Touring America

Hells Canyon Scenic Byway

Located in northeast Oregon, Hells Canyon Scenic Byway forms an open loop east of Interstate 84 with access points in Baker City and La Grande. The byway is about 314 miles long and follows a series of state highways and national forest roads. Hells Canyon Scenic Byway crosses the forested mountains and valleys of the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest to the scenic splendor of Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. This 652,488-acre recreation area protects the free-flowing Snake River in Hells Canyon and its surrounding landscape.

Take a look at the information on our web site or visit the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway site to learn more.

RV Vacation Planner

by Donna Flanders

Donna is retired from computer programming. After 20 years of computer work, she now devotes her analytical, organizational and research skills to developing vacations for others. She is a list maker and she shares her lists with you.

Looking for a vacation idea? Try Bar Harbor, Maine - home of Acadia National Park. Outdoor enthusiasts love this gorgeous area where the mountains meet the sea. Bar Harbor has been a vacation destination for over 100 years and is known for its beauty. Acadia National Park has some of the most scenic coastline in the East. Outdoor opportunities abound. Get ready for hiking, biking, kayaking and a boat tour. Don't forget to check out some of the incredible gift shops and enjoy a lobster dinner. (It is recommended that you have a vehicle other than the RV to travel through Acadia National Park due to low clearances or you will be limited to where you can travel in the park.)

Learn more about this RV Vacation Kit by selecting this link.

Fun Stops U.S.A.

Oregon Trail Wagon Train

Journey back to 1850 and enjoy a covered wagon tour of the Oregon Trail. Oregon Trail Wagon Train in Bayard, Nebraska, offers one to four day wagon treks on the Nebraska prairie. You'll experience life as it was on the Oregon Trail in the 1850s.

The company also offers tours of Chimney Rock, chuck wagon cookouts, canoeing on the North Platte River, and more. They also have a ten-space RV park that costs $18 per night for a site with full hookups.

Road Trip Dreams

by Carol White

Phil and Carol White are the authors of Live Your Road Trip Dream, a book that describes how they turned their dream of traveling into reality -- and how you can do the same.

The following article is from Phil and Carol's travel journal during the time when they were living their road trip dream.

Just Heading for the Sun

Our first full month back on the road, and we're finally in the swing of things! The days are getting longer, and the weather in the Southeast has been wonderful. Sun most every day and warm temperatures without too much humidity.

We've spent a lot of time along the coast, and have enjoyed some breathtaking scenery all through South Carolina, Georgia and almost 3 weeks now in Florida. We need to get moving as we have reservations in New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

We've gotten in a bit of golf this month - had a nice couple of days at Hilton Head. We did have a shock though. We wanted to go out to Sea Pines -- but they charge $5 just to DRIVE out there! After recovering from that idea -- Phil says, "we have to do it -- we can't come this far and not see Harbortown and the famous course there". So we get our five bucks out and head to the gate. Phil shoves the money out the window and the guard says -- "Can't take that from you, sir". "Why not,?" queries Phil. "You're a camping vehicle -- not allowed in Sea Pines". Phil, not ready to give up, replies, "No, we're just a Van -- we're not one of those Motor Homes". Unswerving, the guard looks us over again and confidently replies "You've got LP gas on board, and sewage disposal -- you're a camping vehicle -- can't let you in." Busted. Can you believe that!! The Sea Pines covenants outlaw ALL camping vehicles, regardless of size -- even to drive through!! Speaking of snooty!! Back to golf with the commoners!

Select this link to read the rest of this article.

Discovering Your Public Lands

Great Basin National Park

From the sagebrush at its alluvial base to the 13,063-foot summit of Wheeler Peak, Great Basin National Park includes streams, lakes, alpine plants, abundant wildlife, a variety of forest types including groves of ancient bristlecone pines, and numerous limestone caverns, including beautiful Lehman Caves.

Visitors will find four developed campgrounds and several primitive campgrounds. Camping is free in the primitive areas and $12 per night in the developed areas. Wheeler Peak Campground is the largest with 37 sites but is not recommended for RVs. The second largest is Baker Creek Campground, which has 32 sites and is just a few miles from the visitor center.

RV Tech Tip

by Mark Polk

Is Your Generator Getting Enough Exercise?

If your RV is equipped with a generator, at a minimum, it should be exercised for 2 hours on a monthly basis with a 1/2 to 3/4 rated load. Consult your generator owner's manual for load ratings. If your generator has a carburetor and it is not exercised on a regular basis, the fuel will begin to gel around the jets. If this happens, and you manage to get it started, it will have that all too familiar surging sound. It can damage electrical appliances and equipment, not to mention the cost of having the carburetor removed and cleaned. If the generator will be in long term storage, you can add a fuel preserver to the fuel tank and run the generator long enough for the preserver to get through the fuel system. This will protect it until you are ready to use it again.

Exploring State Parks

South Carolina's Santee State Park

Santee State Park serves as headquarters for outdoor enthusiasts and nature lovers of all kinds from its ideal location near Interstates 95 and 26 on Lake Marion in the nationally known Santee Cooper Country.

The 2,500-acre park opened in 1949. Santee State Park is in Orangeburg County on the south shore of Lake Marion, one of the two Santee Cooper lakes (along with Lake Moultrie) that were created when more than 100,000 acres were flooded for electric power.

Lake Marion's flooded forest is across from the park, just one of the natural attractions that make the area a national draw for anglers (landlocked striped bass fishing was born on the Santee Cooper lakes) and other sportsmen as well as bird watchers, swamp lovers and boaters under power and sail.

Two campgrounds provide a total of 158 sites for RVers and tent campers. The 50-site Cypress View Campground sits on the west side of the park. The Lakeshore Campground, with one hundred and eight (108) sites, is located on the east side of the park. Each site has individual water and electrical hookups. Both campgrounds are convenient to restroom facilities with hot showers. Many sites accommodate RVs up to 40 feet. Camping fees range from $16 to $18 per night.

Information about all of South Carolina's state parks is available here.

Gadgets & Gizmos

RVer's Notebook

RVer's Notebook is management software designed for the RVer. With it you can store all the important information about your RV in one place. The software contains a database of over 200 tire specifications by manufacturer and includes an extensive weight calculator with problem-solving suggestions. You can keep track of campgrounds you've visited and rate them using your own personal rating system. You can also store details of your RV service and maintenance records plus much more. To learn more, select this link.

Legends of America

by Kathy Weiser

Kathy is a personal friend and webmaster of the Legends of America web site. Her site focuses on the history-rich travel destinations of the American West.

Where are the Burma-Shave Signs?

Though most people of today's generation have never even heard of Burma-Shave, ask anyone who lived from the 1920s to the early 1960s, and you will mostly likely bring up a few memories and tales from that vintage era.

Burma-Shave was a brand of brushless shaving cream that was sold from 1925 to 1966. The company was notable for its innovative advertising campaign, which included rhymes posted all along the nation's roadways. Typically, six signs were erected, with each of the first five containing a line of verse, and the sixth displaying the brand name.

Burma-Shave was the second brushless shaving cream to be manufactured and the first one to become a success. The product was sold by Clinton Odell and his sons Leonard and Allan, who formed the Burma-Vita Company, named for a liniment that was the company's first product. The Odells were not making money on Burma-Vita, and wanted to sell a product that people would use daily. A wholesale drug company in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where the company was located, told Clinton Odell about Lloyd's Euxesis, a British product that was the first brushless shaving cream made, but which was of poor quality. Clinton Odell hired a chemist named Carl Noren to produce a quality shaving cream and after 43 attempts, Burma-Shave was born.

Read the rest of the story at the Legends of America web site.

Bumper Sticker Wisdom

• My favorite color is chocolate
• Stop reading my bumper sticker and drive!
• I'd love to trade Caller I.D. for Caller I.Q.

Camping in City and County Parks

Michigan

Ontonagon Township Park & Campground is situated on Lake Superior in northwest Michigan. The park has 56 campsites (40 with electric hookups) for $10 to $12 per night. The campground is just a couple of miles northeast of downtown Ontonagon.

Roundabout Roundup

RV Internet Access eBook

Steven Fletcher is the author of RVer's Guide to Internet Access on the Road. He and his wife have been full-time RVers for eight years and have used the Internet to earn a living and stay in touch with family and friends. Select this link to learn more about his ebook.

RVers Taking Scenic Route to Wal-Mart

Charlotte Pinick takes a quick inventory: Five recreational vehicles parked in a nearby truck stop parking lot; a few more up the road at the Wal-Mart.

That's more than $120 the owner of Emporia RV Park won't be bringing in this day as travelers choose free parking over the campsites with water, electricity, dump station and wireless Internet service Pinick and her husband are offering for $22.50 a night. Read more...

Reading Test

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer is in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed ervey lteter by itslef but the wrod as a wlohe.

Man Charged with Stealing Wi-Fi Signal

Police in Florida arrested a man for using someone else's wireless Internet network. It's one of the first criminal cases involving this fairly common practice. Read more...

Bad Ol' Days

I found this interesting item posted on the IRV2 Forum. It starts out like this: "My Mom used to cut chicken, chop eggs and roll out pie crust on the same cutting board with the same knife and no bleach, but we didn't seem to get food poisoning." Read more...