Off Roadin’

It was a chilly night on the mountain!  The last weather forecast I saw had said it was going down to the mid-40s and I think that was about right.  Slept in my sleeping bag and was nice and cozy!

I slept in a bit and didn’t really get up and get moving until after 7! 

After a leisurely breakfast I decided to take a walk around the campground. I was thinking about doing a proper hike but the main event for the day was to go to the farm so I didn’t want to delay too much.  The kids two sites down had been up for hours!  It looked like it was at least 3 families – maybe more.  The kids seemed quieter, but they were full of energy! I walked all the loops and checked out who had come in since I’d arrived.  I’d say the campground was a 1/3 full – mostly tents and many families with small (infants, toddlers & preschoolers)children!  It was about 9:00 when I headed out.  The great thing about dry camping in the van is that when you are ready you just secure everything and drive off!

As I drove down Skyline Drive I scouted the trail head parking areas and noted that all had room for me if I’d wanted to park and hike!  Early in the morning there was plenty of room and I could have backed into a spot and headed out.  I’m liking the 1 night trip idea!

From Skyline Drive I could see what I thought was Signal Knob where I’d hiked last week.  I wasn’t sure though.  As I was driving I thought, “if only I had binoculars, I’m sure I could see the TV tower and know that it was Signal Knob”   Well, duh, I have my binoculars! I pulled off at the next overlook which happened to be my favorite overlook to watch the sunset and it’s name: Signal Knob Overlook!  HA!  I was looking at Signal Knob.  I did pull out the binoculars and I found the TV tower!

We’d been told we could come out to the farm anytime between 11 and 2. I’d emailed Farmer Leigh about where I could park Roxy and he advised that I come closer to 11 so I wouldn’t encounter lots of folks coming out.  See, the farm is about a mile from the paved road on a very narrow 1 lane dirt road!  I zipped down Skyline Drive and 66 and arrived at the farm a little before 11!

The drive in on the dirt road was fine! It def seems a lot narrower in the RV, but it was plenty wide enough.  Good thing I didn’t encounter another car!  When I got to the farm I was one of the 1st people to arrive and I pulled into what I think is the prime spot.  I’d have to back out but I figured I’d deal with that when the time came. The RV was fine where it was.  But then I second guessed myself and decided that I needed to back in now so I could just pull out later.  So I backed up and pulled down the road and attempted to back into the spot.  It was an obtuse angle, I know better than to try backing in, I knew before I started that it wouldn’t work.  But the Sprinter can handle things I never would have thought it could handle (like a U-turn in heavy traffic!), so I went for it.  I managed to get wedged in between a tree and some big trash cans!  1st time I’ve gotten her stuck!  I was starting to panic a bit because I wasn’t sure how to get out, when I looked up and saw that I was blocking the whole road into the farm and there was a line of cars waiting to get in.  I managed to pull forward and cut it hard and drove down the road to another spot where I could park right by the farm van that wasn’t going anywhere.  This time it was a straight shot backwards and Leigh ran over to help me!  Just when I didn’t need help anymore! :-)

I ended up hanging out at the farm until almost 2 since there was a steady stream of cars in and I really didn’t want to run into anyone coming the opposite direction!  Also there were cars parked in my way and I would have had to make at least a 3 point turn to get out.  I helped some new shareholders learn the ropes and made friends with some folks who also pick up in Manassas!  I had 2 conversations with folks about food and how gross industrialized & processed food is! So fun to meet people who have watch the same things I have and read the same books and have made the same changes as me!  Around Noon I went back to the RV and made lunch and sat under a tree and ate!  Then I found a chair a read my book.  It was a lovely day!

After the farm I hit up Wegmans, then came home to unload and then took Roxy back to storage.  I got home a little after 5, which was perfect to have my evening and get the sheets washed! Looking forward to having tomorrow to cook, clean and catch up on TV!

The 1 night trip is something that will be happening again!

Opening Night at Matthew’s Arm

I’ve enjoyed my 2 camping weekends so far, but it’s always hard to spend the whole weekend away and come back Sunday and not have time for weekend stuff like laundry, cooking and doing nothing!  I was thinking that one night camping trips would be the perfect way to get the best of both worlds – camping Friday night, a hike Saturday and home Saturday night, then I’d have Sunday at home! 

This weekend’s trip was rather spontaneous, I didn’t fully decide I was doing it until Thursday!  I’m a member of The Bull Run Mountain Farm’s CSA and they are having a special shareholder’s event tomorrow and I wanted to go.  The farm is out west and by coming to Matthew’s Arm in Shenandoah for the night I was going to be able to get in a Friday Night Hike AND a night in the RV AND hit the farm on my way home AND I’d be home Saturday night and have Sun to catch up on stuff!  When I realized that Matthew’s Arm, the closest campground in SNP was actually open (tonight is the 1st night of the season) that sealed the deal!

Part of what made this doable was that I didn’t have an RV chores to do – it had water, didn’t need to be dumped, had fuel.  Getting ready Thursday night was very easy! Took less than an hour!  The biggest thing that slowed me down was that I’d brought the bedding/towels home to wash and hadn’t done it so had to wait for them to dry. Hopefully unpacking will be just as quick – it was last week! If the packing/unpacking process is down and dirty then a one night trip will probably become a regular thing!

I left school at 3:15 and got out to the park rather quickly.  The 20 miles of Skyline Drive were way easier this time than it was the last time!  Much more comfortable driving on hills and such! On my way in I discovered that I had full cell phone signal at the overlook that was walking distance from the campground!  YAY! 

I pulled in the campground and started scouting sites.  I was one of the 1st to arrive so there was plenty to choose from.  Most of the campsites are identical so the main thing was finding one that was mostly level.   I selected one that looked nice and level and backed in.   When I got the RV all the way on the site I pulled out the level and it turns out the site wasn’t at all level.  Oh, well, there were other choices and I needed the practice backing up!  So I pulled up and tried the one next to it.  This one I got a bit confused by the angle – campsites are typically angled to help you park, I have a very hard time with this as I always turn the wheel the wrong way and end up going in the grass.  I’m pretty good at backing up at a right angle so you’d think this would be easier!  I’ve kinda learned that if I can see the campsite in both mirrors then it’s time to go straight back.  Anyway, once I got myself into campsite #2 I discovered that it was even less level than the one before.  So I pulled out and tried a 3rd.  This time I went for one on the other side of the road – this time I was going right, which is how I go when I back into my parking spot at home so it was a bit easier.  3rd time’s a charm because this site is perfectly level! :-)

When I jumped out to check the site number for the registration however I discovered I was in the “reservation” section!  My site was available tonight, but not tomorrow night – phew, good thing I’m leaving by 10 am tomorrow!  Both sites on either side are reserved for tonight.  It’s 9:23 and my one neighbors just arrived – the others aren’t here.

On my way back from turning in  my registration I walked the other loops and found lots of great sites, some, at the top of the hill even have “wifi” because my phone gets a signal there!  I marked those on my map for next time.   Of course it’s real easy to walk up there.  That’s a big plus for both Matthew’s Arm & Big Meadows, cell phone signal within easy walking distance.  At Elizabeth Furnace I had to walk 5 miles up the mountain before I got a signal!

The next order of business was dinner.  I’d brought leftovers from the week and I needed the generator to run the microwave and I’m not allowed to run the generator after 7 pm.  I really wanted to walk up to the overlook for the sunset, or maybe just before the sunset so I was feeling crunched for time!  I ate quickly and reviewed the map and then set out about 6:30.  6:30 comes so fast at home and seems so late! Time seems to slow down when I’m camping!  I hiked about 3 miles between 6:30 and dark!

The hike was nice!  It wasn’t too hot and the sun was shinning!  I hiked a bit on the Tuscarora Trail, which is the same trail I’d hiked on last weekend – it’s a long distance, 200 miles I think, trail that goes over the other ridges and into PA.  When I reached the overlook I could see what I think was Signal Knob where I’d hiked last weekend.  At the overlook I checked Facebook and email and downloaded twitter to read later.  I also enjoyed some “belated birthday cookies” one of the wonderful K teachers at school made me!

I decided to hike back via the AT to Skyline Drive.  I was worried it was going to get dark and I decided the AT and Skyline Driver were better places to walk in the dark and there was no real chance of getting lost.   Turns out we were still a good hour from sunset – it was about 8:15 before the sun set and after 9 before it was truly dark!  I enjoyed the walk down the AT and found a rock outcropping that would have been perfect to watch the sunset but I decided not to stick around. 

When I got back to the campground a lot more people had arrived!  The place was hopping!  This campground is a totally different camping experience from Elizabeth Furnace!  Lots more people, lots less privacy!  It’s not bad, in fact in some ways it feels safer for a single woman.  Although that could be because Shenandoah is kinda like home, but also it just seems like more people around is better.  Not that Elizabeth Furnace was unsafe, it was just isolated.  Also here they don’t lock you in at a certain time, while I like that I can bail out in the middle of the night if I need to, I probably won’t like it when my neighbor arrives at midnight.  And if I need contact with the outside world I can walk up the hill and get on facebook!

As I was walking back in I could hear screams of children playing at what sounded like the site next to mine.  Turns out they are 2 sites down, but you can hear them from pretty much the whole campground.   No idea how many kids they have but it sounds like about 100.  I’m kinda wishing I’d brought the Ritalin Salt Lick, I’m sure even the parents would appreciate it!  I will say though as much as screaming children aren’t what I want to listen to while camping, I AM glad that the parents brought them out here!  Quite honestly I’ll put up with the screaming since I know how good it is for the kids!   The parents are trying to keep the kids entertained – they had a campfire story telling/talent show and then I believe they were getting ready for bed.  It was getting cold so I closed the door to the van and I can no longer hear the kids…either they have gone to bed or this thing has some incredible sound proofing!  Last weekend I was serenaded by frogs as I typed my blog, this week screaming kids.  See what I mean about totally different camping experiences!

Not sure if I’ll take a quick hike before I leave tomorrow or not, the farm thing is from 11-2 and the farm gets crowded, not sure how to time it best so that Roxy doesn’t cause a huge bottleneck – not sure if earlier is better, but then I’ll get stuck in there or later…oh well…we’ll find out!

Signal Knob Hike

The main event of my camping trip here at Elizabeth Furnace was hiking to Signal Knob! I’d seen this hike when I was here that other time and thought it was too far for a day hike – the loop from the parking area was 10.6 miles!  The nice thing about camping at the trail head is that you can get an early start and have the whole day, which means you can plan to hike further! 

The loop from the campground was actually 12 miles because you had to walk to the trail! I knew I needed to get an early start!  Lucky for me the sun comes up around 6am now!  I woke up for good about 5:30 and got out of bed at 6.  Despite having mostly packed my lunch and my day pack last night it still took me an hour and half to get myself ready to leave! 

I walked out of the campground at 7:30 am.  I decided that if it took me less than 12 hours to hike the loop I would consider it a huge success! 

The first part of the trail was an old road which lead to a short spur trail that connected me with the Tuscarora Trail which lead to the Massanutan Trail.  At the beginning the trail seemed to be one giant spider web as I kept walking into them, and they stuck to me since I was still sticky from applying sunscreen.  I wasn’t very far into the hike when I flushed out what I think was a turkey!  I heard a rustle in the woods and looked up and saw a large bird flying awkwardly away!

It was 8:15 when I arrived at the Signal Knob Parking area where most people start their hike.  I’d only been hiking an hour and I’d covered 2 miles, off to a great start!  There were 2 parties getting their gear together in the parking area.  One was a couple who passed me just a little while later and I never saw them again.  The other was a group of Boy Scouts who I encountered twice. 

From the parking lot the trail went straight up for 5 miles.  It was about 2200 feet of elevation change! The up wasn’t so bad, I just got into my rhythm and motored on!  There were 2 overlooks on the way up – Buzzard Rock Overlook and Fort Valley Overlook.  I think I missed the offical Buzzard Rock Overlook, but I ran into the Boy Scouts and the Fort Valley one. 

As I walked up to the overlook the leader saw me and said to the boys “If you have extra gear you can’t carry maybe this *girl* could carry it for you!”  I countered with “You want to bring it, you gotta carry it!” He was rather taken aback.  We chatted a bit and then I went on.  I was sure they would catch me quickly but they didn’t. 

I reached Signal Knob about 10:30 – 7 miles in 3 hours!  WOW! That’s over 2 MPH average speed!  Didn’t think I could hike that fast!  I took my time enjoying the view and checking in on Facebook and email!  Signal Knob lived up to it’s name, I had full 3G coverage! 

Soon it was time to head down.  The 1st mile down was on an old road and boring.  I was very glad when I got to the Tuscarora Trail! 

What I hadn’t counted on though was the trail would go up again.  I hate going downhill, especially if I’m going down for an extended time like I knew I’d be doing on this hike, but I still wasn’t prepared for some unexpected up.  And not just any up, a very steep up, steeper than going up to get to Signal Knob.  I realized that if I kept up my pace I was going to end up back at the campground at 1:30 and there wasn’t that much to do here so I realized I could slow down and take my time.  I was a bit worried that the rain and storms were going to come – the sky was looking ominous at times, but if I got wet oh well. 

Finally I reached the top of the last ridge and began to descend for good.  It was 2.8 miles from the top of the ridge to the spur trail I needed to use to get back to the campground.  It was the longest 2.8 miles ever.  The hiking was easy, I wasn’t that tired or uncomfortable, I didn’t really have anything else to do be doing, but I just wanted to be there and not hiking down anymore. 

Finally I got to the spur and soon after I was back at my campsite!  It was 2:30.  I’d hiked the entire 12 mile loop in 7 hours! Average speed was 1.7 mph!  WOW.  I usually don’t hike that fast!  I guess all the walking at home is paying off!

When I got back I just wanted to sit and cool off!  I had some snacks and looked over the map until I was ready to get a shower and put on some comfy clothes. 

I pulled out the camp chair and finished my book, then took a walk around the campground (because I hadn’t gotten in enough walking! LOL!), ran the generator while I fixed dinner, did the dishes, took another walk (this time I was trying to hit 35,000 steps on my fitbit) and finally settled in to blog! 

Lots more people came into the campground! 2/3 of the sites are filled!  I’m still the only driveable RV!  Lots more tents and lots of families with small children!

The frog concert started promptly at 8:00 – I was looking for them to start around 7:45 and was finding it odd that last night they were singing but not tonight! I’m about to head in and crawl into bed with my book and enjoy the frogs!  Hopefully the whippoorwill won’t be back!

Updated Sun Afternoon: 

No whippoorwill last night, but there was an owl! I find it rather ironic that the campground has quiet hours for humans from 10 pm – 6am.  It was 10 pm Friday night when the whippoorwill started and 10 pm last night when the owl started!

I slept in a bit, woke up at 6:30! Didn’t get up until close to 8.  It was so dark in the campground – cloudy/foggy and the sun wasn’t shining, that made it hard to get up!  I got all ready to go then ate breakfast and read a book.   I was ready to roll out by 9:15!

As soon as I turned out of the campground the clouds started breaking up and the sun came out!  I stopped to take some pictures of Signal Knob from below and took the scenic route through Front Royal and down 55 to Wegmans and home!

First trip was a success! :-)

Check out pictures here: https://plus.google.com/photos/104243328672102671892/albums/5739501523025051185  (I hate how Google changed Picasa web albums to Google+ albums….)

Dr. Ben and the Whippoorwill

Last night I as I crawled into bed with my book the frogs were giving quite a concert which I enjoyed until they stopped a little before 10. I turned off the light and was just about asleep when I heard this loud high pitched piercing cry – it sounded like a bird and it might have been a pretty if it wasn’t so obnoxious. Not to mention that it was silent except for this awful bird noise.  It took me by surprise, but it didn’t take me long to realize what it was.  It was a whippoorwill. 

I hadn’t heard, nor thought about whippoorwills in years! We used to hear them at my grandparents house on the lake in KY.  Hearing the whippoorwill last night made me think of a funny story that happened to my family, maybe you’ll think it’s funny too…

It was summer of 1985, I was 10 years old, and my mom’s whole family was heading to my grandparents house on The Barren River Lake in Scottsville, KY.  Going to the lake was our vacation when I was kid – we went every summer for about 2 weeks.  My grandparents had lakefront property on a big lot with few neighbors.  The lake was perfect for boating, swimming, jet skiing and all sorts of other summer stuff!  This time however my cousin Liz, who was 8 at the time, and my new cousin Lauren, who was just about a year old, and I would all be there at the same time!  With 11 people coming my grandparents house quickly ran out of beds. 

My grandfather, Dr. Ben, decided it would be fun to rent a teeny tiny fiberglass camping trailer for Liz and I to sleep in in the front yard/parking area.   I was pretty excited, even then I’d wanted to like camping!   He rented this little trailer and towed it home from Bowling Green behind his Volkswagon Rabbit convertible!  It was the cutest thing you ever saw!  Bunk beds, a dinette that turned into a bed, and a kitchen! I couldn’t wait till Liz got there and we could go camping! 

My excitement was short lived.  Liz’s mom wouldn’t let her sleep out there because she had a cold and the night air would aggravate it.  Boo.  Not worry though, my grandmother would sleep out there with me!  So we got all ready for bed and headed out.  I crawled into the top bunk and she crawled into the dinette turned bed and we were ready to sleep.  Not 10 minutes later there was a clap a thunder.  At ten I was still terrified of thunderstorms and there wasn’t any way I’d be staying in the trailer in a storm.  No amount of assurances that the storm wasn’t coming where we were would make me stay.  I hightailed it into the house and took up residence on a pool (lake) raft by my parents bed. 

Well, someone had to sleep out there, there just weren’t enough beds, or lake rafts, for everyone in the house.  So the next night my grandma and grandpa go out to the trailer to sleep.  All is well and no one comes running for the house.

My mom and her siblings were up late that night chatting and as they were crossing the dining room, with it’s big picture window looking out over the front yard on their way to their beds, they heard gunshots!!!  My uncle, who was in the Army and had actually been in combat, went into autopilot mode and started low-crawling across the dinning room like he’d been trained.  The others were just in shock. 

It wasn’t long before the whole story came out…my grandma and grandpa had been rudely awoken by a whippoorwill in the tree above the trailer and Dr. Ben went out with the shotgun to scary him off! 

What I always wondered was why he brought his shotgun with him to sleep in the front yard/driveway?!?!

I couldn’t shoot at my whippoorwill – didn’t even want to try my shotgun app for my phone on him since the other folks in the campground might get scared! I did try to talked to it to scare it away, but that didn’t work.  It woke me up 3x before it finally went to bother someone else.   I hope he doesn’t come back tonight!

If you want to hear a whippoorwill for yourself click here. You have to scroll down and click on the sound player. 

Elizabeth Furnace, George Washington National Forest: Part 1

A few years ago I came out to the Elizabeth Furnace area to hike to Buzzard’s Rock with a hiking group I was a part of.  I was surprised by how close to Front Royal it was and the multitude of hiking opportunities in the area.  I’d wanted to come back sometime but I was always drawn to Shenandoah and the Skyline Drive area.  What I’m beginning to learn is that most National Parks have National Forests nearby and the scenery is usually similar, or in some cases better, and there are usually way fewer people in the National Forests, so I’ve kinda made it my goal to check out as many as I can. 

Elizabeth Furnace appears to be no exception to what I’ve discovered in other places!  The campground is about 10 miles out of Front Royal, very easy to get to off RT 55.  It’s a small campground – only 30 sites!  Right now about 1/2 of those sites are filled.  The sites are nice – some nicer than others. I have a large flat site that is all gravel.  It is away from other sites, but still rather close. I can kinda see my neighbors across the road but I’m surrounded by woods.  Nice because I can run my generator and not worry about blowing exhaust at anyone! Or folks being overly bothered by the noise. It was fairly easy to back into – I did make some rookie mistakes in terms of not paying attention to what the front the RV might hit as I backed in, but luckily there was nothing there!  I had to stop and straighten up a few times, but the site is at a funny angle.  Many of the sites look to be newly “renovated”.   The campground does have shower and bathhouse facilities but they are still in “winter” mode and none of that is turned on yet.  That also means the nightly camping fee is only $10!

After I picked my site I decided to explore a bit before dinner.  I headed around the campground and tried to find a way over the river to the picnic area.  I was a bit discouraged at first since there didn’t seem to be a clear way to get over there, I was wondering what I’d do for the evening if I couldn’t go for a walk.  Eventually I came to a clearing on one of the smaller campsite loops and saw a cabin and just beyond the cabin was a large suspension bridge that lead right into the picnic area!  I wandered around the picnic area for about and hour – it was totally deserted, not a soul was there! I found some interpretive trails – one was 1/2 mile and the other was 1/4 mile – so I walked those, reading a few of the signs about how they made pig iron back in the day.  I was mostly marveling at the fact that there are mountain laurel blooming already and looking forward to hopefully seeing some on my hike tomorrow.   Eventually I decided I should head back to the campground and get dinner!

For dinner I’d planned to re-heat leftovers from the week so that meant I needed the microwave, which meant that I needed to run the generator.  This would be the 1st time I’d run the generator.  I pushed the button and it started right up! :-)  Boy is it loud!  Soon the microwave clock clicked on so I knew it had power!  I was also running the AC because it was really hot in the RV.  I heated my soup and let the AC run for awhile, and I needed to exercise the generator.  I decided I wanted to watch a DVD while I ate so I popped one in, but then couldn’t hear it over the generator and I couldn’t figure out how to work the surround sound.  Such issues to have while camping!

Finally I was tired of listening to the generator so I cut it off and only seconds after I turned it off realized that I needed to have turned the AC of 1st!  Rookie mistake.  I did turn the AC off so when I start the generator tomorrow night to fix dinner it should be ok. 

After dinner I mostly packed my lunch and snacks and gear for tomorrow’s hike so I could hopefully get an early start.  I’m planning to hike the Signal Knob loop and it’s almost 12 miles around so I’d like to get started super early. 

There was still daylight left after that so I walked another loop around the campground.  When I was at the picnic area I could see the road and I saw a Roadtrek (another van conversion RV) drive by and I wondered if they were in the campground.  I walked by every site and didn’t see them, in fact I realized I’m the only driveable RV in the whole place!  Almost everyone else here is in a travel trailer or pop-up, not even that many tents!

The air outside is nice and cool, but was really hot in the RV.  I had the windows open and started the fan but it was still hot.  It’s finally getting cooler – I have the sliding door open and one of the back doors – letting in bugs but I’d rather bugs than hot.  There’s a chorus of frogs going and a cool breeze starting to blow!   It’s almost too dark to see the keys, I suppose I should close up the doors and crawl into bed with my book! 

 

My great site, #18!

1st Camping Weekend & 1st National Park

This weekend I went out to Big Meadows Campground at Shenandoah National Park.   This was hopefully the 1st of many camping weekends!

Preparation

Thursday afternoon I left school earlier than usual so I could hit the ground running with pre-departure chores!  As soon as I got home I did all my regular evening chores and then went to get the PW.  This took a lot of thought – what need I need to be sure to get from my VUE (my id badge for school tomorrow) and what needed to be done to the PW so I could drive her out – blinds/curtains put up, fridge closed, tag for the storage removed from the window and put away.  I was going to back the PW out of the storage site and put my VUE in it’s place.  This meant that I had to think about where to park the VUE so it wasn’t in the way when I got the PW and where I could get it right in the spot.  Yes, I did have to drive around the storage lot once to get the car on the right side of the spot! 

On my way home I stopped to show of my RV to my friend Andy then came home and started loading and turning the systems back on after a week in storage.  Before I turned the water pump on I had to close the low point drains and then get the air out of the lines.  It took longer than I expected for that and the pump was acting peculiar until Sat AM when it finally got all the air out.   I’d had some trouble deciding what to do about the fridge since I don’t have a level spot to park it on at home.  I wanted to turn it on so I could load it up and get it cold because I probably wouldn’t be able to get it level when I parked at school on Friday.  I ended up deciding to level the coach in my parking spot! I needed to learn how to level it and figured if I couldn’t do it it wasn’t a big deal.  I have a set of leveling block that look kinda like big orange Legos, you just make a little pyramid and drive up on it!  I took a few tries to get the right number of blocks to get the bubble in my level into the circle and even then it wasn’t exactly in the circle but close enough for me.  I made sure to put the bag of leveling blocks on the passenger seat so that I wouldn’t drive off without them in the morning!

I spent most of the evening thinking of random things I just might need and certainly couldn’t leave behind and running back and forth between my house and the RV to get everything I could possibly need into the coach!

Friday I drove the RV to school!  It was quite fun and when I arrived at school several teachers saw me park it on the street right in front and they ran out to look at it!  The day proceeded to be the longest Friday ever, especially since I could look out my office window and see it.  Finally, after an especially brutal Friday Afternoon Meeting, it was time to go! 

The Drive

I decided I’d take 29 into Warrenton and then take 211 to Sperryville and go up to Thorton Gap to get into the park.  This would give me a chance to see how she handled on a steep mountain road!  

Traffic wasn’t so bad through Gainesville and soon I was heading out of Warrenton on 211.   About a mile out of town I noticed that the engine was straining and I had the gas pedal all the way down and she was losing speed!?!?!  At first I thought something was seriously wrong with the engine,  but then I noted that I’d hit the first big hill.  I realized that possibly 55 mph was too fast for her on a big hill and backed off on the speed.  When I let her go a “just right” speed the hills were no problem! Diesel engines are little like myself when going up hills, they like to pick a slow-ish speed and go steady all the way up!  Going up 211 to Thorton Gap we didn’t top 40 but she didn’t strain and we made it!

I stopped at what used to be Panorama for a snack and what turned out to be my last email/facebook/twitter check until today! I thought about eating dinner there but decided to push on to the campground.

Just like diesel engines need different consideration going up hill they also need special considerations going down! A gas engine will mostly hold it’s speed on a downhill, a diesel won’t. Even a small downhill will cause the speed to soar rather quickly unless you drop to a low gear.  I’d figured out how to drop to a low gear, but I was having a hard time figuring out which one was appropriate – I had 4 choices!  And usually as soon as I got it dropped into a low gear for going down the road was suddenly going up again and I had to get back to Drive. 

I was quite glad I was learning mountain driving on very familiar territory and I wasn’t trying to take in the scenery at the same time!  Once I master driving the PW in the mountains it will be a great way to check out new scenery!  You are up so much higher than in a car and the windshield is huge so you can see so much more!

I arrived at the campground in time for dinner!  My parents had gotten me a site and made dinner!  I backed right into my spot – turned a little too soon but I fixed it without needing to get out.  My site was perfectly level so all I had to do was put it in park and take the key out!

The Camping

After dinner my dad and went up to the Ranger Kiosk to pay for my site and decided to walk over to the amphitheater to see if there was cell phone service and ended up walking about a mile down the AT to a rock outcropping to check out the sunset.  The sunset wasn’t very impressive and I hadn’t brought my phone with me since I didn’t expect to have coverage.  By the time we walked back it was getting dark and chilly. 

Friday night was very cold in the mountains! I was glad I’d brought my sweatpants & sweatshirt, and ended up sleeping in them! I was still cold though and about midnight I pulled out my sleeping bag.  I was still cold and I was wishing I’d thought to sleep in my pink long underwear. 

When I woke up Saturday morning around 7 and  it really cold in my RV!  I jumped out of bed to turn on the hot water heater then crawled back in for a few more minutes of warm snoozing.  Soon I knew it was time almost time to get up so I decided to turn on the furnace to take the chill out.  I reached up and turned the thermostat a few notches up.   I then decided I needed to check to see if the water was hot so, without getting out of my sleeping bag I shuffled to the sink and turned on the hot water.  I was standing, in my sleeping bag, right in front of where the hot air comes out of the furnace.  Nothing came out of the hot tap – just air, then a little water and more air.  I instantly spun around and shut off the hot water heater because I was worried that somehow in my draining of the lines I’d drained the hot water heater and having it on with no water in it is very bad for the hot water heater.   I then shuffled into the bathroom to see if hot water came out of that tap.  It did, with no air.  Hmmm… I was contemplating this and why the pump was still acting funny (not running when I ran water then running after I turned the water off), when I was rudely interrupted by a wailing alarm.   WTH????  It sounded like a smoke detector, but I knew I wasn’t on fire.  I turned off the fridge & the furnace.  It was coming from under the bed so I figured it must be the LP/Carbon Monoxide detector so I started taking the bed apart so I could get a good look at the detector.  I then remembered that if there’s an LP gas or Carbon Monoxide leak I needed to get fresh air into the coach so I went to open the door.  The sliding door locks from the inside (which I find to be a major safety issue.  The driver/passenger doors open from the inside when locked) so I had to fumble with the lock before I threw the door open.  With the door open and fresh air coming in I proceeded to try to take the bed apart.  Then it occurred to me that maybe I should turn the propane off.   I ditched the sleeping bag and ran around the outside of the coach and flipped the remote shut off.   Then I decided to go see if dad was awake.  He was, but he hadn’t gotten up yet so I walked back to PW while he got dressed and the alarm had shut off!  I went back into the coach and picked up the sleeping bag where I’d dumped it and went to put it on the bed, as soon as I drug the sleeping bag across the floor the alarm started again!  I threw the sleeping back between the driver and passenger seats and waited for Dad.  By the time he got out there the alarm had stopped again and it didn’t start when we got in.  We looked at the alarm panel and read the book about it, no indication of what might have just happened.  The alarm did say “if the alarm sounds evacuate vehicle and call 911”.   Hmmmm..no cell phone service will slow down the calling 911.  Obviously in a National Park I could get the Rangers but, I wasn’t sure what they were going to do.  Even if I had a LP gas leak, there wasn’t much they could do about it other than shut the gas off, which I’d already done.   Dad and I let the RV air out then turned the propane back on and turned the appliances back on and there were no further issues.  Our theory for now is that one shouldn’t shuffle through the RV in ones sleeping bag while the furnace is running.  Glad Dad was there to help with this little glitch, but now I know how to handle it if it happens again! I will say that when I had to go over to Mom and Dad’s coach in my PJs I was very glad I wasn’t wearing skin tight pink long underwear!

After breakfast Dad and went out to hike to Rose River Falls and Dark Hollow Falls.  It was the same loop we’d done the last time we camped at Big Meadows and the same loop I’d done in October, but it’s a nice loop!  Today the woods were still leave-less and it’s been so dry that the creek was down.   There wasn’t a lot to see, but we did a bunch of trillium!  I thought it would be too early, but it looks like they are just getting started!  We walked about 6 miles and ended up back at the visitor center & wayside so we had to get some blackberry ice cream!  We got back to the campground around 4:00. 

We just hung around the campground for the rest of the day.  Dad and I uploaded pictures and then we had about an hour until dinner so I got my bed all set up and sat in my camp chair and read my book.  After dinner we took a walk around the campground to try and find a gal I’d cyber met on an RVing forum who was supposed to be there in her Roadtrek.  We didn’t find her but we got to chatting with the neighbors until about 9:00 and then it was time for bed! 

It didn’t get quite so cold Saturday night, but it was windy!  I heard the wind howling around the campground and my van wasn’t even rocking!  After a few sleepless nights in a tent due to wind I was very glad I was snug inside Roxy and not in a tent!

Sunday morning I packed up my stuff – tried to separate out the stuff that needed to go into the house and the stuff that stayed in the coach, but I didn’t bring a bag or box to put it in.  I’d put a bag, a tub and a cooler in the VUE for this purpose but I realized that I need something in the coach, especially for the dirty clothes! After I was mostly ready to go I enjoyed my coffee and finally finished a book I started reading in FL almost 2 weeks ago.   I finally pulled myself away from the mountains at 10:30.  

Before I left Big Meadows I needed to dump my tanks.  The last time I’d dumped was in Waldo, FL and now the black tank was almost full, the grey tank was finally registering 1/3 and the fresh water was empty (it’d been saying it was empty since last night but so far I hadn’t run out of water).  When I arrived at the dump station there was someone already dumping so I decided to use the bathroom one last time – when I flushed the pump was straining to get the last few drops of water out of the tank!  Perfect!   I opted not to fill with fresh water since I was putting it into storage for at least 2 weeks (hopefully not much more!). 

The Drive Home

The drive back down Skyline Drive was much better!  I learned that she likes 3rd gear when going downhill between 30-40 mph – I still had to use the brake more than I expected but I could mostly hold her in the 30s in 3rd gear.  When I dropped it to 2nd the RPMs surged and it sounded like the engine was straining.  

On 211 I set the cruise control and that held the speed on the hills!

I stopped at Wegmans in Gainesville and parked next to another Sprinter!  This one was fire engine red! I think it was work truck of some sort. 

I then took her back to Holly Acres!  It only took a few minutes to switch the cars, unload the RV into VUE, and close down the PW so she’ll be ready for next time!  I do have to go back and visit this week though, I didn’t put toilet chemical in after I dumped because I didn’t have water. 

I got home around 3, which was perfect to get all my weekend chores done for school tomorrow!  It was a great weekend and I can’t wait to do it again! :-)

SNP: Rose River 4.14.12

Home!

I kinda left everyone hanging there! As soon as I got home other things took my attention away from blogging! 

It was a chilly night in Williamsburg on Thursday night, but I was toasty warm in my next of blankets! 

Friday morning was more RV learning – this time we were studying the generator.  I have a propane generator and most bigger RVs have either a gas or diesel generator depending on what type of fuel the vehicle uses.  My dad was skeptical about the propane generator but as we studied the book and then crawled around under the coach to get a good look at it we realized that the propane generator is way easier to maintain!

After our final RV school lessons for the week we went to show her off to my grandmother and take her to lunch.  After lunch I was ready to finish the drive home!  It was a little nerve-wracking leaving “Professor Pleasure-Way” aka my dad, and taking her out on my own, but it had to happen sooner or later!

While we were messing around with stuff and examining the sewer hose we discovered that my sewer cap had gotten broken somewhere between Waldo, FL and Williamsburg!  Somewhere in South Carolina I hit a piece of truck tire and I heard it bang stuff in the undercarriage so I’m guessing that’s what did it.  Luckily for me there’s an RV dealer with a parts store on the way home! 

I zipped across 64 and 295 and then when I hit 95 it was a parking lot.  Of course it was. 

I stopped at McGeorge’s Rolling Hills RV and had my 1st park-between-two-parked-cars experience!  Every other time I’ve parked I’ve parked out in the boonies of the parking lot all by myself.  Gotta learn sometime!  I pulled right in and tucked her right between the 2 cars!  A little closer to the one on the driver side, but between my lines! It did stick out a bit (it’s about 3-4 feet too long for a standard spot, if you back in you can get the overhang over the curb, but I knew I couldn’t back in here – I’m not good enough yet, I’m working on it!).  I went in and quickly found the part I needed and attempted to get the sales clerk to answer some of my other questions but all he knew about Pleasure-Ways was that that they were built in Canada.   I was able to expertly back the RV out of the spot and continued on my way!

I didn’t have space to install the new sewer cap at the RV dealer so I went across to the Bass Pro Shop and pulled into their big parking lot.  I found a spot way out and spent about 10 minutes practicing backing into parking spots.  By the end of my practice session I was able to get it into the parking spot I intended!  The 1st few times I did it I missed the intended spot by a mile! I quickly got the new sewer cap on and set off to explore the store. 

It was around 3:00 when I started back up 95.  Traffic was still slow.  I saw that diesel was $3.93 at the Flying J, so decided to stop since it was so cheap, even though I didn’t really need it.  Ended up doing several laps around the fuel islands so I could get to the diesel pump and get there going the right direction.

Back on 95 traffic was on and off bumper-to-bumper inching along and stopped.  Took almost 2 to get home – it’s less than 50 miles. 

Once home I parked the RV on the main road into my development, but it wasn’t level and I couldn’t see it, and since I’m not supposed to park it here I kinda wanted to keep it close.  I walked in and moved the VUE to the main road and pulled the RV into Bromley Ct!  Backed her right into my parking spots!  I used both, but I backed her in on the 1st try and didn’t do any damage to the cars on either side! :-) 

On the way home I’d discovered that we had a freeze warning so I spent some time on the phone with Dad and kinda drained the lines – not winterized but I got enough water out that should it freeze a little it hopefully won’t burst the water lines.  I also unloaded pretty much everything into the house.  It wasn’t level in my spot either but Dad pointed out that if I turn the fridge off then it doesn’t need to be level, so since I’d emptied it I turned it off!

So ended up staying in the house last night, although I considered sleeping in the RV in the court!  It was kinda nice sleeping in my bed, but I wasn’t a fan of the long walk to the bathroom in the middle of the night!

This morning I tried to pack and organize the coach!  I tried to think of each event – sleeping, clothing, bathroom, kitchen, entertainment, technology, etc, and what I would need and I what I could store in the coach and what needed to go in the day of a trip.  I used the Awesome Note app on my iPhone to record the stuff I need to pack later in the week before I take her out for the weekend.  I was pretty much just walking around the house & collecting stuff!  Made about a million trips back and forth so I was glad it was parked in my spot!  I have all kinds of stuff in there and I’m prepared for most any event! And it’s not even “full” yet!  I don’t have the kitchen stuff yet though – having a hard time figuring out what I’ll need and what the best tools are to put in there.  I’m starting to think of meals I can make and what I’d need to for each one. 

Of course the RV drew the attention of the neighbors!  The 1st tours I gave were to 2 of the little boys who live across the court, naturally they were most interested in the bathroom!  They also wanted to know if it had video games.  I talked to a few other neighbors all of whom think the RV is awesome and are jealous!  No one seemed to mind it being parked there!  One of my neighbors suggested that I rent it out on the weekends I’m not using it...she could be on to something, although if I didn’t want it out of my sight overnight I’m not sure I’ll be able to let someone else take it on a trip!

Around noon I decided I was done loading and organizing and headed out to get the safety inspection, run to Wal-Mart for a few things, and take it to storage. 

I started at Lake Ridge Auto Care, which is where I take the VUE for it’s inspection & maintenance.  The guy told me that he couldn’t do my inspection because he thought I was too tall to get into the garage.  He suggested that I go to Holly Acres, which is where I’m storing it!  I thought they only inspected trailers, but the guy told me they did motor homes.   So I decided to hit Wal-Mart 1st then go to Holly Acres get the inspection and put her away.  

They are expanding our Wal-Mart and the parking lot is full of construction stuff and half of it is blocked off.  There was no place to park!  All the spots were filled up with cars!  I drove around the parking lot a bit and then decided to try Target.  I found a whole empty lot at Target, which was perfect for backup practice before I went in.  Taking fewer tries to get it exactly where I want it!

After Target I headed over to Holly Acres.  After thoroughly confusing one of the parts guys who didn’t understand that “Class B”, “van”, & “Mercedes Chassis” all indicated a driveable RV I learned what I’d kinda already known, Holly Acres can only inspect trailers.  

They sent me over to Ward’s Towing – I know them because they are the people I call when someone parks in my spot.  I called ahead and yes they could inspect me and if I came in the next hour we could do it today!  I zipped right over there.   When I got there I was directed to go around back and find "Mr. Kelly.  I drove around and found a huge 2 bay truck garage and parked right in the middle and walked in – there were 2 guys standing there talking – one had a auto mechanic jumpsuit on that said “Kelly” so I knew I had the right guy, the other was a younger guy wearing a Wards Towing T-shirt.  I explained that I needed a state inspection.  He asked me to pull the RV into the garage.  Both the guys said they’d help guide me.  I walked out, fired her up and pulled her right in.  As I jumped out the younger guy said “WOW, you know your way around a corner!  You are for sure the primary driver for that van!”   I was floored by such a compliment from a real truck driver!  Never mind that the van is so easy to drive!  I told them it was new and I hadn’t even had it a week yet!  They both had a bunch of questions about the van and then we started talking road trips and it was like social hour here in the garage!  Eventually, Michael, the young guy who was very nice and very cute, had gone back to his work, and we got the inspection underway.  It was a full interactive inspection as I got to turn it on it and operate the turn signal and the brakes and the wipers and such.  The whole time Michael was in and out and we kept chatting.  Turns out he’s the guy who drives the rig that could tow my van should she have difficulty!  Good to know that he’ll come for me if I need him! Assuming whatever issue happens here not in Montana or something! About an hour later, inspection done & new friends made I headed back to Holly Acres to leave the RV!

My storage spot is quite tight between 2 boats.  I knew I couldn’t back in, not yet anyway, so I pulled in forward.  She slid right in, no problem! The site is no where near level, but the fridge is turned off.  I backed her up a few times trying to make sure she was straight so they boats could get out if they needed to.  There’s a bump at the edge of the space that she doesn’t like backing over – gotta give her a lot of gas to pop her over!  But I know I can back her right out so no worries there! 

Andy was home and probably would have come to get me but I wanted to walk home! It’s 5 miles with sidewalk the whole way.  It wasn’t the most pleasant walk – it was mostly along 2 busy roads, but it only took me an hour and half and it was a lovely afternoon!  On my way out of the storage lot I saw another Sprinter pull in! I had to walk by their storage spot so I stopped to talk!  Theirs is made by a different company but they love it!

In all the running around today I actually got to drive on hills!  1,100 miles from FL and no real hills!  I guess because it’s so short in the front going down hill is kinda like sitting in the front car on a roller coaster!  Driving in the mountains is going to fun! :-)

So, she’s all tucked away in her spot!  I’ll probably go check on her at least once and I’m going to get her out Thursday night so I can go to SNP this weekend!