Punta Gorda, FL - Dec. 30

We left home Dec. 28th. Our first day we drove 420 miles to Richmond, VA and stayed at La Quinta Motel, very dog friendly. Actually it seemed like half the people had dogs! The second day we drove to Kingsland, GA, 580 miles and a very long day, but the roads past Richmond are very easy driving. This La Quinta was much more updated and very comfortable. Again, everyone we met had a dog and the motel was full for the night. The third day we only had 320 miles to go. We took Route 301 to I 75 and drove straight down to Punta Gorda. There is much more traffic now than in November. We are all settled in and ready for our New Year's party here at the park. Monday I will go to Home Depot and buy some flower pots, flowers, and herbs to decorate our patio. Lily is busy watching for dogs, bunnies, and people! It feels good to have some warm sunny weather!

Home December 18

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Lily and Her Toys

Lily and Santa

                                                                                       At Home for Christmas

The first thing we did was to set up our Christmas tree and decorate with white candles in all the windows. We made sure we put Lily's Santa on the couch for her to cuddle. We hope to leave for Florida after Christmas!

Home - Dec. 4

We arrived back home today after leaving Punta Gorda, Dec. 2. We made stops at Walterboro at a pet friendly Sleep Inn the first night. The second day we drove 580 miles to Edgewood, MD just north of Baltimore and stayed at a La Quinta Inn & Suites, very pet friendly. Our last day was the shortest, just 350 miles. We drove on I 75 to SR 301, then picked up I 95 north of Jacksonville and remained on that road to home. We plan to leave Dec. 27 - back to Florida!

Gulf View Punta Gorda - Nov. 30

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Barb and Lily

Decorations "after"

                                                             Bob's decorations "before"

We've been busy since Thanksgiving playing Mexican train dominoes, teaching me  to play pinochle, riding bikes, taking walks, play ladder golf, practicing the piano, attending a fun dance here with "oldies" music. Jim and Bob leveled both motor homes with blocks of wood under the jacks and also the wheels. We were seriously listing to port! Finally the doors stay open and things don't slide along the table. Bob set up his Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving. We only have small red ribbons on the windshield wipers, door handle, and awning latch. We will be leaving Dec. 2 for home until after Christmas, so the bikes will get stored in Bob's travel trailer. When we get back, we'll set up flower pots and an herb garden, along with springy butterflies I just bought at Home Depot. Quite a few people leave here for the holidays and the park will be full starting in January. It's been pretty emtpy, but lots to do.

Happy Thanksgiving 11/24

Happy Thanksgiving

                                                                       Donna and Santa

The Pool

We spent Thanksgiving dinner at the Olde World Restaurant in North Port with 36 other people from
Gulf View. We sat with 2 couples plus Rita and Graham who joined us. Our days here have been busy walking Lily, riding bikes, playing Mexican train dominoes, Jim playing pinochle, attending a pool party with beer, wine, popcorn and chips, plus pictures with Santa. The weather has been in the 70s and 80s, sunny and breezy. I've been busy playing the piano at the clubhouse everyday. All of my favorite Jim Brickman pieces are in the book I just bought and are all sight-readable and read through several Sonatinas which are fun and a good workout for technique. So glad I found the piano!!!

Days in Punta Gorda - 11/10

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                                                                       The Pool

The dock and boat launch

                                                              The Club House

                                                Jim and Bob washing our motor home

Bob was over by 8:00 ready to work. He immediately climbed the ladder to the roof to begin the washing process. Tomorrow the car will get it's "bath". It's another warm, sunny day. Last year during the night, all we heard was a mockingbird until 5:00 AM. Now each evening around 7:30 we hear the gentle call of a great horned owl and sounds like it's right outside out window in one of the palm trees.

Punta Gorda, FL

We arrived at Punta Gorda, FL late yesterday afternoon after a quick stop at Lazy Days outside Tampa. We were totally shocked to be greeted by Jim's brother, Bob, and wife, Donna, who planned for months to be here and never told us. They are 5 sites up from us and will be through April. It's so nice to have family here. They have a cat, General, and dog, Cinnamon, so we can now take walks together with our doggies. They had free drinks, hotdogs, and beans last night for a social gathering at the clubhouse. Later that evening we went back to the clubhouse to watch Dancing with the Stars since we have not hooked up with cable yet and Bob's TV does not pick up ABC.

We also noticed that our patio had red ant mounds all around. The attendant put white powder on top and left a spot in front for us and Lily to walk off. In a few days they will spray it with water. Then I can wash the patio and sweep and put down out outdoor carpet and chairs. We don't need red ant bites! We are diagonally across from the laundry facilities, so handy! The park is about 1/2 full and by January will be in full swing. It's a nice small place and people are very friendly.

South of the Border, SC to Jacksonville, FL

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WE'RE IN FLORIDA! Our trip today was 330 miles. We are staying at Pecan Park RV just off I 95. At least tonight we have cable TV and can catch up on the weather channel and news and maybe a good movie! We would like to head to Punta Gorda tomorrow, but have to see how we feel in the morning. We are all very tired and could use an extra "rest up" day, but need to get to the west coast. Jim wants to stop at Camping World outside Tampa at Lazy Days RV on our way to check out satellite TVs.

Mebane, NC to South of the Border, SC

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Since we only had 150 miles to go today, we left the parking lot of CAT around 9:45. Sleeping in the parking lot is similar to anchoring in the boat and running the generator! We fueled up at a nearby Flying J, then headed down I 40 through Raleigh and meeting up with I 95. We have NO exhaust fumes, so they repaired the problem and we are so happy!

We arrived at South of the Border, a typical "tourist trap" that had signs along the highway for 80 miles. Since it's out of season, there were not many people around, but everything was still open. We unhooked the car since our site in the campground is a very long walk there, and strolled around for an hour to get some exercise. Four other motor homes pulled in after us, so at least we are not alone here. The weather tomorrow changed from rain to 20% chance and partly sunny. I'm just hoping we get the bikes to Punta Gorda without getting them wet! Tomorrow we will head to Jacksonville, FL. We were hoping to stop in Brunswick, but Jim wants to get the extra 55 miles done with the mileage tomorrow.

Day at Gregory Poole CAT, NC

 

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                                                   The Caterpillar CAT Service Sign

Our alarm went off at 5:30 and we were ready for the knock on our door to move into the bay area. By 7:00 we were inside and work started. It was a long day since they didn't finish until 4:30. The lounge was perfect, comfortable chairs, TV, and popcorn. It rained most of the day, so it was a good day to stay put anyway. We are all fixed up and ready to travel again. Everyone here has been wonderful and helpful and we will definitly come back here for service. We still need to get our slide fixed. We thought we were lucky to have a Winnebago dealer in Raleigh, however, they can't fit us into their schedule for 4 more weeks! The other dealer in Garner has a 3 1/2 week wait, Sanford, FL a 4 week wait. I guess they don't keep room for people traveling with emergencies. I finally gave Lazy Days a call, and they put us in for service on Nov. 16. So the plan now is to continue to Punta Gorda, then roll out on the 15th, stay at Lazy Days RV the night before so we are ready for our 8:30 time.  Tomorrow we are heading to South of the Border RV in SC.

Hagerstown, MD to Garner, NC

We left Hagerstown at 7:15 and had a nice ride until I started smelling exhaust fumes. It followed us all the way to the front of the RV. We pulled into the Caterpillar dealer in Garner, NC just south of Raleigh for our routine engine servicing, and had them check it out. Turns out we have a hole in the muffler pipe, so they ordered one. They are unable to do all that work for us this week, and sending us to Mebane, NC about 60 miles north west. They said they will be able to take care of the maintenance and exhaust problem on Friday, and hopefully they can because they are closed on the weekend! Our right slide opens, but within minutes closes on it's own. The dealer in CT "fixed it" since before it would pop about an inch while we traveling. Now we have the opposite problem, so that's something we need to attend to ASAP. We feel like it's our "Wally World" vacation!!

Road Trip to Florida

We departed our driveway at 7:15 this morning and stopped in Middletown to hitch up the car. It turned out the posts that attach to the car hitch would not come out. Luckily we were heading on I 84 west which is near the RV place in Bristol. We pulled in there and someone was able to help us get it all working again and glad we had a can of silicone aboard! We were off on our way by 10:15, bouncing and bumping along I 84, then I 80 through Pennsylvania. I was worried about the bikes on the back of my car with all the pot holes and slamming we were taking, but they held fine. They are both latched on to the rack, tied with the strap that came with the hitch, bungeed, and wheels tied with string, foam between the bikes so they don't scratch! I'm glad we bought the Thule rack, but they still do bounce a bit more than I'd like to see. We arrived at Yogi Bear Jellystone RV Park in Williamsport, MD around 6:00. We only needed to open the bedroom slide and one slide in the kitchen area. That one opened, then we heard crackling or dripping sounds, and suddenly the slide worked its way back 1/2 closed! We think it may have done this because we are not level from "bow to stern". We may have to have it checked at Lasy Days RV in Florida. We planned on stopping there for 1 night anyway since it's on the way just outside of Tampa. We'll be heading out Wednesday for Raleigh, NC for our appointment to have the engine serviced. At least we have not more snow and it's a bit warmer here!

Port Washington to Westbrook, CT

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Osprey nest in our marina's channel.

The sunrise as we turned into LI Sound from Port Washington, Manhasset Bay.

WE'RE HOME!

Westbrook, Pilot's Point Marina

The weather forecast was predicing thunderstorms in the afternoon, and we had an 8 hour ride to our homeport, so the alarm went off at 0400. Poor Lily is used to "sleeping in", and did not want to get up! However, she did, ate her breakfast, had her walk, and we were off by 0500. We have our predeparture preparations down to the minute. LI Sound was very calm, and we had a beautiful ride, no wakes from boats, and hardly anyone out on the water. Monday is a good day to travel! I noticed a big white thunderhead in the north sky just as we had 1/2 hour to our marina. The storm passed way to our west, but glad we were where we were and glad left when we did. We fueled up and pumped out at the dock office and were happy to be back, all tucked in safe and sound. A violent storm hit around 1800 and lasted an hour with heavy wind and lightning and an eerie orange sky.

Haverstraw to Port Washington, NY

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A set of bridges on the Harlem River

Looking down the Harlem River

Going Through the Spuyten Duyvil RR Bridge Harlem River



The George Washington Bridge looking south



Cormorants on a buoy



The Palasades of New Jersey

We left Haverstraw Marina at 0700, headed south on the Hudson and waited for the Spuytil Dyvel RailRoad Bridge to open on the Harlem River. It's much easier to take the Harlem than going around the Battery of NYC since it's only a 50 minute ride, less miles and no water taxis to deal with. The water at Hell Gate was calm and we caught the tide pushing us for a while. The only bad part was after the Whitestone Bridge we got waked from other boats more than we ever had on any of our travels. Parades of boats passing on the left, coming on the right, 4 boats following each other with no place for us to turn into the 3-4 foot wakes made for an awful ride. Things began to fly open and fling around. Boaters are responsible for their wake, but most don't get it. They need to turn around and look what they have done.

We settled in, Jim and Lily took naps. and I put away all the stuff that flew around from the wakes!
We'll be heading home tomorrow.

Kingston to Haverstraw, NY



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Kingston Maritime Museum



Mathilda the Tug



The Kingston waterfront

Here's the only little white duck!



I guess this is why the dock was filled with duck poop! There were way over 50 ducks being fed by people who miss the water and throw bread on the dock. There was 1 lone white duck that joined the flock of mallards. It must have been someone's pet at one time.



Jim wanted to time going with the tide as much as possible, so we departed Kingston City Dock at 0930  and turned up Rondout Creek to the marina to top off our tank. It's the first time we stopped for fuel since we left home. We traveled over 500 miles and still had at least 1/2 a tank, but that's because we travel between 7 and 9 knots unless we get a push from the current. It gives us a chance to see the scenery and relax on the water.

As soon as we entered the Hudson River, we knew being a Saturday we would enter "moronsville" as Jim calls it - boaters that don't respect passing without giving a 4 foot wake and boats cutting in and out. We did meet a few, but it could have been worse. We passed Westpoint and under the Bear Mountain Bridge. We arrived at Haverstraw at 1600 and much to our surprise there were not very many boaters in the bay, so not the kind of wakes we had on our way north. We are at the same dock but 1 slip over and in calm water. I guess on Sunday afternoons boaters are all coming in after being away form the weekend and more activity on a Sunday. We will be leaving here before 0700 tomorrow to set up for slack tide at Hell Gate in NYC.

Albany to Kingston, NY

 

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View of the waterfront at Kingstron

 

 

Kingston Lighthouse at the opening of the channel into Kingston.

 

 

Replica of Henry Hudson's Halfmoon.

I can't imagine crossing the Atlantic Ocean on this vessel!

 

Hudson/Athens Lighthouse with Catskill Mountains in the background.

We woke up just before the alarm went off - 0500 to get underway by 0600 which we did. We have it all timed to get things done in 1 hour. We had the current with use for a few hours and were hitting almost 10 knots until the tide turned. Then, at the same RMPs, we were only moving a little over 7 knots. But it's a beautiful part of the Hudson River with tress and homes high on the hills and the Catskill Mountains in the background.
We pulled into Rondout Creek just after passing the lighthouse and went up about .7 mile to Kingston City Marina. We are docked right in the town. I had forgotten that last year when we came here, I named this the "duck poop" dock! People feed about 100 ducks from the wall and instead of throwing the bread into the water, they throw it on the dock. First off I hosed down what was near our swim deck for boarding. It's not too bad in front of us since we are at the end of the dock, but behind us is a mess and I feel sorry for another boat that has to dock there! We will be here tomorrow and leave Saturday for Haverstraw.

Mechanicville to Albany Yacht Club

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Albany coming from the north.

Waterford - First lock on the Erie Canal

Sign for Erie and Champlain Canals

Passing Waterford

Leaving Mechanicville town wall

We poked our way this morning, leaving about 0900 and traveling about 7-8 knots. We arrived at the Albany Yacht Club across from the city alittle after noon. We are docked at the same place as we were when we stopped heading north. We need to put up our mast so our radar will work until we reach Haverstraw when we will drop it again to get under the bridges of the Harlem River.

Schuylerville to Mechanicville, NY

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Looking south down the canal, our route tomorrow.

Looking north with Lock 3 in the background.

The famous very low Mechaniville RR Bridge

They "dropped the pond" to give us 17 ft. clearance. We are 16 ft. high

Docked alongside the wall

Welcome to Mechanicville

After saying good bye to Phil and Judy and our new RVer friend, Bob, from CT who we met at Gulf View RV in Punta Gorda last winter, we sailed through the 2 white buoy markers and into the canal for a short, 16 mile, 1 1/2 hour ride to Mechanicville. Storms were forecasted for later in the afternoon, so we wanted to get to the free town wall by noon.

First thing I saw after only 5 minutes underway was a 38 foot express cruiser heading our way putting out a huge wake. He kept coming and when close enough behind us, he swerved to our port, and just 20 feet from our side, kept going. I motioned with my arms to SLOW DOWN, but he didn't get it. When traveling on the canal, it's not necessary to stow everything as you normally would when in open waterm and we were lucky nothing flew around. His wake was at least 3 feet and with a lot of force, rolling us to no end! Jim got on the radio and yelled at him, and his reponse at first was, "The speed limit is 45 MPH.!" In that section it is, however, if he had taken the time to read the rest of the speed limit signs posted all over the locks, you are supposed to slow down for locks, docks, and passing boats. He finally got the idea after Jim yelling again, and apologized. Wonder if he learned anything?

We arrived at the wall, free electric and water, at Mechanicville. The wall was the perfect height to walk right off our pilot house. We had a nasty T storm as predicted, but after, the sun came out and temps dropped significantly. We were able to finally open all the windows and get in some fresh air.