Pullin' Chocks

2016 East Coast Loop

We won't actually complete the 2016 Loop until December 31, 2016.  The last day of the year is the day we plan to move from Sun City (Phoenix, AZ area) to Yuma, AZ our last stop for the remainder of winter.  At the end of the loop we will have towed 7,624 miles, and approximately the same or a little more distance in the truck alone exploring each area we visited and completing the usual errands that we all have to do.  The original concept for the 2016 Loop included 6,795 miles, we ended up adding about 600 miles to that!

We also added a few more States Visited on this year's loop, and we generated a U.S. Map to represent and celebrate that accomplishment.  It isn't a simple thing to drive and tow 30,000 lbs of truck and trailer over the many road and topographical conditions.  With reasonable planning, preventive and corrective maintenance, lots of lubrication and plenty of luck, it's a piece of cake!  Another important point to mention, even though we have colored in many of the states, we have barely seen a fraction of what they have to offer in many of them.  While the drive through gave us a fine idea and feel for the general landscape of a state, at least in the regions we drove through, we still have much more to visit and see in most all of the places we have traveled.  And some of the great places we want a return visit!  There is just simply not enough time.

The States we added this year include: Arkansas, Tennessee, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Colorado and Utah.  We will need a Do Over for Indiana as we didn't actually stop in that State, we drove through a small part of the northeast corner en-route from Ohio to Michigan.  Many RVers travel and stop in Indiana for expert repairs and upgrades.  For many years most of the RV manufacturers were located in Indiana.  That also gave rise to many support products originating in the same area.  We are certain we will seek service for our triple MorRyde IS Axles... probably in 2018.

Below is the final map of our 2016 East Coast Loop.  We made many small changes from the original vision, but we expected that.  The changes are one aspect that keeps this journey always exciting, because we just really don't know quite what to expect.  We wanted to stay in Austin Texas for a week, but couldn't find a spot within 100 miles so we stopped in San Antonio, Texas and that turned out to be a fun filled stop.  We originally planned to drive straight to Wisconsin from Kentucky, but changed our thinking at the last minute and went up into Michigan and her Upper Peninsula.  That turned out to be probably the best change and surprise we made on this entire loop.  Directly below we have a map of what actually occurred, and the original vision is included right below the actual for comparison purposes.

The Original Concept for the 2016 East Coast Loop below.

In the meantime we will finish out 2016 in Sun City, AZ where we do our annual doctor and dentist visits.  That fun has already started.  This year we both get our new prescription sunglasses, and good thing because Steve left his current pair at the bottom of the Bass Pond at Island Resort on the Eastern Shore this summer.  We have our eye exams in Sun City and buy our glasses in Yuma, AZ  just after the first of the year.

We watched the preparation of the Antares 0A-5 with great anticipation from here in Sun City, and the launch on streaming live video with great excitement and glee!  What a beautiful launch that was!  Congratulations to all of the men and women supporting our great Space Program that were involved with that mission.  Go USA!