Roadrunner Campsites in April 2015

We left our JEB Little Creek MWR Campground in Virginia Beach VA Monday, April 6.  By April 30 we were at the Shady Creek RV Park Aubrey Texas.  Along the way we had stops at:

• High Rock Marina and Campground, Lexington, NC
• Freightliner Repair Facility, Gaffney, SC
• Camp Lake Jasper, Hardeeville, SC
• Pelican Roost Campground, Naval Station Mayport, FL
• MidBay Shores Recreation Area, Niceville, FL
• Fountainbleu State Park, Mandeville State Park, LA
• Bayou Wilderness Resort RV Park, Lafayette, LA
• Shallow Creek RV Park, Gladewater, TX
• Cowtown RV Campground, Aledo, TX
• Shady Creek RV Park and Storage, Aubrey, TX

Here's brief recap of some thoughts on each campground:

JEB Little Creek MWR Campground:  Cost - $22.00  Rating: - 5/10

The best thing about this campground is its proximity to Kelly and Jon.  It is literally 5 minutes away from them and our first grandchild.  It also had a concrete pad, good 50 amp service and good, free wifi at our campsite.  (I'm sure it helped that we were right next to the Campground Office.)

Despite the very good Office Manager, a great couple for Camp Hosts, the campground suffers from no attention from the MWR Department and leadership.  The campground is in a great location and has a lot of use, but laundry room, roads, painting and general maintenance is lacking. Snow removal was non-existent.

High Rock Marina and Campground, Lexington NC:  Cost - $37.00 Rating - 8/10

We were looking for something different and pleasant and not too far out of the way as we were heading to Gaffney SC.  The High Rock Marina was a fine overnight stay and a place that was perfect for our first overnight in quite a while.  We got a decent site with full hookups and it was 'almost' on the lake for an enjoyable evening.  We had dinner outside and built a campfire and wen to bed fairly early.  

Freightliner Repair Facility Gaffney SC: Cost - $0.00  Rating - 7/10

Not a destination but a decent place for repair work.  Sites are level, no tree obstructions so satellite TV work fine.  Wifi at campsite and at customer lounge area are both excellent. Dump station is good and very convenient.

Camp Lake Jasper, Hardeeville SC:  Cost - $39.33  Rating - 7/10

New facility with lots of nice amenities.  Fire pits at each site, fishing, outdoor community area, large sites.  Nice little lake for fishing and canoeing.  Great stopover for a few days in the Hilton Head/Savannah area.

Pelican Roost Campground, Naval Station Mayport FL: Cost $21.00  Rating - 9/10

All in all, the best military campground we have stayed at.  It has free laundry, is well run, sites are level with lots of mowed grass.  The staff is excellent and the view is excellent --right on the water of the St. John's River.  New base gym and swimming pool is 400 yards away and the big beach is within walking distance.  We loved watching the ships go by right in front of us!  Definitely will make it to stay here again.

MidBay Shores Recreation Area, Niceville FL:  Cost - $17.00 Rating - 7/10

Though this is an older campground, the price was right and we were on the water of Choctahatchee Bay.  The trees blocked our satellite dish but cable was fine.  Needs a little TLC but it was a good stop in the Fort Walton Beach area.

Fountainebleu State Park, Mandeville LA:  Cost - $25.00  Rating - 7/10

Glad we finally got to stay in a Louisiana State Park!  Nice big campsites with campfire rings and trash cans nearby which are emptied daily.  The park offered a number of hiking trails, is close to a great bike trail and even has a small beach not far away on the property.  It was a very pleasant couple of days here.

Bayou Wilderness RV Resort, Lafayette LA:  Cost - $39.83  Rating - 7/10

A little out of the way and higher than we like to pay.  The road getting there was not the best but it was a very nice campground. Site was level with plenty of gravel. Grass was freshly mowed and the laundry facilities were in good shape.  A good place for an overnight stay to see our friends in Lafayette.

Shallow Creek RV Campground, Gladewater TX:  Cost - $29.70 Rating - 8/10

This was great!  Love the concrete slabs throughout with some grass.  Plenty of parking at campsite. Office manager and grounds person were very friendly and helpful.  Was a real nice overnight stay and we'd do it again!

Cowtown RV Campground, Aledo TX: Cost -  $39.83  Rating - 8/10

Another very convenient campground.  Right off I-20 and near my brother and sister-in-laws place.  Campground has lots of pull through sites.  The front office is very helpful and friendly and the laundry is good.  We stayed about a week and would do so again.

Shady Creek RV Park and Storage, Aubrey TX: Cost - $31.50  Rating -  7/10

(forgot to get a photo)

Nice place for an overnight stay.  Campsites have ample parking and our site had new gravel.  It was level and the who place is well maintained.  Fairly new park with large pool and nice laundry facilities.  It was a very beautiful and well-maintained campground.  The grass was freshly mowed which is a big plus with me.  It was a little out of the way but it was a good stop for us with our friends in Frisco, TX.  

There's a recap of our campsites from Virginia to Texas during the month of April.  I also make it a point to provide campground reviews on rvparkreviews.com and militarycampgrounds.us Its been fun to be on the road again!

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.

Roadrunner Financials - November 2014

I like to keep track of where we are with our finite funds and this has also become a hobby for me during the past 5+ years of full-timing. Though it is not an exact science, I try to keep tabs on all of our spending.

When we first began considering this adventure back in 2007, it took me a long time to find out how much people were spending to live on the road.  Thankfully there were a few sites out there that were generous enough to open that part of their personal lives to help those of us that needed that information.

So I have done this for two primary reasons:

1. So we know where we stand with things financially, 
2. To have a basic recap of where we have been for the month; and
3. To offer some information to those of you out there who are just curious and/or may find it helpful.

Here are a summary and our numbers for November 2014:

Roadrunner Recap

During the month of November  we were in the following locations:

• Macon Area Habitat for Humanity - Macon, GA
• Holiday Trav-L-Camp - Chattanooga, TN
• Cedars of Lebanon State Park - Lebanon, TN
• Roadrunner RV Resort and Campground :) - Maynardville, TN

We two weeks at a Care-A-Vanner (with other RVers) Habitat for Humanity build in Macon GA.  From there, we spent a couple of days in Chattanooga before relocating to Cedars of Lebanon State Park.  We stayed there almost a week to see friends and especially our niece's daughter (who is a majorette) at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro.  Next we spent a week at our RV pad (Roadrunner RV Resort and Campground) at Joan and Mike's to round out the month.

Good News Areas We Are Under Budget

This is very good news, so I had to do a few cross checks on this to see what I had missed.  No mail charges this month since I accounted for the yearly $178 fee in June.

Biggest Expenses
I see that I did not include Propane in the budget and we filled up for the first time in a long time in Chattanooga to make sure we had plenty to run our gas furnace.

Large One Time Cost Item
We really didn't have any large items to pay for in November.

Monthly Average

There is plenty of room for improvement as you can see from the red numbers.  But overall for the first 6 months of our fiscal year, we are several hundred dollars under our estimates.  Pretty happy about that.

That's a recap of our November spending.

**As always, if you'd find a copy of my spreadsheet helpful, I'd be glad to send it to you.  Feel freed to modify and use as you wish.  Just let me know.

Niece Heidi and her creative way to raise money for a great cause: Dressember:

She is well on her way to raising $1000.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Roadrunner Review - Travel in July

July has been a busy travel month for us.  It takes a different mind set to pack up and move every 2-3 days.  And that is what we did.  13 times we packed up and moved.  That is not to say we didn't like it.  We did.  We enjoyed it and saw more people and places and things than we have in a while.

But, we need a vacation or some R and R time...

Currently we are in Boise, Idaho for a few days.  I will be catching up on my online work, we'll see the State Capitol here, and we are going to catch our breath.

Here's a recap of our travels:

Our itinerary:

• A - La Valle, WI            (Tom and Cathy's)
• B - Milwaukee, WI        (State Fairgrounds)
• C - La Valle, WI            (Tom and Cathy's)
• D - Moscow, IA             (HWH factory)
• E - Des Moines, IA        (KOA overnight stop)
• F - Sioux Falls, SD         (W.H. Lyon's Fairgrounds)
• G - Omaha, NE              (Offutt AFB Base Lake Campground)
• H - Lincoln, NE             (Camp-A-Way)
• I - North Platte, NE       (Holiday RV Park)
• J - Cheyenne, WY          (F.E. Warren AFB FamCamp)
• K - Fort Bridger, WY     (Fort Bridger RV Park)
• L - Salt Lake City, UT    (Hill AFB FamCamp)
• M - Boise, ID                  (Gowen Field Campground)

Whew!

Along the way we have had those memorable, fantastic moments.  And those sights and scenes that one hope's to remember for a long time.  In fact, seeing so much sometimes is hard to adequately process.  And way to much too blog about each day.  So I have plenty of pictures and material for later…

At the top of our highlight list is seeing friends:

- Tom and Cathy

- Steve and Therressa

- Rebecca and Gary

- Gary and Susan

and meeting many many new ones.

Some of the sights we saw and things we did:

• Pontoon boat ride on Lake Redstone
• 4th of July parade
• Ringling Brother's Circus Museum
• Devils Lake
• Brewers MLB game
• Milwaukee Museum of Art
• Lake Michigan
• HWH RV Jack Factory
• Herbert Hoover Library, Museum and gravesite
• 5 yr Driver's Licence Renewal
• Nebraska State Capitol
• North Platte Canteen
• Bailey Railyard
• Cheyenne Frontier Days
• Rodeo Parade
• Wyoming State Capitol
• Fort Bridger Historic Site
• Utah State Capitol
• Mormon Tabernacle
• Golden Spike Promontory Point Historic Site

We'll be here at the Gowen Field Campground getting caught up on things.  We have ordered mail and expect it today or tomorrow.  I started my 3 day RV cleaning and waxing task which I look forward to. Good exercise and it's fun to get the Roadrunner shining again. And I will be doing a few days of online work.  We get great internet reception here on my Verizon mifi.

So that's a look at our July - Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!