Coachella

This is the page or landing spot of Coachella “Birdy’s” adventures for 2024.  Come back and visit this site starting in April for updates.  We hope to include photos of our adventures.

This page will grow in length as our adventures continue with the most recent adventures near the top of the page (after this heading)

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Concluding 2024 Camping season

Sit back, grab a coffee, tea, wine or beer of your choosing and enjoy our 2024 Adventures on the road.

August – October 2024

Location: Norbrook Farm Brewery, Colebrook, CT.

This was our third stay with Norbrook and each time we tend to enjoy this place more. We did not realize there is a seating area upstairs which was very nice for quietly chatting with friends and family while enjoying darts and a few beers. As always John, the owner, was very accommodating. On this visit, being Columbus Day Weekend, the farm was really busy. A disc golf tournament was on going, a private party was happening in the tasting room and 8 fellow RV’ers were in the back lot where we all park our coaches. We lucked out and got our ‘favorite’ spot with a grass area for dogs to do their duty.

Not as chilly as Big Elm but still a cold and damp morning on Monday. We fired up the generator and propane heat which got the coach from 55 degrees to 68 in a mater of minutes. Outside temperature was 42 which makes me realize Columbus Day Weekend really is the end of the camping season here in Connecticut.

Reflecting on our journeys in 2024 brings back many fond memories. Meeting up with friends and family along the way and meeting many interesting and friendly folks from all over the US and Canada. We have had our share of moments where we questioned if owning a motorhome was a wise choice, but in the end the good memories are more plentiful than the few painful moments.

Location: Big Elm Brewery, Sheffield, MA.

This is our third stay with Big Elm. First was in April, Second was in June and now October. So we’ve seen three seasons while here. Always very pleasant staff and very helpful when learning where to park. This weekend we had temperatures in the low 70’s but very windy and not a cloud in the sky. Solar panels were set up and was able to keep the house battery fully charged all day.

We tend have a family get together when we stay here and this stay was no difference but with a big surprise. Ruth’s Dad, who is going to be 92 in January, stopped in for a bite to eat and a beer. It was a real treat to see Bill here, and he treated us to a round of beers.

Weather turned wet overnight and it is currently raining and chilly. Inside the coach this morning was 48 degrees but with blankets and cats sleeping on us we were plenty warm. Started the generator for a couple house while I cooked bacon & eggs with toast! We picked up a $10 toaster at Walmart so now we can have toast with breakfast.

Location: Home Range Winery, Cannan, NY

This is a very small winery in on the New York / Massachusetts board. Peter and Susan Bartlett are the proprietors of this farm winery. Wines were good with the Cayuga wine being our favorite. We met a couple from Michigan (Bret and Linda) who were also Harvest Host campers. We had a good time chatting with them along with Mike, Ellen, Andy and Robin. Chilly evening so Peter moved the potable gas firepit where we were seated to keep us warm. Fun time

Location: Skyridge Campground, Torrington, CT

Last two days at Skyridge was different. We both got some kind of flu. With no test kits in hand we discounted Covid-19. We both were congested and coughing a bit but no fever (we think). Andy & Robin drove up to give us some Alka-Seltzer Plus which helped us through Saturday. Friday and Saturday we walked up to the grill and got Hot Fudge Sundaes, a treat when camping. Skyridge is a nice campground and recommend it to anyone looking for a stress free camping experience.

Day 4 of our stay at Skyridge. Really a pleasant place. Lots of space, little noise, not buggy at all and less than 50 miles from home. Daily walks with the dogs and me taking the trash to the dumpster (although the campgrounds keepers will pick your garbage up, me doing this gives me a little exercise). Ruth came down with a little ‘cold’ yesterday, perhaps she picked it up at this past Saturday’s Class Reunion. She is better today but yesterday she stayed all covered up on the couch with the dogs. I made my way around the site yesterday capturing fall colors and actually having a productive campfire in the evening.

During our walk this morning with the dogs we ran into another couple with their miniature long haired Dachshunds. The four dogs got along pretty well, but of course Louise has to play the bumblebee. Always active and an instigator.

Skyridge is the newest campground in New England and 2024 is the first year of operation. It still has some developing to do yet but for just opening in April things are pretty good. Very quiet although you can faintly hear Route 4 traffic.

Our trip to get here was short, only about 44 miles and about one-hour of road time. Route 4 roads in Torrington are a disaster, still torn up from August when the town was doing some infrastructure repairs. Early Fall are excellent times to camp. Kids are all back in school so no noisy interruptions. Cool crisp mornings with mid-70 degree afternoons with the leaves beginning to show their fall colors.

The campground is fairly full with mostly trailers and few Class A and Class C motorhomes. We cracked open the Ukuleles our first day here and ‘practiced’ for about an hour belting out “Me & Bobby McGee” (tribute to Kris Kristofferson). Started a fire with our unseasoned firewood which was a bit of a challenge.

Location: Northwood Brewing Company, Northwood, NH

Last stop before heading home, this HH location is a Brewery/Restaurant/Ice Cream shop. Very unique and off the beaten path a bit but on Route 4 in New Hampshire. Beer was very good with a good selection of Pilsners and Lagers. Today was Pizza special Tuesday so we got a cheese special and a beer. When we first arrived we had a few brews and some wings, again very good food and beer.

Four folks total here for Harvest Hosts. One fifth wheel, Paul and Kathy from Sarasota, a Winnebago Class C (Mercedes), Larry and Mimi from New Jersey. We haven not met the folks in the truck camper yet and there is us. Looks like a popular place for folks to stop overnight. Somewhat level parking and a nice grass area for the pups to do their bathroom deal.

A little chilly here overnight. The coach was 57 degrees with the outside temperature of 44 degrees. Very happy we filled the propane tank in Bar Harbor.

Location: Bar Harbor Campground Bar Harbor, ME.

Arrived safely at this Campground after about 4 hours on the road. This is a well planned out Campground with multiple showers / bathroom buildings, full laundry room (cold water only), small store, propane filling station, delivered wood for campfires and multiple dumpsters for folks to hand carry their garbage. Additionally a huge heated pool overlooking Eastern Bay is quite a sight. We elected to have a full hookup site so this stay is a little like being at home. Wi-Fi service is available but we are on the fringe of the network so we are using our cell phones for a hot spot. Over the air TV is OK and we are able to catch football. Really nice folks we are camping with. Chatted with a very young couple with their infant child who are here from Germany for three week, seeing the USA in a rented Cruise America coach.

We brought our folding bikes on this trip. Now, understand we have not been bike riding in 20+ years. We did ok….for a while. Ruth took a spill and has a nasty looking road rash on her right leg. Fortunately we were going very slowly, I guess our balance is not what it once was. Ruth was riding the smaller bike, tomorrow (maybe) Ruth will try the bigger bike. Folding bikes are tricky to steer and that may have been the issue.

We like this Campground so much we are planning on grabbing a site that overlooks Eastern Bay. On the good side there are 7 sites that offer great views of the Bay, the bad side is there is no shade. We have A/C so if we plan on grabbing one of these sites next year we will certainly be running the A/C in the heat of the day.

Really nice weather, sunny and 70 degree weather today. Walking distance to Mainely Meat and the Lobster Pound and we have sampled both these establishments so far. Lobster is crazy expensive compared to the last time we came to Bar Harbor, I guess we can thank global warming for this since Lobsters are getter scarce in these waters. The Bar Harbor area caters to vacationers and have multiple bus services that will tote you around (and your dogs too) for free. We took the bus into town with the pups and had a really good time. Can’t say enough good things about the free bus service.

Location: Funky Bow Brewery, Lyman, ME.

A stop over at a new Harvest Host this time which is certainly a unique stop over. This site feature 6 well marked spots for Harvest Host folks to park their rigs. We arrived fairly early today and we grabbed site number 1 which offered nice shade for the fridge side of our coach. My sister and brother-in-law (Barb & Bob) stopped by for a bite to eat and a quick brew. Certainly a site for folks that like music and a rustic spot to kick back. Ruth and I grabbed the Smashburger Deluxe and a Blueberry Sour and we were surprised how large the burger was. The sour was spot on and hit the spot on this warm afternoon. Today was the annual gathering of the the Iron Pigs MC which began as we arrived to order our food and drink. Three staff folks were busier than a one-armed paper hanger but they managed very well getting food and drinks for everyone.

I had to look up the Iron Pigs MC and found they are an MC that caters to the Firefighters, Police and Professional Business folks. I chatted with a few and was told some of the folks are still on the job as FBI, DEA and undercover police. What a great group of folks that made use feel like we were part of their group.

Location: Cracker Barrel, Sturbridge, MA

Another stop at the Cracker Barrel in Sturbridge. This stop had 11 overnight camping guests. This is the second time we have stayed overnight at this Cracker Barrel and this stop was like the last, uneventful with good dinner and breakfast served up. Met up with Ruth’s cousin Dan and wife Judi, always nice to see these folks.

Approaching Labor Day weekend. Holiday weekends we generally stay clear of camping, too many rude people and too much traffic. So the task at hand now is cleaning up the coach and getting ready for the next trips in a few weeks. We will conclude our 2024 adventures in October with a stay at one of the newest campgrounds in New England (Skyview Campground) which should provide some really nice foliage views of the Litchfield Hills. After that adventure it’s winterization time, which will be the first time we will be doing this task solo. In the early spring of 2025 we plan a two to three week stretch of travel to the south but arriving back in time for the RV Armor application to the roof.

Check our our adventures so far this year:

Location: Home

We are off the road for month or so. We’ve accumulated nearly 5,000 miles so far this season and visited many states with a few more to come before the end of the season for us. Next up is Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and parts of Connecticut. For the next few weeks we will be sitting low and doing some necessary maintenance work. All the brake lines are being replaced with Super Duty Truck brake lines. All coolant hoses including heater core hoses are being replaced. All this work is being done by Plaza Service Center in our town. The water heater wouldn’t run on AC power during our last trip which is not a big deal since we only turn on the water heater for dishes and showers and then turn it off. Being able to run on Propane made not running on AC not a big deal. I was hoping the issue was simple and wouldn’t require me to pull the water heater out of the coach to diagnose the problem. Luck was on my side; the thermostat for AC operation had failed. I ordered this up on Amazon and it should be back running normally this week

July 2024

Location: Ludlow, MA – Sole Syndicate Brewing (previously known as Iron Duke Brewery

We broke camp at Coastal Acres very early this morning and were on the road leaving the campground by 7:11 AM! Initially we were going to pull the slides in and raise the jacks last night but we did everything this morning. The campground was a good test; 4 nights with full hookups and we used 85 gallons of water. This campground is very quiet and does have strict rules but we enjoyed our stay. The campground is very large and does require a lot of walking, next time we will have bikes with us.

We arrived at Sole Syndicate a bit before noon, the place is in an industrial setting with lots of construction happening but Ruth eventually found were they were located along with parking. We have a few hours until they open for the day so I thought I’d get some of the blog done for today. We had some issues with the fridge, but a bit of debugging and I think I have the fridge working in limp mode. Apparently the thermistor is probably bad and will address that when we get home.

Location: Provincetown – Coastal Acres Campground

We decided to pick up and hit the road early this morning from Cape Cod Beer and spend some time in Provincetown near Race Point. So after our two morning coffees we began our trip but the stars were not aligned this morning. As I came down off the leveling ramps and tried to stop the coach, my foot went to the floor on the brake pedal. Very scary!!! Red indicator on the dashboard BREAK! I checked the master cylinder and there was no brake fluid registering. I did not see any leaks anywhere but we weren’t going anywhere. Concord Electric Supply was open at 8 AM so I strolled in and they were so helpful trying to get me hooked up with someone that could help us out. Good Sam would have us towed but would not bring a bottle of brake fluid to us. We eventually got hooked up with Buckler’s Truck service in Hyannis. Sean was dispatched to where we were with a bottle of brake fluid. He crawled under the coach and discovered we had blown the brake line to the rear brakes. He patched us up so we hobbled at 20 MPH on back roads to their very large truck repair shop. Of course we lost brakes on the way there again but Sean told us you still have front brakes so you should be able to stop “just don’t go over 20 MPH. The repairs were completed in quick time even though the shop was down three mechanics. We were all patched up by 11 AM and made it to the camp ground by 1 PM!

Needless to say, a very stressful morning especially loosing brakes as we meandered around a rotary in Hyannis by the airport. So many thanks go out to Concord Electric and Buckler’s, they really got our vacation back on track.

The campground is nice with our spot being very level. Full hook ups but a heck of trek to get to the showers, so it looks like we will be showering in the coach on this trip. We met a nice couple next to us with their two very small mixed breed dogs; Buddy and Moki. We walked to the Monkey Bar and had a nice late lunch and $19 Martinis (won’t do that again). Food was very yummy and will most likely go there again this week.

Location: Cape Cod Beer – Hyannis

Somewhat of an industrial setting but very nice place to rest up. The parking area was not clearly marked so we drove around the building once to get the lay of the land. Eventually we found a very nice place in the back to park the coach and head into the tasting room for some beers. There were two sours on tap which were very good along with a pickle ale. We both found the Pilsner to be the best pick of the litter for us. Live music with Bryce Elizabeth made for nice relaxing afternoon (Bryce was in love with our Dachshunds, so much we forgot lyrics to one of her songs when she spotted them).

Traveling to the Cape on a Sunday morning was fairly easy going. Massachusetts rotary traffic patterns suck especially so driving a large motorhome. The Borne Bridge was also not a lot of fun crossing but eventually we arrived in Hyannis. Cape Cod Beer is a dog friendly brewery and our pups were quite relaxed while watching people (and dogs) come and go. Rain started about 6PM which kept us in the coach the remainder of the night. Two other RVs were parked with us, the last being a smaller Airstream that pulled in about 9 PM.

Ok, here it is, nearing the end of July and we are on another adventure to Cape Cod. Although somewhat of a short trip by car, when driving a motorhome it’s best to break trips up to small digestible durations and for this trip this is exactly what we are doing. The first leg of our journey is from our home to Sturbridge where there is a Cracker Barrel. This is our first stay at a CB and we were surprised by the number of fellow campers choosing this location. We arrived early afternoon but by 10PM there were at least 6 other RV’ers stopping here for the night. We met up with a very nice couple with their 3 young children and their 40 foot 5th Wheel from Utah. At 40 years old the couple have decided to go full time in the RV and they hope to retire this year. Wow!

Very quiet location. The only downside is no place to really curb your dog, everything is gravel landscaping or grass that has been treated with pesticides, so our furry creatures had a tough time relieving themselves comfortably. We ran the generator for quite a bit so we could run the A/C, July in New England can be warm and today it was nearly 90 degrees.

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Stay tuned, our next adventure brings us to the Cape Cod area. First stop is Cape Cod Brewery, then Coastal Acres Campground in Provincetown, concluding with Sole Syndicate Brewing in Ludlow. Things should run smoother on these stops since the Genset is all working tip-top and the Campground is 100% utilities. The pet crew will be along for this trip too. Stay tuned…..

Amended our plans a bit, we are first stopping at Cracker Barrel in Sturbridge on our way to the Cape. We’ll be one of those campers staying in a parking lot on the first night. Ruth’s Cousin and Wife will be stopping by for a bite to eat at the CB. This will break up the long trip from our home to the Cape. The Sole Syndicate Brewing was formerly known as “Iron Duke Brewing”.

Still coming back to this site? A few more days and we hit the road. Here’s a quick video parking the coach in our tiny driveway.

June 2024

Location: Norbrook Farm Brewery – Colebrook, CT.

This is our second stayover at Norbrook. Nestled in the hills of Western Connecticut and bordering close to Massachusetts, this Farm Brewery is one of the nicest we’ve visited. The food is very good and at time a food truck is present as well. Don’t be surprised if a band pops in and starts playing either, those tend to be unadvertised. The beers are quite good, but this time around their sour tended to be my favorite and ended up buying a four-pack to go.

Weather was OK but we did have a heavy downpour and T&L from 1 PM to about 2:30 PM but by 3 PM the sun was peaking out and no more rain until about 8 PM and that was short lived. We are here with three other RV’s; a Grand Design 5th wheeler, an Outlaw Class A and a custom made Class C on a Chevy chassis (looks like a converted airport shuttle bus). Really quiet here tonight with wind blowing through the trees. We are conserving our battery so not too many lights are on and things are running ok.

Andy & Robin stopped in to keep us company and when we left the brewery to head back to the RV, someone forgot their pocketbook and jacket. Of course this was brought to A&R’s attention until a patron at the brewery drove up to our RV and asked if we had left a jacket at the bar. Ummm, yes we did but…. the brewery is closed and no one was around (it was now 7 PM). I called John (the owner) and he said he would open up the brewery on his way back from New York. Good news is A&R got there stuff. John is a really great guy.

Location: Big Elm Brewery- Sheffield, Ma.

This is our second time staying overnight at the Big Elm. Our first trip here was back in April and was pleasant but rainy. Today was a repeat of April but a bit warmer. Beers are very good and they offer non-alcohol drinks. No food truck or bands today, but we hadn’t planned on that so we had a bit of picnic. Hot Dogs, Hamburgers, typical summer picnic salads, brownies, and Dove Ice Cream. The rain started to come down and the host allowed us to bring our picnic into the building. Big Elm is a very accommodating brewery for allowing us to do this. Folks stuck around until closing which was 7 PM.

Our Onan generator is acting up a bit so we could not run it for long periods, it will be going in for yet another service next week (hopefully). So we had to keep our power consumption levels low since we have no way to charge the house battery if it gets low nor could we operate the microwave. Tomorrow we have a short drive that should charge up the house battery to acceptable levels so we aren’t too worried about it.

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Location: Magic Fluke – Sheffield, Ma.

This place is very unique, at least to us. Ruth started (or re-started) learning to play the Ukulele a few months back and when we were planning another HH run to the Berkshires I spotted “Magic Fluke”. Magic Fluke is an instrument maker in Southern Berkshire County and next door to a Winery, Distillery and Brewery (I guess if the music you play doesn’t sound ‘good’ then stop by one of the other shops and drink a bit until the music sounds better). All kidding aside, the hosts were great and helped us out showing where to park the coach. We then stopped in the shop and left with a very nice concert sized Ukulele to add to our soprano and tenor collection.

The cats and dogs are with us on this trip and all have acclimated very well on this trip. We took a little walk to the winery and distillery and then back to the coach for a bite to eat and watch the sunset. Off course the dogs were frustrated with us that we left them in the coach and when we returned they had done a good tearing up some paper and tissues. So we took them outside and enjoyed the evening air while they relaxed on my lap.

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Watch this spot for upcoming adventures in June. On the horizon is a short trip to Western Massachusetts and Connecticut. This trip will take us to a Ukulele maker, two breweries, a winery and a distillery. The Candy Cats along with Thelma a Louise will be making this trip too.

May 2024

Location: Buckhorn Hidden Spot

Very short drive from Dubois to Bloomsburg, PA. We arrived before 11 AM and that included a rest stop and getting fuel! Rained a bit but overall a very quiet ride. Liz and Garey here in Bloomsburg are very nice hosts. The gravel parking area is extremely level and required no finagling trying to get things right for things in the coach to work correctly. We were all set up and settled in by 11 AM and vegged out in our chairs playing the Uke and just relaxing. NIce weather, not too hot and a slight breeze.

Liz showed up about 3:30 PM and Garey a bit after, both still work although Garey is retired but still working. He had to hose off some horse crap from his truck and trailer when he got back but then he hooked us up with AC power and we are good to go.

Decided to post some pictures from our last stay and from today. This will be the last post from our “Trip West 2024” but not our last trip for 2024. We plan to get to Cape Cod before the season ends and to Maine, VT, and NH as well so if you’ve been following this blog then stay tuned.

Location: Dolittle Station

On the road early and with only a few hour drive to get to our next stop. Very interesting property. Brewery, Restaurant, Cafe, Coffee Nook, Pizza place, and dinosaurs all over!

Waiting for the brewery to open at 4PM, but until then we took a lot of photos, grabbed a bite to eat and had an iced coffee.

Location: Diversion from plan – moved to Maple Lake Campground

Today we got a very late start for us. After dumping the tanks at Johnny Appleseed it wasn’t until 8:30 AM until we hit the road. Oddly Route 30 out of Ft Wayne didn’t bring back many memories. Back in the 80’s I remembered it being a two lane road, now it’s a 4-lane divided highway. I recall heading through New Haven and Van Wert that there were stop lights, no more, all that crap was bypassed (probably years ago). Very nice drive with no winds and arrived in Copely Ohio at Leisure Acres (Harvest Host site). What a dump! So many people gave glowing reviews but in my opinion it was bringing back memories of Vulcanvania from Nothing but trouble. Junk vehicles, box truck full of scrap metal and no one around. I yelled for “Dave” for 15 minutes and then Ruth and I decided “F” this we are out of this shit hole. We found a very nice campground about 10 miles away that had space for us. Really accommodating and cheap!

Live and learn, I was apprehensive about Leisure Acres from the beginning, this host only communicated by text and not via the normal HH reservation system. Cancelling, for us, was not a biggie even if we get a dig on our rating. I’ll be sure to let HH know that this location is a ‘shit hole’ and dangerous with kids or small dogs. Overall, HH has been awesome and we have probably more than 10 stays under our belt now and this is the first bad experience.

We set up ‘camp’ at site 160. Nice level lot with full hook up for $50 / night. Got the A/C running for the pets and we went to the store to pick up some local brews. Sitting outside in the 87 degree weather enjoying brews then switched to our 4PM Martini’s a bit latter. No other campers are here but by Friday this place will be packed. Lots of seasonal setups, with a very reasonable $2500 / year fee (won’t get that in New England). Nice place.

On our way out of Ft Wayne I was amazed how large the Purdue campus has expanded and nearly unrecognizable from 1980 when I last was at the campus. As I said yesterday, Indiana University departed from Ft Wayne so the campus is just Purdue. Purdue is an awesome value, or at least it was. The name “Purdue” open so many opportunities for me in my engineer career I can not thank the University enough for the education I received. At the time I hated the University, the area and just having to deal with living away from ‘home’. In hind site I probably should have settled in Indiana. Better life style and better family values, in my opinion. But, in the Northeast we have unbelievable access to healthcare (double exclamation point) !

Location: Johnny Appleseed Campground – Fort Wayne

Lots of road time today, 5 1/2 hours from Wisconsin to Fort Wayne Indiana. Westward we traveled I-90 through Chicago which was very congested and slow going. Eastbound we decided to skirt Chicago and take the route through the Chicago western suburbs. This route (I-290 & I-294) was a little better but still tons of Connecticut acting drivers (I guess they are all over the country – bad drivers cutting people off, passing when you shouldn’t etc.,). Our route took us eventually on to route 30 East which brought us right onto Coliseum Boulevard in Fort Wayne. I did not realize this camp ground abuts the property of the Fort Wayne Coliseum (where graduation ceremonies from Purdue were held for me back in ’80.

Fort Wayne has grown in size and density. Glenbrook Mall was the first landmark I recognized and then Kettler Hall on the Purdue campus. The campus now has dorms and a hotel, something that wasn’t here 44 years ago. Concordia is still present but I hear it is really run down and a few years back a tornado touched down on that property and took out all the Willows on the property. The Purdue campus is now just Purdue. Indiana University and Purdue University had a falling our a few years ago and now the campus is just Purdue and unrecognizable from when I attended.

We met up with Rick & Jill and Tina. Rick and I lived at Concordia (dorms for Purdue at the time) 44 years ago and we had not seen each other since ’80. Tina also lived at Concordia and attended Purdue back in the day, we had caught up with Tina (and her brother Tony) about 15 years ago. Our visit was nice and the four hours flew by.

This campground / park was here when I attended Purdue but I never came here (and it is just across the road. The things you don’t appreciate when you are younger you grow to appreciate later in life. Very nice and quiet campground with secure and clean restrooms.

Location: Rush Creek Distilling

What a terrific stop. Leaving Pearl Street Brewery this morning before 7:30 AM we arrived in Harvard Illinois before noon. RCS was already open with a parking lot full of collector cars. A two piece picking group was playing music and the selection of sprits was just amazing. If ever in the area I highly recommend this place as a stop over, but it is very rural.

Our hosts were really busy serving all the folks that came in for tours of the distillery and those folks attending the car show. Ruth and I meandered through the cars capturing pictures here and there, then made our way to the bar area and ordered ourselves up a few drinks but only after we got some thimble size tastes of two styles of Gin and two styles of Vodka. Ruth opted for the Dirty Martini and then the Coffee made with cold brew and their coffee Vodka. I opted for two of their spicy Bloody Mary’s made with their Jalapeno Vodka. After we polished those off it was nearly 2 PM local time and we ready to do the prep work for our Taco’s for dinner.

We enjoyed the afternoon looking off in the field next to us and not do much except relaxing. I did run the generator and A/C for the pets for a two hours but later I shut them down and just turn the fans on in the coach and hooked up the solar panels. Now at 6:30 PM the sun is getting obscured by some clouds but the solar panels are still charging the house battery even with the fans running.

This is our third day dry camping (no external water) and we still have over 12 gallons left. Tomorrow it off to Fort Wayne Indiana to the Johnny Appleseed park where we will have hook ups.

Location: Pearl Street Brewery

Cross the Mississippi again today going from Minnesota to Wisconsin. Surprisingly traffic was very light today, when we crossed the same area when going west traffic was heavy. Le Crosse is a fairly good size city and getting off I-90 to the streets of Le Crosse was very straight forward.

We arrived before noon and the brewery was opened already. We asked Darcy if where we parked the coach was fine and she said “perfect”. The brewery was very low key and was never packed during our stay. We were a bit hungry so we brought the dogs in the brewery, grabbed a flight and a few pints and ordered the Pizza Supreme. We hung out in the tasting area for an hour or so and then got back to the coach, turned on the generator and fired up the A/C unit to cool the place down for the dogs and cats. We kept the generator running for a couple hours but it is very loud (not the generator, but the A/C unit is so loud). The outside temp here today peaked about 90 degrees but by 8:30 PM the temps are beginning to fall and there is a nice breeze, so the A/C is off and has been off since 3 PM local time.

The beers were good and purchased a 6-pack of their 17th Anniversary Gose (never had this style of beer before) along with a snice hooded sweatshirt. We took a little stroll about 4 PM local time and entered the converted factory which contains shops and a small bar/restaurant. We enjoyed a nice burger and then headed back to the coach to relax.

Tomorrow we head to Harvard Illinois to a distillery.

Location: Red Brick Barn

Today was a few hundred miles from South Dakota into Iowa to settle in at Spirit Lake. The destination is the Red Brick Barn and owned by John & Teresa Elder. On arrival no one was around and we got a little concerned. I texted and email the folks and eventually Teresa got back to me and said John is probably either working or sleeping in the guest farm house if his white truck is there. The truck was there but no signs of John. We made some noise and finally John came out. Really nice guy and more or less let us view what we wanted to on the property. John & Teresa live about 2 miles away so the property is ours today.

The trip here was met with several pull over stops due to the leveling jacks alarming that they were not “all up”. Finally after the third stop the system seems to be fixed, tomorrow will tell. Gas consumption seems to be hovering between 9.5 to 10.2 MPG which is better than I anticipated. We are at the 2/3rds point of our journey with Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Connecticut ahead of us.

The property here is quiet unique. John purchased the property 3 years ago and advertised it as a family gathering destination. He has between 2500 and 3500 guests here each year and the property can accommodate large family gatherings. The main farmhouse has three very large bed rooms with large walk-in closets and a full bath on the second floor. the first floor has a large kitchen, dining room, office space, living room, full bath and a enclosed porch dinning area (with two additional beds). The cellar has a massage area, so the farm house can easily accommodate a pretty large gathering by itself. The detached game room building has two single beds in a separate area with the large game room housing a ping pong table, corn hole and many other gaming activities. There is a guest house the has a bed room, bathroom and a small building that has two single beds. The property is really quite amazing.

Location: Hill’s RV Park

We did a lot of driving east yesterday and shaved a bit more than one hour from our commute to Hill’s RV Park. Since the commute was only two hours we arrived a bit after 10 AM local time. Awesome day with sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-80’s. This is a very small sparse RV Park. We opted for full hook ups which was only $35 per night. Free WiFi, showers and washers and driers.

First thing we did was shower and then on to laundry. We had a frozen pizza in the fridge so I got that going while Ruth was waiting for the driers to finish up their cycle. By 12:30 PM we were ready to walk to the Dollar General and did some small shopping.

Thelma & Louise really like it here and the two carried on their ruff and tumble antics for 15 minutes. The whole afternoon the two dogs slept off their exercise and are still pretty tired here at 6:30 PM.

Ruth and I sat and practiced some Ukulele for a bit and then just basked in the warm sun for a few hours. Today was a relaxing day which was welcome since yesterday was taxing with the heavy rains.

Tomorrow we continue east and will take a small detour south to Iowa and stay at a very interesting Harvest Host site.

Location: No BLM Boondocking today, moved to a more secure location.

We had planned on staying at the Wall area on Bureau of Land Management land today but it has been raining a lot here in South Dakota. Kevin at Windy Acres warned me about the Wall may be mucky and we could get stuck. That was enough warning for me and we mapped out a new route this morning before we left Windy Acres. We initially tried staying at a Horse farm but they were too wet also. Our next try was the Pioneer Auto Museum in Murdo South Dakota. We got confirmation about 9 AM local time and put that address into the GPS.

We left Sundance for Devil’s Tower at 7 AM and arrived at Devil’s tower just about 8 AM. It’s only a 30 mile trek but the mountains are steep and it was really foggy this morning. We trekked to the top and parked the RV in the “No RV parking area” (signs were very poorly marked). The parking area was very sparse with only a few cars in the area. We had fun stopping by to visit the Prairie Dogs on the way up to the parking area.

It was a nice drive to Murdo from Devil’s Tower but a long ride mostly on I-90. Speed limit is 80 MPH, that will never happen with me at the wheel. I kept the coach at 59 MPH as that seems to be the sweet spot for gas consumption. We pulled into the Pioneer Car Museum lot at about 2:45 PM (we didn’t realized a time zone change) and they close at 3 PM. Kevin, the host, was great. I signed in the log and he said we normally open at 9 AM but if we wanted to come and see the cars early, he said he opens up at 7 AM. I’m sure we’ll be ready to hit the road by 7:30 AM tomorrow morning.

Location: Windy Acres Sundance, WY

We were on the road by about 7:30 AM heading toward Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse and eventually to Sundance Wyoming. Our coach has a very large powerful Ford Triton V-10 engine but even the 315 HP was no match for the mountainous areas of western South Dakota and Wyoming. Our peak altitude today was 5,944 feet and with that altitude comes snow! Yes, snow on May 14th. We didn’t sign up for that but lucky for us nothing really stuck to the road surface. The wind gust picked up in Wyoming and again trying to keep the coach steady required reducing speed to to 50 MPH.

Mount Rushmore was a sight to see, however it was raining a bit so it looked like George Washington was crying. The crowds were sparse, we are fortunate boat loads of screaming kids were not around. Climbing from Keystone to the memorial was slow, the coach 4-way flashers were on a lot and travelling in the right lane. We spent about an hour at the memorial and then moved on to Crazy Horse which is only about 20 miles away.

Extremely informative video presentation on the history of the memorial and the history behind the Lakota pushing to get this statue started (1948). Very large and clean site with restaurant, shops and Indian history. It was a bit rainy and after grabbing our free coffee (a 70 year tradition at the monument) we were headed off to Sundance.

Long day on the road but not many miles driven. Arrival Windy Acres was met with the sun breaking through the clouds and rain. Kevin & Lisa are our host who live in a modern log cabin. Down side of getting to the site is it rained 1 1/2 inches today and the road to Windy Acres is a 1 mile trek down a gravel road, so the coach is a little muddy at the moment. I’m sure we will have more rain before our return which will clean things up a bit (the rain today washed all the bug guts off the front of the coach).

Location: Cedar Pass Campground

This campground is located in the Badlands within the National Park. Somewhat of an odd set up but then again this is South Dakota in the Badlands so things are very rustic. This was a three hour trip from Pukwana and there is a time zone change so we arrived this morning about 10:30 AM. The scenery is surrealistic. Huge cliffs of eroded rock form canyons, something out of an old western movie. Currently there are perhaps 50 RVs here and 25 or so tent campers. The guys across the road from us are from just outside of Worchester, Massachusetts. Small world. Met a couple from Florida with their 1 year old mini dachshunds, we told them we would bring Thelma and Louise over later to meet them.

We took a short stroll to the restaurant and had a quick burger and purchased two bottles of local South Dakota wines. Bathrooms are minimal and no running water at the sites or sewer hookups. Currently the coach is cooling down with the A/C running and set to 65 for the pets. Just put a few beers in the freezer to have a few this evening. There are some Canadian wildfires happening again and so the sky has a haze to it and a faint smell of smoke is in the air.

Location: Dimond A Cattle Ranch

Departed Sioux Falls about 8AM, topped off the propane and we were on the road to Walmart to pick up some groceries. We have never seen a Walmart this large before, we nearly got lost! Picked up essentials for our journey and were on the road toward Pukwana South Dakota. Got off I-90 a little west of Pakwana to get on the roads to take us to the cattle ranch. All the roads were dirt / gravel roads and took us about 10 minutes to get to the location.

DACR is a huge cattle ranch topping out at about 1400 acres. We had assumed we’d be able to purchase a nice steak but the cattle raised here are sporting cattle, the kind used in rodeos. Crystal greeted us at the gate and chatted a while with us about the property and history. Very nice host. Later, Tucker stopped by and gave us more history. By Tucker’s age I would assume he was Crystal’s Dad. Tucker told us the story of him riding his pony to the one-room school house he attended. There is a one-room school house on the property and we meandered through it. It was very cool.

Bob the cat and Fred the dog were constantly around us. We had to be careful about Bob since he has a reputation of hopping in coaches and checking them out. Fred was a huge dog and of course Thelma and Louise barked a lot at these two friendly hosts.

Later in the day Mark and Lauri, another Harvest Host guest, came in a few hours after us and parked their Sprinter (Class B) next to us. Mark custom made his coach which looked very nice but way to small for us. They were making their way from Manitoba to Utah. Nice couple and we shared stories for quite a while.

Location: Sioux Falls Campground 2-days

We departed Green Compass Farm before 7:30 AM. Extremely quiet and secluded location. The 6 mile trek to get back on paved roads reminded us how secluded this place was. During our trek back to paved roads we ran into Carl, he was our host at GDF. He’s a runner and was a good 5 miles from home when we ran it to him. We thanked him for allowing us to stay over night. We also had to be careful for cows taking up space on the road.

We had a pretty easy ride to Sioux Falls South Dakota but once we about an hour out from Sioux Falls the winds picked up. Having an 11 foot high wall going down the road at 60 MPH can be a struggle to keep things in your own lane when you catch a gust of wind. It was a pretty stressful last hour of our trip, but eventually we made it to South Dakota. We spotted hundreds if not thousands of huge electrical generating wind turbines throughout Minnesota beginning just outside of Stewartville. Very impressive to see these massive machines as far as the eye could see.

The campground is a typical campground. Loud obnoxious kids with little supervision by their parents. We’ve learned over the years to let that stuff roll of you (alcohol helps too!). The camp store is ok and actually picked up a four pack of a locally brewed lager. Had to crank up the A/C a few times so having the 30 amp electric hookup was welcome. WiFi streaming is included with the site as is full hookups. The dogs and cats are really loving it. Decided to cook a couple burgers for dinner and a small salad. Went to get a hug from Yogi but Range Smith must have detained Yogi this evening.

Location: Green Compass Farm

Green Compass Farm is a family run farm (originally dairy but now organic crops) in Chatfield, MN.. We hit the road from Rock Cut State Park early and were out on I-90 by 7:30 AM. Rain came down heavy in spots but overall this section of I-90 is very quiet and we ran into very little traffic.

We arrived at the farm a little past noon and easily set up ‘camp’, not requiring any leveling which was a big plus. We just had to back into the spot, turn on the propane and turn on the steps and we were ready eat lunch and relax.

The candy cats are getting much more acclimated to travel, and within 5 minutes of setting up all three cats were out into the rest of the coach. Of course the dogs love the coach and I think they think of this as ‘home’.

I crashed on the bed for 20 minutes. The dogs got us up at 3:30 AM back in Rock Cut State Park, so I’m a little tired. The 20 minute nap rejuvenated me but the coffee is helping too.

Location: Rock Cut State Park

On the road by 7:30 AM and a beautiful day for driving. Sunny and warm but with the A/C on in the coach it was very comfortable. One time zone change along the drive which was 5 hours of driving time. The drive should have been shorter but traffic on I-90 through Chicago was slow going. Ruth got some really good shots of the area and oddly enough if you got in the wrong lane on the road people let you in, so different than New England drivers. Coachella squeaked out 10.28 MPG! That is pretty amazing for a V-10 lugging around 14,500 pounds of stuff.

Arrived at the camping area about 12:30 PM local time. Check in was a breeze. Sites include 30A electrical service but no water / sewer hookups which is ok for us. We will be using the shower facilities here tomorrow morning, they reminded us of the shower facilities at our seasonal campsite in the Catskills. We did have some setup issues when we arrived, the leveling jacks (again) gave us issues. Being very new to this lifestyle I contacted Good Sam and they dispatched a technician to come to the site and fix the issue. The tech arrived within two hours and it only took 5 minutes for him to trouble shoot and fix the issue. Nick saved us, it’s good to have this “dial a friend” option when things don’t go your way.

We are sitting outside enjoying the mid-70’s evening temps with clear skies having a little camp fire. We found out tonight that both our dogs do not like camp fires, so they were relegated to staying in the coach.

Location: Edna Mae’s Landing

By far the best Harvest Host / Boondockers Welcome site we have visited to date. Pattie and Mark were excellent hosts on their 450 acre soy/corn farm. It was pouring rain when we arrived, Pattie gave us a nice welcome basket with some chocolates and local things to do and see. The sun came out shortly after we arrived, put out the solar panel and collected some watts. The Cats are beginning to acclimate to the surroundings and of course the dogs just love being in the coach with us.

Ruth and I collected some sun for ourselves practicing our Ukuleles while sipping a beverage or two.

A bit of a scare about 6 PM when a Tornado alert was issued, our phones went bonkers and the local Tornado alert siren went off at 6:05 PM and again at 6:30 PM (have not heard them since my days at Purdue). By 6:45 PM the sun was back out and the shelf clouds moved on.

Location: Rachel’s Roadhouse

Four hour trip from Sunbury to Mercer. Rachel’s reminded us a lot of “99” restaurants in New England. Food was good and a nice selection of beverages. Manager was very nice and accommodating for our needs. Parking is across the street from Rachel’s and the road is fairly well traveled, but noise really was not that noticeable.

Cloudy and rainy most of the trip. At one point the sun did pop out and get quite warm but then the clouds put a damper on that. Overcast currently in mid-afternoon. Dogs and Cats have become acclimated to the new surroundings but we aren’t sure Caramel likes having all the shades drawn closed (we are currently running the generator and A/C since it was nearly 80 degrees in the coach). 45 minutes of running the A/C the coach is a very comfortable 71 degrees and low humidity.

We did a have one hell of a scare on the road. About an hour from our destination a tractor trailer passed us who was probably doing the speed limit of 70 MPH (I tend to keep it at 60 MPH or less). About 500 feet after he passed us he had a blowout. At first I had no idea what it was and thought we hit something or worse but then the tell tale signs of smoke & rubber and his emergency flashers came on and turned into the break down lane. Very scary!

Location: Spyglass Ridge Winery

Located in Northumberland County Pennsylvania in the Susquehanna Valley, this large winery has been expanding since it’s beginning in 1995. Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Seyval Blanc, Vidal Blanc and Vignoles grapes are planted on 8 acres with other fruits sourced from local growers. The property houses a tasting room, restaurant and until late 2023 a brewery.

Spyglass Ridge will be our home for tonight. Enough space for up to four motorhomes. This Harvest Host offers a quiet location to enjoy the scenery, have a bottle of wine, and dine at a fine restaurant.

Our morning commute to Spyglass from home took about 6 hours which included two stops for fuel. Amazingly the peak MPG was 9.52 which isn’t bad for a large V10 gasoline engine pulling nearly 14,500 pounds. The weather was rainy most of the way but visibility was good. We arrived about 1:30 PM local time, set the coach up in a different spot due to the original spot being a little muddy.

The host provided us with 30 Amp electric service for a small fee, and we had some very good beers and wines along with an excellent lunch. The spot where we parked is behind the stage where performers like ZZ Top, Foreigner, and a multitude of bands have performed in past years. This year the host is handing over band performance promotions to “Live Nation” so I’m sure there will be some big bands here again this summer.

Temperature is a little chilly and damp (due to the rain) so we are snuggled up in the coach with the two dogs and three cats. Caramel is really enjoying exploring the coach and seems to really like laying on the dashboard taking in all the birds.

We are here until mid-Monday morning and then we are off for a another trek further into PA. Stay tuned.

April 2024

Location: Big Elm Brewery, Sheffield, Massachusetts

It’s a very rainy day today and we soon head out for our very first adventure in the coach life world.  Temperatures today will be in the upper 50’s to low 60’s but the rain will certainly make us feel chilly.  Heading to Big Elm Brewery, our first use of Harvest Hosts.  We have invited a few family members and friends to stop in for a brew at this brewery and share stories.

The rain came down but eventually the sun broke thru and before sunset the sun was shinning, the rain had stopped and the evening sky was full of stars.  Big Elm Brewery was awesome, and even though what started out as a “wash out” ended up being a great afternoon and evening spent with friends and family.  Thank you all for coming by and helping us launch our 2024 adventure in Coachella Birdy.

Location: Norbrook Brewery, Colebrook, Connecticut

Second day of our shake down cruise and we’ve become aware of things we need to bring along, fix, or find alternatives. Norbrook Farm Brewery, or NFB, was only a 30 minute drive from Big Elm. There are lots of hills in this area of Connecticut an Western Massachusetts along routes 7 and 44, and even though our coach has a huge V10 engine it did struggle on some of the steeper inclines. Rainy on and off most of the day and upon arrival at NFB the wind was gusting over 20MPH and barely 45 degrees with a misty rain. Today felt more like winter than the beginnings of spring but occasionally the sun would peak through the rain clouds.

Parking for coaches at NFB is set about one-tenth mile from the actual tap room, but it is situated in a valley surrounded by trees and small hills. This provided an excellent wind barrier for us and the temperature actually climbed to 61 degrees where we parked! We leveled the coach, put the chocks in place and proceed to set up when we realized we were out of fresh water! Brandon and Ted at NFB provided us access to a fresh water spigot so Ruth and I trekked from our parking spot to the spigot and back with four gallons of fresh water with us. We had two gallons spare in the basement, so we added all six gallons of water to the fresh water holding tank. On this trip I only added 9 /2 gallons to the holding tank but the next trip will will leave with an ample water supply. This is what shake down trips are for, to learn what you don’t know and adjust.

Family stopped in later in the afternoon after we were all set up and so we went to the tap room to enjoy some brews, wines, and food. We highly recommend NFB, it is a family oriented establishment that provides more than just beer. We chatted with John, the owner of NFB, at the bar and again when we departed this morning. Very positive experience.

Location: Quiet Corner, Woodstock Connecticut

What can go wrong, will go wrong!

Here we are, getting ready for trip two. This time all five pets will be with us. Thelma & Louise, our dachshunds, are used to the coach life but our three Candy Cats (Skittles, Snickers, & Caramel) have only be acclimated to the coach once before and only for a few hours. The coach is already loaded up for the adventure and the weather is forecasted to be a bit less rainy than last weekend.

And so the adventure begins. I have to say, you have to be a handyman to adventure into this life. Today, with a little more than one hour before hitting the road, the leveling jacks would not retract. These are the ‘Bigfoot’ jacks from Quadra Manufacturing and were an option in our couch when it was purchased new in 2013. Jayco does some really bad things when they build these coaches and I’m sure all the RV manufacturers do similar ‘bad’ things. The 12V supply to the leveling system is obtained by using these stupid little gizmos that are not water tight. Over the years water can get into the connector and the wire and create a high resistance, dropping the voltage. This is what happened to me to day. Two hours debugging the issue and Quadra Manufacturing was awesome in providing me wiring information.

We did a quick dump of the tanks at the Travelers Centers of America at exit 71 off route 84. Nice area to dump and only a $10 charge and has running water to clean up a bit afterwards. A short 6 mile trip from the TCA to our destination in Woodstock Connecticut. Roy & Deb Morin were very accommodating. We had camp set up in about 20 minutes with both sliders pushed out. It took the cats a few hours to get acclimated with Snickers being the most scared however “Big boy” Caramel and Skittles took the coach life very well.

You take risks with April camping in New England the weather could be rainy, snowy, very warm or bitter cold. This weekend we had a mix of rain and chilly mornings. Forty-eight degrees in the coach on our last morning. Generator got started at about 4:30 AM to start charging the house battery, start the furnace and turn on a small electric space heater. Within 20 minutes is was 70 degrees and cozy. Although the host requested no generator operation before 6 AM, but I got the OK from him the evening before.

We were ready to hit the road until the coach got stuck in the moist and muddy field. We belong to AAA with the RV / Motorcycle option. We called AAA and it too more than 90 minutes to have AAA finally recognize that they have to provide service for our Class C motor home. We waited more than 2 hours for AAA to even schedule a tow truck, then Dave, a neighbor of Roy & Deb, came by and asked if we needed help. Dave went home to get a tow strap but by the time Dave got back I had managed to maneuver the coach on to the main road. Lesson learned: drop AAA. This is the second bad experience I’ve had with the service in the past 18 months.

We decided to stop at TCA and dump the black and grey tanks, we are starting to get the hang of this part of RV life. Some things on the coach are just designed wrong. The hatch to access the black water clean out (internal spray bar) only opens to about a 30 degree angle, placing the edge of the hatch roughly at nose level. Ruth walk right into it! We nearly had an emergency on our hands but after the bleeding stopped things to be ok. And so ends the second weekend of RV living and hopefully this will be the last of surprises.