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Wednesday, May 24, 2023
Quick Overnight Boondocking
Wednesday, May 17, 2023
Hornsby Hollow, TN
Cargolite Xtreme Toy Hauler by Watts Bar Lake |
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View from Campsite |
All of the sites are equipped with a grill/fire pit |
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The bathhouses are energy efficient |
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Spacious shower with good pressure and warm water |
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Nice big bench in the shower far enough from the water to keep your things from getting wet |
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2 sinks with paper towels! |
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Boat ramp with more sites |
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Stairs to the swimming section |
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Playground |
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
The Maiden Voyage with our Entegra Launch
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First night in Maeve Anne |
For Maeve Anne’s maiden voyage (which we have dubbed
“Maeveanne voyage”) we drove about an hour from home to a campground where we
have stayed a couple of times. This is a campground that you have to call the
day of to see if there are open sites, then you can reserve a site. Not only
did we reserve a spot, but there were several that were open. This is
definitely a hidden gem…right on Watts Bar Lake with every site having a view
of the lake.
Robert had no trouble backing her into the spot. Once there,
I put some groceries away and Robert got out our chairs. Then we started
figuring things out. We got out the covers for the windshield and the cab
windows. That’s where we encountered a problem. The shades are supposed to have
magnets in them, and I think they do but they are so weak that they won’t hold
up the shades. Fortunately, we didn’t have anyone right beside us so it wasn’t
a huge concern this trip. Buying magnetic shades quickly went to the top of the
list of things we need to purchase...or heavier magnets and some glue.
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I managed to get the side cover up but it didn't last long! |
Now for the bed. I’m 5’9” and Robert is 6’3” so we aren’t
small people. We weren’t completely sure how comfortable we would both be since
the bed is a little on the small side. Size-wise, it turned out to be fine. As
with most RV mattresses, the comfort level left something to be desired. We
watched videos of people recommending different toppers or mattresses. I ordered the one recommended by a guy who is about our age and at the time of this writing, it's on the bed, all made up, ready to go.
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Pre-topper |
We used the portable induction cooktop for the first time to
make breakfast. It worked great but getting the sticker off it was fairly time-consuming. It’s going to take some time to get used to the controls and how the
heat works, but it’ll come. I like that it is stored under the pantry
instead of taking up a whole drawer. It has its only little place so it will be
protected.
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First meal! Another thing on the list...outdoor rugs! |
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Coffee...a must-have |
We hooked up the water without incident. Robert checked everything inside to make sure there were no leaks and that everything was working as it should. No problems there. When I washed the dishes I put a collapsible bin in the sink, filled up one with soapy water and one with just water for rinsing, and washed outside. Thankfully, we have a lot of camping supplies from our years of camping so the only things we’ll need to buy are things specifically for the van (like the window coverings).
Now...why "Maeve Anne"? As mentioned in the previous post, our Ireland trip inspired this purchase. While we were in Killarney, we walked into a crowded pub and asked a young couple if we could join them because there were absolutely NO seats available. They said yes and we ended up talking and laughing with them for a few hours. (Okay, truth be told, since we were in a pub, of course, drinks were involved!) Her name is Maeve...she was absolutely beautiful and extremely nice. And to top it off, she is a special education teacher of high school students with autism. That's why we named her "Maeve". Robert said that since she's southern (the van, not the Irish lady) she needs a second name, and "Anne" just popped out. I didn't think about how it sounded when both names are put together but we think it works.
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We can't wait to see where Maeve Anne takes us! |
Thursday, April 27, 2023
The Journey to Find Maeve Anne
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Roche's Caravan and Campsite, County Wexford |
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FDR State Park, Pine Mountain, GA |
After our last camping trip, we decided that if we want to
travel like we do we need to make a change. We need something that 1) will
allow us to travel on the interstate, 2) be easy setup/tear down, and 3) that
I can drive if I need to. We kept talking about our Ireland Adventure and the camper we rented. It was just about perfect; we really liked the layout and the
space. An added plus was the convenience of a bathroom if it was needed. So, we
began our search.
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Inside the Irish Campervan |
We started looking at different vans with different layouts
but kept coming back to the one in Ireland. That narrowed things down somewhat.
Robert started looking at different types of chassis and we narrowed things
down further. We finally had it narrowed down to 2 different vans: the
Airstream Rangeline and the Winnebago Revel. A local dealership had both of
them so we could compare literally side-by-side. Robert discovered that a lift
kit could be put on the Rangeline so it was very desirable. I liked all of the
storage space it has; every inch has a purpose. The last question we had to ask
ourselves was, “Where do we want to go in it?” That was the clincher: we want
to be able to camp on the beach and off the beaten trail and you can’t do that in a front-wheel drive
van.
I have to be honest: the first time I looked at the Revel I
wasn’t sure about it. I thought it was overpriced for the space. But it grew
on me the more I looked at it and the more YouTube videos I watched. As I
said, there was a dealership in town that had a Revel for sale. Robert began
negotiations which ended up being pretty short. He knew we could get one for a
lot less than their final offer. He sent me a link for an Entegra Launch and
asked what I thought. I knew when I saw it that that was it. It is basically
the Revel but with upgrades. The inside is more aesthetically pleasing and the
kitchen drawers are more functional.
Once we decided on exactly the van we wanted, Robert took to
the internet to find one. It didn’t take him long to find a dealership with few in stock. A couple of weeks later, we had perfect timing to fly down to
pick it up. Our plan was to fly in on Wed. night, inspect and pick it up on
Thursday, and drive 2 days home. Only that didn’t happen. The van we wanted had
battery issues in the cabin that the dealership couldn’t resolve. They had
another one with a working battery, but it turned out the chassis had issues
that couldn’t be fixed. So we called it a day (or rather, a weekend) and flew
home. We were really disappointed but realized that it was for the best.
I did a search for the van in our home state, and one popped
up that was a couple of hours from us. The dealership is a national chain that
just opened up a branch in Nashville. Robert immediately called and spoke with
someone. He assured us that everything was working as it should. He sent Robert
pictures of questions he had and even sent him a video to answer one of the
questions. Again, the timing was right so Robert ubered over and came home with
her that night. He said the dealership was professional and knew everything
about the van that he expected them to.
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Maeve Anne is home! |
Monday, April 10, 2023
F. D. Roosevelt State Park, GA
Robert spent a night at FDR State Park on his way to camp in Florida. He said it was a place we needed to return to, so when we were looking at someplace to camp in mid-March, I suggested FDR. It was further south which was important for warmer weather... or so we thought. Since we were in the Delica, we took the back roads instead of driving on the interstate. The drive wasn't bad at all, although there was one section that was a bit boring. We arrived after 5:00 so we checked in online. We found out the day before we left that we still needed to check in with the office so we could put a tag on our post. (Oops...totally my fault. I thought since I had checked us in online it would be taken care of.) What's a trip to a state park without us getting in trouble for some minor infraction!
We chose a site on the outside of the campground since the lakeside sites were taken. We weren't sure how close together the inside sites were; we like our privacy. There is plenty of space; however, so we would have been fine with an inside site. Our site backed up to the woods, perfect for our next-door neighbor's golden retrievers. They had plenty of space to run and do their business.
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Campsite on the inner side |
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Brick oven where FDR would grill while on Dowdell's Knob |
Saturday, July 30, 2022
Gazelle T4 Hub Tent vs. Rhino-Rack Sunseeker Awning Tent
Comparing these 2 tents may be comparing apples to oranges because there are different factors that come into play when deciding to use each one. I'm going to do my best to provide a run-down of both of them and give you my opinion.
Answering Questions
- What kind of camping will I be doing? The Gazelle is great for general camping. If we're camping and we want to do some sightseeing, this is the tent. I would use the Rhino-Rack if we were overlanding and were going to stay put for at least a couple of days.
- What time of year is it? My first experience in the Rhino-Rack was in mid-July...in the Southeastern USA. That means it was hot and humid. Even with the huge doors on all sides of the Rhino-Rack very little air went through the tent. We put a fan in the top of the tent and didn't get a lot of relief. I've gotta give this question to the Gazelle. I think we would have stayed cooler in it. We've camped in warm weather with the Gazelle and actually ended up getting a little too cool with the fan going.
- That being said...I think the Rhino-Rack would be awesome for winter camping. Robert has a little stove that can be brought in and vented out of a door to make it even warmer.
- Which is faster to set up? Hands down...the Gazelle. While the Rhino-Rack was pretty quick (especially comparing it to your standard camping tent), nothing beats the quickness of a Gazelle. Before putting up the awning tent the awning has to be out, so that takes a few extra minutes. Unless you use the tent as a "stand-alone", which can be done.
- What about tear-down? Again, the Gazelle. The Rhino-Rack is so airtight that air bubbles in the tent when taking it down. Of course, it helps to have the doors unzipped a bit to let the air escape. Considering the time it takes to put either tent in their respective bags, it really doesn't take that much more time to put the Rhino-Rack away than it does the Gazelle. I just think the Gazelle has a slight advantage. Again, take into account that the awning also has to be put up so add a few more minutes to the awning tent.
- Which will keep you dry if it rains? This one is a toss-up. We've been in the Rhino-Rack in a good hard rain, and if we had zipped up all of the doors we would have stayed completely dry. The Gazelle has also kept us dry without any problems. The Gazelle will keep you more comfortable when you're in a summer rain because chances are you'll be able to have most of the windows open with the rain fly keeping the rain out. The Rhino-Rack attaches to the awning and has a door so we can easily get into the van without getting wet so this tent may have a slight upper hand. Of course, the campsite could be configured to have the Gazelle next to the awning (when not using the Rhino-Rack) to keep you drier. Like I said, it's a toss-up. Both do equally well in the wind. We've had the Gazelle in extreme wind in Canada on the St. Lawrence and it held up exceptionally well.
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View of the back door of the Rhino-Rack opening to the van |
- What about space? Which one has more room? Keep in mind that the Rhino-Rack is a straight up and down square. The Gazelle gives a little more room on the sides since they bow out a bit. The sides of the Gazelle aren't as tall as the Rhino-Rack. We use 2 cots when we camp. With the Rhino-Rack Robert barely had enough room length-wise. There was no room to walk around the cots at the bottom or top. With the Gazelle, there is a little bit of room. There seemed to be more room on the sides of the cots with the Gazelle as well. I'm not sure how much this little difference matters; all you're doing is sleeping anyway.
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Both cots inside of the Gazelle T4 Hub Tent with room around the sides and bottom to spare |
- What about the cost? The Rhino-Rack Sunseeker Base Tent is $539.10; the Gazelle T4 Hub Tent is $459.99 but they have sales what seems like all the time. At the time of this posting, the Rhino-Rack was out of stock and it looks like it would have to be bought internationally and then shipped to the USA.
The Verdict
Portsmouth Island, NC |
Thursday, July 21, 2022
Camping on a Tuesday: Jake Best Campground (TN)
The road leading to the campground |
The road leading to the campground on the other side. |
Site 2 seems to be the best site for RVs |
Site 3 seemed to be the shortest site. |
Site #7 |
Bear-proof bins next to Site 5 |
Bear-proof bins next to the toilet |
I would definitely stay there again. It was a little unsettling to be the only ones in the campground the first night but the second night I wasn't bothered by it. We had a backup plan in case the campground was full so we would definitely do that again. There is another campground not too far away that has overflow camping so Indian Boundary may be another option.
We very much enjoyed the solitude of Jake Best. The walk to the creek was easy. The water was very cold and very clear. Robert took a couple of dips in the cold water (I got in once) and we skipped some rocks. It was an exceptionally relaxing couple of days.