WOW.
That’s all I can say about the massive thunderstorm that just passed through here, Petersburg, where the rig is parked. I was trying to do some computer work, but my inverter kept cutting out, so I shut down to let the computer charge for a bit and ran out to Walmart. While I was at the checkout, the sky just exploded. The thunder was so loud that I swear I felt the building shake. I’d planned to grab some Subway for lunch (I could eat Subway every day and it is TONS cheaper in the US!) and would have eaten there to let the storm abate except for one tiny detail: all my windows and roof hatches are open.
The hatch in the kitchen doesn’t have a cover, so I came home to a pretty soggy sink (no big deal). But my biggest concern was the windows in the study, especially the one by the desk. Luckily, nothing important got soaked. The rain is still coming down hard. Hopefully, it’ll take some of the mugginess with it.
As for the inverter, it keeps giving me an E01 error reading which means that I’m trying to run something (my laptop) with a bigger wattage than what the inverter is rated for. I’m pricing higher wattage inverters, but am afraid to buy anything right now with everything being so uncertain. 🙁
By the way, the inverter claimed that my batteries were at 12.8 volts, the solar controller said 14.2 volts, and the batteries themselves said 13.1. So I definitely had a full charge. 🙂
I’m not doing anything exciting again today. My friend’s health is poor, so I expected that we’d get, sum total, four or five really good long days together to go explore. For the rest of the time, I’d be parked in her yard and we could see each other a little during the day or go out for a meal, with me occasionally running out and doing touristy stuff on my own. So everything is going pretty much as planned except that I’m afraid to spend any money. 🙁
I’ll probably be heading back out to the hotel tonight and will pick some inexpensive touristy thing that’s open on a Sunday in the area of Norfolk. One thing that I am doing for sure in the next few days is getting to the coast so I can have a picture of my feet in all three oceans during the biggest adventure of my life. 🙂
I don’t really need to be back in Canada till the 18th (having decided to accept the advice about not worrying about customs) and if I have to, I could get there in one really long day, but I really want to do it in two. So I have to be pulling out of here by the 17th at the absolute latest so I can arrive on the 18th by late day. That gives me all of next week, plus three days of the following week. So if I want to get to Canada on time, I need to start the work on the rig by Thursday of this week. So if I don’t have an answer from the insurance by Wednesday, I’ll need to start the work and be prepared to pay out of pocket.
It would actually be easier to get back to Canada from my current location than from my friend’s. From there, I’d be taking the Eastern Shore route through Maryland and Delaware, then have to cut westward to avoid Philly and NYC, adding heaps more mileage.
From here, I can take I-95 to just shy of DC, by-pass on I-66 to I-81 in West Virginia, take I-88 at Binhampton to Albany, and then from Albany it’s a straight shot north on I-87, which becomes autoroute 15 in Quebec. This sounds like a crazy detour, but it’s less than 60 extra miles and all the way to Binghampton will be very familiar. I haven’t done the bit between Binghampton and Albany, and I haven’t been to Albany in years, but I know the region. So I’d be looking at an easier and less stressful drive.
Well, it looks like the storm has passed because the sky is getting a blue tinge. It feels heaps cooler and there is a breeze.
You could do that in a long day, we leave here, Brockville, take the 1000 Islands Bridge, down the I- 81, across the I-66 to the 17, then to the I-95then the bypass around Richmond, back to the I-95 and finish up the day just into in North Carolina and it takes us 13 hours. We stop at the Border, Watertown, N. Y. , Carlisle, Pa, otherwise between the two of us drive the 700 and a bit. Drive 62 miles an hour give or take a bit.
Just remembered there is only one of you but you are less than half our ages.
The thing is, driving the motorhome is a lot harder than driving a car. I’ve driven from Richmond to Ottawa in 12 hours flat, including stopping for lunch somewhere on route, crossing at Ogsdenburg, and grabbing a burger in Brockville. But I know in the rig it would be 14 hours minimum with the breaks. That’s a crazy ass too long day, plus who knows what the border is going to be like. It would be stupid to set myself up for another accident if I can give myself extra time.
We are driving a motorhome, though not as long as yours nor towing a toad and yes it is a long day. We only stop for maybe 45 mins the whole day.
Going north, stay off I95 as much as possible and get over to I81 as far south as possible. I66 is usually pretty horrible and the closer to you get to DC, the worse it will be. If you are headed to I81, just get over there, then head north. It will be a lot better than I95. DC traffic now is #1 for worst in the nation.
I live in Virginia, and I would second Tesaje’s suggestion to avoid DC as much as possible. I would take I-95 to Fredericksburg, and from there take 17 through Warrenton up to I-66 west to I-81 north. If you do that you’d be going within miles of my house. I doubt you’ll need an overnight spot at that point, but if you need anything travelling up through there, don’t hesitate to contact me. I have access to my email most of the day, and if you want to email me for my phone # I’ll be happy to give it to you.
So sorry for all the trouble you’ve encountered on your trip East. I hope and pray the rest of your journey goes well. I lost a transmission in my motorhome going up a mountain in WV, and as I was reading about your accident, etc., I was reliving that past trauma as well. 🙂 But like you I just did the next thing, praying all the while, and it all turned out for the best in the end. One thing is certain: you’ll never forget this trip East!
Tesaje, I’m with you on that one. I was so focused on avoiding in DC in 2008 that I accidentally wound up in downtown Baltimore (long story).
Fern, your route is exactly the one I was going to take. I had to dig back in my journals from the 2008 trip to confirm the route and that’s the one. I knew that I headed of I-95 much sooner than DC and that I took I-66, but I forgot exactly where it was that I turned off.
The mechanic told me to be thankful that it’s just an axle and not my transmission. Amen. 🙂