RV Adventures

This is just a quick post.  Today marks the 3rd Anniversary of our picking up the Blue Flame and calling it ours.  So much has happened over the past three years.  Let’s start with some statistics.

• Number of miles traveled in the Blue Flame – 39704
• Number of states visited – 36
• Number of Canadian provinces visited – 5
• Number of campgrounds visited (some more than once) – 116
• Number of apps on my phone dealing strictly with RVing – 17
• Cost of fuel purchased – $12,200 (ouch)
• Number of RV Clubs joined – 4
• Number of wineries, breweries, and museums stayed at for free – 7
• Number of Walmart and truck stop overnights – unknown, but lots
• Number of blog posts: 72
• Amount of time spent on the road the past three years – approximately 50%

Yes, we have been a few places!  We both were astonished when we realized how many miles we have traveled in just the RV.  That number doesn’t count the miles we put on the Jeep exploring!

We have visited in the Blue Flame the states and provinces in yellow. How did we miss the middle of the country? We have both been in these states, just not in the Blue Flame!

We are just getting started!  One of these upcoming summers we will be visiting Alaska.  We just aren’t sure of the timing.  And we would love to go to Mexico, but that takes some extra planning and precautions.

Leola and Doug (RV on the left) got us through that first week with the RV in Springfield, Illinois. We were missing so much equipment and supplies that week! There were daily trips to Wal-Mart to pick up more “stuff.”

None of this would have happened without others.  We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Pam and her late husband Tom for taking such good care of the Blue Flame while they owed it. They stored the Blue Flame over the first winter for us and let Jim and Blue “camp” in their machine shed when we first took possession.

When Jim drove out of Pam and Tom’s yard on April 12, 2014, we didn’t really realize how fortunate we were.  This being our first RV, we had a basic idea of what we needed/wanted, but the Blue Flame far exceeded what we thought we were getting.  Being set up for use at race tracks, the RV had been designed for extended dry camping (no facilities or hookups) and thus has enabled us to explore areas we would not have been able to otherwise.  And the excellent care given by Pam and Tom means that we have had almost no  maintenance issues that seem to plague other 14 year old motor homes.  Thank you!

The Blue Flame and matching trailer back when it was serving as home base for Tom and Pam and their motocross riding grand-kids!

Our support team back home has been wonderful when it comes to getting our mail and watching our house (old and new).  Thanks to Dave & Brenda, Dave & Marsha, and Mary Ellen & One for jumping when we call with an emergency and even non-emergencies.

We now own a smaller house and someone else does all the yard work.  Never would I have dreamed that a statement such as “Let’s buy a motorhome” would lead to us being on the road half the year.  Life is good.

Last summer, the Blue Flame parked in front of our new house…along with the neighbor’s trailer. We looked like a campground!