A REVIEW OF OUR THIRD YEAR ON THE ROAD

Wednesday, October 17 - WOW, what a year we've had! We concluded our third year of full-timing on October 16, 2012. Here are just a few of the many memories we created during this year.

We started Year 3 in Augusta, GA, gathering pine needles for Marsha's basket hobby and visiting Paul's brother, John and family. She actually still has some remaining. From there we viewed the Blue Angels practicing in Pensacola, FL and then on to our familiar spot at the Houston Elks Lodge. Marsha had eye surgery back in Ohio, so Paul hung-out there waiting for her to fly back from Ohio.

From there we drove to the Rio Grande Valley (Mission, TX) where we renewed friendships with Winter Texans from last year and rang-in the New Year!

Marsha, Angie, Paul, Rick

We pulled out of Mission, TX, on March 1, to begin our “Big Tour” of the Pacific Northwest. We spent several AWESOME nights at McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis, TX, enjoying “star gazing.” What an unforgettable experience – one we highly recommend!

We met friends, Connie and Kenny, in the Phoenix area and spent several weeks at the Cleveland Indians Spring Training baseball camp. This was one of Marsha's “bucket list” items. She even got to meet her all time favorite Indian player from the past (and current Indians TV commentator) Rick Manning.

Marsha, Paul, Kenny, Connie

She says he is so hot….whatever that means.

More visits with friends, Sandie and Jim, in Apache Junction, AZ, and then Duane and Louise and Mike and Pat at the North Ranch Escapee's Park in Congress, AZ.

Sandie and Jim

Paul, Louise, Duane

Mike and Pat

We spent several weeks in Boulder City, NV, enjoying the Hoover Dam and the nearby city of Las Vegas. We spent a wonderful weekend celebrating our 30^th Wedding Anniversary in Vegas!

From there it was on to Death Valley, Sequoia National Park, our favorite Escapee's Park – the Park of the Sierras, Yosemite National Park, San Francisco, Wine Country, the Avenue of the Giant Redwoods, and then on to the Oregon Coast.

We arrived in Oregon on June 1 (earlier then recommended by many “experienced” visitors to the area) and suffered through many cold and rainy days of sightseeing.

We had the opportunity to meet up with our full-time friends, Sheryl and Jeff, and the famous bloggers, Donna and Russ. What a great time we had together with each couple.

Paul, Marsha, Jeff, Sheryl

Donna and Russ

We were overcome by the beauty of the coast and especially enjoyed Portland, Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Tillamook, Cape Mears, Astoria, Haystack Rock, and the numerous quaint towns, light houses, and state parks along the coast.

We had a great time visiting with friends, Jeri and Terry, in the Portland area. They spent several days as our “tour guides” showing us around the area and taking us on a memorable waterfalls tour.

Jeri, Terry, Paul, Marsha

From there it was on to Washington where we visited Seattle, Puget Sound, the Boeing Assemble Plant, and Tacoma.

It was then up and over the coastal mountains, as we headed East. We stopped and visited good friends, Donna and Norm, at their home near one of our favorite cities in the area - Spokane, WA.

Donna and Norm

We loved Butte, MT, on our way to meet our daughter, Carrie, for a long weekend visiting Yellowstone National Park. What a wonderful time we had sharing one our favorite National Parks with our daughter – unforgettable!

After a quick visit with friends and fellow bloggers, Pam and John, outside Livingston, MT, it was on to South Dakota where we enjoyed Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse Monument, the Needles Highway, Custer State Park, the Black Hills, the Badlands, and Rapid City.

Pam, John, Paul, Marsha

While attending the night program at Mt. Rushmore, we met up with fellow full-timers Phyllis and Len.

 

While visiting Mike and Pat at North Ranch, they made us promise to visit their home in Custer, SD. What a great long happy hours we had.

As we continued East, we met up with great friends, Jane and Joe, for a tour of Chicago. What a neat city! Thanks again for your great hospitality.

Paul, Marsha, Jane, Joe

It was then on to Indiana to spend a couple days with Angie and Rick – another awesome couple and friends from Mission, TX.

It was near the end of July when we arrived in former hometown - Canton, Ohio, after a five month whirlwind tour of the Pacific Northwest. We settled in to visit family and friends, take care of doctor appointments, put the motor home up for sale and to our surprise – BUY A HOME! Not the way we planned on ending our third year but a delightful decision.

Must, must get rid of that paper this spring!

We are now officially SNOWBIRDS, planning on spending time at home and traveling in the North during the summer; and escaping to the South, visiting our other daughter and traveling there in the winter. The best of both traveling worlds!

What a hectic Fall! We sold our motor home and purchased a used Carriage Cameo 5^th wheel trailer. (Photos to come in the next blog.) We are now looking for a used Ford 350 DRW for towing purposes. We still have hopes of getting out of NE Ohio before the snow flies!

SOME STATISTICS FROM OUR 3^rd YEAR:
Starting Date: 10/17/10
Starting Location: Augusta, GA
Ending Location: Canton, OH

MH Miles Driven: 1^st yr: 12,357; 2^nd yr: 7,428; 3^rd yr. 8,641
Car Miles Driven: 1^st yr: 22,186; 2^nd yr: 15,631; 3^rd yr: 18,496

Number of different cities for over-night stays...40
Nights in Private campgrounds…117
Nights in Escapee campgrounds…13
Nights in Nat'l, State, City campgrounds…13
Nights in Elk Lodges…120
Nights in rental site Mission, TX…60
Nights in FREE sites...38
Our average nightly campground cost...$15.33
Longest stay in one place...60 Nights (Mission, TX)
Favorite campgrounds...Harbor Vista County Park; Florence, OR
                                      Broken Arrow CG & Horse Camp, SD
Worst campground…Leaf Verde in Phoenix, AZ
Favorite Elks Lodge…Bolder City, NV

Number of gallons diesel fuel purchase…1038
Highest price for diesel fuel…$4.60
Lowest price for diesel fuel…$3.57
Average price for diesel fuel…$3.92
Average Miles Per Gallon (MH)... 7.31

Number of States visited for first time…10
Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington, South Dakota, Iowa, Wyoming, Nebraska, Illinois

Paul's 10 Favorite Sightseeing Locations:
 1.  Sequoia National Park – those trees are unbelievable!!! #1 Favorite of all time
2.  Yellowstone NP
3.  McDonald Observatory Star Gazing Party
4.  Catalina Mountains-Sabino Canyon Hike-AWESOME!
5.  Freemont Light & Laser Show in Vegas
6.  Desert Museum (Tucson)
7.  Blue Angels Practice
8.  Mount Rushmore Area – especially the Harney Peak Hike
9.  Cleveland Indians Spring Training
10. Titan Missile Museum (Tucson)

Marsha's 10 Favorite Sightseeing Locations:
1.  Yosemite National Park – has anything your hear desires; waterfalls, glaciers, mountains, wildlife
2.  Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, OR, at low tide
3.  Mount St. Helens
4.  The Shrine of St. Joseph of the Mountains (Weaver Mountains) Yarnell, AZ
5.  Hike in Usery Mountain
6.  Cleveland Indians Spring Training
7.  Scotty's Castle in Death Valley
8.  Yellowstone NP
9.  Titan Missile Museum (Tucson)
10.  Desert Museum (Tucson)

Bella's Favorites Location:
North Ranch Escapee Park

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

WHAT ARE WE STILL DOING IN OHIO IN OCTOBER?

Sunday, October 14 - Are the gods conspiring against us? It's getting chilly in NE Ohio and time to head South, but a major roadblock has been thrown up to delay our departure.....We SOLD the motor home!!!

What makes it even more convincing that God had a hand in this is the fact a local Pastor was the buyer.....WOW! It's a long story which we will tell shortly. But for now…

Now you see it.


Now you don't.

So, cold weather or not, we've delayed our departure until we can find another RV to travel in this winter.

Paul's been looking at used Ford pick-up trucks online and has a local auto auctioneer checking out a few possibilities in the area. He's leaning toward a Ford F350 diesel. He is even considering a dually (4-tires on the rear) but hasn't made a firm decision yet,

We've been looking at used 5^th wheel trailers and really like the Carriage Cameo. Again, no decision has been made, but Paul has talked to several Cameo owners who are very happy with their trailers. This is one of those “no perfect” answer type decisions.

Paul's phone has been acting up so we visited the Verizon store to get some answers. He has insurance, so they sent a new phone overnight to replace his old LG slider phone.

While at the Verizon phone store, Paul suggested to Marsha that she should look at replacing her ancient LG phone that she has had for about eight years. She could  barely see the screen any more. He made a MISTAKE! Marsha is now the owner of a new iPhone 4S. Our daughter, Kelly, gave her a couple hour tutorial, and now has created an iPhone monster. She is so excited and loves learning all the new ins and outs of this “smart phone.”

We're not only feeling the cold so is Bella. She has already learned that when she is cold, go to the warmest part of the house.  Ahhhh….those warm air registers!

We are trying to move everything we had stored at  dad's house.  Can you guess what Paul is carrying?

Marsha hates that wallpaper and will get rid of it come spring.

Did you guess correctly?

Her friend, Stephanie, gave her a small starter years ago and look what tender loving care will produce. Thanks dad for keeping it for us these last three years.

So it's been a very busy and hectic fall here in Ohio. We are looking forward to getting back on the road very soon.....God Willing!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

JUST ABOUT READY TO HEAD SOUTH

Tuesday, October 2 – Fall is in the air, and it's getting close to the time to head South. We finished up the trimming for this year. Hopefully, Marsha can put those pruners away.

The tree at the end of the driveway is so big, we can't get the MH backed up far enough in the driveway.

Someone decided this issue needed to be rectified.

Get out of that tree you old kook!

Job will done.

And the pile grows.

We had a fellow grind up all the limbs and brush and haul it away.

We are in pretty good shape “house-wise”, and hopefully things survive the winter without any problems.

We have several family members keeping tabs on the house. We have let the neighbors know there should be no moving vans carting furniture out of the house or wild teenage parties going on....LOL

Before Marsha got the trimmers out.

After she put them down.

Our plans are to leave here next week and start a slow travel to Texas. We should arrive in Texas near the end of October.

Personal comment from Marsha – The other day Janice, Ready To Go Full Timing RVing, sent me an email asking if I receive her replies to my comments left on her blog? My answer was that I do not receive her replies to my comments.

After Janice asked this question, I went back to several blogs that I leave a comment on and found a few of the writers responded to my comment directly on their blog. I have never gone back to a blog I have read to see if the blogger made a response to my comment.

I have our blog set up in a way that every comment made is received via email, that way I can respond back via email. I also set it up so Paul receives the comments.

If you have left a response directly on your blog to a comment we have made, sorry to say we haven't seen it. I am interested in knowing how many people really go back to a blog they left a comment on to see if there is a response.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!