May 19 – 21
After a family breakfast in Durham, we delivered Elisabeth back to the train and then packed up to go. En route, we are able to contact our RV dealer, who asks us to bring the RV back to Northeast ASAP to check the part that is shedding the metal fragments. He points out that the Memorial Day Weekend is coming up fast and as a result of this traditional first day of camping, they are crazy busy. We agree to drop the RV off on May 21 so they can take a look (and hopefully get us back on the road) before the weekend.
This gives us 2 driving days to get back to Northeast, but it has some advantages. We planned to be back home May 22-24 in any case, and if we can get back on May 21 we can vote in the PA special election. (It turns out that although we got absentee ballots, they arrived too late for us to return them on time.) Fortunately, the campground in 1000 Islands agrees to a full refund.
Chuck picked the Walker Island Campground for the first night. This is a pretty little campground on Walker Creek, off route 20. This is a lovely part of the country. We pulled off the interstate near Easthampton, but took a different out. I ended up being the driver for 30 miles on route 20, a secondary highway that winds its way through the hills and small towns. I prefer this to highway driving, but I am sure there were many cursing drivers, as I did not feel comfortable going over 45 mph even when the speed limit was 55. I tried to pull over to let others pass when this was possible, but at several points I was the head of an entourage.
The weather was nice after we set, and we took a long walk through the campground, which spans both sides of Walker Creek. I would love to go back a stay a few days when we have time.
The campground also has good internet, which is important because this is the evening of the Game of Thrones finale. Yes, it was a big disappointment, but we were happy that we saw it before all the spoilers came in.
The next morning it poured and poured — until we were finished packing up. After Chuck was thoroughly soaked it turned into a beautiful day.
Chuck drove the remaining distance on route 20 and we then got back on the interstate to Canandaigua. We stayed at Canandaigua KOA on our previous trip, and visited Montezuma Wildlife Reserve. On this occasion, we had a long drive to get there and hoped for an early start the next day, so we just set up camp and hunkered down. The wind was so fierce that we decided to bring the slide in — not to preserve the slide, but to preserve the slide topper, a small awning that prevents rain from getting between the slide and the RV.
We narrowly missed hitting a large snapping turtle on the road into the campground. Another large snapper was sitting in the tiny creek near the campsite. It must be mating season. We recall how some really big turtles lived in the quite small drainage ditches in Ithaca, and were often injured crossing the road at this time of year — presumably looking for mates.
We managed to get a good start in the morning. The wind persisted, but was not quite so gusty. Given the wind and the relatively short drive to Northeast, Chuck drove the RV.
After dropping off the RV, we saw that we could return home in plenty of time to vote and even to have dinner with friends.