Land travel – Adventures on the Club

After we returned from Vermont we had a sleepless night thanks to high wind and heavy rain from Tropical Storm Ida. This makes for the third tropical storm in the past two months with Elsa, Henri, and Ida. What the hell? If we wanted this, we’d be living farther south. Sigh. Anyway, fortunately Ida had blown through by the time we were scheduled to officially haul out, so after a VERY busy few days securing Pegu Club for the winter and packing and re-packing the VDub, it was time to finally start our road trip and head west.

Our first stop was in Rochester, NY to visit Jeff’s family and wait for a slightly-delayed package that we had ordered while we we in Vermont. After spending way too much time charging our electronics in the campground’s bathroom, some research led us to ordering a Jackery 240 portable power bank and solar panel. It truly feels like a want vs. a need, but we’ve come to the realization that electronics – and the need to charge them – are simply a way of life for us now. They provide information and entertainment, and trying to figure out how to charge them as we drive across the country is not appealing in the slightest. An added bonus is that it’s small enough that we can use it on the boat after we get back.

While in Rochester we decided to take a day trip up to Buffalo to check out some Airstreams at an RV dealer that claimed to have them some in stock. An Airstream is far-off in the future, and we’ll definitely be buying used, but we wanted to see if our thoughts on the trailer’s length were on track. Well, we should have called because when we got there we were told that they didn’t have them on the lot. “But your website says you have them in inventory.” “Those are on order.” “Well, then they aren’t in your inventory.” Not that we needed confirmation that we would be buying used in the future, but this experience gave it to us anyway. It appears RV salespeople and dealers are as bad as most car salespeople and dealers.

The trip was not an entire waste, however, because we decided to regroup and head to Niagara Falls. When we lived in Rochester we went several times, and I even went there with a law school classmate after the first day of the bar exam to give us some much needed perspective. Seeing the falls never grows old though, and it had been awhile since we’d been, so off we went to be wowed once again by nature. Continue reading “Go West.” →

After a very long off-season getting the house ready to sell, selling it, and moving into an apartment, we needed to get away. Typically a weekend getaway for us would be Boston or NYC, but this time we wanted something relaxing. Vermont during mud season would be perfect. Although we’ve only been there a handful of times, I have a soft spot for Vermont. It’s so relaxing. Maybe it’s the lovely topography, maybe it’s the people who are so friendly. If it wasn’t for the winters and the fact that it doesn’t border an ocean, I would seriously think about moving there.

We drove up to Bennington, Vermont after work on Friday, April 9th, and less than two hours later we were checking into the Four Chimneys Inn in Bennington, Vermont. We must already be getting used to apartment living because the room was huge! Making good use of the gas fireplace and the heated private porch, we spent the weekend recharging and reconnecting. It was fantastic.

Continue reading “It’s not always about the boat.” →