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Mr. Camper

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Posts posted by Mr. Camper

  1. Normandy Farms in Foxboro is your best bet for the Boston area.  Cherry Hill Park in College Park, MD is great for D.C.  Liberty Harbor in Jersey City is basically a parking lot but it will serve your needs as it's all about Location, Location, Location.  We stayed at Philadelphia South/ Clarksboro KOA and finally, Bar Harbor/Oceanside KOA for Maine.  We've stayed at those places.  I hate to bring this up but be wary if the government shuts down without approving a debt extension as you may have some national parks that will be closed. Just have a good Plan B in case it happens.

  2. On 8/16/2021 at 11:31 AM, Mr. Camper said:

    I just finished "The President's Daughter" by James Patterson.  Just started reading "The Noise" by James Patterson.

    If you haven't bought this yet, save your money.  It was advertised as a suspense/horror story.  Not usually my cup of tea but Patterson normally has good reads.  This should have been labeled as pure science-fiction.  If you like sci-fi then be aware that this is about 422 pages and you'll be halfway through before there is any semblance of a plot and not a credible one at that.  Just a warning.

  3. If anyone is traveling and needs to find a physician I'd recommend you use www.healthgrades.com/find-a-doctor.  All you do in enter the specialty and city you are in.  A list of all physicians in the area comes up along with patient reviews, and also what insurance they carry as well as if they are taking new patients.  It also provides a list of the physician's other specialties and services they are board certified in.  Hope this helps.

  4. While I certainly agree with OK roads as being bad, the prize has to go to West Virginia and Missouri (a tie).  To be fair those states get my vote for worst because of their interstate roads.  We travel interstates only when absolutely needed.  On the flip side the best roads (US Highways, State roads and even county roads when needed) have been Michigan, Florida, and Arkansas.  New Mexico gets an honorable mention when it comes to US Highways throughout the state.

  5. Michigan is a big state, with lots of varied outdoor activities.  The best parts in our opinion are up the coast along Lake Michigan, anywhere in the Upper Peninsula, and down the coast of Lake Huron.

    Not knowing how much you want to travel each day is another difficult thing to tackle.  Let me tell you the places I'd want to stop and you can go from there.  Ludington, try (Poncho's Pond RV Park).  Traverse City (Holiday Park Campground), Manistique (Manistique Lakeshore Campground), Munising (Pictured Rocks KOA), Newberry (Kritter's Northcountry Campground), Brimley, (Sunrise View RV Park), Alpena (Camper's Cove RV Park), Tawas (Oscoda/Tawas KOA), Port Huron (Port Huron KOA in KImball).  If you want museums, you'll have to search locations by downloading the Pure Michigan Travel Guide.  They won't be printing a new one until sometime in early 2022.

    You also should know that weekends fill up real fast until the weather changes and even then people still head out weekends to see the fall colors.  Also, be sure to cover the north as early as possible as you don't want to get caught further north when the early snow arrives.

    Best of luck.

  6. 2 hours ago, Kirk W said:

     Since the efforts to separate people and bears began to be effective more than 30 years ago, it has become rare for anyone to see a grizzly and the black bears are usually at some distance. People regularly travel through the park on motorcycles and do not encounter any bears of either type. 

    Then I guess that black bear walking in the middle of the road as we were driving around Yellowstone Lake was a mirage.  We didn't have the diesel truck at the time, just a half-ton gas RAM.  As we rounded a curve there s/he was. S/He growled and started to jog as we fumbled for a camera.  S/He diverted into the woods but not before I snapped a couple of shots of his/her hindquarters.  That was an unusual occurrence. 

    If you really want a good chance to see wildlife beyond bison and elk, I suggest you pack food and water and head to Lamar and/or Hayden Valley, pull off the road where allowed and wait for first light or at dusk and have a great pair of binoculars or a good spotting scope with you to see animals not usually seen except in the backcountry.

  7. I've had the original Kindle Paperwhite since it came on the market.  I read daily, it's simple and I can control the brightness on the screen, font script and size, and that is very important to me since I have AMD.  After each book I restart the kindle.  I shut it down at night to charge and even after all of these years it still holds the charge to about 60% by the end of the day.  Every day I read and repeat and it's a great e-reader.  

  8. What you'll find is that there are a lot of campgrounds that have seasonal sites for the summer.  If they have open sites there won't be many as a majority of seasonal sites already spoken for.  Many of the resorts will open for the following year in early October and some not until the first of the new year.  About all you can expect is to find the campground you want to stay at and call immediately and see if they have anything open for the time you want.

  9. 11 hours ago, Kirk W said:

    Having been a host at several state parks in several different states, I suspect that the vast majority of such problems are caused by local people and only rarely by visitors from other states.

     

    Perhaps you didn't finish reading my post but the incidents sited where from the ranger and personal observation and in each case the perps were ticketed and fined or in the one case arrested.

  10. While I can't speak to all states in this matter I will only speak about our local state parks.  Arkansas has some of the finest facilities we've come across in State Parks.  We've seen this first hand and I've spoken to a friend who is a ranger at a nearby state park.  A number out-of-state visitors seem to have little respect for the rules and property during their stay.  Signs posted closing a trail due to needed repairs, trash left everywhere, graffiti on the walls of restrooms and bathhouse, and someone taking a dump along an open trail, all committed by out of state visitors is on the rise.  In the cases mentioned there have been fines and even one arrest for someone getting aggressive when told to turn around on a closed trail and the guest said he paid for his visit and no sign was going to tell him where he could or couldn't go.  Bad behavior is everywhere, just look at the problems faced by flight attendants across the country.  Personally, we have no issue with paying higher prices at state parks when we travel, as long as we receive what we paid for.  A clean, well-maintained campground that enforces the rules they set for all campers.

  11. The only problem I've heard about is the crack in the I-40 bridge over the Mississippi.  It's not an issue if you go over the I-55 bridge which is just a bit further south.  Then connect to the wrap-around Memphis if you are going East.  If you are going west hit the wrap-around on the east side of Memphis and follow signs to the I-55 bridge and connect with I-40 W. in Arkansas.

    We have a trip planned this fall and I've already preplanned to take the route around the I-40 bridge even if they have the repairs completed by then.  That's really the only option unless you wish to go much further south to West Helena, AR and go over that bridge to get into Mississippi and then head north to TN.  However that is really out of the way.

  12. We've run into that problem in Michigan, Minnesota, and Maine.  Mayflies were awful.  On the occasions when we've gone back we made the trips in the Fall.  If you have to go then I'd suggest long pants, long sleeves and while we were there we had head nets to keep them from flying in your ears, nose and mouth.  There was no break from them during the peak summer times.  For subsequent trips we contacted the state directly and found when the best and worst times were and planned accordingly.

  13. We aren't close to full-timing so we always make reservations.  The smart way to do it and get your choice of site is to look at the campground website, find out when they will take a reservation and call when that day arrives to get your choice.  We have a couple of short trips this year before a longer, for us, trip in the fall.  We have already made reservations for all of those stops and have confirmations.  For next year we are planning on our longest trip ever and it will cover the southwest USA.  We've already made half of the reservations and most of the rest will be done by the middle of this summer.  Until the travel world gets back to normal, and people feel safe to stay in hotels and travel by other means, we've been told this will be the way to RV travel and obtain the sites you want.

  14. 18 hours ago, Jaydrvr said:

    Everyone has a different perspective on this, I'm sure. When we're gone from our FL home, we leave the A/C on, but set it at a higher temp. The most important point of that is to dehumidify the home to limit the formation of mold and mildew. Plus, there are many things at home which we feel would deteriorate under excess great and humidity. This way, everything stays as we left it. Jay

    Same thing with us when we resided in FLAUSA.

  15. I guess I'm a dinosaur because I do this the old fashioned way.  I do it at home and I use my computer, RV Park Reviews, KOA, Good Sam, YP, and a few others.  I plot our routes and never use interstates unless they are unavoidable.  We always try to take scenic routes or US/State routes to really see the country.  It depends on what we want to see and then I do the route and look for things to stop and see along the way.  It's been two years since we had a big trip and this year we just have a few small trips to acclimate our puppy to traveling and then we have a family wedding in the fall.  I do have some apps on the phone that we use for last minute changes while we are driving and that helps, but other that those situations it's better doing it at home.

    Next year we are going to Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.  Already in the planning for that.

  16. We took out the couch and added a recliner and special table, and had awnings put up over the slides and then took it to the scales for weighing.  It turned out to be about 58 lbs heavier but fell within our insurance plan guidelines and we didn't have any extra charge.  It's safer to to that rather than take a chance when something goes wrong and the insurance balks since it's not factory installed.

  17. The NxStage System 1 machine is specifically designed for travel.  You should be speaking with your wife's nephrologist about your travel plans.  You will need a prescription for the supplies based on the frequency the prescription calls for.  However, first you will have to undergo training at a dialysis center and that could take about 6 weeks (more or less).  It's completely dependent on how quickly you, as her caregiver, and she learn the procedures, the machine, and the training nurse has the confidence in your ability to handle the process.  You'll also be given phone numbers for 24 hour help with either the NxStage system 1 machine or any other issue that may come up.  With the prescription you'll be able to have supplies sent ahead on your travels.  It will require planning and may even require stops along the way to pick up supplies as you travel.

    Please don't let others who have not had any experience with dialysis, specifically in-center, scare you off.  By using HHD (Home Hemodialysis), you will have a much faster recovery time, especially doing it more frequently than you would on in-center dialysis.  Part of the training you will undergo will also be to determine the amount of time of each dialysis session and the actual frequency.  Six and seven days can be done and one thing you must remember with HHD is not to skip two consecutive days.

    Your kidney-friendly meal plan will also change as well as her fluid intake doing HHD.  The nephrologist will be setting those limits for her and the paperwork you fill out during each session will need to be sent to the nephrologist and you'll be required to make the changes ordered as they come up.  These changes will require a scale, blood pressure monitor, and a way to transmit the data to the nephrologist.

    If you are not full-time RVing then at home you can use the PureFlow system, but when you travel you'll have to pick up dialysate.

    If you have pets they'll still be able to travel with you but you'll have to take steps to keep the lines and supplies free from any pet dander/hair and such.  Expect the "normal" routines you have pre-dialysis to change for the near future as you train on the machine and stay close until you develop your new "normal."

    If your home dialysis center doesn't train in HHD you may have to travel or find an RV Park near the center that will train you.  Are you looking at Fresenius or DaVita centers?

    If there is still time before this begins, look at a book called, HELP, I Need Dialysis! How to have a good future with kidney disease.  You can order it at the Medical Education Institute for about $6.00 at www.meiresearch.org/ 

    Finally, there is a lot of information you can get from Fresenius and their patient advocate program by going to their website www.freneniuskidneycare.com

    Best of luck to you.

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