Month: July 2012

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On the Shores of Lake Champlain

Yesterday (Saturday), I met up with my sister and her family at Camping Plage [Beach] Kirkland, in Venise-en-Québec along the shores of Lake Champlain, for a day of frolicking in sand and surf. I decided to spend the night so that I could visit a nearby attraction today.

The last time I played on a Lake Champlain beach was in the early 1990s when my dad rented a cottage in the area for our summer holidays. My sister doesn’t remember this, but I do because it’s the only time I remember my father taking us on a proper summer vacation.

With taxes, a dry spot in the campground was $30, an average amount for this part of the province. It would have given me access to the beach till 1PM today, but I left at 9 to give my planned activity, subject of my next post, all the time it would need.

Lake Champlain

Lake Champlain

Lake Champlain

Lake Champlain

fun on the water

fun on the water

the water was VERY shallow; you had to wade all the way out to the boat moorings to get enough depth for swimming

the water was VERY shallow; you had to wade all the way out to the boat moorings to get enough depth for swimming

Entrance to the Kirkland beach campground

Entrance to the Kirkland beach campground

This little guy is wearing a flotation vest!

This little guy is wearing a flotation vest!

Not a bad spot (nice and big), but it needed shade!!! It was only 7:30 this morning that the sun was already beating down through the driver's side window, cooking me in my bunk!

Not a bad spot (nice and big), but it needed shade!!! It was only 7:30 this morning that the sun was already beating down through the driver’s side window, cooking me in my bunk!

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I was on my own by about 5:30 Saturday evening, so I decided to get the truck bed set up for sleeping and then head out in search of dinner. It was really hot in the truck, but the outside temps were going down steadily. I cracked open the windows, set up the curtains, and then took off on foot to explore the dining options.

To my surprise, there aren’t many restaurants in Venise-en-Québec despite it being a very hot tourist location. To the left of the campground, I found a snack bar offering poutine, hot dogs, smoked meat, and the like. To the right, there are a few ice cream parlors and the only real dining option, Papa Suzie Pizzeria. Besides pizza, it offers fast food items like hot dogs and poutine, but also some sandwiches and full dinner options like pasta, fish and chips, and chicken. Nothing gourmet, but definitely a step up from a snack bar.

I ordered the chicken breast dinner. It was modeled after the meals served by Quebec’s quintessential St-Hubert restaurants, an absurdly popular rotisserie offering insipid yet strangely addictive food. So that meant I got a quarter all-white meat chicken, French fries, colesaw, half of a toasted hamburger bun, and gravy.

The chicken was moist and flavourful (St-Hubert’s is dry and bland), the fries were brown and sweet (St-Hubert’s are frozen, what?!), the coleslaw was okay (St-Hubert offers an oil and vinegar slaw that is more to my liking than the kind with mayo), the hamburger bun was of better quality, and the gravy was thicker. I wasn’t able to finish everything and the bill came to less than $15 with tip!

It was going on 7:00 when I got back to the truck and the interior was nice and cool. I laid down with the iPad and wiled away the evening playing games and reading.

The night was very comfortable, but without shade, the truck became an oven very early this morning. Note to self: park in the shade when the temperatures promise to be torrid!

While the campground was adequate for my needs in the truck, I would not have wanted to drive through its narrow streets with Miranda. This is the second campground I’ve visited this summer where people are packed in really tightly. I don’t know if that’s the norm out here or if it just happens at the primarily seasonal campgrounds, but I would not find a stay there too relaxing.

My sister and her boyfriend are thinking of moving their travel trailer to this campground next summer. Like many other Quebecers, they use their trailer as a cottage set on a seasonal lot in a campground, probably because, as in Alberta, registration on a towable RV is a one-time fee. So this option is much cheaper than owning a cottage and you can move the trailer when you get bored with the scenery (or get annoyed with the neighbours!).

I enjoyed my time on the shores of Lake Champlain this weekend. Let me get some sleep and I will move on to my adventures on the Richelieu River in my next post.

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Au Pied de la Chute Restaurant, Richelieu

Today, my uncle treated my grand-mother and us to lunch at the charming Au pied de la chute restaurant in Richelieu. It is so named ‘at the foot of the falls’ because it is on the banks of the Richelieu River right across from the dam. It’s a fine dining establishment that favours local products (produits du terroir).

We ate out on the terrace, so I did not see the interior, which must have been charming since the restaurant is set in a traditional Quebec home made of field stone.

Au pied de la chute

The very affordable lunch menu includes soup or salad with your meal, bread, and a hot beverage. The potage (smooth vegetable soup without cream) was apparently very good, but I opted for a lovely salad with a dressing that apparently smelled Japanese.

For the main course, my mother opted for the deer and Brie burger with frites while the rest of us all went for the lightly breaded perch with rice and roasted vegetables. Very, very delicious! There wasn’t that much on the lunch menu that had inspired me (the rest was red meat or mussels with curry or a pasta dish with artichokes and sun dried tomatoes that sounded good), but I don’t need much choice when something stands out so obviously! I especially liked the leek confit served over the fish.

We all had the German chocolate cake for dessert, a sliver of goodness served with some fruit pieces ($2!). The coffee was delicious.

Needless to say, I was very impressed with Au pied de la chute!

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Running Around and Not Getting Much Done

I went out this morning to look for a tailgate handle for my Ranger. The scrap yard could have had a used one for me in a couple of days for $35 plus tax. The Ford dealership in Richelieu could have had a new one in the same amount of time for $75 plus tax. I bought a new handle on eBay from a surplus supplier for $19.75 including shipping and taxes. It’ll be a few more days, but why spend the extra money?

The dealership also did not have touch up paint but directed me to a place that could get me some. I decided to wait for that.

The post title says ‘much done’ implying that I did have some success with my errands today. I had casually mentioned the other day that I have been wanting to get a good pepper mill for ages but they are way out of my price range. Well, my step-mother learned that the kitchen supply store Ares is having an amazing deal on Peugeot mills (THE name in pepper mills) this week, $40 down from $70. Too good a deal to pass up so I got one this morning!

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Why Would a Full-Time RVer Want or Need to Go Camping in the Toad?

The title of this post comes from a very good comment/question by Kathe in reply to my post about converting the truck for camping.

Before I try to articulate an answer, I think that the best house-bound analogy I could make is, if you own a home, why would you want a cottage? Or an RV, for that matter?

For me, using my RV as a homebase and exploring in the toad means cheaper excursions because of needing less gas, access to rougher roads, and not having to break camp when I’m coming back to the same location. A toad I can sleep in also means saving money on accommodation and that I don’t have to rely on others for a bed. Finally, I will be reducing wear and tear on my aging RV.

Some examples:

-When I hiked the Chilkoot Trail, I stayed with a cousin who has a tiny house with little privacy. There wasn’t really any good place to pitch a tent in the yard, but I could have slept more comfortably in my parking spot while having access to the bathroom. Moreover, why do the round trip in the rig ($500 in fuel) when I had free hookups in Dawson and cat sitters?

-If I had had a toad I could sleep in, I would have probably taken off for a few days and left the RV in Hinton instead of driving the Ice Fields Parkway

-There was no way I was taking Miranda on the Dempster Highway to Inuvik or the Pacific Rim Highway to Tofino.

I am also thinking ahead to the next few winters, when I plan to spend several months in the American Southwest. Having a toad I can sleep in means that I will be able to plot a fairly U-shaped journey in the RV that will be as fuel efficient as possible, leave the RV in a few set locations, and then take off exploring for three or four days at a time. I am also thinking of leaving the RV on my lot next summer and taking off for Yellowknife in the toad.

In summary, having a toad I can camp in will reduce the limited mobility that comes from having a big RV while still allowing me to have a nice mobile home. In short, I’m going to get a taste of the best of both worlds.