TravelStream™ news feed for member brent-n-toby on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/brent-n-toby en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:29:02 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222705260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222705260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222705260/tpod.html Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:29:02 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States

We left on monday hoping to make it to Florida without to many fuel problems, as it turned out we had none. We did pass several stations that still did not have any gasoline but at least there was no queues fore the places that did.We really did not mean to end up in Cocoa Beach today. We thought we would need to stop somewhere, however we made very good mileage today and at 6pm it was only 3 hours to Brent's Mom's house.So Our Great American Road Trip has lead us back to where we started from. Toby still has another month  on his visa so we may head out again..........TBC  
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222210260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222210260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222210260/tpod.html Wed, 24 Sep 2008 20:49:29 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Pisgah Forest, North Carolina, United States

We spent another beautiful day on the Blue Ridge Parkway, as the pictures will show.The Parkway has no services or fuel station on its entire length, we decided to get off at Asheville to get fuel. Unfortunately the first gas station we pulled into was out of gas...... slightly perturbed we headed for the next one along the road...... which was also out. The attendant said that everywhere was out in Asheville!!!  We tried 2 more places before deciding to get back on the Parkway and head out away hopefully to some place with fuel. Brent pulled up on the Internet the news stories from the local area,apparently this has been going on for a few days and people have begun panic buying!!!!  We decided to head to our chosen campsite in the Pisgah Forest to park the Eagle, once unhooked we could begin a serious search for fuel, as you know the Beast is a "bit of a hog" when it comes to fuel. We had about 8 gallons left in the tank. Eventually after trying 10 more places we decided to get on the interstate and drive until we got to a truck stop where they usually have larger stocks. We drove over 30 miles until we got to one that had fuel and joined the line!!!  We waited 30 minutes but managed to fill the tank and the generator as well as our 2 gallon tank purchased in Oklahoma (if you remember!)We are now a bit worried because we use alot of fuel and this area is not going to have any for a while.  We decided eventually to get off the Parkway and head south into Georgia. Although the media is saying that its no better there. About half way to our next camp we were lucky enough to find a place open with fuel and took on another 15 gallons. We plan to wait it out for 5 days when supplies will be back up to normal according to the media...... TBC    We could be condemned to live in a trailer in Georgia for awhile!!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221616620/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221616620/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221616620/tpod.html Mon, 22 Sep 2008 20:22:25 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Hampton, Virginia, United States

We were planning to continue our drive south west on the Blue Ridge Parkway, which extends some 469 miles thru the mountains to the  Great Smokey Mountains National Park. The Blue Ridge start at the end of the Skyline drive. HOWEVER....We had just managed to get in touch with some great friends of ours from the middle east...... they have just relocated (and by that I mean they arrived last week) to Virginia, Di and Eddie West, plus the 2 kiddies Noah and Madeline. They are starting new jobs, looking for a house, cars, schools, day care all while living in a hotel. So we decided this would obviously be the best time to visit!!! We arrived on Tuesday afternoon and found a state park right in the middle of Hampton that had a few places for motor homes. It was amazingly cheap at $10 a night. After we had finished setting up we realized that right beside us was a soccer pitch, the reason we noticed was because about 200 little kids and there mums arrived on mass for an 1 hour worth of matches...... so people really do use city parks!Di had to go to Washington on Wednesday so instead of trying to fit a visit in we decided to drive out to the Outer Banks, a long string of islands and sandbars in the Atlantic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Banks this is where the Wright brothers did all there experimental flights and finally managed to do controlled powered flights. We  visited the museum and national monument dedicated to them.On Thursday we met with Eddie and the kids after Eddie finished work and spent the evening catching up.Friday we decided to go to Busch Gardens, the theme park belonging to Anhieser Busch the Brewery. It was the first day of the Howl-o-scream festival they have every year in honour of Halloween. We had a great day!! The park was empty and we did not have to queue for any rides, we literally got off the ride walked around and got back on!!  We did every roller coaster at least 5 times, trying out front and back to see which was better....  In the evening the Howl-o-scream stuff came to life as it got dark, they had made so great attractions which were extremely funny and very well done. Also the roller coaster were all open until 10pm so we tried riding the coasters in the dark too!!  And yes it is alot more fun at night when you have no idea where you are going!!!!  Di got back from Washington on Friday evening so we had saturday together. They showed us the new house they are about to close on, its in a lovely neighbor hood in Yorktown. A 5 bedroom colonial style which is very nice and they can grow into it. The sooner the better.... living out of suitcases in a hotel with kids is not easy and Di and Eddie are making the best of it. Toby took Eddie to look at some cars and get an idea what they can get in their budget. We also took the kiddies to the park, where Noah ran us ragged in the Fort Fun.  We were really happy to see them all and catch up during the huge move back to the states. Di, Eddie, Noah and Maddie we love you... good luck with getting set up and we will see you real soon!!And now we are heading back across Virginia to pick up where we left off!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222126800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222126800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1222126800/tpod.html Mon, 22 Sep 2008 19:53:27 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Roaring Gap, North Carolina, United States

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Ridge_ParkwayWe are driving the Blue Ridge which is a very pretty two lane parkway. Specifically built in the 30's and 50's as a scenic drive across the top of the Blue Ridge mountains and the Appalachians. It provided stunning views in each direction as it meanders its way thru Virginia and North Carolina on the way to the Great Smokey Mountains.We have covered 230 miles of the 469 total length so far and have had several encounters with local wildlife, mainly deer running out in front of us!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221443400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221443400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221443400/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 23:00:42 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Lost City, West Virginia, United States

We left Provincetown Sunday morning, later than hoped due to a late night! We were headed for the Skyline Drive in Virginia. We are trying to follow the Appalachian trail as close as we can using a car. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_trail We crossed thru, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York reaching the Delaware Gap on the Pennsylvania and New Jersey state line. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Water_GapWe were off again the next day crossing Maryland into Virginia and West Virginia.  We found a very secluded campground at the end of a 6 mile one lane road...... luckily we only met a pair of horses coming the other way!!  There were many deer all around us at the campsite, they had no fear of us, we counted 15 different ones!The following day we drove back into Virginia to to the Skyline Drive, a very famous road constructed by the CCC again in the 30's at the dawn of the motor era for the enjoyment of driving in beautiful scenery and no other reason. Its about 105 miles long and follows the ridge of the Appalachian mountains and is an amazing drive with stunning over looks every few miles. We hiked to one of the water falls along the route and had a picnic lunch in Big Meadow. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_Drive
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221151980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221151980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1221151980/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 22:27:27 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Provincetown, Massachusetts, United States

We headed out of Vermont to Provincetown which is the small town at the tip of Cape Cod in Massachusetts., a busy summer retreat. It is very much like Key West, a small community that has a huge influx of tourists. It is historically famous as it is where the Mayflower arrived with the first pilgrims from the UK. There is monument and museum that we visited. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilgrim_MonumentWe had a lobster dinner at the famous "Lobster Pot" restaurant and hit the bars!!  On the second night we went to a show. A singer/comedian called Jimmy James who does amazing voice impersonations of famous singers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_James_(performance_artist)Unfortunately the rain has kept up with us and we long for more summer days, after all we are still on vacation!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220904060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220904060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220904060/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 13:14:55 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Londonderry, Vermont, United States

We were ambling our way across New York towards Vermont following scenic route 74, when the GPS announced "in point 2 of a mile Board Ferry"!! We said "what the Hell??" simultaneously. We rounded the bend in the road and for sure the road ended in a boat ramp. After a study of the map we realized it would be a 60 mile detour around the lake, so we decided to wait and hope that we could fit on the ferry, not knowing what kind of contraction it would be.When it arrived there was no problem with our size thankfully, and at $25 for our 41ft in length it was much cheaper than driving around. We squeezed down the ramp and rode across arriving in Vermont after 15 minutes.We found a lovely campsite and decided to stay for 3 nights so that we could cover both Vermont and New Hampshire in 2 full days. Both states are very pretty, we are a little early for the fall colours but you can see in some of the pictures the trees beginning to turn.Mt Washington in New Hampshire has both a cog railway and an auto route to its 6000ft summit. It was nearly freezing at the top but we were lucky to have one of the few clear days so the views were awesome.  The highest ever wind speed recorded was done here at 231mph!!  Yes it was windy!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Washington_(New_Hampshire)  The drive up and down was a trip, very narrow in places and always steep, it is only 6000ft but the drive starts near sea level, unlike the 12000ft pass we drove in Colorado where the drive starts at 7-8000ft.We visited a few water falls on the return journey across New Hampshire and it reminded us alot of Oregon.We are headed for P-Town MA for the weekend!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220900100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220900100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220900100/tpod.html Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:39:52 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Niagara Falls, New York, United States

It rained pretty much all the way across Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York State on our way to Niagara Falls. We think it was the last remaining bands of rain from hurricane Gustav. We stayed at 4 Mile Creek Campground where the British fought with the French for control of Niagara Falls. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_falls As the evening came on so did the rain and the wind, the Eagle kept us relatively dry, except for the small leak in the bedroom that only happens when we have prolonged rain. We awoke the next day to more grey clouds and rain, no matter, we were off to Niagara Falls where to get any decent views you get soaked from the spray.We took the famous Maid in the Mist boat ride, where they issue you blue plastic rain coats. The noise of 750,000 gallons of water a second makes is massive. We then did the cave of the winds walk, which is no longer a cave due to rock falls, but is now a boardwalk along the edge of one of the falls, the power of the water getting blown on you is crazy..... but its really good fun. They not only issue you with a yellow plastic rain coat but they insist that you wear the sandals they provide. You can see Toby sporting them in one of the pictures!! Even thru the plastic Toby's jeans (which were rolled up to his knees in a particularly charming display of fashion) were soaked.That night the rain stopped and the clouds cleared. We had been out to the hardware store to buy a tarp and tie down straps incase we get hit real hard by hurricane Hanna's rain... of course!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220465760/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220465760/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220465760/tpod.html Wed, 03 Sep 2008 22:52:35 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Mackinaw City, Michigan, United States

We are following the Michigan Lake tour, which takes us up Lake Michigan and down Lake Huron in a circle around Michigan. We reached the Mackinaw Bridge and decided to drive over it as part of the tour http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mackinaw_Bridge on the return journey across the bridge the Eagle awning decided to deploy and that this was the time to extend to the open position!! Before we could stop the open awning slammed into a lamppost, we were only doing about 25mph but it ripped it from the mounting with such force that it bent the arms, at which point the springs that wind it back in (and should keep it there) yanked it back closed, unfortunately it was 12 inches further towards the rear than it should have been leaving a large dent in the Eagle above the kitchen window.  Thankfully, we were able to straighten the arms enough to get us off the bridge, we secured it using Brent's shoelaces, all the while a growing crowd of rubber neckers were blocking the bridge. Once we were off the bridge we re assessed it and decided it was not a total loss and set about realigning it and straightening the parts we could. Except for the dent and a few scratches its OK and will last the rest of the trip (we hope).   Amusingly in typical "dumb safety notice" fashion there is a label that says do not leave in open position whilst in motion!! 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220492940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220492940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/brent-n-toby/1/1220492940/tpod.html Wed, 03 Sep 2008 21:59:34 -0400 Brent & Tobys Great American Road Trip

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Alpena, Michigan, United States

We made camp early after the disaster of the day. Great and pretty campground, sunset pics....
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