Miles - More Maintenance - More Miles

Time to get caught up on the trials and tribulations of Mikee and Peggy - Maineiacs Trying To Stay In Motion.


We left Montgomery Bell State Park around 9:00 AM and found our way to I-40 to make some miles heading east. We had a pretty uneventful trip until we got a few miles from our planned fuel stop just west of Knoxville. 

It was around 1 PM and the rain was starting to fall. But the rain wasn't our real problem - the miss in Winne's engine when under heavy load was!

I was pretty sure the problem was old deteriorated spark plug wires - made worse by the exhaust leak that we are still living with. This issue combined with the nearby lightning, thunder, followed by heavy rain while refueling pretty much convinced me it was time to call it a day and find a place for the night.


Fortunately, the Escapees Raccoon Valley RV Park was nearby so we nursed Winne along through a few downpours and found us a spot for the night. After getting set up I found a nearby NAPA store that had the spark plug wires Winne needed - so off we went. A few $$ later we had the wires we needed and were back at the RV Park. Peggy made dinner while I replaced all Winne's spark plug wires. Whaddaya think? Which wire serves the cylinder with the exhaust leak?

With our repairs made we settled in for a quiet but rainy night in beautiful Heiskell, TN.

We left Heiskell around 9 AM this morning heading east and then north on I-81. Winne ran much better today. I think she likes having spark to her plugs! 


We finished our looong drive around 3 PM arriving here in Staunton, VA.


Tomorrow we have another 300 mile day planned -- north some more on I-81 then east around Baltimore, into Delaware, over the Delaware Memorial Bridge, and on to Clarksboro, NJ for a day or so of visiting with the kids/grandkids.


We'll need a rest after 3 days and about 900 miles of driving!


Look out ya'll --- Maineiacs Heading North!

Flat Spots, Margaritas, and Muffulettas

Let me take you back a couple of days. 


After hooking up the Vue to Winne back at Tishomingo State Park I am 99% sure that I followed my normal routine. Run the engine while hooking up the towbar, turn off the engine, push the test button on the Vue's auxiliary brake system (Brake Buddy) 3 times to bleed the vacuum off the power brake booster, put the Tow/Drive switch in "Tow" mode to remove power to the instrument panel, emergency brake off ... ready to tow. Now that step to push the test button to bleed the vacuum off the brake booster is really important. If you don't -- and the brake buddy actuates the brakes --- you will lock up the Vue's front tires. I know --- I've done it before at low speeds.


Well apparently I was 100% wrong because later that day I hit the brakes while doing about 50 mph - the Vue's brakes actuated, the front tires locked up and screeching tires and smoke later ... both vehicles came to a stop. I pulled over and checked things out and all seemed OK so we continued on.


This morning I happened to look at the Vue's right front tire and noticed a really bad spot with ripped rubber and a definite flat spot. The left front looked a little better but also had a flat spot. Later Peggy and I drove to the local laundromat and to WalMart for a grocery run. You could definitely hear and feel the flat spots. On the way home I happened upon a local tire shop in Dickson, TN and stopped in to check on the availability and price on a couple of replacements. They had the tire size I needed but I certainly didn't like the price. 


We continued on back to the rig to unload our groceries and I jumped on the internet and phone to check a few other places as to availability and price. I found that these tires are a somewhat unique size ... but I did find some replacements ... for even more money than the Dickson shop wanted!


Although the tires probably would have been OK to travel back to Maine I decided that they needed to be replaced anyway - and I probably wasn't going to find a much better price - so 45 minutes later the Vue had new front tires. And the new ones are even round!


Lesson learned the hard way. MAKE SURE YOU BLEED OFF THE POWER BRAKE VACUUM BEFORE TOWING.


When we weren't doing chores we did get in a visit with the Curps in the late afternoon and we had them over tonight for a round of Dortha's Margaritas followed by a Muffuletta dinner. 


See ... the day wasn't bad at all (just a little expensive.)

Tomorrow we all hit the road heading east. The Curps are heading to the Smokies and we're heading east to Knoxville and then perhaps a little north to Bristol, TN. We'll have to see how the day goes before determining our stopping point for the night.


See ya next time from the Eastern Time Zone!

David Crockett to Nashville - Natchez Trace Day 5

We made it! All the way from milepost 0 in Natchez to milepost 444 in Nashville (actually there are no mileposts for 0 and 444). We got our normal 9:30 AM or so start and wandered the remaining 70 or so miles up the Trace stopping along the way to see a few sights and take a few pictures. Today's highlights were probably Grinder's Stand where Merriweather Lewis met his death and is buried and the Double Arch Bridge over Highway 94 right before the end (or beginning) of the Trace.

We also took the time to hike the "Gentle" 1/4 mile trail to the overlook mentioned in this sign.

Well let me tell you ... those folks lie big time. That trail was neither "gentle" nor "1/4 mile." It was another one of those "straight up" walks in the woods that was at least a 1/2 mile!! Nonetheless - the views were pretty breathtaking.

For all you naturalists out there ... what tree/bush produces this beautiful bloom?

After completing the Trace we drove a few miles west to find some gasoline for Winne and then a few miles more to Montgomery Bell State Park where we found us a spot to stay for a few days ... and lo and behold ... Gene and Judy Curp just happen to be parked just a few sites away ... how about that!


After getting set up we visited with Gene and Judy for awhile catching up on our respective exploits since we last met in Florida a few months ago. After a short break back in our rig we returned to the Curp residence for a yummy meal of Whitt's BBQ Turkey, Baked Beans, and Pasta Salad, completed with a glass of ice tea

Of course I like a little Sweet and Low with my ice tea ... so Gene found a package. And then claimed that he and Judy are the original "Sweet" and "Low." I'll leave it up to ya'll to figure out which is which.

Today we are moving kinda slow, taking advantage of our non-traveling day. We do need to accomplish a few errands later -- like a trip to the grocery and to a laundry facility. In between and around all that we hope to visit some more with the Curps before we both leave tomorrow heading east, they to Cades Cove in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, and we towards Bristol, TN to continue our Trek back home.


Looks like a fun day.

A Tiffin Tour - and Tishimingo to Davy Crockett - Natchez Trace Day 4

We started our day with a gorgeous view from our lakeside camping spot.

As the fog lifted from the lake we got our act together for our trip to Red Bay, Alabama ... Home of Tiffin Motorhomes, Inc.. Tiffin has made motorhomes in Red Bay since 1973 and has become one of the leading manufacturers of motorhomes in the nation. Peggy and I have been eyeing a Tiffin as a possible future replacement for Winne ... and since we were only 15 miles away from the factory why not go visit and see how they are made?

We arrived at the Tiffin Welcome Center right around 9:15 and started our tour around 9:30 with a brief history of Tiffin. Tiffin is a family owned business run by Bob Tiffin and his sons. Bob is famous for being intimately involved in the details of his business - especially customer relations. Bob is serious when he says you can call him personally if you need to - even at home!


After leaving the Welcome Center, built to resemble a retro gas station - we made our way over to the carpenter shop to watch cabinets being made. Tiffin makes all their own cabinets and wood trim.

Then we toured the chassis shop where we got to see several chassis being built. Some Tiffin models use chassis made by others but they make their own on several of the units. I was really impressed by the        size of the chassis components on these big units. Big Engines, Big Brakes, Big Frames ... definitely heavy duty!

Next was the assembly building where they put them all together. The chassis come in one end ...


Floors get added ...

Sidewalls get added ...

Roofs get added ...

Stuff gets put inside ...

Slideouts go in ...

These new units are getting ready to head out for paint.

All-In-All ... very impressive. I think the manufacturing process is best described as "Controlled Chaos." Somehow all these folks seem to know what stuff goes where and in which models - but it isn't really clear how that happens without mistakes.


We had a fun tour but the Trace was waiting --- so we drove back to Tishimingo, mounted our trusty stead ... good ol' Winne ... and headed north once again. Winne doesn't have to worry about getting replaced anytime soon ... but those new rigs sure did look nice!


We only made about 70 miles today due to our late start but we enjoyed another day of beautiful scenery, wildflowers, streams, and even a beaver dam.

We pulled in to David Crockett State Park here in Lawrenceburg, TN to spend our last night on the Trace. Actually - the State Park is about 15 miles off the Trace but Peggy opted for the water and electric over the dry camping possibility just a few miles north.


Tomorrow we plan to finish our trip up the Trace to its northern terminus just west of Nashville, TN. Our RVing friends Gene and Judy Curp just happen to be staying nearby at Montgomery Bell State Park so we plan on mooching a travel day dinner at their place. Actually - they were nice enough to invite us and we're looking forward to the visit!