Our Fall travels began September 29th when we left Michigan anxious to get on the road with the new RV! Heading east for a change, on our way to Maine (finally).
Learning more everyday about the new Fleetwood Discovery, we are glad now that we went ahead with the purchase over the summer. We are enjoying a more comfortable and quiet ride as well as so many other features – I love the kitchen!
This trip includes The Baseball Hall of Fame, Maine coastal towns and Acadia National Park, Plymouth Rock and Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Maryland, and yes, New York City!
Baseball Hall of Fame: After an overnight stop in eastern New York, we arrived near Cooperstown NY for a visit to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Located south of the Adirondack Mountains and I-90, the cute town of Cooperstown sits on the south end of Otsego Lake. A smaller town than I expected, but plenty of local shops (everything baseball) and restaurants to choose from.
We spend part of a day touring the Hall of Fame, including the Plaque Gallery showcasing all inductees, and lots of baseball history and exhibits. My favorite Hall of Famer – Al Kaline!
Acadia National Park and Maine: We stayed in southern Maine on our way to Acadia National Park, located on the Maine Atlantic Coast about 225 miles north from the Maine-New Hampshire border.
One of the first things I noticed as we traveled north on I-95 in Maine is that there are no billboards or advertising along the highway. Just an ongoing mix of pine and hardwood trees in full fall color; absolutely beautiful.
Acadia National Park, referred to as the “Crown Jewel of the North Atlantic Coast” is situated on Mount Desert Island. With 60 miles of rugged coastline, there is a lot to see by just driving the 27-mile Park Loop Road, but hiking is also a big part of seeing this park.
There are hundreds of miles of hiking trails rated very easy to strenuous. We attempted the Bald Mountain trail, but due to its steep rocky terrain we shifted over to the Hadlock Falls trail. The Ocean Path is an easy 3.6 mile paved path that follows Park Loop Road with lots of beautiful ocean overlooks.
Cadillac Summit Road takes you to the highest elevation in the park – Cadillac Mountain with views of the Atlantic Ocean and the town of Bar Harbor.
I know I have used the word “pristine” before, but this area is that and more; hard to describe the natural beauty. It’s easy to see why Acadia National Park has become one of the top 10 National Parks visited each year.
The town of Bar Harbor is just outside the park as well as several other small towns, all luring you in with shopping and lobster pounds. Some of the lobster pounds look more like shacks, but you could tell by the outdoor steam pots that they were doing the business. We did not go for the whole lobster (you pick out – to the steam pot – to your table), but enjoyed lobster rolls and other lobster dishes. Lots of other fresh seafood is available at an abundance of restaurants in the towns. We visited Thurston’s Lobster Pound located in the town of Bernard on the “quiet side” of the island.
We stayed just north of the island, in Trenton. The island is separated from the mainland by the Mt. Desert Narrows connecting two Atlantic Ocean bays. The RV Park called “Narrows Too”, provided a perfect spot to set up the RV for our week stay while we explored Acadia and the surrounding area.
Narrows Too Park provided full hookups and we splurged a little on a waterfront site. We were able to pull the RV straight in and had a great view out the front window. With nice vegetation separating the sites, it was a peaceful place to sit in the mornings and watch the tide coming in and out.
We visited several other coastal towns (thanks to Jim’s brother Dave for suggestions), including Saco/Old Orchard Beach, Camden and Rockland, and Freeport – home of L.L. Bean.
A drive to Kennebunkport was interesting, including a memorial to President G.H.W. Bush with a view of the Bush compound on Walker Point.
Plymouth Rock and Cape Cod, Massachusetts: A little over 300 miles south of Acadia and just south of Boston, we stayed near Middleboro, MA, just west of Plymouth and Cape Code.
Our visit to Plymouth Rock was filled with lots of history, including the 1620 year marker commemorating the Pilgrims arrival. Memorials also pay tribute to the Native Americans who helped the pilgrims when they landed here hungry and ill equipped for the coming winter.
Unfortunately, the day we visited Cape Cod it was foggy and drizzly. One item of note was with Cape Cod being an island, there are only two roads going to and from the mainland. Perhaps due to the Columbus Day holiday, we encountered miles of traffic backup heading off the island.
We visited Sandy Neck State Park which I am sure is even more enjoyable in nicer weather. I was a little surprised by the ominous sign regarding sharks – yikes!
Jersey City NJ and New York City: No, we did not drive the RV through New York City, however, we encountered heavy city traffic driving to the Liberty Harbor Marina and RV Park located in Jersey City, NJ.
Coming from the northeast, we crossed the Hudson River into NJ north of NYC via the new Tappen Zee Bridge (I-87) now named the Gov. Mario Cuomo Bridge.
Situated across the Hudson River from lower Manhattan, the park wasn’t much more than a parking lot, but we did have full hookups and a great location for what we wanted to do. We could see the Statue of Liberty in the distance from the park as well as the Manhattan skyline. This was planned as a quick two-night stay to see the 911 Memorial and Museum and the Broadway Play “To Kill A Mockingbird” starring Jeff Daniels.
Once we got parked and set up, we took about a 10-minute ferry ride across the Hudson River to the Wall Street area of lower Manhattan.
The next day we opted to take the New Jersey Path Subway (station a few blocks from Liberty Harbor) that tunnels under the Hudson River, to the World Trade Center. This took us right to the 911 Memorial and Museum.
We took a guided tour of the Memorial and self-guided in the Museum. Both the memorial and museum are so well done, we were so glad we had a chance to visit.
I felt the longer we stayed and more we saw, the gravity of the events weighed heavier. The clear message is “we will never forget”.
From the World Trade Center location, we transferred to the New York subway to travel to mid-town Manhattan and the theater district.
We saw “To Kill A Mocking Bird” at the Shubert Theater and it was fabulous! Jeff Daniels and the whole cast were great and we enjoyed the fast paced dialog, a trademark of Aaron Sorkin who wrote the play adaptation. A little humor mixed in with the serious basis of the play that was very thought provoking; really enjoyed!
Washington DC & Maryland: The highlight here has to be seeing our 8-month old granddaughter, Gemma, and her parents Kevin & Beth. It’s nice coming back to familiar Cherry Hill Park for a couple weeks.
We enjoyed some nice Fall weather and visited Theodore Roosevelt Island for the first time. President Roosevelt was instrumental in establishing many of the National Parks and this nature island is a perfect tribute.
Harpers Ferry Historic National Park: About 1 ½ hrs northwest of Washington DC, we visited this Park located where three states come together (MD, WV, & VA).
The Potomac and Shenandoah rivers meet here and served as a strategic location during the Civil War. Harpers Ferry is one of the locations within the Underground Railroad Network. Numerous hiking trails are available and the Appalachian Trail comes through the Park.
Tolls, Tolls and more Tolls: Traveling in the northeast is so different than other parts of the country. We encountered more traffic and congestion as expected (except for Maine) and there were tolls everywhere. The major highways through New York, Maine and other states as well as bridges and tunnels (Fort McHenry tunnel north of Baltimore) all have tolls. Of course an RV towing a car is charged at a higher rate than a car, so in total we spent approximately $160 on tolls (E-Z Pass rates), the most expensive being the Delaware Memorial Bridge going to/from NJ at $28 each way.
Fuel Card – BIG Savings: As I mentioned in the previous post, we got some information on a diesel fuel discount program through the Fleetwood Discovery Owners Group which we joined after purchasing the RV. TSD Logistics, a trucking company located in Texarkana, Texas, opened up their fleet group to diesel RVers. TDS negotiates discounts with certain chain truck stops, most are $.40 – $.65 per gallon off the pump price.
TSD works through EFS (Electronic Funds Source) for processing payments. At this time the truck stops offering the biggest discounts include the TA Travel Centers, Loves, and most Flying J/Pilots. Another advantage is we know pulling into the truck fuel lanes gives us plenty of room to maneuver in and out. This is a pretty sweet deal! https://www.tsdlogistics.com/services/fuel-program/
Next stop will be in North Carolina for a visit with Cheryl, Darren and Ellie, a trip to Virginia Beach, VA and back to NC for Thanksgiving with family. We plan to be in Florida on December 1st.
Life In The RV Lane 