Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012 - Travel Day to Brother Jeff’s House

Once again set the alarm early. Rain came in during the night, so everything was wet when we started getting up. Easy send-off though, with the horses in a corral and no satellite dish. Grabbed breakfast at Dunkin Donuts (after two miles of washboard road again), a quick stop at Royal Battery in Palm Bay to pick up two Trojan batteries for the new RV, arriving at Brother Jeff’s by 12:30. There was a bulldozer blocking the driveway, he was in the process of putting up a large sign over the entrance to his abode, and the bulldozer was, in essence, his means of reaching heights capable of putting in the sign. He moved it so we could come in, and we quickly got the horses settled into one of his paddocks, and set the RV in a place that would make it easy to make the transition to the new RV. We left shortly thereafter, setting bug bombs off in order to take care of a bunch of ladybugs that had been with us since South Carolina, as well as anything we might have picked up along the way, and drove to the RV dealer to finally see our new unit in person. It was almost everything we had hoped for, with just a few difficulties we’ll have to figure out how to overcome. Spent several hours there going over what modifications would need to be made, then headed back home to find a short but strong rainstorm had stopped work on the sign. We soon got in, though, aired out the RV and relaxed the rest of the evening, content we would all get a good night’s sleep tonight, knowing we had a plan for the next few weeks!

Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2012 - Travel Day to Tiger Bay WMA

Set the alarm for a little later this morning, as our trip is a lot shorter today. Out of camp by 8:00 anyway, though, as Hubby hadn’t bothered to put up the satellite dish, and everything else was stored last night. Stopped for breakfast at Denny’s along the beltway, then a straight shot down to the Tiger Bay Wildlife Area, stopping at a gas station to pick up water, because apparently they only have a hand pump there, and to top off with fuel. Then, my Google Maps app on my smartphone failed me. It tried to take us onto a very minor forest road that had a locked gate on it. I should have looked a little more closely at the map, but I knew there was a south entrance that seemed to have more facilities around it, so we detoured back to the freeway, south an exit, than REALLY got lost as my navigator tried to first take us through a middle school, then through a correctional institution, both of which were the dead end at the end of their respective roads. Finally I pulled up the map of the park I had downloaded, and that wasn’t too helpful either, because the name of the roads seemed to be mostly different. I finally found one in common and set out sights from there, finally finding the entrance to the park. Unfortunately, it was four miles from there to the campground, two of which were so wash-boardy we had to travel at about 5 mph just to keep from shaking our teeth out. The last few miles were better, and I confirmed with the office that the road, did, in fact, lead to the north road we had originally planned on coming in on, apparently we just didn’t go far enough west to find it. In any event, we finally arrived at the campground, which was actually quite a quaint little place, with lots of huge trees, new wooden corrals at every site, hitching posts, mounting blocks, the whole shebang. The trails looked typically Florida as we came in, lots of squash palms, sand and a few taller palms, along with the live oaks, but mostly like narrow forest roads. Our plan had been to stay two nights, riding tomorrow before moving further south, because we had ordered two special batteries for the new RV which we had to pick up on the way down, and they were supposed to arrive tomorrow. I decided to call to see what time they would be in, thinking maybe if it was early enough we could actually finish the trip tomorrow, and lo and behold, the batteries had ALREADY arrived! That made the decision, we would save riding here until another time, and get out good and early tomorrow so we could progress this plot. Since we had full tanks of gas, no highline since the horses were lounging around in corrals, and no satellite dish, we knew we could get out in a hurry in the morning and make good time. Having made that decision, I spent the rest of the afternoon settling some banking issues and researching for cabinet-makers for the remodeling we were set to do in the new RV. A relaxing afternoon, despite the little directional snafu earlier. Had a nice dinner and settled down for the night.

Monday, Nov. 12, 2012 - Travel Day to Cary SF

Got up with a very early alarm this morning, as we had a long drive today. Got delayed by my truck not starting again, though I couldn’t find anything that would account for the battery draining. Could just be The only problem with Mill Creek is that their dump (though it’s nice they have one) is under a full-blown sewer lid, and needs a crowbar and a lot of muscle to lift off enough to use. That done, though, we headed out with empty tanks shortly after 8:00, picked up breakfast at a Wendy’s in a truck stop a few miles down I-95 (love their pannini and breakfast potatoes!), took a diversion to Rincon, GA for the Walmart and Tractor Supply, one more stop for fuel before crossing the Florida border, where we had to stop at the Ag stop, as always. Our papers were in order, but another older gentleman was having to work around a problem with the paperwork on one of his horses, or rather, a friend’s horse whom he had agreed to transport. He left about when we did, but I got the impression he’s been there quite a while. On their way to Pompano with several trotters. Anyway, we arrived by 3:00, it took us no time at all to set up as this is a usual stopping place for us these days, got everyone fed and got to bed early, which we all needed after such an early morning start!

Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012 - Second Ride Day

Took another, shorter ride today on the Yellow Trail, also known as the Governer’s Trail, which makes a nice 10.5 mile loop back in the Palmetto Trail. We stopped at a kiosk area and just lazed around there for a while, letting the horses graze, giving us some quality time together without being on their back. Looped back on the Blue Connector, though we missed an intersection we managed to find our way back again, which took us back to the Yellow Trail again for a perfect romp home. Lots and LOTS of cantering and trotting today, even swinging around trees in the forest at a pace we don’t usually enjoy. Fantastic day once again, really enjoy it here! Got back by 4:00, then spent the next hour putting things away for our departure tomorrow. A good night sleep and we’ll be on our way to Florida to pick up our new home!

Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012 - Rest and Sit in Sun and Read Day

We were so worn out from yesterday, we actually decided to do nothing today, something I haven’t enforced on myself in a long time. Though I did get a few computer things done in the morning, by mid-day I was pulling out my lounge chair with my Kindle and finishing off a book I started almost two weeks ago (and whose loan period was just about to run out, thus the rush to finish it). Sitting in the sun seemed like a luxury I haven’t enjoyed for ages, and it was most welcome. Felt much more relaxed by the end of the day. Met some of the neighbors, an ever-fluctuating group of very nice ladies who live locally and were most intrigued by Hubby’s and my adventures. Really enjoyed the day, a nice change from the hectic pace we’ve been keeping lately, and the one we’re destined to undertake once we get to Florida and the new RV!

Friday, Nov. 9, 2012 - Ride Day in Manchester SF

Had a wonderful ride today. We couldn’t remember if all the footing here was sand or if there were some gravel roads, so we put boots on the horses just in case. It turned out to be surplus to requirement, as, indeed, there was only sand and dirt footing, which was perfect. It was also perfect because there were many great places to trot and canter, and the horses seemed to thoroughly enjoy it, especially after some of the rougher terrain we’d seen in recent weeks. We headed out the Palmetto Trail, which transverses all of South Carolina, and which was the only one "officially" open during the week. Apparently, most trails are considered closed on every day except Sunday, in order to prevent conflicts with hunters (who apparently rule the other six days), but rumor has it that as long as you wear your blaze orange and go out in the middle of the day (as opposed to morning or late afternoon). We eventually had to loop back, so we took the Red Trail to do that, and it was a beautiful section of the forest. A lot of this forest has been clear cut, and so it isn’t very pretty, but some sections like this are really gorgeous. We made one wrong turn on an intersection that was poorly marked, but the good news is that there’s one road that goes right down the middle of the forest, so as long as you know which side you’re on, you can always find it. We headed in that direction and soon found our way back. The ride actually ended up being quite a bit longer than we had anticipated (over 15 miles), and the horses were just about done in by the time we got back, but it was fabulous, with perfect weather, perfect footing, perfect horses! Got everyone settled in with extra rations, then relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Thursday, Nov. 8, 2012 - Travel Day to Mill Creek Horse Camp

A chilly morning with lots of frost around when we pulled out around 9:00, but it’s a fairly short trip so we weren’t too worried about getting out early. A quick stop to pick up breakfast at BK, then on to Mill Creek Horse Camp, which sits at the edge of the Manchester State Forest. We’ve been here before, so it was easy to find a spot and get set up. Though it’s a pretty wide open field, there wasn’t much grass, so even though we put them on their anchors, they were looking for hay pretty quick. We got the highline set up and got them on there, then proceeded with the rest of the setup, which was pretty quick, too. Spent the rest of the day doing office work and bookkeeping, with barely a good enough cell phone signal to occasionally check my email, before settling down for the evening.

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012 - Drizzly Day

Woke up to rain and drizzle and cold this morning. I had hoped the weather might be nice enough to take a quick ride today, but not so. It had gotten cold during the night, and we were glad the we had put the winter blankets on the horses last night, and we put them out on the grass again this morning. The rest of the day was mostly working on the computer, setting up a long overdue mailing list with Constant Contact, among other things, before spending the evening split between watching a quirky Australian movie and getting caught up on my long overdue blog.

Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012 - Shopping and Vet Day

Our vet appointment was for 11:00, so we had everyone packed up and ready to go by 10:30. Sorry to say, that although we headed out on time, Google Maps on my smartphone really missed the mark on this one, leaving us a good 3-4 miles away from the actual location. In fact, the address it took us to was the Civic Center, which was a very busy polling place today. We called the vet and got someone on the phone who walked us through the rest of the way, and for the next 90 minutes or so, everyone got their appropriate shots and treatments. The Animal Care Center had a very laid back attitude, very friendly, but almost to the point of being less than fully professional, but I assumed she was just so distracted because of the recent death of her ex-husband. Whatever, everything got done, though a lot less than usual (no worm check in the stool, no blood test for heartworm?), but we got the health certificates for the horses, which was the most important thing. Then we headed over to the next town for ice cream, shopping, liquor, and some time finalizing details on the new RV. Got back to camp just before the sun went down, so early these days now that we’re into winter. Settled down once again, for a somewhat more relaxed evening.

Monday, Nov. 5, 2012 - RV Decision Day

We had originally planned on taking all the animals into a vet for their annuals today (which after last year, I had finally managed to get everyone on the same schedule), but the vet I had selected had had a death in her family and preferred to wait until tomorrow, which turned out to be fine with us, as we were on the brink of making a decision about the new RV trailer. I had been discussing the two units, in Florida and Texas, with both sales guys, and after many hours of emails, phone calls, and discussions with Hubby, we decided the answer was the Florida one, partly because of convenience, but mostly because it really had more features that we liked better than the Texas one. We negotiated terms, and set the wheels in motion. It means a lot of work over the next few weeks, but at least we’ll have something to show for it soon! We had considered heading straight to Florida and being there by Friday, but word came down that some of the parts for the retrofit would have to be ordered, and would take a week to get there and several days to install, so we could take a somewhat more leisurely journey south, though not too leisurely, as it’s getting too darn cold up here! Had a more relaxing evening, having finally made the decision that had been plaguing us for months. Yeah!

Sunday, Nov. 4, 2012 - PERFECT Ride Day from Fell Hunt Camp in Sumter National Forest

Spent the first part of the day making phone calls and sending emails after two trailers we had found, one in Nacodoches, TX and the other, coincidentally, in Palm Beach County, Florida, where we were headed to my brother’s house anyway! The Texas one is a 2013, the one in Florida a 2012, but still new. Neither had everything we wanted, but both would do the job if necessary. After I started everything in motion, we headed out to saddle up the horses in perfect weather. Not knowing what the trails were like, we booted up the horses just in case. I spent a few more minutes rasping Clio’s hooves just to make sure the boots fit well enough, and they slipped on beautifully. She didn’t seem to mind them the other day, and they certainly had a workout on those rocks, so I guess these will work out fine for Hubby and Clio. Anyway, since the clocks changed last night and our bodies are still on circadian time rather than government time, we got out about 11:30, crossing the road and heading out the trail that would take us to the lake. Seems we’ve been taking a lot of trails to lakes lately. The footing was the best we’ve done in a while, with dirt, sand and pine needles, but very few roots. The trail started out on the edge of a field, then quickly ducked into the woods, mostly deciduous with some pine stands along the way. The trail was well-marked for the most part, though there was a time or two that we were uncertain because of trails that were out there but not on the map. We managed to find our way to the lake, which was also the overflow campground we had heard about, and it was a lovely spot. The biggest problem with this area of the forest is that the loops are REALLY long, with the shortest being about 12 miles and the longest being about 25. Fine if you have a gaited horse, a bit rougher with horses like ours. Anyway, the trail was linear for us, out to the lake and back, and there were only a few opportunities to trot, except the great field at the beginning and the end, so we had a lovely gallop across that to finish off the trip. Full length ended up being about 10.8 miles, and a lovely ride it was, under sunny skies at 70 degrees, good footing and no worries, it was just the kind of day we live for on the trail!

Saturday, Nov. 3, 2012 - Travel Day to Fell Hunt Horse Camp in South Carolina

 Hubby and I first discussed the possibility of moving over to the overflow area to spend the rest of the weekend here, but after the rockiness of the trails yesterday, and the fact the weather was getting colder than we like, we decided to head south as soon as possible. We also wanted to walk through an RV with a floorplan we were interested in that happened to be on the way, so we headed out to Sumter National Forest to Fell Hunt Camp. I had already spoken to the office about the likelihood of there being room here for us, especially considering it being the hunting season., but we reassured there would probably be plenty of room, and if not, there was another campground about a mile away that would work as an overflow. We stopped at Sonnys RV to walk through a 2010 Open Range 337. We didn’t want one that old, but we did want to get a feel for the layout, as they hadn’t changed much over the years, and from the floorplan, it seemed to satisfy our needs. It’s hard to know for sure, though, until you get a chance to walk through one, which we took our time to do. We liked it, and unless there’s a small miracle with the custom builders, it’s probably the kind we’ll end up with, though a newer one. We continued our journey until we reached Fell Hunt, and was gratified that there was plenty of room for us, with both sites in the woods and out in an open field. We decided the field would be best, so we can get a satellite dish. There were numerous water spigots around, which made things easier, and we quickly got the horses out on the grass with their anchors before finally putting them on the highline for the night. It didn’t take us too long to get settled again, and we enjoyed a relaxing evening. Good news, there a good cell phone signal here, which means I can also get on the internet, a perk that allows me to pursue our new trailer.

Friday, Nov. 2, 2012 - Rocky Ride Day from Cane Brake Camp

 Weather was fine this morning, though a bit cool at first. Had to spend some time rasping Clio’s hooves so that her new boots would fit her properly, but once that was done they slipped right on. Saddled up and headed out on a trail with a couple of loop options that led to the lake, recognizing that this will likely be the only chance we get to ride. While it was a lovely stretch of woods, the trails turned out to be MUCH rockier than we had hoped, and there was enough climbing and descending that eventually I could tell the horses were a bit frustrated with the footing. We did manage to get down to the lake, and only had a couple of missteps, because there were a few trails that turned off in unexpected places, and we didn’t realize it until the blazes disappeared, even though very often the trail didn’t change much between when we were on the trail and when we weren’t. Once, the turnoff was halfway up a hill we galloped up, so naturally we didn’t notice at first. Fortunately we didn’t let ourselves get too far before turning around, so it ended up being a pretty nice six and a half mile ride, though most of the time the footing was less than what we normally like. There was a nice field near the end of the ride where we were able to get another good canter in, but most of the ride was walking on rocks, not our favorite. Either we picked the rockiest trails out here, or we’re missing out on the reason why so many people seem to flock here. The campground had filled up while we were gone, with most campsites now filled, and people milling everywhere. As night descended, the place took on a party atmosphere, with lots of bonfires, music and conversation abounding. We tucked into the RV and watched movies all evening.

Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012 - Errands and Problem Solving

Spent a little time in the morning trying to set up the satellite dish, Hubby finally had to give up because there were too many trees in the way. Several messages and emails came in late yesterday about the trailer design, plus we still had shopping to do that we missed yesterday, so I spent most of the day running around or sitting in the parking lot of Walmart on the computer. Made a little progress, but not as much as I would have liked. Got back around 4:00, helped Hubby with the chores before settling in for the evening.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012 - "Challenging" Self-Inflicted Disaster Day, Travel to Cane Brake

Got off to a little later start than we thought, the atomic alarm clock reset itself to the wrong time, so was 20 minutes off. Otherwise, we got out okay, stopped for gas in Powhatan and breakfast in Farmville, and a quick stop at a Lazyboy gallery to check out a loveseat I had found online. Can’t really decide on comfy furniture unless you actually sit in it, which we did, and found the one we want. Actually a sectional rather than a loveseat, but it has extra storage between the seats that we like. Hopefully we can get that worked out. Carried on toward the Uhwarrie, and made our second to last stop of the day for fuel at a Wilco in Asheboro. That’s when the trouble began. The main sign clearly posted had regular prices in red and diesel prices in green. When I pulled onto the pump, I automatically picked up the green nozzle, because that usually signifies diesel. Unfortunately, at this station, that was not the case. The diesel was actually all by itself in the back (no signage that I could see), but I didn’t notice it until the tank was full. I was just about to get going when Hubby raced out of the store and informed me that I had just filled up with gas, which he had learned from going inside to clear his credit card off. The girl behind the counter explained to him there was no diesel on the aisle where I was. Anyway, what a mess! I wasn’t sure what to do, whether the engine would run on a 2:1 mix (I had about 1/3 of a tank of diesel when I pulled in), but rather than take any chances, I got on my new smartphone and called the nearest GM dealer, which happened to be a GMC/Buick dealer about a mile up the road. After speaking to the service guys I was SO glad I didn’t try to crank it up, because they said if I had, the whole system would have to be cleaned out, but as it stood, if we got it towed, they could drop the tank to drain it, then refill it with diesel and it should be fine. They called us a tow truck, which wasn’t big enough for the job, then while we were waiting for another one, we disconnected the truck from the trailer and pulled it out of the way, then moved the trailer to the back of the gas station, where fortunately there was plenty of room. It wasn’t long before the flatbed showed up, which was still barely big enough to pull the truck onto, with the dually wheels almost hanging off the back end. The full load of hay didn’t help much, either. Finally we headed out, Hubby to run a couple of errands, and me to the dealer to get the job going. The service manager tried to tell me that the job couldn’t be done today, and that we should start making arrangements to spend the night. I, on the other hand, was determined to get it done, and explained to him that I believed in miracles, and would work toward that end. After some discussion with the shop guys, it seems they didn’t have a lift big enough for my truck anyway, so they wouldn’t be able to drop the tank, so it was decided they would try to pump it out with a little hand pump they had but had never used. They gathered a bunch of gas containers and started siphoning, but it took 10 minutes to fill the first tank. As the mechanic went to empty the container, I started pumping instead of just siphoning, and speeded the process up immensely, filling the next tank in just a few minutes. After I filled the next tank, one of the guys took over and started pumping as well, so things started happening a lot faster. Before long, the tank was nearly empty and one of the guys ran out to get diesel to refill the tank. Twenty gallons later, we cranked up the truck, and it seemed to run okay. We let it run while I paid the bill ($200, half for fuel and half for labor, not to mention the $100+ that went down the drain and the $80 for the tow...), but at least we didn’t have any engine damage. Apparently if I had tried to run it, we would have had to completely flush the engine and many be even put in new injectors for $2600 or something. Glad I had the sense to call first! Anyway, by the time that was done, we knew we didn’t have enough time to shop if we wanted to get to camp before pitch dark, so we hurried down to the horse camp at Cane Brake, a place we had come once before but had never ridden in because it rained for three straight days. The camphost put us in a double site that was open until Saturday morning, and we quickly got the horses highlined and us settled in, though the sun was down before we started, so most of it was during twilight. Finally got done around 8:00 before we were able to finish dinner and relax for the rest of the night. At least the truck seemed to run okay on the way down!

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - Cold and Damp, Rain Diminishing

Wet and foggy this morning, more rain overnight than we’d had yet, a repeat of yesterday mostly. Despite the storm, UPS managed to deliver our package from Valley Vet with Hubby’s new horse boots. Considering the cable failure of the Boas, Hubby decided to try a pair of Cavallos like mine. These have worked incredibly well for me, and despite my initial worry that they were held on with "only Velcro," I’ve never had any trouble with them despite some challenging terrain. Now’s he’s looking forward to seeing how Clio likes them. Not sure when that will be, hopefully later this week.

Monday, October 29, 2012 - Rain and Wind and Little Else

More off and on rain and some wind today. Nothing too bad here, the worst of it stayed east of Richmond before heading north, never getting this far west. Another day on the computer, not much else to do.

Sunday, October 28, 2012 - Unspectacular Entrance of Hurricane Sally

With morning there came little sign of the approaching hurricane, with just a few gusts of wind. In fact the day started out quite sunny, clouding up later in the day as we tried to rest from our busy schedule the last few days. The wind and rain came in a bit later, nothing serious, just a little bit of a blow here, though it seems the NYC area is likely to get hit pretty bad. Relaxed most of the day, not a good day to be outside, but Hubby had managed to set up the satellite in such a way it was protected between the van and the RV, so we didn’t lose our signal. We took one side trip over to the horses’ pasture to put on their rain sheets, for when the horses came out of the shelter to eat grass, which they were doing when we arrived. Not much else to do when we got back but curl up with a warm computer in my lap and look to solve impending challenges, which lately has become the solution to our trailer swap. We’ve been looking at new trailer units since July, including communicating with several custom builders in an effort to get a floorplan we really like. It’s been a very slow process, with long delays between emails and difficulties in trying to get what want, so painstaking it’s starting to take its toll. Somewhat productive today, however, we feel a breakthrough coming soon, hopefully. Otherwise an uneventful night, which is just what we needed.

Saturday, October 27, 2012 - Move to Belmead, Spaghetti Dinner and Astronomy Night

In keeping with our constantly changing schedule, we packed up and headed out to Belmead, to a large area known as the loading zone, but which was the area the club members used to camp. There was one water spigot, so we filled up our tanks, and quickly settled in. The club was having a spaghetti dinner and invited us to join them, so we did. Afterward we learned about a local astronomy club meeting at the mansion, though it was a cloudy night so we wouldn’t be doing any stargazing. Two lectures were presented, one by a local amateur astronomer, whose favorite thing is to find anomalies on the surface of the moon, which we pretty interesting, and the second by a professor from Howard University who normally would talk about the stars the group would be seeing, but since that wasn’t going to happen, he spent a great deal of time discussing and Powerpointing all the various phases of the moon, for us a very basic lesson reminiscent of elementary school, middle school at best. I found myself reverting to just the kind of student I was when I was in school, always with the answer, until the teacher had to start to ignore me just to include other students in the conversation, while the other students kept looking to me for the answers... :-). Old habits die hard. Anyway, as a finish to the evening, I offered for Hubby to do a little scene from his one man show, a particularly apt scene when Galileo first discovers that the moon is not "a perfect sphere as Aristotle had said she was, but an orb of irregular terrain, just like our Earth." It was well received by the other attendees, who seemed to enjoy it. Afterward, we made our way back to the campground, where the wind was just starting the pick up a bit in front of the hurricane. We tucked in for the night, waiting for Sandy to arrive.

Friday, October 26, 2012 - Runaround, Doctor, Nice Dinner, Postponement of Job

Started the morning by heading out to a nearby ENT as a followup to the exam I had at the clinic in Rhode Island back in September. My hearing is somewhat improved, but still a long way from normal, so I made an appointment to have it looked at again. Not a very helpful visit in the end, they did an exam and a hearing test, couldn’t seem to find anything in particular except that my hearing wasn’t 100%, which we already knew! The only thing the doctor recommended was a choice between doing nothing and taking a two week course of steroid pills to reduce what MIGHT be inflammation in the inner ear. I usually don’t like to take medications unless I have to, but we were on the outer limit of time according to the doctor, if we didn’t take them soon we’d beyond the 8 week window when it might be effective, so I decided to give it a go. We picked up the prescription on the way back to the house. Meanwhile, I got a call from the guy in charge of the job we have scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, and after much deliberation, the company had decided to postpone it because of the threat of an incoming hurricane, Sandy, which was stirring up a lot of concern. The best laid plans! After a few more errands, we arrived back at the house, where we had a fantastic meal that Toni prepared, along with the company of their neighbors, another very pleasant evening (and why we like to visit them so much!) Stayed up later than we probably should have, but we didn’t need to be anywhere early, as we had already made arrangements to just go back to Belmead and camp out there for the weekend. What a whirlwind week!

Thursday, October 25, 2012 - Move to Richmond Area

Up early, headed out to our newest digs, Belmead Stables in Powhatan, just west of Richmond, which turned out to be a gorgeous old plantation from the 1850s. Several thousand acres owned by the Catholic Church, which is leased for various reasons, mostly of which is for the Riding Club and Stables. The folks there had set aside a very nice pasture for my two kids, and we got them quickly settled in before moving onto our next stop, to drop off the RV in the parking lot of the hotel where we will be checking in on Saturday. Then we grabbed some lunch at a Thai-Vietnamese restaurant in mid-afternoon, a very nice meal that would tide us over for the rest of the day. Afterward, we headed over to our friends, Don and Toni, where we will be staying for the next two night. They both had events to attend for dinner, so Hubby and I were on our own for a while, then we spent a few hours with them when they returned. A very enjoyable evening.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012 - Found the Boot!

After breakfast I decided to take a drive down to the boat launch and walk the River Trail with the dogs. We were pretty convinced that was where we had lost the boot, since it was the first place we had cantered (and whenever one of us loses a boot, it seems to be either on a canter of knee-deep mud), so I took a very slow careful walk, looking through the high grass along each edge. I finally found it, a mere 60 yards from where we turned around to look for it! It was right on a corner that we had cantered around, which was obviously where the stress occurred, and in fact, it turned out to be a Boa boot failure. The wire cable that is used to tighten the boot had broken. It was good to know, as it was one of the concerns we had when we got the Boas. It seems the more moving parts, the more likely the failure. Anyway, the dogs and I had a good time on the hike, spending a little quality time together for a change. Mostly worked on the computer, and in departure preparations for the rest of the day.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012 - Ride Day at Last!

Finally, a beautiful day when everyone is feeling fine and raring to go! Saddled up around midday and headed out a trail we hadn’t been on before, which turned out to be quite nice. It meandered through the woods behind the campground, crossed over the park road near the ranger station, headed up over the mountain before coming back down to the boat launch where we picked up a trail we enjoyed on another trip, the River Trail, which had a few good grassy stretches for a canter. Just when we were less than a mile from home, I suddenly noticed the Hubby’s horse had lost one of her boots. We started to backtrack looking for it, and kept going and going and going until we had gone so far we were committed to going back the entire length of the trail that we had come, over 5 miles! We never should have bothered, but we wanted to know what had happened to the boot, particularly if it was a failure rather than just that it slipped off. These were fairly new Boas with the dial front design, and we wanted to compare them to the Cavallos I just started using. Anyway, it did make it a nice, nearly 11 mile ride, a bit more than we bargained for, but nice nevertheless. Got everyone fed, watered, blanketed and settled in for the night before relaxing for the evening.

Monday, October 22, 2012 - Repairs Take Priority over a Ride Day

Did, in fact, have a decent night sleep, woke up to a very cool morning which looked like it had been frosty but had turned to heavy dew. Once the sun came out and started to dry out, Hubby decided it would be worthwhile to put new bolts in the rest of the slide brackets, simply because if one went, the rest might be a bit strained as well. He didn’t figure it would take too long, but I’ve learned to always double the time he thinks it will take, and be happy if it doesn’t take as long (though it usually does :-). He did manage to get the job done, but was feeling ill by the time he finished. He tends to get nauseous whenever he has to be upside down for any length of time time, and because the site wasn’t entirely level, the room underneath the trailer was very cramped, which made his job quite difficult and stressful. So rather than risk a ride, we decided it was better that he rest for the rest of the day, so we settled in early, with me doing some computer work until our usual evening routine.

Sunday, October 21, 2012 - Mechanical Problems, Then Back to James River

Got up fairly early so that we could get back to James River and still leave me time to run into Lynchburg to do some shopping, especially for generator gas, of which we’re almost out. We got everything packed, the horses loaded, and just about ready to go, when I went to pull in the kitchen slide on the RV, only one end started to come in. Hubby immediately went to work, knowing it would require replacing a bolt in the shaft in the underbelly of the unit, though fortunately he had spares that he had bought when this had happened another time. It’s a pain, but we managed to get it done in just under an hour. Meanwhile, Dawn, the owner of Robbins Nest, arrived home (she had gone to an organized ride in Belmont for the weekend), and we had a chance to chat for a few minutes. Finally got on the road about 2:30, figuring we still had time to complete our day as scheduled. Arrived at the park around 3:00, but it took nearly 20 minutes to get signed in and paid. Whatever happened to simply paying what’s owed? Four nights @ $X, here’s my money and off we go? Now we have to practically give up every piece of private information to a government organization just to simply stay in a park! It’s ridiculous. Anyway, we finally got down to the campsite area at 3:20, only to discover that the previous campers hadn’t left yet! Check out is supposed to be about 1:00, though the hard stop is 3:00, but there they were, every site full. Fortunately, though, they were just about packed up, so they left within 10 minutes or so. Meanwhile, to save time, we moved the RV over to the water spigot and spent the time filling the tank. Just about the time that was done, everyone had left, and we moved back into our previous spot and got things set up as quickly as possible so that I could get out of there to do shopping. I was on the road right at 4:00, made stops at the ABC store, Tractor Supply, Walmart, Sheetz for gas, and the Post Office to drop off a letter in the box, hoping to get back to camp before dark, and just made it! The sun had gone down, but civil twilight was still in full force, and I saw that Hubby had managed to get the highline up by himself, as well as getting hay and water out as well, meaning he had brought out the long length of hose. Obviously he was a busy beaver while I was gone! He was surprised I got back so fast, but it was a pretty straight-forward route, even if it was more than 45 minutes each way. We quickly got the horses put up for the night with their warm winter blankets on, then settled in for the short evening, hoping for a quiet night and a good sleep!

Saturday, October 20, 2012 - Ride Day at Robbins Nest Farm

 After doing some computer work during the morning, we finally saddled up the horses for a quick ride around the property. Headed out along the back fence, and worked our way over the railroad tracks (Clio was a bit reluctant, but wasn’t about to be left behind, so she eventually followed her boy), and then down to the river, where we found the lovely spot the owner had told us about earlier, several hitching posts and picnic tables right by the wide and shallow James River. Looks like a great spot to hang out in the summer. Horses took a drink from the river, and we proceeded to circle a wide fallow field, getting in several canters along the way, enjoying the perfect weather and the gorgeous fall foliage. A nice 90 minute ride, just the ticket for a relaxing day. Tomorrow, we move again!

Friday, October 19, 2012 - Move Over to Robbins’s Nest Farm "Resort"

 Finished packing up, just about to leave at 10:30 on schedule, when I tried to start the truck and it wouldn’t go. The battery was dead! We got out the generator to see if we could use a new adapter we had bought to charge the battery enough to start it, but that took too long, so we eventually jump started it from the van. Meanwhile, we were trying to figure out why the battery was dead, when I remembered that shortly after we arrived Wednesday, Hubby had closed my truck windows for me, but had left the key on, which I only noticed after it got dark and my automatic lights came on. It was then I discovered the key was still on, but it didn’t occur to me to check the strength of the battery at that time, which I should have done. In any event, we eventually got going, and headed out about a half hour later. The gravel road was wide and open, but the twist, turns and steepness of the grade made it occasionally heart-pounding. Arrived, met by David who directed us to our "campsite," which was nothing more than a gravel parking area with several electric and water hookups in an open area. The "resort" was actually just a typical farm, all open spaces, pastures, ringed by some woods. We had gotten the impression there would be an old-world farmhouse/plantation kind of structure as the centerpiece, but instead there was a typical, even small, modern ranch style house. There were several large out-buildings like a modern metal barn and stables, but nothing that exuded anything remotely close to "resort." The guest house was a small brick structure that may have been the original house, but we don’t know that for sure. It looked older than the other structures, though. In any event, Dave was welcoming, indicated he had stalls waiting for us but we asked if we could put them in one of the pastures, which he quickly arranged for us. The pasture was mostly weeds, so we threw some hay in there for our guys. We got set up quickly, satellite dish and all, and we settled in for the evening, feeling exhausted as much from the aggravation factor of having to move as the actual physical exertion.

Thursday, October 18, 2012 - Hay Day and Disturbing News

Managed to find a hay provider from craigslist (I LOVE CRAIGSLIST!!!), who was only about 20 minutes away, so I headed down with the horse trailer to pick up a load. The owner wasn’t there, but he arranged with a neighbor and a helper to meet me, and we loaded 26 bales, three more than the pickup would normally carry, but I figured we would use those before we left next week, so we’d still have a full load when we left. Nice heavy bales for $6 each, though not as green as the last bunch, for a first cutting they were in nice shape. On the way back, I stopped at the ranger station to pay for our stay, and soon learned that there was a big fall festival scheduled at the park and that every campsite had been reserved! In other words, we would have to leave tomorrow! No matter what suggestion I made, it was no, no, no. There is actually a lot of room next to the officials sites in the primitive horse camping area, but they were insistent that only the official sites could be used. They were unmoved, their hands tied by the main office in Richmond (or so they said), so we had no choice. I had to scramble all day trying to solve the problem, debating whether we should just move on to Richmond early, which meant, essentially, being in someone’s back yard for a week, a less than satisfying prospect, or to find someplace locally to move to for Friday and Saturday nights, then come back to James River for the rest of the week. Adding two days of moves to our already short week was not a happy thought, it really cut into our relaxation and preparation time before our next job in Richmond, but it seemed the better option. Eventually I found a place called Robbins’ Nest Farm, which was only 3 miles as the crow flies, but 50 minutes drive as the road goes (I later found a back route over gravel roads that cit that down to about 30), but it was pretty expensive relatively speaking, but I figured saving on fuel would help offset the cost, plus they had water and electric so at least I’d be able to get my laundry done faster. What a pain, though, having to spend the day solving problems rather than riding or relaxing. The description of the place on their website made it seem really nice, with words like "resort" and "spa" and "guest cabin." We spent the rest of the day transferring the hay to the pickup, which we had to cover carefully as they’re calling for rain tonight, and putting away everything we could in preparation for leaving tomorrow. Had a nice chat with some folks who moved into the overflow tenting area, who came here to work the festival (musicians), and who rescued my Apollo when he managed somehow to get loose from his anchor and was heading down to the river. Nice folks, we had several chats before we left James River, and were sorry they’d be gone by the time we got back. Off to bed, to get ready for the unexpectedly busy day tomorrow was going to be!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012 - Travel Day to James River State Park

Headed out early, picked up breakfast at BK (DD’s driveway was too small for me!), and had an easy drive almost entirely on freeway, with stops for gas, propane and groceries. Google maps put the Southern States in the wrong place, so we had a little side step along the way, but they did, in fact, quickly recertify our tank and fill it up, so that was a worthwhile achievement. One last stop and Walmart for groceries and sundries, and we headed out to cross-country to James River State Park. We were a bit worried about getting there before the office closed, ostensibly at 4:00, but, in fact, they were closed all day on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, so there wasn’t anyone around when we arrived anyway. We had originally planned to stay in an electric site at the Horseshoe Campground, but there wasn’t anyplace to highline the horses. Apparently they’re required to be in the covered stalls, which was an addition $9 per horse per night, plus there was no grass for the horses to graze on, and, frankly, it was not a very attractive campground, so we opted to go down to the primitive horse camping area at Canoe Landing by the river. That area was empty, so we picked a spot, put the horses out on the anchors so they could graze, and proceeded to get set up. Easy satellite find here, and the cell phone signal was even good enough to use the internet, a fabulous improvement over the last time we were here! Looking forward to a nice, quiet week of relaxation and riding. First order of business, though, is to find some hay, as we’re down to two bales!

Tuesday, October 16, 2012 - Van Repair Day

Woke up during the night and had a hard time getting back to sleep, finally did, then slept through past 9:30. After breakfast, Hubby went out and worked on the van to find the problem, and concluded it was the alternator. I was a bit concerned that it might be too late to find a shop that could do the job so late, but we were planning on leaving tomorrow so we didn’t really have much of a choice. I jumped in the van and headed down to Shippensburg, the nearest town, about 10 miles away. Once I got there, and had a great signal, I googled auto repair and got a long list. The first review was for a Gulf station, and the reviews were excellent, so I headed there, less than a mile away. Pulled in, asked if they had a mechanic on duty, rec’d the response YES, and I headed in to talk with him. What a fantastic place! Really clean, very nice, and they had an open bay so in it went! I headed into the waiting room and started taking care of business, and before I knew it, the van was parked outside the window in front of me! It took barely an hour to get the job done, and was very reasonably priced as well. Had a nice chat with the other woman in the waiting room, then I ended up hanging around another 30-45 minutes just to get more work done. Finally headed back to the camp, arriving about 3:30, much earlier than either of us had expected, but thrilled that we could leave on schedule tomorrow. Started putting stuff away, cleaned up the yard where the horses have been grazing, and generally tidied up in preparation for our departure. Need to get out early early tomorrow, a long day with several stops along the way, including a place to get our propane tanks recertified. Though the guy at Agway had said it would take two weeks for a fee (so why don’t you buy a new tank from us...?), the woman at Augusta Petroleum in Staunton said they could do it immediately and for free! Looking forward to finding out if that’s true! Relaxed for the evening, ready to get up early.

Monday, October 15, 2012 - Ride Day at Gettysburg Military Park

The weather forecast is calling for intermittent rain and warm temps today, then a cold front coming in overnight, so our choice for riding at Gettsyburg is warm and wet or cold and sunny, so we decided warm and wet (hey, that’s what slickers are for!), so we set the alarm for a bit earlier, but it didn’t go off on schedule. We decided to skip breakfast here, discovering that with the new propane regular it switches tanks automatically, so we have no idea when one tank is empty, and realized both tanks were empty this morning anyway. We packed them up in the van with us, got the horses loaded in and headed down to Gettysburg. Didn’t find a fast food place before 10:30, so we ended up going to Friendlys for a quick breakfast and to get online to find a propane dealer, a grocery store and a gas station, as well as the best route to the McMillan Woods Horse Trailer Parking lot where the Gettysburg trailhead was. From there we headed to the Agway for propane, but could only get one tank filled because the other one was out of date and apparently needs to be re-certified, another item on our list of things to do. By 12:50 we were saddled and booted up and ready to go. There were two other horse trailers there, apparently a concessionaire who was hoping for some business, but it had drizzled a few times already, so their chances where probably slim. I asked about footing and one of the ladies suggested boots on front because of some gravel-ly areas, and another woman warned us a "storm" was coming in, but I told her "That’s what slickers are for :-)." We prepared as best we could be, then headed up the road to the trailhead. The trails were wide and well-groomed, and were mostly grass, dirt and fine gravel, with just a few spots that had larger gravel fill. The trail (or rather, bridle path) weaved along stone and continental-style split rail fences, following the edges of fields at times, other time through dense forest. The trail mostly followed Confederate Ave.,where there were many monuments from which to read and learn, though after awhile it became a bit too depressing, thinking of all the waste involved with the whole battle. The path wound past many of the farms that were integrally involved during the famous battle, including one that served as a sort of make-shift hospital. Anyway, the trip was about just over 8 miles, and it was very easy, no real grades or hills to speak of, though the horses were good, they weren’t in the mood to do a lot of cantering, probably still tired from all the climbing and the rough trail from yesterday. Though it rained for most of the first half of the ride, by 3:00 it had stopped raining, and by 3:30 the sun was moving in nicely, making it a beautiful day in the end. We had a nice chat with a couple by the Longstreet Memorial, then arrived back at the parking lot by 4:30, out the lot with a full tank of water by 5:00. Headed to the Giant Supermarket for a few grocery items and to get gas, then back up the mountain to the Forest. On the way, I noticed the battery light blinking on the van, and the gauge indicated the batteries were discharging, so chalk another item on Hubby’s list of things to do tomorrow! We’re hoping it will turn out to be just a loose wire somewhere in the system, but the van is 10 years old, so it wouldn’t surprise us if it was the alternator. Got the horses blanketed, fed and settled in before dark, and soon the same for the dogs and us!

Sunday, October 14, 2012 - Ride Day at Michaux State Forest, PA

Nice weather today, so we headed out for a ride today, following the map and a rough GPS trail I made with imperfect information, so I wasn’t expecting much, particularly since the second half was on a dirt and gravel forest road. We started out fine, hitting the first intersection marker with no problem, but from there it dramatically changed. According to the map, at the first intersection, you could turn right to follow the utility line, or keep straight for a nice loop we planned to take. Too bad that wasn’t true. NOT on the map was that the trail that went straight ahead was NOT the trail that went to the loop, it was a completely different trail that went down the mountain straight to Route 233! What the map apparently MEANT to indicate was that you had to follow the trail to the utility line, THEN go straight across the clearing to pick up the trail, or turn right to stay on the utility line. So we ended up going all the way down the mountain, looking for the right turn that would keep us on the loop we planned, backtracking twice from the main road, since the map clearly showed we weren’t supposed to cross the road. Eventually, we decided we’d rather go forward than back, so we crossed the road and climbed a hill on the other side until we met up with a forest road. After analyzing the forest map again, we headed right down the road, hoping it would loop back around to 233 again, with a trail that would eventually take us back to camp. We ran into a couple of guys in a truck passing by, and they confirmed the road we were on was right, but to make sure we turned right at the first intersection and that would take us back to 233. We did so, downhill once again until we hit the road, and fortunately, there was a nice looking multi-use trail straight across. There was a dirt-biker who headed straight up the trail ahead, so we turned into a camping area off to the right, hoping to find another way to reach the horse trail. My trusty horse Apollo found a skinny little trail that went straight uphill for five or six strides, then connected with what looked like an official trail, so we made a right and headed uphill and northwest, estimating that would take us in the right direction. We climbed fairly steep and rocky trails, with my Apollo getting a bit frustrated with the footing as he tends to do, but we finally reached the top of the mountain, and finally arrived back at the utility line! We crossed the clearing and momentarily arrived back at Intersection Marker 1 again, when we realized, at last, just how far off the map was, and therefore we were. It seems our return route was the route we had planned to go out on. Once again, a state forest with lousy maps and lousy trail markers! It’s hard to believe that this is such a widespread problem, but the inefficiencies at this level are remarkable. Kind of makes you wonder if bureacracies are this sloppy at this level, can we really expect they are any better at the higher levels of government? I doubt it... Anyway, although we hated the fact we got lost and didn’t know where we were most of the time, at least we were riding, and that’s always a good thing!