Riverside Campgound, Algonac MI June 2012

Here we are in site 2 at the Riverside Campground/Marina.  The main purpose of our trip was to install new topper awnings on Mike and Sharon's 2008 Holiday Rambler Endeavor.  Additionally, we were hoping that Don Meldrum who own a local paint shop would be able to repaint the top and sides of our coach.  Our paint was severely peeling due to constant sun and the fact that not enough clear coat was applied when our coach was painted by Monaco.  The roof and top sides looked like a severe sunburn peeling.

The campground is operated by Linda and Don Meldrum.  It has only 18 RV sites and is located right on the St Clair River, North Channel.   If you own an older wooden Chris Craft boat it was built here at the local plant just up the road from the campground.  The town was basically formed by the workers at the Chris Craft factory.  

Here's the local campground scoreboard for daily fish counter display.  Looks like Don is running away with this year's award for the most fish landed.

 Here's a photo of our coach being prepared for paint.  Kathy and Sharon decided to check out the wrap job prior to the start of the painting.

You can see here the many ladders we used to assist Don and Tony in their task. Once the top area was painted, we relocated the ladders along the sides for Tony to complete the paint work.

Hold UP! I think we need more tape!  We used a lots of tape and many, many sanding pads of various textures to get the coach ready for painting.  The painting was relatively simple compared to the major task of preparing the coach for painting.

Here some of the supervisors are relaxing while the paint was being applied.  You know for a job of this magnitude you must have a least two supervisors for every worker, and lets not forget the Union Rep.

Here's what the front looked liked after the painting.  Nice and smooth.  Don and Tony applied two coats primer, two coats of paint, and 4-5 coats of clear coat.

Once the paint was dry, the work begins again checking for runs, color match etc.  They did an excellent job blending the color on the rear cap of the coach.

Here's a picture of the drivers side.  The repainted area is the region  just above the topper awnings along the rounded edges on top.

You can see here that I just reinstalled the CB antenna and removed the tape from other things on the roof.

I just finished installing the air horns that needed to be removed prior to painting.  An air horn check was made to be sure everything worked properly. They did a great job!

Here a photo of Mike and Sharon's coach and Jeep.

The new topper awnings on the drivers side look great!  The toppers are the ones you see just above the slides.  They keep rain and debris off the slide.

Here's the passenger side which also look great. I will not tell you who fell off of a ladder.  Hint - It was not Kathy or me.....

While at the campground, we had an opportunity to drive to Northville Michigan near Lansing to visit some friends we met last year at Deer Creek.   John and Toni are owners of Genitti's "Hole in the Wall" restaurant.   

They provide catering for a wide variety of events including weddings, birthday, graduations etc. John gives Kathy a quick history lesson about the town of Northville.

Ginetti's also has a dinner theater you can access directly through a hole in the wall between buildings hence the name Hole in the Wall.

Here's Kathy standing next to many of the wonderful planters seen throughout Main street. 

This one complete with a small waterfall accents the town center near the restaurant.  The area is used for nightly entertainment and other public events.

This view is from the deck from John and Toni's home which is adjacent to the town center. During our tour of main street we had lunch with John, Toni, John's cousin Jim and Ed McLoud at a local eatery.  Ed's wife Brenda was unable to attend as she was watching the grandkids in Chicago. 

Swinging Golfers Rally - Cochran Ga 6-14 Apr 12

The Swinging Golfers' banner is proudly displayed at "The Wood's" Golf Course.  Approximately 21 coaches participated in this rally.  

Here we are in spot 18.  Charlie Thompson Jr opened the course in August of 1989.  The RV park was added in 2003.  After we arrived, Charlie met us at our site.  He said this golf cart is yours to keep at your site and use during your stay. 

There are 37 RV sites located at the golf course.  Each site has its own water, sewer and 30/50 amp electric.  Free WIFI is also available in your coach.  

Here's a photo of the driving range.

The putting green is adjacent to the driving range. 

You can see here some of the cheapest prices for golf you will ever see. We paid the family rate of $35.00 for a month and paid $9.00 per day, per person, for a golf cart when we are on the course.  You can play all 27 holes for the daily cart fee.  An absolute great value!

Here's a photo of hole number 9, Par 3, Red Course taken from the Pro Shop.

Here's a photo of the same hole taken from the white tee box.  

Asheville Zip Line Canopy Adventures Apr 2012

Here we are all geared up for our initial training.  Training included tips on proper techniques for starting, stopping and manual modes in case you stop too soon.  Our group composed of 10 people with two rangers, Joe and Charlotte as guides.  We practiced on short zip lines to learn the proper techniques.  Once complete, we headed for some enhanced training.  

We started from a mid-level deck off this tower to ease us into higher and longer zip lines.  Everything was just fine.

Our first real test was going from the main tower to this watch tower - a zip of 320 feet in length.  

Here's Kathy getting ready to leave the watch tower to a tree deck.  Notice the two yellow nylon cords that are on the left of the photo.  Everyone had two cords which were only touched by the rangers.  These cords were used to hook up and secure a rider during every phase of the operation.  We felt extremely secure.

Yes Mom, that's your daughter!  Crazy as a cat and having a great time.  Kathy had excellent technique as she zipped this 570 foot line.  It's not the speed that gets you, it's the sudden stop.  Everyone in our group performed as though we had done this prior to our visit.  Both rangers praised the groups techniques.

Here's an aerial view of the last zip line.  1200 feet in length with riders reaching speeds of 30-40 mph.  I think Kathy might have exceeded that during her zip.  I left the platform and was 15 feet in front of her.  When I stopped at the bottom and turned around she was already there.  A masterful feat of illusion.  

This final zip was a tandem zip, racer against racer.  Since Kathy and I zipped together, I had to take a photo of other people in the group to show you what the ride looked like.  We had a great time during the entire process and would love to do this again.  How about a zip line over the Grand Canyon? 

Click on photo to enlarge.

Asheville Zipline Canopy Adventures includes 3 sky bridges and 10 zipline sections from several hundred feet to 1,200 feet in length.  Fully Guided and Kathy & Dave approved!  

Our Future Home Site

This winter we stayed at Deer Creek Golf and RV Resort in Davenport Florida.  We had been here a couple of years ago and really enjoyed our stay.  This visit we were considering purchasing a lot to build a small home with a covered RV port. Davenport Florida is a great location for us.  Its an easy drive to Orlando and Sanford International Airports and 20 minutes to most Disney attractions. 

During our stay we met many great and interesting people.  Deer Creek is a winter home to many Americans as well as Canadians.  They are referred to as "Snowbirds" but some residents live here during the entire year. The community has RV port homes, manufactured homes, park models and RV lots, many with storage sheds.  The Deer Creek Resort is made up of five distinct sections.  Each section is exclusive and has its own rules and regulations.  Amenities include an 18-hole executive golf course, swimming pools, tennis courts and numerous clubhouses including the main central clubhouse.   

During our stay we both joined and played in the Men and Women's golf leagues as well as Thursday and Sunday's couples leagues.   Kathy won the Ladies Club Championship.  It's true, I have a picture of her and her tiara.  During our stay, we narrowed our focus for purchasing a lot down to either Osprey Point or Regal Pointe because we felt those two sections offered the best possibility to be able to build what we ultimately want to have.

The people we met throughout the park treated us as though we were already owners and lifetime friends.  We were invited to many parties and events. We both agreed that this would be a great place for us.  A perfect place to live and have our RV right next to our house.  Our future plans are to stay in Davenport Florida 5-6 months of the year and travel during the others.   

In March  2012, we decided to purchase a lot in the Regal Pointe section of Deer Creek Golf and RV Resort.  Our lot is located at 1121 Deer Creek Blvd, Davenport Fl, below I-4 on Hwy 27.  This section is exclusively for Class A motor homes. 

This is a view from behind our motor home looking over the lots behind us.  Although our lot has 1050 square foot of pavers now, when complete it should look similar to the below photo.

Our home will be the reverse of this one.  Our motor home will be facing inward and the home will be on the right side.  The port will cover the motor home as well as a parking area in the front for the van and golf cart.  

This  is the gated entrance to the Regal Pointe section of the community. 

Here's a photo of the pool and hot tub area of the clubhouse.  The pool is heated which helps during those chilly winter days

The inside of the clubhouse is very relaxing with many couches and chairs as well as a big screen TV for Wii bowling. Something is going on almost every night of the week.

There are many dances, parties and Branson type shows that are open to residents.  Wednesday and Fridays are my favorite nights,  we play Texas Holdem Poker which attracts many victims including myself.  A very large kitchen area is perfect for hosting dinners and larger events. 

The fitness room includes treadmills, stationary bikes, an elliptical  machine, weight machine and TV for keeping you active during your stay. 

The clubhouse also has a small library and computer center as well as washer and dryers for doing laundry and complete men's and ladies restrooms with showers. 


Even though we are very happy with our new lot and our long term plans to build, we still intend to go west next winter season, so we do not expect to be back at Deer Creek until late in 2013.