Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
Aug 12 ~ Day #94
Budget to date
Spent today
Total to date
Daily average
Total
$9400
$54.00
$8466.43
$90.06
Miles by Road
Miles by Sea
Miles by Air
Miles by Train
Total Miles
13148+112=13260
4451
000
69
17780
Current Location: Sunny Sands, Pierson, Florida
Today’s Total Expenses: $54.00
Accommodation: $34.00
Food: $20.00
Breakfast at Denny’s
We both had trouble sleeping this time and only got a couple of hours at the rest area. So, it was still about 3:00am or so and we were back on the road again.
We had plans to camp on August 12th, but 3:00am was way too early to arrive anywhere.
So, like I said, in a weak moment I said, “Hey, let’s go have breakfast at Denny’s. They’re open 24 hours and that should use up some time.”
So, that’s what we did. We got Madge (our Magellan GPS) to direct us to the nearest Denny’s and we had one of their larger breakfasts.
We didn’t need it, it was way too much food. We had stuff in the car that we could have had for breakfast and it wouldn’t have cost us anything.
Our breakfast ending up costing us, with the tip, $20.00! That could have been applied to a hotel room or campground where we could have used food we have already purchased and also got a much better night’s
sleep.
Like I said, spending a few hours last night at a rest area and then spending $20.00 at Denny’s was really a false economy. Hopefully I’ve learned from this mistake.
Sunny Sands, Pierson, Florida
We will be checking into our first timeshare tomorrow, August 13th, and decided to spend tonight at Sunny Sands, a family naturist resort, in Pierson, Florida.
We arrived way too early at Sunny Sands but were able to check in at 8:00am. We had a lovely camping spot and they also had a sparkling clear swimming pool that was most welcome after all the driving and heat we’d been through.
More Rain
During the afternoon there were a couple of rainstorms, but they cleared up quickly and we were hopeful that the tent would be dry by the morning when we needed to pack up.
Shooting Stars
We were back in the pool around 10:00pm to cool off before turning in for the night and found out that there was a meteor shower predicted for tonight.
Well, we did see one shooting star, but that was it and we waited for at least an hour or so. Still, it was pretty impressive as it streaked across the night sky.
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
Aug 09 ~ Day #91
Budget to date
Spent today
Total to date
Daily average
Total
$9100
$56.43
$8208.09
$90.19
Miles by Road
Miles by Sea
Miles by Air
Miles by Train
Total Miles
11585+575=12160
4451
000
69
16680
Current Location: On the road
Today’s Total Expenses: $56.43
Transportation: $48.00
Food: $8.43
Retracing Our Steps
As we head back to Florida we have found ourselves retracing some of our steps.
We passed Stony Brook Campground in Hanover, Maine, where we stayed on July 28th, while making our way to Atlantic Canada.
East Coast Heat Wave
The weather report for the east coast of the US was for a heat wave and, darn these weather people, they were actually right!
As we were passing through Springfield, Massachusetts at 5:30pm the temperature was 91 Deg F. Yikes!
Evident Pollution
I’m sure the heat wave added to the evident pollution, however, as soon as we started getting closer to the more heavily populated east coat areas you could actually see a blue haze over everything. And we’re breathing this crap!
Wendy’s Frosty
For some reason I developed a craving for a Wendy’s Frosty and we went in search of a Wendy’s Restaurant along our route.
Madge (our Magellan GPS) was just a little off on the location this time but we managed to find it anyway.
I’ve always liked the Frosty. You know, the chocolate malted dessert that’s thicker than a milkshake but not quite the consistency of soft serve? I was just tasting it.
So, my question is: “What the hell happened to the Frosty I was used to, and when?” The only choice used to be the size. A Frosty was a Frosty.
At this Wendy’s, in Connecticut, I was presented with all kinds of choices – chocolate or vanilla (What? There’s no such thing as a vanilla Frosty!) – Frosty float – Frosty with mix-ins. Obviously something has gone horribly wrong.
I got a chocolate Frosty and that’s exactly what it was – chocolate – NOT chocolate malted.
Geoff got a vanilla Frosty. Sorry, but, there just shouldn’t be any such thing.
What a major disappointment. There’s now no difference between a Frosty at Wendy’s and Soft serve at McDonald’s.
Wendy’s – WHAT HAPPENED?
Be a Responsible Pet Owner
In yet another cost-cutting measure we decided to push our mileage and grab a few hours of sleep at a rest area instead of either a hotel or camping.
A lot of the rest areas on the major US highways are very nice and even have nighttime security.
Apparently, at this rest area some jerk had just dropped off a kitty and then took off.
I think it was about 4 or 5 months old and had obviously been socialized as it was not afraid of people at all.
How could anyone do that?
Please be a responsible pet owner!
Geoff’s Note
Under different circumstances we would have taken the kitten with us but all we could do was hope that security or someone from the cleaning crew would take it to the local shelter.
Lets just hope the bastards that did this rot in hell.
We have started noticing the presence of a lot of Tim Horton’s Doughnut Shops in the northern US states. Tim Horton’s is a Canadian chain started many, many years ago by the hockey player – you guessed it – Tim Horton!
You just can’t beat the doughnuts and coffee at Tim Horton’s.
Go Timmy’s!!!
It’s Summer and Hotels are EXPENSIVE!
During today’s drive we thought we might want to stay at a hotel if we could find a reasonable one.
We used Madge (our Magellan GPS) to show us the hotels that were along the way.
Not only were the prices high but most of the hotels we called were fully booked.
Yep, it must be summer.
St. Regis Campground
We had Madge (our Magellan GPS) find us a campground along the route as we figured that would be the only reasonably priced option for us for tonight.
We stopped at St. Regis Campground in Northern New York and it was reasonable – $20.00 – and gave us a chance to dry out our tent as we had had to pack it up wet.
Dinner was a bit of a challenge because, even though this campground had water and electricity available, there were no picnic tables.
So, Geoff set up the Coleman stove on the ground and we did the best we could.
Canned Chinese Food
Apparently I still haven’t learned about buying canned Chinese food. It always looks so good on the can and sounds delicious, but I’ve done this often enough to know that the results are not good.
However, we had bought two cans of Chinese food and I decided to cook one of them tonight. The results were predictable – disappointing.
Note to self: NEVER, NEVER buy canned Chinese food again.
Watching Movies on our Mac
Along the way, when there is nothing else to do in the evenings, we have started to watch movies on our Mac and that’s what we did tonight before drifting off to sleep.
After loading up the car and checking out of the hotel in Marquette, Michigan, we discovered that our car would not start.
Geoff popped the hood and noticed that one of the wires attached to the distributor cap was corroded right through.
Auto Club to the Rescue
We called the Auto Club to send someone out to get us back on the road. Although it took a lot longer than they had said for someone to arrive, the person they sent out, from Goodwin’s Auto Repair in Skandia, Michigan, was both knowledgeable and helpful.
He managed to get our car running on 5 cylinders and we followed him to a local garage. Unfortunately, the local garage didn’t have time to fix our car.
The guy that was helping us was really surprised as he said it would be a fairly quick job, but he didn’t abandon us. He said we could either drive to his shop in Skandia (about 10-15 miles away) or follow him to an auto parts store and he could repair the car himself right in their parking lot.
We opted for the latter and followed him to the auto parts store. Good to his word, he got the parts required and repaired our car right there in the parking lot. Amazing!
Although the service call didn’t cost us anything because of our Auto Club membership, the repair was a totally unexpected expense of $153.28. That was to replace the distributor cap and all the wires.
Late Start – Great Lunch
Because of the car trouble we couldn’t get away at a reasonable hour, so we opted to return to Wahlstrom’s Restaurant for lunch.
Today’s special was a turkey dinner with all the trimmings. A bit much for lunch, but since we had skipped breakfast we went ahead and had a big lunch.
Leaving Marquette at 1:00pm – Or So We Thought
By 1:00pm we thought we were finally on our way again. No such luck.
We noticed that the “Check Engine” light was on and assumed that had something to do with the car trouble we just had.
Fortunately we had the name and address of the repair shop from the receipt for the repair. We had Madge (our Magellan GPS) take us there so they could have a look.
Sure enough the error code that triggered the “Check Engine” light was for a misfire caused by the broken wire.
The guy that fixed the car quickly reset the code for us.
It was now 2:00pm and we hadn’t put many miles on the car at all.
Mackinac Bridge
Even with the late start, we did manage to cross the Mackinac Bridge (where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron) and put 409 miles behind us.
Because we had driven so far we opted for a hotel – The Home Town Inn in Flint, Michigan – for the night.
High Food Costs Today
We did WAY TOO MUCH eating out today and that was certainly reflected in our food costs for today.
Starting with the big lunch at $18.94 (not bad considering that also included the tip), stopping for pie in a tourist area cost us another $12.17 (and we didn’t need this at all), picking up some ice tea when we stopped for gas added another $2.00 and then we stopped for dinner as well and spent $14.20 (not a lot for dinner, but money that we didn’t need to spend). That meant a food expense of $47.31 for the day without the purchase of ANY groceries that could be used to offset costs on upcoming days.
Giving in to the ease of eating out can really add up. And, you know what, the food generally isn’t all that good anyway. We can usually make something better ourselves for way less money.
We’re going to have to watch these kinds of expenses along the trip. Especially when we get hit with unexpected expenses, like the car repair.
Today we continued on our way to my Dad’s in Grimsby, Ontario, not far from Niagara Falls.
As usual we let Madge, our Magellan GPS, lead the way – well, sort of.
Initially she had planned to take us across the border into Canada at Sault Ste. Marie. We didn’t want to cross there for a couple of reasons. First, we have driven that route many, many times. Second, we wanted to remain in the US because both the gas and accommodations are cheaper in the States and we had already decided that we were staying in a hotel for at least one night. I’m sorry, but Canadian hotels are just too expensive.
So, we gave Madge different instructions that would insure that we cross the border at Port Huron, keeping us in the US longer.
Minnesota to Wisconsin to Michigan
The route, therefore, took us from Minnesota, through a small section of Wisconsin and into Michigan.
In places the drive along the southern shore of Lake Superior was spectacular.
Marquette, Michigan
We arrived in Marquette, Michigan early in the evning and decided it was time to stop for the night.
Marquette Motor Lodge
We stopped at the Marquette Motor Lodge hoping that a small, family-run motel would be our least expensive option.
I believe that it was but it was still more than we had hoped to pay. But, being that it is now summer and Marquette is a tourist area, the best rate we could get was $59.95 taxes in. It was a queen-size bed and clean. A bonus was the terrific restaurant right next door.
Wahlstrom’s Restaurant
If you are ever in Marquette, Michigan you simply MUST stop at Wahlstrom’s Restaurant. Their daily special and homemade pies are simply out of this world!
For dinner I ordered a 1/4 chicken dinner and Geoff ordered a 1/2 chicken dinner – these were two of the daily dinner specials.
The dinners came with mashed potatoes (even these were special – red potatoes mashed with the skins on, a hint of onion and very creamy), steamed veggies (real veggies, too – carrots, broccoli and cauliflower – and still brightly colored and crisp), stuffing and gravy. Everything was simply delicious.
Total cost for such an amazing meal? Less than $20 for the both of us including the tip!
Although their pies looked absolutely amazing we simply didn’t have room for dessert. We were stuffed!
Now we just need to let dinner settle before we call it a night.
We are planning to camp for several days so we went back to the CUB store for perishable stuff like milk, meat and cheese. We managed to spend another $57.79 so it had better last for awhile.
CUB appears to be a local chain but we were very impressed. The sort of prices you expect at Costco but in regular quantities and no membership. If you are lucky enough to live in Minnesota and haven’t tried them you should definitely check them out.
We didn’t have far to go so we told Madge (our GPS) to take the scenic route. It’s a lovely day and we have lots of time.
Vicky managed to catch a cold and “pink eye” while at her daughter’s and is coughing quite a bit so we stopped at a Walgreens along the way and got her some cough drops and suppressant. I don’t have it yet but I’m sure it is just a matter of time.
Since we arrived in Sandstone via the scenic route we thought Madge was lost because where she wanted us to turn did not match the directions we had been given. Several miles later we realized that Madge had been right all the time.
The campground has over a hundred acres and a very active membership. They even have a community theater group that writes and produces their own plays and skits.
This weekend is their annual open house and they are expecting three or four hundred visitors form all over the USA and Canada. They are also producing a new play they have been rehearsing for weeks.
We pitched our tent in a shaded spot not far from the stage and just a short walk to the showers and restrooms.
Last night was a much more pleasant sleep as it didn’t get nearly as cold here as it did at the Grand Canyon.
Again, Geoff has breaking camp pretty much down to a science now. I help pack up, too, but he really does the bulk of getting the tent packed away.
After a quick breakfast and the essential cup of coffee we were off to view the amazing monoliths of Monument Valley. Geoff has taken lots of photos and video that he will, no doubt, be posting soon.
As we heeded north on highway 163, I checked out a regular, paper map to see if there was a scenic route we could take to Salt Lake City. It seems that Madge (our Magellan GPS) doesn’t have an option for “scenic route”.
As I continue, keep in the that it was ME that chose this route – you’ll understand later.
Gravel Roads and Switchbacks and Cliffs – Oh My!
From 163 we turned onto 261 which was marked on our paper map as a scenic route. It certainly was that. However, it was also a very steep route with a lot of switchbacks and sheer drops from cliffs well above the desert floor. Yes, you guessed it, sweaty palms and elevated heart rate again. I am soooo grateful that Geoff was driving. I would have simply been paralyzed. I would have made it, certainly, if I was the only one available to drive, but I would most likely have done it at 5 miles per hour.
I took some video from the car as Geoff drove. I think I may have had my eyes closed at some points, but hopefully the camera got everything.
If you are traveling with a trailer or in an RV DO NOT take this route. And that’s just not from me. There are signs along the route, before you get to the switchbacks telling you not to do that. Some larger vehicles just wouldn’t be able to make it around some of the switchback turns and the road gets quite narrow in several places.
It was no wonder that when we turned on the road, Madge (our Magellan GPS) kept saying, “As soon as possible, make a Legal U-turn.” Apparently she knew something we didn’t.
But we made it and I’m glad we went that way. It was quite an experience. We have video of parts of the road and of how high we actually were as well, so watch for the posts.
As we continued along the scenic route we saw such places as Glen Canyon and Dirty Devil River to name just a couple. The drive through the canyons was just so spectacular with many different kinds of rock formations and colors. Is it possible to get an overload of beautiful, incredible, awe-inspiring scenery? I don’t know, but if it can happen it would happen here. Every turn brought more oohs and aahs from both of us. One or the other was saying, “Wow! look at this.” or “Oh, my, that is so beautiful.” or even, “Pull over here so we can get a better look.”
We stopped for lunch along the Dirty Devil River. The Utah government has provided washroom facilities in various places as well as honor-system camping in this spots. The rate is pretty cheap – $6.00/night/person or $3.00/night/person for seniors, with a maximum charge per vehicle of $12.00 or $6.00 respectively. Not bad.
Again, it is difficult to describe the beauty of this route so my suggestion again is, go if you can and take the scenic route.
As we approached Salt Lake City the weather turned nasty and I swear I saw snow in the air even though the temperature gauge in the car was telling us it was still in the 60s.
Fortunately, we had planned to stay at a hotel anyway because this was not the kind of weather that either of us wanted to camp in. Even setting up the tent in such conditions would have been miserable and we would have most likely had to pack it up wet – not a good idea.
We picked up some highway hotel coupons along the way and I started searching for a good place to stay. One of the advertised accommodations was Sky Harbor Suites which seemed really reasonable at only $48/night and that included a suite with a full kitchen. I called ahead and mentioned the coupon. They told me that the rate on the coupon was a “walk-in” rate, meaning we couldn’t prebook it. But, they said they did have some available and we were only about a half hour away, so we took the chance and headed for them.
Sky Harbor Suites was a lovely place and very reminiscent of a timeshare resort. We were able to get the coupon rate of $48/night. Their regular rate is $79/night, so it was a really good deal.
The suite was small but lovely, with a queen size bed and a full kitchen as advertised. After checking in we headed to a local grocery store so we could take advantage of having a full kitchen available to us. We had a lovely dinner of boneless pork chops, baked potatoes and sauteed zucchini along with a glass of red wine. Who could ask for more?
As we watched a little TV and let supper digest we looked forward to a good night’s sleep protected from the cold rainy weather outside.
I’m glad we pushed through to the west side of Houston last night so we didn’t have to deal with the morning rush hour traffic.
The Free Continental Breakfast at the Day’s Inn was the typical uninspired selection of bagels, cream cheese, sugary cereals, muffins and white toast. I always wonder why these places don’t spend another $1 a guest and make their free breakfast something spectacular.
Every so often you run across a place that does it right. A make it yourself waffle machine, boiled eggs, wheat toast, fresh (not packaged) donuts and big Costco style muffins. Once in a great while you are offered omelets or porridge.
Anyway we had our bagel and cream cheese plus the coffee I need to pry open my eyes in the morning. Vicky is one of those annoying “morning people” that wakes up wide awake and then chatters about the day ahead for the first hour or so. Even after 22 years of marriage she still doesn’t understand that until I’ve had my first coffee I just don’t hear her.
Anyhow today is my birthday so I was serenaded by several chorusses from the Beatles – When I’m 64. Which of course is why we are doing this mega trip. Do it now because if you don’t it’s a crap shoot that you will be able to next year. Not that I plan to give up any time soon but I get a little shiver any time I hear of someone my age checking out early.
The original plan had been to make it to San Antonio yesterday but that was just more driving than we wanted to do and then we would have to put the tent up in the dark which we haven’t done yet. We only had a couple of hundred miles to go so it was going to be an easy day – or so we thought.
About 50 miles outside of San Antonio we came over a small hill and faced an ominous black cloud on the horizon. Within the space of ten miles the temperature dropped from 80ºF to 60ºF and the sky opened up to dump every last drop of rain directly on us. Sure glad we had Madge (our Magellan GPS) to guide us to our destination otherwise we may not have found it.
San Antonio is one of the few places in the US we have not yet visited so the plan is to stay a couple of days before we move on. We are staying in a 25 acre camp right beside the San Antonio river. Two pools, hot tub, club house and high on Vicky’s must have list – a laundromat.
It was still raining when we arrived so we delayed putting up the tent and spent an hour in the hot tub. The sky soon cleared and we got the tent up then learned from a fellow camper that the tree above us was full of caterpillars that were searching for places to build their cocoons. We soon confirmed this by looking at the picnic table and the ones that had already claimed their spot on our tent. So with the help of another couple we picked up the tent and moved it to another spot.
Vicky made and extra special supper of filet steak, cheese and broccoli rice, and vegetable melange. She followed this with fresh whole strawberries. Pretty spectacular for being prepared on a single burner camp stove.
The sky was pretty clear when we crawled into the back of the Jeep and drifted off to sleep but the weather gods had not done with us yet. At about 2 o’clock in the morning………
But this is Vick’s blog day so you will have to wait for tomorrow’s exciting episode.
