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Blogs

Roadtreking Blog
 

How We Roll in Our RV: Air Conditioning and Unattended Pets

It can heat up very fast inside an RV and in this edition of How We Roll in our RV, Jennifer and I answer a question from a reader named Danielle who asks: “I’m thinking about taking my freelance writing business on the road in a small motorhome, and I have a question. I’ll be bringing my dog with me and I’m concerned about leaving her in the RV while running errands. Can a dog overheat in a motorhome as they can in a car? Can the A/C run off the battery while sitting in a parking lot, or would
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Apps to Stay in Touch with Family Members

One of the biggest challenges for couples and families these days is staying connected…and keeping busy and often confusing schedules coordinated. When you throw in an RV and lots of traveling, life can really get complicated. That’s where smartphone technology can really help. I have some great apps I juts shared with my NBC-TV audience this week that will help you stay in touch with your spouse and other family members and bring some organization to those busy schedules. One of the handiest
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Men Don’t Talk in a Duck Blind

I didn’t think I’d make it down the narrow, twisting and very bumpy forest two-track that led to my current camping spot in the middle of a marsh on the edge of Rush Lake, a compact little frown-shaped lake a mile or so south of Lake Huron at the tip of the Michigan thumb. I’m surrounded by state land and cattails, a half dozen yards from where my buddy Jay launched our duck boat. Jay and I have been coming up here to hunt ducks and geese for years. Usually, we stay in a motel in Caseville, th
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

How We Roll in Our RV – Bedding Storage

One of the most asked questions Jennifer and I receive from readers deals with how we sleep in our Roadtrek eTrek Class B motorthome. Our answer is … great! Seriously, we both agree we sleep better in the Roadtrek than we do in our king-sized Sleep Number bed at home. And that has to do with that we sleep on and in while camping out in the Roadtrek. In this edition of How We Roll in our RV, we answer two reader questions about where we store our bedding. We make the eTrek sofa up into a
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Planning for the Next RV Year

Jennifer and I went to the local office supply store over the weekend and picked up a new planning calendar for 2014. It’s one of those big, poster-sized ones with the entire year laid out in neat little blocks for each day of each month. It’s erasable – a good thing with our propensity for last minute trips and change of plans – and right now, it’s blank. But we’re about to start filling it in. We’ve gone through and listed all the places we want to go, the things we want to see, the people we
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

1
Everywhere America
 

Meet Sadie, Our new Bus Dog!

Almost since the day we left Maine, Michelle and I have been thinking about getting a dog......We had a beautiful guy that we fostered a little over three years ago. His name was Sparky and he was 8 or 9 when we got him. We had gone down to the local SPCA to get a puppy, and while we were touring the kennels, we happened to see him. He was very forlorn, just lying quietly in his cage in the midst of all the chaos. We kept coming back to him and finally our guide told us his story. They were not
Jaimepoulin1

Jaimepoulin1

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Travels with the FMCA Prez
 

Is It Over?

Gloria had her surgery and the doctor said that it went as expected. Now it is a waiting game to see how much vision she will have after recovery. Recovery takes some time and we are both impatient for her vision to return to normal. She looks like she has been hit in the eye. The white is red and looks very angry and her eyelid and cheek are bruised. I promise I did not hit her. Being a nurse has not been bad. I pass through the house and ask what I can do to help her but it is time to
AmerEagle07

AmerEagle07

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Questions About Winterizing an RV

We’ve been talking all week about winterizing our RVs. Yes, the time has come .... Those living in the northern states and those who live where the temperatures drop below freezing, can’t put it off much longer. But people still have a lot of questions and as we wrap up our winterizing series, Jennifer and I answer some reader questions about topics that haven’t yet been addressed. In this edition of How We Roll in our RV, we talk about the need to re-winterize when folks head south and then
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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Roadtreking Blog
 

Weather Apps for RVers

No matter what kind of RV we have, one thing that we are all interested in is the weather. Nothing affects traveling more. Across North America, the cold weather is coming fast and that means snow and ice and dicey weather conditions. Thanks to apps, tablets and the Web, you never again need to wonder what its going to be like out there. I’m always installing and uninstalling weather apps. I’ve tried dozens of them and I’m sure I’ll try dozens more in the months ahead. But for now, here’s a rou
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

5
Travels with the FMCA Prez
 

Fall is in the Air

Fall is in the air in Arkansas. We finally arrived home yesterday after two months of traveling and going to rallies and meetings. It rained this morning (which is not unusual for us) and was a dreary day. The colors are beautiful and the coolness in the air tells me we will not have any more hot weather this year. We had a week of meetings for the newly elected AVPs so that they could learn all the things they should know about FMCA as AVPs. The second week of meetings were for FMCA business a
AmerEagle07

AmerEagle07

1
Roadtreking Blog
 

Taxes and Fees for RVs Can Be Very Confusing

One of the most confusing aspects of buying an RV is the vast differences paid in sales tax and various licensing fees. And many states do what is called “double dipping,” charging full sales tax when you buy the vehicle, and then again charging you tax on the full purchase price of a new one when you you trade it in, ignoring the trade-in price. It doesn’t take a genius to know that it is patently unfair. In Michigan at least, that double dip tax is about to go away. State lawmakers are gett
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

4
Tom and Louise on Tour in North America
 

Rolling On!

A month ago we had the close call with fire (see my previous post, Good News, Bad News) in Lander, WY. Leaving Lander we made a dash for California. A night here, two nights there, and next thing you know we are in Valley Springs, CA. Our son-in-law and his father installed a 50A hookup for us on their home so now we can park next to their driveway. What about the lawn you ask? In this part of California, rock and gravel are a natural ground surface and we found the parking spot just made f
tbutler

tbutler

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Roadtreking Blog
 

The RVer's Biggest Danger: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

It has happened again. This time in Alabama at a campground near the Talladega Speedway. Craig Franklin Morgan, 46, of Murfreesboro, Tenn., died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Morgan and his wife, Jami Allison Morgan, 38, were discovered unresponsive by friends who went into their RV at the South Campground outside the track. Jami Morgan was unconscious and was airlifted to a nearby Hospital, where she remained in critical condition and unconscious Monday morning. Police said the carbon monox
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

1
Roadtreking Blog
 

Dancing the Weekend Away on Mackinac Island: Where your RV Can’t Go

RVers aren’t the only ones winding down the season this time of year. So is Mackinac Island, the summer resort island located in the Straits of Mackinac at the tip of the Michigan mitt, right where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron. Next weekend, the place shuts down until spring, with only a single hotel, restaurant and bar left open to serve the several hundred full-time residents and the workmen who come in during the winter to renovate, repair and restore the hotels and shops. Many shops were
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

0
Everywhere America
 

Ready or not.....

We are going to set sail Friday, October 25th. Ready or not, here we go. Michelle thinks I am goofy because I refer to everything on America in nautical terms. The other day she asked me where something was and I told her it was on the starboard side of the bus near the galley. She just looked at me for a minute or two before moving on wordlessly. I know sometimes she looks at the choices she has made in her love life and just thinks quietly "Why?" I say ready or not because although we put
Jaimepoulin1

Jaimepoulin1

4
GrampaDennis' Blog
 

Maine Wheels October 2013 Rally

In early September, we got a "Welcome to FMCA" letter from the Maine Wheels chapter, inviting us to join the chapter and to attend their rallies. They meet once a month,from May through October. We had another commitment on the weekend of the September meet, so we decided to join and attend the October rally. The Maine Wheels met at the Pumpkin Patch RV Resort in Hermon, Maine (near Bangor) on October 11-14. We drove there on Friday evening. This is the first time I have set up the motorhome on
GrampaDennis

GrampaDennis

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Roadtreking Blog
 

RV Boondocking and Elk Watching in the Pigeon River State Forest

Now this is boondocking. We drove 11 miles off the Interstate, down a forest road lined by brilliant yellows and red birches and oaks. Then we turned off that and went a mile and a half off down a washboard two-track, pulling into a state forest campground on a little circular lake aptly named Round Lake. We haven’t seen another car in miles. Its pouring rain. The heater is keeping out the 44-degree weather and we are toasty comfy in our Roadtrek eTrek, watching Game 4 of the American League Pl
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

0
GrampaDennis' Blog
 

Should I have driven this thing up here?

Before our fall foliage trip, Grandma had heard from friends about a road to scenic lookout near Rangeley. She had heard it was a gravel road, but in good condition, and that the view was spectacular. She said it was "Quinn Road on Route 17." Well, Grandma is a bit dyslexic sometimes. It turned out to be Quill Hill and it was on Route 16, between Rangeley and Stratton. When we found the sign, the gravel road off Route 16 looked a little steep, but was well graded. I decided to try it. It
GrampaDennis

GrampaDennis

4
Travels with the FMCA Prez
 

More Rain

We left Cincinnati and it rained on us to Berlin, Ohio. It rained Saturday, and when we left on Sunday it was still raining. We arrived in York, Pa., to cloudy skies but no rain. We got settled in and visited a few people. After dinner on Sunday night, while returning to our motorhome we ran into the Yankee Travelers we had met at Scusset Beach, MA. It was like an old homecoming -- lots of hugs and "I've missed you." It was so good to see them again. It rained on Monday and again on Wednesd
AmerEagle07

AmerEagle07

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GrampaDennis' Blog
 

A Maine Foliage Trip

On September 28th and 29th, Grandma and I took a weekend trip to some very scenic places not far from our home. After watching our grandson's Saturday morning soccer game, we headed up Route 17, which passes through our town, and continued to its end in Oquossoc. From there, we took Route 16, through Rangeley, to Stratton. From Stratton, we headed north up Route 27 to Eustis, where we stayed overnight at Cathedral Pines CG. On Sunday, we followed Route 27 south through Bigelow and Carabasset to
GrampaDennis

GrampaDennis

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Roadtreking Blog
 

As the RVing Days Dwindle Down

The temperature outside my Roadtrek in the driveway of our Michigan home was 34 degrees this morning. That’s the coldest yet this season and a reminder that soon, there will be no putting off the fact that it needs to be winterized. We still have a couple of long weekend trips planned and I am hoping that I can do them without pushing antifreeze down all the pipes. It’s funny, really, because even when the RV is winterized, there’s no reason I can’t use it. You just carry drinking water and us
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

1
Roadtreking Blog
 

Crossing the Mackinac Bridge in an RV

Spanning the two Michigan peninsulas is the Mackinac Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the western hemisphere. It is always a highlight of our trips to the Upper Peninsula. When you say “Big Mac” to a Michigander, the bridge is what they think of, not the hamburger. Counting the approaches, the bridge is five miles long. What makes it so interesting is the very nature of its construction. A suspension bridge is designed to move to accommodate wind. And high above the Straits of Mack
Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

0
GrampaDennis' Blog
 

Prince Edward Island Trip - Part 2

On the way to PEI, we had taken a northerly route from Moncton, via Rotue 15 by Shediac. To see something different, we decided to take the southern route by Sackville. Grandma was navigating and she suggested we take Route 106 through Dieppe and Moncton, thinking it would save some distance, compared to TransCanada Route 2 around the north side of Moncton. It may have saved us distance, but I don't believe it saved any time, as it led right through the heart of the city. As we were coming to t
GrampaDennis

GrampaDennis

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