Turns out you can have ice cream and s’mores in the same day. We successfully accomplished this task on Wednesday!
Looks like our campsite neighbor was successful in finally assembling his origami kayak; we saw him walking toward the beach with it at dusk on Wednesday. Hopefully he enjoyed a very long paddle on the water, given how much time he invested in assembly. Friday morning, with the help of his wife, he was reversing the steps and attempting to return it to its original folded state. Not sure how long that took, we left before he was finished. Note to self…never buy an origami kayak.
One thing we realized about our campsite…it had all the wrong sun exposures. We had morning sun where we’d want evening sun and vice versa – so if we ever camp here again, definitely going for a site that faces the other way! Good lesson, too…spend more time reviewing the campground map to see where east and west are – they definitely make a huge difference when you’re camping in the summer, at a campground without any shade!
At this campground, I was very aware of just how small RoVer looks in comparison to other motorhomes and trailers…she’s furthest to the right with the awning out, and is dwarfed by the others near us!
It’s interesting how appealing our motorhome is to others, despite the smaller size (or perhaps because of it….). We had two different couples stop while they were out walking and comment on how much they liked our RV and thought it was the perfect size. And, these are people who are already camping with some other trailer or motorhome…I guess there’s some ‘camper envy’ that happens! We get compliments and questions all the time about the engine, the length, how it drives, etc. We don’t mind a bit!
I haven’t blogged about this yet, so now seems like a good time – Mark and I made a decision about towing a vehicle a few weeks ago. We had originally thought we’d use a dolly to tow our MINI Cooper (with two front wheels on the dolly, the other two on the road), and someone Mark knows had a dolly for sale…so we spent some time with them, learning about the process and actually putting the MINI on the dolly. And we realized this is NOT the best solution for us. It was a really big pain in the butt to get the car onto the dolly and secure it, and it also brings storage challenges (where to store the dolly while at a campground, and where to store it when we’re not traveling). So, we now think that flat-towing is our best option…just like it sounds, you attach a tow bar to a vehicle and tow it on all four wheels. But, there are only certain vehicles that can be flat towed, and neither of the two we currently own is on the list. Generally, anything with a manual transmission is easiest – but I don’t know how to drive a stick, so while I could learn, it’s not the ideal solution. There are some automatic transmission cars that have a transmission that allows flat towing, so we will likely focus on acquiring one of those…and of course, right now is one of the worst possible times to consider buying any car, new or used, thanks to the chip shortages and high demand for used cars. And, our MINI Cooper is on a lease which doesn’t end for 12 more months…so we likely will not be towing anything anytime soon. We’ll rent cars as needed and I’m sure we’ll manage just fine! But we’re smarter about this than we were, and we’ve eliminated the dolly option!
Thursday morning seemed like a mass exodus from the campground – so many people were packing up, just like us. Must be turnover before the weekend crowd arrives! So nice to pack up when everything is dry – unlike last week when we had to roll up a damp rug and deal with mud everywhere!
To get to/from Wellesley Island, there’s a very high bridge over the St. Lawrence River, to accommodate the freighters that travel through the area regularly. Coming in on Tuesday, I didn’t capture any photos because we were both just focused on getting over the bridge with RoVer. On Thursday, I snapped a few photos – it’s a VERY narrow 2-lane road with practically no shoulder (although there’s a pedestrian walkway along the outside edge)…and lots of 18-wheeler traffic. I’m really glad Mark was driving – a bit nerve wracking, to say the least to have an 18-wheeler barreling down the hill of the bridge towards you with just inches between vehicles, and nowhere to swerve! Totally a “stay in your lane” moment!
From Wellesley Island, we headed south and stopped in Pulaski, NY to visit “Salmon River Falls Unique Area” – I guess that’s what they call places that are interesting but not special enough to get designations as state parks or historical areas. I had seen photos of a beautiful waterfall there, so I wanted to check it out, and the timing was perfect for our lunch break. And the falls were definitely impressive; I loved the trail through there, as all we could hear was the water…so soothing!
So that concluded our tour of NY state parks for 2021…we have a bit of a break coming up with some different types of trips planned – I’m flying to Spokane WA this weekend to visit my brother who I haven’t seen since Dec 2018 (haven’t been on an airplane since then, either!), and then the following week, we are road tripping (in a car) to get Connor back to Ohio for his senior year. RoVer will be resting until the end of August, except for a one-night quick trip for a concert in Syracuse where we’ll likely boondock in a Cracker Barrel parking lot after the concert so we don’t have to drive home! That’ll be a new experience! See you in a few weeks!
August 6, 2021, 4:42 pm
Ahhhh, yes, always utilize the Community Map……errrrrrrr Campground Map.
No thank you to that narrow bridge!
Pulaksi, interesting as we went to a wedding there two years ago (of all places) at a venue in a BEAUTIFUL location.
Connor, senior year, crazy. The college visits seem like they were yesterday. You’re old!
August 9, 2021, 10:51 am
I love the info you’re sharing about RVing. This last piece about towing a car was very interesting. This will be so helpful when we plan our trips!