For the first time in a year and a half of RVing, over 20,000 miles traveled, and nearly 6 months total on the road, I’m finally experiencing the “downside” of RVing - waiting for warranty work. I am in Tampa, Florida at the dealership where I purchased my new RV last month. Unfortunately there were two somewhat time consuming warranty issues (paint touch up and gouged linoleum floor tiles) that were not resolved before I picked up the unit. So I set up an appointment for this week knowing I would be in Destin, Florida (still over 400 miles away from Tampa) last week. The delivery side of this dealership leaves something to be desired. Not only did I hear stories while I was sitting around for 24 hours with NOTHING being done last month, but ... read more

Hello from Destin, Florida. After a week on the road I’m finally sitting down to update the blog. Lots of news since the last entry. Hopefully I can recap concisely for you. In late January, after several months of research, I made a deal on another RV. On Monday, February 11th, I left Chessy in the mountains with Jeff and Toni, and headed to Tampa, FL with Trina - minus Ike. I picked up my new rig on Wednesday, February 13th. As you will see from the photos, I upgraded from a Class C gas RV to a 35 foot, Class A diesel. It’s a “FRED” - Front Engine Diesel. In spite of a few initial bugs and minor things that need to be addressed, it is a marvelous rig. I have 3 slide outs (two ... read more

Greetings from Titusville, FL. Where has the month of January gone? My goodness what a whirlwind trip this has been. I’ve packed a lot into the first days of 2008. The campground here is great. It is County run, has lots of shade, and if the shuttle was going to launch while I was here, I would have a great view of it (of course I’d need that 500 mm lens that I don’t have to get anything remotely close up). The photo workshop was good, in spite of less than spectacular weather. When I joined up with them Saturday afternoon, I discovered 2 people from my workshop in Bosque were also here. It was fun shooting with them again. This morning, while we were in Merritt Island NWR, I saw another familiar face. One of ... read more

Hello from Lakeland, FL. For all of you following along with Chessy and me, you’ve obviously figured out I haven’t made many entries on this journey. It’s been a fun time packed to the gill every day. Unfortunately thus far I haven’t had/made much time for taking photographs. The photography convention was good and I attended some very motivational seminars. Before the convention I wound up spending most of my time exploring the hundreds of RVs at the dealership where I was camping. It was quite an experience and I learned a ton of new information. I’m hopeful I can upgrade my RV this year and get a rig with a little more space and storage for longer treks. As many of you may have heard, there was a horrible series of accidents on I-4 near ... read more

Greetings from Sunny Florida (ok it’s nighttime when I’m entering this so it’s not sunny at the moment, but it was earlier today). It may be clear down here, but I sure brought the Polar Express with me! The forecast low for tonight in Jacksonville is 16. Yes you read that correctly - a balmy 16. It’s only forecast to be two degrees colder back home in Asheville. But it was 44 today vs. 23 for the high in the mountains with some snow. I did make the decision to depart a day early and glad I went that route. Based on a conversation with my cousin and next door neighbor tonight, I’d probably still be sitting in my house waiting for the roads to clear enough to safely maneuver a 31’ motor home with a ... read more

What a fun day in Natchez, MS. I learned Natchez is the oldest settlement on the Mississippi River. It was the first capital of the Mississippi Territory and also the first capital of the State of Mississippi. I stayed in a very nice campground across the river in Vidalia, LA. My rig was 100 yards from the banks of the mighty Mississippi. I could hear the sounds of the ships’ horns from inside the rig! There is a nice walk along the bluff overlooking the river. I was ¾ of a mile from the bridge and could have walked or ridden a bicycle into Natchez (but I didn’t bring my bike this trip). I parked at the Visitor’s Center and did a self guided walking tour. There are lots of antebellum homes, historic churches and great ... read more

It was a nice relaxing day here in Socorro. I slept in until 7 am! For some strange reason, I woke up at 4:20 but didn’t have any trouble going back to sleep. But Chessy has gotten used to breakfast about 4:45 so at 7 she told me she was ready to eat. I did the routine housekeeping chores today. Got the Jeep washed, laundry done, and RV cleaned and organized. I found a really nice laundry mat. It was very clean and modern. You used a card (credit card sized) that you added money to and used to operate the machines. And I walked in with a pocket full of quarters after being at the car wash!!! I picked out a few images from the last few days to share with you. Hope you enjoy ... read more