The Last Post (for now)

So, yesterday we travelled just a few more hours and crossed into Canada at Gananoque around noon.

This area is the Thousand Islands.  It is incredibly beautiful in a way completely different from a place like Key Largo. Instead of white sand and Palm trees, there are stands of pine or spruce trees alongside a wide river. Here and there are patches of snow between the trees and/or frozen spots on the river.  There seem to be dozens of islands in the river - visible from the road.  Some have rustic-looking cottages on them and others look uninhabited. The overall effect is a wild cold beauty, and although some of it was in the US, it is the way I think of Canada.

We made it to Kingston just before noon.  You could almost feel the history in the city.  So many huge stone  buildings that look like they could have been built 200 years ago, and likely were!

I was so happy to see Josh - a big bear hug from my sweet grandson was the best medicine, at least for me.  Josh is looking and doing much better than he was (I am told) and is progressing well since his stroke.  However, he has a long road ahead.  Questions still need answers and of course more tests need to be done.  Please keep him in your prayers as he is still at risk and has been told that surgery is not an option for him. 

We arrived home late last night, so our Florida Adventure is over.

It has been a joy at times and a challenge at others. The important thing for us is to focus on the joys!!

Thank you, whether you are family or friend,  for travelling with us. We bid you all 'auf  weidersehen' until next time....... Maybe The Grand Canyon or New England ... Anyone want to join us again?

Brewerton NY

Long day, folks! The daffodils and "almost leaves" in Virginia have given way to mounds of melting snow and rain in New York. 

We gave up the idea of camping and have found a cozy room in the Days Inn in Brewerton, just north of Syracuse.  At last check we are just 2 hours from Kingston - not counting crossing the border.  We will visit with our grandson Josh tomorrow before we head home.

Although things have not quite turned out the way we had expected, we still had some adventures/fun and it all happens for a reason. Sometimes it is to teach you a lesson.

Okay, so the lessons we have learned are;

- When the winter is really getting you down, if you get in the car and drive south, it will eventually get warmer!

- Warm weather means there are likely bugs hiding out somewhere.  They seem to really like Karl.

- Don't go for long walks on a hot sunny day with new sandals on!

- Always keep extra towels handy when you turn on the water to the camper. You never know when or where a flood could turn up!

- Even in a wilderness camp with no electricity, there are outlets in the washroom, so pizza can still happen!

- You might ignore a little rattle in the back of the car, but when it goes rattle, clunk, you'd better check it out, or it might just be expensive!

- Even new friends can be good friends - thank you to Dave and Betty ...  we had fun!

- Key West is like a Shakespearean play ... Nice scenery but, really, much ado about nothing.

While we are dragging around tonight complaining about the cold, Max is full of energy and excited about the snow!  So, while we were happy with the warm weather, Max prefers the cold - of the 3 of us, he is the " true Canadian"

Fredericksburg (part 2)

This morning we were both awake before 6 am. Believe it or not, although the temperature outside was about 48F/9C, inside the trailer we were warm (18C). Our little heater is great for our teeny camper!!!

We didn't see much of the park last night, but as the sun rose, we checked out this beautiful little campground that we would love to come back to and spend at least a week.  It is well off the highway, so no traffic noise. It is tucked into a wooded area with a large pond for fishing, trails, log style rec hall and other buildings and heated pool.  There are historic type things in the park and the whole area as well, because this area is the birthplace of George Washington!  And it's only approx an hour from the White House. Americans are very proud of their history!

As I write this, it is approaching 7 am and we want to get an early start today to avoid finishing up at 8 pm again!  We drive slower when we pull the camper, never faster than 60mph or 100 km per hour in an attempt ease the strain on our poor car engine!  Add to that stops for gas and meals (even cooking in the camper takes time - difference is no tip for the cook, sigh). Oh ... Maxie needs his little walks - also good for us to stretch our legs ... So in all the driving adds up to covering 50 miles in an hour "if" all goes well!

BTW no matter where we go, there is always a Roadtrek parked in the same campground. Just a gentle reminder of home

Fredericksburg VA

Happy Easter everyone!

We would like to have gone to church today as this is a very special, holy day for us, but with 1,100 miles to go, we headed out early. 

Leaving at 8:30 this morning, we drove 500 miles, groan, and finished about 8:00 this evening, hooking up the trailer by flashlight.

Most of our drive was on the interstates (I-95) and at this point, the scenery was mostly trees and/or fields ... oh, and the service centres or rest stops... sigh. Haven't seen a palm tree in about the last 400 miles. Here in Virginia the trees are budding rather than being in full leaf.

Lots of cars and trailers from Quebec.  We spoke to 4 or 5 Quebecois during stops and 2 were very friendly - that's progress.

One fellow I spoke to had a full beard, was very thin, 40ish, and driving a beat-up old motorhome that had seen better days. When I asked him where he was going, it sounded like "where the spirit leads him".  He totally reminded me of a hippie.  

Other than that, not much to report.  We have been catching snacks during the day and for a late  supper have just finished off 4 hotdog wieners with Max's help.  Dessert will be some chocolate. 

Weather is cooling off - feels "nippy" tonight (Actually refreshing after what Florida was like).

Sadly, this will be our last night camping, and tomorrow the long pants, running shoes, and windbreakers will come out of hiding. Our intent is to get to within about 2 hours of Kingston.

This campground at Fredericksburg VA is another KOA, really nice ... very country and quiet.

Savannah GA

By the time we got up and organized this morning, we got a call from the Hyundai dealership to let us know that our car was done.  So we bid a reluctant farewell to our friends Dave and Betty (we really enjoyed our visit with them!) and hit the road by noon.  We are heading for Kingston to see my grandson Josh before we go home. 

Texts and calls from Josh's dad, Dan, and the rest of the kids have helped, but we need to "see" Josh for ourselves.  I got a call from him this afternoon - it was great to hear his voice and he definitely lifted our spirits! 

So here we are, driving again, but this time due north. We got as far as Savannah by 6:30 pm and decided we had had enough. 

We are actually staying at the same KOA we visited last fall.  The difference is that this time the park is completely full. We were lucky to get a site, someone had just cancelled!  This is the park with a beautiful lake with dozens of swans swimming on it (plus alligators!) very pretty, but apparently not a good place to swim 😄

You can definitely feel the difference in the air here, just a bit cooler than in Orlando. Guess we'll have to exchange the shorts for long pants soon, sigh.....

Rockledge Day 2

Today dawned warm   And sunny. We are camping in Dave and Betty's driveway near Orlando in Florida The house is open concept, airy and beautiful. The back patio is covered with an in-ground pool. There is a screened enclosure that covers the pool and patio and keeps the bugs out. Just behind the small grassy yard is a good size pond running down the whole neighbourhood between the houses with fountains. Add to that every kind of Palm tree and bushes, some with fuscia flowers.

So, we spent our day relaxing and chatting with Dave and Betty, sitting out on the back patio.  

The water in the pool was 88 F and we spent at least an hour swimming.

We went for a nice walk in the neighbourhood and took some pictures of the flowering bushes. We met a man polishing his Corvette and got into a really interesting conversation with him.  He looks 50ish but is actually 72. He also has a 1992 Cadillac that he told us he was given.  Seems he went to visit his brother in Detroit and the brother picked him up in this car. When he opened the door, his brother said you drive, the car is yours now. He had lots of other stories - wow!

Well....  Lazy day, but also a good day.  

Still praying all is okay with Josh.  Staying in touch with Dan as much as we can. 

Tomorrow we plan on taking in a flea market and hopefully our car will be ready by the end of the day! 

Rockledge FL

April 2

Yesterday morning we decided that it was time to start the trek home, concerned about Josh and our car. Since the car has been acting up again, with some gearshift chattering and severe clunking at low speed, we thought we would stop in to the local Hyundai dealer and let them have a look. The people at this dealership were very curt and uncaring so we walked out and kept driving, and carried on to Rockledge, just east of Orlando, arriving around suppertime.

In Rockledge we met up with Karl's co-worker and friend Dave and his wife, who also are on vacation. Had a great chat and evening.

This morning we went in to the Hyundai dealership here (Cocoa Beach) and the reception was totally different - they appeared to actually give a hoot. We left the car at the dealership for them to check out the issue.  Betty cooked breakfast and we chatted till lunchtime. While waiting for what we hoped would be a quick fix, Dave and Betty took us for a drive through Cocoa Beach (where we went for a fabulous stroll on the beach) and past the Kennedy space centre. We even saw a few of the big luxury cruise ships, one of them was a Disney cruise ship.

We heard back from Hyundai in the afternoon to find that the repair will be highly expensive (differential and coupler) but needs to be done before we can proceed up the highway. They are hoping to get parts on Saturday to get us back on the road that evening if the repairs get done early enough during the day.

Dave is a fellow Roadtrek driver vacationing here for another week.  They have been so sweet to us and have not only invited us to stay with them until the car is done but have also offered to take us to see the sights!  And they've invited us to use one of the other bedrooms in the house, but we are in 'camping' mode and have chosen to stay in the camper, in the driveway.

Still very concerned about Josh and have discussed different options for getting home sooner to see hIm.  It seems like roadblocks keep appearing. Hope he understands how much we love him and would like to be with him.