Beautiful Ferry Ride From Ocracoke Island and Visit With Blogging Friends

Ocracoke National Park, NC (76 degrees, clear blue skies)

Loading onto ferry

 

We got up way too early in the morning (5:30am) in order to take the ferry from Ocracoke Island to Cedar Island. However, after some initial grumbling on my part it turned out to be a fantastic trip all from the comfort of our motorcoach. 

 

 

The ferry ride lasts about  2 1/2 hours (cost $45 for rig and toad) and being able to enjoy it looking through the window of our home was amazing.  The ferry quickly filled and we were on the way.  With the love of my life, a cup of coffee, and a pretty sunrise life doesn’t get much better than this. 

 

View out our front window

Most folks stayed in their cars, however, there was a deck up at the top with  vending machines and chairs for enjoying the view. 
















The map below shows the route from Ocracoke Island to Cedar Island.  Click on map to enlarge. 



View Ocracoke to CedarIsland in a larger map

 

Cedas Island in the distance





Ferry waiting on other side to go back to Ocracoke

 

 

The drive through the low lands was very scenic after we got off the ferry.  Along the road someone was selling shrimp for $2.50 a pound. Stopping for some was imperative. The shrimp had been caught the night before. Now that’s fresh!!! Later on I realized the heads were still on them.  It's rare I get to do something for the first time now, but this was such an occasion.    Remember I'm from Indiana and our shrimp come out of the freezer.  Hopefully the squeamish feeling will be worth it. 

 

We were thrilled to meet up with a blogging couple who noticed our paths were crossing.  Dee and Jim write a great blog – click link - (Tumbleweed) we have followed their blog even  before we  started full timing. They inspired us as we were preparing to leave and we have learned a lot from them. Check it out.

 

We had a nice lunch together in Beaufort and shared stories, favorite campgrounds, and experiences.  Jim is retired Air Force too. 

 

We hope to meet up again in Florida.  They are organizing a get together of bloggers who hang out in sunny Florida. They hope to plan it  around the Tampa RV show. If you are in the area let us know. 
 

We then continued on our way to Wilmington, NC to spend the night at an Elks Lodge. It’s a handy place to overnight or spend a few days.  I forgot to take a picture but there are ten sites at the back of the lodge with 30amp service, water, and a dump on site.  There is a big picnic area and large grassy backyard.  The beach is very close by.  Cost is  $15/night and the bar also offers reasonable meals. Our only complaint is smoking is allowed in the bar. The members were very welcoming to us and we love staying at Elk Lodges especially for short stays.  It’s much better than a Wal-Mart and very reasonable. 

We are on our way to a military campground in Charleston, S.C.  Thanks for stopping by. 

New "Shoes" For The Motorcoach

New Castle, DE (68 degrees, cloudy skies)

We are on the road again and heading down to Florida for the winter. Our motorcoach needs new tires and after a lot of research decided to have them replaced in Delaware.  Some of our Facebook friends have asked for information and we thought some of our blog friends might find our experience helpful too.  We have attended seminars at rallies in the past about tires and it's recommended to have them replaced at 5-6 years of age regardless of wear or mileage.  Did you know there is actually a birth date on your tire (click link -how to tell how old a tire is)?

 

We wanted to replace them as a planned event and not as an emergency going down the road due to a blow out.  Along the side of the highway you can be at the mercy of a tire shop and a blow out can cause a lot of damage to the rig.

FMCA (Family Motorcoach Association) has a great benefit to its members.  They have a special program though Michelin Advantage Program (click link for program details).  We saved $92 per tires by utilizing the program. We also researched the state tax of the ones on our route to Florida.  Delaware has no state tax. In New York we would have paid 9%.  These new "shoes" are expensive ($3546 for a set of six).

FMCA is a motorcoach organization that offers rallies, seminars, forums, and much more for motorcoach owners.  We've attended several of their rallies and found them very informative and well organized.  If you are a new motorhome owner we would highly recommend joining.  There is a big learning curve to a motorhome and their seminars have been very helpful.  Right now membership is open only to motorhome owners, however, this may be changing in the future.

From the website on FMCA we found Service Tire and Truck Center  in New Castle Delaware (suburb of Wilmington).  Brian was very responsive to all our questions by phone and looked for tires with a recent birth date.  Our tires were quickly replace and we were back on the road in about two hours.   We were very pleased with this tire center. 

 

 

They did say we could boondock in their parking lot.  However, we decided to stay at a nearby Elks Lodge about one mile from the center.  It is tucked in the middle of a neighborhood and there are two sites with 120 electric only.  We were welcomed warmly and enjoyed our stay there for the night. 

Elk Lodge New Castle Delaware

 

 Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks are next on our itinerary.  Check back soon for all the details. 

 

 

 

There Is No Place Like Home

Indianapolis, IN (68 degrees, clear skies)

With a few click of her heals, Dorothy was transported back to Kansas.  It took Big Bear (our motorhome) a little longer to accomplish but we have arrived back in Indianapolis, our  home town, safe and sound.  There really is no place like home. 

We will be here for three weeks visiting friends and family.  In addition, we also will be seeing all our doctors for annual check ups. 

Some renovations have been planned for our motorhome.  We have an appointment next week at Master Tech RV in Elkart Indiana.  Our fiberglass roof needs to be replaced due to some leaking.  We also are planning on having a ceiling fan installed in the bedroom and a new sofa. Master Tech replaced our carpeting with a type of tile two years ago.  They are specialists in renovations and we have been very pleased with their workmanship and service in the past. 

 

Our route from Sante Fe to Indianapolis included a stop in Amarillo Texas.  We stayed at a Passport America campground called AOK.  Amarillo is not very scenic and this campground was a basic, no frills sort of place.  The rate was $11 for full hooks and was reasonable for a quick over night stay.  This part of Texas is very bleak and flat.  I thought at times we were in the middle of the Grapes of Wrath movie.

 

  

AOK Campground (Passport America)

The next morning we left early and had only traveled a few miles when our tire monitoring system alarmed.  John pulled over and found out that our right front tire on the jeep was shredded.  We had no indication that anything was wrong.  None of the passing traffic had noticed it either due to the tire being on the inside.  Our tire monitoring system was our only indication.  It could have easily caught on fire or bent the rim in no time.  We have monitors on all our tires including a toad. We'd highly recommend some type of system for all RVers.  There are many types on the market.  They are a bit of a hassle to set up and maintain but we would not travel without them.   

 

John was able to quickly change the tire and we were on our way.  A State Trooper stopped and he also was impressed with the monitoring system.  He said that he's seen some terrible damage to motorhomes due to the driver not being aware of a flat tire. 

Our stop for the night was Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City. It is a popular famcamp and many of the sites look over a fishing pond. It was $19 a night for a full hook up site. The laundry on site was spotless and only 50 cents a load for the washer or dryer. It is very well maintained, but not very peaceful. One morning we woke up to three riding lawnmowers and four other folks weed eating this small campground. It was nuts! 

Speaking of grass...Jimmy was so happy to see the green stuff again.  He rolled and rolled in the grass.  The desert was rough on him with all the sticky "goat heads" and cactus.  He is a happy dude!



Tinker AFB Famcamp (fishing pond)



Tinker AFB (our site)

Our next stop was at another Passport America campground called Laura Inglis Wilder RV Park in Mansfield Missouri.  We stayed for three nights ($36 total, 30 amp) and they honored the rate for the entire stay.  The park is not very well maintained and the grass was high.  It is currently for sale and would need a lot of work to get it back in shape. 

We stayed here so that we could visit John's Air Force buddy.  They were stationed in Alabama when they were 18 years old and have remained friends.  Tim's wife had recently died and we wanted to spend some time with him and his daughter. It was a nice visit and we enjoyed being out at their home in the country.  Sara and I had fun shopping at a local mall.  She loves escalators!

Tim and Sara

Laura Inglis Wilder Campground

Our last stop before arriving in Indianapolis was in St. Louis Missouri.  We stayed at Elks Lodge in O'Fallon.  They have two sites with electric only and it was near our friends Chet and Chris.  They ask for a donation to the lodge instead of a nightly rate.   Chris and I worked together at St. Vincent Carmel Hospital.  They have lived in St. Louis for several years now and love the city.  We decided to visit the St. Louis Zoo for the day.  What a great zoo and the admission was free.  It was fun to wander around and see all the animals.  Spring had sprung and all the blooming flowers and trees were so beautiful. 

 

 

We saw the new baby elephant name Kenzi that weighted 300 pounds at birth. She is a cutie.  

New baby elephant-Kenzi

There is an Insectarium exhibit full of bugs.  We especially liked the butterfly wing. 

 

 

Baby giraffe

There is lots to see at this zoo.  Be sure to have good walking shoes.  The weather was perfect.  Afterwards to went the Jewel Box, a beautiful green house in Forest Park.  Unfortunately we were not able to go in due to a wedding.  Oh, well, I guess we'll just have to come back for another visit. 

Jewel Box

Chris and Chet

We are now in Indianapolis staying the KOA in Greenfield (suburb of Indy).  This is where we first workamped two years ago.  As we drove up we were so happy to find Gay and Danny had arrived. They are working here again this year and have been our workamping mentors. We also met Wayne, a new workamper this season.  He has been doing a great job getting the place ready.  The owner greeted us warmly and we all got together for dinner and campfire the next night.  It sure is great to be home. 

Our

From Castles To Churches To SNOW - Oh My! (plus Elks Lodge Info)

(Sedona, AZ) 32 degrees, gray skies and SNOW

Yesterday the view out our window looked like this-

This morning we woke up to this-

This is not a black and white photo...this is color

And this-

Elks Lodge-Sedona Arizona

And this-

Todays weather report:  Overcast with snow showers and rain showers, then snow showers after midnight. Low of 25F. Winds less than 5 mph. Chance of snow 100% with accumulations up to 4 in. possible (note-so far we've had about 8 inches)

The folks in Sedona are thrilled.  They tell us this never happens here.  The tourists, however, are not as happy.  We knew this front was coming through and decided to stay. Winds were predicted to be about 40 mph along the road we planned to follow. As it turns out the highway is now closed.  Being stranded or caught out in high winds did not seem like a good idea.  Hopefully on Tuesday the weather will improve. 

When we were dreaming about full timing being caught in a snow storm really did not seem like a possibility.  One of my friends also named Carol had been full timing a year before we took off.  Her words of advice to us were "don't give away all your winter clothes".  Thanks Carol.  Today as I put on my warm winter coat, gloves, and hat I thought of her words and laughed.  Who knew?

A couple of days ago we decided to visit two National Monuments located nearby. It was a nice drive out to the Verde Valley and  Montezuma Castle. After stopping at the visitor center we walked down the trail to see the "castle" built over a hundred feet in the air sheltered by a limestone overhang.  It is a five-story, 20-room dwelling built by the peaceful Sinagua farmers in the 12th century. The Sinagua people lived here for over 300 years and  probably left due to over crowding. 

Montezuma Castle

It was mistakenly thought to be an Aztec ruin and named after the Aztec ruler Montezuma.  It is very beautiful and striking against the white rock. 

 

Jimmy was quite the "kid magnet" at the park.  They always seem so surprised by his soft coat.  He loves to be petted. 

The stark white sycamore trees do not have leaves yet.  They were so beautiful in their naked splendor.

 

 

Afterward we drove about 11 miles to visit the Montezuma Well National Monument. This is a natural limestone sinkhole where over 1.5 million gallon of water flow out each day through two underground springs. The Sinagua farmers built an elaborate irrigation system from this well to water their fields.

Montezuma Well Overlook

The sinkhole is very large and can be easily seen after a short walk from the entrance station.  There are also several dwellings in the cliff.  

Cliff Dwelling

You can also walk down to the waters edge. The stairway is rather steep.  There is a dwelling that can be viewed from this area too. 

 

 

Afterwards we drove back to Sedona and stopped beautiful Chapel of the Holy Cross.  It is built right between two red rocks on a Vortex spot. The chapel is unpretentious and sparsely decorated.  No services are held here and is open to the public.  It was designed by Marguerite Brunswig Staude, a student of the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It was built in 1956. 

It is a bit of climb from the parking lot to the church and finding a parking spot can be tricky. There are volunteers with golf carts that will drive you up if needed. 

The message of the Chapel "That the Church may come to life in the souls of men and be a living reality is renewed and observed each day. Even as we speak it invites all to come to spend time to get connected with their creator."

It is a very serene and beautiful place to visit.  I loved the simplicity of the design and the setting is perfect.  

 

The sign says "Please don't pick me we're smiling at God"

Inside the chapel

 

We had mentioned in a post a couple of days ago that we are staying at the Elks Lodge in Sedona. I had several comments inquiring about the lodge and how to join. You do have to be a member of an Elks Lodge to stay here.  Your membership (click link) can be from any Elks Lodge and all you have to do is show your membership card when arriving. There are hundreds of Elk Lodges that also offer RV parking for members. Some have hook ups, while others do not have any facilities but allow you to stay.  Rates can be anywhere from a donation to the lodge up to  $30/night.  Some lodges do not participate at all. 

Here  is a website (click on link) where you can find the lodges that have RV sites and information about their fees, directions, hook ups etc.  If you use Microsoft Streets and Trips for planning your route there is a Point of Interest pin set you can add to your map that shows their location along your route. Or, you can order guides directly from Carmichael Elks Lodge in California that has tons of information in it.  It's probably the most through guide but it cost $46 for a complete set of all four regions.  You can also order one region for $12.  I have found sometimes the website is not as accurate as our books.  

To join, I'd suggest contacting an Elks Lodge near you.  It does take some advance planning since lodges usually have a new member initiation once a quarter. We joined in Greenfield Indiana before going full time. You do have to be sponsored by a member.  However, if you stop at a lodge and talk to member they would probably be thrilled to sponsor you.  There is an initiation ceremony and annual dues of about $90.

We like to stop at the lodges whenever possible.  Meals and drinks are usually very reasonable.  The members love to tell you about their town and we have always been welcomed very warmly. 

If you have any other questions, please feel free to email me or add a comment. 

Elks Lodge Patio overlooking the red rock mountains

View outside our motorhome yesterday

and

View outside our motorhome today

Enjoying Colorado - Visit to Mueller State Park

(Cripple Creek, Colorado) 42 degrees, blue skies, patchy clouds, snow flurries later in the day

Sawatch Mountain Range (Continental Divide)

Yesterday afternoon we met with our bosses (Jimmy & Pam) and they went over some of the campground policies.  We also watched a video on cleaning, and filled out our W4's.  I called H&R Block to get some advice on filling out the form and they were very helpful.  The state tax in Colorado is 4.63%. 

Afterwards we went to the Cripple Creek Elks Club to see their comedy club show.  The Elks Club has been there for over 100 years and the building was beautiful inside.  There are three floors with  lovely woodwork and tin ceilings.  It is a great place to meet local folks and we were welcomed by several members including the lady who give tours at a local whore house.  She is 83 years old and sharp as a tack.  Don't get too excited - it's a museum now.  The comedy show was a little disappointing but we had a good time and will go back again soon.  John joined the Elks before we left Indiana.  Many of the Elks clubs have camping facilities and it a good place to meet locals and learn more about an area. 

Today is our last day of "rest" before we start work at KOA.  We decided to visit Mueller State Park.  It is only about 30 minutes from the campground.  Initially we paid $7.00 for admission for the day.  However, after stopping at the visitors center and learning more about the park we decided to buy an annual state park pass for $70.  There are over 50 miles of trails in this park and it will be a great place for picnics.  Colorado has 42 state parks and several that are nearby us.  Hopefully we will get our monies worth out it. 

It started off to be a beautiful day and the smell of the ponderosa pines was wonderful.  The one mile nature trail was a good way to learn a little about the habitat.  The trail was well groomed and we picked up a guide book that had 14 points of interest.   

Sangre de Cristo Range

The continental divide goes through the Sawatch Range.  To the east the water flows to the Arkansas River and flow to the west into the Colorado River. 

Aspen grove over looking pink granite boulders

There are huge aspen groves.  The trees have not budded yet and there were very few wildflowers In a few weeks we will go back and see what is happening. We took a picnic lunch but the weather suddenly changed and we ended up eating it in the car.

Snow storm brewing in the distance

There is a very nice campground of around 100 sites.  The sites are $22/night with 20/30 amp service.  Many are pull through and can accommodate big rigs.  There are lots of trees and everything looked immaculate.  The ranger recommended reservations (6 months in advance) especially on weekends.  There are also plenty of tent sites. 

Site #2 Mueller State Park

We drove back to our campground and look what happened shortly after we got home. 

The weather is a little bit unpredictable right now...blue skies one moment and snow the next.  Our bird feeders are attracting more varieties.  Here is a Cooper's Hawk who scared off a few of them. 

Cooper's Hawk (he looks a little cold)

Tomorrow we will start our workamping jobs.  Check back for all the details.