This “modified” Class C was set up across from us at a show this summer. Wow. The fellow who drives this did all the artwork/painting himself. He is from Canada and sets up at shows all across the country. You might see him at a festival some time. His rig is hard to miss!
The whole rig is covered in paintings. The more you look, the more you see!
This display in front of an antique store aptly describes the Shipshewana area
Shipshewana, Indiana is a tiny community in LaGrange County in the northeast corner of the state. The rural area is one of the largest communities of Amish families in the Midwest. The main roads all have extra wide shoulders to allow for safe travel for the horse drawn buggies and wagons.
The area is known for its many tourist attractions, including a huge flea market that is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In addition, there are many small shops in the town featuring hand made crafts, country decor items and antiques. As you might expect, you can take a horse drawn carriage ride or even enjoy a home made meal at one of the Amish homes who open there doors to visitors.
There are several nice RV parks in the area. All are reasonably priced. There is an RV park that is part of the flea market grounds. Enjoy a level, full hook up site that is just steps away from the market.
Restaurant, bakery and theater all in one!
Shipshewana is truly a must see stop for anyone traveling in northern Indiana. Note that several RV companies have their assembly plants in this area. Couple a trip to see RV’s being built with an enjoyable and interesting trip to Shipshewana Amish country and you will have a trip to remember.
Lots of interesting shops to visit.
The Annie Oakely Festival took place last weekend. This theme festival is held near Greenville, Ohio, the home of the famed markswoman. It seemed fitting that the Ohio Fast Draw Association International held one of their competition shoots at the festival.
Fast draw shooters with their six guns ready to compete.
Sher and I had an absolute ball at the Luther Logging Days festival in Luther, Michigan. The festival ran the week of July 4th. We heard about this festival from a fellow vendor who was kind enough to give us the information for registration so we could set up and sell our wares.
Luther is a very small town (population 310) and is in the heart of logging and outdoor recreation country. The festival took place on the one main street in town, and we set up our selling space right next to the curb.
This festival was really fun. Sometimes when we are set up and selling we don’t get to share in the festivities. Not so at Luther: most of the activities took place near or in front of our booth space! There were bands, games for young and old alike and a wonderful parade on July 4th.
This was our set up
AM VET bikers in the parade
The people of Luther were very friendly and enjoy life to the fullest. Young and old alike really know how to have a good time.
We went back to MattressInsider.com when we wanted to replace the mattress that came with our Thor Four Winds 22E motorhome. This Class C motorhome was the replacement for the travel trailer that we had when we hit the road last summer. The mattress we bought from MattressInsider for the travel trailer did not fit in our new Thor. As is normally the case, the mattress that came with the RV was, ah, not the best. Even though it was called an RV Premium mattress it did not take too long for it to break down and become nothing more than a source of bad night’s sleep and backaches.
Our new mattress in place and ready!
So back to MattressInsider. Once again the folks there were great to work with. This time I needed a custom made mattress to fit the shape of our bed: the corner of it was “cut off” to make room for the bathroom door to open. Simple to draw a sketch with the dimensions and email it to the MattressInsider staff.
Once agan we ordered an 8″ thick coil spring mattress. (See our original review of our first mattress here.) The additional cost for the custom design was only $20 for the one we ordered. This was a nice surprise as I expected a higher cost for a custom made mattress.
This is the style mattress that we purchased
The sales staff once again did a great job with our order. I sent in the sketch with the dimensions of the mattress I needed, firmed up the order and our mattress arrived in about ten days. Great service! The mattress was rolled up into a box about the size of a thirty gallon barrel that weighed in at 68 lbs. (Shipping was free by the way.) We simply unpacked the mattress, let it unroll and let it do its expanding thing for about three hours. Then it was ready for use.
Let me tell you, these coil spring mattresses are great to sleep on! Back aches are gone and Sher and I both are getting a great night’s sleep. Need a new mattress for your RV? Browse the Mattress Insider website and/or call them at 1-888-488-1468 and talk with them. You will not be disappointed with what you hear.
Matt and Carrie Bearup
We found a marvelous campground in the middle of northwestern Michigan after we had finished a large festival nearby. The Best Bear Lodge and Campground is a work in progress that is already gaining a reputation as a favorite spot to stay. Nestled on ten acres of beautiful woodland, this resort is located south of Travis City and north of Baldwin.
Right now there are seven pull through water/electric sites, tent camping, one cabin and a four room lodge/motel. The cabin has two sets of bunk beds, TV, fridge and coffee pot. Bring your own linens to the cabin. The lodge rooms are outfitted with full kitchens, bath, TV and includes daily room service. The TV service is satellite with 200 channels. Seperate rest rooms are sparkling clean as are the coin operated showers.
Our home for a few days
A beautiful setting
That is the overview. Here is the scoop: This place is one of the most peaceful, beautiful and nice parks you will ever find. The pull through sites offer plenty of room to run out your slides and/or awning. Between the sites there is a buffer with native oak, pine and other foliage giving the sense of privacy so often missing at most RV parks. Free pumpouts let you leave your sewer hose stowed. Bagged ice and cheap firewood is available.
We used our Verizon Jetpack for internet hookup. It went in and out, as did our phone service. This is not a good Verizon service area. The campground offers an ATT jetpack rental for a strong internet connection if you so desire.
Owners Carrie and Matt Bearup are just delightful hosts. They make you feel like family and will do anything to make your stay more comfortable. They know the area and can provide all you need to know about the hiking, ATV and snowmobile trails of the area. This area of the state is famous for the year round recreation opportunities.
The lodge building
The 1st of the cabins
Additional lodge rooms, cabins and RV sites are planned and will include 28 pulll through sites. The pads will be grass with paved roads for easy access to large rigs with towed vehicles or trailers. Right now the newly cleared and level sites are dirt as is the road. The sandy soil is well drained so mud is not a problem.
The $25 rate for an RV site is very reasonable and the best in the area. Be sure to visit the Best Bear Lodge website for all the information about this great campground. We will be back.
The signs on I-295 near Richmond, Virginia listed EXIT 34 as the way to Cold Harbor Battlefield. I decided to hop off the road and see how far this was. The first road east of the interstate had signs showing the direction of the Battle of Gaines Mill.
As I have been a Civil War buff for years I figured that a stop was in order. Sher and I headed down the road and followed the signs to the Battlefield. What greeted us was a sign announcing the entrance and a long narrow tree lined road winding up through the ravines to the ridge top.
I was greeted at the ridge top with an incredile vista. There was a simple two story house and large “outbuilding”, several hundred yards of spilt rail fences and a few artillery pieces. Some informational signs were scattered around. An unoccupied NPS Park Ranger squad car was the only indication that this was the year 2015, not 1862.
This plantation home was the Union Headquarters and was shot to pieces during the battle
Fences are the Union lines, the Confederates attacked from the tree line.
The grounds were totally empty. There was only one other car when we pulled in, and it left in short order. I couldn’t believe that we had the entire site to ourselves. As I walked along the line where Union artillery pounded the advancing Confederate infantry as they came up the ravine and through the trees I could not help but imagine the horror of the conflict. This is hallowed ground that is filled with the energy that remains from the turbulant times of the American Civil War.
Artillery cannon with the plantation buildings in the background
Our rig parked on the site with cannons off to the left.
The Battle of Gaines Mill was one of the Seven Days Battle that took place in late June/early July 1862. This day’s fighting resulted in combined casualties of 15,000 killed, wounded or captured. If you are interested in details, you can find them at this NPS website.
The red ‘pointed’ building is the convention center
Just before the toll booth of the I-64 West Virginia Turnpike (when traveling towards Charleston) you come to the Tamarack Center, located at the Beckley Travel Plaza at EXIT 45. This popular and large rest stop has a big fueling station for autos and another one for trucks. The travel center has tourist information, good restuarants and lots of neat shops selling area hand-made crafts, art and other items.
We were heading west from a trip to Virginia and pulled into the parking lot for cars. We had not decided if we were going to stop for the night or just a couple of hours to rest and eat. Then a really nice fellow in an official truck drove up and asked me if we wanted to spend the night. He said there was a designated spot for RV’s next to the convention center. He led us up the road to the convention center and to the place where parking spaces are marked for RV’s and buses.
Our level, comfortable and quiet overnight parking spot
The Tamarack Center
These spots are well lit with street lights and there is a security officer that patrols the area all night long. The fellow that led us to the parking told us about the security patrol so we wouldn’t worry! He also gave us the phone number of the travel plaza if we needed anything! After being told we weren’t wanted at Lewes, Delaware (see that story here) it was refreshing to actually be invited to a free, safe and secure place to park overnight! The Convention Center is on a small hill south of the truck parking and fuel islands. Look for the building with the red pointed windows showing. That is the convention center. The RV parking is on the east side. Follow the signs.
When you travel on I-64 in West Virginia, look for the Tamarack Travel Plaza near Beckley. This is one stop that is worth planning for as you map your routes. Be sure to grab a bite to eat and spend some time browsing the arts and crafts stores. Then enjoy a quiet restful night to get you ready for the next day’s travel. Here is the official website of the Beckley Travel Plaza.
Fishing piers at the park
Tom’s Cove Park is one of two large RV parks on Chincoteague Island on Virginia’s Atlantic shore. The RV park was our stopping point for a couple of days during our jaunt up and down the Delmarva Penninsula.
The park is easy to get to, just turn left on the main street when you cross the bridge at the end of the causeway leading to the island. There will be a nice drive along the inner waterway and you will see the signs to the park.
The park has over 900 sites with about half being seasonal rigs. There are sites for tents as well as the big rigs and everything inbetween. They offer free WiFi which actually provided a strong connection. The cable TV was available at our site, but it was poor quality.
Sher getting a little computer work done
Restrooms and dump stations are scattered around the park, although there are plenty of full hook up sites as well. The store/registration office is very large and stocks a bit of everything from food to power cords to bait.
The water is close and several private fishing and crabbing docks will make this a delightful place to wet a line or set the crabbing pots if you are so inclined. There is also a boat ramp and marina on the property.
Working lighthouse you can see after dark from the park
Camp store/registration
Take a drive through the park and check out which site you want. This is a suggestion I would make. Had we done that before we registered we probably would have picked a different site. There is quite the selection of sites in the park. Staff are friendly, fellow campers are friendly and there is also a nice pool with a lifeguard on duty.
This camper is ready to fish!
The large swimming pool
Rates are moderate to high, so pick and choose what you want in your site: full or partial hook-ups, 30 or 50 amp, cable TV or not, etc. All in all it is a nice, clean, safe park albeit on the high price side. Click here for the park Website.
Traveling in the Columbus and Dublin, Ohio area? There is a little gem of a nature park that you really should see. Nestled in a ravine running into the Scioto River in Dublin, Ohio you will find a stunning waterfall in a peaceful setting in the middle of the city. The Griggs Nature Preserve is part of the Columbus Parks system.
The small parking lot is located on the west side of the river on the south side of Hayden Run Road east of Dublin Road. There is a trail head that immediately turns into a new, well constructed boardwalk trail. The steep steps lead down the ravine bank to a wide boardwalk with railings on both sides. The boardwalk follows the stream which may give you the chance to see some ducks and their families. Songbirds add to the vista of the pretty trees, wildflowers and other foliage.
The waterfall itself is at the end of the 1/4 mile long boardwalk. What a beautiful waterfall and pool! The rock outcroppings are stunnning to see and you wonder how did this falls come to be. It is hard to believe that this serene natural setting is surrounded by the bustling cities of Dublin and Columbus!
Words of caution: The steps leading down to the stream trail are very steep and long. It is easy going down, but the climb back up can be difficult. Plan accordingly. In addition, the parking lot is small and will require the use of your towed vehicle. Only a Class B will fit into the small parking lot.
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