Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Shenandoah National Park Part Un


On July 10 we departed for our summer trip. This is one of the more structured trips we have done, meaning we have campground reservations for most of the trip.

Our plan:
  • 2 nights at Loft Mountain CG, then 3 more nights at Big Meadows CG, both in Shenandoah NP along the Skyline Drive in VA.
  • A day each at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park WV and the next day at Gettysburg National Battlefield PA.
  • 5 nights at Pulaski NY attending a rally with the Diesel RV Club
  • 6 nights in the Adirondacks near Inlet NY
  • 3 nights in Ottawa, ON CA
  • 4 nights in Algonquin Provincial Park ON CA

From there we will spend about 10 days driving westward across Ontario arriving at Ely MN on August 15, before putting in for our annual canoe trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. On September 9 we will leave Ely and begin a leisurely ramble south and east towards home.

An overlook on Skyline Drive



We left home about 11:00 on Sunday and drove 1-40 east to US 29 and north towards Danville. We topped off with cheap Virginia diesel near Blairs VA, pumping 48 gallons at $1.97/gal. Our drive to Shenandoah NP was leisurely and uneventful. We had site E-119 reserved, but the host said it could only accommodate a motor home up to 22' long (notwithstanding what the reservation site at recreation.gov said). They put us on A-31 instead, which had great solar exposure and access to DirecTV. The down side is it was a bit short and our entry door was on the wrong side from the fire ring and picnic table.


Site A-31: a bit tight

Bear bait


They take their mowing seriously here.  Check out these LP powered rigs.

Man's best friend

There are lots of dear here

We have basically spent our time wandering around the camp ground and enjoying the views. We wanted to do some light hiking but my right knee is very sore and swollen. I'm not sure what is wrong; too much Pickleball maybe? I'm using ice, doing easy stretching and hoping it will get better before too long.

A glorious sunset over the Blue Ridge

We are primarily using this time to relax and decompress from the stress of the last few weeks. Internet is non-existent in the campground, but we found an overlook on Skyline Drive that had a good signal. I expect it will be that way for the duration of our stay in Shenandoah NP.

So far the weather has been great. We are camped at EL 3366' and it has been a bit cooler than it was at home.



3 comments:

Unknown said...

Sounds like you are off on another great adventure.

George said...

Always love seeing that coach! Beautiful mountain pics. I got Shenandoah NP, but tell us how you selected the venues after that. Sorry to hear about your knee - bummer. Those mowers look like they are getting ready to depth charge something.

Myron said...

This trip had 2 primary destinations: 1) the Diesel RV rally in NY and 2) the BWCAW in Ely MN. Everything else is just good stops along the way. The Adirondacks and Algonquin have a number of good paddling opportunities.