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Journalist Mike Wendland Travels North America in a Class B Motorhome

Entries in this blog

 

RVing Into the Arctic Vortex, Part 2

It took two days and 700 miles – all of it in the face of bitter cold and most of it on snow covered and slippery roads – but we finally made it to Minnesota and saw not a single other RV on the road. “They don’t know what they are missing.” I said to Jen as we dodged logging trucks, snowplows and snowmobilers in the Great White North. Truly, now we know how that saying came about. I have never seen so much white. Not the slushy, dirty snow of the city and suburbs but sparkling clean, pure, dee

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison

I bet many reading this have not heard of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It’s probably not on many RVer’s bucket list. It should be. Invariably, it is compared to its more famous Big Brother, the Grand Canyon. But while the Grand Canyon is deeper (6,000 feet at its greatest depth) and longer (277 miles), the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is an amazing tourist attraction for RVers that is often overlooked because it isn’t surrounded by highly commercialized parks and campgrounds that cater t

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Time to re-winterize

Time to re-winterize It got down to 21 degrees as we spent the night in Kentucky on the way back to Michigan from a brief January visit to Florida and some southern states. Guess it’s time to find some pink stuff and re-winterize. Sigh. That warmer weather down south sure was nice. Tai loved being out in the cold night air with the gusto that only a double coated Norwegian Elkhound can exhibit. I had trouble getting him to come inside for the night. We slept comfortably in our Roadtrek eTre

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Glenwood Springs, Colo., and Colorado River camping

One of the things about traveling by RV that makes it so much fun is the serendipity, the unscheduled things that you just happen upon and, in the moment, take advantage of because, with an RV, you can. Such was the town of Glenwood Springs along I-70 180 miles west of Denver, home of the world’s largest hot springs pool. The hot mineral water has been drawing visitors from all over the world since 1888, when a resort and original spa officially opened for business. But even before that, the U

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Great Lakes Shoreline Tour – Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana

The one thing we have learned on this Verizon Great Lakes Shoreline Roadtreking Tour is that very often, a surprise is literally around the next corner. So it was when we got off the car ferry in Manitowoc, WI, directly across Lake Michigan from Ludington, MI As we made a right turn out of the parking lot, we spotted a submarine. What on earth is a submarine doing in Manitowoc, WS? We had to find out. The sub is docked out front of the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, a fascinating place dedicated t

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

A study in contrast: From the Badlands to the Black Hills

It’s pretty amazing what a few hundred miles can do to the view. That was driven home to us today as we made our way across South Dakota, taking in the vast green prairie and its lush grasslands, the wind-carved canyons, ravines and hoodoos of the Badlands and the rolling thick pine forests of the Black Hills. Our Roadtrek heads across South Dakota, en route to FMCA'S Family Reunion and Motorhome Showcase in Gillette, Wyo.I’d send along a video but I’m barely able to get a cell signal from

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

A winter trip: Up to the UP

http://youtu.be/tTDWY2plCBs It's a long way to Michigan's UP -- 450 miles from my house north of Detroit to Marquette, our destination for the big UP200 dog sled race this weekend. For me, besides the fun of this big event – a qualifier race for Alaska’s famed Idiatrod – it was also a chance to test out the new Roadtrek eTrek in the winter. One thing we learned. Plan on extra time at rest stops. Once people see the eTrek, they ask questions. And want a tour. At the Linwood Rest Stop, two broth

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Every RVer has a bucket list

We all have places we want to see, to explore and experience. A bucket list. At the 40th Anniversary rally of Roadtrek Motorhomes in Branson, Mo., no matter how experienced a traveler we found, we also found that every traveler still has a bucket list. Just ask the question … what’s on your bucket list? You’ll immediately get an answer. Watch the video below. Is your bucket place dream trip mentioned? http://youtu.be/zGnQS8tUNvg About the Author: Mike Wendland is a veteran journalist who tr

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

The wildflowers of Yellowstone

Yellowstone National Park is one of our most favorite places to RV in all of North America. It draws us back and its sheer size and beauty is breathtaking. We couldn’t resist sharing the wildflowers with you. I don’t know the names of them. But I do know they are stunningly beautiful. I think you’ll agree. As macro as the place is, it is also meant to be seen on the micro level, close up. So it was on our most recent trip, which just happened to correspond to the height of the spring wildflo

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Getting Ready to Roll-Grand Canyon Country Here I Come

Getting Ready to Roll-Grand Canyon Country Here I Come This past week has been a busy one for me. I have been sorting out, packing up and checking that all systems are go in my cute little RV. I... Roadtreking : The RV Lifestyle Blog - Traveling North America in a small motorhome Source

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

What Offseason?

We just came back from our latest trip, a 1,000 mile journey that took us to northeastern Pennsylvania and back. We had spent exactly one day at our Michigan home before leaving for that trip, returning from a 2,000 mile journey up to the north shore of Lake Superior the week before. We leave in about 10 days for Mississippi, the Gulf Coast and Florida. In fact, since the so-called RV season ended in October, we’re averaging two long trips a month. That’s about what we do during the summer.

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

How We Roll in Our RV: e-Books and frozen meals

In this week’s edition of "How We Roll in Our RV," readers want to know how we fight boredom while doing all that driving, and what kind of meals we eat in our RV while traveling. I offer my suggestions on finding eBooks, something we both really enjoy listening to while making long drives. Jennifer shares some of her favorite meals for traveling. Keep those questions coming in. We’ll do our best to answer them. We try to do a new edition of How We Roll each week. http://youtu.be/VKhQzs1acJ

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Jennifer: The Interview

Our latest interview is with …ta da … my wife, Jennifer, as suggested by various readers when I asked for ideas on who they’d next like me to interview. And in this one, Jennifer opens up and tells it like it is when she is asked not what her greatest joys are while traveling, but what bugs her the most. I asked the questions you sent me. Her chief frustrations: Finding good food on the road. A refrigerator that is too small and what to do with dirty laundry. We’re using Google Hangouts

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Making the Best of Mountain Monsoons

The people who live in southwest Colorado have big smiles on their faces these days. Us, camped for our last day in the knock-your-socks-off beautiful Mesa Verde National Forest before moving on to Telluride and a few more spots, not so much. t The locals are grinning because the risk of wildfires - which devastated the region last year – is way down now. We’re not quite as appreciative because our plans were altered by a day of mountain monsoons. We had planned to do some video and still be

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Halloween RV Campouts

Halloween RV Campouts The month of October has surprisingly become huge for RV campgrounds, resorts and parks around the U.S. thanks to Halloween. Maybe because for many in the northern states, its a... Roadtreking : The RV Lifestyle Blog - Traveling North America in a small motorhome Source

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Apps for on the road RV travel

Apps for on the road RV travel The RV season is in full swing now with folks traveling to rallies, vacations and long weekend getaways. To help make those trips more fun and travel more convenient, I thought I’d share three more fun apps and web tools that I’ve been having fun with lately. This report was put together for my other [...] Roadtreking | A journalist's RV travels across North America - Traveling North America in search of interesting people and places <a href="http://Roadtr

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

My New Year's RVing Resolutions

I counted eight of them yesterday, four Class A motorhomes, 2 Fifth Wheels and two Travel Trailers, pushing the snow flurries around in their slipstream as they moved down the interstates near my Michigan home. Ands that was what I spotted while I was running a few weekend errands. Truth is, there’s a steady stream of recreational vehicles out there and they will continue to be on the move for the next couple weeks. Migrating Snowbirds. RVers fleeing the winter weather of the north for warmer t

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Phoneless in Colorado

Remember that new Samsung Galaxy 4S that I wrote about two weeks ago -- RVing and My New Smartphone -- Well, that smartphone did a dumb thing: It up and died on me. It won’t charge, won’t power up and is totally dead. And I’m in the middle of a two-week RV trip in the Rockies. I tried all the reset tricks, like removing the battery. Its certifiably dead. Yesterday was the first time in two decades that I was without a cell phone and … I survived. I had my calls forwarded to Jennifer Wendland

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

The Original RV -- The Covered Wagon

The Original RV – The Covered Wagon We RVers have our heritage and it really starts on Interstate 80 in Nebraska, America's heartland. That’s where the Great Platte River Trail became the Oregon Trail. This was the pioneer route that linked east to west. And today, spanning the interstate near the mid-Nebraska town of Kearney, is a must stop for tourists and especially RVers…the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument Of all the places we’ve been to, this is one of the most amazing and

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

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

 

A Visit to the RV Museum: When did Class Bs Start?

A Visit to the RV Museum: When did Class Bs Start? Recently we spent nearly an entire day at the RV/MH Museum in Elkhart, IN, soaking up history of our favorite travel vehicle. They have on display over 35 recreational vehicles... Roadtreking : The RV Lifestyle Blog - Traveling North America in a small motorhome Source

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

How to winterize your RV: VIDEO

How to winterize your RV: VIDEO There’s no stopping it. Winter is here and for RVers in northern climates, it’s time to winterize. Making sure your the plumbing system in your RV is protected against the cold is essential and if it’s not done right, serious damage can occur. There are lots of ways to winterize. Some RV owners do the bare minimum. Others don’t miss any preventative protection steps. The first step is to check the manufacturer’s instruction book. If ever in doubt, follow it.

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

The search for spring

We’re on a we’re-so-tired-of-winter search for spring. It has not been easy. It took almost 800 miles, heading straight down I-75 from our Michigan home. At the Wal-Mart parking lot where we spent the first night in Findlay, Ohio, we parked next to a pile of snow. The overnight temps were in the upper 20s. This was our first time at a Wal-Mart. Except for a couple of big trucks, we were pretty much alone. It was not particularly scenic and there was lots of traffic noise. “You don’t need an al

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Cool things seen at the Pomona RV show

Cool things seen at the Pomona RV show The 2014 Pomona RV show in California has lots to see. Here – in reverse order – are five things I thought were really cool when I visited last weekend. ... Roadtreking : The RV Lifestyle Blog - Traveling North America in a small motorhome Source

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

 

Episode 3 of Roadtreking the RV Podcast

Episode 3 of Roadtreking the RV Podcast It’s time for a new edition of Roadtreking- The RV Podcast. I continue to be overwhelmed by the positive response we’ve had to the first two episodes. I hope you... Roadtreking : The RV Lifestyle Blog - Traveling North America in a small motorhome Source

Roadtrekingmike

Roadtrekingmike

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