Down East and the Maritimes: Day Three

Sunday: Day 3

We took the long, slow path from Biddeford, ME to Trenton, ME today. It was raining so we decided to delay our arrival at the Timberland Acres Campground as long as possible. Besides, we wanted to see some small villages/towns along US Route 1 that we would have missed if we had hopped the interstate. It was worth it as we passed through several very picturesque little towns founded in the late 1700s and early 1800s with their very Victorian homes and downtowns. Some very impressive painted ladies!

We still got to the campground around 1:30 PM which afforded us time to look at the handouts provided by the campground staff over a quick sandwich and then head down to Bar Harbor. Once there, we purchased some warm outerwear, booked a trolley tour of Acadia National Park with Oli's Trolley for Monday morning and a nature cruise with the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. for Tuesday afternoon. It's a two hour cruise so I'm pretty sure we'll be okay.

We stopped and had a drink and an appetizer at Paddy's near the town dock. It's a beauty of an Irish pub and we sat in the bar where everyone else was glued to the TVs watching Portugal vs France in soccer.

On the way back to the campground we picked up a boiled lobster at one of the many lobster pounds along route 3. The lobster was to supplement the left over french fries, fried shrimp and fried clams from last night's dinner.

We also stopped at the campground office and got one of our propane tanks refilled as it had run empty during the cold of Saturday night. It did it's job of taking the chill out of the trailer and, with the windows closed and an extra blanket, that was all we needed. Thankfully, the trailer comes with two 20 pound tanks--the same size as those used on your gas grill. I was able to switch over to the second tank this morning so we could have coffee and tea. That's the first tank I've had to refill--and that's after the long cross country trip to the west coast last year. I really need to get out on the road more often.

(BTW, the stupid low tire pressure light was on for the first ten miles of today's trip and then--poof!--it disappeared.)

Of Mice and Meandering

As I mentioned in the last post, I detest mice in the trailer, shed or cabin. To that end, I scattered mothballs in the shed and have seen the amount of mouse activity decline.

And Monday, I set five traps in the trailer. Tuesday I found two trapped mice and one sprung but empty trap. Wednesday I found two more trapped mice and two sprung but empty traps. My quest for a mouse free trailer continues!

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In preparation of our meander into New England and the Maritime Provinces, I made the final calls to several campgrounds today to make reservations for our trip that starts Friday. Had to change my planned destination for the Bay of Fundy are when I found out the campground is now a drive-in movie theater. All the other stops have been successfully booked so we're good to go.

I've printed out directions to each campground and Terry got a bunch of Nova Scotia booklets, maps and brochures from a friend of hers who just returned from there. All we need to do is pack the trailer, check and correct the trailer tire pressure, and hitch her up to the Tundra on Thursday evening.

Oh, and our cat/house sitter has confirmed her acceptance of responsibilities for the duration.

We're really looking forward to this little trip. We've not been to Nova Scotia since the big blackout hit NYC in 1977. (We had also honeymooned in the vicinity of Acadia National Park back in 1972.)

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I cut the grass this afternoon using the mower that AJ's cleaned the mouse nest out of. It ran perfectly. And ran out of gas just as I finished the last little bit of "lawn."

I Hates Meeses to Pieces! (Mostly)

Oh, mice are okay--in their place. Which, for me, is outdoors in the woods and fields. They do NOT belong indoors! Whether it's in the house (never here at the Aerie, but a regular occurance when we owned the Bolt Hole), in the shed, or in the trailer.

If it wasn't for the White-footed Deer Mouse I wouldn't have earned my Master's Degree. (Trying to find out if the little guys traveled across the interstate highways of NJ I spent two years trapping, marking and retrapping mice on I-287 and I-78. There were plenty of mice on the median and in the adjacent "mainland" woods, but I only caught one brave enough to cross three lanes--includes the shoulder--of wide open spaces. Doesn't mean they don't cross the road, I would have to do a lot more live trapping to make a definitive finding.)

Up north, I would set four traps in likely places throughout the Bolt Hole and capture--read"kill"--three to six mice a night for the first week I was there after a long absence. Then things might quiet down and I'd only get 1 or 2 every other night.

I had some problems starting my lawn mower the day before I was to go to Quebec. I cleaned the airfilter of some debris but the darn thing would run for a second or two and then die. Being in a hurry toget the grass cut, I took it down to AJ's Outdoor Power to get it repaired and then went to Lowe's to purchase another push mower so I could get the job done.

I got a call from AJ's upon my return to learn that they had removed a mouse nest and the mower was running fine. Cost me the price of a new mower (about $200) and repairs (about $45) but I've now got two mowers that work. And a shed sprinkled with moth balls. Hey! They're supposed to keep mice away, too.

Terry and I spent some time last Saturday cleaning up mouse droppings, pee and nesting material from various spots in the travel trailer. I used duct tape, aluminum screen and foam insulation to close all the gaps I could find. Today we found more droppings and, opening a cabinet we had overlooked, a missed nest along with two desicated mouse bodies--one in a plastic trash can that must have been too tall for the mouse to climb out of once it fell in.

I set some traps inside and one in each of the storage bays. Hopefully we'll have no hitchhikers when we hit the road on Friday.

Prepping the Vibe for Road Trip

We opened up the travel trailer this afternoon to begin preping for our three week trip to the Maine coast and on up to Nova Scotia.

We've had problems with mice before and tried to use lavender to deter them as per some suggestions I had read on line. It doesn't work. The mice chewed the lavender packets and shredded some paper towels to build a nest in one of the kitchen drawers. We swept/vacuumed up the pieces of paper and mouse droppings--something we did earlier this year--then hauled all the utensils into the house to run them through the dishwasher. We'll pull everything off the pantry shelves and give everything a good washing with a little Lysol and soap.

Meanwhile, we're perplexed as to the point of entry. The might find a way around some of the plumbing and I'll do a little patching with some wire screen and foam insulation. Then we'll try some peppermint oil as well. (At least that will smell pretty.) I've some essential oils (includes peppermint) and some granules for when we put the Vibe to bed for the winter. I'll also put some wire screening in the AC/heating vents in case that's where they are entering. Same for the vent to the hot water heater.

At least they haven't gotten into the wardrobe in the bathroom or the two closets next to the bed and we haven't seen signs that they've been in the pantry (no food stuffs there!) so there are some safe storage areas.

I'll also have to run a hose out to the trailer the next day or two to flush the winterizing fluids from the pipes.

Our departure is set for July 8th--one week from tomorrow.

Ch-ch-ch-changes! (And a lot of the same old-same-old.)

Spent last week doing a lot of nothing much.

The lawn got cut. The garden has been pretty much retired. (Though the zukes and tomatoes are still producing! In October!) I sorted out lots of stuff in the workshop and am (nearly) ready and able to do some woodworking. Even built a couple of extensions for the hooks that hold the stick bird feeders on the deck and a new tray feeder--although the latter will need some work. And I spent time watching the Mets vs the Dodgers, college football and pro football. Sunday morning I went up to Bath, NY for the Southern Tier Outdoor Show, Did some reading, too.

The Outdoor Show was nice. They had demonstrations of how to train a retriever for duck, goose and upland bird hunting. There were falconers there doing demonstrations of their craft. They had archery games (try skeet shooting with a bow and arrow) and a 3-D contest. There was a .22 rifle range and a hatchet throwing area. The kids had an obstacle course to play on as well as those other things. There were vendors of hunting and fishing equipment. And there was lots of food. I only stayed for maybe two hours but it was enjoyable. Much smaller than the one in February down in Harrisburg, of course--the Southern Tier show didn't have all the outfitters and many fewer vendors--but nice.

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Monday I worked on winterizing the Vibe. That required draining the water system and pumping antifreeze into it. And, of course, that required purchasing a proper sized socket to remove the water heater's drain plug and that required a new socket wrench because the socket was a 1/2 inch drive and all my wrenches were 3/8 inch. And I got soaked because I failed to drain the water through the outdoor shower (clearly labeled "low drain point") before I pulled the plug and some six gallons of pressurized water came shooting out. A one hour job took me closer to four, but I got 'er done!

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Terry spent a few days down in Valley Forge for an EGA regional convention. She left here on Thursday for a couple of days of business meetings--she's a regional rep--and then enjoyed some classes. She got to see many of her far-flung friends from around the country and came back late Sunday.

She spent Monday over at the hospital in the dermatology ward having a couple of questionable moles on her back removed. She says the doctor didn't seem to be too concerned but a biopsy was ordered as it's standard. She's got a few stitches for each that will have to come out when she's on the road down to San Antonio (SAGA convention) in a week and a half.

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Weather has been pretty great with nice cool nights and warm sunny days with highs only getting to the mid 60s. The leaves have hit about 90% color so the hills are beautiful. Only problem has been some real breezy days that have knocked some of those leaves to the ground. It's supposed to be getting even cooler the rest of this week and there's a slight chance of some frost. At least it's not snow.

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Even though the knees and back are feeling fine--only moderate pain--I've been a slacker with regards to hunting. Haven't even lifted the bow to check the sights let alone gone out in the woods. Don't feel that I'm missing much as I've seen only a couple of does in the yard in the last two weeks. There's still time, however. AND muzzelloader season starts on Saturday.

Some Notes on Being Home and Our TIme On the Road

We've been back for almost a week now and a lot has been accomplished.

• Grass cut. It took two four-hour days to get the normally two-hour job accomplished but it got done. Eight and a half inches of rain over four weeks must have been perfect weather for the clover, plantain, and grass which was a good foot high.
• Gardens weeded--mostly. I've got one to go and a little hoe work in another. See comment about rain and perfect growing weather above.
• Zucchini harvested and turned into 10--or was it 12--loaves of bread, half a dozen quart bags of slices, and one left to be shredded and frozen.
• Cucumbers converted into freezer pickles.
• Carrots harvested, cleaned and frozen in five quart bags.
• Beets--eaten.
• Doctor's visit done. Urologist for a PSA test and general check up following bladder infection and kidney stone in April.
• Visit to Camping World in Bath to order awnings for the Vibe's slideouts and a new mattress. (The one that came with the Vibe is crap. Two nights and it was like sleeping on the plywood with canyon walls on either side.) They will also deal with a couple of issues that arose on our trip.
• Speaking of the Vibe: Forest River will pay for the repairs to the AC. The only thing they will not pay for is the house call fee (about $75). It pays to have a detailed invoice!
• Tomorrow the Tundra gos in for some TLC.

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Terry is already on the road again. She has a SAGA thing out in Skokie, IL. She left around 10 Wednesday morning and will finish the drive Thursday. She'll also visit with Brian and Vicky and John and Cindy...again.

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I ran some numbers for our four-week trip and found:

• we used 800 gallons of fuel with an average price of $2.85 per gallon for a total fuel cost of $2290
•  our campgrounds cost us $972 for 27 nights; an average of $36 per night 
•  our total cost for fuel and nights' lodging was $3262

If we had just flown to Portland and stayed in a motel/hotel for a week it would have cost us between $2200 and $2900. (Airfare for two roundtrip tickets Monday-to-Monday start at $1375. Motel/hotel would run between $120 to $200 a night.) This does not account for a rental car. I've ignored food because we would have eaten anyway and most of our meals were prepared by Terry in the trailer. Those that weren't would have been matched (almost) by dining out while we were home.

Of course, if we had merely flown out and back, we would not have been able to have stopped to go bird watching in Brigham City/Bear River NWR, to visit Mt. St. Helens—at least not as easily, visited Little Bighorn, visited Mt. Rushmore or the Badlands or The Mammoth Site, or see the many, many square miles of corn, beans and cattle growing throughout the upper Midwest. Nor would we have been able to visit with Cassie and Patrick in Bonner’s Ferry, Brian and Vicky in Milwaukee, or John and Cindy in Chicago.

Glacier National Park

Terry and I visited Glacier National Park over the weekend. After spending Saturday getting our air conditioner repaired--a necessity as the temperatures were into the upper 90s and even hit 100!--we sent over to the park on Sunday to view the glaciers and the work the glaciers had done in sculpting the landscape. We didn't get a chance to tour the park on the red buses as we had hoped. I should have made reservations weeks ago before we started on our trip.

We did drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road on our own, however. And the views were spectacular. A little less ice and snow than I expected--then again it was approaching 100 degrees!--and there were scars from forest fires on the shores of Lake McDonald and elsewhere, but the ride was fantastic!

Being on the passenger side, Terry got the best view of the steep drop offs to the valley below--whether she wanted them or not! There were a couple of times she almost climbed over the gear stick and sat in my lap and several times I heard her say, "I'm shutting my eyes! La, la, la...."

Monday we headed south along the east shores of Flathead Lake and on to Billings, Montana--where we had to get our refrigerator repaired!

Thank goodness, both Glacier and Billings had competent repairmen who made house calls. And hopefully we won't need to see any more of them on this trip!

Report From the Road

Well, we departed Hills Creek State Park bright and early on Friday ahead of what seems to have been some hellacious T-storms and high winds in the Northern and Southern Tiers. We did run into some heavy rains along I-80 in western PA but nothing too unusual.

Our first stop was in the Toledo, Ohio area and our next was in Kellogg Iowa. Our third (tonight's) was in Ogallala, Nebraska. We've made some good time and have had the benefit of crossing two time zone lines and gaining those hours on consecutive days. This has allowed us to go just a wee bit further than planned each of the last two days. As a result, Monday's travels will be a tad shorter than anticipated. We still plan on stopping in the Rock Springs/Green River area of Wyoming.

The Tundra is behaving admirably under the strain of towing the Vibe. However, it's getting only around 8 mpg which necessitates our stopping every 160 miles or so to get fuel. And the gas prices.... They were pretty damn high in Indiana and Illinois. And let us not mention the tolls in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The tolls in Ohio were higher than our campground fee. And the toll booths in Indiana are not manned. The result of that is a sizable delay if someone can't follow the directions on the board or has trouble swiping their credit card. (Like the trucker ahead of us.) How they work if you're paying cash, I haven't a clue.

The trailer is doing well also. Although there were a few instances where a screw wasn't tightened sufficiently and eventually came out (the shower door and where the drain pipe from the sink separated because it too wasn't tightened properly). Cushions and draws under the couch and bench seats seem to slide out with some of the rough roads and boxes in the pantry will have to be battened down a bit better, but other wise all systems (hot and cold water, electric, stove top, AC, etc.) are go. Oh, except for the grey water tank sensors. They don't seem to be registering a thing even after several instances of washing dishes, faces and hands. They should be reading something. Maybe after we both take showers tomorrow. The black water tank is reading 2/3 full so it's time to think about dumping that and what ever is in the grey tank. After all, we have some extra time I hadn't planned for.

I mentioned the exorbitant tolls.... Perhaps Illinois should use some of that money to repaint their rest area signs. Have of those blue signs are missing letters  or just plain look like crap. Maybe they could get one of their former governors to do something about them while they serve time.

And Nebraska should do something about the parking at most of its I-80 rest areas. Semi trucks and RVs must parallel park in about six or seven spots along the side of the entrance roads. We drove through two of them without stopping because there was no way. Both times we were following a tractor trailer whose driver came to the same conclusion. Only once, as we approached North Platte, did I see a rest area with a large enough truck/trailer parking area where vehicles could pull through and park on a diagonal.

The rains in western Nebraska must have been quite heavy last week The Platte River, noted for being a mile wide and an inch deep, was way over its normal channel flooding many corn field and pasture. The cows seem to like their new swimming holes, however.

Well, that's about all for now. I'll write when I'm able, bit you can also follow my scriblings on Facebook--which is a wee bit more iPhone friendly.

Trip Begins in 5 Days

Getting closer. We do a test run starting Monday and then hit the road on Friday.

Terry and I spent the last two days loading "stuff" into the Vibe in anticipation of starting our 2015 Road Trip: Portland, OR or Bust. We've each got our clothes pretty much stowed away as are the pots and pans, utensils and dried/canned foodstuffs for the galley. The towels and cleaning supplies are tucked away in the bathroom and I've got some fishing stuff in the undercarriage storage along with a set of canvas folding chairs.

I worked on the itinerary some more and printed out a page for each travel day along with two or three campgrounds at the end of the day. We'll make some reservations for the longer layovers in Portland, Glacier, Rapid City and Racine, but for the one night layovers while going from point A to point B, we'll call the day before or the day of our arrival. Such a practice has worked for us before and I see no reason it won't again.

I've got my reservation for our trial run at Hills Creek State Park printed out. I can't actually check-in until around 3 PM, however, so there are a few chores I'll be doing in the morning.

Looking at the weather forecast, they're predicting thunderstorms Monday afternoon and night so I better be sure to put a few books in the trailer.

Hills Creek does not have wifi reception (or cable for that matter) and I've not got a satellite account so anything I post after tomorrow will be through my iPhone unless I come home for such things as cutting the grass so don't expect much.

Time Flies!

It's been ten (10) days since I last posted here? Seems like only yesterday! I'm still alive and haven't had to go to the hospital or anything like that, I've just been a bit busy.

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Terry had a great time out in Portland, OR visiting with Rick, Sandy and, of course little Chelsea Rose who turned one month on the 20th on May.

Chelsea Rose, age 1 month

Every time I see a new picture of her, she seems to be getting bigger and bigger.

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I made a trip up to the Bolt Hole and was pleased to find it still standing. I hauled a gas lawn mower that once belonged to Terry's Mom up there in case the lawn needed mowing, but I lucked out this time. The grass hadn't really started to grow yet.

I did get a chance to talk to Mark and learned there was a great deal of activity up there last hunting season but that there were still several big bucks and bears hanging around.

I believe I'll have to go back up there this week to do a first cut on the lawn. I'll drag Terry up so she can help decide what can be chucked and what has to be cleaned. We'll probably put the place up for sale soon. I'm just not getting up there enough to justify the payment of taxes and upkeep.

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Terry and I came to a mutual agreement (as in we were both thinking the same thing at the same time even though we were separated by a few thousand miles) vis-a-vis the Winnebago Access that's been parked in the yard for way too long. We decided to go back to a travel trailer. 

After nearly three years of owning the Access we came to realize it wasn't as flexible as we would have liked. Part of that had to do with the need to tow a second motor vehicle along if we intended to do any sightseeing. So, we drove north and visited Camping World in Bath to see what they had in stock last Friday. And I spent a goodly portion of Saturday and Sunday searching their website and comparing models from Heartland, Coleman, Keystone, Forest River and Crossroads.

There were quite a few to chose from but most had features we didn't want (bunk beds for extra campers) or were lacking in storage space in the galley or living quarters.We winnowed them down and prioritized them. Then we went back today to take another look and ended up closing the deal on a 31-foot long Forest River Vibe Extreme Lite (model 279RBS).

Forest River Vibe Model 279RBS

The kitchen has plenty of counter space, an oven that may actually be able to do a roast and a huge pantry. The bathroom does not require that you grease up before you enter and contains a big wardrobe. There's storage under the dinette area's bench seats (Why some Heartland Prowler models had regular table and chairs I do not know.) and even under the couch. It has an outdoor kitchen area with a sink, fridge and grill. It's also got a 32" flat screen TV and a DVD player. (We may actually be able to operate this one. The one in the Access never got turned on after the second night of trying to figure it out.)

The only thing missing is outside storage for things like hoses and extension cords. That's why I have  a Tundra. Oh, and Terry would have liked the Prowler with its two captains chairs IF they didn't have that silly dining table and four chairs.

We drop off the Winnie Access this week and pick up the Vibe on July 3rd. A brief shake down in a local park to be sure we (meaning "I") know what I'm doing and then we'll be heading west to see that lovely little girl in the photo above.

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In other news, the bear sow and her three cubs have been back. Several times. She tore one hummingbird feeder off the deck and cracked the plastic so now no one gets anything. I may have to start strapping on my .40 S&W M&P when I go outside. (Or make sure Terry goes out first, eh?)

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In a reversal of fortune, Terry has been suffering from a degerative disc disease that has been giving her fits--especially in the right arm. The doc says it originates in the neck area where there compressed discs. She's on Naproxen (industrial strength) and it helps...a little.

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We had an eventful week at the Aerie in the bird department, too. The Indigo Bunting has returned and sings from the top of the poplars with the Red-eyed Vireo. (At least I can see the Bunting!) I had a Scarlet Tanager fly through the yard one day and Terry and I heard a strange "po, po, po" call which made me think immediately of Cuckoo. Sure enough All About Birds confirmed that we were listening to a Black-billed Cuckoo. Then, there were the Bobolinks in the fields down near the post office.

Then, on Saturday, I recorded 39 species at Hills Creek State Park. Nothing particularly new or exciting except for the Black-billed Cuckoo.

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Well, that's about it for now. Terry's got a couple of appointments on Tuesday then we'll drop the Winnie off Wednesday or Thursday. We've got to get up to the Bolt later in the week so I can cut some crass and maybe pull some weeds while Terry sorts out things in the cabin.

This upcoming Saturday is the last guided bird walk of the season. I'll finish with the list of species I generated on the 23 of May:

Hills Creek SP, Tioga, US-PA
May 23, 2015 7:45 AM - 10:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
Comments:     Crisp, cool morning with lots of sunshine.
39 species

Canada Goose  X
Wood Duck  X
Mallard  X
Double-crested Cormorant  X
Bald Eagle  X
Spotted Sandpiper  X
Black-billed Cuckoo  X
Ruby-throated Hummingbird  X
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  X
Hairy Woodpecker  X
Pileated Woodpecker  X
Eastern Phoebe  X
Red-eyed Vireo  X
Blue Jay  X
American Crow  X
Tree Swallow  X
Barn Swallow  X
Black-capped Chickadee  X
Tufted Titmouse  X
Red-breasted Nuthatch  X
White-breasted Nuthatch  X
House Wren  X
Eastern Bluebird  X
American Robin  X
Gray Catbird  X
European Starling  X
Common Yellowthroat  X
Yellow Warbler  X
Chestnut-sided Warbler X
Black-throated Green Warbler  X
Chipping Sparrow  X
Song Sparrow  X
Dark-eyed Junco  X
Northern Cardinal  X
Indigo Bunting  X
Red-winged Blackbird  X
Brown-headed Cowbird  X
Baltimore Oriole  X
Purple Finch  X

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S23591453

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)