July 5th - Fredericton, New Brunswick

Yesterday we drove all day to reach our destination of Fredericton, New Brunswick. We could not believe how hot it got during the day. When we arrived in Fredericton it was 95 degrees, about twenty degrees above normal. There are only two campgrounds near Fredericton. One called "Hartt Island", which had a water park and was $75.00 per night Canadian, and another called "The Heritage" further out of town. We didn't need the waterpark so we made reservations at "The Heritage". When we got here they put us in two back-to-back sites due to the length of our rig. The park was obviously built when rigs were much smaller. Due to a tree and fire pits I had to snake the rig into these sites and only then by rubbing against a tree and pulling ahead into another site and backing up to get straight.  To get away from the tree I had to get as close as possible to the utility pedestal on the other side. Here is a picture.

Yes, it is literally four inches from the side of the rig and between the two slide outs. I connected to the electric on the pedestal and this is what we had for electric.

I will not run the AC on 107 volts. It will damage it. It is new AC unit so I really don't want to do that. We had to hope that the outside temperature would cool down soon so we could sleep. Here is a picture of the inside temperature after an hour of having the windows open and fans running. 

Yep, 88 degrees inside. (Don't mind the time, it is still on Missouri time.) It wasn't cooling down outside or inside. I hated to do it but I had no choice. At 8:00 p.m. I unplugged the electric and turned on the generator. It put out a good 120 volts. We ran the generator and AC for an hour and a half until it lowered the inside temperature to 76 degrees. The sun had set by then so we transferred back to the park electric. Mare has two "Fantastic Fans". They are 12 volt and wonderful. A nice feature about them is that they are reversible. I set both of them to pull cooler air in, rather than trying to pull air out. I found in the past this works better because Marge has poor cross-venilation.

Here is a picture of Kelly and Kellen sitting under the tree trying to stay cool. This picture also gives you a good idea of the problem with the tree that was rubbing down the side of Marge when I was trying to park.

We need to dump the tanks before heading on this morning so I walked up to check out the dump station. Of course we will be approaching it from the opposite direction so I will have to drive through the grass to get to it. This place is poorly laid out for travelers but most of the park is filled with permanent rigs, which is becoming more and more common unfortunately. Next to the dump station is the shower house. I checked it out as well and it is pretty dumpy. We will take showers in Marge before dumping this morning then back into the U.S. today.

July 3rd - 4th - Truro, Peggy's Cove and Lunenburg

On July 3rd we stopped in Truro, Nova Scotia, to have lunch with our dear friends from Florida, Chris and Karl Webb.  Chris provided a great lunch and we really enjoyed Karl's homemade blueberry wine. It was so great visiting with them since they can longer come down to Florida for the winters. It was a picture perfect day after days of rain there they said. Here is a picture of the four of us and a picture of the Webbs and their dog, Duke, who wouldn't cooperate for the picture.

Now that Chris no longer comes to Florida I have to find a new rye whiskey drinking buddy down there. (Most men drink beer and most women drink wine.)

We celebrated the 4th of July by taking a road trip to Peggy's Cove and Lunenburg. Peggy's Cove is like nowhere else. We were there at low tide so the waves weren't crashing as high as other times we have been there but it is still magnificent. Here are a couple of pictures.

Here is a picture of Kelly and Kellen walking around on the rocks to get a different view.

Here is a picture of Kellen taking it all in way out way out on the rocks with the lighthouse in the distant background. I think he was impressed but he is twelve years old and it is hard to tell. He did enjoy climbing all over the rocks though.

We left Peggy's Cove, which was getting crowded with people and tour buses, and headed sixty miles away to Lunenburg. Lunenburg is a UNESCO Heritage Site and home of the "Bluenose 2", a sailing ship replica of the "Bluenose", the most famous ship in Canadian history. It was both a fishing and racing vessel in the 1920s and 1930s. A "bluenose" is a nickname for a native or inhabitant of Nova Scotia. I am sure if you are here in the winter you would understand why they got that nickname. 

The town of Lunenburg sits on a hill along the harbor. It had quite a fishing industry at one time. It has retained all of its 18th century charm. All the houses and businesses are brightly colored, all kept as original as possible on the outside with clapboard siding, original facades, etc. The streets are all narrow so it is much easier to walk around than drive through.  Here is a picture of the oldest standing house. It was built around 1760!

It is hard to take pictures of the streets lined with multi-colored houses and buildings because you are right on top of them when walking around. A good view of the town is from across the way. Here is a picture.

We had lunch on the wharf. Kelly ordered mussels for an appetizer so Kellen could taste them. He ate one but declined any more. They were quite good and a treat for us.

Kellen had fish and chips, one of his favorites on this coastal trip. I had grilled Haddock, and Kelly had a bowl of fish chowder that was so large and chunky she couldn't eat it all. We brought what was left back to the RV for a meal for her later. You just can't get seafood like this in Missouri. It was 88 degrees in Lunenburg this afternoon. I was standing in a shady spot waiting for Kelly and Kellen to shop and a local guy said this was a crazy change after days of cool and rain. I don't know but I would think 88 degrees here is above normal.

When we got back to the campground I checked the oil level in the generator and it was full so I ran it for a while to see if I could find any oil leak. I did not. I will have to check into it more when I get home. It ran perfectly putting out better voltage than the campground.  We are at "King Neptune Campground". It is a hole but the only campground near Peggy's Cove. The electric voltage is low, the campsites are helter-skelter, the dump station is inaccessible for a rig our size, etc. When we got here it was quite crowded because an RV caravan was here. They pulled out yesterday so now this is our view.

This morning I broke out my shorts for the first time this trip since leaving the States. We are headed to Fredericton, New Brunswick, for a stop there before we head on to Cutler, Maine, to visit with Norb and Marilyn, another couple we know from Florida.

July 1st-2nd - Ferry Back to Nova Scotia

We checked in early at the ferry terminal because we had to get out of the campground by 1:00 p.m. and it was only and hour drive to the ferry terminal from there. After we drove up to the terminal kiosk and got our tickets we then had to drive through a building. I joked with the young lady outside "We getting a free car wash?" She laughed and asked if we had any fresh vegetables. I said "only lettuce". She said "tat was fine" Then as I drove into the building a car wash is exactly what we got. There were two ladies inside, one on each side, with firehouses washing the truck and trailer down as I slowly drove through. We had never had that experience before on any ferry or border crossing. As we pulled into our assigned lane it started to rain hard and the wind started to blow hard. We headed to the terminal for a cup of coffee in the cafeteria. Upon entering we were told that we could go in but to come back out we needed our passports and tickets. I went back to the truck and got our passports so we could get out! After we drank our coffee I wandered around and found a museum upstairs about the town of Argentia where the ferry terminal is located.

During WWII the Canadian government paid the people in Argentia a pittance for their property, moved them out, and bulldozed the town. They then gave the U.S. a 99 year least to build a Naval base there. The employment was good for the area but the poor people who were displaced suffered terribly. Two Nazi boats were sunk in the area. Roosevelt and Churchill had a historic meeting in Argentia during the war. Here is a picture they had displayed of the meeting.

I had no idea of this history. While "Argentia" is on the Newfoundland map, there is no town. My truck GPS could not find it, which I understood once I read this history. 

This ferry was larger than the one we took on the way over which was the shorter trip. Here is a picture of it I took from the truck window while waiting in line in the rain.

We were loaded on the ferry like clockwork and it took off exactly on time. The whole Newfoundland/Labrador ferry system is outstanding. The workers are extremely friendly and helpful, the ships are nice, and the voyage pleasant. Since this was a seventeen hour ride and we shoved off at 5:00 p.m., we had paid for a cabin with two sets of bunks and our own bathroom. Here is a picture of Kelly relaxing in the cabin as we waited to leave the port. As you can see the cabin with two sets of bunk beds is quite small but it worked out fine.

Here are a couple of pictures of the foggy scenery as we made our way out of the harbor.

The ferry had a very nice restaurant buffet but it was $25.00 per person. We thought that was a little steep and we weren't all that hungry after eating our sandwiches mid-afternoon. We purchased some sandwiches and sodas for supper at the snack bar and ate them in the lounge.

A two-man band was playing in the lounge and people were dancing. Kellen headed to the movie theater on board. We didn't know if a band was routine on this longer voyage or if it was a special event because it was "Canada Day" (their 4th of July). Kelly and I listened until the guys took a break and we then headed down to the movie theater to join Kellen. We watched most of one movie and all of a second before heading to our cabin at 10:00 p.m. to turn in for the night.

Here is a picture of Kellen sleeping like a rock in the top bunk above me this morning.  He had been apprehensive about riding on the ferries. He said he liked to see land but he did fine. His only disappointment was that there was no Wi-fi out at sea.

We were one of the first ones off the ferry. We headed back to the KOA we stayed at before catching the ferry over because we knew it had a laundry. We didn't have reservations this time and they only had two spots for us. The site he gave us I could not get into. KOAs are older and the sites are really small for today's rigs. The guy next to us was pulling out and the owner had told me if that site was better I could take it. It was only slightly better but at least I could get into it. The first one I could not. Even though this site was slightly better situated it took me about twenty manuevers to get the fifth wheel into place. The problem is the road in front of the campsite is not very wide and it drops off. With the length of the truck and trailer I had limited room to bend the rig around. Here is a picture after we unhooked. Before unhooking the truck's front tires were at the edge of the grass giving me only about six feet in front. The trailer is back as far as it can go.

I then gathered the laundry and headed to the laundry area by the office while Kellen got on the Wifi for his games and Kelly took a nap. The laundry area here leaves a lot to be desired. First of all, there is a only very small open area in front of the machines, it is open to the weather, and today it was raining and in the low 60s. Secondly the table to fold clothes on sits outside in the rain. A really goofy set up.  Here is a picture. Even the yellow chairs in the picture were wet so I couldn't even sit down. I sat in the truck.

While sitting in the truck killing time I checked the tire pressure on the truck tires. The back tires were just a little low but the front tires for some reason were down to 65 lbs from 80 lbs. After the laundry was done I got out the air compressor I bought for this trip. I purchased it to air up the trailer tires and had done this at home. The compressor and air chuck worked well for that. I had not tried filling the tires on the truck at home before leaving. Upon trying to put air in the truck tires today I found the air chuck was less than ideal for the 90 degree bent truck valve stems and the cheap rubber extensions on the inside rear tires. It worked "ok" for the front tires but on the rear inside tires I had trouble getting the chuck to stay air tight as I tried to pump air into each tire. I need to add a straight chuck to my tool kit for the future and/or different extensions on the tires. I'll put it on my "to do" list when I get home. 

Kellen is making a pot of chicken soup in the crock pot for supper with Kelly's excellent instructions. It smells good already. Tomorrow we will stop in Truro, Nova Scotia, to visit with friends, Chris and Karl Webb, who we met in Robert's RV Park in Florida several years ago. They were not able to come back this past year so it will be good to see them again and pass on everyone's good wishes.

June 30th-July 1st - Last Day in Newfoundland and Generator Problem

Yesterday was our last full day in Newfoundland. It was a sunny, warm day for here (66 degrees). Kelly told Kellen she would give him $25.00 to get in the river. After much prodding and watching other kids do it, he finally did it.  Here is a picture of him in the water. He said it was freezing but money talks.

Here is a picture of Kellen and Kelly skipping rocks behind our campsite.

Yesterday I checked the oil in the generator and the air in the tires for the trip ahead. The oil was full and the tires were as well. This morning I had been running the generator for about an hour and went outside to put the chairs away to pack up for the trip to the ferry. I noticed this spot of oil under the generator which was running.  Not good.

I opened the compartment door and found that the entire tray under the generator was black with oil. I shut down the generator immediately. Here is a picture of the area where the oil was pooled after I wiped up what I could reach with paper towels. There is still a lot of oil in the back.

I checked the oil dipstick and the oil was now just about empty. I believe there are one of two possibilities that caused this issue. The first is that when checking the oil yesterday I did not completely tighten the dipstick cap, which is next to the green arrow in the following picture, and it was pumping oil out while running this morning. The second possibility is that the oil pan gasket has gone bad. The oil pan gasket is next to the red arrow in the picture. I sincerely hope it is my fault but I can't check it until I get some more oil. If it is the oil pan gasket it will mean removing the generator when I get home and replacing the gasket.  I'm really hope my carelessness is the culprit. Lifting and removing the generator will take two men and a boy. I know because two of us put it in some years ago.

At noon we leave to get checked in for the ferry ride to North Sidney, Nova Scotia. It is a seventeen hour ride overnight so we can sleep in our cabin to kill much of the time. We are sad to leave Newfoundland knowing that we will never be back. The people are extremely nice and the trip has been wonderful.

June 29th - Ziplining and Cape Spear

Saturday we headed to Petty Cove to zipline at the longest zipline course in Canada. It has to be true, it is on the sign.

Here is a picture of Kellen in his gear ready to go.  The bus took us to within a 1/4 mile of the top. We then had to walk up a steep slope the rest of the way to begin our ten stations. From there it was across and downhill, over a half of a mile.

Here is a picture of Kellen headed across one canyon. 

On the longest section we were doing 60 mph and it felt like it. The course took us from the ridge above town to an area half a mile down the road. Here is a picture of the ridge we crossed. You can barely see a couple of the stations at the top.

We started in the town pictured below and ended up here giving us quite a view of the harbor town and the iceberg in the bay.

While Kellen and I were ziplining Kelly did a little shopping and found a place we needed to check out next - Cape Spear, the farthest point East on the North American Continent.  It was only about fifteen miles away. It had the original lighthouse there and the newer one built in 1955.  Here is a picture of the lighthouse built in 1955 with Kellen sitting on the top of the rock cliff looking out at the ocean. He just went out there on his own to contemplate the trip and take in the view.

This is a picture of the original lighthouse located about 1000 feet away from the newer one. It has been completely restored with a little outside work still going on.

It was crazy how cold it got up there when the fog moved in. Here is a picture from the top with all the steps leading up. The buildings are all being refurbished to accommodate tourists.

We are glad we made this short trek. We have now been to the Easternmost point, the Southernmost point in Key West, and the Westernmost point which is in Hawaii. We didn't go to the Artic Circle while in Alaska.

Today we will relax and pack everything up for the ferry ride tomorrow. We must check out of the park by 1:00 p.m., which works out fine because we have an hour drive to the ferry and must be there two hours ahead of departure. We take off at 5:00 p.m. for a seventeen hour ride back to Nova Scotia. Since the trip is so long we booked a cabin so we can sleep. When we arrive in Nova Scotia we will have to find a campground with a laundry before we proceed on down the road. Laundry piles up just like at home.

 

June 26th-28th - Brigus and Whale Watching

We arrived at the Old Mill RV Park in Avondale early on the 26th. We are staying at this park for five days and daytripping around until we catch the ferry on July 1st. There are no hookups at this park and no shower house. We can run our generator as needed during the daylight hours. When we got here the rules said inverter type generators only with a maximum decibel level of 56 dB. When we made reservations nothing was said about that. Our RV generator is quieter than construction generators by far but it is not a quiet inverter generator. I cranked it up and it is 60 dB. Close enough I think.

When we registered back in May she said she would put us in a big site down by the river. Did she ever do us a favor. We have the largest, nicest site in the entire park.  We are next to the river with only a row of picnic tables for those using the river between us and the river. Here are a couple of pictures.

The place was pretty empty when we arrived but she expected it to fill up because this is a holiday weekend with Monday, July 1st, being "Canada Day", their 4th of July. I'm glad we made a reservation.

After setting up we took a ride through the town of Avalon. While driving I spotted an iceberg and we headed down the road hoping to get closer to it. On the drive we saw the sign for the town of Brigus, which had been recommended to us by a friend. Brigus is a little historical fishing village with a beautiful harbor. From the harbor we could see the iceberg but it was quite a distance off. Here is a picture. Unfortunately the camera makes everything look farther way. But you can see the iceberg out in the middle.

One of the places to see in town was the tunnel. It was cut through the rock by the locals by hand to make it easier for the ship captains to get to their boats. Here is picture of us in it.

The views from the harbor are beautiful. Here are a couple of more pictures

Kellen was interested in the picnic tables they made out of large stones overlooking the water.

On the 27th we scheduled a whale watching and puffin watching tour in Bay Bull. This day appeared to be the best for weather conditions. The ride out there was on the worst road we have encountered yet. Here is a picture. I was glad I wasn't hauling Marge.

The weather was clear but on the way out fog set in. We saw a Minke whale and followed him around. He came up and down in the water so quickly I couldn't get a picture of him. Kellen was thrilled to get to see one. The humpbacks are just now starting to migrate through here so we didn't see any. Our final destination was an island where the Puffins and various Seagulls nest. They estimate 500,000 birds nest here every year. The Puffins mate for life and come back to the exact same place every year to mate and nest. They told us they only need four square inches to mate and nest. They can identify their own egg by the color, which is like a bar code. Pretty amazing.  Here are a couple of pictures of the birds even though it was a little foggy.

The brown mass on the following picture are birds.

Several times the birds would all take off by the thousands and fly out over the water. This meant a predator was flying around. When the Puffins abandoned their nests temporarily like this the Seagulls would get their eggs. We actually saw one do that. They only lay one egg per year. As we were leaving we saw an immature eagle sitting on the cliff.  Really cool.

On the way back to the harbor we had some spectacular views. Here is one which I might make my screen saver.

We had a wonderful seafood lunch at the restaurant across from the tour boat and headed back. On the way back we decided to go to opening day of the new Costco in St. John's. We knew it would be a mad house and boy was it ever. There were cops at all the intersections and roundabouts directing traffic. We were barely able to find a parking spot on the huge lot. Inside there were so many people we couldn't get through most of the isles. It was crazy. We got the items we came for and got out of there!  I was checking out and it rejected by Visa card. I put in a second Visa card. It rejected it. I put in my Discover card and it rejected it. I was then told by the checker that they only took Mastercard. My bank debit card is a Mastercard. I tried it and it was rejected. I was about to apologize and abandon our basket of food when I realized that I had enough Canadian cash to pay for what we purchased. I was glad I had been conservative on the use of the Canadian money I got before we left home. For traveling I guess we need to get rid of one Visa card and get a Mastercard. 

Friday we scheduled ziplining for Kellen and me. The forecast changed and it was to be cloudy and rainy so we rescheduled for today (Saturday). Instead we drove into St. John's yesterday and saw the movie "Toy Story 4". It was a nice movie.

We got back to the campground and there was a marshmellow roast at the community campfire by the river next to our campsite. Kellen and I had a few with the multitude of kids there. We talked to several of the kids who had just gotten out of school the day before. They go back to school in September.