We’re back out on the road!
An old truck along the front of McIntosh Manor RV Park and Campground
We hit the road the yesterday. This was the best job we’ve done yet of packing and preparing beforehand, so it started out as the easiest first day we’ve had. We set out on time, even with spending an unexpected (but pleasant) half and hour or so talking with neighbors.
Traffic was good; everything was going great, then we heard the sound. We were about 230 miles into a 250 mile trip when we heard a loud flapping sound coming from outside the coach. I immediately pulled over and saw our windshield weatherstripping was coming off. Luckily, its nothing some strong duct tape can’t fix, so we taped in back in place and got back on the road.
The tape job held without a problem. Next, we had a hard time finding our destination for the night. GPS said look for the campground on the left. We traveled down US 17 in the tiny town of Eulonia, Georgia looking for it, couldn’t find it, so we kept traveling until we found a place to turn around. LeeAnn consulted Maps, and it turns out we should’ve been looking to the right.
Once we got to the place, we unhooked our toad, and it wouldn’t start. The battery was dead(ish). We keep a solar trickle charger on it, but that failed. Luckily, we were blocking the road for some nice young man towing a travel trailer. He offered us the use of his jump starter, so we weren’t stranded, just embarrassed.
We headed to the neared town, Darien, to get a new battery. That was an easy experience. There’s an O’Rielly’s there that had the battery and installed it for us. Thanks Brian. After that we stopped at a local supermarket, The Coastal Market, and got a rotisserie chicken for dinner. We were hoping for hot plates, but their deli had already stopped serving hot food by then (about 6 pm). As you know, we love a small, local supermarket. This one was well organized, clean, neat, and the cashier was very friendly.
On our way back, the skies opened up and we could barely see. I think we were doing 35 in a 55. It was raining so heavily when we got back to the coach, our clothes were soaked though just getting from the car to the coach. We travel with a rain gauge, but didn’t set it up thinking we wouldn’t get any significant rain in the one evening we would be there. It’s a lesson we simply refuse to learn.
The barn at McIntosh Manor
This park, McIntosh Manor, is the smallest park we’ve ever stayed in, fewer than 20 spots, but it’s nice and well maintained. The aforementioned rain didn’t drown the place. Sure, during and shortly after the storm, there was standing water in places, but it had mostly drained from places used by campers by the morning. We’d stay here again for a one or two nighter. The only drawback is there isn’t space for a long walk with the dog.
The barn and laundry house at McIntosh Manor
If it sounds like we had a bad time yesterday, we didn’t. None of these problems were anything to stress about. Sure, if we were on a weekend trip where we need to maximize every moment, it might have put a damper on things, but on a long trip minor problems, once overcome, just add flavor. All RVers that take long trips know something will go wrong, you just need to take steps to make sure you’re prepared with a few repair supplies (i.e. duct tape). Preparation keeps minor problems minor and the trip enjoyable.