So here we have arrived at the town of Sandusky on the west end of Lake Erie. The site is an odd one. Beautifully nestled on the trees and again with Neanderthal man doing his thing, but an awful lot of tents. This was a campers campground. All very friendly no issues, just different. The staff were comical with their one word answers and the town you could see had a large industrial past. Sandusky is also home to the underground railroad. We had to see this! Sandusky is approximately 4mi from the campground and once you enter the outskirts it's another 2mi to the centre. Very historical and manicured planters gave this a pleasant feel. Not much open, as to be expected, but we did find place with outdoor seating, and it's always nice to sit and whatch the world go by. Even the impromptu #BLM march which took us all by surprise. Aside form the campsite was a large factory called Ventra - they specialised in designing vehicle lighting. LED interior/exterior. From Sandusky we drove 3hr west to Angola / Hogbackcreek KOA. This was another large site. While the majority of the grass was well cared for, the 15 or so pitches where we'd be place looked more like a desert with weedy tuffs of gangly grass. It was here though we caught our first glimpse of a chipmunk. We nicknamed them the kids, as they's come out to play, not get up until late in the morning, and generally just annoyed each other. They're smaller than you imagine from the cartoons...Lol While booking the follow 3 campsite during our afternoon in Sandusky. It appeared along with the deposit for the sites, we (I) also paid 3 more memberships fees to KOA. I bet they love the Tyrrell's now...!! Needless to say KOA were superb on Twitter @KOAKampgrounds and merged all four accounts to one then arranged for a refund of the excess memberships. Thank you www.KOA.com From here we move to Elkhart Co / Middlebury KOA - this is 2mi from the northern Indiana sate border. Photo to follow. This is a large Amish community. so lots of things for sale that are handmade of wood, or fabric. Cycling through the lanes it's refreshing to be passed by a horse and carriage and not an 18 wheeler. We made 2 quite large (for us anyway) bike rides of 26mi and 21mi through the countryside. Mainly using the old railroad that's been transformed into a beautiful cycle track and nature trail Pumpkinvine Nature Trail. Yet more chipmunks and squirrels, but this time they wanted to play chicken. We are here until the 5th. It was important for us to be settled in a place and watch the events of the weekend of July 4th unfold on the site. So we leave here on Sunday 5th for Kankakee, IL - south of Chicago and our last drive on the 8th to the storage facility. We'll keep you update and keep posting the photos, but you never know what opportunities are around the corner, even in our home country, the United Kingdom.
It's quite amazing to look back at our journey through the USA, and now stand here and what is one of the most iconic attractions on earth, Niagara Falls. This campsite on Grand Island was a Campsite Of America or KOA. There's hundreds of these across the country but this was the first one we'd stayed at. I say the first one, as that night we were supposed to be over the border in Canada at Yogi Bear Campsite in Niagara. So the booking had to be toot suite (as Mary Poppins would say). The staff were again very helpful and we joined the KOA club. $33 for the year and we saved that on our first stay. Going back to the Canadian border debacle. It appears the necessary travel and essential travel differ and is completely discretionary. However if you don't try you'll never know. There was a point where we were in complete limbo. It could have gone very south very quickly as the Canadian Border Authorities turned us around back to the USA Border Patrol - If the USA did not let us in - we'd have been quite stuck. Especially with an RV in tow that you just can't park up at the side of the road. The US officials kindly granted us 1 extra month on our ESTA, and we promised to fly back to the UK until everything COVID related had calmed down and the borders reopened. We expected this but was just hoping for a bit of extra luck. It wasn't to be and next month we fly back. This however didn't dampen out time here. We were only here for a few nights, so out the bikes came again and the route plotted to the falls. This took us over the main bridge leading to the city of Niagara. This bridge was a highway, with bike lane that was separated by a good concrete barrier and the length of this mammoth part of the ride was nearly 1mi. Heavy vehicles speeding past, and a drop over the other side into the river. Once on the cycle path/lane there was no turning around and there was only room for one cyclist. It was a hairy journey. Uphill for half a mile and then downhill to the relative sanctuary of the riverside cycle path. It's a 4mi ride to the falls once of the death bridge, and it very scenic. There's a strong flow of water and the rive is pretty wide. Probably half as wide again as the Thames. Over the cycle/pedestrian bridge to Goat Island and there you can take your time to walk around and observe to falls in all their glory. One can see why they are such an attraction. Quite mesmerising, but neither had any wishes to go over in a barrel or tightrope across. Enough for one day was the return journey over death bridge. We made plans while at Niagara of where we should go and what we should do with Harvey. The southern states were a no because of the summer weather and this also applied to the eastern cities too. That couple with our current location and availability of flights to the UK, we plumped for Chicago. We can put Harvey into storage, and fly out. We found a family run business who will keep the batteries topped up and generally take care of him. We envisage this to be for around 6months, at least. At the end of our 3 day stay we made it on to a town called Sandusky, the other end of Lake Erie... This was a good 3-4hr drive to the west, and for the first time, we were driving over highway that we'd previously driven over...
We arrived at Geneva on the Lake on Thursday 4th June. Lake Erie is the fourth largest of the Five Great Lakes of North America. at it's deepest is only 210ft which also makes it the shallowest. It was a great drive up and around Cleveland. The USA, that we have seen, away from the cities and infrastructure has been spotlessly clean. The campsite is lovely. A well stocked shop (plenty of wine..!) and a great family atmosphere. The site is located across from the lake and the row of houses that front the beach. The town of GOTL (Geneva on the Lake) is a short bike ride along the road. We took a bike ride on day 2 of our stay, to find a complete ghost own. I suppose to be expected, considering the current circumstances. But you could see it's potential. There is a substantial zip line and fair ground at the west end. The town is dotted with souvenir shops, a winery and various places to eat a variety of healthy and not so healthy snacks. A little further on from this, is a lovey state park with cycle tracks. We spent an hour or so weaving in and out of the trees. It was a peaceful place with plenty of parking and 'beaches' where family's had taken to the fresh air in a break from the solitude of lockdown. However at midday everything started to open!! We were cycling along the main road and came across the Saloon. Which looked exactly like it sounded, an old western type bar [from the outside]. Inside it was a sports bar. Now we have been very good at keeping our distance from people and upon seeing that tables were at least 12ft apart not just 6, we took upon the offer to quench our thirst, and this we did. It was the first drink I think we'd had in a public bar, in the USA. The cycle back took a little longer and for some reason the road didn't seem quite as straight as we both remembered earlier that morning. Amongst all this global craziness, it was a very good day. One of the best meals here was brunch on the grill. Sausage, bacon, eggs... yes eggs on the grill! and the much reveared bacon butty and HP sauce (see photos). I think the fresh air helps with an appetite, and we have to say... it was darn good. In addition the steak, roast potatoes (again on the grill) and salad was also tremendous. We were here for a few days, and luckily so. The baggage company back in the UK had made contact and they could ship our bags out on the Tuesday. They would then be couriered via DHL to the site. ETA Friday. We snapped their hand off and told them whatever it takes. We literally slept with the tracking notifications turn on and the highest volume. We were leaving on the Monday to Niagara. Plenty of time with a little fudge-factor to play with. The morning of Friday 12th June at 10:30am we walked to the main office / reception. Now the staff there were very friendly as we said, they even offered to sign for the bags when they arrived. But what if the driver had to hand over to the bags over. Only to the owners... We were leaving nothing to chance... So we sat , at the main gate, avidly watching every yellow and red van that drove past. It's quite surprising how many there are. I'd just like to mention, that it's just shy of 1mi from our pitch, past the swimming pool, past the lakes, past the storage area to the reception. It's a big site! Lunch break was called for at 1pm and also a cup of tea was needed. After a quick walk back to Harvey, ham sandwiches were made, tea brewed. We sat down ready for the afternoon shift. The bags arrived at 4:30pm. We were amazed!! after all this time, expecting them to arrive at the beginning of April, hearing nothing for weeks then suddenly it took just 3 days. During our wait at reception it was a busy little place. People came and went, vans and RV's- all descriptions - pulled in and out. During the week these sites are pretty quiet. At the weekends it's a different story. A story with which one will never ceased to be amazed. The effect a fire pit has on mankind. Particularly man. Poking prodding, blowing, wafting (I'm sure praying is involved at some stage too). Then, once there's fire, the done thing appears to be to just stand and stare, endlessly into the smokey abyss. Pondering life maybe, or simply just what to do next. And the piles of would!! They look like they've been sent directly from the rainforests of South America. Piles and piles of wood all stacked neatly ready for their time to satisfy the Neanderthalic genes of their new owners. So, anyway, onto Niagara next, and here's the plan, which is simple in detail - See Niagara Falls (obviously), and get across the Canadian border. Time until the American ESTA runs out - 1 week! Easy, yes??
We are heading for “Valley Vineyards, Winery & Brewery” in Morrow, Ohio. approx distance 130miles, approx time 2hrs. Weather is nice again with another hot sunny day. We arrive to find that they will be having a cookout that night, and live music. How cool is that for timing. For those not sure what a cookout is, they have huge grills (BBQ’s) you pay a set price pick your meat of fish and cook it yourself. With the way things are in the world at the moment, it is a great way to do it. This is the first brewery that we have stopped at, so Ashley tried the beer and I tried the wine. The beer was good but couldn’t buy any as they had ran out of the takeout containers. However, guess what we could buy, some more wine!! So another box of 12 made it to Harvey (well this was going to be the last winery for a while and best to stock up on wine that you have tried). Really would recommend you to stop in if you are passing. The place is so nice, the people are really friendly. It was a real shame that we only got to spend one night there. However the chance to get our long awaited bags meant we needed to move on. Next stop Lake Erie, Ohio
Tuesday 2nd June On the road, continuing across from Sparks, Georgia heading for Tennessee, distance approx 350miles, time approx 6hrs. We made cups of tea in our Yeti’s to drink on route, and some sandwiches in preparation for the long hike. We have plenty of fruit and soft drinks, so we should be good. Another lovely day with clear sky’s and good roads. One of the things that we have noticed is that there are a lot of rest areas. Basically there are stops that have your food and fuel and then they have other stops that are just bathroom facilities and picnic areas. I think they are a great idea, they have plenty of room for trucks and Harvey and separate parking for cars. Looking back at our childhoods, these areas would of been a great help to our folks, as we often would stop and have sandwiches on route when doing long distances. We have good tunes on the radio, a playlist to back it up, and clear roads ahead. Looking forward to our next stop, Riceville, Tennessee. We arrive to find that “Silver Springs Vineyard” is actually closed for food and drink but they are happy for us to park there. The owner is a very nice Greek man, who’s father and uncle were taken as prisoners of war in World War 2. They'd managed to escape and ended up finding some American Soldiers in France, they joined them and carried on fighting. When the war was over they came to America with the returning soldiers. It’s a shame that we weren’t able to try the wine but maybe next time we pass through. We only planned to stay one night, as we wanted to head onto Kentucky.
Hi y'all from Georgia, Sunday 31st May the road trip starts. We do a quick stop for food and fuel. Then hit the road heading to Georgia, north on I-75 (a road we will get to know very well over the next 7 days). Our first stop is “Horse Creek Winery” a nice drive of approx 250 miles and approx 4hrs drive. We are not in any hurry, funny thing is we don’t rush anywhere now. We are going to be staying 2 nights, so that we can do a little exploring. Also it's a big day, as it will be my first time driving again. The journey was really nice, Harvey is lovely to drive, he likes ticking a long about 60mph and out of that we get 8-9mpg. The weather is a beautiful sunny dry day. It felt good to be behind the wheel. The only time I had any pain was when we pulled in to get fuel and I had my foot on the brake while I waited my turn. Horse Creek Winery is just off I-75. It's in a lovely setting. They have a Bistro, but it closed before we got there. The winery is open until 6pm and they do wine tastings. We decide to have a bottle of wine, and relax in the sun in their courtyard. It would be rude not to. The weather is very similar to Florida except not quite so humid, which is nice. We decide to do a wine tasting, which was good fun. If you have spent time in France and tend to drink French wine then do not compare the wine. We decided it was best to just enjoy the moment. We are not wine snobs, if we try it and we like it, then we will drink it. That doesn’t just go for wine, life is way to short to do or have things that you don’t enjoy. We tried a number of different wines that they make and have to say a few of them were very nice. We then left loaded with 12 bottles. Oh boy..!! this road trip is going to be expensive. The evening was lovely we sat outside Harvey, surrounded by vines drinking wine and playing cards, lovely evening and exactly the kind of evening that we had dreamed of doing on this adventure. Monday was another beautiful day, we headed out on the bikes to go and see a little of Georgia, it was beautiful, cycling along quiet country lanes. Occasionally a house but mainly farm land. Something we learned about Georgia, it is the top producer in the states of Peanuts, something that we didn’t know was that Peanuts grow in the ground like potatoes. They must have to be very careful when they harvest them. Funny thing is some of the roads turn to dirt tracks, they are proper roads but not finished with tarmac. This leads for a very bumpy ride, which was very funny as my bike has a duel suspension (never had a bike with this before) so found myself bouncing all over the place hanging on for dear life. Ashley’s bike doesn’t have it so he just spent the whole time laughing at me. Tuesday morning we are back on the road heading to Tennessee.
Hi, well we left Naples and headed up I-75 towards Tampa, destination Lazydays RV Resort. It was nice to be on the road, taking a steady drive, unfortunately Emma still hasn’t been able to drive Harvey yet, her ankle is getting better but she is still in some pain, while we are confident that it would be okay, why risk it when we have years to potter around. We are booked into Lazydays RV Resort. Attached to the resort is Lazydays RV retail and service centre. We have done a lot of research regarding Solar for Harvey, and now that we have been in him for 8 weeks, we feel that it would be the best thing for us, we don’t always want to be in these big parks when we are travelling around. It is going to cost us in the short term, but in the long term, it should save us money against RV park fees. 30 days a year dry camping and it's paid for itself..... Lazydays Resort is bigger than Naples Resort, with lots of families, but again it is clean and tidy and the staff are friendly. We have been to sort out the Solar, and Harvey is booked in to have 2 panels fitted. each panel is 190w plus 2 extra batteries. The day comes that we have to take him in, he has to be there at 8am so it is an early start lifting the anchors it was horrid watching someone else take our baby and drive away to be operated on. We took a walk round to the bay that Harvey was in, just to check that the engineer was all set and didn’t need us to do anything. George was a nice guy, confirmed with us what he was going to do, and so we left Harvey in his capable hands. We decided to go for breakfast and then spent a few hours in the waiting lounge drinking tea and playing cards. We had planned to go for a bike ride but my ankle wasn’t very good, and I think secretly that we both wanted to stay close. Neither of us slept that well the night before. We got the call at 3pm that the operation had gone well, and Harvey was going to be brought back round to us in the next few mins. We then spent the next 10mins pacing back and forth like expectant parents. The relief when Harvey came round the corner, that he was okay, made us realise how much we loved this little guy. Well not so little at 31ft. We got back to our pitch and got Harvey sorted out and settled for the night. The next day Harvey was given a good clean inside and out. Memorial Day was Monday 25th May, from what we can gather the done thing on the weekend is to drink beer and have a BBQ. (It’s just the same as our bank holidays in the U.K. except here you can plan in the grilling) So we decided that we would get the grill out and have burgers. But not just burgers maybe some bacon, onions, cheese, lettuce and tomato to top them off. So on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend we sat outside Harvey, having a drink, eating burgers and watching TV. It’s a hard life. There are some tasks that everyone around the world class as chores. The other week I was doing the laundry, and there was a women making a big deal about what a pain it was, and that it's such a chore so she puts it off until she has a mountain to do. I simply said with a big smile “it could be worse, you could be down at the river washing them by hand” with that she decided that it wasn’t so bad pushing a button. I have to say, I actually was excited about doing our laundry. It felt great to be able to walk with the washing to the laundry and back again. Obviously she's never had a broken ankle else she would appreciate, being able to do these simple everyday tasks. What laundry day now looks like for us. We walk together, and while I put the washing on, Ashley prepares 2 drinks (Vodka and Diet Coke for Emma and Vodka and something, orange, lime&soda, Diet Pepsi, tonic (it changes each time) for Ashley). While the clothes are washing we play cards. When the washing has finished, Emma go’s and places them in the dryer and Ashley gets another drink prepared. While the cloths are drying we play more cards. Once the washing is dried, Emma go’s and starts to fold it while Ashley clears the cards away, then he joins her and both finish folding the clothes. We both then walk back to Harvey. While Emma puts the laundry away Ashley prepares another drink and some snacks and gets the cards back out ready to finish the game. If that is a chore, we love our chores. End of May brought the storms, so I decided to make cookies. I haven’t made them before, so if nothing else it would be a giggle. Totally messed with Ashley’s head as he is the one normally in the kitchen. I’m very spoilt to have a chef as a husband. The cookies were good we had to hide them out of sight to stop us from eating them all. The storm was a good one, right over our heads, it was deafening. It was great to watch, and once the worst of it passed, we took a short stroll in the light rain and the fresh air. Harvey has stood up well to these storms, we are very pleased with him. Today is Friday 29th of May and we are due to depart Sunday 31st. We were chatting yesterday about a few options, we have joined www.harvesthosts.com who offer free over night parking at farms, vineyards and brewery’s around the USA. Guess which two caught our eye. In the morning Ashley is generally up before me. He likes the hour to chill out with a coffee and the news. He has always liked doing that, even when we were working crazy long hours. This morning he started looking at a possible route for us, while I woke up and had my morning cup of tea. He got the map out ready to show me what he had found. We decided on a route to Niagara, NY. Last checks before we set off, we are planning a week of 'Boondocking' - for those not familiar, this is staying overnight completely self sufficient. No campsites, hook ups or amenities. Stay safe everyone :)
Our last 2 weeks in Naples, we decided to get some advice about our AC. It got to a point where having the AC on made Harvey hotter inside than outside. The manager at the RV Park gave us some business cards for workmen they would recommend. Ashley decided to call “Motorhome Medic” and spoke to Josh, who wasn’t available to come and see us for a couple of days but told Ashley a few different things to try. A few days later Josh came to see us. A really nice guy, he was wearing his mask and gloves and kept his distance while talking to us. He got straight into the AC, testing and checking everything and in fact, wasn’t very happy to report that we needed a new outside box (he had been hoping that it was just a control panel problem). The outside unit has to be bought as a whole and tends to be very expensive. Before he left he made some phone calls located a new unit and a price. It was going to be a few days before he could get the unit and fit it. The day came and Josh arrived, you don’t realise how big and heavy the unit is until you see it in the back of his vehicle. Ashley was all set to help, when Josh advised that he had arranged for one of his friends to pop round to help to get it onto the roof. Lets just say that his friend made Ashley look tiny!! - for those of you who haven’t met Ashley in person, he is approx 6ft. Air Con all fitted, tested and $1,200 lighter. Oh my god it was amazing, what a difference, we started to get proper sleep, the humidity levels dropped so our cloths didn’t feel damp. A day after the Air Con was fixed we were advised that they were going to be carrying out some work on some of the pitch’s that were around our pitch. Digging them up, taking down a couple of trees (just the one's I'd nearly hit!! (see #15), repaving the hard standings etc. We needed to move as we had only just got the Air Con fixed, we don’t want all that dust in our new unit. The resort were more that happy for us to be relocated. The day the workman arrived we moved to the other side of the park. It turned out to be an even nicer spot than we'd been on. Our last week at Naples RV Resort, we think the manager was getting greyer by the day. The workmen are making great progress. Kind of! Oops they've knicked a water pipe, so they have to switch the parks water off to fix it, not a big problem for us at all. Oooohhhh dear next day the workmen have cut through the power cable, they have to switch the power off for the park to repair it, no issue we all have generators if we needed power. All fixed and power restored. Day 3 the workmen are going great guns and they take out the WiFi tower. Day four we have water, power, WiFi and all is well in the world! We spoke too soon. Now we have a bush fire a couple of miles away. Areas are being evacuated, homes and businesses are being lost. The wind has picked up and is helping spread the fire. The rain that was forecast didn’t arrive. Firefighters have only 10% of the fire under control of 8,500 acres that are on fire. We haven’t been told to evacuate but we are packed up and ready to move if we need to. We have a restless night but as morning comes so too does the rain, and the winds drop. The rain was constant all day, while it didn’t help put the fire out it did make it harder for the fire to spread. What a fun filled last week in Naples. We ended up staying in Naples, Florida for 8 weeks, our next stop is back to Tampa Florida staying at Lazydays RV Park. Our original plan was that when we picked Harvey up we were staying in Tampa for 2 weeks to get Harvey kitted out and have Solar panels fitted. Obviously that all changed with the world on lock down, so we are now heading back to Tamp to get the Solar fitted. Day of departure we decide that we will get up at 7am (we don’t want to have to rush) its our first time so we are bound to double check a few things or make changes while we prepare for the anchor to be lifted. We have split the tasks between us: Ashley’s tasks are the outside (including the black tank pipe..... The smelly one!!) electric, engine checks, secure bikes etc Emma’s tasks are inside and include making sure that all lose items in bathroom are stowed, food cupboards are packed securely and doors and draws closed properly. Bedroom blinds are opened and floor and bed areas are clear for the slide out to come in. All crockery and glasses are packed away with dividers so not to bag together. Again making sure that all cupboards and draws are closed and latched. Move TV away and stow brush and mop. Slide retracted, awning to be brought in. Remove inside windscreen covers. Last visual checks inside and outside. Just like being back on the yachts. Who ever finishes first, helps the other. It all goes well, we have arranged to fill our propane tank before we leave. The plan was that we wanted to be getting gas at 10:30am and on the road for 11am. We pull out of the RV park at 10:59am, we're happy to report that the preparation and lifting of the anchors went well. So recommendations: * If you are heading to Naples definitely plan at least one night out in Naples it is beautiful to have a walk around and the food and staff are amazing. “Campiello” is worth the treat. Dan & Taylor spoke about a lot of the restaurants as we drove in and walked around. We would be very happy at any of them. Dan said “you could stay a week and eat at a different restaurant each night and love them all”. * The RV Park that we stopped at was “Naples RV Resort” it is about 10miles outside of the centre of Naples located on Collier Boulevard, in Collier County. The manager is Hank, a really nice guy, really helpful. In fact all the team there were great, we definitely will stay there again when we pass back through. * Motorhome Medic - Josh at www.rvmedic.com has his own RV and this business is a second job. He works for the local fire department as a Paramedic. He gave us lots of advise about things to watch out for in the RV and is always at the end of the line to give advice on problem solving. He has reasonable call out rates (some other company call out rates are stupid $$$'s plus then you pay a labour rate on top of that, ALWAYS ask labour and fees when you are speaking to people). For all the work Josh did, including the problem solving phone call, the hour he spent testing finding the problem, the 1hr30min drive to collect the new unit and the removal and installation of the unit he charged us less than $300. The rest of the bill was for the unit which we paid direct to the supplier. * If you are new to RVing chat to fellow campers they have so much advise, you don’t have to follow all of it, but it may get you thinking about something you hadn’t considered. * Then of course there’s FB...
Hello everyone, We hope that you are all safe and well. The world came to a crushing standstill, causing all of us to change our way of life. If we had placed a bet on the world closing down “what would be the first thing to run out” I don’t believe anyone would've guests toilet paper!!!!! It seems an age now since the shelves were bare of that particular necessity. The big thing for us was that we arrived earlier than planned to collect our RV. Not a big issue under normal circumstances, however then RV parks started to close (only the state ran parks and camp grounds luckily at this stage). Shops and stores were closed. O ur bags that were coming from the U.K. with all our belongings, including summer cloths etc were held in the U.K. due to the borders closing. So here we have an empty RV and the parks that we had bookings with were now closed. All our summer cloths were still in the U.K. The shipping company had a stay at home order. Also to make things that little bit more interesting, I was still on crutches and not allowed to weight bare. So first things first, when we purchased Harvey we needed a US address to register him. Our dear friends in Naples, FL , Dan & Taylor we’re happy for us to use their address. So one of the first things to do was jump in the hire car and head to them and collect the registration documents and number plate (license plate or tag). It was a 3hr drive from Tampa so it gave us chance to come up with a plan. Funny how things work out, we got to Naples and 1 mile from Dan & Taylor’s was a RV Park. We popped in to ask if they were open and bingo, they we were and we booked in. Funny how things have a way of working out. We learnt a long time ago that there is never any point in stressing about things. It has no affect on the situation at hand, just your well being. So we now had an address for a while, while I recover and we get to know Harvey. Next job on the list was to kit Harvey out and buy groceries. Plus we needed to self quarantine for 2 weeks due to travelling through the airports. 96 Amazon orders later, Harvey is fully kitted out. Publix (Grocery Store) delivered to the RV Park, so we are all sorted. I wasn’t very much help, hopping around the place, and with temperatures hitting 100F made it very uncomfortable with the cast. In addition our AC really wasn’t very good, blowing air at roughly 5F less than outside. Couldn’t understand why so many Americans have RV’s and 5th Wheels (big caravans that hook up like a lorry) because from our experience, Americans must have good AC. I managed to keep the cast on for 6 weeks, and can tell you, limbs, heat and plaster are not a good mix. I really can’t put into words, the feeling I had when taking the cast off. The pain in the calf and top of my foot stopped instantly. Don’t get me wrong the ankle was still hurting, but not as much as it was with the cast on. Now, the slow road to recovery, building the muscles back up and getting the ankle moving. We had decided that we would stay at the RV Park in Naples while I recovered, and while things settled down around the world. Pretty much all states in the US were closed down. The only thing now left to sort out, was getting our bags across the pond, but that would fully depend on when restrictions were lifted both sides of the Atlantic. Dan & Taylor came and had a drink with us one evening, we were all sat outside Harvey, social distancing at our table and chairs. It was great to see them, it was great to sit and have a glass of wine with friends. We self quarantined for 3 weeks which is very easy to do in an RV, our closest neighbours were 50ft away. A lovely couple called Bud & Pam from Maine, they live in their A Class RV (that’s the style of RV that looks like a coach or a bus, albeit a very posh one!!) all year round and have been touring the US, I think they have only 3 more states to explore. Due to the world being locked down and my broken ankle, we ended up staying at Naples RV Park for 8 weeks, we focused on getting Harvey set up and getting me out of my cast and walking again. We knew that cycling would be a good form of low impact exercise. We all know that you don’t forget how to ride a bike!!!! So you would think. It was going to be quite straight forward. There’s a bike, there's me, and now all I have to do is get on and ride!!!!!!! The day starts well, beautiful blue sky, not a cloud to be seen in any direction, a very slight breeze, in an otherwise still morning, the temperature was already in the high 80’s but I was feeling good and excited about the day ahead. I did all my none weight bearing exercises while having my morning cup of tea (very English it has to be Yorkshire which www.amazon.com did deliver). The exercises were painful, but all the research and doctors have said it would, so I wasn’t too worried. Ashley got both our bikes ready. The plan was, Ashley would help me get on mine and on the move, then he would get on his and we would cycle round the RV park to see how it felt. So picture the seen, I have the bike ready to go, I have my bad right foot on the peddle ready to set off, my good foot is on the ground, (I am currently not able to put all my weight on my bad foot yet). Ashley is holding the bike steady, all I have to do is take my good foot off the ground and put it onto the peddle, remember Ashley is holding the bike so I don’t even have to push down on my bad ankle. Simple I hear you say, OH NO IT ISN’T. I have a total mind block. I become scared to lift my good foot off the ground, this isn’t good that I suddenly forget how to do anything, my breathing becomes erratic and I can’t even talk. Ashley is holding the bike and also holding me. Talking to me nicely and calmly. He knows I will be very frustrated with myself, if I get off and give up. That’s when the laughing starts. Eventually I managed to break my good foot free of the invisible nails holding it on the ground. Ashley is holding the bike, I am on the bike, all I have to do is steer the bike and peddle. I am sooooo focused on my bad foot, I stop looking where I am going and start heading for a tree, all the while laughing. I can see the tree but for some reason keep heading for it. This went on a few more times with a few more trees all the while Ashley is walking next to me holding the bike. I am going so slow that if he lets go, the bike would fall over. Each tree missed made me laugh even more. You will be pleased to know that we managed not to hit any trees. After a minute break I decide to give it one more attempt. HURRAY I did it, I am riding my bike. Ashley grabs his bike and we cycle slowly around the RV Park. The next day we headed out on our bikes, it was amazing, it felt great for me to be active again. After 6 weeks of not being able to do anything, and now being able to get some exercise, was the best feeling. Over the next few weeks we cycled about everyday. The days we didn’t cycle we went for a slow walk. No more than a mile. The ankle was getting stronger everyday, still in pain but I make sure I have rest days and I am looking after it. We visited our friends Dan & Taylor a few times, who have also been in isolation. They'd started a jigsaw that is 3000 pieces. It's a crazy picture of all the Beatles songs. I love jigsaws, so offered to help. What a complete nightmare. All 4 of us, sat round the dinning table trying to do different sections of the jigsaw. It is crazy!! The hardest one any of us have ever seen. Unfortunately we didn’t get to finish it before we left mid May. The time was coming when we were due to head out from Naples. We haven’t been able to explore and see our other friends, we will be heading back. We also never made it to the Florida Keys, or other parts of Florida. Before we left, restaurants had started to open and Dan & Taylor wanted to take us to their favourite restaurant Campiello in the centre of Naples. We had previously cycled to town from the resort which was about 10miles.- it looked totally different at night. All light up with fairy lights. Naples is very pretty, the whole place is so clean, everywhere is so nicely manicured. We fully understand why Dan & Taylor love living in Paradise. We will be back.
Hi again (no number 13!), this chapter actually lives between arriving in Tampa and departing the South Pacific. We departed The Kingdom of Tonga and Fetoko island with some lovely memories packed safely away and made our way to Australia, for a short break in Sydney. A city we'd never been to. Moving on from 'down under' via Emirates and Dubai to the U.K. December in Great Britain allowed us time to see friends and family. We were able to drop off our bags that we would like to be shipped to Florida in March, so we can pick them up when we arrive for Harvey in April (writing this post COVID19, but this was our original plan A). Bags were packed and shipping manifests and customs paperwork filled out. No sharp objects - what do you mean? Our complete set of chefs knives are rolled in a protective sleeve, more for the safe keeping of the knives, not so much for the handler! in any case, they are stowed in the middle of the bag and packed around clothing. Safe as houses?? Not according to unaccompanied shipping legislation. Unaccompanied? Not in a position to argue the point over email or Skype, the knives were removed and locked away securely at our friends house. Nanny state!!! I forgot to mention the drone (Ooops..!!) so we’ll wait and see. Currently there’s no freight to the USA, but hopefully they’ll open that up in the next week or so. Friends were met and family visited over the 2 weeks to 15th December. Though regarding the RV road trip, there was no talk of timescale with family. Our favourite airport hotel has to be the Leonardo Hotel at London Heathrow. It ticks all the boxes, being convenient for airport drop off, shuttle service, clean, friendly - we must have stopped there probably 6-8 times if not more. Literally every time we transit the U.K. - and it's easily bookable on www.ebookers.com We arranged the first part of our North America trip with WinterSports, bookable on www.wintersports.com This was for us to become Ski (Ashley) & Snowboard (Emma) instructors. Whether we use these qualifications in the future, who knows, but it's another option for us. Air Canada were super friendly, winter bags plus ski/snowboard gear checked, and off we went. On the other side of the pond we arrived at Calgary Airport (YYC) (-15C) and connected straight to Kamloops - a small local airport amidst the Rockies and from there the 40min drive via shuttle to Sun Peaks in BC the first part of our trip. We had 4 weeks here to rediscover our snow legs, and drum up some resemblance of wintersports fitness, before the 11 weeks Level 1 & 2 courses at Panorama, BC. Sun Peaks was lovely, a one road village, purpose built in the 1980’s. It has restaurants, clothing stores and rental shops. The main hotel in to village was the Grand Hotel. We weren’t staying there, but it was our apres stop off after the days activity on the slopes. Sitting there at the bar on the second or third afternoon we met the General Manager, Patrick - who we knew from TradeWinds in the Caribbean. What a small world. Sun Peaks is very scenic, nestled in a valley amongst 3 mountains - Tod, Sundance and Morrisey, and a nice mix of Green, Blue & Black runs. Note that there are no Red’s like Europe, but the Blacks are a mix of single or double Black Diamond (single Black being equivalent to a Red in Europe). There’s some nice back country for those that are inclined and equally fantastic opportunities for some very dramatic photography. While we were at Sun Peaks we did our AST1 training (Avalanche Survival Training). Note if you are ever planning to go off piste, then this is a must. We spent Christmas and the New Year at Sun Peaks, which was really nice, spending it quietly together, it had been a few years since we had done this as we would normally be working and looking after our guests. The 4 weeks flew past, as we knew they would, and Calgary was calling again as a transit airport. This time it was -30C. We met our Wintersports ‘resort host and guide’, a Laplander called Jari (pronounced Yarry, like Gary), also nicknamed ‘The Viking. We were overnighting in Calgary, and meeting up with the rest of the Wintersports would be instructors. They ranged in nationality, age and proficiency, but we all shared a common excitement and love for the mountains and snow. The youngest was 17yr and we were easily the eldest at 47/48yr. Most were in their early - mid 20’s. Panorama is a much much smaller resort. Independently owned and managed. It consists of 1 bar (T-Bar) that sells lunch and meals through to 9pm, and a slightly more formal, Italian restaurant (Alto), open for lunch and dinner. There’s the Grand Hall which is more specifically designed around canteen style breakfasts and lunch for the masses, a small coffee shop called Fireside and the rental store. So yes, a lot smaller!! There are a couple of other restaurants but they are privately run. They have a small SuperMarket which is handy. The great thing about Panorama is that it operates a free shuttle to and from the local town called Invermere. It is a small town but has everything that you could want a large Supermarket, Pharmacy’s, Hospital (you never know!!) And selection of shops. It has a big lake which you can ice skate on during the winter months. They have their own Ice Hockey team, and you should defiantly try Curling, great fun sliding along the ice trying to look controlled. Our accommodation in Pano was older and in need of a little attention, here and there, but it did exactly what it needed to do, it was clean, dry and warm, 1min walk to the Mile1 lift. As part of WinterSports we had a communal kitchen and common room. There were 14 of us in our WinterSports group split equally between the Level 1 ski and boarding instructor courses (after Level 1, some were going onto Ski Patrol Training, while the rest of us went on to Level 2 instructor courses). Our Ski instructor, WiL (a very competent and accomplished Level 4) lead us through the Level 1 and Level 2 disciplines. He was also a DJ at the weekends sometimes in the T-Bar and the ‘Music Bingo’ midweek which proved very popular - We could hear the lyrics even though we were 3 floor above, so there really was no reason for us to go. We could enjoy it just as much on our own!! The 80’s night was rumoured to be the highlight of the season and seemingly attracted all the glamour. We modestly accepted the invite and partook in the wig wearing, shiny clad, body hugging, tasteless fancy dress. Our whole costumes totalled a combined CAD$18. The night was immense on every scale. The music, some of which we hadn’t heard for 30yrs (most of it for good reason!!) brought back memories of hairstyles gone wrong, bars and nightclubs that by todays standards we wouldn’t be seen dead in. The following day was very quiet!! The Snowboard instructor was Josh a very capable Level 3, a really nice guy very focused and driven to teach his students everything, and make them the best instructors he could. Josh would be the instructor for the WinterSports Snowboard 11week instructor programme. The weeks came and went and the sheer variety of a single mountain never bothered any of us. Taynton Bowl over the far side offered powder with blacks and double blacks and the front side offered well groomed greens, blues and blacks and runs that interchanged. It was a well designed and managed mountain with plenty of varierty. We both successfully completed our Level 1 Instructor qualifications and spent the following week teaching at the Panorama Ski School. Which was a great opportunity to gain some amazing experience and work with other instructors. We would highly recommend the Ski School for both skiers and boarders that have never done a winter sport, or people that would like to improve. As it is an amazing set up, with some highly experienced instructors. March 1st was not such a great day. Exams were at the end of the month and we were all heading in the right direction. It was a Sunday and Emma was out with her ‘class’ for the days Level 2 instruction with Josh. At lunchtime, a message came through that Emma had been injured and Ski Patrol were bringing her down to the First Aid lodge. Now, anyone knowing Emma will testify that this was never going to be just a sprain or a twisted knee or ankle. Emma was give Ento-Nox or laughing gas (Nitros oxide), for the pain. An ambulance was requested by the first responders and it was off to the hospital (who knew!) for X-rays. 2 hrs later it was confirmed she’d broken her right ankle in two places. This was done exiting a chairlift. The landing platform had not been cleared of snow and ice and clipping the edge of her board, she was dragged under the lift. The lift operator had his back to the lift, leading to a much longer delay in the emergency stop being pressed. 4-5 chairs travelled over her before Jari (who was there just by co-incidence) managed to take off his skis, run back to the control box and stop the lift. Some 30-40seconds…. So Emma’s dream trip came abruptly to a halt (saving grace was that no surgery was not required), it took over a week for anyone in management to acknowledge any assistance. Given a little nudge or two, they were better, and in the end after a change of room (with a better view) they assisted with hospital transport for X-Rays and final check-ups. Emma was obviously very upset and disappointed not to be able to complete the training and take the Level 2 Exam, also totally gutted that she was also unable to do the Heliski that was planned to for the end of March to celebrate completing the course (it is something Emma has on her Bucket List). COVID19 decided to wedge itself into everyody's plan. The resort was closed on Monday March 16th with around 4 hours notice. Needless to say there were some very upset people (mostly staff). On Wednesday 18th we got the Wintersports shuttle to Calgary airport, we dropped off those who’d made hurried flight changes and leaving that day, while we, and two of the girls headed back to the hotel where it all started from 2 months before. We had been able to reschedule our planned flight to Tampa which was routed via Houston but as things were changing very quick due to the global situation, we had a back up flight to the U.K. Borders were being closed one after the other, and we arrived at the airport, 04:30am on Thursday 19th March not actually knowing which country we would be in that night. I guess it’s all part of the adventure...