Northeastern USA - Fall - 2010

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FastEagle

FastEagle

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 12, 2010
Posts
647
We are approaching our trip departure date. This fall we are going to Southern Maine via Up State New York. Our plan is to depart our little retirement community here in Taylors, SC on 15 August. We will go north on US-25 until we link up with I-26 west and follow it to US-19 north near Johnson City, NC. On US-19 north we will pass right by the Bristol Motor Speedway. We will avoid tolls by staying on US-19 all the way up to I-79 north near Tesla, WV.  Then it?s a long haul all the way to I-90 near Erie, PA where we will link up with US-20 east (avoiding tolls again) all the way to NY-104 near Gasport, NY. Then we will take NY-104 east all the way to I-81 and follow it north to the St. Lawrence River and link up with NY-20 and 37 east along the river.  Somewhere near VT we will hook up with US-11 and follow it to US-2 to Burlington, VT. From there we will follow the GPS trail to West Ossipee, NH where we will attend a large family reunion. A family member - my first cousin - owns and operates a campground there where we will all be parked. It?s called Whit?s End, ( http://whitsendcampground.com/ ). From there we will move to Berwick or Alfred, ME before meandering south with a planned visit to Foxwoods in CT, ( http://www.foxwoods.com/default.aspx ).

We have done a lot of modifications and furniture replacement and are about 1000# lighter than when we were full timing. Just changing out the two older analog TV?s and their swivel platforms  eliminated more than 100#, And all those clothes, I?m not even going to guess. Some of the laborious climbs we will task our truck to make on this journey should be much easier.

Once we start on this trek we will post daily pictures and do reviews of the campgrounds we use along the way.


FastEagle
 
Fasteagle,

We have friends from West Ossippee. They used to own a large campground there. Wonder if it's the same one? I don't remember the name.

When you are at Foxwoods, you will be fairly close to the Mohegan Sun. It's on the other side of the CT river. It's quite a place. Try to take some time to visit. I've read that these are the two largest casinos in the U.S. They don't compare to the size of the Las Vegas casino complexes. It's just the casino area itself.

I used to work for Southern New England Telephone and my crew used to supply video feeds to networks for some of the fights they had at Foxwoods.
 
Hi Jim, I'm a Mainer born and raised in rural areas. When I was a little kid my dad built lobster boats in the barn in the winter time. They were launched at Kennebunkport. It was strictly a fishing port then with lobster, sardines and tuna being the chief source of income. Now I would bet it?s tourism. I have a cousin that worked for the NH highway Department for many years. When he retired he was their Superintendent. I have an uncle that retired as Superintendent of the South Portland, ME school system. My cousin that owns the campground in West Ossipee has been the owner for about ten years.

The Indian casinos in CT are a normal stop for us when in the area. We normally stay at the Odetha CG at Bozrah. The newer Mohegan Sun hotel and casino is designed in glass and appears to disappear into the sky on a partly cloudy day. Both casinos can rival any others in the country in beauty and amenities.   

http://www.odetah.com/home/
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15755
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15754

FastEagle
 
    Hey if you want to help out, you could tromp a few cemeteries when you get to Alfred, one of Donna's ancestors came from there around the 1780's.

Ed
 
Alfred, ME. Not much going on there. It?s the county seat of York county and has the county jail. Laid back quiet place to find a campground and relax. Walnut Grove CG is off the beaten path and fit?s the bill for relaxation and quietness. Close by is Sanford where you will find all the expected shopping establishments such as a Super Wallmart. 

http://www.campingfriend.com/WalnutGroveCG/default.asp?file=Home
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15757
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15478


FastEagle
 
FastEagle,

If you're going to Maine, don't stop in southern Maine!  At least go to Mid-Coast Maine - Rockport, Rockland, Belfast, Searsport - and Acadia National Park!!

If you don't you're missing the best of Maine!

Ron
 
FastEagle,

Not sure when our friend sold the campground. I don't think it was ten years ago.

I have an Aunt that lives in Bucksport. We were up there a couple of years ago. We lived in CT for over 50 years and have been to Maine only about 3 times. Never made it to the Maritimes. Seems like when one lives close to an area they just don't get to see it. :) Now that we live in Florida we can probably visit someday.

I like the Mohegan Sun a little better than Foxwoods. Seems like they've kept to the Native American culture a little more. We took forum framily there one year. The ladies had to use the facilities. They came out laughing. Seems the seats have automatic paper replacement on the seats! ;D
 
FastEagle said:
We are approaching our trip departure date. This fall we are going to Southern Maine via Up State New York. Our plan is to depart our little retirement community here in Taylors, SC on 15 August.
Click to expand...

FastEagler,

Would you consider doing a log and telling us about what you do, where you stay,  how much it costs, and how you would rate it?  Betty Brewer did one we enjoyed when she went to Alaska, and it helps us so much in our planning.  We are thinking of doing your same trip, with CA as our departure site, to Northern ME, down to SC in fall, 2011, so any info from a previous explorer would be welcomed.  I did a log when we went to TX and AK, and I found that I got wonderful input from others who told me about adventures that I would have never known of.  In TX, we changed our whole itinerary the last 2-3 weeks to see some recommended sites, and they were well worth it.  RVForumers are such super, sharing people, and they KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT EVERYTHING.

There is one downside about a log--it does take time each evening to do it.  If you don't do pictures, that saves a ton of time.

I understand if you decide not to, but I'd love it if you did.

Linda Stock
edit: Fixed quote.
 
Hello Dean & Linda, Yes, I?ll be reporting on all aspects of our upcoming round trip journey from SC to ME and back. A couple of years ago we did a 14 state loop up into north central USA. That journal was very popular.

During our Navy years we lived in various CA communities for seven years. Our boys were young then and we would get pop-up campers from Navy recreation. We explored just about everything from Mexico to Canada including the Yellowstone area.

I post on a large number of RV forums. Mostly under FastEagle but I do use other names. Most of my picture albums from traveling are stored at the iRV2 forum. They allow unlimited storage and anything up to 300 kb.

I got into the forums because of early problems with my fifth wheel tires. My formal training in aircraft wheels and tires was of minimal use when it came to understanding the RV tires.

Cal & Linda - http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=12736 - Been hooked for 52 years this fall.

FastEagle 
 

We live in a small senior (55+) retirement community in what is referred to as the foothills area of SC. All of the Cliffs golf developments are within 50 miles of our location.

Our 5er is kept in a storage area but we bring it into the yard whenever we want to do some upgrading. Today we are finishing up on our new look. We have recently replaced all the cornices and put in 2" blinds which are working well. Took out the awful sofa bed and added a dual reclining loveseat. Today we replaced the dual reclining chairs with a rocking glider with footstool. Added a nightstand for a lamp table and some decorative items. Took out the old 26? analog TV and replaced it with a 32? digital HDTV.

I keep a log on the trailer tires and change out the spare every thousand miles or so. I?ll do that tomorrow. As the trip draws near we wonder how we ever full timed it because we just aired the tires and moved?LOL!

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15834
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15835
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15836
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15833


FastEagle
 
Day one, 15 Aug 2010,

Topped off the truck at the local pit stop ($2.79 per gal.) and hooked up to the trailer right on schedule. We have a travel plan but no reservations. About half way to our first choice stop we called for site availability and were penciled into site 14 here at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine CG at Beckley, WV. This is a very interesting stop deep in WV coal country.  It?s a city owned compound. Our site has 30 amps with water and sewer hook-ups and is 67? long. Door to door mileage was 292 miles and we used 27.8 gal of fuel ($3.05 per gal) in this mountain environment. No hidden fees just a straight up $22 per night, all taxes included.

Here are a few pictures from along the way. Beautiful, picturesque mountain overlook. The Bristol motor speedway, the RV sites were filling up already for next week?s race. And, our CG parking site.

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15969
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15967
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15968
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15970
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15971
http://www.beckleymine.com/becm/coal_park_attractions.cfm

Next stop; Harmony, PA

FastEagle
 
Day two ? 16 Aug 2010
Trip from Beckley, WV to Harmony, PA

Again we got underway on time. It was a very overcast day but comfortable for traveling. It?s was not very good for picture taking while driving through the mountain country though. Which, by the way really hampered our fuel economy.  Later in the day it cleared up and we got a nice picture of the WVU Coliseum. Kind of looks like a UFO lifting out of the mountains.

The only thing I have to say good about this Indian Brave CG is everything works and the reception on the 86 channels of CATV is excellent. Other than that the interior roads are all rutted. It?s clean here but old and worn out and being kept together with elbow grease. It?s very dark at night because the lighting is inadequate. I?ll get pictures before we leave in the morning.

Today?s mileage was 272 from CG to CG. The mountains took their toll and we used 30.7 gal of fuel ($2.99 per gal).  We used US-19 from Beckley to I-79. That section of US-19 is a very good divided highway but has numerous climbs in the 5-6 degree range.


http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15983
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15985
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15986
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15984
http://www.indianbravecampground.net/


Next Stop;  North Tonawanda, NY


FastEagle
 
We have made it to North Tonawanda, NY and I?ll post more about that later on as we are going to be here for five days.

Here are some pictures taken at the Indian Brave CG. Most of the sites there are occupied by long term homesteaders. Very close back to back parking.  Even most of the sites like the one we were in were back to back. Shown here are a couple of shots of our site, the back to back parking and the wash room and bathrooms.

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15987
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15990
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15988
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=15989

FastEagle
 
20 Aug 2010

It?s a rainy day in upstate NY so I now have some time to bring this trip log up to date.

Our trip from Harmony, PA to North Tonawanda, NY was a short 215 miles. Once we got all set up in the RV park we were constantly on the go.

Location was our guide when selecting our RV park here on Niagara Falls Blvd. It also was a pick-up point for the tour we wanted to take to the Falls. The pictures below show that the sites are all completely paved and all have FHU services. The park is small but in great condition and easy to park in. Very level sites.

http://www.royalmotelandcampground.com/
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16131
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16132
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16133

There are three large Seneca Indian Casinos in the Niagara Falls area. We visited the one in downtown Niagara Falls. Great sea food buffet.

http://senecaniagaracasino.com/

We did our home work and then took our own tour of the Buffalo downtown area including the waterfront which was the highlight of our day.

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16136
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16137
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16135
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16134

We took an all day tour of the falls. We think it?s the best way to go there. No waiting in line for tickets and easy transportation from each attraction to the next, all with a knowledgeable guide. We could not have seen everything we saw in a single day had we opted to do it on our own. Here, in the pictures below is a glimpse of our adventure.

http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16139
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16140
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16138
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16147
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16146
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16145
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16148

Yesterday we traveled 320 miles to our new stop here in Massena, NY which will be our home base for a few days while we explore the area. Our primary objective here is to tour the Thousand Islands and it will have to wait a few days until the weather clears for better pictures.

Our trip up here was much longer than panned as we lost a tire half way here. Must have hit something on the road as there was a small gash in the sidewall. The tire was not destroyed so the damaged area was easy to find. Tomorrow we have to find a replacement. I?ll have pictures of this CG and the tire as soon as it quits raining.

FastEagle

p.s. Fuel was $3.09 in North Tonawanda and $3.15 in Rochester (where we got the flat).
 
FastEagle said:
Day two ? 16 Aug 2010
Trip from Beckley, WV to Harmony, PA

The only thing I have to say good about this Indian Brave CG is everything works and the reception on the 86 channels of CATV is excellent. Other than that the interior roads are all rutted. It?s clean here but old and worn out and being kept together with elbow grease. It?s very dark at night because the lighting is inadequate. I?ll get pictures before we leave in the morning.


Next Stop;  North Tonawanda, NY
FastEagle
Click to expand...

Thanks, FastEagle, this is now on my AVOID list,  Ruts can be trouble!

Linda


Moderator fixed missing end-quote tag
 

26 Aug 2010

Got a little time this morning to bring this up to date.

We Departed from the Massena International Kampground yesterday and it took us seven and a half hours of steady traveling to drive 315 miles down mostly country roads. The weather was good and we got a first hand look at some great farm land. Even passed a few Amish buggies along the way - yes, they are also in up state NY.

The MIK CG was sort of an older designed CG with back to back parking but staggered enough so you did not have to look directly at the back of the rig behind you. Beautiful kept grounds with all grass sites. We were in the 50 amp FHU section with CATV. The onset of all digital cable service has done wonders for reception and picture quality. Every channel was as clear as the last one.

http://massenainternationalkampground.com/
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16171
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16173
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16172

Just ten miles down the road is an Indian Casino. When pulling into the huge parking area we noticed RVs parked on the far right side so drove over and took a look. There is a large section of double parking spots over there large enough for big rigs. After entering the casino I asked a member of the management staff about parking and was told casino guests were welcome to park there at no cost and the whole area is well light and security patrols the area 24/7. Great little casino out in the middle of nowhere. Very good buffet. All first time customers get $15 with a players card application.

http://www.mohawkcasino.com/
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16166
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16165

The highlight of our trip along the St. Lawrence was a two and a half hour boat tour of the 1000 island area. We got our tour at Alexandria Bay at a cost of $18 per person. Took at least 100 pictures - that I kept - and I?m still sorting them out. It was a bright sunny day in the mid 70s.


http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16178
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16174
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16175
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16176
http://www.irv2.com/photopost/showfull.php?photo=16177

We are now parked at my cousins campground here in West Ossipee, NH and will be here for at least five days. The big reunion is this weekend. Sea stories will have high priority.

FastEagle






 
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