Just signed up with Get Jealous for when we have sold our house, bought our motor-home and are touring Europe, just hope that time its not to far away?
You may have to revisit the ENTIRE blog from time to time as we endeavour to add missing dates or information, as well as Pat correcting Micks spelling.
We want the blog to be informative as well as being light hearted and hopefully not to boring.
Upon my retirement from the Force in Nov 2004 it has always been our intention to sell our UK house then buy a villa in the Costa Blanca area of Spain. In Sept 2004 we flew out to stay with good friends John & Helen Spooner to check out the local camp sites for our stay prior to selling our house.
During the past years I had `book marked` a number of Spanish Estate Agents web sites and monitored the prices which started to resemble a telephone number so the purpose of our visit was also to see if we would be happy a little inland where for half the price of a coastal property you would get the same and twice the amount of land.
We set off in our caravan & 4x4 at the beginning of Dec 2004 for Camping Javea in Spain where we stayed for 7 months and had a great time and made many good friends.
In July 2005 we decided to leave and return home but during the journey something very strange happened.
We decided that it was to soon for us to settle down be it in Stafford or Spain, no we wanted to tour and see the rest of Europe, we also decided to still sell the house so as NOT to incur expenses with owning a property after all that would be empty.
Within the first week of our return we visited Brownhills motor-home dealership on the A5 at Cannock. We climbed in and out of numerous British & European motor-homes, after several hours we left clutching a large bundle of brochures.
As we turned left out of Brownhills onto the A5 heading for the M6 we noticed to our left a dealer called Westcrofts who sell American motor-homes so we decided to pop in just to take a look.
Well it was love at first sight with the first one we enterered, this was the way to travel, proper furniture NOT bits of ply wood stapled together as in the British / Euro motor-homes.
Our heads were spinning, if we sold our house we could live in our caravan but would they take our 4x4 and caravan in px the answer was yes but when I found our from an internet friend how much they make on selling an American RV I understood why.
Some weeks later we again had a major change of mind, tour Europe YES but AFTER touring the USA & Canada.
We have now decided still to sell up but instead of buying our RV in the UK we intend to travel to the USA to buy one.
Having bought an RV (motor-home) we will then tour North America for 1-2 years before heading back.
Not only will this allow us to see America but it will save us thousands of ££££`s on import duty and tax.
However at about this time the DVLA had put a stop on ALL American RV imports due to models being over the prescribed 2.55m width and 12m length being imported by some, so until it is sorted out we will remain here in the UK.
Today we moved our bed and a few other small items to our son Matthew`s address in Crewe and a storage company in Stafford.
We also moved in with him, his fiance Bev and their dog Rocky untill our flight on 14th Oct.
On Mon 20th we moved the large items to storeage and the house sale completion and exchange of ££££`s took place on Friday 24th.
Prior to this date and in preperation for our American tour I had tried to open an account with an American bank but this is impossible to do from the UK that was until I saw that H.S.B.C. had branches in BOTH the UK & USA so in July ( yes I know this is out of date order) we opened an account at the Stafford branch.
We drove to London with Matt and Bev for a three day stay to obtain out American visa`s, our appointment at the American Embassy being 13.30 August 22nd, yes my birthday.
At the Embassy you first check-in and are given a number, when that number is called after about an hour you go to a booth in the same area where your application and paperwork is checked, oh nearly forgot and they take your finger prints and finger chewer Pat nearly was rejected because of here chewing habit.
If all is okay you again go and sit in the waiting area for your number to be called again then you go to another booth down a corridor where you are asked why you want the visa as well as questions about your living situation in the UK.
If you are successful you join a queue back in the waiting room area where you have to pay for your passports containing your visa`s to be couriered to your home address.
Well only five days before we fly off to Florida to start our dream adventure,all of a sudden things are getting very hectic and together with the postal strike I am beinning to wonder if we will eventually get there?
Problems started even before we left the UK for Florida.
Now for the record, it is practically impossible to open a bank account in the USA from the UK, however I saw that HSBC had branches in both the UK & USA so I thought this was the way to go.
In July we opened an account at the Stafford HSBC branch.
On the sale of our house on 24th August we temporarily moved in with Mat & Bev in Crewe and we started the procedure to open an American HSBC account using their International department.
Simply this involved completing an application form over the telephone with an HSBC Int employee who then e-mailed it to us , you read check over,print off the forms and sign the forms which you then present at any HSBC branch for checking along with means of identification.
We chose the Crewe branch for obvious reasons who checked then send the form to HSBC International in Manchester.
A week or two later I rang to find that the Crewe branch hadn`t authorised the forms correctly causing a delay.
There were several other errors BOTH on the UK and USA side of the `pond` eventually on the 3rd Nov we received our US check-in cards and book.
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Well after a 9 hour flight from Manchester we arrived at Sanford Airport, Florida which is about 53 miles from the villa we were renting at Paradise Cove Court (PCC), Kissimmee.
We upgraded our hire car to a Chrysler Sebring convertible as we were considering purchasing a Sebring once the hire period ceases in 14 days time.
53 miles may not appear to be a long drive but getting use to a strange car and the American roads can be very exhausting and it was wonderful to have the Tom Tom sat nav I bought in the UK.
On route we decided to stop at the large Walt-Mart which is next to PCC, whilst Pat went in to buy the essentials I fired up the lap top to obtain the security box number e-mailed to me several days ago containing the villa`s security key box code.
Whoops I`d stored the e-mail in one of my browsers that requires connection to the internet to view.
On Pats return I inform her of this good news and we shoot off to find a wi-fi internet link.
A nearby hotel allows me to connect and retreive the code.
Bye the time we got in the villa we were knackered so we dropped the cases just inside the door and went to bed........Nite nite.
Just visited the storage yard to view and check-out our potential RV that we are sure we will be buying in which we will then tour the USA & Canada.
At this time the keys from the owner hadn`t arrived so it was just a matter of finding the site and checking out the exterior.
A few days later friends of the owner John & Hettie who have now become our good friends arrived with the keys and we ALL clambered aboard to find out what every switch and knob did and Oh boy there are quite a few.
Just returned to the villa having picked up our new 2008 Jeep Liberty from the Jeep dealer.
I couldn`t drive two vehicles at the same time so we returned the Sebring ( two days early ) to the Dollar rental at Orlando airport, this depot is a lot closer to our Jeep dealer than Sanford Airport from where we rented it.
To save a few miles on the Jeep two sales men followed us in the Sebring, one drove our Jeep whilst the other drove another car which they used to get them BOTH back to the dealership.
When we arrived at the villa we suddenly realised that we had left the villa key on the Sebring`s key ring so had to return to the Dollar depot to retrieve the villa key....What a couple of plonkers, however on this route we chose the ` NO TOLL ROUTE` and found a few new and useful places to visit another day so all wasn`t in vane.
Now through out this blog we may refer to the Jeep as a `toad` and I hear some of you asking why, I believe its an American term simply the car is a toad because it is towed behind the RV.
Visited Camping World to check (as they had instructed we do) to see if the car tow brackets had arrived as they were due to be fitted to the front of the car on Tues 6th.
Informed items not arrived so our fitted date would have to be re- scheduled to another date as yet un-known.
We will have to contact the villa management company on Monday to see if we can extend a further week.
Further shopping for items for the RV the entrance hall at the villa is looking more like Sants Grotto each day.
To-day we drove the 65 miles to Titusville to check out our next location, that is once the bracket appears at Camping World.
The pictures show the entrance to the Willow Lakes site as well as the pitch or plot as the Americans call them where we will be parking our RV.
We have had to book a further week at the villa because of this delay.
Whilst driving to our mail office to check for any mail we noticed this poor sighted lobster trying to make `friends` with a red car.
The Jeep and RV both arrived at Camping World to-day to have the towing equipment fitted a two day job.
The work for those of you interested entails brackets being fitted to the chassis of the Jeep to which a A frame can be connected which goes between the RV and towed vehicle, this is the bracket that caused our delay.
We have chosen a bracket kit that can be removed from sight.
Further equipment is also installed that operates the Jeep brakes via an air line at the same time as the RV`s air brakes.
Once all set up and with the steering lock OFF the car simply follows where ever the RV goes
At about 2.00pm Saturday we caught the bus to Camping World to collect BOTH vehicles.
Mick`s first lesson was on how to connect and dis- connect all the equipment.
The plan was to leave the RV at Camping World that night then move her to a nearby campsite called Sherwood Forest to clean and install all our new stuff.
We also have items belonging to the previous owner`s Lindsay and Lynda to pack up and return as both were now in Florida.
Last night 8 of us met up to eat at a Chinese buffet, the group consisted of Lindsay & Lynda, John & Hettie who brought the RV`s keys out to us and Karen & Chris who came out on the 3 month waver visa and bought a new RV from Lazy Days.
Well with the help of Lindsay & Lynda we eventually moved the RV from Camping World onto the Sherwood Forest Camp site in Kissimme, that was after a 120 mile round trip to familiar Mick with driving the RV, as well as testing out the RV towing the Jeep and also `topping` up the diesel tank with 53 gallon of diesel.
The trip went with a hitch (sorry about the pun) the pictures show the RV & Jeep on a pitch and Lynda explaining to Pat where the vacume bags are located for the RV`s built in vacume system.
As you can imagine, these sites are built to take American RV`s even BIGGER than ours, some are titled `Drive Throughs` so that you don`t have to reverse onto your pitch, an RV with a car towed behind is impossible to reverse.
Each pitch has water, electric either 50 or 30 amp ( Highest UK campsite electric is 16 amp) and a sewage outlet, some even have a connection for cable TV.
Just a quickie with a couple of photo`s showing that we are very busy kitting out the RV and not lounging around the pool sipping cocktails.
Well the Jeep loaded up to the gunnel`s we set off at 10.20am ahead of throwing out time to Sherwood Forest to pack up and attach the RV to the Jeep.
We eventually set off for Willow Lakes just outside Titusville at a location called Mims at 13.30.
The roads considering it was Thanksgiving Day were surprisingly light and our 64 mile journey went with only a slight error when I took a wrong turn but `Satty` our Sat Nav quickly got us back on coarse.
On arrival as expected reception and the automatic gates were closed, good job we had visited a few weeks ago and obtained the gate code.
Just before un-coupling I took a picture then it was onto the pitch facing the lake, legs down,slides out and before long Pat had not only mastered a new oven to cook our own Thanksgiving roast dinner.
Well with the temperature being in the 80`s and nothing better to do I thought I`d try and capture some of the local wildlife and views.
Not sure what species of bird or the turtle are but locals believe there are at least 6 turtles in this lake, the site has three lakes.
Now I`m again informed that a blue Heron loves the area to the front of our RV so it`s just a matter of time.
To-day we drove to a place called Cocoa Village near to Cocoa beach where our neighbours informed us they had obtained their pitch name plates from.
We then drove to a K-Mart in order to add to the Xmas spirit.............. we bought a 7 foot illuminated palm tree.
Our final purchase and bargain of the year so far was a large folding gas barbecue, shall add photos of all three when possible.
Revisited Kissimmee to collect post again, we also called in at Lindsay & Lynda`s villa to drop off a few items from the RV that he had loaned me. On our arrival Lindsay had visitors Ian & Doreen Hancock. Ian has previously exported an RV back to the UK which he has sold, they now own an American caravan or trailer as they call them over here which is towed by the white Dodge 3500 Ram pickup in the picture.
Ian & Doreen were at Lindsay`s fitting a winch / slide device for loading the Harley onto the back of the Dodge.
Well today was we hope our final pitch move at Willow Lakes, after a late lye in we finally up jacks and slid our slides in to move back to a pitch that over looks the lake but not the same one.
On completing our move it was lunch time then off to the pool which we had the sole use of, pool temp was 90 degrees, as the sun set lower it was back to the RV for Pat to capture the last of the day`s sun whilst complete this entry.
Well after getting a few directions form our American friends whilst lounging in the 92 degree heated pool yesterday we decided to head off for GATOR country.
A short drive down Highway 1 into Titusville, then a left turn and we are heading for Merritt Island National Wildlife Park.
Shortly after driving over a metal swing bridge we noticed a sign to Black Point and turned off a two way road onto a single one way track road. Well driving at 10-15 mph takes for ages but we got a few snaps for our blog.
On our return to Willow Lakes we were informed that we had turned off the road to Merritt Island to soon, oh well another place to visit another day.
We had also received an e-mail saying that some seats we had ordered had arrived as well as the tag plates for the RV, so its a return to Kissimmee tomorrow.
Sunday 16th decided to go exploring the National Park on Merritt Island again and try and locate the Manate`s or BIGGER gators.
I cannot start to explain just how big this location is and when you drive down single track roads at 15mph travelling a mile or two takes ages, I stopped at one point to take this picture to try and give you some idea of the scale of things.........if you can enlarge this picture to the left of the Jeep is `something` to do with the Kennedy Space Centre.
Saw no manates or crocks but got this great picture of a buzzard watching US.
Later on leaving Merritt Island whilst looking for a place to eat we found an Irish Bar where we met two lovely American couples who we expect to late meet up with again for a meal out.
As it was such a beautiful day we decided on route to Wal-Mart to re-visit the Merritt Island National Wild Life Park.
This island and park houses Cape Canaveral and the John F Kennedy space centre.
Access to the island is via one of several bridges over the Indian River, in our case it`s via Highway 402 which is a swing bridge.
On route we stopped to help this little turtle chap to get safely across the road.
On looking at the map it appear`s that there was a road that would enable us to get quite close to the space shuttle scheduled to blast off next month, how wrong was that map, well not wrong but the road I hoped to take was closed to the public.
I have attempted to add a map in order to show how large this island is, I also managed to get some shots of the Shuttle ready for next month as well as a few more inhabitants of the island.
We have decided to remain at Willow Lakes a little longer, the reasons being that the weather in the south of the USA is not very good at the moment also we are still waiting to receive paperwork for campsite we have booked.
Some of our blog readers have been critical that we are not touring enough, well don`t forget that we arrived here with just 4 suit cases.
First priority was to buy a car to replace the hire car, this caused problems when we tried to buy at several dealers who would not sell to us via a Montana LCC. We then had to wait for keys from the UK to gain access into the RV that we eventually bought.
Further problems occurred regarding the towing bracket that prevented us leaving Kissimmee until 22nd Nov.
This all takes time.
Even after that date we continue to note items that we require and buy in order to build what is our now our home out here and NOT just a two week holiday flat.
As I type this entry we are planning trips out to places which back home are famous or well known which are now just a good stones throw away (ok several miles)
Our extended stay here may also mean that we may get to see the Shuttle launch an event that I know several of you are very interested in.
We drove out today to a Target Store in Titusville on Highway 406, it was amazing to think we had just nipped out to do a bit of shopping and get some lunch.
We decided to drive down the 406 over another swing bridge over the Indian River where we saw dolphins swimming and a shuttle outside the John F Kennedy space centre.
Took couple pictures of the shuttle, stopping where we were not supposed to.
If anyone asks we are the `Podarzzi`. Unfortunately could not do the same for the dolphins as there was no place to stop to take a sneeky shot.
We got back to the site and decided to try the Friday meet in Peace park which is just over the lake from us. This is a favourite meeting place for a chat, drink and nibbles with the local natives.
Pat chatted at length to Candy who is from Hawaii and Mick got into several chats on men things eg motor bikes and big boys toys etc there was even an ex cop with a model sailing boat.
Sundown back to the RV for more of that awful pot roast.
Matthew rang 1st thing today picking dads brains on laws for driving cherry pickers on the highway? Think it will be a chill day, very overcast but sun trying its best to break through. Updated diary and did accounts. Finding writing down wot we do each day good idea as neither of us can remember our names some days, we really are not safe to be let out in daylight.
HAD BLOODY THUNDER AND LIGHTENING STORMS THIS AFTERNOON ALTHOUGH IT WAS STILL WARM, REALLY STRANGE...........
16th Jan:
Drove to Kissimmee today to collect mail, the box was full and Pat had trouble getting the mail out.Had meal first time at Ihop, this is where you get pancakes with your meal...Pat threw up must have been the panake?
That night very windy, our illuminated palm tree blew over.
We arrived at what we thought was Daytona Beach and drove along it quite some way, it was brilliant, Pat steered why I took the pictures.
Could not find any signs for Daytona so after taking a few final shots of a wind/kite surfer in action left the beach, which we now know was called New Smyrna Beach just south of Daytona.
Got satty out to get directions for Daytona Beach, again drove a distance along the beach mainly looking for a sign, funnily enough this beach was not a busy as the first. However the Hotels overlooking the beach were a lot bigger and more upmarket. Really enjoyed this experience hope the photos are good to give family and friends back home a taste of it. You could not even imagine driving along a long long beach like this in the UK.
Came off beach after getting much wanted picture of sign and decided after driving around Daytona a short time to go eat some lunch. Chose a Pizza Hut and enjoyed Pizza and salad and chatted at length with two young waitresses, nice girls, really polite and helpful. As we left Pat heard them say "They were really nice Guys" this is something we hear a lot in general we find americans to be really nice and friendly. They love to hear our accents apparently.
Well gone 4pm now and getting a little chillier, drove back to Willow Lakes. We had a nice surprise on our return, Dave and Betty our neighbours who are from New York, had just returned after having had to rush back home before Christmas to visit a couple of sick relatives. They invited us in as it was cold out, who was it who said "You won`t get an invite into their homes??? Stayed a while and caught up on each others news, we even came away with a bag of real hot dogs from New York, the best there is apparently, and we can even have a couple of dips from the New York hot dog sauce, which Betty says is LIKE LIQUID GOLD. Looking forward to sampling these they require to be cooked by BBQ no boiling in hot water like at home yum yum
REALLY HAD A GOOD DAY TODAY, HOPE THERE ARE PLENTY MORE TO COME
During our still short time ( 3months ) despite the rumours back home in the UK and the news on the TV here I am very surprised at how lawful and respectful Americans are.
Could you imagine a dual carriageway in the UK, straight and empty of traffic for as far as the eye can see and with the few cars using it driving to the precribed limit 65 or 70 mph ?
NO WAY.
Another example was on Daytona and Smyrna Beachs the other day, BIG / wide empty of vehicles yet EVERYONE was driving at the 10mph limit.
Well throughout the morning of Thursday 7th February 2008 the TV media kept on the edge of our seats as to if whether the STS -122 Atlantis Space Shuttle would blast off.
ALL access to Merritt Island where The John F Kennedy Space Centre and Cape Canaveral are based have been closed to the public for the last couple of days.
From our RV site 16 miles away (as the crow fly`s) from the launch pad we could watch as first white then grey then more white clouds moved in threatening the launch.
Now this was not to be only our first ever space launch but it was also the FIRST time Pat had used the digital still camera and the FIRST time I`d used our digital video camera.
I shall attempt to put on here what video footage I got, not bad under the circumstances but I think the chat in the back ground makes up for the lack of seeing the Shuttle for longer.
Patarazzi as I now call her did quite well as you can see.
A few hours later we visited an RV accessory store out side Titusville but on our return cars were still driving away from Titusville.
LETS GO TO FLORIDA KEYS
Off to The Keys today, probably stay over around halfway left 10am good start with the weather nice and sunny and warm again
Gassed up in Mims at a garage run by a family of Pakistanis (yep they are here as well, but with American accents. )
Took toll roads possibly a mistake left the toll road to a sign showing there was a subway great we thought just in time for lunch bloody toll booth not manned junction 34 around 1.35 pm FOR THE RECORD M.LORD SMILE NICELY FOR THE CAMERA Just in case we get a notice of toll fine, getting to be a habit Expensive too!! ........
Arrived in Florida City, had lunch at Subway there, worst branch in the entire state of Florida we think, no return visit there for sure.
Checked out local motel yuuukkkkk try a more upmarket hotel we thinks ahhhh yes thats more like it found the Holiday Express Inn very nice included continental brekkie plus added bonus of internet access in room.
Went out for an evening meal at local Applebees, again a good choice and drinks are buy one get one free - bliss for Pat and her Bacardi n coke, we both ate and drank and the bill came to $ 56.64 including tip.
Mile marker points indicating each section on the drive down to Key West
KEY LARGO; MM 112 TO MM 87
ISLAMORADA; MM 86 TO 66
MARATHON MM 65 TO MM 40
BIG PINE KEY; MM 39 TO MM 9
KEY WEST; MM 8 TO MM 0
INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH FROM END OF THE LINE SOUTHERNMOST POINT IS ONLY 90 MILES FROM CUBA, cigars anyone?
Left hotel around 9.30am to start drive down to The Keys
Beautiful weather here in the Old Town arrived just after lunch booked into a lovely old town house called Duval House expensive but we understood it would be, included champagne breakfast but cost extra $ 11 for parking . Nice large room with King size Bed own balcony overlooking pool with en suite - the bed alone was worth the cost very comfortable.
Parking there was a bit of a pain, take our advice if you get a space DONT MOVE not till you move on.
The old town is lovely full of must do`s we will take another trip back there and spend a longer time so we can see a lot more.
There is lots to see here Pat would have loved to shop till she dropped but I did not give her any opportunity I think I will pay for this later .God she found a cashpoint !!!!!!!
In a short space of time we did see a lot to remember, some bizarre sights too, large open cages outside bar/club for glamorous young dancers!!!!! or old crinklies - yep another missed photo opportunity, an old tramp standing on a street corner dressed as a muskateer or buckaneer type, with an old pushbike! !!!
A funeral procession through the streets obviously a New Orleans type, strutting to a very slow version of Down by the Riverside.
Oh yes and we must not forget the roosters who are believed to be a hybrid of Cuban fighting cocks brought by settlers to Key West. They are protected by a city ordinance which prohibits cruelty and harassment to birds. The restaurant we had lunch in had a large waterpistol to shoo them away with, you know the type huge things the kids and adults love to soak you with.
Well after lunch we went back to the hotel for a swim, too cold for Pat but I had a dip and got myself a new friend to talk to he was yellow very cute with a red beak oh yes we had matching sunglasses, but he was a bit shy and did not have much to say
Back to the room, tried internet but that was crap will know better next time, then off for a look at the sunset.
We did not go to Mallory Square to see the sunset but we found a very quiet place to watch it at, the old submarine base where the Mohawk, a World War Two American Warship was docked. Took several photos not the best sunset in the world, but better than one couple said they had seen, a cruiseliner crossed in front of it and blotted out their view completely. The sunsets are very romantic, an abolute MUST, excellent photo opportunity.
Guess where next, yep find a bar no, not Sloppy Joes saw it earlier we were too far away to walk so we found an IRISH BAR good company all nationalities here, even had resident Irish barmaid, off duty and having a drinking session. We ate again, cheeseburger and chips, just like home yum yum. It was good night, we both had a laugh in there.
Here are a couple of pictures of that gas barbecue we bought just before Christmas for $99, yes that`s less than £50, HRH is modelling to give you an idea of the size, it only just fits in the RVs lockers.
We have a chap coming today to install a gas line to which we can connect it hence having to get it out which enabled me to photograph it.
We drove back to Kissimmee to collect our post personally for the last time. Pat insisted we visit some some bar / restaurant called ` Hooters`.
I cannot think for one minuet WHY????? The food was great but I have one complaint and that was that I kept placing chips in my ears as I turned my head to look at the serving staff?
The attached pictures say the rest.
Well this is our last day at Willow Lakes RV & Golf park tomorrow we set off travelling to our next campsite called Sunset King Lake located at a place called De Funiak Springs which is just inside the Florida / Alabama border. ( See the blogs map )
We are heading for Las Vegas travelling along Highway`s 95 & 10 which will take us from Florida through Alabama,Mississippi, Louisiana,Texas, New Mexico, Arizona,and finally Navada.
Pat sneaked the attached photo in, it shows our illuminated palm tree with Dave the monkey and Betty the bee, named affectionately after our lovely neighbours at Willow Lakes.
Well we arrived here at 6.30pm Willow Lakes time, I say that because despite still being in Florida we have moved 1hour back so are now 6 hours behind UK time. The 419 mile journey was uneventful, except for a torrential down pour which the American drivers treated as if they had never seen one before and slowed to nearly a standstill, and a few strong cross winds which when you are driving what is as aerodynamic as a house brick did get buffeted slightly.
Well first opinion of the camp site is that it is just like being on Cannock Chase as we are surrounded by pine trees. Weather despite bright sun with no clouds is chilly because of a chilling wind.
As you can see, they have located us very close to the site chapel and that the plots as the Americans call them are very close together.
We are here until Tuesday 4th March.
A short drive due south of about 60 miles from our current camp site took us to the wonderful sites of Laguna Beach and Panama City, on the Gulf of Mexico. The journey their was very quiet on deserted through rural surrounds similar to Cannock Chase.
At this time of the year most of the attractions were closed so we headed directly for Pineapple Willy`s sea front restaurant.
On viewing the menu Mick immediately chose the alligator tail as starter, oh and the `drink` filling his face is a cocktail called a Rum Runner. We sat out on the pier section of the restaurant and were waited on hand and foot.
After launch it was down the steps and onto what must be the whitest beach we have ever been on, took our shoes off to make sure it wasn`t snow.
Then of course we had to have a paddle in the Gulf of Mexico........much better than the North Sea off Blackpool`s Promanade.
We then drove along the beach front to gain a few pictures for the blog.
Well we left Sunset King Lake camp site at about 10.00am to travel the 177miles to our next destination at Martin Lake in Mississippi.
During the journey we actually passed through the state of Alabama. Despite warnings the night before of severe weather (typhoons) as we drive west all that we could see in the distance was blue sky. The route entirely along the I-10 was uneventful and somewhat boring but it gave Pat time to practice her photographic skills and Dave the Monkey enjoyed himself.
During the journey we crossed over two large expanses of water which at the time I thought was the Mississippi River however on checking the map we will cross over the Mississippi River in Louisiana. Both crossings (Kev) felt a lot longer than Severn Mile Bridge.
The second expanse of water was as we approached Mobile which had several futuristic looking buildings as well as being the location of Battleship Park.
As the title says we popped out to see what Biloxi had to offer and we were both very surprised. A short 4 mile drive put us again over looking the Gulf of Mexico, we drove about 28 miles along the sea front to Gulfport.
All along the sea front work was going on,to improve the area, even the dead palm trees were not wasted and had been carved into an animals, birds or fish.
We have never seen an area with as many new casinos as we did here, one had the BIGGEST guitar we have ever seen out side a famous name cafe / casino.
We left Martin Lakes a little late site on a very wet and chilly Tuesday morning in the hope that the weather would improve, no chance and it was 10.05 when we pulled off. Our first stop after only 19 miles was a Flying J`s truck stop to top up our diesel tank. This also took for ages as you have to visit the kiosk and leave your credit / debit car details before the pump will operate.
So with Patarazzi sat in the front gunners seat clicking away at everything we again set off. Pat first photographic opportunity was as we passed from Mississippi into Louisiana.
Quite some distance further on we could hardly believe our eyes when we saw a white house (NO NOT THAT ONE) travelling ahead of us at 60mph on the back of a lorry. I didn`t dare look as we passed to see how close we were but I think Pats picture gives a big clue, VERY CLOSE.
Our next land mark just after Baton Rouge was the great Mississippi River and we crossed in on grand steel bridge with the old paddle steamers below.
The next point of interest didn`t really register until we had been travelling over it for several minutes, this was a two lane concrete dual carriageway road on pillars that went on and on as far as the eye could see over water and swamp, we later learned it was called the Atchafatay swamp and that it is the largest swamp in the US and the I10 is a continuous 18.2 mile bridge..........Kev makes the 7 Mile bridge look like a foot bridge?
Further on we spotted a sign that had to be photographed that will NOT mean much to may readers, but Barb & Kev JENKINS are you following us?
We arrived after dark at 20.15 and after a long chat with the site ranger and a wizz around the site which was practically in total darkness we dropped legs on the first empty pitch and crashed out for the night.
This is our first stay on a 1,000 Trails site (T.T) , now, what`s a T.T site I here you ask?
Well best way to describe, it`s a time share camp site group.
There are T.T sites all over the US and you buy either a National, West or East package for stays in those areas.
Now you stay on a TT site FREE for 2 weeks then you have to stay at a non TT site for 1 week before getting another 2 weeks on a TT site.
Or if you can manage staying just 4 days you can keep moving and staying on a different TT site for further 4 days.
Well if the other sites are as good as this one we will have bought a bargain.
People say, " Why would you want to live in a motorhome or caravan" Well just look at the photos of our garden for the next 7 days and theres your answer.
This site has a swimming pool and hot tub / jacuzzi and guess where we were at 20.00 last night and had the place to ourselves????? Don`t tell the kids.
We were up early on the morning of Tuesday 18th March for our 499 mile journey to Fort Stockton in Texas but as usual it was 09:05 when we actually left the camp ground. The route again along the I-10 would take most of the day and we will remain in the State of Texas. Now as I have partly explained we have purchased the 1,000 Trails camp ground package for places to stay in the RV, however 1,000 Trail site are not everywhere so we also joined Coast to Coast where you buy points and spend them to say on a camp ground, each point costs $0.01 and in general one night costs 1,000 or $10.
Now as sods law has it the route between Colorado River and Fort Stockton hadn`t either 1,000 Trail or a C2C site so back-up plan 3 came into force with our membership to Passport of America.
Membership costs $40 and gives you 50% discount at the 1,000`s of campgrounds in either their guide or CD so Park View it was at Fort Stockton.
The journey was uneventful and I think the high light for me was that the I-10 passed through San Antonio which is the site of the famous Alamo, only wish we had more time to have visited the site.
Shock of the day had to be our arrival at Fort Stockton and Park View car park I mean RV site.
No fair due we had 50amp hook up and free wifi so $22 or £5 per night wasn`t that bad. The area in general was a little run down and the main occupants appeared to be Mexican.
Not sure if it was because we were not sorry to leave this `site` or if it was the 553 mile journey but we left Fort Stockton at 08:30 again via the I-10. First job was to top up the fuel tank as we were down to just over ¼ of a tank, we normally try and top up when just half empty depending on the location of the Flying J`s.
"What are Flying J`s Mick" Sorry, this is a large group of filling stations that are all over the USA and mainly for truckers........yes I did say truckers, oh and RV`s you can obtain a discount card to save a few cents.
Now this section of the journey will take us out of Texas into New Mexico then Arizona past a city shown on the map as Cuidad Juarez which is well know to any Western fan as the famous El Paso featured in many Clint Eastwood films.
Now one thing we both had noticed through Texas, New Mexico and now Arizona was how much some of the countryside looked like Spain, the difference is the vast as far as the eye can see open spaces.......mind blowing.
Sections of land scape had vast windmill farms to separated to catch on camera as well as 100 truck long trains running along side the road.
I will add just a few pictures of this fantastic site and possibly more in the future both of this site but also of the scenes of 1,000`s of ex USAF, Marine, and Coast Guard aircraft that are stored here at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.........keep looking.
Shortly after arrival at Tuscon I noticed that the front bonnet that gives access to the generator was twisted and a check revealed that two of the four retaining bolts had sheared off, we immediately took the cover to a local Fleetwood dealer who promised to repair it but then it was Easter so we were expecting an extra day at Tuscon and a day less at Las Vegas, they kept their promise so we left on time.
We arrived ahead of schedule in order to get the best seats on the coach, the guide as we boarded announced seats to left for fighter planes and on the right for the bombers.
On entering Davis - Monthan USAF base (named after two senior pilots) the coach slowly weaved its mainly one way route through a sight that is hard to describe, hence the need to choose which side of the coach to sit.
The guide first explained that when the air craft first arrive they are washed then plastic patches are applied to various places on each plane to protect them from the fierce desert sun, apparently Tucson was chosen because of the very low humidity and that the ground is naturally hard.
Regardless of the planning when you start out from a location en-route to a new location you have no idea what you may see during the journey, normally the journey via an Interstate road is boring. This journey was no different but no way did we expect to find ourselves on the famous Route 66 or actually crossing the Hoover Dam, that trip had been planned during our stay at Vegas.
As we pack up to leave Las Vegas I have managed to down a few more pictures to the ` Bone Yard` as well as place a few in the Las Vegas entry, we shall add to the blog on arrival at Lake Elizabeth, California.
There was no rush of urgency getting up on the morning of Friday 29th as our next destination was `only` 266 miles a mere breeze to the 407 to get to Vegas.We quickly coupled up the car to the RV,slide-outs in and legs up then after a quick check of the car and RV lights using the walkie talkies we were off. Now for several journeys now we had been using not only the Tom Tom sat nav but also the lap top together with the mapping software Streets & Tips and a GPRS ariel.
The lap top powered by the RV`s 12 volt system is placed on the dash board top for the co-pilot to watch, the trouble is Tom Tom WILL redirect you if you go wrong, Streets & Tips will NOT.
Our journey out of Vegas put us onto the Inter State 15 giving Pat a few more chances of photographing anything she had missed including this strange tower......we never did find out what its called.
Now believe it or now when I plan these routes I`m never 100% just what we may come across, the Hoover Dam into Vegas being one example, YES we had intended visiting the Dam in the Jeep but NOT with the RV as well.
So it comes as no surprise that only after 33 miles on I -15 we noticed what I thought was a quarry in the distance, "No" Pat say`s its a fun fair, "What way out here?" I thought for one minuet we had gone in a circle but no we were approaching a `town` or casino haven called Jean.
The next surprise was the 4,000 ft climb over, hills or are they mountains to find ourselves in the Mojave National Preserve, a posh way of saying `Desert`
On the Navada - California border we had to stop here and any fruit or veg we were carrying was checked.
The only other point of interest which Past managed to photograph was a turn off to Ghost Town.
This was our first day at Lake Elizabeth RV Resort and on finding the sites wifi lacking range we ventured out to buy an booster ariel,alas, upon its purchase and setting up we found our pitch still to far to get a good signal so it was back to the club house.
As may appear in several of the pictures this site is very new and located in a valley, which I shall rename, `A Wind Tunnel` this is the first site we have been on that has a lake with pedlo`s on it which can be seen on the picture with the brown box like building which was the club house. Behind the club house was a swimming pool, hot tub and fishing pool.
To-day was the day we decided to drive the 60 miles to visit Los Angeles.
Now I wasn`t expecting any freeways for some time but I didn`t expect to see just after leaving the campground a sign warning that the road wasn`t suitable for vehicles over 39 feet and we hoped that wasn`t our route on Wednesday when we leave the site?
The route appeared ok and I couldn`t see why the sign had been erected.
We continued to a location obtained via Google that would give us a good view of the HOLLYWOOD sign and as you can see it was true.
Our next prey location was Rodeo Drive.........I was unable to spot a Woolworth`s down there.
We did however find a very famous street,` Beverly Drive`. Pat managed to snap most of the famous shops that SHE would like to shop in, I think they are better viewed at this distance.
By now our stomachs were rumbling so using the Sat Nav`s POI ( points of interest ) I put in Santa Monica beach which took us directly to the original Muscle Beach, see Pat posing after her work out.
After a few more snaps we jumped into the car and headed for Venice Beach but on arrival could see nothing so once again I set the sat nav to take us back to Lakes Elizabeth
Left Lake Elizabeth Golf at 10.10 am - within first few miles we knew it was going to be a bad day we started off with good intentions but either a bad satty direction or a poor judgment call we took a route through a mountain track for what must have been at least twenty miles shit it was hairy see the photos on the blog for an idea of the road we took.
Poor Pat was thrown around the back of the RV trying to make sure nothing was getting damaged she went greener by the mile. Definitely a test of our marriage and my driving skills thank god they are both survivors of the very very white knuckle ride.
Back on route again but not for long, oh shit after the longest and steepest motorway downhill we have encountered I missed the turn off right at the bottom for Flying J ( going to fast to make the exit slip ) and the diesel is on empty.
Hasty decision made cannot reverse will have to change direction quickly!!!!!! Very bloody quickly!!!!!!!!!! okay bit shaky but managed to retrace our steps and get back to the Flying J that was behind us cool thinking Luke behind the wheel and green looking puke in the passenger seat drama over and safely back on route again.
Rest of journey was not so bad but it does take it out of us both when these things happen nearly had a migraine come over me but was brave marine after all and kept a stiff upper lip Pat however was worn down by it all and could really have done with a sick bag (no stomach for it you see ha ha)
Well off to shops today now we are over yesterdays hell journey, found a small Wal-Mart you know no fresh veg section but right next door found Bag and Save (which really is Safeway) so will shop again there before we leave in case similar occures again at the South Jetty Oregon site (see we are learning) by the time we get to Canada we will be either brain dead or rocket scientists ! NO BETS TAKEN WHICH WAY WE WILL GO EITHER.
Pain in the arse this wi fi having to keep going to the Lodge, which was in need of TLC basically its a log cabin, but clean enough I suppose.
Decent supply of books and magazines though but some of the campers bit unwelcoming.
Oh yes, on way to shops BLOODY WOMAN DRIVER CUT US UP,MICK EXPERTLY MANOUVERED OUT OF THAT - could have been nasty but Mick got us out of a possible crap situation - God I am glad I let him drive me everywhere.
Mick’s hi light of day had a McDonald’s in Wal-Mart while Pat shopped
Pats hi light of day umm, oh yes got a hard back Catherine Cookson book from library
Home made curry for tea again tonight yum yum looking forward to our trip tomorrow off hopefully to San Francisco.
Well as San Francisco was relatively ‘close’ 76 miles we were in no particular rush to set off, the night before I had noted a few ‘must sees’ The Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, the steep streets with cable cars oh and where is that VERY windy road that only cars can use?
The journey started uneventful like most others then at one point we drove over and through some high hills that were covered with wind turbines.
Some time after we approached a bridge that looked just like a grey version of the Golden Gate bridge this bridge spans San Francisco Bay via Treasure Island.
I had programmed the sat nav to a location that would give a great view of Alcatraz which turned out to be near pier 39. On parking the car we walked the short distance to a good view point of Alcatraz which unknowingly was next to pier 39 and a very strange mini island restaurant.
A nearby plaque gave information regarding pier 39 but there was little on this restaurant other than it was ONLY accessed by a charter boat, I mean, what the hell was that propeller thing for......to move the island?
We then had a quick bite of lunch before returning to the car to visit our second location the Golden Gate bridge, again used sat nav to location at the foot of the bridge where I not only got a good shot of the bridge but also more of Alcatraz. We then drove to and over the Golden Gate Bridge. Now the Americans have fixed up a great con here as it was free to cross north but cost $5 return.
During our routes to and from the bridge Pat managed to photograph a street car on one of those very steep hills.
Now one of my main ambitions as an ex- Police Motorcyclist is to get my picture taken with a ChiP motor cycle patrol officer and I was nearly there when 10 or 12 zoomed past us with lights flashing no doubt onto something urgent.
During our return journey we got caught up with heavy traffic including this ‘Tonka Toy’ What a plonka this guy was continually accelerating to the back of traffic and then dropping back.....perhaps he didn’t have a proper accelerator just a SWITCH.
Well our next 558 mile journey from California`s Turtle Beach to Oregon`s South Jetty will be our longest day`s trip so far, the route being mainly on the I - 5 free way.
Despite rising at 06.30 - 07.00 we didn`t leave Turtle Beach until 09.10. the only reason or excuse for this can only be having to visit the sites `dumping station` to empty our black & grey tanks.
Our route would take us to two Flying J`s filling stations and at the second we ate lunch.
Now unknowing to us both this journey would take us through some of the most beautiful and dramatic scenic views so far as the I-5 took us through the Shasta National Park, I`m hoping that some of the 100`s of snaps Pat took will reflect this for the blog.
My BIGGEST concern was after we had entered the State of Oregon and had climbed to 4,000 feet at Grants Pass.
Now this isn`t the first time we had seen signs out of the RV`s front screen informing us that we were at 4,000 ft, NO the BIG difference this time were the occasional snow flakes that appeared, then more and more as we descended the other side, after what seemed like miles and with the snow fall getting heavy I was further alarmed to see another sign 3,500 ft. I was sure that by the time we reach the `bottom` we would be in several inches of snow.
None of the snow was sticking but I thought, what if it does, how will the Jeep on the A frame cope, luckily as we further descended the snow stopped in fact the sun came out.
We knew that we would arrive `late` at South Jetty and agreed to call ahead to update them of this as soon as we left the I-5, however this wasn`t to be that easy.
As soon as we left the I-5 we were immediately on to Highway 138 which was very similar to a major two way tow lane road back in the UK, and oh, surrounded ALL the way by dense forest, so a mobile signal was none existent until we were nearly there.
On our arrival last night it was late and too dark to find an `ideal` pitch so we quickly set up on one again with no sewer with the view of moving the next day, we didn`t even extend all three slide-outs.
One small item that quickly became apparent the next day was that every pitch on this site was under trees.
We got our sewer, water & electric (30 amps) still the wifi wouldn`t work and the TV was down to about 6 channels all poor reception.
Well 4th night here at South Jetty, Florence, Oregon.
Once again we are off tomorrow having to travel approx 455 miles to our last stay in the USA.
Well how do we feel? In short absolutely cream crackered!
We completely lost the first two days of this leg of our journey, due to being totally brain dead - which the official diagnosis has just been confirmed by our very very expensive medical insurance provider.
So for all you doubting Thomas`s, back home, yes it is now official and documented for anyone who cares about our wisdom in doing this voyage.
We have both been diagnosed with exactly the same condition, which is not life threatening but could change our future lifestyle.
The condition is called C.R.S. which unfortunately is NOT treatable with medication but with careful management we can control the symptoms simply by taking good care to avoid an attack.
WOW we hear you say, never heard of that before, blimey what is it, will you both be o.k. so far away from family and friends, should you come back to the U.K. immediately and seek a 2nd opinion from the N.H.S.
These questions we have deliberated over at length and we have BOTH decided to soldier on with our voyage of discovery.
AFTER ALL: What is C.R.S.?
It is a condition that is known worldwide and is believed to have originated in the U.K.!
Today Pat had an episode of C.R.S. -
Whilst shopping in a local Safeway (Yep they are here and much better than U.K. stores)
Shopping done, make way to till - oh shit!! WHERE IS MY HANDBAG?
It was on my shoulder when I came in here 2 days ago! - Rush to car park to tell Mick - he had been waiting patiently for 12 hours for me to finish (GET THE PICTURE GIRLS?)
He then rushes off to our last stop to double check I had not left it there - shop assistants now looking for mad shop lifter with trolley full of unpaid groceries!
Oops nice lady from pharmacy counter finds me, yep you guessed it, clutching my bag, or as she called it - "Hon is this your Fanny Bag"?
By now I could crawl up my own arse!!! Relief at finding my bag and not having to try to remember what was in it, or for that matter what was my name - C.R.S. gets worse under extremely stressful situations
Please do not worry about us we are perfectly happy here, we will continue to soldier on, but we must apologise for the lack of photos on this point of the log, but we are both convinced that you will all forgive us
After all we are suffering from C.R.S.
Cannot
Remember
Shit
Our apologies for anyone who for one moment thought we really did have a health problem, this part of the blog was totally the sole work of PAT and for those of you who know her well, what else did you expect?? The blog at this point needed an impact!!
ENJOY THE FEW PHOTOS WITH THIS ENTRY - CANADA HERE WE COME
A special mention to Matthew and Ben, Bev and Em, love you all too bits, please take good care of each other xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Off we go to Birch Bay, Blaine, Washington - 455 miles journey today from South Jetty, Florence, Oregon
Fingers crossed that it is a straight forward trip today, as we have little time to recover from this leg of the trip, only here for two nights, then a short trip of some 52 miles and we will be in Canada.
Refueled RV up with diesel at the local Safeway, you know the store where Pat was yesterday, hope nobody recognized us, actually who cares if they do 10 cents discount off each gallon just for shopping there yesterday, MUST BE WORTH IT, as we have less than half a tank, plus an added bonus, they put the fuel in for us, as Oregon state law says, we cannot self serve at fuel stations.
The journey back to the I-5 was very similar to that off to South Jetty, lots and lots of trees and lakes, the biggest WOW had to be our first view of Seattle with its skyscrapers and huge dockyards. Not sure it was the time of day or traffic volume but we found ourselves in a traffic jam which really just enabled us to view our surroundings at 0-5 mph rather than 60-70 mph.
Shortly after leaving the I - 5 we started to play our new game,`Spot the 1,000 Trail site entrance`. Now this area was littered with RV parks so spotting our site was proving some what difficult, the sat nav was telling us, " You have reached your destination" so where was our site?
I then noticed a sign on our left with crossed Stars & Stripes and Maple Leaf and the letters NARCO, as the entrance had a large area I risked turning in.
Pat hopped out to be informed that was the Birch Bay 1,000 Trails site.
We were informed that the site had wifi and full hook-ups some with 50 amp, we chose the nearest pitch to the wifi base to guarantee a signal.
Now this site didn`t appear to have anything special, there were no famous sights or land marks to visit but it was very quiet both during the day and at night which was bliss.
Moving day again, this time there was no rush to get up or to start packing up as our next campsite at Cultus Lake in Canada was only 52 miles away.
However, despite the short distance it turned out to be one of the most stressful journeys.
Shortly after 12.00 midday we set off en-route to refuel at a nearby Safeway where our new store card and previous days shopping receipt from the same store would save us several $$`s.
Our first `bit` of stress turned out to be the re-fueling when the pump kept shutting off at $75 which equalled about 18 gallons of diesel, after two further shut offs Pat went into the kiosk and arranged to pay at the kiosk when finished........huh the final session only amounted to $25.........so the final amount of diesel bought was 61 gallon costing $250 for which Pat received $13 discount.
We soon found our way back to the I - 5 and were steadily heading north.
Now it appears that in the State of Washington , there are three border crossing locations, heading north and from left to right they are called, Peace Arch on the I - 5 , Langley suggested by TomTom, and Huntingdon suggested via lap top.
Now from speaking to `locals` at South Jetty the Huntingdon crossing was very narrow and Langley is the truckers crossing so no better, however a British couple who have lived in Canada for the past 19 years advised us to travel via the Peach Arch as the Langley crossing is in turmoil being re vamped.
So we ignored BOTH the signs and Tom Tom and travelled to the Peace Arch. Well as the pictures Pat took show, this turned out to be a very pleasant location but with so many oriental looking people about we wondered are we crossing into China?
Following a few question by a very pleasant border officer we were granted 6 months in Canada, however if there was a border crossing in turmoil due to alterations and new building work it was this one.
We again set off this time following the directions via Tomtom, but something felt different and I soon realized that the speed signs were in kph NOT mph.
Our next bit of stress may have been as a result of either the slow traffic speeds or the volume of traffic that produced, but as I signalled and maneuvered to overtake a slow car I noticed a 4x4 that had just joined highway 10, which was about to pass our towed Jeep, he sounded his horn, on completing our over take this 4x4 passed us hooting his horn and gesticulating, BOTH Pat and I reciprocated in a similar manor, then I said, " Hope he isn`t on our camp site".
Settling down again we entered Chilliwack where Pats eyes lit up at all the shopping malls. Shortly after we encountered a ` T ` junction with a very narrow bridge to the right that had traffic backing up both across and well after it.....guess which was our route?
I think we BOTH breathed in and slowly moved over the bridge.
Now Tomtom announced,"You have reached your destination" but this was just the start of a very long road with RV .
Parking and picnic entrance signs to the left and right, several vehicles behind and the road was very curvy and twisting, just the type that like to empty your RV cupboards.
We then came to a fork in the road with a Cultus Lake sign to the right so I took it......BIG MISTAKE and the biggest stress moment, the road got narrower and narrower with no one about to ask directions, however on stopping I think that every man,woman & child appeared to tell us we had gone wrong.
We un-hitched the Jeep to turn around and resumed our journey, ten minutes further on we found our site......Oh for that cup of tea.
M
Well we arrived at Cultas Lake as planned on Saturday 12th April and are booked in here for two weeks, however this may be longer as we arrange for a local RV dealer to replace practically ALL the RVs double glazed window panes which over the past few months have fogged up.
We don`t think the fogging is due to condensation but rather than a plastic film between the panes which causes a polarizing effect especially when the sun shines onto the panes.
The work is being done under a three year warranty.
One thing we noticed on the site was that EVERY pitch had its own metal fire grate and that evening we sat around a wooden camp fire with our new Canadian friends, personally I don`t see what the Canadians see in going to bed with the smell of wood smoke on ones face and your hair?
Another point `just for the record` from the storage compound at Kissimmee to here at Cultas Lake in Canada the RV has so far travelled 4183 miles.
The vast majority of that mileage took place between Willow Lakes at Titusville, Florida , USA when we left on 26th Feb and Cultas Lake British Columbia, Canada where we arrived on 12th April.
This morning as Pat wandered down to the refuge skip she noted that we were being visited by a couple of `true` local Canadians.
13th April Sunday: Our first of many campfire chats with Hank & Helen who are our close neighbours. We had only known this lovely couple for 1 hour and they had offered us the use of their brand new RV if we were stuck for somewhere to stay when our windows are ready for fitting. No doubt there will be more campfire tales and photos to come as they will be here till Mid June.
14th April Monday: Our apologies for lack of the any pictures, the only photos we seem to be taking at present, are more and more shots of the RV windows, but hopefully now we have turned the corner and finally seem to be making headway at getting the work approved by Fleetwood, so keep watching the blog.
16th April Wednesday: Visit to the local post office to check if they will be able to accept any post for us. This was my 1st contact with Annabelle the Post Office Manager; she certainly created an excellent first impression as she was so helpful and friendly.
21st April Monday: Missed photo opportunity!! Sorry cannot hold camera still as well as give Pat her 1st B.12 Jab – you will just have to picture this one in your minds; don’t know who was more scared.
There is lots of work going on around the campsite as they are getting ready for the start of the season. They work here like worker ants, but when it’ COFFEE TIME – Marie Celeste springs to mind. The computer seems to have developed a problem so we are unable to access the internet from our RV, so had to go down to the Lodge to get online, had a great chat to Barbara & Kev back in UK, the line was as clear as day – 2 hours sped by and you all wonder what we do with our time here. As we are having an extended stay here we have negotiated a deal (well Pat did) she has go me a JOB!!! Nothing strenuous don’t panic it’s just a few hours radio watch – nothing I cannot handle. I’m sure Pat will find several photo opportunities here for your enjoyment.
25th April Tuesday: Called to see Annabelle again at the post office and Pat had a longer chat with her, amazingly they seem to have so much in common it’s scary. She has given Pat tips on where to shop, not sure if this is a good thing though. Henry her husband is a Canadian Mounted Police Office rapidly approaching his retirement and also their son in law Roger also is a CMPO as a dog handler.
1st May Thursday: Annabelle rang and she and her husband Henry have invited us on Saturday 3rd May to their home for a family gathering for a joint celebration of their Wedding Anniversary, granddaughters 7th birthday and Pat’s birthday all for 4th May.
2nd May Friday: Went out for a meal to the local Chinese with Hank and Helen, had a great time, good company, great food and they insisted on paying the bill for Pats Birthday Treat. Cultus Lake is proving to be memorable, we are meeting some of the nicest people and being shown such kindness, these things are pretty difficult to photograph.
3rd May Saturday: Well weather looks a lot brighter today, nice and warm this looks more promising, all though to be fair it’s pretty much what we are used to in the UK but after sunny Florida we have been spoilt.
Well off we set to Annabelle & Henry’s family celebration which turned out to be a great night the photos will be added and we promise are NOT to be missed. We had a fantastic time, they made us so welcome and a long term friendship is set in concrete.
As Pat had blew out her birthday cake candle, her wish was granted and Henry appeared carrying his bright red mounties tunic and hat for her to model. After several photos were taken, we think at least 12 (you know – one for each month) it was time to cut the cake. Much to our surprise Caitlyn (granddaughter) had a slice which contained a folded piece of silver foil which contained a $50 dollar note, her dad Roger got a $2 coin and yep you guessed it we even got a 1c coin too. As is then usual at parties, we played games with the kids, ok yes we played Wii – Emma (great grand mother) aged 82 years never been bowling in her life, beat us all continuing to get strike after strike. Never thought I would say it but we want a Wii too – it’s great fun.
5th May Monday: Started work today ………. Just a little power washing of a shower block, not too hard, rescued a humming bird from the eaves of the block, had lunch, and then back to the job of hosing the sun beds and chairs around the swimming pool – Any of this sound familiar to you back home?
For the next three days Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I am on Radio Watch 4pm till 8am – piece of cake can do it sitting in the RV and even go to bed as long as I leave radio on. Get to drive the golf buggy as well, good perks here you know.
11th May Sunday: It rained cats and dogs last night felt like home. Mothering Sunday here today, breakfast is available –great deal here Mothers eat free and Part Time Rangers (me) get a discount – home made blueberry pancakes are delicious.
Foot note from Mick. Just to repeat Pat wrote the above entry but as if it was me which may be a little confusing, as soon as Annabelle gives me a copy of the photos taken at the party they will be added. This 8 hours difference between UK & Canada isn`t half causing problems, also the fact that the lap top recently was hit by a virus or something which means we cannot access the wifi from the RV.
Another beautiful sunny warm day again today, we have had three of them on the trot now and it has been around 80-85 degrees. The campsite is absolutely heaving as it is a Bank Holiday week-end for Victoria Day. Thursday was the start of the very steady stream of visitors to the campsite so Ranger Mick had a very busy 4pm to 12 midnight shift on gate security. The swimming pool has also opened this week-end and is always full because of how the weather has been. Tonight we have been invited to dinner again with Annabelle and Henry so we are looking forward to seeing them and we will take the camera along with us this time.
This morning we were invited by Helen and Hank to a singsong with a large gathering of probably 20 campers all sitting round outside, as they were carrying what looked suspiciously like a bible, we declined the offer. Can you picture us sitting there singing hymns and reading bible passages, noooooooooo don`t think we will go there. To be fair they did seem to enjoy their gathering and there was lots of laughter amongst the group, oh well each to their own.
Tomorrow and Tuesday, the weather looks a bit grim, lots of rain promised, oh well we have to take the rough with the smooth, somebody has to do it. Both days are working days, another two 4pm to 12 midnights of gate duty, our apologies for using the w--k word again, but we have to say it`s not a bad life we have.
We are hoping that the new RV windows will be delivered this week, if they are that will be great and we will have to start making plans to continue our trip. We are expecting to be here at Cultus Lake till at least the end of the month, but this depends greatly on when and how long it takes to get the windows fitted.
Just a few more pictures to add to this blog update, a few shots of how the site is filling up and a picture of Annabelle and Henry. Later in the week we are planning to have a day or two out looking around the area so we should get some more photos and updates, so keep watching our blog and please feel free to add your messages, it is always nice to hear from you all back home.
Well Henry & Annabelle visited us last night at the RV for dinner during which time I managed to download a few of the pictures taken at their house on 4th May which was Pat`s birthday, Annabelle & Henry`s wedding anniversary and their grand daughters Caitlyn`s7th birthday.
Red really suits Pat then again you lot don`t require me to tell you what a little devil she can be. LoL
Hi Fan`s
Well the RV windows have finally arrived.
At 0700 on Thursday 5th June we will first take the RV to a vehicle screen fitters to have a stone chip repaired, then at 0800 the RV crosses the road to go to O`Connor`s RV Centre for the window installation which will take all day Thursday & Friday morning.
On Friday afternoon the RV then goes to a sister O`Connor`s, still here in Chilliwack to have the grubby bits serviced (chassis and engine)
During the installation Annabelle & Henry have kindly offered us accommodation at their house.
We have then decided to leave Chilliwack and British Columbia to head east to Toronto by 25th July when we hope to be joined by Ben ( our youngest ) and his girl friend Emma for
two weeks.
We have decided to travel east across Canada via Edmonton,Saskatoon, Winnipeg, and Thunder Bay.
Whilst at Toronto we will visit Niagara Falls with Ben & Emma. The final plan is for us ALL to fly back to the UK in time for the birth of Matt ( our eldest ) and Bev`s first child due 7th August and for a hospital appointment for Pat.
Well I can finally add a few more photographs thanks mainly to the talented paparazzi PAT who as you can clearly see goes snapping behind my back and other bodily parts some which are not that pretty.
The group picture from L to R are Isabelle ( Helen`s sister) Rich her husband,Brenda Helen`s daughter,Hank Helen`s Husband and Helen.
And finally I managed with the help of some cunning equipment namely a humming bird feeder a photograph of a hummingbird, I hope to get a better one (no rain) before we leave here.
Oh and the chap on the RV roof isn`t Santa Claus........no its ME on their to add a couple of vent covers to the two roof mounted fan vents which when open allows the rain to enter. :(
It was a lot harder to get down that it was to get up, sad thing is I only fitted one and it has rained since :( :(
Well today is the day the RV goes to O`Conner`s RV to have 10 window units replaced which is expected to take a day and a half then Friday afternoon she gets her greasy bits seen to, so what shall we do.
Annabelle & Henry had kindly allowed us to say at their address Thursday night so we thought we would visit the famous movie scene location town of Hope which is about 30 mins from Chilliwell.
So I here you all asking which famous movie was made at Hope? Well in fact Hope was the start of the first Rambo movies First Blood which was made back in 1981.
Now it wasn`t my movie knowledge that told me this, No, it was a colour magazine / flyer promoter for the town of Hope.
Several pages of this magazine were dedicated to the movie and included a map showing various locations made famous by the movie, we attempted to visit some of these locations to take a photograph or two for the Rambo fan`s who visit this blog but it is that long ago and much has changed but we will try our best as usual.
I shall discribe the location and film part with each picture.
This day it actually pi**ed it down and by the afternoon we were glad to be back at Annabelles to warm up.
Oh, I forgot to add with all the Rambo excitement that the windows were installed and the RV during her oil change received 19 quarts........thats 38 pints of fresh oil......don`t ask how much it cost :(
The installation garages however have NOT escaped without receiving the wrath of Pat why?
Well what happens when you walk on a light coloured carpet with oily boots on or sit on white / cream coloured leather seats with ily overalls on Do`ho.
I am also still waiting for a good day or two to finish installing the roof vent covers and the RV dows require a wash after her journey up here, however the countdown now at -7 has started and we will be leaving a week on Monday 16th.
Well, guess what? The sun has put in a long overdue appearance today, with a promise of more for the week-end. Lets hope so, cus we are both suffering with old achy bones with all the damp we have had to put up with. Believe it or not, we almost envy you back in the U.K. at least you seem to have had not too bad a start to the Summer. So as we had to pop into town today, to buy some achy bone pills and cream, we thought while the sun is out we will take a couple of pictures for you all to see before we move from Chilliwack on Monday. The bridge called the Vedder crossing over the river looks totally different today from when we first crossed it in April. As the snow has melted on the mountains and run down to the river, along with rain, rain and lots more rain, the slow crystal clear trickle which we saw on our arrival as you can now see, is murky and very fast flowing, oohhhhh I bet it`s cold too. Funnily enough in April, regardless of the weather you would always see a fisherman or two but now they must be all in the pub or have taken up a warmer hobby. Talking of hobbies, the other picture shows Pat `s new hobby. Instead of talking to herself (she says`s it cus I NEVER listen) she bless her, is talking to the ducks/mallards and bonding very well. I personally now have vital proof that my wife is totally and utterly QUACKERS!!!!! Did any of you ever doubt this ha ha.
Well we left Cultus Lake yesterday, just before noon, with a short stop at the Post Office to say goodbye to Annabelle boo hoo, into Chilliwack to fuel the RV and top up the LPG, got underway at 1.30 pm for our journey of approx 300 miles to Revelstoke, BC. We had as usual been advised to take several different routes but we decided to sod poverty we would take the toll road. Firstly an apology for the photos on route, Pat`s excuse is the new windows dazzled us and the flash on the camera went into overdrive, hence not her usual quality of photos and occasional alien sightings ha ha. Our first pleasant surprise on the journey was at the toll booth where we were expecting to be charged $40 for our 4 axles - well a very pretty young lady only charged us $10, either she was dazzled by our windows or it was seniors day - (actually Mick does qualify here for that). The drive was a very pleasant trip, once again we noticed how different the area appeared from Chilliwack, seemed flatter, more farmland but once again spectacular views. On reaching the outskirts of Revelstoke we had just missed a torrential downpour, hope we have not bought the rain with us!!!! We were making our way to a campsite called Williamson Lake Campground, which we had not booked - on our arrivel around 7.30pm we discovered that although the site was not full they could not accommodate us, we were too big for them!!!!!! Mick loves it when he is told this - wonder why? The owner of the site was very helpful and rang another location who could accommodate us. Off we set again, this time to a site called Lamplighter Campground, arriving at 7:50pm where the hosts a swiss couple called Hedi and Andy were very welcoming and he even assisted Mick in setting up the water, sewer and electric. The even better news was that there was a pub within walking distance - so we popped in for a quickie, chatted to a couple of locals and got a feel for the area. We then went to a lovely restaurant called Zala`s and we had two great steaks.
When we got up this morning the weather once again looked promising, so we decided to have a lazy day, just chill a little and pop out later in the afternoon. Pat had a walk around the campsite in daylight and discovered how pretty it is here, set on 4 acres with a lovely garden feel to it. The owners of the site have their own home on site which is very unusual. They let Pat take a few outside pics, and they seem very proud of their home it certainly looks large and spacious - wonder if they will let us try their hot tub????
One bit of bad news that we have forget to mention in our haste to complete the blog was on our arrival at Lamplighter Campsite I found the entire front of the Jeep and the rear of the RV covered in oil and black soot. Now I know that diesels do throw out some black soot but this was the first time I`d seen any on the towed Jeep. I immediately checked the RV`s engine oil level and found it way over the full mark. A check of our service receipt revealed that we had purchased 8 x 4 litres cans of oil, one of which was unused and kept for topping up.
So we presume the other seven containers (28 lts) were put in the RV engine and generator as part of the service.
To cut a long story short, we estimate the RV engine had been over filled by 8 litres of oil !!!!!!!!!!
To put this into perspective most normal sized car engines would only have five litres in there engine.
The following day Mick, with the help of the site owner Andy, crawled under the RV and drained off five litres of oil, bringing the oil level to normal.
Andy was very worried that some oil may have contaminated his grass but all went well and not a drop was spilt.
Pat rang the dealer in Chilliwack and spoke to the Service Manager to make a complaint , which was to be investigated and he would return our call on Friday.
Highlight of the day for us, was news that an old Iron Horse Steam Locomotive was visiting the town today. Great photo opportunity we thought, and we had to go and get the Jeep washed, so off we set camera in hand.
We left Revelstoke just after 10am on our 300 mile journey to Calgary. A journey following the engine incident, was full of apprehension, wondering whether any damage had been caused to the engine. Mick maintained an average speed of 55 mph which not only increased our mpg but also allowed us a more spectacular view of the surroundings we would pass through. Weather was beautiful all the way, the road, traffic were perfect and the 300 mile trip felt just like a short ride to the local shops. A stop halfway revealed no further oil on the Jeep or RV and we could only presume all was in order. Looking back now, we assume that our saving grace was that we kept the speed down during our journey from Chilliwack to Revelstoke. We arrived safely at the Calgary West Campground, set up on a terraced pitch which gave us uninterrupted views to the West side and 1988 Winter Olympic Site. The following day we visited the Olympic site and as you will see obtained some spectacular photos. During our 3 day stay on this site we had further problems in accessing the wi-fi causing Mick to again trawl to the office to contact the outside world.
Saturday morning, beautiful sunny weather, so we decided to have a drive and look at the Winter Olympic Site. On arrival at the site we drove passed the front of the location and started to weave our way up the hillside and naughtily (he he) passed a sign saying DO NOT PASS THIS POINT. The road got steeper and curved more until we eventually reached the top, we parked the Jeep alongside the 90 metre ski jump tower. The tower looked deserted but on trying the door it opened and we were greeted by signs displaying a charge of $6 each to ascend the tower - on approaching a staff member to pay we were pleasantly surprised when he told us to go on up..... We entered into a glass sided elevator car, which had Pat having kittens as it ascended to the top of the tower. On emerging we stood and had the same fantastic views as those brave men and women who actually ski-ed from this tower, Eddie the Eagle being one of them. This unique opportunity gave us a birds eye view of not only the Olympic site but also of Calgary itself.
Another one of those "I cannot believe I am here moments."
Another lovely sunny day, off to the pool for a swim and sunbathe - Mick found to his surprise the pool was too cold to swim - did not even get his hair wet, what a wuz!!!!!!! He was sitting outside the pool getting dry, longer than actually in it, small kids were a lot braver than him!!!!!
Then later, as Mick ambled to the office for another busy Internet session, poor Cinderella Pat, got out her bucket and brush (not her broom) and saying it is just like washing a mini, proceeded to wash the equivalent of 6 minis yep you guessed it the RV - she always gets the shit jobs. Several times she wished for Matthew and Ben to come along and help - see kids we do miss you............................
Oh and the overfilled RV incident was sorted by the garage returning us the labour charges of the service :)
Well leaving again today, travelling 325 miles to Trail Campground at Swift Current where we will cross into the Provence of Saskatchewan. We were a little apprehensive about this campsite as we had not been able to view it on-line , but well here goes. The journey was very flat, very boring, not a great deal to see really, but we had been told this would be the case through The Prairies. We arrived at the site around 6pm and we were greeted by the site owner an Oriental gentleman - Pat`s sixth sense told her only to book one night here. We drove onto our allotted pitch without even unhitching the car. Not a very busy site, definitely need lots of TLC and the pool was CLOSED. Most of the occupants appeared to be long stay and went out each day to work. Whilst Pat prepared the tea, Mick went to the Internet office only to return very swiftly, bitterly complaining that the laptop would not even work via the cable......
:>:>:>
We did have reason to giggle later, when a oriental man (possibly) site owners relation knocked on our door and actually asked us how much the RV cost!!!! and how many could we sleep, but he did tell us it was velly lubbly..............
Early start today - Pat was up at 6am , so we were able to set off much sooner, time having been saved by not having to hitch the Jeep up. A short trip of only 199 miles today to a KOA campsite at Indian Head. KOA is another group of campsites throughout Canada and the U.S.A. We set off on the now very familiar Highway 1 which is a duel carriageway type road, very flat, long, straight , only the gophers seemed to be having fun, playing chicken across the road. Sorry, we do not have any photos of the 3 Kamikaze gophers I ran over, but there is no way on this earth , I was going to swerve or brake a 10 ten ton + RV and incur the wrath of Pat when drawers and cupboards fly open and items crash around us. Due probably to her early rise, Pat decided to take a nap on one of the sofas and due to the smooth and straight road she actually managed to fall asleep for an hour...... During this time I noticed the central reservation becoming wider and wider and at one point it must have reached over a mile in width............ where was Paparazzi Pat when I needed her zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
We left the campsite around 10.30am today and after the usual stop to refuel we set of on our 328 mile trip to Winnipeg for a three day stay at Travellers Rest, a Coast to Coast campground. Our route is again along Highway 1, which you must all know as well as us now - a very boring road with believe it or not, nothing exciting to photograph. Pat tries to snap anything that is out of the ordinary, trying her best to keep you all entertained. Not a great deal to inspire her today I am afraid.......... there was a dead deer on the roadside, but it would not have made a pretty picture. The trip was fairly uneventful, the last stretch being the most stressful, GPS made a Pigs Ear!!!! of the road leading into the campsite, but hey we got there safely. The weather forecast in Winnipeg is giving out tornado warnings to the West - no surprise here then - The Pods have arrived - we just laugh now.
The campsite is quite large with good sized pitches, but they had a RULE we had to unhitch the Jeep in the car park, before driving to our pitch...... pain in the a... or what - especially as the access road into the site was limestone, when dry dusty, when wet muddy - we arrived when dry so you can imagine the scene - we looked like a couple of flour graders. We set up and decided to treat ourselves and go into town to eat. We spoke to a couple of the lady rangers in reception and they were explaining about the site, it used to be a Jelly stone Park but had been let to run down somewhat from it`s former glory. The swimming pool was full of dirty rain water and all around it was overgrown with weeds, it looked a sad sight. The ladies said they were not going to renovate it as it was too expensive and was more trouble than it was worth, saying there was no need for one due to the very close proximity of a Fun Water Park - next door.
Friday morning, looked promising weather wise first thing, no sign of the tornado`s thank God. We had our usual lazy day, deciding to venture into Winnipeg itself tomorrow. Rained throughout the night, woke to grey skies and very windy. After lunch we set of into Winnipeg and yep you guessed it as soon as we were on route down came the rain- a torrential downpour causing floods on the roads. Some vehicles had broken down, mainly because they drove through the floods like maniacs - no not us we were in safe hands. Well Winnipeg is a large city, but very spaced out not ideal weather to shop in, so it was a short visit.
Late start today 11.30am, in no great rush we only have to travel 209 miles today, but we will cross from Manitoba into Ontario on this leg of our journey. We are heading for a campsite called The NorthWestern Tent & RV Park - advertised as "The Park with a Heart", which sounds ideal as it is actually on Highway 17, and is directly on today`s route. Well Highway 17 (AKA Trans Canadiani Highway) it`s a much prettier drive as photos will show. We arrived 4.30pm and Walter & Eliana Wittwer the owners were very very welcoming - they even give you heart shaped chocolates and a pen as a welcome. As you will see Walter showed us to our site and was exceptionally helpful even going to the extent of getting his chainsaw out to cut off overhanging trees that were in our path.
It`s a lovely sunny and warm day again today. Pat has had a very leisurely stroll around this gorgeous campsite, shame we are only here for 2 nights. She has taken several shots to try and capture it`s setting. All you fellow RV`ers and Campers out there, take note this really is worth a visit.
For the fast food patrons, it is only a very short walk to McDonald`s and Dominoes blimey self sufficient here as well as wi-fi and cable - does not get much better you know for us who`s life is on the road ha ha.
We will have a drive off the site later today to see what else there is located around here.
Later in the afternoon we had a miander into the Downtown area and discovered it was very similar to what we have already seen, a small town good range of shops but NOT for shopoholics, we presume locals would have to venture further afield for bigger stores with more choice and perhaps better value. The area has a very slow laid back feel in fact you expect a cowboy to ride into town at any moment, but it is very peaceful no fast pace here.
There is plenty to see a short drive away if you want to do the tourist bit, there are even beaches with crystal clear lakes where you can fish, windsurf and sail. For the golfers you can even have a free game at The Dryden Disc Golf Association every Saturday afternoon, no shortage of things to do here or be like us plenty of R&R before we hit the road again.
HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Well we are setting off this morning to drive 218 miles to Thunder Bay to stay for four days at a KOA site. No doubt before the end of the day we will have joined in the 150 year celebration today and seen plenty to entertain us and fireworks to oohhh and ahhh at. Can feel lots of photos coming on folks. The weather is a bit cloudy but plenty of sunshine is forecast for today.
On route to Thunder Bay we called into an Esso garage to top up with diesel as we entered the forecourt the RV suddenly rolled to one side as if I`d driven over something with the right side rear wheels. On stopping on the forecourt Pat jumped out to look under the RV.
A group of local men, `The Jury` moved from their, `Jury Bench` to inform Pat that the RV had not driven over the curb edge. :(
No the `Jury` were adament and thought a spring had gone.
For the record it MUST have been the kerb edge that i clipped.
After a photo `shoot` to record the momentous occasion and chat about our American journey we resumed non the worse for wear.......must have been the kerb.
Well I had to wait until gone 10pm before I could get onto here to write this, most `campers` are now sat outside around their little camp fires making their hair,clothing and the inside of their RV`s smell of wood smoke.........Why?
Since arriving at Thunder Bay the sun has shone so we have decided to stay a further two nights.
A bit more exploring to do also so watch this space, just wish the internet speed would pick up. :(
We took a short 18 mile drive out today to Kakabeka Falls in order to get us use to the BIG one (Niagara Falls) in a few weeks time. I have included a picture of a plaque over looking the falls which tells a loverly story of Greenmantle the daughter of Chief Ogama Eagle, the Chief of the Ojibwa indians and her escape from the Sioux using these falls after her capture.
On leaving the falls we headed back to Thunder Bays marina area to try and get a clear and interesting photograph of Lake Superior.
The shot I have added disappointingly is a little misty and I will try and get a better one before we leave.
It is very hard when looking out to believe you are looking at a lake and not a sea or ocean. The land mass you see in the centre and to the left is in fact a peninsula and about 15 miles away, the land to the right is called Pie island and about 11 miles out. The actual USA / Canadian border is only 22 miles out between those two land masses and if you continue for 200 miles in a straight line you will finish up on the shores of Michigan a state in the USA.
Well the 284 mile journey was without incident and Patoratzi was snapping away en-route, but as the pictures show the road Highway 17 went from one extreme to another.
To my relief the camp ground was easy to find and we were allocated our pitch for our four days which required me to reverse in.......a doddle, I decided to swing around, past our pitch,un hook the car and reverse the RV in........Oops I misjudged the turn and with the car on the back couldn`t reverse as both vehicles were at angles.
Eventually we got onto our pitch and Pat was sorting out the few odds and ends,I sat down at the dining / computer table to see how good the wifi was. I was gazing out of a window towards the rear of our RV when a BEAR just wandered past I presume looking for food.
Well I hope that`s what it was looking for, I shouted Pat and asked where was the camera, "In the Jeep, shall I fetch it?" Before I could stop my brave and beautiful wife she was out and back clutching the camera but the bear had vanished.
I wasn`t going out looking for it, well actually I did and met up with the owners son who says it is always wandering around the camp, so fingers crossed we may get THAT picture.
Well it rained all last night quite heavy at times, well as usual I had been up sometime checking emails and forum entries, Pat had just got up when a very wet looking bear again appeared to the rear of our RV, this time as you can see I got him.......or her, it seems the area to the rear of our RV is bear ally.
We thought whilst we are here that we should find out where the name Wawa comes from - we had guessed it’s origin was probably native Indian so we set out to downtown Wawa to get some photos.
We spotted the tourist information centre which displays a huge structure of a very large bird outside and we discovered the following
Wawa means "wild goose" to native Ojibway Indians who based the word on the "wa-wa" sound of geese flying overhead.The Wawa first version of the Wild Goose was built of plaster over chicken wire, making it too vulnerable to the weather. It was constructed in 1960 to commemorate the final link in the TransCanada Highway.
This is actually the third goose built and erected outside the Tourist Information Centre in 1963, it is 22` long, 28` high, with a wingspan of 20`.
Well this part of the journey made us realise just how bad the roads are here, very rough and in poor repair. The campsite was a bit of a let down too, basically it is just a very large field and no sewer on the pitch, oh well we will have to rough it a bit this week.
Well we arrived at Milton Heights Camp Ground and first impressions were good, reception staff which included the site manager were very friendly.
On asking about if the site had wifi the manager said NO but where your pitch is you can usually get on line for free.
Within minuets we were setup on pitch No. J-25.
As usual whilst Pat carried out the final touches to the inside of our mobile home I set up the important items.......TV & wifi.
Now we found that as we travelled towards Toronto we were able to get more terrestrial TV channels.Next job was to fire up the lap top and great we had wifi but it was low power. I was able to download our emails and check our forums then at about 7pm nothing NO wifi, my first thought was that whoever`s wifi I`d connected to had seen it being used and switched it off.
The next morning the wifi was back on, however later that day three other RV`s arrived and set up on pitches each side of us and we haven`t been able to get on line since well not long enough to up date the blog.Good news is we have discovered that the site next door has cable TV.
We are taking time out today to try and catch up with our blog. Unfortunately here at Milton Heights campsite we are totally without wifi, so we cannot do our usual updates. If we go into town we can use the local library for free access, which we try to do a couple of times a week. Our youngest son Ben and his girlfriend Emma arrived safely on Tuesday 22nd July staying with us for 2 weeks then we all fly home together next Tuesday 5th August, arriving in Manchester on 6th August.
We have had glorious weather for the last 4 days but this morning we have a thunder storm which looks set in for most of the day, oh well, it will get us climatised for the U.K. next week ha ha.
We all went to the CN Tower in Toronto on Thursday and Pat amazed us by joining us - she hates heights. It is a must to do in Canada and well worth the money only $33 each to get to the highest point that you are allowed access to, which is the Sky Pod which is only 447m (1465 ft) THREE TIMES HIGHER THAN THE BLACKPOOL TOWER!!!! - You reach it by the elevator which takes 58 seconds to reach the top and has 4 small square glass tiles on the floor with a side window on the walls - get right to the back if you cannot stand heights.
The 360 restaurant is only 351m (1150ft) and revolves very slowly, we did not visit this part but we believe the food is very good but expensive, then there is the Look Out at 346m (1136 ft) the observation deck. If you are brave you can walk on the glass floor at 342m (1122 ft) that is some view see the pictures. Young kids amazed us even small toddlers were enjoying jumping on the floor, their parents going greener by the second.
The last part of the tour was in a simulated ride which was good fun, it was based on an artificially created wonder tree and we were the logs being processed.
We are all going to Niagara Falls to do the Maids in the Mist so keep watching the blog for this trip. This was one of the main things we both said we wanted to do on our adventure, so we are really looking forward to this. Ben and Emma have hired a car for a few days and they did a London Bus Tour of Toronto yesterday and they both said it was good and they had enjoyed it. Today they are off shopping and having a general look around Milton.
Well, what an absolutely fabulous day we all had today. We could not believe how fantastic Niagara Falls is, not a expensive trip really, the Maid of the Mist boat ride was $14.50 each and when we got closer and closer to the Falls, it was like the most powerful power shower you will ever ever experience. Yes you get wet, but it is well worth it. Everybody look equally stupid in their free blue designer real plastic poncho, but hey who cares. Car parking was probably the dearest part of today $10 per car - no valet parking either. Later in the afternoon we drove to Niagara on the Lake to have a big big thrill - a ride on the whirlpool jet boats. Now we really really did get wet!!!!!!!!!! For obvious reasons we were not allowed to take on board cameras, mobile phones or anything else which would get a good soaking, so photos were purchased from the jet boat company and will be posted in due course. These are produced by staff members who lurk on precarious rocks overlooking the whirlpool. They digitally take the snaps and using a palm pc e-mail the photos back to the departure point ready for your sodden return. We had an amazing time and it was soooo much fun, we would not hesitate, none of us to repeat this ride again. It costs $60 each for a 45 minute thrilling ride, worth every cent.
Ben and Em were better prepared for this part of the trip, they took fresh dry clothes, the silly old sods DID NOT!!!!! Trust us wet pants and shorts are NOT to be recommended, especially at our age ha ha but it was all part of the fun. Good job they have plastic seats in restaurants.
Well, we are all up fairly early today to sort the RV out to be put into storage here at the campground so it`s all hands to the pumps to pack up and get sorted for the flight back to Manchester. We will be leaving the campsite at 4pm and we should fly at 8.30 pm this evening, although thunderstorms are forecast, so we may be delayed. A quick trip to the library just to collect any emails and make a couple of calls before we leave. Hopefully we will update the blog again once we are back in the UK tomorrow.
Well you will all be pleased to know that we arrived safely in Manchester after an hours delay landing at 8:50 am. We had quite a bit of turbulence so the first part of the flight was a bit bumpy, but it did smooth out, the food was good and we had a really friendly crew on board. The landing was a bit rough in fact it was just like driving along the roads in Canada. Talking of rough Matthew our eldest son picked us up looking very very tired, he has been up all night with Bev and they have rushed off to the hospital this morning as the baby is on the way....... looks like we have arrived just in time.
Crazy day today, by the end of it we should be Grandparents!!!!!!!
Our UK visit is over today and we fly back to Ontario, Canada. It has been an exhausting 6 week stay and we are both shattered. We always find it difficult to say our goodbye`s and it was as we expected hard, but it has to be done.
The time flew by probably because we were so busy, seeing family, friends and ex work colleagues it was non stop. The weather has been absolutely awful with continual rain, we really are missing the sunshine.
Our flight from Manchester was due at 4.15pm and we arrived in plenty of time which turned out to be a good thing. First hiccup (oh yes as usual) our suitcase was 33 kilos and Thomas Cook will only accept 30 kilos - mad panic then to purchase another bag. A quick repack then we checked in with plenty of time left to eat lunch then saying our final goodbye`s to our son Matthew, Bev and our new baby granddaughter Isabella - 2nd hiccup only passengers are allowed through to the departure lounge, yep no facilities for a sit down and chat at Terminal 1. Not what we hoped for, it would have been lovely to have had a final cuddle of Isabella and say goodbye properly to Matthew and Bev, but hey we must have saved a lot on tissues.
We had been told that there would be a slight delay of half an hour on our flight due to the late departure from Toronto but that was not too bad, we passed the time without too much trouble and at last we boarded, we were the next to last passengers - that was a first. Flight was not too bad just a bit of turbulence, food good so the time passed fairly quickly. We landed at around 7.30 pm in Toronto then the task of getting though immigration and collecting our luggage lay ahead. We filled out the required form and we had to state how long we were to remain in Canada, this was a difficult question to answer so we just said we would be at the campsite in Milton for 7days, this wasto be our 3rd hiccup - we were directed to the line that appeared to be mainly foreign passengers, oooppps...... after very long wait it was eventually our turn, we were questioned on our plans in Canada, telling the officer we would be soon crossing back into The States, he asked why did we not like Canada? A very vigorous stamping of our passports then took place and much to our surprise we were granted a further 6 month stay in Canada!!!!!!!!! Did not expect that now we have to decide and plan our next stage of our trip, stay over in Canada a little while longer or make headway to the good old U.S.A.
We took a taxi from the airport to a Bestern Western Hotel in Milton to stay overnight as it was too late at 9.00pm to get the RV and Jeep out of storage and we had been up for 21 hours so we took the easy option. Next morning we woke a bit more refreshed checked out and headed back to Milton Heights Campsite. All was ok the R.V. had no problems, (no unwanted furry uninvited guests) thanks to the bounce sheets and better still no missing parts on either vehicles.
We will be resting up now for a couple of days and soaking up a bit of the promised sunshine then we can continue our trip and keep you all amused again with our tour.
Hi Fellow blog followers, after much struggling with software I finally managed to scan and attach two photographs that were taken when we took a power boat ride on the Niagara, down stream from the falls.
Riders were not allowed to take their own cameras and you can clearly see from the photo why.These jet boats have 3x jet engines which produce 1500 horsepower enabling the boats to travel at 65mph.
If you cannot work it out the four of us are in row 3 with Pat on the left side,then Emma, Ben and yours truly.
On Wednesday 8th Oct we packed up and left Milton with our sat nav set to the AA Royal Campground, Niagara Falls,USA a journey of just 72 miles, however one BIG obstruction lay in our path between those locations............. The Canadian / USA border.
On commencing our journey the RV`s diesel gauge read ¼ full and as we had arranged to meet up with friends Betty & Dave who would direct us to a `cheap` filling station I wasn`t to bothered.
Our border crossing took place without no big problem just a few of the `expected` questions and we were given a further 6 months on our visa until 7th April 2009.
As arranged we met Betty & Dave who accompanied us to our CG hen after setting up they took us to a local restaurant where I had chicken & biscuits, what is chicken and biscuits I hear you ask........well it was mash potato,white gravy,peas and the biscuits I can only describe tasted like a pie pastry..........it was GREAT.
The next day Thursday we were collected by Dave & Betty in his lovely old Buick which I found was like riding on a magic carpet.They took us to view the Falls from the American side of the river.
Friday Dave & Betty again collected us from our CG and we drove south out of the State of New York into Pennsylvania to a very favorite spot of theirs in the Allegheny National Forest, as you will see the scenery is breath taking.
Saturday Dave & Betty again took us to meet other members of their family who own an 18 acre ex-farm, then on our route `home` we stopped for frozen custard and a stop at the side of lake Ontario to take in a beautiful sunset.
Sunday Was a chill out day but with a further invite to Dave & Betty`s for New York strip steaks.
We cannot thank Dave, Betty and their family enough for all of the kindness and hospitality.
Since being back in Orlando in October we have moved around various sites for short stays of 1 or 2 weeks hence the lack of blog updates. The most exciting things we have been doing is shopping at Walmart or putting the Christmas lights and decorations up. However, today we did venture out just a short distance outside of Willow Lakes Park, onto the Highway 1, a very very busy road but it is closed off to traffic today for the Christmas Parade. The Parade was fun to watch, and seeing all the kids enjoying the free sweets being throw to them from various floats and vehicles was great. We were there with several of the other residents from Willow Lakes who had travelled there along Highway 1 on their golf buggies - yes we know on a main road - only in America. We of course opted for the traditional mode of transport the car!! We love going to these local events because you get to see the real America - yep rednecks and all.
What else do we have planned for this week at Willow Lakes? Well there is Bingo for Pat on Monday and Wednesday we will be going to the Christmas Entertainment Night. You see it is not all about travelling miles in search of fun, sometimes it is just on your doorstep. Now let me see difficult choice - Bingo could win $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ or visit Grand Canyon could cost megga $$$$$$$$$$$$
Well, tonight we are out with "The Hood" (American term we are told for our neighbours) sounds more like a gangster activity!!!! We set of at 5.15 pm as a party of 17 heading to a local steak restaurant called Grandpa`s in Cocoa. It was a really good night, great to actually chat at length to our neighbours who we have only just passed brief greetings with. They are a great mixed bunch of people from various American states and Canadian provinces. Apparently, they wanted to invite us "The Brits" as we are now jointly known because they love to hear us talk and they think we have lots of funny tales and stories they love to hear. Dave (Picture The Big Guy) is from New York State and his wife Betty are now officially known as our interpreters, just in case anyone has difficulty in understanding us. Our meal was delicious, a salad starter, with steak main course, dessert and Happy Hour (yeah real one 2 beers 2 wines) cost $34.34 TOTAL (about 23 quid WOW). The waiting staff serving our party knew exactly what each person had ordered to both eat and drink so it went like a dream, no wrong orders or meals sent back which added even more to the evening. Pat has taken several photos of our neighbours so you see for yourselves what a nice bunch of people we are mixed daily with. We arrived back at Willow Lakes by 8.15 pm. As this entry is being typed 9.00pm most of our neighbours are heading to bed - this is something "The Brits" need to educate them all on, our challenge will be to keep them up past midnight on New Years Eve. Well either that or die trying ha ha............
Here are a few pictures of Christmas lights on or around RV on Willow Lakes taken by a neighbour.
I shall also add a few that I attempted of houses in Titusville.
Today is our BIG move day,how long, how far????? Errr about 50 yards from Peggy & Dennis pitch to Pat & Buds pitch, phew we are exhausted. :)
We are still on Thousand Trails site at Orlando and yesterday we had a visit from Betty & Dave who own a plot next to the one we normally rent, Dave & Betty will soon be returning north to their `other` home in Niagara Falls and we will really miss them.
Well during their visit it wasn`t only the weather that was getting hot.
First we have the `new` family of Heron proudly strutting around the site displaying their new offspring.
Then during Betty & Daves visit we were treated, if thats the word to Tommy & Tammy Gopher Tortoise first being chatted up.......then a little kiss.......then YOU KNOW WHAT... The pictures tell all. :)
Well, got up as usual, no real megga plans other than promised to take wifey shopping for her birthday next week..... 1st BIG MISTAKE.... see photo explanation to follow... 2nd SMALL MISTAKE.. in Canada we bought a satellite receiver which we were led to believe would get us numerous free TV channels FOR FREE.... spoke to a lovely Mexican guy working on the campsite today from Direct TV who confirmed we had bought a crock of sh-t ha ha LOL oh well please forgive us we promise this is our ONLY really stupid purchase all the while we have been away from the UK too much sunshine and good living is too blame we think. Hang in there folks the day gets MUCH better or is it WORSE???
Well we went to collect our post from the mailing address and there was a letter from the immigration regarding our application for extended stay in the USA, current visa EXPIRED 7th April, Pat was too scared to open it ha ha telling the mailing office that if it was bad news we would be back very very quickly, bad news being GET OUT OF THE USA NOW.... but fortunately that was not the case they just need more info but that is another story...... the 3rd BAD NEWS was on leaving the car park onto the outer road a STUPID WOMAN decided that today was our unlucky day and she proceeded out of a side road straight across a dual carriageway right at us, Mick swerved to avoid her but she was very persistent and still got us hitting our left rear quarter.... she was somewhat surprised that we had the right of way, so a very very first for us was to call 911 and whoopee hence the state trooper vehicle photo. Please nobody MUST panic we are absolutely fine we only have a scuff to the car which will be T-cut out - BUT it was the principal - BUT always carry your insurance and license with you at ALL times, good job our mailing office holds a copy for us, so hey we thought for all you watchers of our blog out there THIS was definitely newsworthy - justice has been served today the lady named Fatima (yep for real) has been served with a violation of right of way and will have to attend court where she will be suitably chastised.......................
Well as you will have read in the messages section we are once more back at Willow Lakes near Titusville whilst some cosmetic work is done to the RV, I say cosmetic because really none of it is required, its just a matter of fine tuning the RV to OUR requirements and appearance.
On leaving Orlando 1000 Trails we noted that the camp site is now nearly empty with majority of the snowbird RVers having returned back north, strangely upon leaving the RV at Classic Coach and returning to Orlando to collect our mail we also noted how quiet the roads were, this world recession is really hitting the USA.
The biggest surprise that day was as we returned to Titusville and what we have come to know as a quiet town is now a ghost town, as for Willow Lakes .,................we practically have the camp ground to ourselves which is a shame as most if not all the trees, shrubs and flowers are out in bloom making the camp ground at its best.
Well, hi you folks back home moaning about the rain!!!!!!!!!!!! On a necessary shopping trip as Pat has not done this activity before LOL, today we really really encountered rain (as we have had for the last several days LOL) an umbrella is as much use as a chocolate fireguard - the only good news is it maybe damp here but not cold ha ha ha. We have had if you can believe it, a terrible stressful few days in the USA workmanship and general service has been crap - but we must not moan too much as family and friends are having to cope with much much worse problems than we can suffer. Family know we are not there for them physically as do friends, trust us we will be home to offer support very soon..... meanwhile enjoy the photos and more frequent updates we promise to send.......we are still currently finishing doing all the jobs required on the RV and Jeep in order for them to be legally accepted as imports into the UK..... fingers crossed for us as this is a minefield changing daily, we are trying very very hard to be above board and squeeky clean - a habit of a lifetime we promise.
Pat is going to be snapping the shutter with avengance as we really do not know for sure as illegal immigrants (our visa expired 7th April) how much longer we can stay here in the USA - don`t panic we do have a current application which is pending awaiting a decision for a further stay till October - the master plan is to back in the UK by latest 1st September but we are in the hands of others at present and cannot give definate details at present - hang in there and follow our journey which we promise will be at the very least entertaining..... meanwhile THANK YOU all for being interested and following our adventure, we hope you have had fun and that we have entertained you all - we have missed our family and mates but we can catch up personally very very soon ..............
Well we are back at the Bees and on our favourite pitch which use to over look a dried up lake, Pat called it Magic Lake because if she wished hard enough it would fill up, the staff at the site said that was unlikely as its the last of three lakes which flow in to the other.
Well after several inches of rain Magic Lake exists and we practically have it to ourselves, together with ALL the singing frogs (lovely) and new water birds.........non in bikinis.:(
Well folks, we have just 7 days left before we have to take the RV and Jeep to the docks in Brunswick Georgia. The ship is due to sail on the 3rd August and fingers crossed should arrive in Southampton on 25th August. We have booked our flights home leaving USA 24th August and landing in Manchester on August 25th....Whooopppppeeee!!!!!
We have as you all know had a fantastic time both here and in Canada but we have to say that over the last week or so, we have been having a nightmare, we are both sure once our stress levels drop we will laugh at all the crazy things that are currently going wrong. We must be having everyone's share of poor service. Here in the USA the list of excuses for shoddy workmanship, service or even customer care is never ending. Making telephone calls to companies is an absolute pain, no one ever rings you back!!! One company on a automated telephone service gives you an option to speak to the operator... yep we would like to speak to a human being please.... guess what the operator has a voice-mail and as we had made our call on a Friday the message told us to anticipate a call back Monday yeah honest NOT!!!! Well we could whinge on on on but enough moaning we can do that once we are safely on English soil.
New photos Photos (6).
We took the photo of our RV with the flags flying on July 4th, we thought it just had to be done, and it also helped us to find our way back home.
Take a look at this picture of an RV parked next to us WOW!!!! It is an absolute beauty, megga megga money around $750,000 yep three quarters of a million. Apparently it is owned by a German gentleman, who we are reliably informed says the picture is 'His Fantasy'.... lucky guy .
The remaining photos are taken whilst we were in Bradenton at Solar Directs premises where we have at long last had the solar panels fitted. Boy that was a nightmare trying to find the location, our sat nav couldn't find it making our arrival late. What should have taken one day took two but never mind the boss paid for us to go out to dinner with one of the technician's Curtis (the one with the great smile) and his lovely girlfriend Flo. We went to a great restaurant right on the beach and it was fantastic. Thanks John.
We will update the blog again soon over the next few days so keep on reading............
Here is a picture I have obtained from the internet of the ship carrying our RV & Jeep from Brunswick, Georgia USA to Southampton, England.
The vehicles were delivered by us to the docks on 29th July and she should have sailed on 3rd August, I have a web site and code to monitor its movement, so either it hasn't been updated or the ship for whatever reason hasn't sailed yet.
Well today we have wi-fi fairly consistently, so an update with photos on the blog is possible. The trip was from Orlando to Brunswick in Georgia our final journey to take the RV and Jeep to the docks. Unfortunately it turned into a nightmare with all sorts of problems ranging from a near death experience being sandwich by two 18 wheeler trucks who decided we were going to be their victims for the day, luckily a last minute swerve by us avoided an accident. Pat's language was the most colourful I have ever heard!!! This was on the drive to the docks and was only a 5 minute trip, the day must get better. Well on arrival at the docks with no further incidents we completed the necessary paperwork, waited patiently for the escort into the docks at a charge of $50 .. yep all the staff were wearing masks and striped jumpers LOL!!! I left Pat in the safety of the dock police... have to keep her in line after all that swearing earlier. After uncoupling the vehicles a woman dealing with our shipping, came out of the office, she went to the Jeep and instructed me to go to the RV. A few minutes later, she approached me muttering about bad news for us!!!! Firstly we had too much petrol in the tank which needed draining out, either I could do it or they would at a charge of $25. How could I do it? The bandits get another $25!!!! Secondly, having not had enough room in the RV lockers for the bicyle frame, we removed the wheels and placed the covered frame in the back of the Jeep... the woman announced "You are paying to ship a Jeep NOT a bike and a Jeep... the bike MUST go!!!" Again what could I do, the bike frame had to go in a nearby dumpster (skip) together with two fleece jackets. In situations like this you are totally at the authorities mercy. I then rejoined Pat and we phoned the Enterprise hire car company to come and collect us as arranged previously. A few hours later we were heading North in a Kia hire car for the last few weeks of our stay in Titusville. On this part of our journey, Pat noticed there appeared to be a fault on her passanger air bag that indicated it was not in working order. We made a visit to the Enterprise office in Titusville to advise them of this problem and after them calling the Brunswick office it was agreed that they would exchange our vehicle (see photos) and they would buy in the Kia and retain it in Titusville. Great news this means we do not have to pay an extra $200 to get the vehicle returned to Brunswick.... not quiet that simple, we are still trying to sort this issue out....only in America!!!
Well, we thought we would try and eliminate any more problems by taking a dummy run to the airport and check out everything. Our flight information fails to provide us with vital information.. which terminal do we fly from??? It was a very good idea, we had problems but we are now confident that Monday will run smoothly.
Well folks, all being well we will speak to you all very soon and update you on what happens when we collect our vehicles from Southampton, which hopefully will be Thursday 27th August.... watch this space.........................
Hi Guys, Just a shortish entry telling you of our IMMEDIATE plans on our return. A LOT WILL DEPEND ON OTHERS, such as the ship arriving as planned and the release of our vehicles but here goes.
Okay, you all know that we leave the USA on Monday 24th August and arrive in Manchester, England on Tuesday 25th, now I know that will already have confused a few. :
Hopefully the ship also will have arrived on the 25th. We will try and get a bit of shut eye after out 17 hour journey and try to visit close family.
On Wednesday 26th Pat and I together with Matt, Bev & Isabelle will travel down to Southampton in Matts car, on our arrival we wish to check out.
( I have added a map to show the below locations. )
1. The EASTERN DOCKS where our vehicles are stored /landed.
2. The Office also in EASTERN DOCKS to visit to collect our vehicles.
3. Visit a Calor gas station at WESTERN DOCKS to fill the RVs propane tank, remember we had to have it drained for shipping.
4. Find location in MARCHWOOD where the Jeep has to go to get what is called an I.V.A test, this is a test to make sure that the modifications from USA to UK are up to spec.
Tests are only carried out on Thursdays and Fridays, we will take the Jeep Thursday and hope that it passes on Friday, if there are problems it will next be tested a week later .......... Don't forget this all depends on the vehicles being released on Thursday 27th.
Once the above has occured we will travel noth to Cheltenham where a transformer will be fitted into the RV that will allow us to connect a USA vehicle to the UK electric supply.
Then its south to Taunton to have an alarm system fitted.
Well guys you know as much as we do the rest now as I said when opening this message depends on other people, so lets hope that they are kind to us, after the last few weeks we need it (tell you all about that when we meet up over a pint)
Mick & Pat
Hi Gang, How are you all, sorry we haven't written but been a little busy baby sitting and socialising , hey its hard work you know. Also one could argue that what we have been doing is a little boring but some of our English friends thought that Our American and Canadian friends may like to read about and see some of our beautiful English country side.
Now plans just before we shipped plans were to stay to catch up with our 'kids' Ha ha kids but circumstances changed when our Ben and his girlfriend Rachel announced that they would be having a baby girl in March and our eldest Matthew and his fiance will marry on Sept 3rd 2010 hence our delay in the UK.
Now shortly after the 3rd Sept we intend to travel down to Spain directly via a ferry missing out France and return to a camp site in Javea where we stayed in 2004 to 2005 just after I retired.
I am not 100% sure that we can get our motor home on Camping Javea, I think I can access several pitches which I will book once a good friend sends me a few photographs of a junction on the camp site that may be a problem as the Spanish love to place lights and trees directly on junction corners, I can see the junction using Google Earth but not in enough detail if there are any other obstructions.
Now because our RV and Jeep are British registered they now need to be insured , road taxed and tested, the insurance and road tax can be obtained via the internet however we need to return every 12 months to the UK to get a test certificate showing that they are road worthy :( So we are looking at travelling back at the end of August 2011 this time via France and sites either that we have visited before.
Finally for now I'm compiling a report of the site we are currently on for a guide that is for other who also own Large RV's, I'm just waiting for a bit of decent weather to get a few nice photos to show Red Lion farm at its best, I will add these photos when done.
Bye for now Mick & Pat xxx
It has been suggested by some
As promised I have added a few photos of our Isabelle and now her new cousin Sophie
Just arrived at the above event, our very first rally ever. The organiser is expecting 50 American RVs for a 4 day event, just hope the weather holds out, shall take loads of pictures and add ASAP.
We have just returned from attending our very first RV Rally, four day week end at Oswestry Rugby Club organised by Brian Evans on behalf of the RV Owners Club.
From our base at Red Lion Farm we had two choice of routes, the A5 which for our American readers is a little like an Interstate road, very busy with lorries or from the farm left onto the A518, then A41 to Whitchurch, then A495 to Oswestry. Now the route started off quite pleasant roads fairly quiet that was until we reached one of the small villages on the A495 where a T junction had been replaced with a raised mini island that not even the smallest car in the UK could have driven around.
I proceeded to drive forward and over the island as slow as I could (honest Pat) but still as the rear tyres travelled over first one then the other it caused a rocking motion which in turn found an unsecured table lap causing it to crash to the floor causing a small amount of damage.
The maximum RV’s permitted was 50 of which 48 turned up from all parts of the UK, well actually the maximum numbers in the Rugby Club house were 100 hence only 50 RV’s At the as our Rally in the County Showground next to the Rugby Club the Shropshire Truck Show was also taking place.
The rallies itinerary went something like this. Thursday was arrival set-up and a chill day, the Rugby Club bar opened at 7.30pm to 10.30pm. Friday & Saturday nights members Stan & Ernie sang and ran a disco. Friday night was a fantastic buffet meal provided by Brian’s wife Jo and Saturday night was a 50s, 60s, and 70s, together with a hog roast.
BOTH meals were included in the Rallies price along with bacon baps, tea or coffee on Sunday morning. Arranged also for Sunday morning was a bring and buy sale of any RVing items then later that day members tucked into a roast beef or turkey lunch care of the clubs steward Dave.
Apart from a cool wind the weather held out for the four days and allowed outdoor relaxing or recuperation from the previous nights drinking.
Now prior to attending this rally I had been in contact with Brian who runs a tyre business in Oswestry and asked him to get me a new tyre for use as a spare as our RV had never had one and obtaining one in France or Spain, our next journey, can be a problem.
When we first entered the Rugby Club foyer on the Thursday night I noticed a VERY large new tyre leaning up against a wall, my first impressions were.”Hell that’s never our tyre, Brian must have got the measurements wrong” The tyre remained in this position the entire week end whilst I looked for someone with a pick-up or something similar to carry the tyre over to our RV, on the Sunday the owners 14 year old son rolled it over, I felt a right plonker.
Getting the tyre to the RV was only the start of our problems as the dedicated locker for the spare tyre contained; two American versions of the French Lafuma chairs, now these chairs look very similar to the French ones but are much wider to take bigger butts. Also in the locker was a large folding table that we first bought in Wal-Mart when we were kitting our RV but have never used.
Despite much swopping and moving of items from one locker to another there was no other place for the chairs and table to go other than inside the RV with us, Oh and together with a 19kg bottle of LPG gas.
Well all this arraigning took time, so much time that apart from Brian who organised the Rally we were the last to leave the field, good job the sun was shining, it was a beautiful day.
We had decided to return, ‘the other way’ via the A5, but first we had to visit a nearby garage to buy diesel and to fill the RV’s onboard LPG tank.
Tanks filled we were soon underway on which was quite a pleasant journey, that was until we turned onto the A518 a few miles from Red Lion Farm and found workmen re-surfacing the road. The problem wasn’t so much the gap between machine and kerb being tight to drive through but more so the wet tar and stone chippings that had stuck to the walls of our tyres and under body areas.
Within minutes we were back at ‘home’ on our pitch a very good and pleasant ‘first’ rally under our belt.
Before commencing our American adventure I thought it may be of use to join the I.P.A. (International Police Association),since returning to the UK we have regularly attended monthly meetings at the local Stafford Branch, this nights meeting was a canal boat trip a short 25 mile drive to a location called Froghall Wharf which I thought our American, Canadian & Spanish good friends may find interesting?
On arriving a group of about 20 other IPA members had already arrived and were waiting to board the 7ft wide narrow boat, ’Birdsworth’.
Minuets later we boarded then set off at leisurely speed of 4mph making our 6 mile trip a 1½ hour journey each way on the Caldon canal.
This canal was opened in 1779 and is an 18 miles long branch of the Trent and Mersey canal.
The journey took us through a lock similar to the one in the photos and tunnel just inches above the roof of the NB.
Well regardless of ALL the reasons both personal and medical for having to remain in the UK for so long we are now on a brilliant camp site called Camping Marjal which is just outside a town called Guardamar del Segura, this town is just south of Alicante on the Costa Blanca.
Our intention was to leave Red Lion Farm at 02.00am fill up the RV with diesel and drive down to Portsmouth to arrive a few hours before our ferry sailing at 11.15am, as usual 'Pods Law' as we now call it stepped in and we left about 03.30am.
Our first stop en-route somewhere on the A34 south of Oxford was to top up our LPG tank, it was at this point that I noticed one of the two vinyl coverings over the two roof top air-con units had blown off.
We arrived at Portsmouth ferry terminal at about 09.30 and after checking in formed up in lines with other vehicles ready to board our ship the Cap Finistère.
We started boarding shortly after, I was waved forward and towards what looked and were a very narrow set of gates...........crunch I clipped one side of the gate with a window awning causing slight damage. I continued after an exchange of details to board the ship, once on board we immediately headed for our cabin to deposit our over night bag for our 25 hour crossing to Santander Spain.
The outside cabin was very nice and had twin beds and en-suite facilities. We then ventured to the food areas where after a sandwich we retired to our cabin.
The next day, morning we sat down to a great breakfast even though the ship is French owned and run they cooked a good English breakfast.
After breakfast as advised by friends I picked up from reception a How to Leave Santander leaflet as well as some Euro s, soon it was time to board our RV and leave the ship and after a quick check of our Passports we were driving through the streets of Santander at 1300 (Spanish time)
Now acording to our Tom Tom sat nav our arrival time for Camping Marjal was 21.30pm that day the 19th but as out pitch on the site wasn't free until the 20th we decided to stop en-route over night.
Now I have no idea where exactly we stopped, our journeys length was 525 miles and we stopped, ate in the local restaurant and slept on the services area approx 200 miles from our destination, it was at this point when trying to set the Jeeps alarm that I found out its battery was flat because I hadn't disconnected the battery.
The next day (20th) we resumed weather was still overcast in fact we incurred dense fog for quite a distance, however the sun soon appeared, its amazing what effect the sun has to raise your spirits.
The remainder of the journey was un eventful and we soon arrived at the gates of Camping Marjal to be greeted by our good friends Rod & Lisa who we first met on Red Lion Farm, they have been on Camping Marjal for the past 2 months.
Well that's it for now folks shall take and add a few pictures soon of the site.
In total we stayed on pitch number 208 at Camping Marjal from 20th Jan until 1st June this been the only period available of a pitch large enough to accomodate our RV. That infact appeared to be somewhat incorrect, for despite Pat continually asking if the 'next' persons to move onto our pitch on the 1st June had cancelled when paying our monthly fees she was continually told no. We still hadn't decided whether to return to the UK on ther 1st or find another camp site.
During our time on Camping Marjal we were visited by our good and long standing friends John & Helen Spooner who retired and moved out to Spain some 12 years ago having bought a Spanish finca (farm house) in Javea.
John & Helen during there visit informed us of there intention to return back to the UK from mid June to September and wondered if we could 'house sit' for them.
Pat also had to return back to the UK for an hospital appointment so flights were booked between 25th May and 6th June, could I cope alone?
Well come June 1st I was filled with much apprehension, first this was the first time I'd driven the RV alone whilst towing the Jeep, my first port of call en-route to Javea was the Cerpsa LPG depot at Alicante, now getting to this location required my having to do a U turn on the busy N-332, however I needen't have worried as I completed the maneuver without any problem and had soon filled up our onboard LPG tank.
After resetting Tom Tom I resumed my journey via the A-7 toll road, next worry was getting through the toll booths, again a piece of cake, however my high spirits soon came crashing down as I approached the exit toll booth at junction 61. On the outside of the booth I noticed two Spanish Guarda Traffico Police, will they see and stop me.......I moved forward in the paying queue only to be flagged over as I emerged and told that to tow with an A frame was not legal in Spain, however despite this they allowed me to continue.
We returned to the Plymouth in the UK on Thursday 22nd September 2011, we chose Plymouth instead of Portsmouth in order to visit some true friends who work part time at a camp site called Tregoad Park, Cornwall which was just a few miles from Plymouth.
We stayed there just under two weeks as Pat had an hospital appointment. We returned to our 'normal' Stafford base site Red Lion Farm on Sunday 2nd Oct, the 'authorities' started pulling there finger out regarding Pats treatment and for once we could see light at the end of the tunnel.
But it was to good to be true, on Sunday 1st Jan 2012 the site owner gave us two weeks notice to move, it appeared that some low life scum bag reported us to the Council of overstaying at the site, now that wouldn't have been to bad but there were others on the site who had been on there for years, thats what come of owning an American RV, green eyed monsters.
Well we moved off on the 18th and started our 'touring' from one local Caravan Club CL to another every 28 days. During Feb the RV went into a local RV dealer for some minor body work repairs so we flew out to Spain for two weeks.
More to come later
Well after quite some time we are on the move again, this weekend we moved from Red Lion Farm in Haughton to a new site to us called Roden Nurseries in Roden Shropshire, the site is a Caravan Club CL.
Pat's treatment is going well in fact well enough for us to book the ferry from Plymouth to Santander Spain in September. We have also booked a site near to Alicante on the Costa Blanca until May 2014.
Hi Guy's, sorry I haven't wrote for some time only I have been to hell and back.
Earlier in the year Pat went to our GP suffering with diarrhoea however at the time this condition was going around the country so no doubt the GP thought she was just another sufferer that was until she went back several weeks later still suffering, he then refereed her to our local hospital but they failed to find a cause.
Pat started to losing weight, heck as you know she isn't a heavy weight to start with. Eventually weighing only 6st 3lbs on July 22 she was admitted into ward 11 in Stafford Hospital where after several days they suspected she had Cohn’s Disease.
However on Wednesday 7th August my nightmare started, at around 4am that morning she had severe diarrhoea and her blood pressure dropped to a very low level, later that day she was moved to the hospital's Critical Care Unit suffering with Pneumonia and Septicaemia, she was placed on a ventilator and dialysis machines the doctors saying because of her weak state was very very ill. All close relatives were contacted and our sons and Pats sister joined me at the unit expecting the worse in fact for the first week I stayed in the unit’s bedroom along with Pats sister Gloria. The oral breathing tube was eventually replaced with a tracheotomy.
Daily Pat defied the doctor’s beliefs and slowly recovered that was until Sunday 22nd September.
Now that day has two significant meanings, the first was that was the date we should have been on the car ferry from Plymouth to Santander Spain where we had booked to stay until May 2014, the second was that was the day I got another call from the CCU informing me that Pat had taken a turn for the worse, it appears she had contracted another infection called pseudomonas, now the simplified explanation of this bug is that it’s something we all have and is normally no problem however in Pats very weaken state it was very serious.
Okay enough doom and gloom some good news.
Yesterday the nurse in charge of Pat reduced the pressure of the ‘cuff’ that holds the trachea in Pats neck thus allowing her to talk although a bit like Donald Duck, the nurse also said that Pat had been off the ventilator oxygen supply for over 24 hours and unlikely to go back on it so it may be just a matter of days before the trachea is removed, Pat last weighing a few days ago has also improved to 49kgs which in English is 7.71stone.
My good news is that since 31st January this year I have currently lost just over 6st and feel absolutely great, it has changed me from a couch potato to a Billy the Wiz, I now enjoy walking and cannot do enough mind you visiting Pat twice a day helps. Well that’s it for now folks, I’ll update more when I know further on Pats future treatment and when we hope to resume our RVing travels. Mick
Since my last postings we have been sited at my son’s works on an industrial site just outside Stafford, ideal for hospital and doctor appointments but lacking scenery.
With the approval of ALL Pats doctors I have now re-booked our ferry to Spain as well as our camp site just outside Alicante again in Sept the only difference is we shall be sailing from Portsmouth instead of Plymouth, several months in Spain will do her the world of good.
My weight loss is now 7st-3lbs and I feel absolutely GREAT the vast majority done only with a change of diet and the help of Slimming World.
In Nov / Dec last year I started attending the local baths at 6.30am to boost my weight loss however daily swimming numerous 25m lengths is extremely boring so I have now taken up cycling and daily (weather permitting) peddle around the country lanes.
Although Pats mobility is gradually improving her weight gain is continually up & down and the hospital consultants still do not know the cause which she finds upsetting
Well following the approval of both Pats hospital consultants and her GP I have rebooked both the ferry to Spain and the site just south of Alicante which is really looking forward to, our ferry date is 16th Sept arriving at the site two days later.
Today visited a local airfield at Seighford for my birthday present from Pat, a glider flight. This is something I've wanted to do for sometime but was unable due to my weight.
Requirements are that you have to be under 16st and 6'-5" tall since I have now lost 8st my current weight is now well under 16st.
Well the old bus, thats the RV not Pat passed her MOT with flying colours on Saturday, the journey only 22 miles to a garage able to accomodate our monstrosity as one good friend called it was without incident although its driver was very apprehensive but then I haven't driven her for nearly 1 year except a few weeks ago just to move it over a foot.
The real test will be in 15 days time when we set off for Portsmouth docks en-route to Santander Spain this time towing a 20ft trailer carrying our car, the total length of out 'outfit' will be 59ft.
Well we finally arrived at Camping Marjal at 1730 (Spanish time) on Thursday 19th but only thanks to our son Ben we would never have made it.
At 02.00 am on Tuesday 16th Sept and minuets and only a few hundred yards after leaving what had been our ‘home’ location for the past year a major catastrophe occurred whereby BOTH the nearside wheels of our car trailer came off thanks to yours truly for not tightening the wheel nuts after their removal a day or two previous.
The location of this event was an unlit B class country road. A phone call to Ben had him dashing to our rescue. Whilst waiting for his arrival I managed to find one of the wheels but the 10 wheel bolts were nowhere to be found. Ben managed to find in his workshop 10 suitable wheel bolts and after an hour or two we were able to resume our journey to Portsmouth for our ferry crossing to Spain, luckily it’s departure time wasn’t until 17.15 so we made it in plenty of time, however I must admit that throughout most of our journey both to the port and in Spain I watched the trailer via the rear view camera like a hawk.
The crossing was perfect as the sea was like a mill pond and both the ship the Pont-Aven and our cabin were great. We arrived at Santander at 16.15 ( 17.15 Spanish time) so only had a few hours of day light to drive to a stopover point.
We diecided to do it in two stages the first being about 120 miles to Burgos where we stopped for the night.
Our 523mile journey at 50mph from Santander to our site was all dual carriageway and without problems, hell I think I’d had my share of problems when we first started out.
On arriving at our site Marjal Costa Blanca we were greeted by Mike who I’d never met until then and had only communicated via our RV owners club forum.Ater checking in at reception he showed us to our double pitch where thanks to his help it had been covered with a green plastic woven material.
Well after our 10 hour drive it was just a matter of lowering the RV’s jacks opening the slide-outs then off to the restaurant for a later tea then back and crash out until the morning when we can start unpacking the tables and chairs to name but a few little tasks.
Well it's been a few weeks since our arrival and quite a few things have happened, the most important is that Pat is continuing to gain weight , now just over 9st but still quite wobberly and easily tired. The other week grand daughter Izzie her mum Bev and her partner Adam visited for a week and we had a great time.
I'm still maintaining my 8½ st weight loss and regulary ride 34 miles to Guardamar for a coffee, black of course and tapas (Calamari) this area is ideal for cycling being flat and the majority of roads have cycle paths.
Weather as now changed slightly even as I write this at 09.23 the sky is clear blue, sun shining but its 57f cool.
Okay shall close this entry in order for me to add a few pictures, shall add more entries soon.
Pat is still improving and enjoying both the Spanish sun and the relaxed atmosphere, I on the other having lost over 8st as you can see still need to loose a few more lbs and regulary cycle around the flat and cycle freindly area.
Hi Guy's been a little time since writing any blog update where do I start? First Pat is still doing fantastic,and now regularly visits our site gym and really enjoys going.
I on the other hand have really been well and truly bitten with the cycling bug. First to further continue my weight loss before coming out to Spain I took up cycling on a 2nd hand Raleigh Hybrid I bought off my brother and happily rode around the country lanes of Stafford. I continued riding the Raleigh in Spain however after much heckling from my two sons I upgraded to a Cube full suspension mountain bike. Then for Xmas 2016 I purchased a brand new 2017 carbon frame Cube road bike so now own two Cube bikes one for road use the other for off road or dirt track routes of which there are quite a few around our location.
Oh, forgot to add that in February 2016 we returned to the UK to change our Peugeot 308 for a BMW Cabriolet a must have for the Spanish sun.
Note her ladyship posing on the beach at La Marina.