We are in Ohio…..

 

Our Location:

Walmart, Napoleon, Ohio

The weather today was fabulous! Shorts will be a must tomorrow.  

Yesterday was a busy day, shopping, money exchange, visiting Bradey and the boys before heading back to the park. It was a long day.

This morning we started our day at Olympia RV in Flamborough, Ontario. After breakfast we packed everything up, pulled in the slides, put away the power cord had everything ready to travel. We locked the door, leaving the Igloo behind as we headed off to pick up daughter Courtney at the Go Station. The three of us enjoyed lunch near by while catching up. It was a quick visit but we all had fun. We dropped her back at the Go Station just before 1 pm, headed back to the park, hooked up and let the wheels roll. We made the decision to cross into the US instead of our original plan to stay at the onRoute in Tilbury.

The wait at the border was about 20 minutes, a few questions, a quick peek and we were off. The rough roads were not fun but we didn’t have any workers present and folks were flying, we rolled along about 65mph and around 8 pm we pulled into this lot. Thumbs up to stay the night from the Customer Service lady, I called Dad and Sister before having something to eat. 

Tomorrow we will do some shopping before we head out. We are hoping to cross into Central Time and spend the night at a great rest area we visited last spring on the way home. However that’s for tomorrow’s blog. 

Thanks for stopping by, until next time……

Take care, stay safe,

Deb

And we’re off……..

 

Our Location:

Olympia Village Rv Park, Flamborough, Ontario

We woke in the dark, finished a few last minute things, hooked up and had the wheels rolling at 7:51 AM. Heavy dew turned to fog as the sun started the day, not thick but very obvious. A 5 minute stop at brother Rick’s house (dad, and others there) hugs, see you laters, left the Cabin keys behind and at 8:03 am we pulled out.

It was a very good day, our only issue was a fuse before we even left our spot this morning. Too far on the first day though, 8 - 4, with only a few stops. However we arrived here safely and will be here a couple of days. 

Super moon…..

Made some super fog……

Which the sun tirelessly burned off…

It did take a while though…..

Just an interesting piece of information, we pulled out at 8:03 but didn't  actually begin heading south until 10:17 am. We must travel north and east for a couple of hours before we begin actually going south. We are thinking of taking the ferry next year, but we shall see.

Pulling out…

In the Espanola hills…

Close to Sudbury, about 25 minutes before we actually head south.

The weather is sunny and fabulously warm here, 70 F/21 C. We are talking about shorts.  We can hardly wait! 

Of course I called Dad when we were settled.

Thanks for stopping by, until next time…….

Take care, stay safe,

Deb

A little closer than expected….

 

Our Location:

Walmart, Lang Lake Rd, Sudbury

A good start this morning, we were hooked up, garbage in the dumpsters and had used the dump station by 8 am. It was a little frosty but I had my little gloves to help my hands. The wheels were rolling and we were on our way. For my own information Reg Rd 97, Lennon Rd, Gore Rd, Hwy 6, 401, 407, 400/69, Sudbury Bypass, Lang Lake Rd. 

The top of Toronto off in the distance.

The drive was excellent except a very strong head wind, the Big Dog worked hard and drank heavily! Fuel is ranging from $1.52 to $1.67 per litre. Can you guess where the $1.52 was my fellow Ontarians….yep on many reservations along the way. We decided to continue on onto Sudbury instead of the MTO inspection spot because it was too early to stop, plus the wind would have been brutal there. 

The Canadian flag waving proudly in the wind.

This Walmart is posted as no overnight parking but when we asked at the Customer Service Centre we were told absolutely just park at the far side as far back as you can. So we are tucked up for the night against the rock wall. Some shopping to stock up a little for our summer spot, but alas many of the shelves were bare or things were beaten up to the point I think no one would buy them. It was a shock to find the store in this condition. Propane exchange: bbq tank… Yuma $20 USD, same tank here $34 CAD. Just thought I would add this for future reference.

Spring is not overly evident but it is near.

After we were parked we had rain, granular snow, more rain, more snow, the sun came out, the wind howled, rain, snow and now the sun is shining, the air is crisp and we are tucked in for the night. 

Moon River is high and fast.

Our home for the night.

We travelled 268 miles/431 km, we travelled about 6 hours, we used about 25 gallons/95 litres but a strong headwind. So I figure a little over 10 mpg, not great but no complaints.

Until next time…..

Take care, stay safe,

Deb

Our last day in Southern Ontario….

 

Our Location:

Valens Lake Conservation Area, Flamborough, Ontario

I would like to say the weather has been delightful, however my mother always told me never to lie. It has been cold, damp, overcast, windy and yes, damp, or did I mention that already? I know, I know, it’s typical spring weather, the lack of snow fall in the winter must be compensated by rain in the spring. Blah, blah, blah.

We are comfortable in our site and will be reserving this one in the future. We’ve learned that we can reserve 11 months in advance, that is a good thing to know! No water connections this early and I would guess none later in the fall either, but you can pull to Hilltop Shower Building and use the outdoor spigot to add water. There are no sewers at any site, but 5 dump stations are available. The above shower house is also the location for laundry, 2 top load only, 2 dryers, $3.00 is the magic number for all machines. The price for a night in the park is approximately $55 CAD per night. 

Courtney and Riley.

We have had a couple more visits with Bradey and the boys but today was unavailable as they are heading into Hamilton to see the Monster Trucks!  The boys, big and small, are all very excited. Yesterday, Friday, we motored into Hamilton to The West End Diner to visit with oldest daughter Courtney, she commuted from Toronto. We enjoyed the short visit, it is always exciting to visit with her. She is such a positive person and was totally thrilled with the little bag of goodies we brought her! The food was excellent too! We would definitely go there again if in the neighbourhood.

I’ve been chatting hit and miss with dad in the evenings, things are going well there and we are hoping to be there in a few days. The weather here is like the weather there, just a couple of degrees cooler. 

Tomorrow we start the near to last leg of our journey homeward. We roll out for points north, our destination will be just a couple of hundred miles north at a very nice spot for overnight. Not nice as in views but nice as in it is very, very large, ( semis park far away) pretty flat and just a half hour from one of our stock up on groceries stops. Sudbury. From there we have a couple of ideas, one which will have us arriving at home dirt around 3 ish on Monday or another one arriving around noon on Tuesday. We will figure it out as we go. So if all goes well we will be putting feet down for a few months by Monday or Tuesday in time for a dip in the temperature and moisture from the skies. Ah, springtime in Northern Ontario. 

Until next time…..

Take care, stay safe,

Deb

We’ve moved sites….

 

Our Location: 

Valens Lake Conservation Area, Flamborough, Ontario

Site # 144

We both slept really well last night. I will admit the tree coverage here makes it darker, plus our tinted windows adds to the dark.  By 11 am we were out walking the roads looking for a brighter site. We found several we liked better than the dark, sloped site of #175. I drove up to the office to ask about moving to one of several other sites, however the only one available for our whole stay is #144 , which worked fine, it was on my list. It has some sunlight but is much less in the trees, more level and just a nicer spot. Not first on the list but not last either. In less than 45 minutes we were packed, hooked, towed, parked, unhooked and set up.  We are happy once again.

As you can see things are very tight in Valens Lake Conservation Area.

A boardwalk over a fast flowing stream.

The new heater connection works great, we used it this morning for the first time. It heated the Igloo fabulously. We do need to find a way to keep the heat downstairs though. In Igloo 1.0 we had a curtain that we could hang at the bottom of the stairs, it worked great. We will have to figure out something for this rig as well.

Auston walking the beam.

Riley and I headed out this afternoon to spend more time with Bradey and the boys ( this of course means David, as well as Auston and Lincoln). Auston is taking gymnastics and we thought we would go watch. Yesterday we offered to pay for whatever take out they wanted for dinner tonight, and it was delicious. From a little Greek place near by, it is one of their favourite places.

Lincoln enjoying a sucker.

A very Happy Birthday to my brother Rick, he celebrates tomorrow, the 16th but I may not write a blog tomorrow so I will get my wishes in today. Rick is of course, my oldest and only brother. He lives next door to my dad, in what once was my Granddad Bill’s house. It no longer resembles that house, but the old house is still part of it. Rick is a generous, kind, helpful fella, always helping someone. He has a quick smile, is blonde, and blue eyed like me. Although I’m sure his blonde is white, while I’m still blonde! Happy Birthday brother! Below are some his first creations over the winter, all scrap metal, parts and pieces.

Happy Birthday wishes to cousin Daisy, celebrating today.  Daisy and my father are first cousins, his mom, her dad, were siblings. Daisy and her husband Robert are fabulous people, very active and community oriented. They live just a little down the road from our summer spot.

Thanks for stopping by, I won’t be posting everyday until we start travelling again, which should in 5 or 6 days. We still aren’t back to home dirt yet, another 380 miles/620 km. We will break the trip into at least 2 days, possibly 3. We shall see.

Until next time…..

Take care, stay safe,

Deb