Author Archives: Sparky
“White Fire” by Preston & Child
Copyright 2013 by Splendide Mendax, Inc and Preston Child. Published by Vision, New York. I really liked the first 80% of this book. Then it got ridiculous. This is the 13th book in the Preston & Child series featuring Aloysius Pendergast, a rather effete FBI agent. My wife loves these books and I can see … Continue reading
“Are we there yet?”
Jett asked me yesterday how far we have traveled, towing the 5th wheel, in our nearly 8 years of living on the road. I thought maybe 20,000 miles. She thought that was too low. Fortunately I keep records. The answer: 37,163 miles. If you add in the tow miles that weren’t part of an officially-designated … Continue reading
TN6 wrapup
Now that the Sixth Trip North (TN6) is in the books, it is time to look back. First, the statistics: 7 hops in 12 nights 2,020 truck miles 1,577 tow miles $862.89 in campground fees (including $165.20 in lost deposits) 226.9 gallons of diesel fuel consumed (8.9 miles per gallon) Highlights: No breakdowns. No disasters. … Continue reading
TN6 Hop 7: Florida NY to Phillipston MA
209 tow miles via NY 17A, NY 17, I-84, US 20, MA 49, MA 31, MA 122A MA 68 and US 202. 281 truck miles. Cumulative tow miles: 1,577. Cumulative truck miles: 2,020. We made it! Again, no truck problems (except as noted below). There was a light rain and most of the trip was … Continue reading
TN6 Hop 6: Jonestown PA to Florida NY
178 tow miles via I-81, I-84, US 6 and local roads. 179 truck miles. Cumulative tow miles: 1,368. Cumulative truck miles: 1,739. One extra truck mile to fill up. Yes, it’s true: Over 1,300 tow miles and we are back in Florida again. But this Florida is much cooler (68 degrees right now). If there … Continue reading
TN6 Hop 5: Dumfries VA to Jonestown PA
171 tow miles via VA 234, I-95, I-495 (around Washington DC), I-270, US 15, I-83 and I-81. 339 truck miles. Cumulative tow miles: 1,189. Cumulative truck miles: 1,560. The additional truck miles resulted from 2 trips to the GMC dealer for repairs, some errands and a trip into Alexandria to have dinner (a very pleasant … Continue reading
TN6 plan – Rev 2
The continuing unreliability of the truck (though performing flawlessly so far) has convinced us that we need to cut out any further sightseeing and head straight (or as straight as possible, given our intense desire to give NYC a wide berth) to our destination. I have cut a hop out of the itinerary and shortened … Continue reading
The end of the road for the Sierra?
The truck has been performing beautifully on the first 4 hops of the TN6. But I still don’t trust it. As evidence of that mistrust, I took it into a GMC dealer in Alexandria VA yesterday in the hopes of diagnosing the troubling email that the truck sent to me at the end of Hop … Continue reading
TN6 Hop 4: Wilson NC to Dumfries VA
224 tow miles via US 301, US 64, I-95, I-295 (around Petersburg and Richmond) and VA 234. 234 truck miles. Cumulative tow miles: 1,018. Cumulative truck miles: 1,221. This was a fairly painless hop, except to the rough roads (why can’t anybody create a bridge joint that doesn’t scramble the eggs?). The truck again performed … Continue reading
TN6 Hop 3: Savannah GA to Wilson NC
342 tow miles via I-16, I-95 and US 301. 459 truck miles. Cumulative tow miles: 794. Cumulative truck miles: 987. The extra truck miles were mostly consumed in traveling to Hilton Head Island SC on Sunday. That was mostly a huge disappointment. I was hoping the island would have an “outer banks” feel. Or at … Continue reading