Thursday, June 29, 2006
A day in paradise
June 29 2006
Yesterday’s word-of-the-day:
susurration \soo-suh-RAY-shun\,
noun: A whispering sound; a soft murmur.
What words can I find to describe the day we had today. You could say that we took full advantage our milieu, which could only be described as a paragon of relaxation. A cool night chased away by the sun rising over the placid water into a cloudless sky beaming down on a beckoning sandy beach. The whole day was a Kodak moment.
Our little Matrix was looking pretty bad after being dragged through a couple of rain showers on the way here so I decided to give it a wash. I know this might not sound great to you but I find it so calming to take my time while washing my car. As the sun reflected off the freshly cleaned flanks and I 
could see the kids playing in the water off in the distance, I pondered how I could possibly be enjoying myself more than this. A few minutes later saw me sipping on a cool, refreshing coke … with just a touch of the wholesome goodness of rye added for good measure. Yes, life was good indeed!I joined the others on the beach for some Frisbee, some
baseball, and, of course, some photos. The kids met Jacob from Cleveland and had a blast playing with him most of the afternoon. We have certainly found a gem in the Woodstar Campground and catching it before it gets filled up with summer campers just makes it that much more enjoyable. It is a shame we must leave so early but perhaps we will return one day.By the way, the last two blog entries were brought to you by Holiday Inn Express. Thanks for the wireless access!
Into the arms of America
June 28 2006
First off, let me give you the definition to yesterday’s word-of-the-day:
emolument \ih-MOL-yuh-muhnt\,
noun: The wages or perquisites arising from office, employment, or labor; gain; compensation.
Stay tuned as I’ll do the same the day after each time I use a new word.
Today is a lazy day. Since we have all the facilities we could ask for here we decided to take full advantage. Chantal and the kids are enjoying the pool and hot tub as we speak and the whole family got lots of email and blog entries taken care of while we still had the wireless connection. Now it is off to Manistique, MI to hopefully a lovely campground by the banks of Lake Michgan.
Today will mark our first entry in to the good old US of A so we have to make sure we have all our Canadian issues taken care of before we head out. It will be out last chance to buy “bags” of milk which fit so much more easily into our MoHo fridge. We will manage with cartons and bottles somehow I am sure. And with any luck, the gas will be less expensive although I am not holding my breathe for that.
Alright, we are now aliens in America. Our introduction to the US started
with some customs guys boarding the MoHo and raiding our fridge. We lost some ground beef, some eggs, some leftover spaghetti sauce (which, by the way, was just fabulous) and some sausages. I guess the US customs officals weren’t in the mood for any fruits for dinner tonight as they were happy to leave all our apples behind. Note to self, don’t bring any beef or chicken when crossing the US border.
We ended up heading down what I am affectionately calling the “crappy shack highway”, based on the lovely scenery we were enjoying, before getting to the more picturesque part of Michigan’s upper peninsula. We were sailing toward a campsite in Manistique on the northern shore of Lake Michigan. On our way we decided that it might be prudent to fill up the propane tank given that we have never filled it and we did not know how much gas was in the tank when we bought it. Well that ended up being an interesting journey. We pulled in to the first place we saw with a propane filling area. As luck would have it, the power was out so he couldn’t give us any propane. He did suggest another place however, when we arrived there, they didn’t actually have a propane filling station after all. We then saw another location further down the road with propane facilities so we pulled in only to find that they were out of propane! Did we give up? Not a chance. We asked for a recommendation and were given two options. Of course, when we arrived at the first place she recommended, it turns out that they only fill BBQ
propane tanks, not RV propane tanks. However, when we visited the final suggested location we not only found that they were open, but they had the power working, they still had some propane and they actually did have the ability to fill RV propane tanks! The only catch was they usually do transport trucks not RVs so they weren’t sure they could do it. But they were successful and we now have a full tank of propane. There is something to be said for perseverance. I’ll let you decide exactly what.
About 2 miles from our final destination we realized that our campsite was not going to be on Lake Michigan. Just at the point were we started to turn north away from the lake we saw a sign that showed campsites to the right stating that they not only were on Lake Michigan but had a sandy beach. A quick ... OK, not so quick u-turn (you try that with a 31' truck and a car attached behind!) and we were heading toward the lake with the hopes of a reasonable site. Once again Chantal did not disappoint. This time she got us a site right on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is the perfect combination of firm, level, grass-covered ground for the MoHo which then blends into sand dunes for the fire pit and on down to the water. It is even nicely wooded to make for an idyllic setting. We cooked our burgers in the fire and had supper at the picnic table while the sun
set over the trees and a warm breeze kept us comfortable and bug free. I then looked at my watch to discover it was after 9:00pm! A combination of northern lattitudes and being at the western most edge of a time zone. So we got the kids to bed and then returned to enjoy the ambiance. Sipping a glass of red wine and sitting by the fire whilst overlooking the calm waters of Lake Michigan and listening to the gentle susurration of the waves in concert with the snapping and popping of the hot coals and contemplating life. It was a good day
First off, let me give you the definition to yesterday’s word-of-the-day:
emolument \ih-MOL-yuh-muhnt\,
noun: The wages or perquisites arising from office, employment, or labor; gain; compensation.
Stay tuned as I’ll do the same the day after each time I use a new word.
Today is a lazy day. Since we have all the facilities we could ask for here we decided to take full advantage. Chantal and the kids are enjoying the pool and hot tub as we speak and the whole family got lots of email and blog entries taken care of while we still had the wireless connection. Now it is off to Manistique, MI to hopefully a lovely campground by the banks of Lake Michgan.Today will mark our first entry in to the good old US of A so we have to make sure we have all our Canadian issues taken care of before we head out. It will be out last chance to buy “bags” of milk which fit so much more easily into our MoHo fridge. We will manage with cartons and bottles somehow I am sure. And with any luck, the gas will be less expensive although I am not holding my breathe for that.
Alright, we are now aliens in America. Our introduction to the US started
with some customs guys boarding the MoHo and raiding our fridge. We lost some ground beef, some eggs, some leftover spaghetti sauce (which, by the way, was just fabulous) and some sausages. I guess the US customs officals weren’t in the mood for any fruits for dinner tonight as they were happy to leave all our apples behind. Note to self, don’t bring any beef or chicken when crossing the US border.We ended up heading down what I am affectionately calling the “crappy shack highway”, based on the lovely scenery we were enjoying, before getting to the more picturesque part of Michigan’s upper peninsula. We were sailing toward a campsite in Manistique on the northern shore of Lake Michigan. On our way we decided that it might be prudent to fill up the propane tank given that we have never filled it and we did not know how much gas was in the tank when we bought it. Well that ended up being an interesting journey. We pulled in to the first place we saw with a propane filling area. As luck would have it, the power was out so he couldn’t give us any propane. He did suggest another place however, when we arrived there, they didn’t actually have a propane filling station after all. We then saw another location further down the road with propane facilities so we pulled in only to find that they were out of propane! Did we give up? Not a chance. We asked for a recommendation and were given two options. Of course, when we arrived at the first place she recommended, it turns out that they only fill BBQ
propane tanks, not RV propane tanks. However, when we visited the final suggested location we not only found that they were open, but they had the power working, they still had some propane and they actually did have the ability to fill RV propane tanks! The only catch was they usually do transport trucks not RVs so they weren’t sure they could do it. But they were successful and we now have a full tank of propane. There is something to be said for perseverance. I’ll let you decide exactly what.
About 2 miles from our final destination we realized that our campsite was not going to be on Lake Michigan. Just at the point were we started to turn north away from the lake we saw a sign that showed campsites to the right stating that they not only were on Lake Michigan but had a sandy beach. A quick ... OK, not so quick u-turn (you try that with a 31' truck and a car attached behind!) and we were heading toward the lake with the hopes of a reasonable site. Once again Chantal did not disappoint. This time she got us a site right on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is the perfect combination of firm, level, grass-covered ground for the MoHo which then blends into sand dunes for the fire pit and on down to the water. It is even nicely wooded to make for an idyllic setting. We cooked our burgers in the fire and had supper at the picnic table while the sun
set over the trees and a warm breeze kept us comfortable and bug free. I then looked at my watch to discover it was after 9:00pm! A combination of northern lattitudes and being at the western most edge of a time zone. So we got the kids to bed and then returned to enjoy the ambiance. Sipping a glass of red wine and sitting by the fire whilst overlooking the calm waters of Lake Michigan and listening to the gentle susurration of the waves in concert with the snapping and popping of the hot coals and contemplating life. It was a good dayWednesday, June 28, 2006
MoHo on the SuperHighway
June 27 2006
Before I get started I want to introduce you to a new feature of the JoRo MoHo blog. Each day or so I will be introducing a new word to you by inserting it in my blog somewhere. When you get to it I think you will know. If you are not sure what it means, I’ll direct you to http://www.dictionary.com/ to find out. If you did know the word, post a comment letting everyone know that you were not stumped. You see, you can waste time surfing blogs AND learn a few things at the same time. OK, back to our regularly scheduled programming …
I am quite surprised by the wildlife we have seen so far. We started by seeing two deer cross the road just ahead of us in North Bay. It was actually the main road which is the part of highway 17 that passes through the city. Deer in the city. I guess they don’t call North Bay the “Gateway to the North” for nothing, eh? Then this morning we passed a wolf which was walking along the side of the road just outside of Sudbury. Although I didn't get a picture of the deer or the wolf, I was quick enough to snap a photo of the road. Anyway, I was starting to think this was pretty cool being able to see this much wildlife up close as we were passing by. That is until Morgan rode up to me tonight on his bike in our campsite just outside of Sault Ste. Marie to tell me that he just saw a bear! From the look I gave him he obviously could tell that I was a little incredulous. He proceeded to describe the brown, furry animal that crossed the road ahead of him and went on to say that other campers had seen it too. Sure enough, the others confirmed that he did see a bear. You know, it is times like these that make me happy that I am sleeping in a MoHo and not a tent.
Other than the bear sighting, today was a refreshingly uneventful day. Up early for morning departure from Sudbury. Easy
and clear drive to the Soo with lunch in the MoHo en route. And then lucked out with Chantal picking a campsite with a pool, hot tub and wireless access! How can I possibly thank her for this? I know what you’re thinking … do the dishes, right?
We did run into another family who are heading back to Quebec City after spending a year in Canmore, Alberta. They decided to take some time off to learn English and be ski bums. You know, I think they might be onto something. Perhaps I should spend a year at Mont Ste. Anne to improve my French. It would be worth a try, non? The only problem I suppose would be my lack of emolument.
Well, I must go now but I have to admit that I am going to miss Internet access from the comfort of the JoRo MoHo.
Before I get started I want to introduce you to a new feature of the JoRo MoHo blog. Each day or so I will be introducing a new word to you by inserting it in my blog somewhere. When you get to it I think you will know. If you are not sure what it means, I’ll direct you to http://www.dictionary.com/ to find out. If you did know the word, post a comment letting everyone know that you were not stumped. You see, you can waste time surfing blogs AND learn a few things at the same time. OK, back to our regularly scheduled programming …
I am quite surprised by the wildlife we have seen so far. We started by seeing two deer cross the road just ahead of us in North Bay. It was actually the main road which is the part of highway 17 that passes through the city. Deer in the city. I guess they don’t call North Bay the “Gateway to the North” for nothing, eh? Then this morning we passed a wolf which was walking along the side of the road just outside of Sudbury. Although I didn't get a picture of the deer or the wolf, I was quick enough to snap a photo of the road. Anyway, I was starting to think this was pretty cool being able to see this much wildlife up close as we were passing by. That is until Morgan rode up to me tonight on his bike in our campsite just outside of Sault Ste. Marie to tell me that he just saw a bear! From the look I gave him he obviously could tell that I was a little incredulous. He proceeded to describe the brown, furry animal that crossed the road ahead of him and went on to say that other campers had seen it too. Sure enough, the others confirmed that he did see a bear. You know, it is times like these that make me happy that I am sleeping in a MoHo and not a tent.Other than the bear sighting, today was a refreshingly uneventful day. Up early for morning departure from Sudbury. Easy
and clear drive to the Soo with lunch in the MoHo en route. And then lucked out with Chantal picking a campsite with a pool, hot tub and wireless access! How can I possibly thank her for this? I know what you’re thinking … do the dishes, right?
We did run into another family who are heading back to Quebec City after spending a year in Canmore, Alberta. They decided to take some time off to learn English and be ski bums. You know, I think they might be onto something. Perhaps I should spend a year at Mont Ste. Anne to improve my French. It would be worth a try, non? The only problem I suppose would be my lack of emolument.Well, I must go now but I have to admit that I am going to miss Internet access from the comfort of the JoRo MoHo.
Monday, June 26, 2006
Mine and Dine!
June 25 2006
This update is brought to you by, yes you guessed it, Burger King!
Another day, another 200 kms. We bid a sad farewell to the Champlain Provincial Park and made a mental note to return there with friends next year. We were off to Sudbury today but we did make a pitstop at the Dionne Quintuplets tourist trap in North Bay on our way. For those of you not familiar with them, the Dionne Quints are five identical twin girls who were born just outside of North Bay way back in 1934, in the depths of the depression. It was considered a miracle that the five survived birth let alone beyond 3 years old and apparently this has never happened again with 5 "natural" identical quintupletsts. It is a long and actually very interesting story that I am sure you can look up on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionne_quintuplets) however the reason I have had more of an interest in them is because my mother was born on exactly the same day they were and not too far from there either. We always joked that there were actually six babies that day but they separated mom from the others to help her avoid the crazy existence the rest of the quints had to endure.
We also partook in our first "pull over and eat lunch in the MoHo" episode and it lived up to my expectations. I don't know why but I just love that. Anyway, we then continued on to Sudbury in the afternoon. Everything seemed to be going well until we stopped for gas and I noticed that the electrical cord connecting the MoHo lights to the Matrix lights had been dragging along the ground and had about half of the plug "sanded" off. Oh well, live and learn.
The good news was that the guy at the gas station told me where there was a Starbucks, or in other words, free internet access. If you read yesterday's entry you know that didn't turn out to be true and it was Burger King to the rescue! We then proceed to Carol's Campground
just south of Sudbury and ended up getting one of the nicest sites in what appeared from the highway to be a less than stellar MoHo park. And it is cheap to boot so that is a bonus. We have an unobstructed view of the lake and we are as far as possible from the highway. But it is nothing like the provincial park we just came from. No problem though as we plan to spend the day doing tourist things in Sudbury. I really want to go on a tour of the huge nickel mine that Sudbury is known for. Don't worry I'll tell you all about it. Well, I've gotta go get some sleep. See ya later.
June 26 2006
Today kind of felt like our first day of vacation. Probably because we spent most of the day doing vacation-like things. We started off by heading over to The "Big Nickel" and took a tour of the nickel mines there. The underground tour was cool but the movie about how the whole nickel mine came to be and what it has gone through since was arguably more interesting. And in case anyone was wondering, no, we didn't take any wooden nickels.
After that it was off to Science North, the big science museum there. We couldn't resist as we get in for free with our annual pass to the Ottawa science centre. There was some pretty cool stuff there. Morgan patted a porcupine and contrary to popular belief, they do NOT throw their quills. We saw
some snakes and turtles and even a hawk. We also got a chance to flying in a flight simulator, have a virtual race on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, and I even successfully "rested" on a bed on nails ... for about 10 seconds. And if you look closely you might be able to see me in space!
One thing I must comment on is the landscape around Sudbury. Over 100 years ago they started cutting trees to fuel the fires for the smelters. As you might extrapolate, for a place that supplied over 90% of the world's nickel, now the trees are missing from all around Sudbury for miles (or kilometers). And another thing you might extrapolate from this is that all the smoke and residue from these smelters was less than environmentally friendly for new growth where the trees once were. The resulting view in and around the city, as of the 1970's, was described as a moonscape
made up of blackend rock and ground with not a tree in sight for about as far as the eye can see. In the late 70's the town, the university, and the mines all got together and started a reforestation effort that is just now starting to reap some results. They have managed to plant more than 12 million trees in the last 25 or so years and now the hills surrounding Sudbury are green again. Morgan commented that it looks like a forest fire went through a few years ago as none of the trees are very tall or thick but it is a start. So, in summary, if you like trees, Sudbury is not that interesting. If you like rocks, Sudbury is definitely your kind of place!
So tomorrow it is off to swanky Sault Ste. Marie. Stay tuned!
This update is brought to you by, yes you guessed it, Burger King!
Another day, another 200 kms. We bid a sad farewell to the Champlain Provincial Park and made a mental note to return there with friends next year. We were off to Sudbury today but we did make a pitstop at the Dionne Quintuplets tourist trap in North Bay on our way. For those of you not familiar with them, the Dionne Quints are five identical twin girls who were born just outside of North Bay way back in 1934, in the depths of the depression. It was considered a miracle that the five survived birth let alone beyond 3 years old and apparently this has never happened again with 5 "natural" identical quintupletsts. It is a long and actually very interesting story that I am sure you can look up on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionne_quintuplets) however the reason I have had more of an interest in them is because my mother was born on exactly the same day they were and not too far from there either. We always joked that there were actually six babies that day but they separated mom from the others to help her avoid the crazy existence the rest of the quints had to endure.We also partook in our first "pull over and eat lunch in the MoHo" episode and it lived up to my expectations. I don't know why but I just love that. Anyway, we then continued on to Sudbury in the afternoon. Everything seemed to be going well until we stopped for gas and I noticed that the electrical cord connecting the MoHo lights to the Matrix lights had been dragging along the ground and had about half of the plug "sanded" off. Oh well, live and learn.
The good news was that the guy at the gas station told me where there was a Starbucks, or in other words, free internet access. If you read yesterday's entry you know that didn't turn out to be true and it was Burger King to the rescue! We then proceed to Carol's Campground
just south of Sudbury and ended up getting one of the nicest sites in what appeared from the highway to be a less than stellar MoHo park. And it is cheap to boot so that is a bonus. We have an unobstructed view of the lake and we are as far as possible from the highway. But it is nothing like the provincial park we just came from. No problem though as we plan to spend the day doing tourist things in Sudbury. I really want to go on a tour of the huge nickel mine that Sudbury is known for. Don't worry I'll tell you all about it. Well, I've gotta go get some sleep. See ya later.June 26 2006
Today kind of felt like our first day of vacation. Probably because we spent most of the day doing vacation-like things. We started off by heading over to The "Big Nickel" and took a tour of the nickel mines there. The underground tour was cool but the movie about how the whole nickel mine came to be and what it has gone through since was arguably more interesting. And in case anyone was wondering, no, we didn't take any wooden nickels.
After that it was off to Science North, the big science museum there. We couldn't resist as we get in for free with our annual pass to the Ottawa science centre. There was some pretty cool stuff there. Morgan patted a porcupine and contrary to popular belief, they do NOT throw their quills. We saw
some snakes and turtles and even a hawk. We also got a chance to flying in a flight simulator, have a virtual race on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, and I even successfully "rested" on a bed on nails ... for about 10 seconds. And if you look closely you might be able to see me in space!One thing I must comment on is the landscape around Sudbury. Over 100 years ago they started cutting trees to fuel the fires for the smelters. As you might extrapolate, for a place that supplied over 90% of the world's nickel, now the trees are missing from all around Sudbury for miles (or kilometers). And another thing you might extrapolate from this is that all the smoke and residue from these smelters was less than environmentally friendly for new growth where the trees once were. The resulting view in and around the city, as of the 1970's, was described as a moonscape
made up of blackend rock and ground with not a tree in sight for about as far as the eye can see. In the late 70's the town, the university, and the mines all got together and started a reforestation effort that is just now starting to reap some results. They have managed to plant more than 12 million trees in the last 25 or so years and now the hills surrounding Sudbury are green again. Morgan commented that it looks like a forest fire went through a few years ago as none of the trees are very tall or thick but it is a start. So, in summary, if you like trees, Sudbury is not that interesting. If you like rocks, Sudbury is definitely your kind of place!So tomorrow it is off to swanky Sault Ste. Marie. Stay tuned!
Sunday, June 25, 2006
First post from the road ...
It has been a little bit challenging to find internet hot spots in northern Ontario but here I sit at, of all places, a Burger King in Sudbury. I first managed to track down a Starbucks only to find out that they did NOT have wireless internet access there. Anyway, the story begins to unfold below. If you find there is too much writing, do like I do and just look at the pictures.
June 23 2006
New name for the RV. We started off with my uncle Garth’s suggestion with MoHo. Then more recently, my buddy John shared a modified version of this moniker that indicated that a Johnson was involved by calling it the JoMoHo. I have to admit I really liked the sound of that.
And then just today, on our first day out on the road, Chantal and I came up with a further morphing of the label for what will be our home for the next 6 months. I thought that although John’s
contribution certainly paid homage to the Johnson name, the poor old Rouleau name was not really represented. And so, not surprisingly, the newly minted name for our Glendale Royal Classic is now: the JoRo MoHo! I think it has a nice ring to it. And if I was so inclined, perhaps it would inspire me to write a song. I have a feeling that even a band like ChumbaWumba might be able to create something catchy if given some material as juicy as JoRo MoHo, no? But I digress.
The fact that we actually left the house today was a huge step. The fact that we made it all the way to Mattawa is even more amazing. I say this because we did not pull away until close to 4:00 pm! Yes, there was way too much to finalize before we left. Even at that, there are many things that went undone.
As you can see from the photos, we are towing a car behind the JoRo MoHo. This requires the use of a tow bar mechanism which allows one to tow a car “four wheels down”. One of the only things you have to be careful of when you are towing a car like this is to ensure that you never, yes never, try to back up with the car attached. It is not designed to go backward, and if you have ever tried to push on a rope, you know why. I figured this would not be a big deal considering that backing up a 31 foot motor home is not something I like to do anyway. Well, just take a guess as to how far we had driven before this issue reared its ugly head. When we went to the bank? No, we 
managed to avoid backing up by parking across approximately 72 parking spots. At the restaurant where we bought dinner? No, we simply parked along a “No Parking, Fire Zone” area. At work when I stopped by to drop off my computer? No, I just parked in the right-turn lane and put my flashing hazard lights on. Actually we managed to drive an entire 40 km before Chantal and I had to get out of the JoRo MoHo to unhook the car and move it so that we could back up a little to get turned around. Luckily the average number of kms per backup dropped dramatically once we got on the highway.
So far the weather has been stellar, very sunny and not too hot and not too cold. The traffic has been light. And the campsites have been available. The last part was definitely a bonus given that we had not booked any sites yet. We were so busy getting ready to leave, and I think we were so unsure of when we would actually leave, that we did not think to book a place to stay. But that didn’t stop us from departing. Every now and then you have to just live life on the edge, eh?
Anyhow, here we are at the 
Champlain Provincial Park just east of North Bay, Ontario on a pretty level “pull-thru” camp site in a lovely wooded and quiet location. After sharing a couple of glasses of wine while looking back on the day and the last few weeks that we have been through, it is time for some well deserved, low-stress slumber. Good night …
June 24 2006
Today marks the first of many days where I will be wondering what the heck is wrong with the
MoHo. After Chantal put 4 pieces of toast in the toaster and then turned on the kettle, we quickly found ourselves without any functioning electrical outlets. “No problem” we thought and Chantal when to the main outlet to push the Reset button. When that did not make any difference I did not despair. Instead I quickly went to the main electrical panel in the MoHo to reset the breaker for all the outlets. When that did not work either, I knew it was time to despair. But after about 30 seconds of thought during which I processed about 5 seconds worth of information, I decided to check the electrical post into which we had plugged the MoHo. Sure enough, there was a breaker at the post and it had been tripped. A quick reset of that had us eating crispy toast once more. What an adventure we’re having so far, eh?
Today was another gorgeous day. Perhaps the fact that we were riding our bikes along the
beautiful banks of Lake Nipissing with the sun sparkling off the water had something to do with my positive view of the day. We started off on a search for the house where my grandmother, Nanny, lived for many years. Nanny was lucky enough to have a house right on the shores of Lake Nipissing. When I was very young I used to go swimming there by just walking down the steps into the lake. The beauty of Lake Nipissing is that it is very shallow. Even a child could walk out about 100 feet and still be able to stand on the bottom with their head above the water. I’ve been told that the lake is only 14 feet deep at it lowest point. And no, there are not a lot of sailboats on this lake. But I digress.
Anyway, we did manage to find her place. It was quite easy after I called my uncle to ask him
for the address and then punched the coordinates into my GPS. We happened to find the current owners in the middle of painting their front deck. When they heard why we were there they were nice enough to show us around and let me take pictures of what it is like now. A fun little trip down memory lane before 
heading off on a lovely bike ride along the very nice bike paths around North Bay. We wrapped it all up by having the whole family set foot in Lake Nipissing. I was rather disappointed to find out that the water level had risen in the last 2 weeks resulting in the aforementioned 100 feet being reduced to about 20 feet. Good thing I am a little taller now.
June 23 2006
New name for the RV. We started off with my uncle Garth’s suggestion with MoHo. Then more recently, my buddy John shared a modified version of this moniker that indicated that a Johnson was involved by calling it the JoMoHo. I have to admit I really liked the sound of that.
And then just today, on our first day out on the road, Chantal and I came up with a further morphing of the label for what will be our home for the next 6 months. I thought that although John’s
contribution certainly paid homage to the Johnson name, the poor old Rouleau name was not really represented. And so, not surprisingly, the newly minted name for our Glendale Royal Classic is now: the JoRo MoHo! I think it has a nice ring to it. And if I was so inclined, perhaps it would inspire me to write a song. I have a feeling that even a band like ChumbaWumba might be able to create something catchy if given some material as juicy as JoRo MoHo, no? But I digress.
The fact that we actually left the house today was a huge step. The fact that we made it all the way to Mattawa is even more amazing. I say this because we did not pull away until close to 4:00 pm! Yes, there was way too much to finalize before we left. Even at that, there are many things that went undone.
As you can see from the photos, we are towing a car behind the JoRo MoHo. This requires the use of a tow bar mechanism which allows one to tow a car “four wheels down”. One of the only things you have to be careful of when you are towing a car like this is to ensure that you never, yes never, try to back up with the car attached. It is not designed to go backward, and if you have ever tried to push on a rope, you know why. I figured this would not be a big deal considering that backing up a 31 foot motor home is not something I like to do anyway. Well, just take a guess as to how far we had driven before this issue reared its ugly head. When we went to the bank? No, we 
managed to avoid backing up by parking across approximately 72 parking spots. At the restaurant where we bought dinner? No, we simply parked along a “No Parking, Fire Zone” area. At work when I stopped by to drop off my computer? No, I just parked in the right-turn lane and put my flashing hazard lights on. Actually we managed to drive an entire 40 km before Chantal and I had to get out of the JoRo MoHo to unhook the car and move it so that we could back up a little to get turned around. Luckily the average number of kms per backup dropped dramatically once we got on the highway.So far the weather has been stellar, very sunny and not too hot and not too cold. The traffic has been light. And the campsites have been available. The last part was definitely a bonus given that we had not booked any sites yet. We were so busy getting ready to leave, and I think we were so unsure of when we would actually leave, that we did not think to book a place to stay. But that didn’t stop us from departing. Every now and then you have to just live life on the edge, eh?
Anyhow, here we are at the 
Champlain Provincial Park just east of North Bay, Ontario on a pretty level “pull-thru” camp site in a lovely wooded and quiet location. After sharing a couple of glasses of wine while looking back on the day and the last few weeks that we have been through, it is time for some well deserved, low-stress slumber. Good night …June 24 2006
Today marks the first of many days where I will be wondering what the heck is wrong with the
MoHo. After Chantal put 4 pieces of toast in the toaster and then turned on the kettle, we quickly found ourselves without any functioning electrical outlets. “No problem” we thought and Chantal when to the main outlet to push the Reset button. When that did not make any difference I did not despair. Instead I quickly went to the main electrical panel in the MoHo to reset the breaker for all the outlets. When that did not work either, I knew it was time to despair. But after about 30 seconds of thought during which I processed about 5 seconds worth of information, I decided to check the electrical post into which we had plugged the MoHo. Sure enough, there was a breaker at the post and it had been tripped. A quick reset of that had us eating crispy toast once more. What an adventure we’re having so far, eh?Today was another gorgeous day. Perhaps the fact that we were riding our bikes along the
beautiful banks of Lake Nipissing with the sun sparkling off the water had something to do with my positive view of the day. We started off on a search for the house where my grandmother, Nanny, lived for many years. Nanny was lucky enough to have a house right on the shores of Lake Nipissing. When I was very young I used to go swimming there by just walking down the steps into the lake. The beauty of Lake Nipissing is that it is very shallow. Even a child could walk out about 100 feet and still be able to stand on the bottom with their head above the water. I’ve been told that the lake is only 14 feet deep at it lowest point. And no, there are not a lot of sailboats on this lake. But I digress.Anyway, we did manage to find her place. It was quite easy after I called my uncle to ask him
for the address and then punched the coordinates into my GPS. We happened to find the current owners in the middle of painting their front deck. When they heard why we were there they were nice enough to show us around and let me take pictures of what it is like now. A fun little trip down memory lane before 
heading off on a lovely bike ride along the very nice bike paths around North Bay. We wrapped it all up by having the whole family set foot in Lake Nipissing. I was rather disappointed to find out that the water level had risen in the last 2 weeks resulting in the aforementioned 100 feet being reduced to about 20 feet. Good thing I am a little taller now. Upon returning to the campsite I went for a little tour around to see what the other side was like. It turns out that the other side is great as there are many campsites either right on the water or with a view of the water. And Chantal and I still can’t believe that on a beautiful sunny weekend at the end of June there is only about 20% occupancy at this truly picturesque campground. We would love to stay longer however adventure awaits westward so we are off tomorrow to sexy Sudbury.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
We're on the road to nowhere ...
AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!! There is too much to do! I won't go into details today but it is obvious that the MoHo won't be pulling out until Friday at the earliest. Tomorrow will be a little crazy for sure but I think we will all be running on adrenaline with the departure so close. Today was the longest day of the year (in the northern hemisphere anyway) and it sure felt like it.
I did manage to take some shots of "The kids by the Oak Tree" today. I normally do this every year in September but since we won't be here then, I had to advance our normal schedule for this.
This is what it looked like ...
I did manage to take some shots of "The kids by the Oak Tree" today. I normally do this every year in September but since we won't be here then, I had to advance our normal schedule for this.
This is what it looked like ...
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
The Cup has been decided.
So, the Stanley Cup winner has been decided and poor old Edmonton came up short. My friends in Raleigh are pretty happy about it though. Hopefully the Senators can put together a winner next year. But now I can spend my time on other more pressing issues, namely, getting prepared to leave!
Yesterday I performed a thorough cleaning of the interior of the Matrix so now it feels like mine. Now things are starting to get crazy. Today I have to cut the lawn, clean the van to preapre for its sale to my sister Steacy tomorrow, put the stairs in the pool, clean the garage, set up the online calendar for people visiting our place, pay a couple of bills before we leave, sign up Morgan for hockey, figure out what clothes I will be bringing on the trip, and the list goes on.
Wish me luck!
Yesterday I performed a thorough cleaning of the interior of the Matrix so now it feels like mine. Now things are starting to get crazy. Today I have to cut the lawn, clean the van to preapre for its sale to my sister Steacy tomorrow, put the stairs in the pool, clean the garage, set up the online calendar for people visiting our place, pay a couple of bills before we leave, sign up Morgan for hockey, figure out what clothes I will be bringing on the trip, and the list goes on.
Wish me luck!
Sunday, June 18, 2006
The Bikes make it onto the Rack!
Finally, I got a chance to test out the bike rack and actually got a photo of all 4 bikes locked and loaded. It definitely looks strange but hopefully the bikes won't fall off!
As you can see, when the bikes are on the roof of the car, the total height is almost as high as the MoHo itself. NOTE TO SELF: "Remember this when you are driving the Matrix with the bikes loaded".
I got many errands completed yesterday but I did indulge myself a little on my first day of holidays by giving the Matrix its first "Jeff Johnson hand wash". And given that it will not likely get a lot of washes over the next 6 months, I went ahead and gave it a wax too. It looks marvelous!
Saturday, June 17, 2006
So long doggy ...
Today Chantal is taking Caicos for a trip to Montreal ... and then she is going to leave her there. That's right. Chantal's brother Paul, and his family, will be taking care of Caicos while we are gone. Paul's kids are looking forward to having Caicos but Paul keeps talking about an event they are planning which involves a rotisserie. Hopefully the kids will prevail.
Other than that, today will be made up of performing many tasks and running many errands. We need to pick up some new pieces of wood which will be used for parking the MoHo. We use them to either spread out the wieght or to raise one end to avoid us from having to walk "uphill" inside the MoHo. Then I need to give the Matrix a thorough cleaning before heading out on out tour. After that we need to make copies of a number of keys for out trip as well. I have a feeling we will find ourselves in a few situations which may require an extra key now and then. I hope not but I'd rather be prepared just in case. Then there are the instructions we need to pull together for everyone who is going to be helping take care of our place. And of course, finalizing the details with respect to this blog. Wish me luck!
Other than that, today will be made up of performing many tasks and running many errands. We need to pick up some new pieces of wood which will be used for parking the MoHo. We use them to either spread out the wieght or to raise one end to avoid us from having to walk "uphill" inside the MoHo. Then I need to give the Matrix a thorough cleaning before heading out on out tour. After that we need to make copies of a number of keys for out trip as well. I have a feeling we will find ourselves in a few situations which may require an extra key now and then. I hope not but I'd rather be prepared just in case. Then there are the instructions we need to pull together for everyone who is going to be helping take care of our place. And of course, finalizing the details with respect to this blog. Wish me luck!
Friday, June 16, 2006
Last Day of Work for a While!
No more work for 6 months. Of course, in reality I have TONS of work to do to get prepared for our tentative launch date of Thursday June 22. On the way home from work I picked up a few more items for the tour, namely, "neutralizer" for the black water tank (if you don't know what I am talking about you probably don't want to know), a little stabilizer for under the step into the MoHo (no more rock-and-roll as we enter), and a gallon of some special "Black streak and Bug Remover" to keep the MoHo looking just 9 years old.
And this morning I had to bid farewell to my beloved Miata. It is now in the
capable hands of my brother Eric. Sorry, no photos of this as my camera was not
cooperating at the time. Of course it is working fine now.
Additionally, I still have not managed to get the bikes loaded up on the Matrix yet so no photos of that. Tomorrow I will take some time to get some shots of all this very important stuff. Really! Stay tuned.
But since I have no photos that are relevant I have decided to add this picture of the most expensive car to ever be in my driveway. Behold the new Mercedes S550. Unfortunately, it is not mine. Bye!
And this morning I had to bid farewell to my beloved Miata. It is now in the
capable hands of my brother Eric. Sorry, no photos of this as my camera was not
cooperating at the time. Of course it is working fine now.
Additionally, I still have not managed to get the bikes loaded up on the Matrix yet so no photos of that. Tomorrow I will take some time to get some shots of all this very important stuff. Really! Stay tuned.
But since I have no photos that are relevant I have decided to add this picture of the most expensive car to ever be in my driveway. Behold the new Mercedes S550. Unfortunately, it is not mine. Bye!
Thursday, June 15, 2006
The Race Continues ...
Still many things on the go chez Johnson-Rouleau. Arranging final service appointments for vehicles, trying to get copies of keys made, and even making appropriate adjustments to cable, phone, etc cetera. My brother is coming to pick up my Miata tomorrow to "take care of it" while we are gone. What a generous guy, eh? And then Saturday we will be dropping off our Golden Retriever with Chantal's brother. Now there is a truly generous guy. Next week it is the hand-off of our mini-van to my sister's family and once that happens we will be down to a single car and the MoHo so we will almost be ready for "lift off!"
Sorry, no relevant photos today but the video I uploaded yesterday is finally available online. It is just a sample to test the video viewing capability but it does give you a look at our dog Caicos and our MoHo. Just click on the link to the left which says, "Click here to see our videos!"
Sorry, no relevant photos today but the video I uploaded yesterday is finally available online. It is just a sample to test the video viewing capability but it does give you a look at our dog Caicos and our MoHo. Just click on the link to the left which says, "Click here to see our videos!"
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
More items slayed from the "list"
There is a never ending list of things to do before we leave. We got the sprinkler system working for the season, I got the fan belt to stop squelling in our Matrix (Belt Dressing is the secret in case you were wondering), and I picked up a new power inverter which basically turns a 12-volt lighter-type plug into a standard 110-volt plug. Tomorrow before work I have to drop off the Matrix at the shop to get the base plate installed and the wiring system adjusted so that it can be towed behind our MoHo. I also have to check in with my sister to see if everything is on track for them to buy our van. I also have to get an alarm system installed on the MoHo as well as the addition of a transmission temp gauge. So still lots of things to do.
I didn't get a chance to load up the bikes but I did take a photo of the "toad" with the bike rack installed. Hopefully better photos to come.
I didn't get a chance to load up the bikes but I did take a photo of the "toad" with the bike rack installed. Hopefully better photos to come.
Monday, June 12, 2006
The final countdown to lift-off!
It's almost time for the big tour. We are feverishly trying to complete all the final details prior to leaving. Lots of details ranging from purchasing and installing all the necessary stuff (buying a car to tow, selling other cars to pay for it, putting tow bar on the new car, etc.) to making sure we have thought of everything to bring with us (plates, pillows, power cords, etc.) to little things like setting up this blog! I'll let you know what we are up to during these final days.
Today was the day we got the new bike rack installed on the Toyota Matrix which we will be towing behind the MoHo. It now kind of looks like the little dog in the Grinch once the antlers were tied on. I'll try to get a photo of it tomorrow with it all loaded up with all 4 bikes.
That's it for now but stay tuned.
Today was the day we got the new bike rack installed on the Toyota Matrix which we will be towing behind the MoHo. It now kind of looks like the little dog in the Grinch once the antlers were tied on. I'll try to get a photo of it tomorrow with it all loaded up with all 4 bikes.
That's it for now but stay tuned.
