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Summer Trip Planning
Hi All,
We’re starting to plan a summer trip for 2016. The first leg will end at Oshkosh for the fly-in. From there we plan on heading N.E. with a Canadian Maritimes destination. We know there are some limitations for ferries etc. and would like benefit from those who may have made the trip. We expect to be in the area by mid-August and after spending a couple of weeks in Canada will head back west via Maine/Vermont/Upstate NY. At some point we’d like to spend a few days trout fishing. A remote cabin resort would be preferable. (Not asking for much, right?). Thanks in advance for your suggestions and cautions. And yes Tom, we’d like to contact Lloyd and Pamela if you have their info.
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19 Replies
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Brian,
They fell off the face of the earth, so maybe someone else knows where they are now.
We just did Upstate NY in September then on to Quebec coming back through ME then on to NJ, VA and home. You won’t find my bus anywhere in New England and the northeast again. I loved the roads and the pleasure of paying to beat the crap out of my bus.:(
We’re putting together a No Rally, Rally at Hearthside at Labor Day if you’re in that neck of the woods. Also, the Oysterfest is in late April.
Hope to see you in your travels. Hi to Beverly.
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Tom,
Are the New England/NY state roads really that bad? I’ve got several pages of places to visit in my USA planner. -
North East roads being older on average and more congested are not as smooth as those in the south for example. The heavy traffic count makes repairs more expensive, beats roads to death and those roads are subjected to the winter freeze thaw cycles which does not help.
Roads off the interstate tend to be more narrow because they date back to shortly after the ark struck land. Bridges are narrower and there are more roads with low clearnaces. Where ever it is possible the states or highway authorities created by the states will set up a toll booth and keep raising prices until the users of those roads and bridges and tunnels have no more money to spend.
The money is used to fill pot holes. Apparently re-surfacing or the proper filling of pot holes is outside of the available budget, but people who live in the North East have no expectation of driving on anything other than rutted and pot hole filled highways congested with traffic from 3:00 AM until 2:59 AM.
There does appear to be a complete lack of knowledge in the minds of those who live in the North East that there are alternatives to crappy roads and high tolls, but those folks cannot travel around the country to see the alternative because they are stuck in traffic.
There is a national move afoot to raise fuel taxes so there will be no repairs until the voters cave in and concede they need to pay more at the pump. Rumor has it there are shovel ready highway projects. We will know when the tax increases are most effective. It will be when motorists pockets are so empty that the politicians will revert to putting their hands in their own pockets.
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Brian: The Fly-In at OSH will be quite the experience for you. Words and pictures don’t do it justice, but your probably know that already. Make sure you take at least one or two trip out to the seaplane base on Lake Winnebago. Very unique.
While I would never discourage anyone from taking a trip around Lake Michigan, especially through the Upper Penninsula of Michigan, consider taking the S.S. Badger from Manitowoc (WI) to Lundington (MI) across Lake Michigan. It was originally built to take railroad cars across the Lake, so your coach should fit in it.
UK Guy: Just skip the NE US and New England. Come directly to Wisconsin. We have NO tolls and work diligently to keep our roads pot hole free, smooth, and clean. We have varied geography and lots of historical spots to visit. Stay a long time, spend lots of money in Wisconsin.
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Dick,
You may have no tolls, but the trip through IL to visit your state will make folks appreciate the NE. Talk about beating your bus to death!
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AMEN to that! IL has some of the worst roads around. I thought MN’s were bad enough, but IL puts us to shame. And WI’s are getting better, but the NW part of the state still has some bad ones. HWY 53 is slowly getting better North of Eau Claire. Another couple of years should have it almost done.
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Having lived in Wi. for the better part of 50 yrs., I can say that I have been on a good road or two, but never in Illinois or Mn. I hit a pot hole once in Fl. Geo.
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That wasn’t a pot hole George, is was a sink hole.
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In New York when the work crew finally put down the newspaper and their coffee and got out of the trucks their road repair was more of a conversion process.
They left water in the pot hole which I assume was mostly displaced by the asphalt mix and probably did not help bond the patch material to the hole. Then they added more asphalt mix than the hole needed to the extent two things happened. First, the loose stones (they would not tamp the mix in the hole) were kicked up onto the windsheilds of oncoming cars to insure the replacement glass industry made enough money to pay their taxes and state fees. Then the remaining mix was “tamped” by passing cars until the pot hole had been converted into a large bump.
Maybe the rest of the northeast does a better job.
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Jon: That is pretty much how the slacker state “workers” do it here too. It would be too much work to actually do it right so that it would last. They do a crappy job so they have job security. Also then they figure they need more “workers” on the payroll to get them all done so they all do less.
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New England is my backyard so I must put in a good word for visiting. I do not know on which dirt roads Tom and Nancy were driving while passing through New England but I can assure you that most of the major highways and state roads are perfectly fine for travel. Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont are beautiful states for a visit with lots of history and lots to see and do. If you are into hiking, that’s your destination. Most times of the year, you can open your windows and keep them open, too. That is BUS windows! You open yours, don’t you?!
I should also mention Massachusetts and Rhode Island since they are part of NE. I do not hesitate to drive around NE and neither should you! Of course, if you prefer to park your a*** in a resort and keep your AC running all day and night, then NE is not for you. To begin with, there are no fancy resorts in NE. Just campgrounds. NE is for those of you who enjoy the outdoors. Hiking, biking, swimming, walking. Ocean or lakes. Lots to do and see.
2005 XL Thompson Coach
Rarely tow anything behind us.
Sold: 1993 Liberty that we loved for 12 years. -
Ronald, thanks for sticking up for NE. Will definitely stay in our plans. We may even be travelling there pre-bus so will be keeping our eyes open not just for the sights, but also on the roads and camping opportunities.
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I am kind of surprised a Brit is anxious to tour the part of the states where we kicked Redcoat butt a few years ago.
I agree with Ron to an extent. If you travel on main routes the roads are underwhelming. But if you get away from the congested areas you cannot beat the scenery, the interesting history that abounds, and quaint little towns.
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We let you win!
Been looking to go leaf-peeping for the last few years. Next year, we finally manage it. -
With a bus you get to go leaf looking in New England and then continue south toward the Smokey Mountains enjoying the colors along the way and extending the season a couple of weeks.
When we lived in western NY the colors peaked around Oct.10th, and ours down here in eastern TN peaked around the 25th.
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