Troy, Grandma and Grandpa at the end of a long bike ride. We moved gradually north from NC to Virginia to Pennsylvania over the latter part of July. We spent some time with our grandkids, visited with friends and even got the bikes out for a few rides, despite the heat.
Shuttle Service – Family Style
We arrived at our daughter’s house on a Sunday and prepared to “get to work” as shuttle drivers as our daughter attended a conference for the week. Our first morning was a “three-fer” as we dropped our granddaughter off at volleyball camp, our daughter at the county lot to pick up her car for the week, and our grandson at the 4H building for camp counselor training. After running some errands around town, we took our groceries home, only to do something similar in reverse in the afternoon.
Over the next few days, we did a little more than driving around. From getting Youtube tips from our grandson, to taking the kids back-to-school and birthday shopping, we stayed busy, but in a fun way.
We arrived at our daughter’s house on a Sunday and prepared to “get to work” as shuttle drivers as our daughter attended a conference for the week. Our first morning was a “three-fer” as we dropped our granddaughter off at volleyball camp, our daughter at the county lot to pick up her car for the week, and our grandson at the 4H building for camp counselor training. After running some errands around town, we took our groceries home, only to do something similar in reverse in the afternoon.
Over the next few days, we did a little more than driving around. From getting Youtube tips from our grandson, to taking the kids back-to-school and birthday shopping, we stayed busy, but in a fun way.
We helped tune Troy's bike so he could join us for a ride, and later did the same for Taylor.
 Grandma Cathy served as sous chef to Taylor’s amazing salmon feast one night.  And we even helped “freshen up” Troy’s new crocs. |  We helped make spaghetti sauce from a harvest of fresh tomatoes.  And generally enjoyed a visit with our Bonnie, Troy and the kids for the week. |
Pocahontas State Park Office with Twila From Pocahontas to Lake Fairfax
Making our way north from Jarratt, we made a short stop at Pocahontas. This gave us a chance to say Hello to some folks in the office and check on the cabins and our project supplies.
Making our way north from Jarratt, we made a short stop at Pocahontas. This gave us a chance to say Hello to some folks in the office and check on the cabins and our project supplies.
Sunset after the storm. A fiery sky over Reston. Our next stop would be Lake Fairfax County Park in Reston. While visiting our old stomping grounds, we visited with friends Cookie and Jerry and braved the DC traffic to visit our eye doctor in Maryland. A “new traffic pattern” the day of our commute, had the northern outer loop of the beltway between VA and MD backed up for miles all day long. Cathy counted her blessings that she no longer had to make that daily trek. Our return trip of 20 miles took over 90 minutes.
Carousel at Dulles Town Center The heat wouldn’t relent, so we found ourselves visiting local malls to get some exercise on a few days. But we did take our bikes out one morning for a ride on the park trails and into the neighborhood around the park. Let’s just say the park trails are for more serious riders than us. We are not into fording streams and dodging tree roots on narrow paths.
Cathy at the start of the Tobacco Heritage Trail in Lawrenceville VA. Biking New Trails
Back in Virginia, we took our grandson to a nearby rail trail, called the Tobacco Heritage Trail. The section we rode started in Lawrenceville and ran for 26.7 miles west to South Hill. We decided to ride 7 miles to the bridge over the Meherrin River. While we had ebikes, our grandson didn’t. And, of all the rail trails we had tried, this was in the worst condition and had the most significant grade. We rode steadily uphill for miles on grass, rough gravel and over ruts dug by erosion.
Back in Virginia, we took our grandson to a nearby rail trail, called the Tobacco Heritage Trail. The section we rode started in Lawrenceville and ran for 26.7 miles west to South Hill. We decided to ride 7 miles to the bridge over the Meherrin River. While we had ebikes, our grandson didn’t. And, of all the rail trails we had tried, this was in the worst condition and had the most significant grade. We rode steadily uphill for miles on grass, rough gravel and over ruts dug by erosion.
Troy and Dave take a break at the bridge over the Meherrin River. We kept checking with Troy to see whether to continue, and he was game to go on to the bridge. We celebrated when we reached our goal, watching the river swollen by recent rains flow swiftly underneath us. Our celebration was short-lived as our ride back was even harder. We were all tiring out. But we all made it safely back. Talking afterward, we realized that this was the furthest Troy had ever ridden – by about 13 miles. But we hadn’t dissuaded him from taking more bike rides. A couple of days later he was asking to go again.
This trail runs along the Susquehanna River south of Harrisburg. After a few days at Lake Fairfax, we moved further north to Pinch Pond Campground near Manheim PA. We took relief from the heat in the pool each afternoon, before the cool weather finally arrived. Then we took the bikes out to explore more. After learning that our class 2 e-bikes were prohibited on the nearby Lebanon Valley Rail Trail, we shifted to trails in nearby Lancaster County. The Lancaster County Parks department welcomed our inquiries, had no problems with our class 2 ebikes. They also some recommendations that turned out to be excellent choices.
Our first ride was along the Susquehanna River on the Northwest Lancaster County Rail Trail. Starting at its northern end near Falmouth (at the southern tip of 3-Mile Island. Yes that 3-Mile Island), we rode south for over 8 miles along the river. The trail was a mix of pavement and fine gravel and offered a lot of shade on this sultry morning.
A couple of days later, the weather had cooled and was overcast for most of the day. So, we chose to ride the Enola Low Grade Trail, so named because it has only a 1% grade along its length. This trail starts just south of Columbia PA and runs for 29 miles east. We chose to ride 10 miles before turning around. This allowed us to cross the dramatic Safe Harbor Trestle Bridge and its smaller neighbor the Martic Forge Trestle.
Near the eastern terminus of the Warwick-Ephrata Rail Trail in Ephrata. We were almost ready to load the bikes on the rack for travel when Dave stumbled across one more trail. This ran from the small town of Warwick near Lititz to Ephrata, appropriately called the Warwick to Ephrata Rail Trail. This was a shorter ride, and being a Sunday, was more crowded than the others. Starting at a park just east of Lititz, we rode through woods, by fields and into the heart of Ephrata before retracing our route. We found a great BBQ place right on the trail that turned out to be a delicious choice for lunch.
| A couple of times, we rewarded ourselves after a ride with a trip to The Jigger Shop in nearby Mt. Gretna. It is a must-visit destination whenever we are at Pinch Pond for a stay. | |
Cleaning Out
“Honey, the kitchen sink isn’t draining.” This comment came only 2 days after we had supposedly emptied the galley holding tank, so this was very worrisome. Was the valve stuck shut? We had been seeing less and less effluent when we emptied the tanks, but we were never sure why. But was it not draining at all or just draining slowly?
First, a little background. We have 3 waste holding tanks on our RV. One black tank for the toilet, one grey tank for the bathroom sink and shower, and one grey tank for the kitchen sink. All are emptied from a single outlet, but each have their own valve. Several years ago, we installed a 4th valve at the common outlet to ensure we had control if leaks occurred in one of the valves.
While we weren’t at a site with a sewer connection, we were relatively close to the dump station at Lake Fairfax Park, since it was located in the campground behind the bathhouse. So, Dave took our 2 5-gallon buckets and a sewer hose and opened the common valve to fill a bucket. Then he opened the kitchen valve. Luckily, the sink slowly drained as the bucket filled. So, the valve was probably working enough to let the tank drain. We emptied about 12 gallons of the 30 gallon tank, before calling it a night. But we were concerned that we might have a big problem.
“Honey, the kitchen sink isn’t draining.” This comment came only 2 days after we had supposedly emptied the galley holding tank, so this was very worrisome. Was the valve stuck shut? We had been seeing less and less effluent when we emptied the tanks, but we were never sure why. But was it not draining at all or just draining slowly?
First, a little background. We have 3 waste holding tanks on our RV. One black tank for the toilet, one grey tank for the bathroom sink and shower, and one grey tank for the kitchen sink. All are emptied from a single outlet, but each have their own valve. Several years ago, we installed a 4th valve at the common outlet to ensure we had control if leaks occurred in one of the valves.
While we weren’t at a site with a sewer connection, we were relatively close to the dump station at Lake Fairfax Park, since it was located in the campground behind the bathhouse. So, Dave took our 2 5-gallon buckets and a sewer hose and opened the common valve to fill a bucket. Then he opened the kitchen valve. Luckily, the sink slowly drained as the bucket filled. So, the valve was probably working enough to let the tank drain. We emptied about 12 gallons of the 30 gallon tank, before calling it a night. But we were concerned that we might have a big problem.
More research suggested the problem might be a clog. And the solution to clearing the clog could be 3 simple ingredients: Borax, Zep, and Dawn. And a lot of water. So, we emptied another 10 gallons or more from the holding tank. And, since we had no water spigot at the site, we hauled 10 gallons of fresh water from the tap, which was also located behind the bathhouse. Needless to say this was a lot of hauling of heavy pails.
With all of the ingredients ready, we poured a ½ cup of Borax, 2 cups of Zep and ½ cup of Dawn down the sink along with 10 gallons of water. After letting it sit overnight, we dumped the holding tank again. This time, lots of chunks started coming out, and the tank seemed to be draining faster. Encouraged by our results, we repeated the procedure in the kitchen sink, and put Borax down the other 2 tanks as well.
We drove several hours with our treated tanks partially full to our next campground in PA, and then dumped the kitchen tank again. Now the fluid was clear with fewer solids in it. And the smell was no longer so strong. We felt comfortable that we had solved the kitchen clog, and planned to use the Borax as a maintenance dose from now on.
With all of the ingredients ready, we poured a ½ cup of Borax, 2 cups of Zep and ½ cup of Dawn down the sink along with 10 gallons of water. After letting it sit overnight, we dumped the holding tank again. This time, lots of chunks started coming out, and the tank seemed to be draining faster. Encouraged by our results, we repeated the procedure in the kitchen sink, and put Borax down the other 2 tanks as well.
We drove several hours with our treated tanks partially full to our next campground in PA, and then dumped the kitchen tank again. Now the fluid was clear with fewer solids in it. And the smell was no longer so strong. We felt comfortable that we had solved the kitchen clog, and planned to use the Borax as a maintenance dose from now on.
Bikes mounted on our new bike pad. Parting Shot
After strapping our bikes into the bed of the truck, which required removing everything in it, we decided to try a new approach for securing them. We purchased a pad that covers and protects the tailgate, with straps to secure the bikes. It works well, and we can leave most everything in place in the bed of the truck.
After strapping our bikes into the bed of the truck, which required removing everything in it, we decided to try a new approach for securing them. We purchased a pad that covers and protects the tailgate, with straps to secure the bikes. It works well, and we can leave most everything in place in the bed of the truck.
