Bump In The Road

Fort Clinch State Park Site 15                 Most Recent Posts:
Fernandina Beach Florida                       Wrapping Things Up in Virginia
November 1-10, 2026                               October’s Early Days

It seems like the universe doesn’t want me to leave the farm.  I feel like every time I do, something happens.

I had a flat tire in a work zone on I-84 on the way to Vermont this past summer and had my alternator go out in New York on the way there the time before that.
On my way to New Mexico last year the roof came loose in Texas and I had to get someone to fix the bad Winnebago design that may only become a problem after 20 years.

Unfortunately, this trip was no exception. 

MONDAY NOVEMBER 2

I left the farm on Monday November 2nd without incident, stopped for gas without incident, got to the Walmart in Roanoke Rapids, where I always stay on my way to Florida, without incident.   And that’s where the “without incident” stops. 

The lights, outlets, refrigerator had no power.  The generator would not start.  Of course if David had been here, understanding how the coach works, he would have known what it was.  It took me a couple of hours to discover that all of these things depend on the house batteries.  I double checked with Shannon and he confirmed the problem was probably those batteries.

It was dark before 6pm thanks to the wonderful time change, I had two small flashlights as the freezer/refrigerator temperature climbed and the solar battery panel said 8.4.  Fortunately I was at Walmart where I could buy a better flashlight and a power bank to keep my cell phones charged.   Unfortunately I didn’t think until morning to flip the main breaker and turn off the house battery switch to stop the trickle draw.

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 3

The next morning early, I walked over to the Walmart auto center before taking Winnona to make sure they could check and replace the batteries.  Luckily they could not since they would have given me the wrong batteries and I wouldn’t have known any better.
 
I researched  whether there was anywhere near Roanoke Rapids that could test and replace them.  The closest place was 30 miles away and west so a 60 mile round trip.   I checked Walterboro South Carolina,  my next stop, and called Circle C who said yes they could test and replace.  They are 10 miles North of Walterboro and right off I 95.  So I went there.

Driving charged the house batteries so after the 5 hour drive everything was working fine.  If you have an idea why yesterday’s drive down most of the length of Virginia did not charge them, let me know.  But I guess I’m lucky it didn’t and I found the problem and someone to fix it before getting to the state park.  A lot of trouble finding Circle C but I didn’t have to go out of my way to stop there.

With the generator working, I was able to have all power until I turned out the lights for the night.

During that time, I checked my records and found that one of the house batteries had been replaced 17 months ago.  Of course you have to pay nearly $2000 a battery to get a warranty longer than one year.  So I guess I got my monies worth.

Circle C found one of the batteries was very low and they were not the appropriate deep cycle batteries anyway.  Another thing David would have known to check before buying.   They told me the problem was that the older battery was draining the new one and that you should always buy them in pairs. 

By this time it was 4:00 in the afternoon.  They ordered the batteries to be delivered in the morning and I spent the night in their parking lot.

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 4 

Batteries delivered at 9am, but they were the wrong ones.  So I waited until the right ones came at about 11 and by noon and $919 later I was back on the road with deep cycle golf cart batteries which also only have a one year warranty.  Hope spending 4X the money will get me 4X the life span.   All advice from those who know appreciated.  Paul and others??

I got to the Fort Clinch State Park before 5pm and everything has been working fine since.  My bump in the road had not cost me any extra days just a lot of money.  I patted myself on the back.  I’ve learned not to panic and just to know that I’ll figure it out and things will be fine.  And so they were.

The road from the ranger’s station to the campground is absolutely gorgeous. As you can see it is a tree canopy tunnel.

I pulled into Site 15 and shortly the skies turned pink.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 5

On my first full day at the park,  I was up at 6am and walking the path from the campground to the beach for Sunrise.  The clouds had pressed the color to a band just above the horizon.

It always amazes me to know that the sun is actually white.  A little white dot at the horizon giving off the great orange and yellow color.

Over the years of living at and visiting the beach, I have amassed an indecent number of shells and am not proud that I removed them from where they belong .  So now when I find one I really like, I take its picture.

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 6

I didn’t make it out for sunrise the next day,  but I did get a couple of interesting bird pictures when I went just after.

Pelican

Seagulls and others

The highlight of this day was going to Masons Famous Lobster Rolls, my favorite restaurant in Fernandina Beach.

There are seats inside and outside on the deck which you can see in the picture above.  Or you can do like I do and take my dinner back with me.  I added some vegetables to all that warm buttered lobster.

They have the Maine lobster served cold with mayo or the Connecticut served warm with butter.

Lobster is my #1 favorite food ever since I lived for 3 months in Newport Rhode Island and ate it at least twice a week.  It was not nearly so expensive then.

This is the “healthy” version.

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 7

The color was fading by the time I got out this morning and I vowed to be out at 6am in future.   Still, it was beautiful.

I particularly love the sea oats on the dunes and am so happy they are protected.
It is illegal to pick them.

I don’t know how there always seems to be a group of pelicans flying across the horizon just before the sun pops up.

Pelicans and a surfer at sunrise.

I’m heading back down the beach when I come upon folks playing in the water.

The Sandpiper kind

and the surfer kind

While all of this was going on I read The Pirate Queen by Ariel Lawhorn which I loved!!  It’s historical fiction about the Irish sea captain Grace O’Malley in the late 1500’s.  Despite its size, 528 pages, it is a fast and compelling read.  

I also read Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy about Helen Cartright 81 years old and newly returned, following the deaths of her husband and son, to her home town after living for over 30 years in Australia.  She has become a recluse until Sipsworth brings her out into the world again.  It’s a short quick read.  Pick it up and find out who Sipsworth is.      And let me know what you’ve been reading.  I love suggestions.

That’s my first week after heading south for the winter.  I’m going to try to post weekly so it’s easier for me and I’m more in real time.  Hopefully there should be another post shortly after the 14th.   Or at least that’s my plan.

Wrapping Things Up in Virginia

October 17-31, 2026                                                Most Recent Posts:
Greenfield Mountain Farm                              October’s Early Days
Afton, Virginia                                         A Very Full Second Half of September

First off, I cannot believe I forgot to mention that Winnie the Pooh’s ONE HUNDREDTH birthday was on October 14.

I hope you celebrated it despite that oversight on my part.  We certainly did!  I also hope I look as good and spry at 100 as he does.  He of course will be coming with me when I leave to head south at the end of the month.

On Saturday the 17th Laurie and I met at our favorite pizza restaurant Dr. Ho’s which is closer to the farm than just about anything else.  We shared a large Kale Bacon and Mushroom pizza which was a short term special.  We’d never had it before.  It’s described as “garlicy curly kale, Virginia smoked bacon, wild mushrooms, roasted tomato, fontina, Gruyere and mozzarella cheeses”.   I like it very much.  I think Laurie preferred what we had last time though she said this was good.

I am moving along through The Chymical Wedding  by Lindsay Clarke which I read years ago and who knows why I decided to reread this 500+ page chunkster but I’m enjoying it and am surprised that I only remember it vaguely. 

I have several reading spots both inside and outside.  This poor picture is from my bedroom wicker rocker overlooking the pond.  Too chilly today to be sitting outside.

I always have a list of things I want to take care of when I’m back at the farm and somehow they seem to wait until the last two weeks I am there.  Such as the refrigerator gaskets.  My 20+ year old refrigerator is humming right along but running too much so I ordered new gaskets.  Couldn’t take a picture of myself installing them but here is the new freezer gasket just before installation after the old one was removed.  The picture will remind me that I didn’t have to pay someone else to do this.

That’s not the case with doing repairs and repainting to this old house, a job far too big for me.  It won’t be finished until after I’m gone but Shannon is busy repairing, scraping and painting.

When the person I’d hired to wash and wax the RV wasn’t able to do it at the last minute Shannon  rescued me again and with the help of one of the guys that works for him did that big job.  Getting Winnona washed and waxed at least once a year is a very very difficult thing for me.  I can’t take her to any place that uses pressure wash because of the age of her decal stripes and just in general.  It’s a headache every single year no matter where I am.

I did wash and wax the two cars I maintain at the farm.  My 2014 gray honda that replaced Ruby after the stupid woman plowed into me and totaled Ruby as well as David’s 1996 Honda Accord that I drive when I’m in Virginia because it runs like a top and is great to have “just in case”.   286,000 miles.  I wonder if the 2014 will make it that far is such great shape.  I didn’t take pic of the newer car mid wash/wax but here’s the old reliable.  Don’t get me started on how much better things were made 20 years ago……RV’s, Refrigerators, cars.

The morning the guys were working on washing and waxing Winnona, I noticed this stuff on my brand new kayak decal.  It looks like it was flung/splattered onto the decal and nothing I’ve tried to remove it has worked.  I have no idea what it is and I’m just so unhappy about it.  Anybody with any ideas of how to get this off, please let me know.  It is not raised up and I’m worried it has just stained the decal and I’ll never get it off.

During my last week in Virginia I had two doctor’s appointments.  Not a good time but that same week Laurie and I went to  Carter’s Mountain Orchard for lunch and apple cider donuts.  This is an annual excursion for us.

All sorts of fall goodies for sale, apples, pumpkins, cider, donuts and more.

There is food available and picnic tables overlooking the city of Charlottesville.

In addition to our donuts, Laurie bought a dozen and I a half dozen, we each had an ice cream donut sandwich.  SO much sugar in one dessert.

Back at the farm the moon was rising over the fall colors.

During  October I made a big dent in reading The Chymical Wedding but got so caught up in The Agatha Christie Cure which I just loved, that I didn’t quite finish wedding yet.   I’m a Christie fan, both Hercule and Miss Marple, so this unique biography/memoir was very interesting to me.   Have you ever read either of these books?   Tell me what you’ve been reading this fall.

After my final doctor’s appointment (thankfully),  I celebrated by taking myself out to First Watch for two of their “humungous” chocolate chip pancakes.  That is a regular sized plate.  Pancakes so big I brought half  home for breakfast on another day.  If you have a First Watch near you, give them a try if you can stand the terrible acoustics.  At least in the one near me.

A clear sign that it was time to head south was the frost I woke up to that last week-end of October.    Shannon came to continue work on the house and he was dressed in his heavily padded overalls.

My final sunset over the mountains wasn’t spectacular and I’m glad since that would have made it all the more difficult to leave.

But leave we did.  Here we are as we exit the valley down the farm lane for points south where I hope it is warmer but not TOO warm.  Aren’t they both shiny??

Heading on down the road.  The Blue Ridge Mountains are ahead of me here on the narrow road from the farm lane.  This road always gives me white knuckles when I see a car or worse a truck coming toward me.  It’s barely wide enough for 2 cars.  But the Blue Ridge will soon be behind me as I head East away from the mountains and south away from the dropping temperatures.