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March 2007
Hi! Welcome to Woodall's Wisdom, our monthly eNewsletter. Last month I asked you to tell me what you thought of our new look, and you responded… thank you! Many of you asked for some wisdom regarding traveling with pets. Stay tuned! Starting with our April edition we're introducing a new column by Julee Metzer (author of Camping and RVing with Dogs). I'd tell you more, but I don't want to spoil the surprise!
Ann
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Associate Editor
Tell me what you think!
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Book of the Month
Woodall's Eastern & Western 2–Directory Set!
Finally, the 2–Directory Set you have been waiting for is here. Now you can get all of North America (that's all of the U.S., Mexico and Canada) in a two volume set. Put these two 2007 editions together and you'll get listings for over 14,000 RV parks, campgrounds, service centers and attractions. Just like the 2007 North American Directory, listings have been completely updated by our inspectors in the field, with a combined total of over 280,000 changes from the 2006 editions!
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Diamond Club Coupons
Get coupons specific to your region, or regions you plan to visit soon!
Examples of the types of coupons available include 2-for-1 admission to local attractions, discounts on campgrounds, discounts on restaurants, plus more.
Select your region and download your coupons today.
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 Travel Tech
RV Technology Tools for Traveling in Bad Weather
By Alan Lidstone
While RVers don't usually plan on RVing during bad or dangerous weather, it is important to keep informed about dangerous situations, whether driving or in the campground. RVers frequently cover several hundred miles a day. You can start out on a mild, clear day and possibly encounter heavy rains, tornados, high winds or hurricanes, fire conditions, snow, and icing conditions along your route or at your destination. The tornado season is currently in full swing. Disastrous storms hit Volusia County, Florida in February damaging more than 1500 homes with approximately 21 fatalities and an even larger set of storms that ranged east on a rampage as far north as Wisconsin and as far south as Louisiana, causing fatalities and extensive damage in Missouri, Georgia and Alabama in early March.
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 Destined to Travel
Wisconsin's Lakeside Lady
By Kimberly Button
Lake Geneva offers abundant cold–weather fun as well as idyllic waterside pastimes for warmer days.
There's something about water that changes the dynamic of a town, even when the water has turned to ice. Lake Geneva, Wis., is just such a place. She is small, no more than a village really, with a lake as the centerpiece. Be it in T–shirts and flip–flops or woolly hats and boots, we're drawn to the waterside. Close to both Milwaukee and Chicago, those seeking R & R have known about this little corner of the world for decades.
Another showpiece is the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, which sits on its own scenic lake, adorned with fountains. The "official" Lake Geneva is in town, only two minutes drive away.
From nearby restaurants and shops, it's clear the area is a prosperous place, happy to welcome visitors. Approximately 7,000 residents call Lake Geneva home.
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Mark… My Words
Do you have questions about RV technical issues, the RV lifestyle
or RVs in general? Ask Mark!
Hi Folks!
Another mixed bag of questions and answers this month, and an intriguing tip at the end…
keep 'em coming!
Hi Mark,
We are all most ready to do the full time RV thing. We have purchased our motorhome and house is up for sale. We attended the RV show at the fair grounds in Pomona last fall where we purchased, time ran out and we hardly had time to check out some of the booths, because the show was closing. We briefly talked to someone about information, about forwarding mail service, but we are unable to find that information again. Could you please advise us to the best service for mail forwarding? Also we had wanted to attend a "driving your RV" class, that was offered and were unable to make this work either. Is there anyway you could direct us to that person or is there somewhere we could get information on driving our new 40' motorhome?
Thank you so much
Liz and Don Benson
Congrats on your pending fulltime adventure! Before you choose a mail service, you need to research which state you will choose for your domicile. Texas, South Dakota and Florida are popular states that many fulltime Rvers choose. However, since you will be able to choose freely, you should choose the state that is the most favorable for you based on insurance costs, registration costs and tax structure. The best way to decide is to pick up a copy of "Selecting an RV Home Base" published by Trailer Life books. You can find it at many online bookstores, and it will give you vital statistics on each state. Be sure to check on insurance costs for your vehicles, and also make sure that health insurance you may have won't be restricted to certain states. Once you have chosen your state, then check the ads in back of RV magazines… you'll find a number of mail services listed there by state. A Google search for "mail forwarding service" will turn up many choices as well. If you want a driving school that specializes in RV driver's training, you can't go wrong (in my opinion) with Dick Reed's Driving school. They've been around a long time and have an excellent reputation. Check them out at www.rvschool.com.
Read More Questions
Do you have a question for Mark?
Please submit your question via email to woodalls@escapees.com
Please remember, material will be edited. Because of the large volume of material and correspondence submitted, individual replies will not be possible, nor can we acknowledge receipt of your material. Selected questions will be answered in future issues of the Diamond Club newsletter in the Mark, My Words column. The Mark, My Words column also appears in Escapees magazine, a bi–monthly publication of the Escapees RV Club. For more information visit www.escapees.com/magazine
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My Trip Journal
Follow along with RVers and travelers just like you by reading their own personal travel websites. We've selected the best websites of people who have traveled in North America. These travelers have agreed to let us feature their website. Take a look.
View this months featured personal website, Sutorka/Winsor RV Adventure or browse other locations.
 Camping Blooper
Porta Potti Blues
We had just finished a nice July weekend with our trusty Starcraft tent trailer, and I decided we'd avoid the hassle waiting in line at the park dump station to empty the porta potti (which only my wife used) and leave it until a later time. The temperature that day was in the high 90's.
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Cooking on the Road
Donn's Motorcoach Stew
Molly Chappellet
When Donn and Molly are traveling in their motorhome, Donn likes to toss all the following ingredients into his crock pot, go off for the day and come back to a beautiful one–course meal.With this full flavored stew, the winemakers recommend their intensely aromatic Merlot or their impeccably balanced Chappellet Signature Cabernet Sauvignon.
Makes four servings
| 1 lb |
beef stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1–inch cubes |
| 1 1/2 lbs |
lamb stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1–inch cubes
Flour for dredging |
| 1/2 lb |
sausage of choice, cut into bite size pieces |
| 3 cups |
unpeeled, cubed new potatoes |
| 1 |
large onion, cut into large chunks |
| 2 |
cups diced carrots |
| 1 |
28 oz can diced tomatoes |
| 1 |
14 oz can beef broth |
| 1 cup |
Chappellet red wine |
| 1/4 cup |
Herbes de Provence |
| 1/2 teasp. |
ground cinnamon |
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Dash of Tabasco sauce |
| 1 teasp. |
Lawry's or other seasonedsalt |
| 1 – 3 |
garlic cloves, crushed(optional) |
| 2 |
bay leaves |
| 2 cups |
mushrooms, trimmed and quartered |
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Freshly ground pepper to taste |
Dust the beef and lamb pieces with a little flour.
Place the meat pieces along with the sausage, potatoes, onion, carrots, tomatoes, beef broth, red wine, Herbes de Provence, cinnamon, Tabasco, seasoned salt, garlic and bay leaves in crock pot or other slow cooker. Set the timer to low and cook for about 7 hours.
Add the mushrooms to the pot and stir to combine. Cover the pot and cook for another 2 hours. |
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 Gadgets & Gear
by Bill Siuru
OPTIMA Batteries for the Tough Jobs
If the batteries in your RV, tow vehicle, towed vehicle or boat live a tough life, consider installing an Optima battery. By tough, I mean lots of vibration, high temperatures or maybe sitting idle for months.
Optima batteries are well up to the demands of an RV or 4x4 driven under extreme off–road conditions, or in a vehicle or boat used just once or twice a year. They are ideal for powering electrical accessories, lights, a high–performance stereo/AV system or electric winches. And they're just the ticket for cranking over a diesel engine in cold weather.
What distinguishes an Optima?
The answer is its Spiralcell design. Ordinary lead–acid batteries use flat lead plates, where the Spiral design features two thin lead plates tightly wound into a spiral cell. Absorbent glass mat (AGM) separators between the wound plates contain the electrolyte held like a sponge to preclude any chance of acid spillage. Cells are surrounded by durable, weather–resistant plastic, and completely welded together. Immobilized and locked–in–place plates mean improved vibration resistance.
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RV Buying Tip
Buy or sell a new RV:
When evaluating size requirements for your RV, consider privacy of the occupants as a major factor. Time spent in the unit is another important item. For very short periods of time, most of us can tolerate too little space. But as time periods extend, the amount of space required by each person increases — both in the area of comfort and privacy, and also when it comes to storage.
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Featured RV
2006 Itasca Ellipse
Price: $233,952 $169,990
Description:Brand new 40', triple slide out. Power Roofvent,Power Slide-Out Room, Hydraulic Leveling System… continued |
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