The revised 6th trip north (TN6) plan

If you have been paying attention, you know that our (bleeping) truck has completely destroyed our original TN6 plans. I currently have a part on order and expect to have a new turbocharger connector hose installed by competent professionals by, at the latest, tomorrow (Friday) morning.

So I need to revise the TN6 plan to start on Friday. A complicating factor is that this is Memorial Day weekend. That means that some RV parks are full and others are requiring a 3-day prepaid stay. I didn’t want either a 3-day stay nor did I want to prepay, given our deplorable history of making our actual travel match our plans. But I was able to find a place which required neither, so I booked that for Saturday and Sunday night. So here is the revised plan:

• Hop 1 to Citra FL. 236 miles, 1 night. This is just an overnight stop. If I have time I might check out the campus of the University of Florida in Gainesville. This is the same hop as originally planned, but 3 days later.
• Hop 2 to Savannah GA. 217 miles, 2 nights. The attraction here is Savannah and, possibly, Hilton Head Island. This is our new Memorial Day weekend stop and I feel fortunate to be allowed to stay just 2 nights. I hope to still get a peek at Hilton Head, but it is now about 30 miles further away.
• Hop 3 to Wilson NC. 341 miles, 1 night. This is a long (over 5 hours) hop that will require a refueling stop. Just rest up after a long day on the road
• Hop 4 to Dumfries VA. 217 miles, 5 nights. This is the requisite stop to see Jett’s children and grandchild in Virginia. It will be a challenge to see them all without hugging.
• Hop 5 to Bedford PA. 166 miles, 3 nights. The two attractions for this stop are the Flight 93 Memorial and the site of the Johnstown Flood. I haven’t booked this stop yet because it is likely that one or both attractions will be closed. I may choose another destination if that is the case.
• Hop 6 to Watkins Glen NY. 237 miles, 2 nights. This was the destination when we had the near-disaster in the fall of 2018. This is to show Fate that we cannot be stopped. The main attraction is the Finger Lakes.
• Hop 7 to Lake George NY. 220 miles and 2 nights. I hope to see Fort Ticonderoga, but, again, it may or may not be open. If closed I will explore the Lake George area.
• Hop 8 to Phillipston MA. 136 miles. This gets us to our summer home. The trip itself will be interesting as it is almost all on local roads through fairly mountainous terrain.

This revised TN6 itinerary has us traveling 1,770 miles in 8 hops and 16 nights. We will have to eat over $155 in deposits that we will forfeit due to cancellations.

Again, keep your fingers crossed.

Here is a little tip that I learned this morning: if you ever have a turbocharger hose pop off, the home remedy is to (1) clean the metal pipe thoroughly and (2) coat it with hair spray before reattaching the hose. The mechanic said that this is foolproof – the hairspray acts like glue.