Sugar Plantation Tour

Day 10 - Friday:  Todays drive was 377 miles, we where half temped to take the RV's on the ferry across Galveston inlet, but saw comments on wait times and decided to drive around.  With a stop for fuel and a visit to the Houmas House Plantation and Gardens it was a long day.  The highlights on the

drive where the causeway bridges you go over on I-10 in Louisiana as you close in on New Orleans.   Just real pretty scenery with tons of water.

We decided to make the stop to see the Houmas Plantation the night before, since it was an hour west of where we were staying and would eat up alot of driving time going back in that direction.  Our only worry was if both of our RV's could fit in the parker lot being almost 65 ft long.  Luckily it was not to crowed and we both found a spot although I did have to unhook the car to maneuver around a traffic island.   We had a few minutes before the tour started so we wondered around the front yard area checking out the massive 500 + year

old live oak trees.  Our tour guide was a was a middle aged women who had done some theatre and played the roll of a southern lady quite well.  She actually made the tour a little more realistic even though the house really was not totally of the period anymore.  The gentleman who purchased it last actually lived in it so there where many updates done to the home along with his own art collection decorating the place.  One update that I did not mind was the addition of air condition which was surely welcome with the 90 + degree temps and high humidity.  It actually made me a bit nervous for the dogs in the RV, as long as the generator did it's job they would stay nice and cool.   The tour lasted about an hour and our guide painted a very detailed picture of the history of the plantation and it' may owners.  Afterwards you can walk the amazing gardens that surrond the home, although it was so hot and we still had an hour to go before getting to the campground we bypassed most of this.

We finally arrived at the Bayou Segnette State Park around 6:30 and with only one attendant and a lot of fisherman trying to get into the park it took quite awhile to get checked in.   For a friday night the place was pretty empty and with nice big sites it was easy to get backed in and setup.  I quickly noticed we had no power and checked the breaker along with my Progressive Surge Guard unit to confirm an issue.  I checked with Joe who was parked next to us and he mentioned he had power, but a further checked now showed no power.  Since it was late we rushed back to the office in hopes of catching someone to fix the issue.  The park police came down and mentioned that these site had issues in the past and that we should move.  We moved a few sites down and all was good, but now it was almost 8 and I was beat.  So Michelle whipped up a few light items and called it a night.

~Bill

One of the campsite at Bayou Signette

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A Day On A Drilling Rig

Day 9 Thursday: Each morning I get up, check my phone for the latest emails, look at the orders that came in for RVupgrades and review Basecamp our inter company software for the latest issues, accomplishments and schedule of meetings and reviews.  Both dogs look at me intently while I do this,

just waiting for me to declare it is walk time.  Cali enjoys the walk and usually does not want to come back, but Wiley only gets excited because afterwards it breakfast time.   Today I was going to take a ride on the beach, but our friends had mentioned that the guys where heading over to the Oil Rig museum and ladies where going to do a little shopping.  So we hurried up and got ready and did the same.

On our drive over along the coast we could just make out two drilling platforms way out in the distance.  Then we noticed at least 15 tankers pretty much in a row heading outbound.  And that is just what we could see, it makes you wonder just how many ships are supplying us oil from what ever location each day.  And just how reliant we are on these shipping making that journey without disruption.  Kind of a scary thought.

The Ocean Star Drilling Rig Museum is located on Pier 19 in Galveston and costs $8 to do the self guided tour.  The walkway leading from land to the rig allowed us to see a sand ray, jelly fish, and a bunch of aquatic birds. Once aboard a guide explains the different areas of the rig and we started our tour.  Since it is a museum the main indoor living and working area bares no resemblance to what the rig really looked like when it was operational.  The first floor had information on this rigs size and type along with the different types of rigs and their purpose, different types of boring bits, the number of wells drilled in the Gulf and so much more.  There is also a small movie theater where they show you how the rig works and the industry in general.  The second and third floors had models of the support boats, a super intricate model of a refinery platform and a hall of fame area.  I am sure do to safety and insurance issues there is much of the rig you can not access which limits the interest factor.

Afterwards we came back to the camper, hit the pool for a couple of hours, got the dogs fed and

walked and headed back into town for dinner.  We where looking for something fast (well I was) and decided on Golden Corral.   Usually these places are a mad house with people running every which way, food crazy I call it.  This one was calm, everything was nice, the food was very good and we where in and out quickly.  We then headed over to a Kroger for a few items that we where running low on and saw this crazy car parked next to us on the way out.  I just love that someone created a car that everyone who saw it had a smile or laugh about and like us our phones out getting a picture.

Once we got back we started packing everything up for the 7 hour trip to New Orleans.  I am starting to feel like a Gipsy!

~Bill

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Jamaican Beach RV Resort

Day 8 - Wednesday:  Today was a 280 mile run down to Galveston, Tx and the Jamaican Beach RV Resort.  Of course it had to rain for about 30 seconds just enough to kick up spray and negate my wash job from the previous day.  As we closed in on Houston we got onto the Toll road that bypasses the city.  Little did we know that we would hit 3 toll booths in about the distance of 20 miles.  I hadn't planned on there being a toll road on the route and only had a $20 bill on me.  Luckily it was only $16 to make the loop around, one more and we would have been digging for change in the couches.  Also on this run their where many more crazy drivers just taking chance after chance with their and ours.  We even had one trucker cut us off and if it wasn't for my anticipation of his suicidal move we would have been sitting at a repair facility or worse.   We have driven through almost every state in the country logged hundreds of thousands of miles and I must say these are the worst drivers we have come across to date.  

The Triumph

As we turned south for Galveston I got behind a guy with a small boat, we followed him for at least 20 miles in heavy traffic.  He was driving really slow, but there was no clear way to get around him so we sat tight.  He finally decided to move into the far right lane on the 3 lane highway and just as he did a seat cushion flew up high into the air.  At first it appeared that it would sail off to our right, but then it hooked back like a boomerang and slamed into the front corner of the hood near the front tire.  I thought for sure there was going to be damage and was thinking the worse.  Michelle said she could see it and it appeared to be stuck between the tire and the fender.  It wasn't moving and the next thought was that the tire would rub it till it caught fire, so we radioed to our friends who where ahead of us that we needed to get off the highway and check things out.  One nice thing about Texas are all of the frontage roads that line the highways and we quickly found a good place to pull over.  Just as we came to a stop the cushion fell out on to the roadway and I ran back to have a look at it.   My fear was that the cushion had a plywood backer which many do and that would have done serious damage.  But we lucked out and it only was the cushion and checking the front end we found no damage.  I couldn't even see where it initially hit, so I was happy and on our way we went.

As we crossed over a bay we where greeted by 2 big pillars informing us that we had made Galveston. The scenery dramatically changes and reminded us of Florida.  Once we hit the ocean we hung a left on Termini San Luis Pass Rd for about 9 miles until we hit Jamaica Beach and the Jamaica Beach RV Resort.  The place seems pretty new, nicely landscaped and all concrete roads and campsites.  Once we where hooked up we walked the dogs and then took a short drive over to the beach.  It was really nice to just pull your vehicle right up to the edge of the ocean, no need to carry anything from a parking lot.  I was amazed at how warm the water was, just like bath water, and we all walked out about 100 yards where the waves were breaking.  I wont lie I was slightly nervous about sharks and when you see small fish flying out of the water you have to think they are running from something.  We played in the waves for 20 minutes or so and headed in.  Since it really didn't cool us off we headed over to the campground pool and hung out there for the rest of the afternoon.

The next decision was where to eat dinner.  It was way to hot to cook outside so we asked around and

where told we wouldn't be disappointed with Willy G's.  We where hoping for something closer but with bad reviews on a few of the local spots we took the 30 minute drive over.  Dinner was amazing and not cheap, but good food usually isn't snd specially if they cater to tourists..  I had the Grouper,  Chase had the Trout and Michelle and Mai Mai.   The setting is great as well with the place right along pier and we even got to see the Carnival Cruise Liner the Triumph as it had just under gone a 100 + million dollar renovation after the fire and stranding of a passengers not to long ago.  There was also a drilling rig museum down the peir and we decided to come back and check that out tomorrow.  Across the inlet there where quite a few drilling rigs in for repair, maybe from some storm or possibly old age.

We drove along the ocean on the way home and with a light breeze it was like we where in paradise.

~Bill

Drilling rigs waiting to get into dry dock

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A Day In Bourne Texas

Day 7 - Tuesday: We where pretty slow to get up today, all I had on my mind was to was the RV.  We had run through a bunch of rain heading into Memphis and I was dyeing to get it clean again.  I definitely got that bug from my father, he is a boater and spit shines that thing just about every day.  I had installed the smaller CR Spotless deionizing system in one of my storage bays in the spring.  I then found a small hand held pressure washer online and now I could clean up the rig anywhere we went.

The system works great, since the deionizer removes any spots that tap water would leave behind, but I had trouble with the pressure washer not turning off when the sprayer trigger was released.  I need to return it and get it replaced, but I do love how much pressure the unit puts out and how easy it is to move around with you.

I was starving by this point and we decided to hit the Dog and Pony restaurant that is just up the road.  We noticed that the Bourne restaurants seemed to do away with the wait staff and you order and pick up your own food.   We each got a different burger, and they where all really good, Case had the veggie burger and he said it was the best he had ever had, I had their signiture cheddar burger and it was really good.  Michelle went for the habanero burger and suffered the consequences of that descision. She kept asking if her lips where red, because they felt like they where on fire.  I tasted just a pickle with a little habanero juice on it and that was enough for me.  I would recommend the place for lunch or a light dinner.  Afterwards we walked around downtown and checked out a few shops, I am not a bigger shopper so it wasn't long before Michelle gave up and we headed back to the camper.

We decided to do a bit of laundry and just chill out for the afternoon, I had been lacking in my puppy walking duties so I circled the park a few times.  It still wasn't enough for Cali though.  Later that evening we went to dinner with Joe & Shelly and gave the Hungry Horse a try.  They give you huge portions so beware!  Be a pony and not a horse and you will most likely still head home with left overs.  I had the grilled catfish and it was really good, a few others had the chicken fried chicken and Chas had the Catfish Po Boy sandwich.  He misunderstood and ordered the regular size and had enough catfish left over for 3 more nights dinners.  We hit Walmart for a few odds & ends and called it a night.

~Bill

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A Long, Long Day Of Driving

Day 6 - Monday: Today was a long day of driving, 730 miles and about 13 hours. We left Memphis at about 7 a.m. and got through town in pretty light traffic. It wasn't long before I could see in my side mirror that my electric cord was popping out of the door that holds it in. I figured I better pull into a rest stop sooner than later to fix that before

Austin Tx Traffic @ 7:30 p.m.

the cord was reaching the road and grinding the plug away. Our friends where a half hour up the road in search of a new toilet. The night before their electric toilet had broke and was no longer in service. I always wondered why they would over complicate an RV toilet. Since this was going to be a long day on the road not having a toilet was not an option otherwise we would have overnighted one from our warehouse to the next destination. His only hope was hitting a Camping World in Little Rock and luckily they did have 1 toilet in stock. It wasn't what he wanted nor did it exactly fit, but it would do the job.

We finally caught up with them at the Texarkana welcome center. Just as I pulled in a big truck loaded with lumber pulled away opening up a spot right next to Joe & Shelly's rig. He loaded the old toilet in the back of the car and we where ready to roll. Just then we saw an ambulance and highway patrol go racing by and could see that same lumber truck had just overturned on an off ramp just up the road. Pretty crazy to see a big truck like that completely upside down. 

The next 6 hours where uneventful other than the occasional driver with a death wish. Weaving in and out of traffic cutting us and big trucks off. It's amazing how brave people become when they jump behind the wheel of a vehicle. We thought we might just make the whole trip without any traffic delays, but as soon as we hit Austin things came to a screeching halt. We spent the next 40 minutes in stop and go traffic and the rest of the ride into Bourne Tx went smoothly. We pulled into the Alamo Fiesta RV Park at 8:30 and the office was closed.  They had a late arrivals box and our sites and info where inside.  We had chosen their premium sites, which are level and long, but sooo close together.  I am thinking most people would be pretty unhappy with the setup if they where staying for an extended period of time.  Once we got setup we walked the puppies and then crashed for the night at about 9:30 p.m.

Although I felt pretty good throughout the entre drive, once you stop is when it hits you and it usually lasts into the next day. This is the second really long run we made this year (the other was the way home from Florida) and we had said then that we would never do that again.  I am hoping we learned our lesson this time and keep the drives under 10 hours in the future.

~Bill

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Elvis Is In The House

Day 5 - Sunday: I was up at 5:30 a.m. to take the dogs for their morning walk.  Cali our 9 year old Shitzu started to have problems climbing the RV stairs yesterday, so we where somewhat concerned with that.  We decided to carrier her in and out from now on, an on our walk she seemed to do pretty good.  I started to hear thunder in the distance and hurried back to the RV to dump the tanks and disconnect the water.  Since it didn't appear we could be the rain and get the car connected, we decided to wait the fast moving storm out for an extra 20 minutes.  I felt bad for all of the tenters although many

Graceland

did get their tents torn down and put into their vehicles just before the rain hit.

We made the 3 hour run to Memphis and arrived at Graceland RV Park at 11 a.m.  With the temps in the upper 80's and high humidity it felt like summer now.  We got setup quick and walked over to the Elvis museum to do the Platinum tour.  Elvis was a little before my time and I never really got into his music.  When I was younger I had seen a few of his movies and I once dated a girl who's mother had taken over their entire living room with a shrine to Elvis.  That was pretty much the extent of my Elvis knowledge other than the bits and pieces you catch on radio and tv about him.  I must say I really enjoyed the tour, and it's a shame he died so young.  We toured the house, the car museum, the planes and a few other exhibits.  I plan to check out the documentary on his life when we get home.

Our next stop was Mud Island which was very interesting with the replica of the mississippi river carved into the walk way.  You can either walk the 1/3 of a mile or for $4 you can ride the monorail over and back.  In the picture of the Memphis skyline you can see the river running into the the replica of the Gulf of Mexico.  Each step represented 1 mile with a total of a 2,000 ft to explore, it pretty impressive.  Afterwards we headed to Beale St for dinner.  It was Sunday so it was pretty quiet in the city and on the recommendation of the Monorail operator we took the trolly to Kings Palace.  The trollies appear to be pretty old and it was pretty cool to see the drivers have to navigate the traffic and the crazy controls.  Since the trollies only run until 6 pm we didn't have a whole lot of time to check out the area.  Our dinner at Kings Palace was really good, I had some of the best ribs in a long time and their sauce was just the way I like it.  Their was a musician setting up and running through a sound check as we where eating and I would have loved to hear him play.  Since we had a really long day of driving the next day we decided to high tail it back to the campers and call it a night early.

I must say Memphis surprised me, it seems like a really cool city with some very interesting history.

~Bill

Memphis Trolly

Beale Street - Memphis

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When to Replace Your RV Carbon Monoxide Detector

Keeping your RV carbon monoxide detector working properly is no joke. Carbon monoxide is a byproduct of malfunctioning engines or appliances, so you can see why having a working carbon monoxide detector is especially important in an RV. Though high levels of carbon monoxide poisoning aren’t always fatal, it can result in permanent damage to your body, including your heart and central nervous system. Since carbon monoxide is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, a detector is the best way to ensure your safety.

If you can’t remember the last time you replaced your carbon monoxide alarm, or you just purchased a used RV and aren’t sure about the previous owner’s level of upkeep, it’s time to check your detector and make sure it’s working properly. Here are a few steps to determine if your sensor is working well:

1. Make sure the sensor is installed in the proper place. In an RV, this will be about 5 feet off the floor and close to where everyone will be sleeping.

2. Test the CO detector by clicking the test button. If it goes off, this doesn’t mean that the sensor is detecting carbon monoxide. It simply means that the RV is receiving power and the alarm function works.
3. If your alarm has a digital display, such as on the Atwood Digital Gas Alarm, you can place a lit cigarette or incense near the alarm and it will register that there is carbon monoxide in the area.
4. If your carbon monoxide tester isn’t digital, you will have to purchase a test kit. Test kits include a container of carbon monoxide that is designed to set off the alarm. You may want to wear earplugs when testing your sensor this way, because it will certainly be loud. If your detector goes off, the sensor is working properly. If not, it’s time for a new detector.

Despite running these tests on your CO alarm, your detector still might be old and if you can’t remember or simply don’t know when the detector was purchased, it’s best to just buy a new alarm. Typically alarms are good for 5-7 years. Our most popular alarm, the Safe-T-Alert Dual CO/LP Gas Alarm, is good for 5 years, and also features propane detection as well. For more information on carbon monoxide prevention, visit the Center for Disease Control’s carbon monoxide page.

RVUpgrades.com provides RV accessories, supplies, and parts including a variety of gas detectors for LP, carbon monoxide, and smoke. Visit out store to see our complete selection of motorhome upgrades.

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