Mid-October found us in snowy Colorado. We stayed in a time share in Granby for a week and took a break from being on the road. If October was an indicator, we are not surprised Denver is buried in snow in January. We found Winter Park to be a nice ski town with good restaurants. We felt lucky to get out of there before we were snowed in because their first big storm came in just after we left.
In Nebraska we camped at E.T. Mahoney State Park, one of the nicest parks we have ever stayed at. After our first night there, we toured Omaha attractions; the zoo, the Old Market and the Heartland of America Fountain. When we returned to our camp site, we found that the few items that we had left there had been stolen. It’s like we never left Prince George’s County! After a trip to Wal-Mart and $70, we replaced the stolen items..
In Ohio we visited with our friends Janet and Lowell and had our first home cooked meal in four months. At our next stop, we checked out the views from Grandview Ave overlooking downtown Pittsburg. We stayed 4 nights at Wolf Run Manor in DuBoise, PA. Pat’s parents joined us for a couple of days. We took a scenic drive and saw a group of 11 bull elks along the road. They all had extensive racks - it was more impressive than the elk we saw in Yellowstone! Of course no one had brought a camera. We returned to York and celebrated our 24th Anniversary at the Accomack Inn with Pat’s parents (also a belated Mother’s Day celebration!)
After a visit with my family and celebration of my father’s 84th birthday, we flew down to Bonaire for a week. For details be sure to read “Trouble in Paradise”. We returned in time for Thanksgiving dinner with Pat’s family. We spend three nights at the Massanutten Resort. After a long timeshare presentation (we didn’t buy), we drove to Shenandoah National Park, only to find Skyline Drive closed due to an ice storm. We parked and hiked the Appalachian Trail. It was rough going, climbing over downed tree branches. According to the ranger, several inches of ice accumulated on the tree branches during a recent storm. The next week we drove to Williamsburg, VA. We took a guided night tour of the historic area and returned during the day to see the Christmas decorations.
In between these trips, we moved between Waldorf, Laurel and York. When not in a hotel, we spent many nights at Tom & Julie’s, Linda and Rick’s, and her parents’ home. It was good to spend time with our friends, families and former co-workers. Russ and Shirley lent us one of their cars when we needed one after we sold our Subaru, which was not being used very much.
Two goals we wanted to accomplish while we were back in the area were to catch up on doctor visits and get work done on the RV. We accomplished the first but the second proved more elusive. After six weeks at the RV dealership, and two more visits to different shops, we still could not get our load air bags replaced and our remote key lock transmitter replaced. We finally gave up and headed south. In Atlanta we went to the new Georgia Aquarium. Their large tanks with the Beluga whales and whale sharks made it worthwhile. We are currently in Florida.
We’re back on the road, and very happy to be here!! It was great to see our friends, family and former co-workers. Unfortunately, we were not able to catch up with everyone, but it is a busy time of year. Since we did not have the RV for 6 weeks, we appreciate our family and friends who ‘put us up’ – and those who offered. Although it was nice to be back in the MD/PA area, we’re enjoying being on the road again.
