First attempt with the smoker

My new smoker arrived last Thursday. I got it assembled and burned in. Today I tried it out with a big brisket. I used two different rubs on it. 

 Both seasonings tasted very good, and both were very tender and juicy. A very tasty dinner tonight.

two chairs done

 We finished up two of the four chairs this week. The old chair is on the left and refinished one on the right. The back now matches the table and looks nice. Two down and two more to go! 

Camper is ready for winter

Heather gave me a hand yesterday covering the camper with the tarp I got for it. It seems to be about the right size. 

I picked up another pack of bungies this morning to finish strapping it all down. Kind of sad putting it away for the winter , but it will be used again soon.
 

South Carolina trip/ Marianne's wedding

Natalie and I got back yesterday from a trip to South Carolina for Marianne and Trenton's wedding. It was at a converted fish camp. The views were lovely as well as the venue.

Marianne and Trenton at the reception. We wish them health and happiness for all the years to come.

I managed to snag a picture of Allen and Marianne as the reception was ending. I think Allen was the furthest traveling guest at the wedding. He is heading west on vacation right after this.
 

Bedroom wall/window finished up

A while ago, the window had leaked and started rotting the frame. I tore out the wet drywall then, but this was the first chance I had to rebuild it. I finished tearing out the old frame and pulled the window out, then started putting in new framing.

After I put new top and bottom sills in, I put the window back in place so I could get rid of the plastic over the hole in the wall and sealed it in. 

The bottom sill and framework took longer because of the wiring. I replaced the plug while I was working there, and used a better box and new outlet.

I still had some insulation left over from the living room addition, so I put all new insulation in. Some of the old had gotten wet when it leaked. Replacing it was the best course of action.

The first piece of drywall is put up. 

It looks better already!

I had to split the bottom piece into two. All of the pieces I had left were 1/2" too short to use as a single piece. Murphy's Law is still in effect, I suppose.

The top piece was nice and simple. I'll get to the mudding when I can. We've got a prior comittment for this weekend. I also resealed the drip edge on the roof, just to be sure it won't leak again.

Bent steps replaced

Yesterday morning, I got the old, bent steps pulled off with a little help from Herman the sledgehammer. They didn't really want to come off, but we talked them into it.

I did some internet searching and found some options. Then, I called the RV place I usually deal with and he said he could get them and have them here by this morning. He was true to his promise. The price was even the same.

I picked them up and got them installed after a trip to the hardware store. They don't come with fasteners, so I upgraded to stainless steel hardware. I think the steps are even the same brand as the old ones. All the bolt holes lined up easily.
 

Camper upgrades/repairs

 

I started the repairs on the wheel bearings yesterday. Allen and I had just gotten a pair of replacements at Tractor Supply in Maine. We simply swapped out the blown one and we continued on. I installed the other one yesterday, but neglected to put in a brake spring. So this morning, I re-did both of the hubs. I had also discovered some missing parts from the initial replacement and found and replaced them this morning.  

The left side went a lot smoother, mostly because I knew what parts were supposed to be where. The third hub is finished here.

I know it's kind of messy for a workspace, but it's in the driveway and I was moving all the tools and supplies over to the left side.

The last hub to be rebuilt. All of them got new inner and outer wheel bearings, a new grease seal, and a fresh grease packing.

All 4 wheels are ready to roll. We have a couple of weddings to attend this month, one in Ohio and one in South Carolina. The steps were also damaged when the wheel came off. I'll start the repairs on them tomorrow.

I'll keep the hub that is in the box. It wasn't damaged. That way I'll have a back-up, just in case I need it. Getting them already assembled is convenient, but quite expensive. 

This is our campsite in Ohio when we started the trip. I missed getting it put up on the last post. This campground was a lot more rowdy than any we have been to so far.

Trip to Pennsylvania, Maine and New York

After leaving Ohio, we stopped at Jay and Debbie's PA house. We went to the PA grand canyon as one of our stops.

It is a beautiful place, even though it plays second fiddle to the other one in Arizona.

Many thanks to Jay and Debbie for showing us around!

We also stopped at the Austin Dam Memorial. Many years ago, the dam burst and the local brothel madam saw it happening and started calling as many people in town as she could to warn them.

This gives some size reference to the wall of water that flooded the town.

Then we were off to Maine and Acadia National Park. We went through several smaller fishing villages.

It was low tide when we arrived. We came back by this bay the next day and it was all water.

We stopped at the Sand Beach, the only one in Maine, according to brochures. The water was in the low 50's and we decided to not swim in it.

We walked up the path to Otter Cliff and Otter Point. Beautiful overlooks all along the way.

After a rescue (camper wheel bearing failure) and a couple days with Allen, we headed to New York. We looked around Argyle and went to the Adirondac Museum at Blue Mountain Lake. Some of the trees were starting to turn. We also took a cruise on Lake George. It was a great trip.
 

Trying again

Heather and I went over to Greyson Lake to go fishing this morning. It went a lot better than when we tried on Tuesday. (The boat battery was dead) I replaced it and we went today. There was still a little bit of fog rising off the water when we got there.

We had a beautiful day, even though the fish weren't biting really hard. We caught a few and even brought one home to eat.

I went for a swim and washed the boat while we were there. The water was 82 and quite nice.
 

Short trip to Ceasars Creek

Natalie and I went to Ceasars Creek campground this weekend. She had a birthday party for Wyatt (her son) on Saturday. Our site was the back of loop A, and it really was in the back of the campground.

Looking out from under the awning on one side.

And the other side. There was a hiking trail off to the left, but it wasn't used much. Bicycles and horses were not allowed on it.

Nobody behind us, either. Just a nice wooded patch.

This was from the closest camper to us. The downside to having the quietest site was the distance to the showers and restrooms. We filled the camper water tank on the way in, so we had water. Ohio state campgrounds don't seem to have on-site water like Kentucky's do. Next trip is in 3 weeks!
 

Camping trip to Pennyrile State Park

This was our campsite at Pennyrile State Park this past weekend. It is a smaller campground and it wasn't very crowded while we were there.

 They made a shallow bay into a beach. We went swimming there on Friday. The beach is only open to campers during the week.

 

 There was a boat dock with rentals of canoes, rowboats and kyacks. We rented a pair of kyacks and paddled around the lake. It's a small lake and motors on the boats are not allowed. We easily went all around the lake in an hour. It's a very pretty lake.

 

 This is the view we had looking the other way from our site. We did eventually get another camper in the site there behind us and the front corner was fairly full. Here in the middle it was quiet.

 

 Saturday we went to the restaurant at the lodge. Limited menu, but what we ordered tasted good. The view of the lake from our table was also quite nice.

 

 When we were leaving the restaurant, we noticed this sign. I went back inside to inquire about it. It seems the event was around the end of June, so we had missed it. It might have been very interesting to know about it ahead of time.