Sunday, October 21, 2012

“ARE YA GEOGRAPHICALLY CHALLENGED,” he said….:((

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WE ARE IN SPENCERPORT NEW YORK:))

We had the big wheels rolling at 8:05 this morning & you know I don’t have to tell you what a great feeling that was. At last, at last:))
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A LAST PHOTO OF OUR HOUSE AS WE PULL AWAY

Roads were wet but at least the rain had ended. Cloudy skies with a bit of mist on the surrounding horizons. Kept a close eye on things for the first few miles checking to see everything was running & towing right. It was, but again, I could tell we were on the heavy side. Great to be back in the driver’s seat once more watching all the beautiful scenery sliding by the window. Didn’t take long to get all the cobwebs out & back into the swing of driving a Motorhome. Just comes natural I guess.
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AFTER NEARLY 7 MONTHS', THE BIG WHEELS ARE ROLLING AGAIN:))

About 9:45 we hit ourselves a big blast of gorgeous sunshine just west of Brantford Ontario & it was sunny for the whole rest of the way. Been awhile since I've mixed things up in the heavy traffic department but it was just like the old days when I used to do that for a living for awhile.  Like riding a bicycle…..one never forgets.

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NIAGARA RIVER FLOWING BETWEEN LAKES ERIE & ONTARIO AS SEEN FROM ATOP THE LEWISTON-QUEENSTON BRIDGE

We were half an hour in the traffic line-up at the border & we were both surprised at how easily we got through. The border fellow hardly had any questions for us before handing our Passports back with a "have a safe trip." I almost said, "hey wait a minute, we're used to way more questions than that Mister". Ya right!!.

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ABOUT A HALF HOUR WAIT AT THE BORDER

Soon as we crossed the border we headed up onto the Robert Moses Parkway. Kelly had never travelled this way to Spencerport & back before & we heard it was a nice scenic drive along the southern shores of Lake Ontario. And, with all the fall colors it was indeed scenic, & would have been even more scenic had we drove the full length. But, we had a problem.

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KELLY FIELDS HER FIRST DEER PARK LODGE CALL OF THE TRIP

I had miscalculated our gas. Knowing we were on the heavy side this trip we did not leave Bayfield on a full tank of gas. Figured we had enough to reach the border, which we did, but hadn't figured on not finding any gas stations along the Parkway. Wasn't long before our gas gauge was into the red zone. It was Sunday & the few little towns along the way, if they had a gas station, were closed. Reached the little town of Kuckville & the 'low fuel' audible buzzer came on. Pulled off to the side of the road & for only the second time in nearly 8 years of RVing I had to haul out our big spare can of gas. About a 5 gallon can I'm thinking. Very heavy to lift & hold while pouring gas in. But, it saved the day.

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YEP, STARTING TO LOOK LIKE A DIRTY OLD JEEP AGAIN

Retraced our steps for a few miles back as Kelly plotted us a new route & headed south in an effort to find a larger town with gas closer to Kelly’s familiar route. Stopped at a farm's roadside Pumpkin stand & picked up some directions. Problem was we had to get over the Erie Canal & not all bridges were big enough for a Motorhome. Those directions sent us off in a direction which brought us to a T-intersection. Which way, which way?? An old tumble down house stood on the other side of the intersection so Kelly walked over & knocked on the door. Young fellow came out, talked for a bit then walked up to my window, looks up & says, "are ya Geographically challenged". "Yep", I said, "sure am". He gave us a few new directions & 10 minutes later we were in the town of Medina at a Sunoco station filling up the rig......and, empty gas can. Not one of our better RVing afternoons I can tell you, so we just gots to gets our travel heads back on a little tighter.......10-4.

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OH OH…..ARE WE GONNA FIT??

Rolled into Spencerport about 3 p.m. & by 3:20 we were parked on Kelly's Mom's lawn out front the house....exhaustamacated. Well, pretty tired at least. It had turned out to be a 7 hour driving day. Not unusual for us but we will have to work at getting ourselves re-tuned & up to speed.

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OUR HOME FOR THE WEEK

Nice to see Kelly's Mom again. I hadn't seen her for about 4 years. Kelly's Brother Peter & his wife Leslie brought pizza for supper & we finished everything off with Abbott's ice cream. Groovy. No idea what's happening with Monday but we'll deal with that when we get there. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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YEP, WE’VE GOT A BIT OF RE-ADJUSTING TO DO THIS WEEK

GROANER'S CORNER:((  An elderly Floridian called 911 on her cell phone to report that her car has been broken into. She is hysterical as she explains her situation to the dispatcher: "They've stolen the stereo, the steering wheel, the brake
pedal and even the accelerator!" she cried.
The dispatcher said, "Stay calm. An officer is on the way."
A few minutes later, the officer radios in. "Disregard." He says. "She got
in the back-seat by mistake."

--------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS - .
https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

22 comments:

  1. Being from the West Coast, and never seeing the Erie canal before, I was a bit dissappointed. I don't know what I expected but guess I thought it would be bigger.

    Sorry your first day had some bumps in it. But hoping it will be smooth sailing the rest of the way there.

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  2. Hey, the internet must be working, so what else is not to like?? Welcome back to the states!!

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  3. Glad to hear that your journey has begun. Safe Travels as you head west and welcome to our part of the world. We are about 50 miles to the south of you. Putting the RV to bed for the winter but we will still be traveling.

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  4. Happy to see you are safety settled in. I do wonder how you parked the RV like that. It is nice to spend some time with family and rest up. I am glad our Customs people were as nice as the Canadian Customs people have been to us. We have had our moments with US Customs.
    Enjoyed the Groaner.
    Really enjoyed your human GPS story.

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  5. Sure glad the border crossing was a breeze. And good thing too as it would have been a real drag to run out of fuel there. Enjoy your new home for a week. Pretty place.

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  6. Glad to see you are safely tucked in at your destination, even if you did have a few jitters along the way. Welcome back to the states and hope you and Kelly and Pheebs have a wonderful time.

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  7. Glad to see that you made it to where you were headed without knocking anything off the rig anywhere on those bridges. Good job! Great to have you guys back in the US, now go buy peanut butter!

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  8. I always start looking for a gas station when I am at a half tank, It means more stops, but I feel better doing it that way.

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  9. Almost running out of gas is scary. I nag Craig to start considering a stop when we have 1/4 tank left.

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  10. glad you landed safely..albiet not without a few problems!..those darn gas stations are never where you want or need them to be!

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  11. So glad you r on the way again!! Travel Safe, sunny days and dry roads.

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  12. There's a "low fuel warning buzzer"? I guess I've never been that low on fuel. That would have scared the daylights outta me.
    You were well prepared to have that extra can of gas. Better full than empty, even if it's not a lot of fun to lift.

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  13. Good Job Al, its good to use that stored fuel often,,,,Glad your "on the road again"!! be safe, we leave tomorrow,,,First stop is Pats sister in Pamama City, FL...... We won't get to NR until around the 1st...gettin anxious!!

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  14. Welcome to New York, good thing you had the gas can. We always stop at Smokin Joe's, make sure we have enough gas to get there, just barely , then we can head out wherever we need.
    Enjoy you visit in Spencerport.

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  15. Al, if you don't have some little challenge to face, call it a bad day. Of course, this was a bit bigger than "some little challenge," but you still came out OK. It's all part of the adventure.

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  16. OH good! alls well that ends well, and I do love that word exhausticated! I use my phone for something called "gas buddy" all the time. It points me to gas and give me the latest price. It has helped us a lot in situations like that with no stations around. Take care and I am so glad to see you getting back in the swing of all that is RVing. Good and bad.

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  17. pretty scary with the fuel situation..I would have been freaking because we don't carry a full gas can...but alls well that ends well for you thankfully...enjoy your visit with family...and travel safe...

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  18. Glad to see you on the road again. We know what it feels like to hear that fuel buzzer, panicsville for sure and not a gas station in sight. We know you will have a fun time in Congress, AZ getting your new home all set up the way you want it. Safe journeys in the States!

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  19. When Dennis and I head out in the Hiker, we don't wonder WHAT is gonna go wrong, whe wonder WHEN it's gonna happen...Murphy's Law...Glad you are tucked in at Kelly's family ranch...Enjoy the week...The colors should be about perfect...

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  20. Glad you are back in the states! John told me to tell you that at least you have a Jeep to get dirty! He's jealous.

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  21. Well...you may be geographically challenged(!) but you sure know how to park a BIG motorhome in a WEE spot! I sure am impressed how you tucked it away! Well done Al!
    Enjoy the fall colours & the beginnings of your winter adventures!

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  22. On the road again........can't wait
    for your posts each day.
    Best of Luck to you all !

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