tbutler

Newfoundlanders wouldn't call it the outback, that's an Australian term. I'm referring to the places that are as far from the TransCanada Highway as you can get in Newfoundland. As with the outback of Australia, the connections to the modern world fade quickly and the natural world and early history emerge. We found some wonderful places on our way to the tips of a few of the fingers of land that are so common in Newfoundland. Leaving the capitol city, St. John's, we traveled to Placentia and stayed in an RV park near where the long ferry to Newfoundland makes its landing, Argentia. It isn't far from St. John's, just 98 miles, about 160 kilometers. The park had full hookups including 50A electric but no wifi. There was a visitors center less than a mile away where we stopped each day to connect and get our updates on things personal and business. It's an inconvenience that cuts into our exploring and sightseeing time and thus the number of things we can see during a day. Hint for the Chamber of Commerce, Internet is essential for tourists. It is true for us retirees and I can't imagine our grandchildren going anywhere they can't tap into the internet. Placentia is located on the western side of the Avalon Peninsula. If you don't have a map, picture the Avalon Peninsula as a big W. The first stroke of the W is where the Avalon Peninsula attaches to mainland Newfoundland. Each of the remaining strokes make a separate and unnamed peninsula, south, then north, then south again, and finally north. That last one is where St. John's is located. Placentia is on the lower portion of the first downstroke. It was a convenient base for our exploration of that peninsula. History here begins with Basque fishermen who came for the cod. They were followed by the French and the English so there were forts built because at the time each country was struggling for dominance of that part of the world. We toured the old French fort, Fort Royal, and learned of the hardships of early life on the island. The French eventually ceded the area to England and the English occupied the fort for a short period of time. They abandoned the fort in 1811 as England prepared to invade the United States in the War of 1812. We drove to the southern tip of the peninsula on another day and visited the Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve. The road down the peninsula was in poor condition (a charitable description). The had occasional markers out for "bump ahead" and "potholes ahead" which made us laugh. We never figured out what made them select certain bumps and potholes for signage. They could have put a sign on the road leaving Placentia indicating bumps and potholes next 60 kilometers! We dodged and bumped our way along, arriving at Cape St. Mary's about noon. Every birder knows that the best birding is early in the morning but we were here near noon. Still, we headed down the trail to the overlook to see birds. What a grand surprise we received. We were treated to magnificent views of nesting birds. The most spectacular were the Northern Gannets (see the photo with this posting). I fell in love with these birds when we first saw them on one of our first trips after we arrived. We got just a few distant glimpses as they were flying by but they were extremely graceful fliers and quite beautiful in binoculars. Since then we have watched them diving headfirst into the ocean to catch fish. Not just diving into the ocean, plunging vertically from a height of 30 or more feet into the ocean with hardly a splash. Now we were looking at their nests. These are pelagic birds, birds that spend most of their life at sea. They only come to land to nest, before returning back to the sea. Here they were with their fuzzy chicks, covering every possible spot on a large rock just off shore. We viewed them with binoculars and a scope that I tote around for just such occasions. There were gulls also, the Black-legged Kittiwake. These are also pelagic, spending most of their adult lives at sea. The young were old enough to practice flying and were particularly entertaining. They must learn fast. They will be flying away in the next month and they won't return to land for three years. We also saw Common Murres. How common are they? They are so common that they are hunted here in Newfoiundland. The natives call the Turres and they are allowed to hunt them here in Newfoundland because it is a traditional game bird here. We saw thousands of them on the cliffs, each tending a nest, raising a single chick. The Common Murres are also pelagic and rarely seen from land except when nesting. Leaving Placentia, we drove northeast to the peninsula which makes up the middle of the W. We found a park near Green's Harbour. It was a large park and we got a pull in spot. Yes, we pulled into the spot, the utilities were on the proper side then. When we left we backed out of the site. The site had at one time been occupied by people who stayed there as "permanent" renters. They had fixed up the site so it was much nicer than any of the others in the park. It was easily the nicest site we had anywhere in Newfoundland. It was level, paved with a clean dark red rock and surrounded with small trees but they were well trimmed and presented no problems. We had full hookups and no wifi. There was internet access at the office, a short walk from our site. Still not the convenience of relaxing in the motor home using the internet. From Green's Harbour we went south to the town of Dil--, yes, I know, but that is the name. It was named for one of the town founders. That's a name that would be changed today! The Di-do Dory Grill had been recommended to us so we had to give it a try. They had easily the best fish and chips I've ever had. The cod was spectacular and the fries were quite good, not greasy. Traveling north up the west side of the peninsula we stopped at Heart's Delight to visit the Cable Station. Heart's Delight is where the first trans-Atlantic Cable came ashore. We saw the actual cable and its successors on the beach and in the building. There was a short movie introduction and then we toured a massive display of the equipment and history of the cable station. Incoming Morse Code messages were received here and transmitted on to the rest of America. The first successful cable came ashore in 1911 and the station closed in 1965. For 54 years, this was a hub for communication between Europe and North America. This museum far exceeded my expectations and I would recommend it to anyone. Its displays touched on the impact of the business on the community, to women,s employment in Newfoundland and the history of communications. At the northern tip of the peninsula we walked among old rock fences that the first settlers used to mark their fields and pastures. The community of Grates Cove was representative of many fishing villages we have seen. Small roads branch off to houses that dot the hillsides. The amenities are few. There is a post office in most every village. A few have service stations which double as the grocery. Most of these villages have only housing. All have a dock or series of docks. The larger ones have a fishery were fish are processed and shipped to market. There isn't much for tourists in these towns other than their picturesque nature. We left the Avalon Peninsula traveling north toward Gambo. We had already explored the Bonavista Peninsula and Terra Nova National Park so we continued past them. At Gambo we turned north on Highway 340 and this time took a different approach. We decided to take the motor home on the loop around the Gander Peninsula. We had seen part of this peninsula making a day trip out of Gander to Twillingate. This trip rewarded us with wonderful scenery which is much better seen from the high seats and single glass windshield for a panoramic view. I don't think that I have mentioned the amazing presence of water in Newfoundland but everywhere we travel there are lakes, ponds, bays, harbors, and thousands of puddles and wet bogs. Water is literally everywhere, fresh water, bog water, sea water. In fact Newfoundlanders have a variety of humorous songs. One of my favorites is... "Thank God We're Surrounded by Water." Look up the lyrics on the internet, you can even find a link to a You Tube version of the song. I finally found a copy on an album, Good Work... If You Can Get It!, by The Government Rams. We heard this in the -ildo Dory Grill but the waiter couldn't identify the group. So our journey from Gambo north to Newtown was highlighted by lakes, ponds and other bodies of water all with scattered boulders from glaciers dotting the shallow waters. In Newtown we stopped to drive through town. With forty feet of motor home and a car in tow this is always a risk but we found a wonderful spot to pull off in the only loop in town. That turned out to be where the history tour of Newtown started out so we signed up and took the two hour tour led by two rosy cheeked young men. We saw an old school house complete with old classic school books, a fishing shed with tools for cleaning fish and two houses belonging to several generations of a fishing family. We found a spot to pull off near Musgrave Harbour to spend the night along the roadside. By the afternoon of the next day we were in Deer Lake on the western side of Newfoundland. Deer lake would be the jumping off point for our next great exploration, Gros Morne National Park and the Northern Peninsula. We laid in provisions, food and fuel, after a good nights sleep on the Royal Canadian Legion parking lot in Deer Creek. By ten o'clock we were on our way.

We have insurance through GEICO and they offer an umbrella liability plan that covers the motor home, campsite and our car as well. Geico recommended this as a way to save money, purchasing lower liability insurance on the motor home and car and then making up the difference with the umbrella policy. Our policy costs $218 per year for 300,000 per incident, $500,000 total coverage. That cost may vary depending on your locality. If you are renting your lot out, it could be considered a commercial property and there may be differences in the coverage you would have to purchase.

Well Carl, Thanks, you said what I would have said! Mission is the west end of the resort area. There are many parks there, small and large. Some are quite nice with paved roads and many activities, others are simpler, gravel and grass. You can find something to match your interests. Several in the Mission area are near Bentsen State Park which is a popular area for birding. There are also several there that have large dance halls if that is your interest. In fact, you should be able to find a park that just fits your needs and interests somewhere in the RGV. This link has 25 parks in the valley that are described as resort-retirement parks. This link is the RV Park Reviews for Mission, Texas. It lists 21 parks near Mission, Texas. This includes reviews from people who have stayed at these parks. I use RV Park Reviews as a primary source when hunting for parks in an unfamiliar area. This link is more the Chamber of Commerce type information but has an area map that may be helpful in searching for parks. All of the communities in the RGV have many RV Parks. There are over 70 in the RGV at last count. That is why I would suggest coming and spending a short time at one park while you explore the area and look at other parks that you think might interest you. The last few years there have been open spaces at most parks so advance reservations might get you a better site but you should be able to find a place at most parks just by showing up!

Where are you starting from? Would it be possible to travel for a day or two using rest stops, etc. before using the on board facilities? If so you might be able to get far enough south to escape the hard freeze temperatures before you have fluids in the tank. I would be extremely careful using any kind of light bulb as a source of heat. Make sure there are no flammable materials (or meltable plastics) possible to contact the bulb. In a closed compartment, a small light bulb should easily keep the temperature above freezing. An alternative may be to wrap the exposed plumbing with insulation. Fluids in the tanks would then keep the valves from freezing.

That's a killer list Andy! We're a lot less formal but have some key reminders that we use. We got one of those antenna tags they sell at Camping world with a clip that I attach to the ignition key ring when we put the antenna up (which these days is almost never - makes it even more important). I use wheel chocks on the left rear wheel - by the utility connections. I store them in the electrical compartment. For our slides, the engine has to be off to operate but we are to be plugged in (or generator running) to supply electrical power to the electric motors. So we are plugged in until ready to go. Once slides are in, I disconnect the electric and store the chocks. Then check the water and sewer connections to ensure that I haven't left something laying on the ground or attached to the water outlet. I walk around, checking to see that all slides are in tight, check by physically pushing each storage compartment door to ensure they are shut tight. Louise takes care of the inside and she has her regular routine that she follows starting in the rear of the motor home and working her way forward, clearing each space as she comes forward. Securing cabinet doors and refrigerator door, storing any loose items, etc. With the toad, she works the inside and do the outside connections. Everything has a routine order and when we complete we stop and look over the entire set of connections. Then we check lights, pull forward while Louise verifies the tow arms are locked in place. Before pulling out, the step cover is put in place and the door is electronically locked which also locks the outside compartments. Set the GPS and carefully check traffic and children and the indicator panel on the dash. Away we go! One thing to watch out for is interruptions in your routine. If something throws you off your routine - even with a checklist - you will be prone to skipping something. It can be a visitor from another campsite, a phone call or text message or almost any other interruption. When that happens and it will, stop and go back to the last thing you were working on and mentally restart that activity to ensure you completed it before going on to the next. When you catch an "oops" make note of it and find a reminder to help you remember to get that done from now on. Build your own checklist or your own routine. We're on the road almost constantly so the routine is practiced regularly. At the beginning of a long stay it is more important to go through things carefully and if you travel only occasionally, a checklist, followed item by item would be the only way for me.

Do as Brett says, if you find all well, then the following may give you another avenue to follow. We have a Xantrex 3000W inverter. It is an older model. Ours was discontinued shortly after Camping World put it on special sale! Anyway, it replaced an older Xantrex that had failed after many years of service. It took several years and many visits to shops until I could find someone who could properly program the new unit to get the auto generator start function to work properly. It was all in the menu choices, not the wiring in our case. Techs would check the wiring but nobody looked at the settings in the programming closely enough to find the problem or it could be that they simply didn't understand the program settings. Yours may be a similar problem. I read the manual and with my understanding could not get the thing to work. There was one setting that was labeled triggers and I assume that meant things that would turn on the generator. Turns out it wasn't so and that setting was the problem. I talked with Xantrex, hours on the phone, went to several Xantrex linked repair shops, none of them could find and correct the problem. Camping World was useless. It was finally at the Monaco Factory Service Center in Coburg, OR that I got a technician who found the incorrect setting and got the auto gen start working. Once he told me what the problem was, it was so simple but I had no clue from the information in the manual. While our problems were different, I would spend some time with the settings that control the inverter. Start by resetting the unit. For ours it means pushing a red button on the unit itself. Then go item by item through the menu while you read information for that setting in the manual. If that is doesn't work, go to Xantrex for help. Be prepared to give them the model and serial number and be at the controls so you can have them talk you through checks and settings. Maybe they can identify the problem for you. The magic in my opinion is finding someone who really knows and understands the system and then being able to communicate to them the conditions that you see before you.

Our inverter is integrated into everything in our coach. I think that any attempt to remove it would result in significant re-wiring to get everything working properly. We replaced ours several years ago but use it continuously. We would never remove the inverter, it is one of the great conveniences of our coach. I'm sure the coach could be driven safely without the inverter being in the coach, the engine side of the system is separate from the house side which the inverter supports.

We were next to a motor home that went up in flames several years ago. Both individuals were older adults, not very agile and not fit and trim. They both came out the window, scratched and bruised but alive! The front door was not an option as the fire started in the front of the coach. They had no ladder and also had no other choice than to bail out the bedroom window. When you have to do it, you will! The prop to hold the window is probably a very good idea, the ladder would be nice but when it comes to getting out, anything is better than the alternative. Unfortunately, they had pets, cat and dog. Both were lost in the fire. Cause of the fire was undetermined at the time we left the park. It started in the front in a gas coach, front engine. Something in the engine compartment seemed to have been the cause. Their propane tank was not involved in the fire, Everything above the floor was burned, tires went but the propane tank didn't. From initial smoke to fully involved happened within just a few minutes. I never heard a smoke alarm go off. Check yours today!

Call the phone number Brett gave you, it is the same number that should be in your owners manual. It is answered in Oregon I believe so you may need to adjust for time differences when calling. You should get the same excellent service you have always received.

I had one that was the extender, doing the same thing you are describing. I can't remember exactly what the problem was but replacing the extender solved the problem. Three PSI per minute sounds maybe a little slow but it does take a while to put enough air into those big tires to make a change in pressure. I have a chuck that has groves on the inside, it locks onto the valve when you tilt it slightly to the side. That way I don't have to hold it the entire time. Occasionally it won't lock on but most of the time it works fine. By the way, I can air my bicycle tires up to 100 pounds in about 1 second with my air compressor.

Wayne, A favorite for us on or near 101 is the Redwoods area in northern CA. We also love Astoria, OR. For some exercise you can climb the Astoria Column! They have a great Marine Museum that features the Columbia River and the navigation challenges it presents for ships entering and leaving the river. A short detour out of Portland to the east will take you up the Columbia Gorge. There is a smaller highway just off Interstate 84, labeled on my map program the Historic Columbia River Road. It is a great car drive, you can make many stops along the route, one waterfall after another coming off the northern slopes of Mt.Hood to the Columbia River. Multnomah Falls is one of the most famous. Our daughter and her family have a summer home near Elkton, OR. We visited them last year in October, likely be there again this October. Just north of the Umpqua River is the town of Gardner, a nice place to visit with shops and restaurants. Just south of there is Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. We stayed at a campground just a few miles south of the Umpquah River that is nestled into the dunes, right on 101, can't find the name right now. You can rent 4 wheelers to explore the dunes or take a tour with a tour operator in that area. Hwy 101 through Oregon and Washington will be slow (curves and hills) in spots but well worth the time spent. Not all who wander are lost! Enjoy the trip.

Having owned 5th wheel trailers, you will be familiar with many of the systems and features common on motor homes. A built-in generator and inverter system that are integrated into your vehicle may be new and may take some time to figure out. Leveling will be a new and should be simpler process now. You may find that the ability to level isn't quite what you are used to with 5th wheels. A big one, assuming that you are towing a car is that you won't be able to back up easily. Backing up for us means unhooking and if continuing on our way, reattaching the toad. Given this information, you learn to be slower and more judicious about pulling into unknown areas. I was observing yesterday, the campground we are in here in St. John's, Newfoundland is a bit confusing. Those towing 5th wheels came rolling in at a good pace and weren't pausing to look things over. Motor homes were coming in slowly, pausing to figure out the road system and then proceeding slowly toward their assigned parking spot. You really don't want to be driving around a lot in tight spaces like campgrounds and parking lots. You are driving a much heavier vehicle now. I would guess the total weight is 70% to 100% greater than the typical pickup truck and 5th wheel combination. Adjust your following distance and stopping distances accordingly. Start thinking of yourself as a truck driver, not an auto driver. You will accelerate slower and stopping takes longer. When I drive I tend to follow the truck rules and directions, speed limits, route restrictions, road construction lane designations, etc. Know the height of your vehicle and watch the roof at service stations and bridges, etc. This is likely to be easier as you will be sitting in the nose of your coach, near the roof. You may have second thoughts about some clearances now that you see them closer to roof level. Trust the numbers but slow down and be ready to stop if in doubt. Driving a diesel pusher puts you in the drivers seat in front of your front wheels. That can be a bit disorienting at first. You will adjust your thinking to account for this. When they teach driving for these coaches, they will tell you to realize and think of the wheels being just behind your seat when making turns. The sharper the turn, the more extreme this affects your planned turn. You are driving a long wheelbase vehicle now and there are no sharp turns. You've been thinking in terms of the trailer, now you have to consider the vehicle you are driving. Here you are much more like a bus than a truck driver. You have to swing wide to get the rear wheels to clear the curb. Left turns are generally easy if you don't cut the turn short and get into the left turn lane of the cross road. Right turns in some cases will require a clear left turn lane in the cross road so you can swing wide enough to clear a curb. Positioning yourself away from the curb before a right turn can help. Sometimes that even means taking part of the left lane next to you. Unlike driving with a trailer, the motor home won't bend in the middle! At FMCA Family Reunions or Conventions there is usually a safety class run by the RV Safety and Education Foundation, RVSEF. They conduct classes for motor home drivers at those conventions. It is a paid class and is well worth the money. When I took the class it was 8 hours over a two day span. They were very thorough covering many aspects of vehicle safety. They also offer weighing for coaches at these rallies. Usually at the end when you are packed up and on the road they will have a location where you can get your motor home weighed. Unlike a truck stop weigh scale, these scales are put under each individual wheel. It s very easy to load the coach in such a way that one wheel may be carrying much more weight than another. In addition our vehicles vary considerably in weight due to changes in fuel, propane, fresh water and waste water carried at any given time. Tire care and tire pressure are critical. You need to know what weight you carry and have your tires inflated to the proper pressure to support that weight. If you run your tires with lower pressure than needed, they will fail. Tire failure is more exciting in a large heavy vehicle than most people want to experience. RVSEF has videos and also lists rallies where they will be attending to offer classes. Also at FMCA Rallies there are classes for your driving companion which include a chance to drive a coach with an instructor. It is always a good idea to have two trained and experienced drivers. Keep your favorite non-alcoholic refreshment in the fridge. Don't let anyone walk around in the coach when maneuvering. When the road is straight and smooth you may be able to get snack service but don't make any sudden turns or stops while passengers are out of their seat belts! Enjoy the ride. We love the convenience of our motor home and have enjoyed it thoroughly over the years. Obviously, we still do! Welcome to FMCA!

It sounds like your are having a great adventure. Regarding the pace and the cost of fuel, I would suggest you slow the pace, stay a while in a location before moving on. Less driving and more exploring will be more rewarding and a lot less hectic. When you were at Mount Rushmore did you do any hiking? There are great trails, short and long to explore in the Black Hills. Did you visit the Crazy Horse Monument? There is a great Native American museum on site and the monument is a story in determination. How about a drive through Custer State Park? They have roaming herds of bison that you will never forget once you see them. In Hot Springs just south of there they have a wonderful paleontological site, Mammoth Hot Springs is where many of these giants were trapped in a spring and died, were buried and now we're digging up the fossils. To the east of Mount Rushmore along I-90 is Badlands National Park with its stark and beautiful landscape. If the weather is cool you can hike if not, just take pictures and enjoy the scenery. We were there with our grandsons and did all these things several years ago. All these things are located close together so you aren't driving great distances to get to attractions and you'll have time to relax and sit beside the fire in the evening. Doing some trip planning before hand and finding a number of interesting things near your destination, check with tourist bureaus, most states and many localities have them on line now, get some advice here on the FMCA Forum and go out and have another great trip soon.

Not all step covers installed by Monaco are operated by air pressure. Ours is a mechanical operation. Look for the fuse where Herman has indicated, basically under the drivers left foot and accessed thought the panel on the outside of the coach in front of the left front wheel. I have had one time when our step cover got jammed a bit and the track system which pushes it into place got off track. I had to get out and work underneath to get it back on track. Once fixed it has worked properly ever since. Ours is motor operated and there is always the possibility of motor burn-out or simply a loose wire.

Here are Tom's ABC's of plumbing in motor homes. I'm not a licensed plumber and not a motor home technician but I've done quite a bit of plumbing and work assisting plumbers and looking over their shoulders while the work. After living in a motor home for ten years I've seen almost all the plumbing in our coach. The problem isn't that the dryer doesn't have its own vent. In fact our coach has only one vent for all the grey and black water. That vent is designed to let air flow out of the grey or black water tanks as the waste water feeds into the tank. It is simply a pressure relief system for the storage tanks. Several people are mentioning small vents that are located under sinks. When you pull the stopper on a sink full of water the water will fill the drain line and can siphon water out the trap under the sink if a vent doesn't allow some air to enter the pipe below the trap to break the siphon. The under sink vents are used simply to allow water from the sink to flow down the drain without siphoning the trap. If these leak, they can also allow odors from the tank to enter the coach. As mentioned above, they can be replaced. If you have a roof vent for each fixture then you likely don't have the vacuum breakers under each sink. Your manufacturer chose to use the roof vent as the vacuum breaker for that drain. In some cases, if the drain line from the fixture is short enough from the fixture to the tank a siphon may not occur and that drain may not have any vacuum breaker installed. For sinks, showers and washing machines, the drain will have a S trap or a P trap in many cases. I understand that some have a flapper valve arrangement, our coach does not. The flapper style valve is designed to be a one way valve allowing water to go down but not come back. If that is a problem you have to replace the entire flapper valve. For the S or P traps, as you travel down the road, the coach rocks and bounces. This moves the water in the S or P trap and will slosh the water out of the trap, a little at a time. Once there is not enough water to fill the bottom of the S or P trap, an opening exists between the grey water tank and the coach. Then you get tank odor. In the case of the unused washing machine trap, you have a third factor as well. The water in any S or P trap evaporates. The evaporation is slow and in most cases negligible. If a drain isn't used frequently, the trap can dry out creating the same problem as sloshing the water from the drain. When you have a trap with little water in it as a result of evaporation and then you slosh it there will be some escape of tank gases into the coach. The solution is to keep the traps filled with water. Pour a little water down the drain if that drain hasn't been used lately and your problem should be solved. This applies to shower and sink drains as well as the washer. If you don't use the shower in your coach, it's drain will go dry and allow tank odor to enter your coach. I mentioned above that we've had this problem with the washer/dryer in our coach. The W/D is located in the bottom of the closet with a shelf that covers it. There is a removable panel in the rear so you can access hoses and the drain but it is a pain to remove everything from the shelf and get to the panel in the back. Then you are challenged to get the water poured into the drain without spilling it everywhere else. I drilled a small hole in the removable panel and installed a transmission fill funnel (a funnel with an 16 or 18 inch long tube attached) so that the extended tube is in the washer drain tube. The top of the funnel is in the back of the closet. I screwed it to the closet wall to hold it in place. Now if we're traveling and haven't used the W/D recently we simply pour a glass of water into the funnel. If I need to remove the panel in the rear for some reason, I unscrew one screw, remove the funnel and the access panel can be removed. In the case of plumbing installed for a washer but the washer has been removed or was never installed, that plumbing should have a permanent seal installed. Purchase a cap at a hardware store and either friction fit it on the top of the pipe or glue it to the top of the pipe. The pipe can usually be trimmed to remove the cap if you glue it on. That can be difficult with the close tolerances in motor homes so I would probably just push the cap on tightly, maybe a tap with a hammer and that should be a good enough seal. For the toilet the valve in the bottom of the toilet bowl seals that vent. There is also the seal at the bottom of the toilet fixture where it joins the plumbing at the floor level. If that seal has deteriorated or if it is not installed properly it can leak odor from the black tank into the coach. We had that problem a few years ago. I got a new seal and went to install it. I found the original seal had been improperly seated when some work was done on the toilet. I reseated the seal properly and the old seal is still holding. I have the new one in case I ever need to replace the old one. If all your drains are working properly and seals where used are good, tank odor should not be a problem. If you have to add chemical to a tank to control the odor in the coach you have a plumbing problem. I do add chemical to the black tank in order to help break down tissue and to help keep the tank clean. Nothing is going to make the black water tank smell good. Never flush the toilet when the ceiling fan is running!

We left Gander, Newfoundland, on Friday, July 31 on our way to St. John's, NL. Along the way we passed through Terra Nova National Park. We spent several hours at the visitor's center and did some hiking around the area. We had hoped to stay in the park for several days to do further exploration but there were no spaces suitable for us in the campgrounds. They do have some spaces that we could fit into but they were already taken so we continued on late in the afternoon. Coming into Clarenville just south of Terra Nova we stopped at the visitors center as it looked like a good place to spend the night. Pulling into the parking lot we noticed a sign prohibiting overnight parking. We decided to ask if they had suggestions for places to stay. It turns out there was a Walmart less than a mile from the visitor's center. We asked about things to be seen in the area. Clarenville is located at the inland end of a long peninsula. This is typical topography for Newfoundland. We find that we are exploring Newfoundland one peninsula at a time. In this case, we parked the motor home at Walmart and took the car to explore the peninsula the next day. Driving down the peninsula is always a slow process. There is one road, it goes through towns and speed limits are slower. The roads are rough in places and speed limits for the roads tend to max out at 80 KPH, about 55 MPH. Get off the main road and things go downhill rapidly. Potholes, dips, broken surface and just plain gravel and dirt roads are the rule, not the exception. Anyway it takes a while to get anywhere on these peninsulas. We set out on Saturday morning for a coastal hike, the Skerwink Trail, a 4.5 kilometer loop out of the town of East Trinity. Billed as one of the most beautiful hiking trails by Travel and Leisure Magazine. It lived up to its billing. The coastline is mostly seacliffs with sea stacks in many locations. Sea stacks are just sea cliffs that have been eroded away, separating them from the mainland. They are isolated pillars standing just off the coast. The trail skirts the edge of the cliffs so there is a constant scenic view of the bay, the coastal cliffs and the sea stacks. We spent a good four hours on the trail. I'm taking pictures so the time required to travel is directly related to the quality of the scenery. On the trail we encountered a number of other hikers. One of the first groups to catch up and pass us was another retired couple, residents of the Toronto area. They recognized us a hikers, not just tourists out for a walk. We visited for a while and they tipped us off to several other hikes that were musts in Newfoundland. They also mentioned a location where we could see Puffins. It wasn't far from where we were so we put that on our list, one more thing to do today. Following the hike we set out immediately for Elliston. Remember what I said about secondary roads. The road to Elliston was 15 kilometers of all the things listed above, continuously, never any good pavement, creeping along we were the Butler bobbleheads. Once in Elliston we had to find the exact location to see these Puffins. After a missed try a friendly gentleman gave us directions and we found the trail head to the Puffin viewing area. The trail led out toward the sea over one potential sea stack and then another before we finally ended up on a third about-to-be sea stack to be looking out at an actual sea stack. On that sea stack, the top covered with grasses and low plants, there were Puffins. Several hundred Puffins. This was a rookery. Puffins are pelagic birds, they spend most of their lives at sea. They are here on land only briefly to raise a chick and then they will return to the sea. Their nests are burrows, deep underground, up to six feet below the surface. That is where the egg is laid and the Puffin chick stays there until big enough to fly. Even at that the gulls and other predators will get most of the chicks. The few that survive will spend their next four to six years a sea before they return to land to breed and raise a chick. So here we are, gazing across about 100 feet of air at this Puffin rookery. Their antics are quite entertaining, they walk funny, they fly as if they are hummingbird wannabees. Their short stubby wings are a blur. When they land they are quite entertaining with their red feet dangling as if they are stretching out for the land all the time the wings are beating like crazy. Their bills are beautiful in their breeding plumage, a blue vertical stripe accents the red tip of a massive bill. It is really a very strange looking bird which makes it even more interesting. Another visitor to the site told us that if we stand back toward the center of the area they would land on our piece of real estate. We backed away and in just a few minutes we had Puffins within ten feet. Now that was a real nice look at these amazing birds. I took pictures, clicking them off as fast as possible. I had to stop now and then to wipe the moisture off the lens as the humidity was very high and everything was moist. It is late in the day and fog is starting to form. One memory card is filled with Puffin pictures, pop in the next one and take more pictures. One bird is walking directly toward me. I keep zooming out with my telephoto to be able to get the entire bird in the picture. I finally gave up, it was cold, breezy and damp. My hands were getting stiff from the cold. We hiked back to the car carrying with us some great pictures of Puffins. These pictures were more than I would have ever thought possible. Driving on into Bonavista on Saturday night we used the last light of day to locate a statue of John Cabot at the place where he landed in 1497 and wrote in his log book about this new found land. We snapped pictures, using flash to get enough light for a good picture of us. The statue remained too dark for detail until I took pictures of it by itself. Then we found a Subway shop in a quick shop and picked up dinner for the road. An hour and a half later we were back at the motor home. We slept in on Sunday morning. Walmart didn't open until 10:00 and we were on our way shortly after that. Since then we've moved on to St. John's and are in the campground in Pippy Park. Today, Monday, we had an appointment for a Puffin and Whale Boat Tour. We did some additional hiking in the morning, got lunch and then arrived before the appointed time to check in for the tour. Setting out from Bay Bulls, we saw about five whales, humbacks, a mother and calf swimming together in the bay. Then we turned our attention to the Puffin rookery in the Witless Bay Ecological Preserve. This a group of five islands lying just offshore. Each of the islands hosts thousands of breeding birds. There are many different species, Puffins being only one. Throughout the trip we are seeing Puffins flying, resting on the water, diving to catch fish. As we approach one of the islands you can see Puffins flying in the air, hundreds of Puffins flying in the air. It is like watching the activity around a bee hive only these are birds. It reminds me of bats at Carlsbad Caverns if you have ever witnessed that phenomenon. Not as many, not quite as thick as the bats. There are Puffins everywhere. On land there are thousands. Unlike the previous experience we are on a rocking boat. The chance to get good pictures of individual Puffins was yesterdays experience. Today we are seeing a different aspect of Puffins. The activity of a monster colony of Puffins is amazing to witness and something that we saw on a much smaller scale the day before. Isn't it amazing, my best Puffin pictures are the result of a casual conversation we had with fellow hikers we met on the trail. We don't stop and talk with many hikers, I'm sure they also pass by many groups without more than exchanging pleasant greetings. We sensed a common interest and that led to a conversation, which led us to see Puffins up close. And Louise, my lovely Louise, will hike until she can go no more than go further to see the Puffins and stand in the cold offering assistance with equipment as we work as a team to experience the wonders of nature and get these amazing pictures.

Good advice above. We stop along the road at rest areas, sometimes for overnight but a good place to get out and walk for a few minutes, look over the rig, check the toad and its attachments, etc. Picnic areas will serve the same purpose in some cases. As rbarkleyii mentions, scope them out carefully before entering to make sure there is an outlet without a turn-around needed. Scenic stops are another temporary or in some cases overnight stop. In many cases my GPS has enough detail that I can see the entry and exit roads for picnic and scenic areas and other small parking lots along the highway. In towns, the above mentioned stores are excellent, sometimes an out-of-business property will work if it isn't posted. In some cases we've stayed on grocery store lots with permission. We always ask if there is someone available to ask. Temporary stops can be done on wide streets, parking like cars at the curb in a vacant section. This works even in very small towns in some areas. I've done this in a few larger towns, once near a hospital so I could get Louise in for an emergency check. We've stayed overnight in shopping center, parked next to a Bed, Bath and Beyond. The manager came out to ask us to move as we were in his preferred employee parking area. We had the nicest conversation and he gave us some great advice about local traffic and we parted best of friends. That like a number of other times was well after dark when we arrived and we had no where else to go. Another time in California we pulled into a small town. There was one shop in a small strip mall just closing, I asked the owner if we could park and she agreed, just asked us to be gone by a certain time in the morning. Every state has its own quirks. In Montana they have historical stops with pull-outs. These make great lunch stops or rest stops to get out and walk. I've never stayed overnight in one but I guess you could. We prefer if possible to get off the roadway as far as possible. we have stayed in parking areas adjacent to highways if they are wide enough so we can get away from the roadway. There are truck parking areas in Wyoming that are large gravel lots. We overnight in them when we are traveling through. Kansas has rest areas with an RV loop that make for great overnight stays if you can pull to the side far enough to allow other traffic to pass. We generally avoid truck stops but have used them a few times when it is late and we are needing a place to pull up for the night. They tend to be noisy and sometimes quite dirty. Trucks can back up and it may not be possible to find a pull through spot. There is an excellent app for iPhone, All-Stays Camp and RV which has Walmart/Sams, campgrounds and dump stations. The Walmart stores are coded as no parking (in red) and ask to park (in blue). There is a little brother, All-Stays ONP Walmart which has the same information as the other for Walmart but doesn't have the campground information. I like the campground listing, has many more than in the large phone book guide books. Many are not suitable for a large motor home but there are some that are quite nice and just not in any guide book. You have to pay for this app but it is way cheaper than the big book! One tip, when hunting for that perfect stopping spot it pays to slow down. You need time to assess an area and then make a decision and still have time to stop to take advantage of the place. This can be difficult when you are in heavy traffic. I've passed more than a few spots that would have been suitable but turning around and going back can sometimes be quite difficult. After 14 years on the road, we have many spots that are favorites along the routes we travel every year.

I just ran this through my GPS program and as I see it there are two choices. The easy route is about 170 miles and the direct route is 88 miles. Bentonville to Joplin to Springfield to Branson is the easy route, US 79/I-49 North to Joplin, I-44 East to Springfield, US 65 South to Branson. The direct route will likely take you as long and will wear you out but save fuel and money. US 62 to Gateway, US 37 to near Cassville, US 76 to Branson. Being a life-long resident of Missouri, I've made many a trip to and through the Ozarks. Not fun in a car, I've never done it in a motor home. I'm not afraid of driving small roads and may well take the shorter route. I haven't checked for low clearances, I would definitely take a look at the clearances on the direct route.

On our way through New Brunswick we encountered a toll road. I pulled up to the toll booth and asked what the toll would be for us. The man in the booth said it would be $5.25. I asked if he could take US money and he said yes. I handed him a $5.00 bill. He punched that into his register and laughed, "It looks like I owe you 75 Canadian pesos." I laughed as I took the change and replied, "Gracias." He laughed. Yes my friends, the US dollar is riding high against the Canadian "peso." The exchange rate as I write is $1.00 US to 1.30 Canadian. A car wash for $10 Canadian shows up on the credit card bill as $7.71 US. Four nights in a campground billed at $124.00 show up on the credit card bill as $96.06 US. I am afraid that if that rate of exchange continues many of our Canadian friends may not show up at Sandpipers this winter. From their viewpoint this is a powerful stimulus to stay home or find another country for their winter resort. Our weather has been constantly rainy and cool. Today we had light rain most of the day and temperatures haven't made it out of the 50's all day. The Canadians in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and here in Newfoundland are referring to this as the year without a summer. We come north to escape the hot Texas weather but this is exceeding our expectations. Speaking of cool, we've seen just a few small patches of snow on shaded spots on some of the higher elevations. There was a wasp in the cockpit as I was driving on Monday. We were headed north and west from the town of Deer Lake toward Gander in the north central part of Newfoundland. Now I'm not afraid of a wasp, not panicky afraid, so I asked Louise to go get the fly swatter. It was in my side window and there was no good way for Louise to get to it. I'm not going to start swatting until I'm certain of killing it. So, as we approached the small town of Springdale, we saw a sign for a Tourist Information Center at the intersection of the Trans Canada Highway and Highway 390. We pulled in, I dispatched the wasp and we decided to go into the visitors center to gather some information. There were three young ladies at the desk and we asked them about several items, including where to see icebergs. They perked up with the mention of icebergs. They informed us that we could see an iceberg at King's Point just 15 miles from the visitors center. They said no one had seen any icebergs lately, the season was over. I wondered if this was the chamber of commerce line to get people to come to King's Point. Louise was really excited about the possibility of seeing an iceberg, so we decided to go see for ourselves. We were told we could leave the motorhome parked at the visitors center and take the car. It didn't take long and the car was free and we were on our way. I had no idea what to expect. King's Point is located at the end of a long narrow fjord, a channel scoured out by ancient glaciers. How in the world would an iceberg make its way all the way down this long (10 miles) and narrow (1 mile) channel? As we came into King's Point the speed limit dropped and our expectations soared. Coming over a small rise in the road we could see the water of the fjord. There along the far shore was a small but distinct chunk of ice. I thought this surely was a small bit of ice someone had lassoed and towed into the fjord just to hook unsuspecting tourists. A moment later the real iceberg came into view. Towering over the buildings of the town it sat just off the near shore having run aground. Now this is not the iceberg that sank the Titanic, this one is a small but still impressive piece of ice. Keeping in mind that most of the ice is below the water level, it is really impressive. In fact, I just looked it up to confirm my memory and indeed, about 1/10 of the ice is above water level. We drove to a point where we could get a good look at the iceberg and I began taking pictures. We walked from pier to pier getting closer and getting more pictures. What an amazing sight this was. The ice glistened in the sunlight. There were deep blue lines of clear ice through the iceberg enhancing its appearance. As we were leaving the last pier a man mentioned to us that if we followed the road up the hill we would find a gravel parking area where we could get a good view of the iceberg. We hustled back to the car and drove up the road to that parking area. There was one car there and we backed in next to them. We were now closer to and above the iceberg. Seeing from this angle one part of the iceberg looked like the tail of a whale. Examining the iceberg through binoculars we could see cracks and lines that weren't visible to the naked eye from this distance. I studied it from top to bottom and took dozens of pictures with my telephoto lens. After about 50 people had come and gone we decided to go get some food. As we drove down the hill to the restaurant Louise said that she saw a boat that had been out by the iceberg. We had asked another boater if we could get a ride out to the iceberg. He said he would be glad to do it but his motor was broken. Indeed the cover was off the motor so that wasn't going to work. As we neared the restaurant Louise saw the boat coming into the dock behind the restaurant. I stopped the car and she got out to see if they would be willing to take us out to get a close look at the huge hunk of ice. When she returned with a beaming smile I knew the answer. They were stopping to get lunch themselves so we ordered food also. As soon as we finished eating we joined them in the boat. They were Tracy and Troy. Tracy was a native of King's Point now working in northern Alberta. Troy works in the public works department at King's Point. They took us to the iceberg and slowly circled the beast at a distance of about 30 feet away. We could see water pouring off the iceberg as it melted away. As impressive as it was from a distance, it was even more amazing up close. We circled the iceberg three times slowly before heading across the fjord to the smaller piece of ice we had initially seen when we came into town. It was a small piece that had broken off the main iceberg the day before we arrived. When it broke off the iceberg rotated, This happens when the top or one side becomes lighter and then the ice will float with a different portion above the water. It is not uncommon and is one of the dangers that an iceberg can pose. The small piece was impressive in its own way. After we had a good look at it, Tracy showed us the ice they had captured on their first trip out. They decided to bring in more ice so we could have some. There were several dozen small chunks of ice in the water so we drew up beside a piece about six feet long and two feet wide at the widest point. With a gaff Tracy pulled the ice toward the boat while Troy maneuvered the boat. Now pulling on a piece of bobbing wet ice is no easy task. It constantly slips away and the least missed attempt to bring it in can instead push it away. Once it is captured, Troy chipped away, breaking small chunks off as Tracy scooped them up with a net. Once the hold was topped off with ice, we were on our way back to the dock. We gathered up our ice prize, thanked Tracy and Troy for the experience and exchanged contact information so we could exchange pictures. We extended an invitation to come visit us in Texas when the snow up north became too much to bear. Now what do you do with ice from an iceberg? Well, the only decent thing to do is chill a nice cocktail. When we got back to the motor home we broke into the liquor cabinet and chipped up some of the ice. One of the first things we noticed about the ice is that you could see hundreds of air bubbles in even the smallest piece. Louise and I knew that these bubbles contain air which was trapped in the ice many thousands, perhaps even millions of years ago. Scientists have captured this air and analyzed it to give us long-term baselines for the carbon dioxide content of the air on earth long before people were able to impact the makeup of the air. These samples establish a history of changes in the CO2 levels in the atmosphere as well as concentrations of other gasses. What I hadn't considered is that the air trapped in the ice is compressed. Just as the fluffy snow that fell was packed into dense ice, the air was squeezed into a smaller space. So now as the ice melts, the air pops out of its frozen container. You can feel it if you put a piece of ice on your tongue. So we had snap crackle pop drinks. There is a supply in the freezer that may last us all summer if we can keep it from evaporating away in the freezer, ice does that you know. And it all started with a wasp in the cockpit! We had to stop at just the right time. I guess I should have thanked the wasp instead of killing it.

I've just invested in a new Garmin GPS, standard car model, nuvi 2757, seven inch diagonal screen, $110 at Wal-Mart. We used a smaller model in the car and moved it to the motor home for years before I saw this one in Wal-Mart. I figured for $110, what could I loose? It works somewhat differently than the other model we had but similar enough that I'm figuring it out. It is a matter of different menu structure that involves a bit of learning curve. None are perfect but if you get familiar enough with any model you learn its quirks. Louise keeps the truckers atlas handy and always checks routes as we go. Once in a while I miss a turn because I don't know if it's this road or the next! Over time I've learned to rely on it for most travel. I love the GPS speed indication and rely on it almost totally. It is really nice in Canada where we are now, one setting and we're on KPH for distance and speed. I can match the signs for speed and distance without doing all the math in my head. I looked at the Truckers and RV models and really don't have much use for either. Reviews indicate that the special features don't work as well as most people expect. I have set the nuvi 2757 for "bus" so it is figuring on a large vehicle. It can be set to avoid tunnels, unpaved roads, toll roads, etc. If I don't like a route I simply follow directions from Louise. The GPS adjusts and routes us from that point on a route that usually matches what Louise wants. I'll frequently program the trip in stages. From here to the next town or the next city or where we plan to spend the night. That way I have a miles to go indication for our destination for the night or our next stopping spot. I've added the POI files for low clearances and have it on the computer as well as both GPS models, lifetime subscription from Route 1. That allows me to check for low clearances as I plan a route for our travel. I haven't had an alert come up on the GPS yet but have only been using it for a month or so. If I'm planning properly I shouldn't ever get an alert but then an alert is better than the alternative. Both models have lifetime maps. I recently updated the older model and it took a long time. After it was done it occurred to me that I have it set to send Garmin feedback on use. That would include the times when I'm driving on a new route that the GPS doesn't have and it shows me driving through fields and lakes, etc. They will then research the anomalies and add those routes as people submit their data. That means I am uploading data to them which is often much slower than downloading. The map update on the new unit zipped through very quickly. So far, neither model requires additional memory but that is a minor cost these days. I used the older unit on a trip to New Zealand and Australia, I think the micro SD chip cost me $139.00 and covered both countries. It was clearly the best money I ever spent. I zipped through several hundred roundabouts as if I were a native. If there was a problem it was my mistake, not the GPS. I have some issues with Garmin support and their interface with computers but the GPS itself works great in my opinion. I use a Garmin GPS when flying, hiking and when playing golf. And I still enjoy using paper maps but their ability to zoom in on specific locations is very limited!

I believe that sets an alarm to alert you to the fact that the cat is unrolling the tissue! ;-)

We full timed for 10 years before putting in a mobile in our park in Edinburg, TX. Each summer we set out to see part of the country (US and Canada) that we hadn't seen before. We find friends wherever we go but community, only when we are visiting our children which has become a bigger part of our lives as the grandchildren age. We have a cruise scheduled for the spring of 2017. I pointed out to Louise that it would be our last free spring for years to come. Our first grandson will graduate HS in 2018! After that we have a constant parade of grand grads, HS and hopefully lots of college as well. We're in Newfoundland right now, our last piece of Canada we haven't seen - excluding Nunavut. On Monday we made friends with Troy and Tracy, a couple of Newfoundlanders (Newfies) who gave us a boat ride to get a close-up look at an iceberg! They have our card and an invitation to visit us in Texas when the snow wears its welcome thin. Last year we hosted a couple from Melbourne, Australia that we met in New Zealand in February 2014. They came to visit us for five days while on a trip to visit with their son and his family on the east coast. Community is where you find it. In our case, we tend to make our own when we aren't with family. During the winter we have community like nowhere else we've ever lived. What a party! We have made a practice of finding cool places (mountains, far north, seacoast) for the heart of the summer. We visit children/grandchildren in the late spring and early fall. Those places too hot for summer visits become our en-route visits on the way to or from our other travels. Works for us. There are summer RV communities all over the US for those who full time if you prefer to stay in one place and make close friends. Higher elevations in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico come to mind. We love the Maine coast but our chldren are midwest to far west so it is impractical for a regular stop. There are also membership parks (Thousand Trails, etc.) that can be a choice for a summer location. These have never interested us but everyone has their own preferences.

The source of the odor you are experiencing most likely is the grey water tank. You are correct, the toilet seal should prevent any odor from the black tank entering the coach through the toilet. Grey water has a sewer smell when it has been stored for a while. It is true you would expect the vents on the roof to have a slight vacuum on them when you are driving down the road. The problem is that there is an even stronger vacuum on the rear of the coach. Generally when you are driving down the road the pressure inside the coach is lower than outside. That said, the waste tanks will draw air inside through the roof vents and into the coach. If this is something that you experience on rough roads it likely means that on a rough road a sink or shower drain is sloshing enough water out of the trap to allow air to move through the trap. Replacing the water in the trap should restore the seal but if this is a constant problem and the trap isn't holding the water, then using the weather-vane type vent covers on the roof should solve your problem. I would install one on each vent. If you want to save money, installing one on the grey water may be enough, either sink or shower assuming they share a common storage tank. If that isn't enough, install on the other grey water vent. The toilet vent should be the least likely to be the problem. We have had this problem with a washer/dryer drain in the past. If the washer hadn't been run recently and the drain went dry, we would get strong odors inside the coach. I installed a long neck funnel (transmission fill funnel) in the closet above to feed water into that drain pipe. That way I can conveniently pour a glass or two of water into that drain to stop or prevent problems.

After our successful visit to the Harrisburg Cummins Coach Care Facilities, we traveled north into New York. We made a stop at Cooperstown to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame. For two baseball fans, this was a fun stop. So many great stories. The memories come flooding back. From there we drove through southern Vermont and New Hampshire to the Atlantic Coast. The road was slow and we encountered some rain and low clouds but the scenery was still beautiful. There were numerous places where a spot to pull off the road would have been useful but the locals simply see the road as a way to get from one place to another. The weekend of July 17-18-19 we were parked in Hampton, NH while attending the Blaisdell Family Association Reunion. Louise is a descendent of Ralph Blaisdell who immigrated in 1635. We visited the original landing site at Pemaquid Point in Maine one day and enjoyed several days of family history and stories. Following the reunion we drove north to Houlton, ME and spent Monday night at Wal-Mart in preparation for crossing the border the next day. The crossing into New Brunswick was easy, just a few questions and we were on our way. Having been to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia several times we buzzed right through both provinces, arriving at North Sydney in the early afternoon on Wednesday, July 23. We had reservations on the ferry to Port aux Basques the next morning. I hooked up the utilities and we charged batteries overnight and emptied and filled the tanks so we were ready for travel the next morning. We arrived for the ferry and lined up. Unlike many travelers, we had all the comforts of home while waiting for the ferry to load. We were one of the last vehicles loaded but ended up third in line in front of the door to exit the ferry at our destination. We had a very calm crossing, weather was clear until we reached Newfoundland. The crossing to Port aux Basques takes about 5 1/2 hours and we left and arrived right on time. Arriving at 6:00 p.m. and being first off the ferry meant that everyone wanted to pass us so we pulled off at the visitors center just outside town for a short stop and then resumed the trip. We found a large paved lot about 15 kilometers north of the ferry landing and spent the night. To our east were the Table Mountains, shrouded in clouds. Between the mountains and our spot was a beautiful lake. To our west across Trans-Canada Highway 1 we could see the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It was a beautiful spot to spend the night. There was a hiking trail and we explored the trail which led toward the coast. The next morning we continued north to the town of Stephenville. We spent two nights there enjoying some hiking and learning some of the local history. There is a strong French presence in this area and a WWII US airbase. We enjoyed an evening hike along the bay looking at hoodoos, weathered rock that looks like snowmen, one round rock on top of another. The next day we drove around the Port au Port Peninsula that lies to the west of Stephenville. There was a bread baking demonstration in a community park near the point at the end of the peninsula. We spent a good part of the afternoon exploring that park, watching birds and discovering new flowers and plants. I added Gannets and White-winged Scoters to my bird list. After a dinner stop at the Sisters Dream School in Mainland (on the peninsula) we returned to the Zinzville RV Park. Leaving there we continued north and east toward Corner Brook. This is a large town with few RV parks. The only one with facilities had none available so we continued on down the road hoping to find a place to boondock for the night. We had hoped to spend several days in that area and do some hiking. There were no good boondocking spots and not a single place to turn around. The road ended at Cox's Cove where we finally found a place to turn around. We decided to stop for lunch on the parking lot where we turned around. Louise wanted to walk around town and went to talk to a woman who was painting her fence next to the parking lot. We were parked in front of the community center and wanted to make sure we wouldn't be in the way for an afternoon event. The lady assured us it would be OK. We walked from one end of town to the other in about ten minutes. I enjoyed taking pictures of the homes. Many were delightfully decorated and kept in top condition. We stopped to get ice cream in a convenience store and had a nice conversation with the owner. At the far end of town trucks were loading containers of fish. The trucks explained the horrible condition of the road on the way into town. Returning to the motor home we thanked the lady who was still painting her fence. We talked for while and in discussion, she asked if we liked haddock. With a yes, she was off to the freezer to get us a meal of frozen Haddock! With no good pull outs for an overnight stay we returned to the highway and drove north to the town of Deer Lake. Here we found a spot to stop near the highway and spent the night. There was a grocery nearby and we stocked up on needed supplies before continuing on to the east toward St. John's.

I've only been in the business of hunting water one time and it surprised me how difficult it could be. We usually try to stay in an RV park occasionally when boondocking and that takes care of the water and sewer situation as well as giving the batteries a good overnight charge. If you don't stay in an RV park, you could use one as a dump station and ask to fill your water tank there also. I've seen many RV parks that operate their dump station commercially and they might be willing to let you hook up to a spigot in the campground for a water fill if it isn't available at the dump station. RV Dealers might also be a source. I don't know about Camping World but many independent dealers might be willing to let you fill up for a fee. Another option that could be explored would be to see if a community has a water truck delivery. I know that there are many communities that have someone with a truck that hauls potable water to remote locations. You could have it delivered or meet them when you are traveling from one place to the next. It would be a small quantity in their terms and likely be costly. The cost might make the campground stay a lot more inviting.