - and reached over to the edge of the lid that I could barely reach in the middle of the roof. The side I got to was loose and seemed like it was not stuck at all. The opposite side is connected to a metal lift arm and that was solid.  Down the ladder, step by step, and I went inside the Roadtrek. I reached up for the manual knob that you turn to open the vent lid and I got to the point that it would stop turning and gave it a slightly stronger turn and it kept turning and the lid raised up on its hinge. I put it up and down several times and it seemed fine. Why had I not done this before (as it was stuck down since September)? I was concerned that if I could open it and then found it would no longer close we would have BIG trouble with a square foot hole in the roof and regular days of rain!  I was feeling brave - having been up on the roof anyway - and tried it. One less repair to have done at the dealer/service! Just for good measure, I used some silicone spray on a cloth to lubricate the lift arm. I could do this from inside the van.  I may write an article about that process soon.

The date to leave was coming up. I let the service shop know that the fan lid was no longer stuck and confirmed that all necessary parts would be there when we got there to start and finish the job that day. All was confirmed.

The weather for the trip down was going to be warm - much warmer than usual. We started out at 10:00 am and met up with the usual bumper to bumper traffic getting off Long Island and onto the mainland of the United States - which is New Jersey from our location heading to where we were heading. The trip generally takes about 45 minutes to one hour to get from home to Brooklyn, crossing a toll bridge and going to Staten Island where there is another toll bridge across to New Jersey. This particular morning it took more than TWO HOURS! We finally get on the highway in New Jersey and head for the New Jersey Turnpike entrance. The entrance ramp is moving - and we get halfway toward the toll booths along a winding entrance ramp - and then traffic stops. There is a cut off to a local industrial and business area along that ramp that all traffic was being directed into that. When we got up there we saw it - a large tractor trailer truck over completely on its side totally across and blocking the ramp that went to the turnpike tolls and actual entrance to the turnpike. There were four police cars and a their policemen all standing looking at the truck. Had just one of them been at the turn off to the exit from the highway that took us into the turnpike entrance - none of the cars and trucks - and us - even gotten off to get into this mess of where is this now taking us.  It is not an area that we have never been to before - though not in the Roadtrek and it is a labyrinth of roads around office buildings and factories - with no indications of which way to go and get out. And two GPS's that I had running - the one in the dash with no traffic routing - and the one in the CoPilot app with traffic kept trying to get us back to where the tractor trailer was blocking the useless entrance to the turnpike. We wasted a lot of time there. Meryl will tell you that she kept telling me to find a place to just park and we could figure it out - which I eventually did and she got out an old AAA real paper map of New Jersey and found that the next entrance to the New Jersey Turnpike was off Route 1 and she found the roads to get us there. All together we were just about past the time we should have ordinarily arrived at where we were headed in Pennsylvania.  Getting to US 1 was mostly streets and we finally got to the turnpike and we were then moving!  A call came to Meryl's phone - it was the campground. They wanted to make sure we were coming and if we did not get there before 4:00 pm they would leave a cone in our site so that we could find it on our own. It was after 2:30 pm when we arrived.

 We pulled into the  nice concrete and paved site but slightly uneven in the paving so it took a little moving the Roadtrek around in the site to find where it was most level -  more for comfort than anything else. We always mark where that level position is in relation to the tires (as I have written about in the past) and set the reflector markers down on the ground. We checked the power box to make sure the wiring for polarity was correct and the voltage was not too low or too high. All was fine. And with that we backed out of the pull in site and headed to the RV service shop just to check the route and the time it would take to get there the next morning. We timed that out and then headed for the fast food restaurant nearby for lunch.

While it was not as early as we had hoped it would be when we got there, we had figured to take a drive further north to spend some time in the Cabela's Store in Hamburg, PA and then after that have dinner in a restaurant that we know back to the east along Rt. 78 and Rt, 22.

On the way I looked at the gas tank which was below half and decided to stop for gas. I turned onto the street that the entrance of the gas station was on and as I went up the driveway cut into the station we heard a "ZING!" and could not figure out what it was. This was a new noise in the collection of noises we have heard while driving the Roadtrek. I looked at Meryl and said, "What was that!" She said she did not know - speculated that it might be one of the spring tension curtain rods we use to hold things in place - that sit on the floor and inside the fridge. I drove to the pump and went out to pump gas. Gas, in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania, was several cents and more higher than the prices in New York - just that morning.  Gas in and I got back into the van. Meryl had something in her hand and said - I found this on the floor back there.  It was a metal sleeve. I had no idea what it was - and then she showed me the rest of what she found - a black plastic knob with a screw coming through the middle. I knew exactly what it was then. It was the knob to turn to open the fan vent lid outside. And it was right below the fan where she found it all.  OK - no problem. I went to the middle of the inside under the fan and looked up -I set the sleeve over the screw and put the knob back into place and then realized that I needed a screw driver to put it in with - and while there are screwdrivers in my tool bag in the Roadtrek - this was not the time or the place to do this. So we put it all where it would be safe and headed back out on the road.

By the time we got to Cabela's it was closer to the time we had planned to have dinner but we were there and would spend a brief time at the store - always fun to see their local fish aquarium, their trophy animal displays, and look at things that relate to some of our interests. But before we went in, I got out the tool bag and a Phillips head screwdriver and put the fan knob back where it belonged. It was a good thing as without the knob in place nothing locked the fan lid closed to the roof and easily could have bounced or blown open. I realized then why this came off. The last time I had closed the fan I decided not to tighten the knob down very tightly to avoid it sticking again. It was just loose enough for the vibrations through the van driving to loosen the screw to the point that it would all fall out - as it did. Into the store -for an even briefer visit and then off to dinner.  After dinner we headed back to the RV Park to settle in for the night.

We had the advantage of the restrooms which were four lanes away from where our site was. After we would settle in for bed, we decided that we would put a camping "wag" bag into the RV toilet to use that during the night - as we would do for cold weather camping. We had running water in the RV from the fresh tank we sanitized for washing and drinking - but I did not want to put any waste down the toilet because the next morning the service tech did not need to have to encounter that when he removed the macerator.

This RV Park said it had wifi - but no cable television. We had the antenna and before we left I had an idea - which I wanted to try out. Recently I have been using a ROKU wifi device at home to use to get many free television channels on the TV.  Usually in a campground the wifi service is through a company that the campground brings in to connect your RV to - with a free account for the number of days you are staying - but the wifi from these companies is metered - use too much and they cut you back to barely usable speed. This wifi, I anticipated was from the campground directly - and long term residents arranged for local cable. We were in a site right at the office - and the wifi was strong. Just to see what would happen I brought the ROKU and set it up on the Roadtrek TV - it started up just as it does at home, asked me to connect to the wifi signal it found from the Park - and it worked beautifully. We used it for all of two and a half hours - but it was a nice diversion from the local over the air channels.  I am sure we can't do this at most other campgrounds we go to but it is a nice thing to have when it is possible.

THIS IS THE END OF DAY 1.

WE WILL CONTINUE WITH THIS TALE IN TWO WEEKS IN:

"TRIP FOR REPAIRS AND THE MACERATOR'S TALE (DAY 2)"


(When there is not a whole lot to write about any longer,  when you have something long that can work for two articles that is the way to go! 😀 )

We Actually Get a Day to Take the Roadtrek On At Least a One Day Trip

So - where I most have wanted to go - even for just a day and back is to a particular place we go to in Pennsylvania. The problem is that it is only open on one day a week and that day is Friday. Well recently there was an occasion that we were going to celebrate but it was not on a Friday and we had plans to just take the RT and go - to - PA but just go around some of our other haunts there - most of which are also outdoors. That was a Thursday and while the weather had said all would be good, the night before that report changed for the worse. Why does the weather mean so much? Well, if I am going to use the gas, spend the tolls - which just to get out of NY just went up again -and not be able to do what we want to do when we get there - it is just not worth making the trip. I was talking with a relative that lives in NY but works in PA and he confirmed that every Friday since January has rained in PA - which he was glad of as he comes home on Thursdays and goes back to work in PA on Mondays.  I looked ahead for a different day- and Friday, which is no surprise it was going to rain - and we had tickets to attend a function locally.  Saturday seemed good. Last minute check  and it still looked good. And that Saturday - we got in the Roadtrek and headed off.

As usual traffic getting off this island and then off the next island was its usual bumper to bumper (one car on the side of the road - not even in the road - can bring all lanes to a standstill, but as we entered New Jersey - despite its bumpy and rough interstate highways (bang, bang, bang inside the RT) the traffic was gone and it was full speed ahead. Once we got away from NY, the fog had lifted - in more ways than just the actual fog we had driven through along the ocean.

We had nothing special planned when we got there - though there is an Amish bakery that makes an exceptionally good chocolate shoofly pie and I had contacted them a few days before asking if we called as we were on our way to Pennsylvania would they have a couple of these pies baked and ready for us when we got there.  That was the first stop!  Meryl called once we got over the second bridge which I figured if we got that far we were clear to actually get to PA.  The young lady that answered the phone (even Amish businesses have telephones) said the pies would be wating for us when we arrived - which we estimated and the GPS estimated would be just after one o'clock.

Ah! The GPS. The Copilot RV GPS app was discontinued a few months ago. I got an email notice telling me that it was going to be replaced by the regular Copilot GPS app - which in the past did have an RV setting but did not route as extensively for RVs, plus cost only ten dollars - and not the $60 that the Copilot RV GPS app cost complete with all of its problems. So I downloaded the new app - no charge - and I have a feeling that there is no charge for this app any longer - though the traffic function in the app is and has always been by subscription at $10 for a year. The new app has a new look and far more confusing and not user friendly as the old app was. What it does have is the full RV profile setting that the Copilot RV GPS had. This will keep you off roads your RV is not supposed to drive on by height, restrictions, etc. That is does fairly well.  So now with one day trip in the car and this day trip in the Roadtrek and it did OK.  I am not going to say that I recommend it yet. If it actually is free you might want to try it. I have to get on the Google Play site not logged in to find out what is going on with the money for this app now.

What the GPS does do pretty well - as does the TomTom in the Eclipse II that is still in our RT dash - is estimate time of arrival very lose to the actual time arriving. They adjust every so often for sitting in traffic or a change in route of my choosing.  And the Copilot was routed directly to the bakery while the TomTom was routed further on - and the Copilot started showing us getting there earlier than we had seen when the call was made.  We did arrive early enough that it was too soon to get to the bakery - but there is another haunt nearby - and we stopped there.

(Now if this is the most boring trip - or article you have ever read - you are probably right. This was in no way an exciting trip. We were not out for excitement. I just wanted to be out and away and somewhere I enjoy - as simple a place as it is - that would just show me that any confidence I have been doubting in the Roadtrek or our just traveling in the Roadtrek was unfounded - and as boring as this trip may seem to most - it was just what I needed. And I am writing about it because I have heard from a number of readers asking if we are "OK".)

The weather was sunny and the temperature was in the upper 60's.  It was going to be the same at home - but at home we would be wondering what are we going to do today. Here - when our last trip to this area was at the end of September - also for a single day there and back - it was like coming back to our home away from home where there always seems to be a pleasant diversion.

We got to the bakery and there was a Mennonite young woman in the shop (who had been on the phone - Mennonites have phones in their homes). As soon as I said who we were she said she had the pies all ready for us. As she was putting the pies in boxes I commented on how long it has been since we have been able to get down there - especially on a Friday  to where this shop has a stand to sell their pastries and pies. She also confirmed that yes, it has rained, snowed or been frozen over on Fridays since the beginning of January. The pies in hand we set out - for lunch. (The pies were for home.)

Lunch was good as always in a little local spot we know. We spent the rest of the day at an outdoor popular tourist spot that was jammed (I rarely come to this area in PA on Saturdays to avoid the tourists) and  I lost track of time - which is a good thing - as when I looked at the time - expecting to keep going from there out to other regular stops of ours, it was 5:00 pm and things were starting to close down.  We decided to drive past the campground we stay at in this area - not to stay - but to see if there have been any changes. We heard that the company that owns the campground and the attraction next door had bought a hotel that had gone up for sale a year ago that was on the other side of the campground. And yes, there was construction being done on that hotel to turn it into something of a Nickelodeon themed hotel.  It is too soon to see how this is going to impact the campground.

Gas prices in Pennsylvania and in New Jersey have always been less than gas prices in New York but both states have put additional taxes on the gasoline and prices were higher than at home which has been around $2.65 a gallon.  On the Turnpike in New Jersey gas was $2.80 a gallon. On the roads in Pennsylvania gas was between $2.81 to above $2.85.  I could not put buying gas off any longer as the Roadtrek was below half a tank - which is not a big deal BUT seeing the total on the pump when buying gas for more than half a tank can result in severe shock.  $50 and the tank was once again full.  The price per gallon was $2.83. We saw the two lower prices later.  We usually fill the Roadtrek up at the last rest area in New Jersey, but with the prices what they are, I said as we were leaving this gas station that we would go directly to a local gas station at home before we went home that night and have a full tank for our next trip.

We headed out to dinner at a local restaurant that is out of the tourist area and is primarily locals, Mennonites, and Amish eating.  It is a favorite of ours - made up for take out dinner at home that we had for the occasion celebration at home - and really enjoyed it (as always). 

The ride home was smooth and without delays - unusual for a Saturday night.  We filled the gas tank near home - got upset with an Uber or Lyft driver who was driving haphazardly around the gas station and was backing into the front of the Roadtrek as I started the engine to pull away from the gas pump - and then we got home. Happy.

I purposely did not write names of where we went. They would all be seen a boring places to most - and some I just don't share to keep them from getting crowded. 😎

I, usually here, take everyone along for the ride - and this was another one of those articles. When something exciting happens I will write about it.

By the way Roadtrek, the company is out of business.  No joke.

A Pre-Season Opener For My Roadtrek

It has been a very long and difficult winter in the Northeast this year. My Roadtrek has been winterized since mid-November and it has only been off my driveway for a single day - there and back the same day - trip in early December.  We enjoyed that trip in December and since then have been looking to do it again.

We usually take these one day trips in the car, but with the car being a little uncertain for long distance trips, we have decided that we might as well take the Roadtrek and put some driving hours on it rather than it just keep sitting on the driveway. Using it just to drive around town is not easy here as just getting it off our driveway and into the steady flow of traffic at most hours of the day can take up to 30 minutes to safely have a clear enough opening to back it out and get it on the road. We had hoped to be able to do a repeat trip in January. The weather was not cooperating. Despite some warmer days in February, that month did not work out. We were sure that when March came we were going to be able to do it and we had four Nor'easter snow storms in March with no hope of going anywhere - including one on the first day of Spring. With April coming we were really hopeful and until just now, April has been cold and raining - too cold to even consider de-winterizing. But then there was a forecast like no others in the recent past - it was going to become suddenly warm and not raining - maybe even hot - not necessarily here where the ocean influences the temperatures this close to the coast, but inland. Inland was good - inland was where we would like to go. This sudden gift was only to last two days because following this phenomenon the temperatures would drop again into the 40's and perhaps lower once again with a two day rainstorm. Circumstances here - as they often do - were not going to let us take advantage for more than one single day. It would be out and back in the same day - as it was in December - but one day was good. One day was wonderful considering!

We knew where we wanted to go - one of our favorite haunts in Pennsylvania which to most would make them wonder why - but during those snow storms and those cold days and nights, if someone asked me where would I rather be - it was there. It was outdoors. It put me in the middle of people that I very much like interacting with and being around. We were going!

We left at 9:30 in the morning- to avoid the heaviest of Metro NY rush hour traffic - and off we went. Getting out of the driveway only took ten minutes after a steady stream of cars whizzing by. I had plugged the Roadtrek into the outside house outlet two days before and let it sit for 24 hours plugged in so that the batteries would be fully charged and there would be no problem running our Roadtrek's compressor fridge on batteries for the trip. There were plans to bring back some foods that are not available here. After an hour and a half this fridge reaches temperature.

As always, traffic getting out of NY was heavy but at least moved. The trip should take no more than three hours - but it generally takes four to four and a half hours - not counting the time to get out of the driveway. As I have written in the past, the trip is bang, bang, vibrate on the roads in New York. Once into New Jersey the ride gets noticeably better. In Pennsylvania with a newly repaved PA Turnpike it gets much better. The PA Turnpike - I suppose because of its new road surfacing -increased the speed limit for most of the part we drive on to 70 miles per hour. The 6L engine in my Roadtrek 190 Popular handles that speed very nicely - in fact it is too easy to get to 80 and not realize it - and it handles that speed nicely also , but I am never comfortable driving it at that speed and pull it back down. One thing that is odd, however, on the PA Turnpike with this new speed limit is that some cars and trucks do not want to drive at it. In fact they are driving below 65 - and more like 60. This was not making me happy. With one day and the long a drive to get there, I wanted to be at least the speed limit. Where I live the speed limit is 55 mph. At any time of the day or night local drivers see that sign and see 65 and faster. Most of the roads here are not made to go that fast but fast most go. I try to avoid having to keep up with that at times here can be more dangerous than not - and I not just in the Roadtrek. But here I was with a legitimate 70 mph speed limit which if it was ever to be the speed limit here would translate to 95 or 100, and I was sitting behind 60 mph drivers. It was not just the time of day because the same happens when we head home - and we travel later at night most trips when we are heading home.

When we arrived it was after 1:30 pm and it was 82 degrees outside. Oh my! The sun was shining. The place we were going was hoping and I was looking forward to a wonderful day - which we had. The trip down, at least past NY, the Roadtrek rode smoothly. Parking is in a large gravel and grass parking lot and we usually head down to the farthest section where it is open enough to park even a larger RV - and there are always a few RVs parked there - and there is no concern of being boxed in by cars or the narrow lanes that the rest of the parking lot has.

As we roamed around I realized that I have been in the house too long this winter and what is generally not tiring was really tiring me out after about two and a half hours. Not good - and I had to readjust to what it is like to be in over 80 degrees. I did find a bench and sat down and listened to two gentlemen talking about hunting and their tales of learning to hunt from their fathers. These are things one does not much get to hear being discussed where I live - and while I was not involved in this discussion at all, I did enjoy it. It was only fifteen minutes or so later that I was ready to leave the bench and get back to Meryl and keep going. (If you are waiting to hear of some catestrophe that happens on this trip - there was none.)  This was a nice slow day with me trying to pack in months of not being there. Overall we were at this one location for over four hours. Nothing important to do. Nothing spectacular to find or even seen. As a mostly city boy, I have always had a special place in my heart for sprawling farm land and things that are basically plain - and this all is all around people that are, with no negative connotation, "The Plain People". Beaches don't interest me. Mountains only marginally appeal - and generally don't more than do. This is where I need to be to really relax  and it has been for many, many years. And there I seek out being away from the tourists and get to be among the locals, and especailly the Amish and Mennonites of this area. I have met some. I am never intrusive. I don't gawk as some people do there. Any interaction and I am especailly respectful. And I am grateful that my good wife recognizes this in me and enjoys it as well.

Past 5 pm we headed to a favorite restaurant - again not a fancy restaurant but one that is really only known by the locals - and had a great dinner. After dinner I was not really ready to leave, so we started out the long way back. We drove past the campground we usually stay at. We even stopped at a store before we actually were on the road to go home. It was past 1:30 am when we arrived home. There was no traffic coming home -in fact some roads were surprisingly empty - yet we still found ourselves behind slow drivers with the road empty in front of them - and again, I don't mean slow because they were just at the speed limit - but well below the speed limit. I was in no hurry to get home but the last thing I like have happen in the Roadtrek is for anyone behind us to think it is us slowing them down - and resulting that  - they speed around us and cut in too close.

Last Spring I took the Roadtrek for a ride to the East End of Long Island to get it on the road. I realized after that it would have been so much better had we come to this area instead. Eight plus hours of round trip driving plus multiple bridge tolls and turnpike tolls - almost a full tank of gas - and it was all worth it.

The Roadtrek did not balk the whole time. This is not always the case, and surprises no matter how minor are more the norm than the exception. I think it liked its drive. Had it not been for the past weather, it would have been on several more trips like this.

I am still not sure when I will dewinterize. Most years I would have done it already. Since I am hearing low 40s or colder in the forecast, I am not running to do it. One of the advantages of even a single day trip with the Roadtrek is having a bathroom along for the ride, I figured that were we in need, we would just use it and not be that concerned. I could always through more A/F down into the black tank when we got home.

So this was not a real - sleep in the Roadtrek trip - but we did most everything we would do if we went there to stay overnight for two days. What I knew before but this trip made me more immediately aware of was that the CO Detector has expired and needs to be replaced - which we will do when we dewinterize. That the Roadtrek Roadside Assistance policy needs to be renewed - and we have not heard anything from them about it. That we discovered after our last regular RV season trip was that our walkie talkies no longer worked and we needed to replace them which I put off until we were ready to start traveling again. We use the walkie talkies to get the Roadtrek out of the driveway and into the street in front of our house (Meryl "OK it is clear RIGHT NOW - GO QUICK!!!") and when backing into a campground site, Meryl guides me in using the walkie talkies. I know which I am going to buy and we will be doing that pretty soon!

So thanks for rambling along with me. Nothing exciting - but isn't that nice!

COUNTRY ACRES CAMPGROUND, GORDONVILLE, PA

Country Acres Campground is located in Gordonville, Pennsylvania which is in Lancaster County. There are many campgrounds in this heavily tourist visited area. We have been going to a different campground here for several years and decided to try out Country Acres.

This campground is owned and operated by the family that owns several operations in Lancaster County - most of which are located around the Village of Bird-in-Hand. They own several hotels, a restaurant with smorgasbord, a bake shop, a dinner theater (as part of their restaurant), and this campground. The campground is not in Bird-in-Hand. It is off of Route 30 just east of the village of Paradise. Yes, Lancaster is full of towns with colorful names.

You enter the campground from Route 30 and travel up a short distance of road to the actual entrance of the campground. The road continues on to the right with residential houses. You turn left into the campground entrance which is a newly paved road. Ahead is a quaint looking building that is the office. The right lane of the entrance is to stop in to register. The left lane is to drive into the campground.

The campground has been developed over the years in sections and the newest RV section is just to the right of the office in an open field of gravel sites with hookups. There is also a full sized swimming pool in this area - with what they call a beach-style entrance (you can walk into the water). To the left of the office there is an electric lift gate that requires a keycard to open. When leaving the lift opens automatically.

When we arrived there were two people in the office and we were helped by a very friendly and welcoming woman. We had made reservations in advance - and I have heard that this campground is so popular that generally reservations are required sometimes well in advance to get a campsite. There is a discount club available to join for free that provides discounts at local businesses and attractions and nine punches on the card - one for each night stay - gives you one free breakfast for two at the Bird-in-Hand Family Restaurant in Bird-in-Hand, up on Route 340. We had intended to join this when we arrived - and before I even asked the woman was filling out the discount card for us and punching the nights we would be there. We were handed the usual map with wifi login information on it and the list of cable television channels and our site number. We were also given a free Hershey chocolate bar! We received the keycard and told how to use it. When you first arrive, the gate is opened for you from inside the office. When you drive out, all you have to do is drive up to the gate and it opens automatically. When using the keycard, it is necessary to lean out of the RV window - the Roadtrek van window was slightly high to reach the slot without leaning out the window to reach it. A large Class C or Class A would need to have someone either get out to use the card or for the driver to reach down. The card slot seems to be at the height for a car or small truck window - which makes sense as other than a Class B, a C or A rarely leave the campground once in and a towed car is used to get around. The card was no problem - other than remembering to get it out when coming in - and in the rain, getting wet leaning out to get the card in the slot.  If you have reservations and will be coming in after the office is closed, you must call them THAT day and let them know and they will let you know where the card will be left for you. You must, of course, return the card when you leave.

As you pull through the gate there are different roads ahead to go to different parts of the campground. All of the roads inside the campground are gravel. If you take the road ahead that goes off to the right you loop up and around to several RV spaces and then into the tent/pop up section. The tent/pop up area has sites with water and electric. Some of these sites have cable. There are also six primitive tent sites and two cabins. If you follow the road to the right, you will drive past a number of RV sites and this road leads up to a road going up a hill to another section of the campground with a number of "big rig" sites. We missed our site driving in the first time and followed this road to the right and where it branched off to go up the hill it also looped back to the entrance of the campground bringing us back to where our site was. I have to share what there are hills that the roads go up and over. Where I thought we had not gone up hill at all, we wound up driving on this road looping back with a drop off on both sides with nothing on the edge of the road to keep you from going off. I was glad that we would not have to drive that road inside the campground at night.

RV sites vary in price by the type of site. There are 30 amp sites and 50 amp sites. There are sites with electric/water only, electric/sewer/water, electric/water/cable, and electric/water/sewer/cable. There is wifi that reaches across the campground. If you don't want a sewer hookup at your site, there is a campground dump station to use. We had a very strong wifi signal at our site. The cable television was clear - it was a cable company and not a satellite company providing the signal. The selection of channels was large - there were a number of sports channels (which we had no interest in), all of the regular networks, and also several popular cable networks including Turner Classic Movies (TCM). We tried the antenna for over the air channels and had pretty good reception without having to raise the antenna or point it. We found the channels that we were looking for that way and there may have been even more had we put up the antenna and directed it.

We reserved a 30 amp, electric/water/sewer/cable site and that is what we got. There was an electric box with a 30 amp, a 50 amp, and a 20 amp outlet inside - all with circuit breakers. I was surprised when I walked around vacant sites that were marked on the map as 30 amp that there was a small outlet box with just a 30 amp outlet inside - and no circuit breaker.

The site that we had was bordered on three sides by upraised ground and large rocks that formed a wall into the ground around the three sides. This seemed to be the only site like this that we could see. I would prefer to not have this same site again. Other sites were flat to the grass and would have been much easier to back into and to position the Roadtrek to find level. When I made the reservations I told the gentlemen on the phone that we needed a level site as our RV has not automatic leveling system. He indicated that the site was level. It was not quite level - but I was able to move around enough in the site to find an almost level spot that was close enough to not have to pull out the leveling ramps, which while easy to use are a pain in the neck to deal with - especially as we go and come every day. I looked around at other sites over the days that we were here and other sites looked more level - and we pulled into one that was level right off.

All of the sites have a picnic table and a fire ring - and while our fire ring was on the grass the picnic table was in the site and too much to move over the wall up to the grass to get it out of the way. It would have been much easier to get around in the site if the picnic table was not there. The other sites we could see had their picnic tables on the grass - or easily moved onto the grass.

You can see in the photos above the space we were in. Below is a photo of spaces along the other side of the road from us that were all flat to the ground.

 The restrooms were spotless. There were four shower stalls in the men's room and four toilet stalls with a row of sinks. There were also two urinals. The restroom was heated (we were here in the Fall). The ladies room was on the opposite side of the building. There was a utility sink outside the men's room and the laundry room was next to that.

The campground is well maintained. The cable TV connection at our site looked new. There is a large pavilion for campground activities up on a hill. This campground has ice cream socials and activities in the pavilion.

 Many things are also offered to guests of the campground off site at the Bird-in-Hand Family Inn on Route 340 in Bird-in-Hand. You may use the indoor pool, the fitness room, the game room, the tennis courts, the playground, the basketball courts, the hot tub, and the hiking trail there. You are also given passes for two complimentary two hour bus tours of the Amish Farmlands. These tours are the same as those sold by ticket in the area - and leave from the Bird-in-Hand Family Inn and Restaurant. While not at the campground, this is an area where if you stay all day and all night and never leave a campground - any campground here - you are missing all that this area has to offer. With a Class B it is easy - take off each day and explore. With a C or an A, you want to come to this area towing a vehicle that you can take off for the day in. Of course, with a trailer, you have your tow vehicle.

Sites are not pushed close together. There is a lot of room between the sites. The grounds are extensive with a lot of open space. You are very close to Route 30 which is a major truck road and you can hear the trucks going past at night. On nights that we had the heat pump (part of the A/C) on, we could not hear the trucks. When it was not on, we could hear the trucks going past. I was wondering why when I was listening to the trucks one night, why at the "other" campground I had not noticed them - but realized that when we are there, the A/C is on all of the time.

Will we go back? I am pretty certain that we will. Everything was nice about this campground. Another site would be preferred and we will make sure that we request not having this same site again. It is also less expensive than where we had been staying - and while not by a great deal, with repeated nights, the savings adds up for a stay. It is also much easier to get in and to exit than the "other" campground. Check in is at 2:30 and check out is at 2;00 pm which means no need to rush to dump your tanks on your last day.  It is a bit further out from where we have stayed and used to stay when visiting here by hotel, but I know there are shortcuts through the farm roads to make that difference negligible.

 Country Acres Campground is located at 20 Leven Road, Gordonville, PA 17529. The telephone number is 866-675-4745. There is a website. Use your GPS to easily find it, if you are not familiar with the area. There is a lighted sign at the entrance on Route 30 that makes it easy to find at night.

Never a Dull Moment Part 2

Welcome back! In our last article - Never a Dull Moment Part 1, we never actually got to the article that I sat down to write. We took a meandering path to why we were going to a new campground in an area where we have had a favorite campground for four years. Well we are back now to what was to be a one part article about our October trip.

The Roadtrek was packed the day before. Two days before that water went into the fresh tanks. We saw on the weather ahead that there might be some cold nights - nothing below freezing but just in case, Meryl suggested that we isolate the interior (rear) fresh water tank and use the water in the exterior tank first. This is easy to do with the various settings on the 190 and the 210. (See our Summer Mode/Winter Mode article for specifics on how to do this.) Of course, the bed was already made when this was decided so Meryl crawled under to the cabinet with the water valves, I held up the mattress so that she could get the door open and she made the adjustments to the water valves.  When the night temperatures got cold- which was to be almost the end of the trip, the exterior and larger fresh tank would be empty or near empty and we would switch over to the interior tank which is much more protected inside from the cold. We were ready to go.

We got out the morning we were leaving at about 9:15 am. If you read this site regularly I have mentioned that we live on a very busy four lane suburban avenue and while everyone should already be at work at 9:00 am, there is a constant stream of cars and trucks going past our house well after 9 am. The first thing we do when we get into the Roadtrek to start a trip is turn on the compressor DC/AC only refrigerator. All that is involved is putting the Roadtrek battery switch on and turning the thermostat inside the fridge up from off - to about mid-way which should get the temp inside up in about a hour and a half. The only thing inside the fridge is my spare insulin pen which must be kept at a temperature between 36 - 42 degrees F. After the pen is started for use it cannot be kept in a refrigerator and must be as near to room temperature as possible (more about traveling like this in a future article). So I had the pen in use with us inside one of the cabinets and the spare in the fridge - at the time - in a cold bag with two ice blocks also inside - just to keep it cold until the temperature goes up in the fridge. We are in, I am behind the wheel with the engine started, and Meryl is setting up the fridge. She pushes the test button on the Roadtrek monitor panel after the fridge is on - and she says - "We have a battery problem!" OK - what? The battery LEDs with the engine on - for every other time like this - usually shows all LEDs to the top lit indicating that the engine is charging the batteries. The lights are now down to the bottom two LEDs. Not good! The batteries are low - and apparently too low for the panel to indicate that the van engine is charging them. We discussed what to do and decided to shut off the fridge. With that the LEDs still did not go up to indicate charging but now went to G - the third LED from the top of the four. At worst we would lose the pen, at least worst we would have to start the countdown of days the pen can be used out of the fridge much sooner than we would like, at best the batteries would start to charge as we were driving. Of course, this is on my mind as we finally get to pull out into the street - which took about twenty minutes for there to be a break in the traffic. We started out with the idea that we were leaving "early" - at least for us. It was after 10:00 am and we were just turning the corner from our house.

As I am driving, I am thinking about the batteries and the refrigerator. We decided that the pen would hold up in the cold bag for several hours, but I kept wondering if the battery panel would ever show that they were charging. This has happened with the generator when the batteries are low - and it takes about a half hour for the Charge LED to come on. To get to a limited access road it takes us just about a half hour from the house. Just before the highway entrance came up I pulled over into a shopping mall and we checked the LEDs - Charging! Good. One less thing to think about. We left the fridge off and decided we would wait until we stopped at a rest area for lunch to put it on. The start of this trip was certainly not dull - nor was it relaxing. Maybe I am expecting too much to relax on a trip...

Traffic to Pennsylvania was not bad - at least once we left New York State. We bounced and banged on what were supposedly recently newly paved roads - none of which actually looked like they were newly paved - or at least had, already, splits and large holes in the pavement. Not unusual - the trip out of NY and back in is always - bang, rattle, shake, bang. We stopped for gas in New Jersey - a must, as gas in NJ is about 40 to 50 cents a gallon less than where we are in New York and about 20 cents a gallon less than in Pennsylvania. We paid $1.97 a gallon. I know that gas is a lot less than this in other parts of the country, but it has not gone near to be below $2 here where we are in NY at all this year.

The "new to us" campground has a 2:30 check in time and while I did not expect it to be crowded or full, since this was our first time here we did not know what reaction we would get if we arrived there early As it was, it was 2:10 pm when we pulled up in the lane to the office. There was a big trailer in the lane in front of us. We went inside the office and we were greeted by a woman who was working with a man behind the counter who was getting the trailer registered. Each was very nice and we were welcomed like old friends. (More about this in our review of the campground in two weeks.) I did make a point of telling her that we come to Lancaster regularly and are hoping that we will be staying with them for now on - again, mentioning why. She also was not surprised like the Amish woman working here mentioned in Part 1. She gave us our site number and our key card. She said that she would open the lift gate the first time in and then you must use the card to enter after that. The gate opens automatically - same gate - same lane - when exiting.

We drove through the gate and after passing the site, not seeing it, we had a little tour of the roads through the campground to get back to it. Our back in site was closed in on three sides by large rocks that created a wall about a foot and a half to two feet high. The site looked narrow and had a picnic table taking up a corner of the rear of the space. Up from the rocks was grass mounded up around the site. It was next to a road on one side and nothing but grass on the other with the next RV site about 50 feet away. The site angled into the road. I backed in hoping to find that it was level and not have to bother with the leveling ramps. Often with a Class B you have the room to move around in the space until you find the right level area. This site was not cooperating and we were winding up off level in all directions - front low, side high. It took almost a half hour until I hit a place that was close enough. It involved being in the space diagonally and at the same time avoiding the picnic table - which had it not been there, I still think I would have found a level spot much faster. OK - get out to put down markers to find that exact spot again and test the electric box. I opened the driver's door and Meryl said "Wait!" but too late. The corner of the door hit one of the wall rocks. I sighed as I looked around at all of the other sites- most of them vacant with nothing around them but flat grass...  Electric box tested good. The markers were placed next to the tires (I have to say that sometimes getting back to where the markers are exactly is like finding a needle in a haystack - and on this trip - which has never happened before - we never did get close each night when we got back and wound up finding level all over again each night. I actually discovered one night that if the front of the van stuck out into the road (which it should not) the van was perfectly level.) We got into the Roadtrek and headed over to Roots Farmers Market for what was left of the day.

That night when we turned on the water pump it ran but little water came through the toilet or the sink. Oh boy, now what?!? I turned the pump off and then back on and turned on the sink. The water ran slow and then ran with regular pressure and stayed that way. I wondered if this happened because it was colder outside than it has been when using the water. I had the water running fine at home when I tested it before the trip so that we would have no surprises. The water ran fine that night and up to the last night when it was really cold out - mid-30's at night and it did it again. Well, whatever it was it worked itself out - and before I winterize which will be soon, I will check the water pump filter to see if there is anything in there that is slowing the flow that had to shake loose to run steady. 

I knew in advance of the trip that the next day was supposed to rain - just rain. We have found places to go and things to do here in the rain before - all too often - and I figured we would get past the day and onto what was forecast as good weather. During the day it rained heavily on and off - and even more off than on as it got into the afternoon. I was thinking how great it was that the rain would just pass, but weather on the radio was still talking about heavy rain that night. Fine. What we did not know is what was about to come.

We went to a restaurant not far from the campground that night. I felt it would be better than driving a distance on already dark roads with the rain expected to start and fog being talked about. After dinner we should have just headed back to the campground, but it was early - for us -, it was not raining, and I decided to make a stop before going back just to kill some time. By the time we were back in the Roadtrek to go back to the campground, it had started to rain. It was a steady rain but not a hard rain. We had the radio on to a popular local country station and in the middle of a song, I heard something that I have only heard in tests (and having been in major hurricanes I had never heard this for any of those) - the emergency broadcast tone. This was not a test. It was an emergency broadcast by NOAA and it named the counties and towns that a severe storm was heading for. The warning said that there would be 60 mile per hour winds and that anyone outside should take shelter in a strong building. One of the counties listed was Lancaster and one of the towns included was the one the campground is in. They gave a time frame for when the storm would reach us and when it would pass. We already in the rain and that was starting to pick up. The winds were yet to come. We got back to the campground and pulled up to the gate. I discovered quickly one of the drawbacks to campgrounds that have gates and keycards to open them - you have to lean out of the window to get the card in when it is raining. The box from the Roadtrek window was a stretch and I had to take my seatbelt off to get far enough out the window to reach - hoping the whole time that I would not drop the card. (I tend to drop things at the most opportune moments.) I got the card in the slot and back out and the gate lifted. I tossed the card to Meryl and we drove in to our space. It was raining and the wind was starting to pick up but not to any extreme. Unfortunately, backing into this site required assistance from someone outside so as to not hit the picnic table. Well, I was driving - and Meryl got out. We were both getting out eventually anyway to hook up. In the time that it took to get into a spot on the site that we were close to level and then hooking up the electricity and cable in the rain - it is very exciting plugging into 30 amps when soaking wet - we both did get wet. While we were out there, I looked right behind us and up to see the electric pole that was there with its wires going right over the top of the Roadtrek - and it occurred to me that this was not a great thing to have right behind us and over us in a 60 mph wind. There was not much we could do about it now - and it, I reasoned, that it must have weathered other storms and was still standing - and it had large and long guide wires holding it in place. I also looked at the rock wall on three sides of us and imagined the rain building up into a pool that would surround us in this site. We were still out there getting wet - it was time to get inside. We had rain jackets on - and hats - but that just meant that we had wet jackets and hats to deal with once we got inside. Meryl put down some plastic covers and put hooks up on the side ledge in the front of the Roadtrek and hung up the wet jackets. While she was doing this, I went to one of the cabinets and got out our NOAA emergency weather alert radio. I plugged it in and pulled out the antenna. It had been awhile since I used it last and it took me a little while to remember how to get it to broadcast. We heard the same alert we had heard over the van radio. It also indicated that the storm was getting closer. I wondered to myself if when they say if you are outside you should get inside, if that meant standing or walking outside - or if you are in a car or - say an RV - if you should be getting the heck out of it and finding a building. The only open building here was the restrooms. In there we would not know what is going on with the alert or if the alert would be extended past the time predicted that the storm would pass. I did not say anything to Meryl and she did not say anything to me - as she was thinking the same thing. She was already planning if we could fit under the bed if need be - away from what she decided would be breaking glass from trees crashing through the Roadtrek's windows. I looked out the window at the several RVs and trailers that were near by.  They were all occupied. No one was running for cover. Foolish as it might be we stayed inside the Roadtrek which is a heavy van. Out on Route 30 that passes the campground nearby, I could see trucks and cars driving along. A bit nervous, we sat down in the front seats and put on the television. I started my laptop and looked at weather radar maps and saw projected paths of the storm for were we were sitting. At about the time the warning said the winds would arrive we could both hear them and feel the van being shaken side to side. Were we having fun yet? This certainly was not a dull moment - and I certainly was not relaxing. I thought of long past trips when we would be in a hotel and it would rain. You stayed inside and did not give much thought to it other than you were limited in what to do going outside. We were once in a hotel in a hurricane - and the electricity went out and was not expected back on for days. We stayed one night like that and found another hotel that had power the next day - walking our luggage down the staircase from the fourth floor to the car requiring several trips. Even that was not quite like this. I guess feeling vulnerable to the elements is part of the RV lifestyle... Well, if you know this site from the beginning of the articles you know why we do this now and will never go to another hotel - so it is this or stay home.

The storm did pass just around the time it was predicted to leave the area. Things got quiet outside and the van was nice and steady as the wind was gone. I was going to keep the NOAA alert radio set to broadcast if there was another alert- this one works that way, but we decided to pack it up and put it away. We did hear on the television that another part of the storm was coming late in the night - around 3:00 am or so - and sure enough, the rain started hitting the roof about that time and we fell asleep to the sound.

Well, just like the songs lyrics - "the sun will come out tomorrow ..." and "There's got to be a morning after..." - the storm was gone the next morning. The sun did not come out until later in the day but there was a morning after and all was fine. The grass was wet, but the gravel was fairly dry when we unhooked for the day to go off doing the things we do when we come down here.

The last night we saw that the front exterior tank was just about empty and Meryl went into the cabinet to isolate the front tank and turn on flow from the interior tank. Good timing as the temperature was dropping and this was what we planned for when we set the tanks at the start of the trip.

That last night it got colder than the heat pump will handle (40 degrees and below) and while we should have just gone outside and turned on the propane valve to run the furnace and heat the inside up nicely, I decided that we would just pull out the electric space heater that we brought with us - just in case. Finding a place for the heater was the first issue. There is the kitchen counter - full of things we use to go to bed and when we get up. There is the floor. We started with the kitchen counter, moving everything aside. That did not really work out. The temperature where we were sitting was getting really hot - but away from that it was cold. It was a continual dance of getting up to turn it down, then getting up to turn it back up - as the the thermostat on this space heater does work - but it is made for a much larger space and not intended for a six foot open box in front and another six foot open box behind. I tried it on the floor. Here the air was getting warm from waste height up but because it was in line of the cold from the floor and the door, it was never turning off. This was where we left it - eventually setting the thermostat on it to 51 which was the highest temperature that it reached at the floor - at least it turned itself on and off at that setting and I could fall asleep not thinking that it would burn itself out - or worse while we were sleeping. From now on - cold weather trips - we will not bother with the electric heater (we may bring it as a backup in case there the furnace does not work) and we will just turn on the propane. Propane is something that we don't really like but will use if we have to - which so far has been rare.

So there you have it. I have to say that we did enjoy this trip overall - but there was really never a dull moment. We did things we enjoy doing on each of the days - even when it was raining. We could have done without the "big" storm. It would have been nice to be able to relax more in between the fun.

Was this the last trip of the year? Well, it is with running water on board, but we are not sure if there will be a cold weather, winterized trip coming or not. That will depend on a few things yet to be seen. On the last day we emptied the black tank and the grey tank - and I did not add the usual water into the black tank to prevent it from going dry. There will be antifreeze in it very shortly. Oh, and did we love the new campground - it has its pluses and minuses. A review will be coming up very soon - with photos.

Never a Dull Moment - Part 1

There is a superstition that if one starts out the day saying that it will be delightful and carefree, this almost assuredly guarantees just the opposite. Well, I was looking forward to our October trip to be just that - delightful and carefree. Silly me! We had to cancel a two day trip in September because we had not made reservations at a campground in advance. For the past two years we have been waiting to a day or two before planned trips to call to make reservations. This seemed to have been working - no risk of paying a canceled reservation fee - as much as a night's stay at some campgrounds - when at the last minute the weather would be terrible or unexpected things at home demanded our presence. I had not even thought twice about not doing the same for this trip at the end of September. We were going to a Quilt/Fiber Sales Show near Philadelphia and then planned to spend the next day at Green Dragon Farmer's Market in Lancaster the next day and home at night on the next day. A nice three day business/pleasure trip.  Well, there were no campsites to be had in any campground that we called - even a few that I would not normally consider staying at. The Roadtrek had been packed the day before - the bed was made - all was inside - our clothes and necessities for three days. And it did not happen. We did go to the Quilt Show - by car and home in one day the next day. So as that trip did not happen I was really looking forward to this October trip!

I made the reservations for the October trip right after this all happened in September. We were going to stay in a different campground in Lancaster County - not the one we have been staying in for the past four years. A coming article will be a review of the "new to us" campground. Why we were not going back to Old Mill Stream Campground is a tale in itself. Old Mill Stream raised its rates two years ago and there were signs that things would be changing. All of 2014, things were somewhat as usual - though they no longer accepted charge cards when making reservation by phone and required a check be mailed to hold a reservation. The couple who have run the campground for years and years were not always around. This was not a good sign. They were made this an exceptional campground - beyond a good campground. Our first trip there in 2015 in May, these people were nowhere to be found. Things were becoming more "corporate". This campground had been owned privately and then by the Hershey corporation (along with the children's amusement park next door - that this campground has been a part of). Just after we started coming it seems that a European corporation bought out the amusement park and the campground - but there has been no evidence of that until now. When we arrived for five days for July Fourth this year - there was a great deal of change in customer relations and particularly in the revision of the campground entrance - and not for the good. Let's start with the entrance - and exit. It was being changed so that anyone coming into the amusement park and also the campground had to enter a single lane entrance that split off into three lanes going into three parking booths. The right hand booth and lane was for RVs going into the campground - but this did not mean that cars going in to park for the amusement park did not get into that lane as well. Busy amusement park - lots of people with small children coming in (this amusement park is focused on young children) - and big RVs trying to get in to get into their space. One would think that at 2;00 pm when the campground starts check-in that this would not be much of a problem - but it is. To make it even more exciting the entrance lane at the corner of busy Route 30 is alongside the exit lane and cars pull into the entrance lane to exit - while you and your RV is out in the road trying to get in. We saw this happening that Fourth of July week. We discovered that week, that to exit the campground you now followed a sign that led your RV into the parking lot for the amusement park - and as you tried to make your way though the narrow aisle - narrow even for a Class B - you came upon moms and dads walking their toddlers by the hand through the lane - oblivious to the RV behind them. We saw a few close calls. By our trip there in August, the parking lot changes were complete and the situation getting in or out was even worse. Now, also in July and August we discovered that the last row of the campground - which just happened to be where our preferred for four years site was (next to the bathhouse) - was located right where the "overflow" parking on the grass for the amusement park starts. We woke up one morning to some odd sounds and looked out the window to see cars being parked behind us. (Just what you want for security in a campground - people who don't belong in the campground getting in and out of their cars all day - and into the evening, right behind your RV.)

OK - that is just the getting in and getting out. The people working in the campground and in the office were different. In July, there was one woman who we recognized from before. I spoke with her about the changes that we were seeing and her answer was that the corporation decided it all and no one asked them for any opinion or consultation in planning. It was very evident that the corporate people were taking over. This campground always books solid for Fourth of July weekend and it has always been policy that a reservation cannot be made more than one year to the day in advance. We were told when we first came there that if we wanted to come for Fourth of July weekend we had to make the reservations a year in advance and we have been doing that - every year, despite our not making advanced reservations for other trips. When we checked in I told the woman behind the counter that we wanted to make next year's reservations right then starting on that same date. It has been custom here to give whoever is in a site regularly, preference for that site when making that year in advance reservation. We asked for the same site for next Fourth of July week. The woman at the desk is flipping through papers and calendars and says - "OK I can make the reservation for you - BUT not for that site. It is taken." What?!? We were polite - we exclaimed our disbelief - how could this be? It has always been policy to not make a reservation for a site until one year to the day - and we walked in to the office at exactly 2:00 pm at the very start of check in for this day. When was the site reserved - "several days ago". What?!? "Sorry, it is now first come first serve." Oh yeah?!?  We made the reservation (which can be canceled with no penalty) at our second preferred site. We knew that our favorite campground was not going to be a favorite any longer. We had to find another campground that we would like. The problems were mounting up. The final straw was in August - we went back just for convenience. We had the site for four days and decided that we wanted to stay another night. We got another night but in a different space which was understandable and fine. The morning that we were going to move. We were getting dressed inside the Roadtrek at 10 am and there was a bang on the Roadtrek door. I looked out the window past the closed curtain and there was a man outside. He looked like he belonged to the campground - there are lots of men in tee shirts working now in the campground from the amusement park. Official checkout time at the campground is 11:00 am. It used to be 1:30 pm. It was an hour before that. I open the door and he says we are supposed to be out of the site! I tell him that checkout is an hour away. There is a trailer in the entrance road. Remember - check in is at 2:00 pm - it is 10 am. He gives me a look. I told him that we were moving to another site and when we were finished doing what we were doing we would be moving over there. He went off in a huff. What the heck is going on here?!?

So in August on a rainy afternoon we headed over to a campground that I had seen good reviews for and that is owned by one of the large local companies that has hotels, restaurants, and bake shops and all are family owned and run. It gets great reviews. My hesitation with it in the past was that it has a traffic gate that requires a key to open. Never having been in a campground with a gate - and our usual schedule of arriving late at night on some trips and getting in past office closing. We had to know what the story with that gate and our late arrivals would be. We parked the Roadtrek outside the office and went inside. There was an Amish woman at the desk. Interesting - and nice. We explained that we were just in for information - that we were regular visitors to the area but were in need of a new campground - mentioning some of the problems without saying any name - and she smiled knowingly. The gate key card would be no problem. As long as they know that you are coming with a reservation, they will leave the card and the site number for you outside the locked office. Wonderful! We tried to walk around to look at the campground but it was pouring. From what we could see it looked nice. The next trip we would try it - which was supposed to be the September trip, and I have already said what happened with that. The October trip would be our trial stay.

Wow! All of this and we have not even gotten to the start of the October trip yet. Maybe it is best that we end here and make this Part 1 and the article that I set down to write this afternoon will be Part 2. Sometimes when you think, let me tell you this before I tell you that - well, it can take some time, but we try to keep the path interesting and entertaining as we go meandering along.

So - end of Part 1. Part 2 in two weeks...