Day 49: Arkansas (18 Sep 14)

Got up at 0045 and pulled out of the campground by 0115 this morning to do the drive through Memphis in the middle of the night to avoid all the traffic. Even at that hour, I-40 was filled with tractor trailers, but at least there weren't millions of cars darting in and out and cutting us off. Once we got safely across the Mississippi River, it was time for breakfast!  Doug happily devoured his Belgian waffle, eggs, sausage, and bacon at a truck-stop Dennys.

A few hours later, we were pulling into the campground in Hot Springs, Arkansas, the childhood home of Bill & Hillary Clinton (or so says the sign entering town).  It's surprisingly pretty here, although we could do without the 80% humidity.  While Doug recovered from the long painful drive, Jen brought the pups to Hot Springs National Park and hiked the trails there with them. Pretty views, well-maintained trails, and total solitude. 

After the hike and showers (and rib bones for the pups) we headed into town to find the local brewery. Superior Brewing is located in an old bathhouse that had been vacant for 35 years before they took it over a few years ago (the town of Hot Springs is known for their, well, hot springs... and the main street is lined with bathhouses and spas) . Unfortunately they don't have the licenses to brew their own beer, but they had a good selection of brews on tap from around the Midwest. They also had decent real food and yummy gelato.

Eventful day. Tomorrow: mtn biking Arkansas. 

Day 48: Middle Tennessee (17 Sep 14)

Drove to a stopping point 40 miles West of Nashville today. As you can see from the picture, Finn is still very stressed in the truck - it's just so hard to let it all hang out and relax.  On another odd note, Jen took the pups on a walk down an old deserted road near the campground today, and Sunday rolled in dead alligator.  Yes, alligator.  In the middle of Tennessee.  We just don't want to know....

Tomorrow:  Arkansas.  Last time we went to Arkansas, it rained the whole time and an entire boy scout troop camped next to us.  So this time, we're just hoping for no dead alligators. 

Day 47: MTB Tennessee (16 Sep 14)

Drove up to the Big Fork National Recreation Area to ride today. It rained all night last night, and was raining on and off this morning too, so the trails were slick and slimy. Pretty area, filled with thick hardwood trees, and all in the shade. It would be a great place to ride on a dry, sunny fall day.  The whole trail is over 30 miles, but we bailed after only 14.
Then, on the way home, we found a BBQ shack that came highly recommended from the Internet... It was literally a one-room shack on the side of the road, with a crusty old Tennessee dude serving up pork and brisket.  It was OK (but not as good as the Moat!)

Day 46: New State!! (15 Sep 14)

Drove to Knoxville TN today. Tennessee is a new state in the RV, so of course there was a brief "new state ceremony".  This will be the last "new state" on this trip (unless Jen changes her mind again, which we all know is entirely possible and probably even likely...).  Doug made a pilgrimage to Krystal, which is the south's version of White Castle. The pups shared his French fries and now all 3 of them are moaning something about not feeling so good.

Tomorrow we're finally riding. Woohoooo!

Bliss

This is how Finn rides in the car. Like a giant hand is going to descend from the ceiling and rub his belly. Silly pup.

Day 45: Kentucky (14 Sep 14)

We drove to Kentucky.  That is all.

Day 43 & 44: Pittsburgh (12—13 Sep 14)

Left Jen's parents house early Friday morning to drive the 2 1/2 hours back to the RV in Lancaster PA.  Did a quick turnaround when we got there and loaded everything back up to continue the drive west.  Arrived in Madison, Pennsylvania (40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh) at the end of the day and settled in for the night.

Although we tentatively had our eyes on a few mountain biking trails here, we awoke to pouring rain Saturday morning.  Jen found a local gym, while Doug stayed at the RV and used the time to plan out the next few travel days. We used the rest of the day to catch up on housekeeping type stuff like grocery shopping, laundry, and dog baths.  Nothing very exciting (or even worth photographing)

Days 41 & 42: Jersey Shore (10-11 Sep 14)

Left the RV in the campground in PA, and drove the truck 2 hours back east to the Jersey Shore to visit Jen's parents. There was no way in hell Doug was going to drive the Beast in Jersey traffic, so the best option was to just find a place to park it and have Jen drive the truck through the crap. And there was a lot of crap. The entire state of PA is one big construction zone, and Jersey is filled with displaced New Yorkers and senior citizens.  Fun stuff. But it was worth it - we haven't seen Jens parents since last November and they've never met the pups. We spent the day Wednesday visiting and eating Jersey pizza. :)

Thursday morning, we got up early and drove up to the Dog Beach in Asbury Park.  The pups had never seen the ocean before and they loved it!  Even Finn went in, at least when he had to in order to properly herd Sunday.  Sunday was fearless - that little dog jumped over the waves and rode the surf like she grew up doing it. Once, a giant wave crashed over her head and she disappeared under water for a long time - we thought that would be the end of her loving the ocean, but that tough little girl shook off and drove back in!  Spent the rest of the day visiting with Jens parents, and enjoying Dad's homemade Italian sauce and lasagna. I think we both gained 5 pounds on this trip!

Pups at the Jersey Shore:

Days 39 & 40: Driving, driving and more driving. (8-9 Sep 14)

Sadly, it was time to leave NH again early Monday morning. The pups went for one more swim in the Ammonousic River, Jen gazed longingly at the White Mountains, and we loaded up and drove through Vermont, Massachusetts, and to Newburgh, New York for the night. We were so exhausted by then time we got there that we didn't even go brewery hunting.

Tuesday morning, we packed up and headed to Pennsylvania Dutch County, staying just east of Lancaster.  The campground was nice, but our site was a narrow little tree-lined back-in, so parking the Beast was a bitch.  There were some ATV trails behind the campground, so Jen took the pups for a long walk. They must have run 20 miles, chasing the billions of chipmunks and squirrels in those woods.

Day 38: one last NH hike (7 Sep 14)

Drove over to North Conway this morning with the pups. We hiked up Black Cap, with Jen carrying Maggie's ashes to scatter at the top. Of course, it was a Sunday morning, so we encountered tons of people on the trail, but luckily the top wasn't all that crowded. After a few pictures, and taking in the spectacular view, we found a ledge off to the side with a great view of Kearsarge, Mt Washington, and Cathedral Ledge - all of Maggie's old stomping grounds.  Under the watchful eye of Finn and Sunday (who were smart enough to keep a respectable distance) Jen let the ashes go in the breeze.  She swears she could see Maggie bounding through the trees and up over the rock ledges. 

After Jen finished bawling her eyes out, we went back down the mountain, and headed to the Moat, our old stomping grounds (and actually, Maggie's too, since the owner used to let her come in during the week at night!).  The brisket and pork were as good as we remembered, and of course, the beer was fantastic. 

Enjoying our last night in NH before we start the trek back West. Only 15 years, 10 months before we can retire here. (Is it too soon to start counting?)

Day 37: Finn's first NH hike & a new brewery

This morning, Jen went for a short hike up Sugarloaf Mountain in the Zealand Falls area of the White Mountain National Forest.  It was Finn's first hike in NH, and he had a lot of pressure on him to prove himself as a good trail dog. He did fine. :)

Later in the afternoon, we both went into downtown Littleton to check out the new brewery that has opened since we left in 09.  It's in an old converted mill building and has a cute little patio overlooking the Ammonousic River.  Unfortunately, the beer was all old-world style, mostly Belgian, and wheat. Not that it was bad beer, just that neither of us likes Belgian or wheat beers. (yes, it is actually possible that there is a beer out there that we dont like). 

Day 36: the cabin (05 Sep 14)

Went up to see the cabin today - we were both very sad.  The property is very overgrown, weeds and trees everywhere, and Jen's garden is all but gone (except the peony bush).  No damage or anything to the cabin itself, it just made us both sad that we aren't there anymore.  The pups had a great time - just like our others who lived there, they Josh loved running free around the back 40 and hopping through the tick-infested weeds. In a surreal moment, Finn even went out on the front porch and laid down in Sandy's spot, surveying his domain (extra surreal if you know Finn - the damned dog NEVER lays down, especially in the middle of the day). 

We also had a chance to go to town hall and get our registration and plates for the RV and truck, and Jen was able to go to the DMV to get a new license. It was like a Saturday night live skit, trying to explain to the clerk why I have a NH license with an AZ address on it, but that my new address is in Missouri, but she can't mail it there because I don't know the address yet, so she should mail it to Florida, where we have a mail-forwarding service, but wait, they won't forward mail from a state DMV, so send it to New Jersey so my parents can forward it for me. The poor little ladies' brains were hot by the time we were done with that one. Thankfully, the DMV in Twin Mtn, NH is one of the few in the world where you are usually the only customer in the place. Seriously. 

Day 35: NH friends (04 Sep 14)

While Doug and the pups enjoyed a leisurely day of no driving, Jen hiked with North Conway Stephanie, and spent the rest of the day catching up on 4 years of stuff (that's a long time in girl years!!).  On her drive back up to Littleton, Jen raided every road-side farmstand in NH (including the one run by the inmates at the Grafton County Correctional Facility), and got stuck in a true North Country traffic jam, behind a logging truck doing 15 mph. 

Day 34: NEW HAMPSHIRE!!!! (03 Sep 14)

Drove to Littleton, NH this morning.  Damn, it's good to be back.  The campground is right on the Ammonousic River, so the pups are having a great time frolicking around in the cold mountain water. Since NH and VT are so tiny, we saved our "new state ceremony" for today, when we could do them together.

After we got settled, Jen took the truck and drove down to visit her friend Stephanie (a/k/a/ North Conway Stephanie), who now lives in Lyme, NH (near Dartmouth College).  Doug stayed in the campground with the pups and enjoyed not having to drive anywhere!

Day 33: NY to Vermont (02 Sep 14)

Drove from Corning, NY to Brattleboro, VT today. Long drive through lots of traffic and construction, but not quite as painful as we thought it would be. Doug gave up on yelling "MASSHOLE" every time one drove by once we actually entered Massachusetts, but he still growled under his breath a few times. It's very humid here in VT - not the crisp fall air we were hoping for.

After we got settled in the campsite, we went to the local brewery, which was right on the river in the cute little downtown area. Since today was Doug's actual birthday, Jen bribed the server to bring him a cake and make a fuss over him. He was cranky about getting sung to in public, but he got a really good piece of chocolate cake out of it, so all is good.