Hi Friends,
It's that time of year again (early April) when we think about
rolling north from South Florida to the Great Northeast. For the last
three years before starting our trip north in the Spring, we have
waited for a strong April storm to cross the country and go out to
sea - before we start our 1400+ mile trek north. That specific
weather pattern just occurred (mid April 2007) and the forecast is
for 5 ideal traveling days all the way up the East coast.
In the past, some of our overnight stops have been excellent and some
have been so-so. Perhaps a listing of the overnight locations
actually used during this Spring trip will be of interest. I'll keep
track and post the details here after we leave next week (third week
in April). I'll try to compile as we go along (done - see below) and
send out everything after the trip is completed (done - first week in
May). Our traveling style is generally 200 miles a day (plus or
minus) with 4-5 hours of driving.
Also, I'll include fuel prices at various exits along our route.
Plus, an opinion or two will be mixed in.
If this kind of post is useful or interesting to you, would you tell
me? I don't want my posts to be bothersome.
Terry
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04/20/07 Friday
We left South Florida after lunch and traveled I-95 North to Exit 305
and the Flying J in St. Augustine, FL. Total travel time today was 5
hours and 200 miles. All systems were "go" with our Suburban and
Airstream. Today's travel could have included an additional 100 miles
if we has left sooner. Next year, we'll leave before lunch.
Diesel fuel - $3.05 Stuart, FL
$2.89 St. Augustine, FL
$2.79 GA Exits 1 - 3 - 6
Occasionally, we stay overnight at Flying J fuel stops. All of them
have water and a dump station (free) and hot showers ($6 for family).
They have always been a safe and simple place for us to park. Their
employees have been friendly and supportive with both of us. All we
generally do at a Flying J is refill fuel, have an evening snack, a
sound night's sleep and a light breakfast the next morning before
continuing our trip. Sometimes during the Summer months in late
afternoon when it's brutally hot, we pay the $6 for a family shower
room (very refreshing). The RV area is where we park. We've found
these areas quiet all night long. This type of overnight stop isn't
for everyone but it works for us when we're destination traveling and
continuing to roll first thing the next morning.
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04/21/07 Saturday
We left St. Augustine, FL bright and early - traveling I-95 North to
the South Carolina/North Carolina border where we stayed at the South
of the Border Campground ($17). Total travel time today was 8 hours
and 400 miles (too long and too many miles).
Diesel fuel - $2.82 GA Exits 87 - 90 off I-95
$2.71 SC Exits 110 - 119 off I-95
$2.73 SC Exit 163 off I-95s
$9.99 SC Exit 168 Iron Skillet Restaurant 28 oz. Steak
$2.72 SC Exit 181A off I-95
We chose a commercial campground this night. At one of our mid day
rest stops, I noticed the commode bowl was loose, but I couldn't find
any broken parts. I thought I might have to search (Camping World,
etc) for parts and perhaps use an outside work area for repairing the
commode.
After registering at South of the Border and settling onto a large
campsite with electricity and a picnic table, I got serious (mirror
and flashlight so I could see into the back exterior portion of the
commode) and tried to figure out how to fix the commode. One of the
nuts holding the flange against the bowl had worked itself off and
was hiding somewhere (never found it). The long bolt was still there
and luckily, a correct size nut was in my stash box.
Installing that nut took almost an hour because my arms and fingers
were not quite long enough to hug both sides of the commode and
sometimes without dropping anything - hold the nut, hold the wrench,
hold the stubby screw driver and simultaneously start threading the
nut. Dogged persistence and Plastic Man (1950s comic book character)
were alive and well today.
Next year, our intention is to stay at the Flying J in Latta, SC at
Exit 181A (south of the border between S & N Carolina). A strong
effort will be made to leave South Florida before lunch and travel
300 miles to the Flying J at Brunswick, GA for the first night, then
Latta for the second night.
The Latta Flying J Station is especially convenient for us. There is
a large and long flat grassy knoll behind the restaurant available
for RV parking. Sometimes there are 20 RVs parked up there. TV
reception is especially good and the two solar panels on our '67
Airstream collect more than sufficient 12 volt power to make our
Inverter happy all evening. We stayed at Latta two years ago and met
the Chefs who put on the buffet. We liked their culinary skills. One
take-out meal ($9) provided two days of evening meals for us.
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04/22/07 Sunday
By 9 AM, we had checked out and were rolling north on I-95 toward the
Flying J at Carmel Church, VA (we hoped).
Diesel fuel - $2.77 NC Exit 106 off I-95
$2.89 NC Exit 177 off I-95
Our destination was revised to the Elks Lodge in Glen Allen outside
Richmond when a loud disconcerting whine occurred while decelerating
down a steep exit ramp. A check of all fluid levels were normal and
the Suburban wouldn't make the sound again when we drove around the
small village. Leaving the village and strongly accelerating up the
entrance ramp, the whine returned.
From past experience, we knew members at the Elks Lodge would offer
a solid referral for a specific mechanic to check out the whine. They
did and I made an appointment or tomorrow morning. Total travel time
today was 6 hours and 280 miles.
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04/23/07 Monday
This morning when I pulled into Weaver's garage, the mechanic said,
"Let's go for a ride." We did, but the whine refused to make itself
known in spite of a varied test drive. Go figure. I ate crow and
returned to our Airstream. The whine never occurred again throughout
the remainder of our trip. I'll bet that darned gremlin is grinning
while laying in wait to re-appear in the future - probably just as we
roll into some boondocking campground in nowheresville.
Diesel fuel - $2.69 VA Exit 1 off I-95 at NC border
$2.74 VA Exit 8 off I-95
$2.64 VA Exit 104 off I-95
After hooking up we continued our trip toward Washington, DC.
Unfortunately, we mistakenly chose the west side of I-495 & I-95.
That put us into "stop and go" crawling traffic for more than an
hour. The west side went toward "Tyson's Corners." We should have
chosen the exit toward "Baltimore" even though we had no intention of
going to Baltimore. The right lane exit was the wrong lane even
though it looked like it would take us around DC on the east side.
Live and learn.
The combination of a late start this morning, then mistakenly
choosing the wrong side of I-495 & I-95 around DC and gradually
feeling like we had lost our momentum for the day - prompted us to
opt for Greenbelt National Park Campground (exact change $16 or
Golden Age $8) at Exit 23.
Self registration via the iron registration post was familiar. We
keep small bills handy for such occasions. The iron post doesn't make
change. In the park are water spigots, hot showers, flush toilets and
a dump station. In the "D" loop, sites convenient for our Safari
include #145, 157, 159, 160, 161 and 163. Many other sites would be
satisfactory if these were not available. We've taken our 32'
Airstream into Greenbelt and always found a campsite large enough
that we didn't have to unhook.
During the last 40 years, we've stayed at this park numerous times
and it continues to be a pleasant well maintained campground. This
year, we noticed several sites in the "D" loop for the big 40' motor
homes and long 5th wheel trailers. There is even a macadam area three
lanes wide for unhooking motor home toads without blocking the main
road. Total travel time today was 4 hours and 140 miles (our slowest
day).
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04/24/07 Tuesday
After an early start from Greenbelt Park, we traveled south on I-495/
I-95 to Exit 19 for the connection with US 50 & US 301 east - toward
the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. This route goes east and north of the
Interstate System and bypasses the hectic traffic patterns north of
Washington, DC and through Baltimore to the Delaware Memorial Bridge.
We prefer to avoid that megalopolis section of 125 miles along I-95.
For us, US 301 east and north through Maryland and Delaware to the
Delaware Memorial Bridge is a walk in the park by contrast and only
five miles longer.
Just before the Delaware line on US 301, we like to stop for a needed
break in Middletown, MD at the Dunkin Donuts shop (after McDonald's
and Burger King) where a gutsy, cheerful, 73 year old grand mother
works. Entrance to this Mall has huge boulders along the curb to keep
big rigs off the grass. The outside perimeter of the parking lot is
wide enough for several big RV rigs. The Chevrolet dealership has a
storage lot adjacent to this parking lot and has new 3/4 ton tow
trucks. I tell Sandie I'm going for a walk to get some exercise
(window shopping). I return refreshed.
This rest stop is helpful for another reason. It is where we fold up
our old maps and review our new maps for the next leg of the trip.
We've learned the hard way to update our memories for being ready to
quickly choose correct routes and avoid mistakes made during previous
trips.
Leaving the parking lot, we continue north on US 301. The DE 896
connection east over to US 13 north is well marked and avoids the
parallel US 1 toll road. US 13 north goes through New Castle city
where fuel prices begin to drop. The prices drop even more after
going over the Delaware Memorial Bridge to Deepwater, NJ. We've found
the lowest fuel prices for the entire trip have ALWAYS been at the
Flying J station in Deepwater, NJ. We intentionally arrive there with
a near empty fuel tank.
To reach the Flying J, we start looking for the I-295 lane while
crossing the Delaware Memorial Bridge and coming down off it. There's
no toll going north so there's no slowing down. The I-295 turn comes
up quickly and Exit 2C off I-295 can appear unexpectedly. At the end
of the Exit 2C ramp, we turn left to the Flying J station. That
station is in direct competition with the nearby Pilot Truck Stop
(reached by turning right at the end of the exit ramp). We've never
used the Pilot station because the entrance is immediately after a
signal light which typically has a long back-up of big trucks.
After refueling at the Flying J (and emptying our holding tanks if
needed), we return to I-295 north avoiding tolls on the New Jersey
Turnpike (NJT). Within a few miles is a Rest Area on the right where
there's a dump station (sometimes open). Continuing north on I-295 in
the center lane avoids slow downs at numerous exit and entrance
ramps. Our next highway change is Exit 56 which connects to US 206
and the NJT. It's a right turn at the end of the exit ramp. Many
trucks use this exit and branch off into the truck stop just before
the "T" signal light.
At the "T" signal light, we turn left and get into the right lane
before the next left at the US 206 signal light. The NJT entrance
appears almost immediately on the right. We pick up our ticket and
move into the left lane for north bound travelers.
At Exit 10 on the NJT, we pay the toll and connect with I-287 north.
This relatively new Interstate highway goes around NYC until it
eventually connects with I-87 (New York Thruway). From this point,
our home in Upstate New York (near Bennington, VT and Albany, NY) is
three hours away.
We have tried dozens of alternative routes from the Delaware Memorial
Bridge north to Upstate New York, but this exact route has endured as
the most convenient for us while towing our trailer. We prefer it
even when our destination is Western Massachusetts or Vermont. Ten
years ago, we towed our Airstream successfully through NYC on I-95.
Once was enough. Been there, done that - and won't do it again.
Diesel fuel - $2.79 MD SR 301 at MD/DE state line
$2.69 DE US 13 in New Castle
$2.54 NJ Exit 2C off I-295
$2.67 NJ Turnpike
$2.99 NY Exit 9 off freebie I-90
Total travel time today was 9 hours and 410 miles. Although 9 hours
is too many hours for us and twice the average number of miles we
generally travel in one day, the weather was ideal; both of us were
feeling great; our cats were happy - plus both our '87 GMC Suburban
(non-turbo diesel 6.2L) and '67 22' Airstream Safari were rolling
along smoothly. The Suburban was averaging between 14 and 15 mpg. It
doesn't get much better than that for us.
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