Blue Road Adventures: Growing Pains

Tuesday June 14 and Wednesday June 15 2011

Thus far, the trip has been relatively smooth. Coming out of North Carolina you have a 7 mile climb into Virginia. It is great if you are coming from the north as it is a 7 mile descent into North Carolina. The Dodge started out great. After a few miles, it was apparent it wasn’t going over the mountain at 60 mph. It wasn’t even going to get 50 mph. Obviously, there are some modifications and tunes to be done to the Cummins 5.9.
First on the list will be to set the timing at 15.5. This should avoid the lad in power. I will also have to crank on the star-wheel to adjust the air / fuel flow. This adjustment will be accompanied by a fuel plate change. The stock plate is probably too restrictive. The Dodge will need a #10 plate to feed more fuel on a consistent basis.
The Dodge is hauling the Coachmen Catalina with a dry weight of 10K pounds and another 1800 pounds of cargo. Coupled with the truck that is 5800, and another 800 pounds of passengers and cargo, it is moving quite a bit of weight.
The Dodge also averaged 11-12 mpg through the mountains. It did very well on the level surfaces where it cruised at 70 mph without any laboring. We are hoping the remainder of the trip will yield upwards of 12-13 mpg.
Then there is the end result when we stopped for the day in Winesburg, Ohio. With all the items we loaded for distribution, there is bound to be some settling of the product during shipment. The dinette table took a tumble—no harm no foul. Then there was the slide fiasco. ALWAYS find a way to securely LATCH the door and cupboards when in motion. As I powered out the slides; the bedroom goes first then the dinette slide follows, the dinette experienced a slight hesitation. I stopped the slide when I noticed it was out of tilt with the walls. Seems the cupboard doors (behind the slide and out of direct line of my sight) were ajar enough to catch the edge of the slide and jam it. LESSON LEARNED and another chore to tend to this trip—securely fasten the cabinet doors when in motion.
Wednesday morning we are preparing to get on the road and say good-bye to Amish Country Campsites. At $25 a night it is a great deal, super location. They only have 30 amp services, but if you have the double 30 amp plugs that converge into a single 50 amp outlet if you really need to power all you’re A/C units in the sweltering northern heat.
As we are pulling out, I notice the truck is harder to stop when I brake. Looking at the controller, I see there are NO numbers on the digital readout. We have no brakes. ARGH!! Nothing has changed since yesterday so I begin to sweat just a little. Stopping down the road at a closed restaurant to check the problem we see a Catalina without the slides parked in the lot. This one looks like a 1998. We refocus on the brake situation. I move the manual brake and the readout show it is working. Depressing the brake pedal does nothing. It has to be the brake switch.
I begin moving wires on the switch and the controller shows signs of life. The problem lies in the connection—between the plug and the switch. Mary gets a few wooden matches from the 5er and I jam the sticks into the backside of the plug to tighten the wires and we are once again on the road.
Today the 5er feels easier to pull. It seems to roll better, like there is less resistance? I begin to wonder if the controller wiring was activating the 5er brakes coming through the mountains. When I refuel, I will be able to check the MPGs and see how much of a difference there is from yesterday and today’s trip.

Tim and Mary
Brighton, Michigan

Blue Road Adventures: The Madien Voyage

Blue Road Blogger Date----Monday June 13 & Tuesday June 14 2011---

We are on our way. We left Lillington, North Carolina around 4:00 p.m Monday. We took US 421 (it will take you to Harlan, Kentucky) to Greensboro than US 52 north to where it changes to I-74 just before the Virginia line. Since there aren't too many blue roads out of NC going north, we jumped the interstate (I-77) to our first destination--Cracker Barrel in Wythevile, Virgina.
We arrived at CB around 8:00 pm and had a very nice dinner. We spoke with the manager to clear our overnight with city or county regulations. We were sleeping (trying) by 9:30 pm. Around 2:30 am, something started buring somehere. We thought it was cigarettes, but when we stopped t the KAngaroo gas station for 4:30 am coffee, we were told it was out in the woods somewhere...

We continued on I-77 to Dover, Ohio. We were early, too early for the campground check-in, so I suggested we stop at the Shoney's in Dover at exit 83. I had been there back in April 2009 when I came back to Michigan after being in North Carolina since February 23. The place was wall-to-wall cars that April morning. Turns out there was a motocross competition that week and EVERYONE was at Shoney's for the breakfast buffet. As I found my way in, it was very clear why so many folks were there that morning. The buffet was excellent. It was one of the best I had ever patronized.
As I duggested it to Mary, I also cautioned it may have been great because so many people were there and the food was freash and quickly being replaced as it was being quickly chowed.

She was willing to go, as I had mentioned this Shoney's several times. Actually it was the Shoney's I compared all Shoney's to. We went in and were seated just before the breakfast buffet was closing (20-30 minutes. Our waiter told us we could do the breakfast buffet OR if we chose the lunch buffet we could have breakfast and switch to lunch if we wanted--but we had to pay the .50 cent lunch buffet premium. Sounded fair, so we took his advise and did lunch. As for a buffet, it was just as excellent as it was in 2009. Sour Kraut appeared to have been hand shredded, the mac-n-cheese was wonderful, and the salad bar was as fresh so fresh it had to have come straight from the farm to Shoney's. We took a moment to speak with the manager (Patrick) to let him know how impressed we were with the buffet. We left him a card with our blog and hopefully he will be stopping by to read this! THANK U Patrick, you have a great resurant there in Shoney's in Dover, Ohio

It is so great to be on the road and meeting folks like those at Shoney's. The entire team is great and seem to have great pride in their work and their resturant!

This is Mary's first real Blue Road type trip. We have made many runs between North Carolina and Michigan. We have covered the Blue Roads often, but there is a distinct difference in taking a Blue Road and driving one. The entire idea of being Blue Road Blogger is taking the blue roads and seeing, meeting and sharing with the people who live along the blue roads.

We are staying the night at Amish Country Campsites outside Winesburg, Ohio. It is a small CG, but quite beautiful. Trees and rolling hills surround the land. This is the Ohio we never see from the windows when driving 70 mph on I-75 or I-77. The interstates just turn nature's beauty into drab and ugly.
We met John Wile when we checked it. He and his wife Ruth, own and operate Amish Country Campsites. No pre planned frills, arcades, water slides or community room bingos here. Just a very nice place to hang your hat while you run about the Amish countryside exploring. John even gives you a coupon for free cheese back up the road in Sugar Creek--this may be a limited offer so if you stay the night, don't hold me to the cheese offer--

We are headed to Lehman's Hardware in Kindron, Ohio in the morning. When you get a chance, stop by one day and tell them Blue Road Blogger wanted you to say hello!

NOT that our trip hasn't been with out the traditional PIT FALLS of a madien voyage. Ther have been a few. We will share those tomorrow, after we have had a chance to process those moments and see them in a new light!

Tim and Mary

Amish Country Campsites
Dundee, Ohio
Near Winesburg)

Blue Road Adventures: Stop the clocks so we can have a few more minutes.

Are we the only ones who never seem to have enough time to pack? We have been planning this trip since we brought the Coachmen 5er home in March. We knew it needed tires. We didn't count on the Dodge being so tempermental, but that issue has been resolved for almost two weeks.
Today we transferred our travel items into the 5er. All the goodies we are going to redistribute amongst the offspring were carefully loaded and securely stored. Our personal items like clothing and Mary's guitars we all placed safely in their places. I managed to change the oil and get the rear seat covers in place for the hounds to ride comfortably in the quad cab. Tookout the old steamer trunk from the rubbermaid shed to be transported north. I even cut the lawn in back so it wouldn't be too high when we returned in August. Yet there was still so much to finish before we leave tomorrow.
Everytime we tell ourselves we will start loading sooner. Everytime we find ourselves loading uo to the last minute. Once we are on the road full time, I am sure we will be wrapping up our stuff at 10:00 a.m. to make the 10:30 a.m checkout...

Dot Com

We want to thank everyone who is following our blog. We hope it is informative and provides some insight into how we have come to be in North Carolina and why we are committed to the full time RV lifestyle in 2013.
We are looking forward to several changes in our internet world starting MOnday evening.
First, we will be on the road heading north on I-77 from Winston-Salem North Carolina. We will be sharing our madien voyage right here in our blog. If you haven't driven I-77 from the North Carolina border to Charleston, West Virgnia, you will want to follow our trip as the Dodge 2500 CTD and 12K lbs of 5er roll up and out of North Carolina. Leaving North Carolina, the Dodge has a 5-7 mile climb right out of the gate. Our first destination will be Wytheville, Virginia. It is just a 3 1/2 hour trip, but we want to get an early start on Tuesday morning and get over Flat Top, West Viginia (Highest point on I-77) before 11:00 a.m. and be in Ohio by 3:00 p.m.

The other change we will be implementing will be with our web site. As many of you know, we are in desperate need of updating our pages. We have been so busy with closing up the classrooms for summer break, dealing with the Dodge electrical short and loading the 5er -- not to mention the search for tires -- that our web site has been terribly ignored. So too has our forum suffered from neglect.

Again we appreciate you taking the time to read and visit with us. Please come back next week to hear how our trip north is going. And if you have ANY questions, comments or suggestions about our blog / web site please leave them on our blog or catch us on facebook and drop us a note.

THANKS!!

Tim and Mary

Sunday Drives

Mary

When I was a child my father would take my mother I on Sunday drives. I would sit in the back of his burgundy Ford LTD and feel like I was on a ship being taken to strange and unknown places. One of the things I liked most about these trips was the stories he used to tell me about when he was growing up. He told us that I 96 didn’t exist, Grand River was a dirt road, and going from Detroit to Brighton Lake was a major event that took over three hours. It’s less than one hour now. His summer cottage growing up was a one room shack on a pristine Michigan lake. When I was small and sailing in my daddy’s car the world was safe and good and simple. There were still a lot of dirt roads and a Sunday drive was still considered fun.

My father and I as a baby.

The attraction to Blue Roads started then. I have a curiosity about places I have not been. I still feel wonder and joy at seeing an oddity that I didn’t know existed. I am likely to ask a stream of questions when there is something new or different. That part of me has never changed. Taking time out to meet and care about the people I meet is another joy. I feel as though I need to thank them for being a part of my life, even if it is for a short time. Every person that crosses my path is another experience that I would not have had if I had not traveled the blue roads.

Blue Road Adventures: Chasing down the past.

I last passed through Berea, Kentucky in 1982. I was on the TranAmerican Bicycle Trail (TAE 517) and we stayed at the college for 2 nights. As we drove into Berea, I had no clue where I was. There were no digital cameras in 1982, and I didn't take a film camera. I suggested to Mary that once we get on the road full time, we might follow the TransAmerican Trail periodically so she (and I ) could get an idea of what it was like to ride a bicycle 5000 miles across this country. Since this was enroute to Harlan, I wanted Mary to see a part of the TransAmerican Trail.

The last time I was in Harlan was 1968 or 1969. When the FX show Justified came on, Mary knew I would want to go to Harlan. It is also something I think happens to us when our parents die. Harlan was my father's hometown. Actually Loyall is his hometown. He was born in Harlan in August of 1929. His dad worked the coal mines during the 1920s through 1950s. It is said he assisted in building this monument. It has no inscription, other than a plaque that has been placed on the back side stating it was to honor the mining heritage. It was so much taller when I was just 8 years old.

In 1968 this bridge was the only way into Harlan. The new highway had not been built. It too was so much wider in the eyes of an 8 year old.

NOt sure if this has any role in the Justified show, but it is rather impressive. To the left is the library where I found a great gentleman who helped me locate a relative of my dad who still lives in Loyall.

Loyall isn't very big. The gas station, funeral home and a grocery store is about all there is. Behind the funeral home is a street than runs the length of Loyall. This is the street my aunt lived on, and where my current relative now resides.

Way UP at the top is the Wix Howard Cemetary. I believe this is where my uncle Billy is buried. My dad's brother died in 1937 when, according to family folklore, he was run down by a coal truck. I walked to the top and did a search, but it was hot and the dogs were in the car because there was a stray dog in the cemetary and we didn't want to have Kramer and Lola running after the dog. I would like to go back one day and do a more thorough search.

This trip to Harlan, which was on our way back from Michigan, was a chance for us to do more than drive the Blue Roads. It allowed us the opportunity to interact with the community. We visited the original Kentucky Fried Chicken, where I met the Colonel in 1968. Mary and I sat at what I thought was the same table I had in 1968. Then the resturant was still operating. Now there is a modern KFC built as an addition to the original where the food is cooked.
We had the chance to meet people, talk with some great folks who really helped us find what we were looking for in the way of names and contacts. Though it was just a one day stop-over, we left with the knowledge that being full-time on the raod and doing just this kind of research, is what we are really looking forward to doing in 2013.

Blue Road Adventures: Treasures of the two lanes.

When we first relocated here to North Carolina, we spent every weekend traveling the state. In fact, when I moved here, Mary was still in Michigan. I would go out on the weekends and she was home in Michigan as we talked on the phone. She was my GPS as I told her where I was and she went to google maps and followed along. She was instrumental in helping me find my way home more than once.
After Mary moved here, we continued our country side tours. But now we had a dash mounted GPS. We would head out Saturday morning around 6:00 A.M. All we had was a county for a destination and our two hounds. We were always excited to come across a brown and white sign--a sure clue there was a point of interest we had to see. While touring the central part of North Carolina around Asheboro, we found this sign---

Pisgaha Covered Bridge
Naturally we had to see the bridge. We started following the signs and the directional arrows. Now had we a paper map, it was probably a little easier to get to than the signs had us go. But 20 some miles later we were driving right past the bridge. It is located off the two-lane. below road level and if you didn't know it was there--well you'd drive right on by.

You have to enter on a road that might be wide enough for 1 full size car and a smart car. You drive down along the roadway to where there is a cul-de-sac and there is the bridge and a pathway that takes you around the woods and across the semi-dry creek to the other side of the bridge. Of course you can just walk though the bridge and arrive in the same place.
Here in the middle of Blue Road Country, a late 1800s covered bridge stands in its original spot. It has been rebuilt and supported by the state through donations. When you walk in under the bridge, the beams are massive. Once your eyes adjust, you see the real reconstruction--

People actually carry the stuff with them to vandalize structures? When do they have the opportunity to do this? They must come back at night?

When we returned home, we found out there are just a few covered bridges in North Carolina in their original placements. There one named Bunker Hill Covered Bridge just the other side of Salisbury. Both are off the mainroad and were once the thoroughfare for the area. Both have also been rebuilt and names state historical landmarks.