Our Chalet Truck Camper

Our Chalet Truck Camper

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Wandering through PA and VA

Our fall NorthEast Truck Camper Rally was held at Western RV Park in Carlisle, PA. Chimmy and Cathy were great Wagonmasters and made everything run smoothly. We got there a day early and set up after spending a night at Cracker Barrel. how odd to say you slept at Cracker Barrel!!

Here we are all set up on quite a slope. Had to take the camper off the truck to get it level. Darryl (Headin'South) lent us a brace for the front end of the camper which stopped all wiggling. We picked up one later at Camping World. Thanks Darryl! plus those smoked oysters were great.



Lots of activities such as a dog show,



Bingo, way too many chances to sample local wine/beer, cheeses, etc. Pot luck was fun and everyone always brings their best. Five of us women even took a trip to Adam's County Winery and to a local yarn shop. Great time and since we didn't want the trip to end - we didn't.

After the Fall Carlisle PA Truck Camper rally, four of us continued on into PA and then into VA. What a joy it is to travel with like minded people who share the same things we like to do. Carlisle was a great rally and we got to meet new TCers and renew old acquaintances. We just kept on going with a bit fewer folk. It's a real joy to look ahead (or behind) and see a line of TCs riding along.



Camped overnight in Bedford, PA after stopping at a local winery. My wine of choice is single malt so the winery stops were educational. Our next stop was in Shanksville, PA at the temporary memorial to the 9/11 Flight 93 crash. That was a really sobering sight to see and made me even more appreciative of our freedoms. Plans are drawn for a permanent memorial but I wonder if part of that will be improving the farm roads to get there.

Next stop was "Falling Waters", a Frank Lloyd Wright designed house.



It was built for under $150,000 and today the operating and repair budget is over $4,000,000 a year. I loved the stone work and roof lines but it was not a house I would want to live in. Joe's head grazed the ceiling in several places and the general scale of the house was not user friendly. Gorgeous to look at but cramped to live in especially the bedrooms.

Interesting camp that night as none of our spots were any where near level and we ran out of leveling blocks and resorted to local rocks. Next day we toured "Kentuck Knob", another Frank Lloyd Wright house.



The exterior details were just perfect to fit in with the site - one of FLW's main themes in a house. The kitchen was almost laughable in size as he expected the home owner's to have most meals catered and only to serve snacks out of the kitchen. Beautiful homes to look at but living inside art must not have been fun if not functional. Our TC looked spacious after a few of the house's rooms.

We're now camped near Independence, VA at a friend of one of our TC buddies. Their summer house camp is beside a roaring brook and in a grove of old maple and oak trees. He's even built a suspension bridge over the brook.



We've had great down time with most of us reading, napping, and planning supper. Last night Chef Mikeeee cooked pork loin, steaks, and fresh veggies on our host's big BBQ grill. Life just doesn't get much better.

We're back in Maine after a great trip with good friends. Truck Camping's best benefit for us is not just the places we see, but the friends met along the way.