2018 Grand Finale

  As you may recall my last post had us dealing with a broken hot water tank and my lumbar ridiculosis back. We arrived at Scotrun Campground Sep. 12 after leaving Mercer and my bud Tc's house. He was a gracious host as usual even though he is no longer up to par physically. I really appreciate the fact that friendships begun in grammar school are still going strong between several of us. I also appreciate all of my cousins, aunts, and sister taking time to get together in Pittsburgh for a couple of nice visits.

                                          The plan was to stay at Scotrun for two weeks.

After checking in we took a closer look at the water that was still dripping from the newly repaired tank and this is what I did:

I bought a tube of Flex Seal and squirted it into the gap between the tank and the foam case as this is where the water was coming from. We let the goop cure for almost 48 hours before turning the water back on. After close monitoring we discovered water seeping from underneath the tank but not at the sealed area. The water was also rusty indicating the tank was cracked. There was not going to be any hot water the rest of the trip. At least I was able to figure out how to bypass the water tank to have normal water flow for the sinks and toilet.

  The lack of hot water is really not an issue if you want to do dishes is cold water and if you can use the campground's bathhouse to take showers. This was not a problem for myself but would prove to be more difficult for Doreen. First, I had to determine the best way to get her to the shower building, second if there is an accessible shower stall, and third what would be her means of entry? The scooter? The walker? All of these obstacles would be different at any campground we would be staying at the rest of the way. 

  After weighing all of the factors we decided to return to Florida as soon as possible. Thus we only stayed a week in PA. We squeezed in family time as much as possible at the expense of not seeing any of our old friends, sorry Dan, Barry, Glenn, Deneen. I also decided that shorter trips were better for my back, so on the homeward trip we would make stops in Front Royal, VA; Mt. Airy, NC; Yemassee, SC; and Flagler Beach, FL. The longest of these was 300 miles.

  Our first stop was a nice campground with many amenities. Skyline Ranch had riding stables, a cafe', pool, fitness room, large event hall, and a beautiful view of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

We also happened to catch the Brews and Blues festival in downtown Front Royal:

All locally brewed beers from Virginia, food trucks, and live music. A nice surprise.

  Next up was Mayberry Campground in Mt. Airy, NC.

 

Of course Mt. Airy was the inspiration for the fictional town of Mayberry on the Andy Griffith show and the town capitalizes on that.

For 40 bucks you can take a ride in a squad car: 

All of the establishments from the show are represented even though none of the show was filmed here:

 

There is an Andy Griffith Museum:

  

Next up was a two night stop at the Oaks at Point South in Yemassee, SC. This is our usual stop on the way home and there is nothing around but convenience stores and fast food. It is easy off, easy on to I-95 and home, which under normal circumstances I do, but I was not going to drive 360 miles straight through so we stopped off at Bulow Plantation in Flagler Beach, FL. From there we would be about 130 miles from home.

It felt good to be back in the Sunshine State and feel the warm sun.

Did I say "sun"? Uh-oh. Of course we decided to check out the beach town on a day it stormed. As the clouds rolled in and the rain started we found refuge at the nearest watering hole:

We had some cold ones and a bite to eat while waiting out the rain.

  So that brings our 2018 road trip to a close. We should be home tomorrow, Wednesday October 3. That will conclude what has been, at times, a very trying experience and, at others very enjoyable.

  So lets look at some facts and numbers about this journey:

14,273- total miles driven

9,214- miles from stop to stop (see maps above)

1,023- gallons of diesel fuel

146- nights camping

36- campsites

19- states visited (11 new ones)

14- blog posts

9- national parks visited

6- time zone changes

4- doctors office visits (dermatologist)

4- repairs or repairs needed

    1 power tongue jack

    3 new trailer tires and damage from a blown tire

    3 times needed to repair front end of trailer

    1 broken hot water tank

3- credit card fraud alerts

3- national monuments visited

2- E.R. visits

1- police report filed

1- HELLUVA GOOD TIME!!

We hope everyone has safe winter and we will be back next year for another adventure- we still have seven states to put on the map (excluding Alaska & Hawaii): Missouri, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island 

HAPPY TRAILS

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