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Blogs

Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Questions, I get questions…

I’ve had several commenters ask questions so I’ll take a little time to answer one of them here. This was written in February and I’m posting it now that our trip has ended. Regarding the nature of the night sky here in New Zealand. First let me say that you don’t have to go far outside the large cities to experience some of the best dark skies you can imagine. The population is spread thin outside the major cities. One in three people live in Auckland and 85% of New Zealanders live in citi
tbutler

tbutler

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Shhh! Michigan’s Sunrise Side is the Best-kept Secret of the Great Lakes

Michigan’s Sunrise Side is one of the best-kept secrets in the Great Lakes. The state’s west coast Lake Michigan PR machine has done a better job of promoting the beaches and trendy little communities there while the Lake Huron coast along the state’s east coast has stayed purposefully low-keyed. And that has been just fine with the locals and the sharp-eyed tourists who love the area. That means there are no traffic jams. Prices for food, lodging and the like are usually more affordable than
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin will be getting a timeout

6-25-14 Our trip down from Bar Harbor to Wells included getting struck in a Denny's parking lot. We missed the first entrance and should have passed by the second. Not enough room to turn around without backing up. That meant unhooking disabled Lucy and pushing her uphill to a parking space so we could turn around. Oh well, we had a good breakfast, hooked up Lucy and continued on. One piece of advise, if you think taking Rt 1 will be a scenic coastal drive, forgot it unless you plan on several
Castle3

Castle3

3
Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Suva, Fiji

Suva is the capital city of Fiji. It is located on the southeast side of Viti Levu, the largest island in the Fiji Islands. Our cruise started when we departed the western side of the island from Lautoka. Suva is the largest city in Fiji. Within view of our ship at the dock we can see the downtown area of Suva. There is a huge bus station. Most of the inhabitants don’t own automobiles so they depend heavily on public transportation. There are three large sheds, each with a half dozen park
tbutler

tbutler

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GrampaDennis' Blog
 

Paradise Indeed!

This past weekend (June 20 - 22, 2014), we camped at Paradise Park Resort, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Years ago, we had tried 2 or 3 other campgrounds in the OOB area. We liked this one the best of any we've tried. It's a tad expensive, compared to the places we normally stay, but worth it. The pricing is similar to other places in OOB. This campground is VERY neat and clean and has the best restrooms we've seen. The location is on a side street across from the upper end of Old Orchard S
GrampaDennis

GrampaDennis

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Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin likes the view from Mt Battie

6-22-14 Today was just too nice to sit around. Ruth an I put a few more miles on the rental car by traveling to Owls Head, with a few stops on the way. Our first surprise was crossing the Penobscot Narrows Bridge near Fort Knox. It's amazing how something man made can still give you a scenic moment. We continued on through Belfast and then saw signs for a State park in Camdon. After paying the old folks fee of $3 dollars we scouted out the campground, used the cleanest public restrooms I've se
Castle3

Castle3

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Travels with the FMCA Prez
 

What We Have Been Up To

Since picking up the new motorhome, we went to Jon Walker's lake house in Southern Michigan, to Glamarama in Goshen, IN, then to our spot in Hearthside Grove at Petoskey, MI. We enjoyed our time spent with Jon and Sondra Walker. We parked at their lake house on Baldwin Lake in Michigan. There were several things to be done to get things ready for the summer; like get the party barge in the water. It had to be launched from across the lake. They go to the landing and Jon brings the party ba
AmerEagle07

AmerEagle07

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Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin meets a mate

6-21-14 Today was another low key day. I could get use to this FAST. I started out by putting away a few things that I bought yesterday. A filter wrench, some oil and 4 more small propane tanks. Those buggers are only good for 3 meals. Then I did my pre trip checks, engine and generator fluids. And, to my surprise the grey tank was full again. Guess we are water hogs! Ruth and I discussed it and decided we're not changing, except for no more sites that don't have full hookups unless we're only
Castle3

Castle3

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Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin has a Lazy day

Melvin has a lazy day. Today was a no events planned day. We started off by sleeping in and then had BBQ bacon and blueberry pancakes. Then we ventured into Ellsworth, did some grocery shopping, Ruth got a hair cut and I hung out at the auto parts stores. Before we knew it the day was nearly gone. But, we couldn't resist another drive. This time we searched out the light house in Bass Harbor. It's a steep descent to it from the parking lot and tough to get a good photo so we spent our time loo
Castle3

Castle3

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Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Savusavu, Fiji

After two days at sea we arrived at Savusavu, Fiji. The city of Savusavu is located on Vanua Levu, one of two large islands in the island nation of Fiji. There are dozens of other islands in the group of islands that make up Fiji. At Savusavu, we had a tour to Wiasali Rainforest Reserve. Billed as a strenuous hike, this lived up to its billing. There were 15 people on this shore excursion. Eleven members of our group fit into a van and the remainder of us rode to the reserve by taxi. Loui
tbutler

tbutler

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Roadtreking Blog
 

The Tech I Use on the Great Lakes Tour

Lots of people have asked how I’m filing my Great Lakes Shoreline Tour reports and what tech gear I have on our Roadtrek Etrek. It was raining yesterday and we were stuck in cam so I did a short little video to show some of the gear I'm using. I’ll do more and show the drone and some other gadgets and gizmos in future reports, but right now, here’s what was handy as I was shooting the report. The Wilson Sleek cell phone booster I use comes with a small magnetic mount antenna, a couple of
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

The Great Lakes Shoreline Tour: Lakes Ontario and Erie

I always knew I was lucky to live in Michigan, the very heart of the Great Lakes. But until I started this drive along the shoreline of all five Great Lakes, I didn’t realize how fortunate I truly am to call this area home. I also didn’t realize how interconnected they are. From a hydrological standpoint, they are all intermingled and pretty much part of one system. The water that passes the rocky northern Superior shore in Minnesota eventually makes its way to the sandy bluffs of Lake Ontario
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin is King of the mountain

Woke up well rested today to 70 degree weather and blue skies. After morning coffee, Ruth choose to hit the laundry mat. Yes we have a combo washer dryer on board, but this way she says it's done in 1 hour. That gave me some time to tinker, so I attached the tie downs to the awning and figured how to put the sunscreen over the windshield. The hardest part was figuring out the folding ladder. All done just as Ruth returned. We packed the car and took off for Acadia National park. ( less than 10
Castle3

Castle3

3
Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Life Onboard the m/s Paul Gauguin

We had two sea days on our way from Noumea, New Caledonia to Fiji. Both Louise and I enjoy the enforced relaxation of the sea days. There is plenty to do on the ship not the least of which is to just relax. Louise enjoys playing cards and I enjoy relaxing in the sun or shade of the upper decks. Our stateroom is on the lowest passenger level located mid-ship which is our preferred location. Being both low and in the center of the ship, we experience less movement than almost anyone else on
tbutler

tbutler

0
Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin hits the bumpy road

6-18-14 Melvin At 6 AM I woke up to pouring rain. With visions of being stuck on this hilltop due to wash outs, I asked Ruth to get us ready to go. First time I got stuck prepping the outside in a downpour. Frankly that sucked. So, down the mountain we went. First gear only, frequent braking, and dodging trees that were drooping from hard rain weighting them down. What a relief to see that last turn. Water was running the ditches full and spilling onto the gravel one lane road. Next another
Castle3

Castle3

0
Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin fixes Grace

6-15-14 Now that we've be traveling for two weeks, it was time to name our Monaco Windsor coach. Melvin decide on Grace after Princess Grace of Monaco. What else? After all the plate reads Castle3 ! Sunday (Father's Day ) was a total rain out. Ruth began our day by making blueberry pancakes for breakfast. The rest of our day was spent relaxing and watching movies. 6-16-14 We woke up to rain again. But it was a travel day, so we broke camp and headed out. Just after the causeway leaving Cape
Castle3

Castle3

2
Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin fixes Grace

6-15-14 Now that we've be traveling for two weeks, it was time to name our Monaco Windsor coach. Melvin decide on Grace after Princess Grace of Monaco. What else? After all the plate reads Castle3 ! Sunday (Father's Day ) was a total rain out. Ruth began our day by making blueberry pancakes for breakfast. The rest of our day was spent relaxing and watching movies. 6-16-14 We woke up to rain again. But it was a travel day, so we broke camp and headed out. Just after the causeway leaving Cape
Castle3

Castle3

1
Roadtreking Blog
 

Thinking of a Type B RV? Here Are the Questions You Should Ask

Buying an RV is perhaps the second biggest purchase most of us will make next to our house. In some cases, with kids grown and newly retired from our jobs, it becomes our house as more and more people embrace the fulltiming style of a life on wheels. And these days, Type B RVs seem to be at the top of the motorhome popularity chart. Many who bought larger Type A or C motorhomes are downsizing, or “rightsizing,,” as some call it, for the more mobile and maneuverable Type B-style campervan motorh
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Of Rainy Days and Meandering

“Not all those who wander are lost." -- J. R. R. Tolkien in The Lord of the Rings. We love that quote because we love to meander, to take roads less traveled, off the Interstate. And as we are starting our Great Lakes Shoreline Tour that will take us 3,500 miles across eight states along the shorelines of all five Great Lakes, we are reminded again about the absolute joy of slow exploration. We’ve tried to explain it to non-RV people. Their eyes sort of glaze over. But you understand, don’t
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

0
Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin goes to sea

6-14-14 We were up early today and off in Lucy by 8:30. The weather on the web had forecasted a cold rainy day, but as we woke there were patches of blue sky. So we took a chance and drove to Englishtown so we could take a boat ride to Bird island. Sometimes we just make really good choices. Within 10 minutes of leaving the pier, we spotted an eagle. Then the first mate threw a fish into the water. Almost at once the eagle swooped down and grabbed the fish. GREAT photos of that and about 5 more
Castle3

Castle3

2
Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Noumea: Capital of New Caledonia

Noumea is the capital of New Caledonia. It is the largest city in these islands and has many multi story buildings in the business district and also condominiums and apartments in buildings up to ten stories high. Located on the island of New Caledonia is a large port with shipping facilities as well as docks for cruise ships. We were within walking distance of the city center. Within sight of our ship was the major portion of population and in the opposite direction a large nickel smelting
tbutler

tbutler

0
Melvin's Travels
 

Melvin goes to Alexander Bell museum

6-13-14 The only exciting thing that happened yesterday was paying over $5 a gallon for fuel as we drove from Halifax to Baddeck. Today we ventured out to the Alexander Gram Bell museum. I. Learned enough trivia to win Jepordy. However,I was disappointed by the meager display of inventions and prototypes. I had also anticipated taking a tour of his home here, but that is privately owned by a Bell descendant and not open to the public. Oh well, the view of lake Bras d-Or, was quite pleasing to
Castle3

Castle3

0
Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Isle of Pines

New Caledonia is a French colonial possession. The entire country remains under the control of the French. There is a pending election scheduled for 2018 which could result in the independence of the country. The Iles de Pins (French for Isle of Pines) was named by Captain Cook who was impressed by the tall pine trees on this island. Our ship, the m/s Paul Gauguin which operates out of Tahiti is a small cruise ship, 320 passengers plus a crew of about 200. Its small size and shallow draft a
tbutler

tbutler

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