First full day in Camden and we have "trouble in River City"!! No hot water in the RV! In fact, no water coming out of the hot water faucet at all! And the worst of it was that Barry had just cooked his famous farmer's breakfast for the Gustafsons. Yes..........bacon eggs, hash brown potatoes, french toast........the works! Can you imagine the mess we needed to clean up? Well, Barry was soon on the phone, trying to reach a nearby RV repair shop for assistance. After many, many calls, the best he could find was to make an appointment for Thursday morning in Bangor, Maine.............about 60 miles from here. And...........in the meantime............no hot showers, no washing dishes etc. So.............we did what we used to do while camping in our pop-up. Yes..........you who have camped with us in the old days know exactly what I mean. The dreaded dish pan..............heating water inside on the stove and then filling an old large dish pan with soapy water..........and constant heating of rinse water. All this done, of course, outside on our picnic table. Megan, our 17 year old grand-daughter knows all about this, for she was the designated dish washer for a couple of nights while on a 3 week western camping trip with us several years ago. Remember, Megan?
In the midst of this trial, another large 5th wheel RV was attempting to pull into a small spot across from us. Barry went right outside to see if he could help the man driving the truck and having trouble trying to fit a large RV into a small spot. Barry successfully directed the man into the spot and this gentleman was so appreciative he asked if he could do anything to help Barry. Well......those are dangerous words around here! Barry began to tell him of our hot water problem. And.............the man came right over to see if he could help us.
Bill Henson, from Rhode Island, was indeed our Angel in Camden. What a kind, knowdgeable and generous man! He told Barry that he was retired from IBM and was a trouble shooter in their customer service department. He loves to work on RVs and was able to diagnose our problem and help Barry to take the system apart, find the problem (a defective part in a valve) and repair it! WOW! All of this in about an hour and no charge to us!! I'm sure if we would have taken the Montana to an RV repair shop in Bangor, it would have cost us several hundred dollars.......not to mention the wasted time and stress. We can never thank Bill enough for his kindness. We think God placed him right here across from us at this particular time because He knew that we would need him. This is one example of why we love RVing and the kind of helpful people we encounter along the way. We will never forget the kindness of this man and I'm sure that what Barry has learned will be passed on to others we meet during our travels.
We ended our day with a lobster dinner right here at our campsite. Jim and Barb were out doing some errands and decided to stop at a nearby lobster place to bring home 4 large lobsters, corn on the cob and cole slaw. A good ending to the day that began on such a stressful note.
Some little known facts about Camden, Maine. It is the birthplace of Edna St. Vincent Millay. And...........the movie "Peyton Place" was filmed here. I remember the novel Peyton Place. It was a forbidden book read secretely at one of my slumber parties in junior high school!
Tomorrow we will be exploring Mount Batty, which overlooks the Camden Harbor. We will also have lunch at the Samoset Resort. I am, of course, hoping and praying for hot water for my shower.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Boothbay Harbor, Maine
Well, we made it to Boothbay, Maine and met up with good friends, Barb and Jim Gustafson on Thursday evening. We spent 6 nights at a lovely campground nestled in the woods and just a short drive into the town of Boothbay Harbor.
Highlights of our time there included a visit to nearby Pemaquid Point. There is a beautiful old lighthouse perched on a rocky point jutting out into the sea. The men climbed down the rocks to the ocean's edge, while Barb and I stayed on the uppper level taking photos of the men and of the lighthouse. The lighthouse is located inside a park, which also included a lovely restaurant, the obligatory gift shop and artists gallery.
We also visited another favorite spot.........Shaw's Lobster Wharf in New Harbor..........where we ate our fill of Lobstah. Ahhhh.......what can be better than sitting at an old picnic table overlooking the water, ]sun shining brightly and gentle breezes blowing while eating 2 pound fresh lobsters with drawn butter running down your chin? I think this place must be Barry's favorite haunt in Maine and he has the tee shirt to prove it.
We also took in some theater while there...........a favorite pastime of ours.. Saw "The Music Man" at the Boothbay Playhouse. We are always amazed at the local talent and were genuinely entertained by these hard-working young people. Made me remember my youngest son, Ryan's, role as Marcelis Washburn in his sixth grade performance many years ago.
The weather has been mostly good. Mostly sun and moderate temperatures but it did rain hard last night. That is not a good sign when you have to unhook the RV and travel on to a new spot. Luckily the rain stopped this morning about 9 am and we were able to hitch up and move on to Camden, Maine. We will be in this area for 3 nights before heading into New Brunswick, Canada.
Highlights of our time there included a visit to nearby Pemaquid Point. There is a beautiful old lighthouse perched on a rocky point jutting out into the sea. The men climbed down the rocks to the ocean's edge, while Barb and I stayed on the uppper level taking photos of the men and of the lighthouse. The lighthouse is located inside a park, which also included a lovely restaurant, the obligatory gift shop and artists gallery.
We also visited another favorite spot.........Shaw's Lobster Wharf in New Harbor..........where we ate our fill of Lobstah. Ahhhh.......what can be better than sitting at an old picnic table overlooking the water, ]sun shining brightly and gentle breezes blowing while eating 2 pound fresh lobsters with drawn butter running down your chin? I think this place must be Barry's favorite haunt in Maine and he has the tee shirt to prove it.
We also took in some theater while there...........a favorite pastime of ours.. Saw "The Music Man" at the Boothbay Playhouse. We are always amazed at the local talent and were genuinely entertained by these hard-working young people. Made me remember my youngest son, Ryan's, role as Marcelis Washburn in his sixth grade performance many years ago.
The weather has been mostly good. Mostly sun and moderate temperatures but it did rain hard last night. That is not a good sign when you have to unhook the RV and travel on to a new spot. Luckily the rain stopped this morning about 9 am and we were able to hitch up and move on to Camden, Maine. We will be in this area for 3 nights before heading into New Brunswick, Canada.
Monday, June 21, 2010
A little background
As you know, I began this blog last evening, with the help of my neice, Aimee, who lives here in Newburyport with her husband, Brian and two little girls, Madelyn and Katja. We are staying in a nearby campground for a few days so that we can visit with them before embarking on our summer travels.
Most of you already know that we have been traveling full time in our RV...........a Montana fifth wheel.........for a year. Altho we have loved this way of life, it has been difficult to stay in touch with our family and friends and share our adventures and stories. Thus, the blog. I am hoping this will help all of you to stay in touch with us and share in our adventures.
When we first began our journey, April 24, 2009, we intended to travel for a year. Well..............the year was up this past April and we are not yet ready to settle down in one location. So........we will keep going as long as we continue to enjoy what we are doing and our health is good.
Last summer we explored the western region of our country.........Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, Montana, Utah............saw many national parks and then drove into Canada to spend time in Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Waterton. We met up with long time friends, Jim and Barbara Gustafson in Bozeman, Montana in June and traveled together for 2 months. They own a Winnebago so we camped side by side........sharing conversation, cocktails, dinners, sight seeing and lots and lots of laughter.
We parted ways in late August..........Jim and Barbara driving back to their home in Florida and Barry and I going down the Washington and Oregon coast before heading back across the country to see our families in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvani Virginia and North Carolian in the fall. Winter was spent in Florida where we also visited with another son and his family (Mitch and Kari) who live in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
We have just completed a month in Western PA, where we were able to see our families and friends again. We had a wonderful time there, enjoying our children and grand-children and re-connecting with many of our Pittsburgh friends. Now we are off to the northeast..................Maine, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.
We leave this beautiful area of Massachusetts and our visit with "The Hromadkas" tomorrow morning. Next stop...........Boothbay Harbor where we will meet up once again with Jim and Barbara Gustafson. Once again we will be spending our summer with them and are looking forward to more good times together.
As Helen Keller said "Life is a glorious adventure or nothing at all".
Most of you already know that we have been traveling full time in our RV...........a Montana fifth wheel.........for a year. Altho we have loved this way of life, it has been difficult to stay in touch with our family and friends and share our adventures and stories. Thus, the blog. I am hoping this will help all of you to stay in touch with us and share in our adventures.
When we first began our journey, April 24, 2009, we intended to travel for a year. Well..............the year was up this past April and we are not yet ready to settle down in one location. So........we will keep going as long as we continue to enjoy what we are doing and our health is good.
Last summer we explored the western region of our country.........Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, Montana, Utah............saw many national parks and then drove into Canada to spend time in Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Waterton. We met up with long time friends, Jim and Barbara Gustafson in Bozeman, Montana in June and traveled together for 2 months. They own a Winnebago so we camped side by side........sharing conversation, cocktails, dinners, sight seeing and lots and lots of laughter.
We parted ways in late August..........Jim and Barbara driving back to their home in Florida and Barry and I going down the Washington and Oregon coast before heading back across the country to see our families in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvani Virginia and North Carolian in the fall. Winter was spent in Florida where we also visited with another son and his family (Mitch and Kari) who live in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
We have just completed a month in Western PA, where we were able to see our families and friends again. We had a wonderful time there, enjoying our children and grand-children and re-connecting with many of our Pittsburgh friends. Now we are off to the northeast..................Maine, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.
We leave this beautiful area of Massachusetts and our visit with "The Hromadkas" tomorrow morning. Next stop...........Boothbay Harbor where we will meet up once again with Jim and Barbara Gustafson. Once again we will be spending our summer with them and are looking forward to more good times together.
As Helen Keller said "Life is a glorious adventure or nothing at all".
Sunday, June 20, 2010
We begin our blog in Newburyport, MA
Hi everyone,
Well, the impossible has finally happened! After many requests from friends and family, we are creating a blog of our travels so that you can follow along with us! our neice, Aimee Hromodka has taken us under her wing and helped us set up the blog. Thanks Aimee!
Well, the impossible has finally happened! After many requests from friends and family, we are creating a blog of our travels so that you can follow along with us! our neice, Aimee Hromodka has taken us under her wing and helped us set up the blog. Thanks Aimee!
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