Hello from Huber Heights, Ohio

We left ADK Trail Inn on September 23 after an enjoyable 7 + weeks there.  Our time there was a mixture of work and sightseeing.  We enjoyed the drive up Whiteface Mountain on an unusually clear day and enjoyed seeing Ausable Chasm.  I (Bob) saw some beautiful waterfalls on Adirondack Mountain Preserve lands and took many other hikes.  After we left the Inn we stayed 3 nights at Brennan Beach campground near Pulaski, NY, followed by 7 nights at Kenisee Lakes campground in NE Ohio.  In Ashtabula County, Ohio covered bridges are a big deal.  The longest and shortest covered bridges in America are there.  In Huber Heights we're having a great time on a mini-farm of Barb's nephew and we’ll attend a wedding.  On October 6 we'll drive to the RV MAPS Annual Convention in Carlinville, Illinois (for 6 days). 

On October 14 we’ll start moving into our new duplex in Maranatha Village, Springfield, Missouri.  This will be a big change from living for 5 months in our small trailer.  The Ozarks are an interesting part of the country and we’ll want to spend time seeing this landscape which is new for us.    

Ausable Chasm, New York

 

Beaver Meadow Falls near Lower Ausable Lake.

Lake Placid from Whiteface Mountain.

Rainbow Falls near Lower Ausable Lake.

 

Longest covered bridge in America, 613 feet long, dedicated in 2008. 

 

Shortest Covered Bridge in America, 18 feet long, dedicated in 2011. 

 

 

Hello from ADK Trail Inn, Upper Jay, New York.

After we returned home to Camp Hill on April 13, 2013, from our trip to Texas, we worked on getting ready to move our stuff to Springfield, MO.  After a week we loaded a 26 foot Penske moving truck, with our car on a trailer, and drove 1000 miles to Springfield, MO where we unloaded into self storage units.  After unloading in Springfield, we parked our car at a friends house, near Mountain Home, Arkansas, whom we met in Soldotna, Alaska.  Then we drove back to Camp Hill, PA with a rental car.

When we returned to Camp Hill there were many things to get ready for settlement on May 10.  After settlement, we paid a deposit and construction was started on our duplex at Maranatha Village.  Attached is a photo of our duplex at Maranatha Village, taken by the builder.  Construction should be completed by October 4.  After our home sold we spent a few weeks in campgrounds in central PA before driving to Valley Forge Christian College (VFCC), Phoenixville, PA on June 2 for our second RV MAPS project. 

 
We worked 2 months at VFCC on a number of projects.  Barb did a lot of painting including painting 2 sets of emergency exit steps from the second floor of the VFCC library, after many rain delays.  Following is a photo of the library steps.  We worked with several RV Volunteers and a lead couple who have a home at Maranatha Village.  Other projects we worked on were refinishing the main library circulation desk and computer help desks; helping refinish a dining room table; helping move a wall in a dorm to make a small lounge area; and helping build 9 cabinets for lockable storage of students musical instruments in the college music room.  Following is a photo of some of the cabinets.  A retired carpenter did most of the work on the first 5 cabinets, taught me some carpentry skills, and I did almost all of the cutting and assembly work on 4 cabinets.  We camped in a college parking lot with full hook-ups. When there was a group on campus and the college dining hall prepared meals, we were invited for free meals.  The college was a nice place to walk and ride our bikes. We enjoyed time with other RV volunteers and college staff.  We found a chiropractor near VFCC who was a great help to Barb.

August 1 we arrived at the ADK Trail Inn, a bed and breakfast on Route 9N near Upper Jay, New York for about 3 weeks (+?).  Barb decided to help a friend run the Inn.  So we are camped in the back yard of a beautiful Inn next to the East Branch Ausable River.  Barb is happy helping with breakfast and room service.  And, I’m happy relaxing, enjoying the beautiful location, and exploring the Adirondack Mountains.  This morning I spent about an hour in an Adirondack chair, with Teddy (dog) on my lap, on a sandy bank of the beautiful Ausable River.  With the temperature in the mid-60’s, the gurgling river, a slight breeze, it’s a peaceful place to relax and watch nature, or read.  I was watching a hawk fly in circles, first clockwise, then counterclockwise, and move in a northerly direction over the white pine trees against a background of blue sky and puffy white clouds.  There’s also a hammock along the river bank to relax in.  I’ll do a little handyman work for a change.  There are trail guides in the bed and breakfast lounge area to help plan adventures.  Yesterday, I hiked Cascade Mountain (elevation 4098 feet) with beautiful blue sky, ideal temperature and a beautiful view of the Adirondack Mountains.    

               Our Duplex on the west side of the RV Parking area at Maranatha Village.

                 Emergency exit steps from VFCC Library painted by Barb. 

                                Instrument Storage Cabinets in VFCC Music Room.

                                   Our rig at ADK Trail Inn.

 

 

               View of Adirondack Mountains High Peaks from Cascade Mountain.

 

New adventures.

We returned home on November 2, 2012 after a 299 day, 23,530 mile drive to Florida and Alaska and many other places.  At home we worked on getting ready to move and sell our house.   When our house was ready to show and we needed a break from packing we put our house on the market on March 20.  Then we left home to drive to Taylor, Texas to work as US MAPS RV Volunteers on helping build a new First Assembly of God Church.  April 1, our first day working on the job we sold our house for market value.  We completed one week as volunteers hanging drywall for a firewall in the church attic, visited our granddaughter and family in Round Rock, Texas and headed back to PA.  Some other things we did on our drive to Texas were we took things to storage in Springfield, Missouri.  And we had a meeting at Maranatha Village, an Assembly of God Retirement Community in Springfield, MO to review plans for a new duplex unit we will have built as our future home.  This duplex is in a nice location at the back of the 100 acre development next to the RV parking area.  The foundation was built about 2 years ago, and although there are no independent living units available at Maranatha no one bought this unit.  After seeing Maranatha we visited friends we met in Alaska at their home in Mountain Home, Arkansas.  The buyers of our house had a home inspection done which found nothing to fix.  Our real estate agent said she thinks this is the first house to pass inspection with nothing wrong.  Pretty amazing.  Through the U-Haul web site I hired moving helpers to help us pack a moving truck on 4-19.  Less than an hour after I hired the helpers the moving company increased their hourly rate by $10 per hour.  God is awesome.  After we get home tomorrow we’ll have 5 days to finish packing and get rid of more stuff before we load the rental truck and drive back to Missouri.  Glad we didn’t wait till we’re 80 for this move.  A few pictures follow.

 

Granddaughter Kaitlin, Stan, Barb and dogs on hike near Round Rock, TX

 First drywall job, First Assembly of God in Taylor, TX

Duplex foundation at Maranatha Village.

 Pond at Maranatha Village.