• Club News - Letter
• Club News
• RV gazette
• Classifieds

Club News

BRITISH COLUMBIA

Valley Explorers

submitted by Gerry and Sue McConnell

Hi, and once again greetings from the Valley Explorers RV Club! You are probably asking yourself “who are they”? Well, to those who might possibly be interested, we are a group of RVers from the Okanagan Valley. Look at a map of British Columbia and observe that great spine of mountains down the centre of the Province (Rocky Mountains). We all reside in areas pretty well located in the middle of those mountains. Mother nature felt sorry for us so she created a beautiful valley in the centre of the rocks that eventually became the Okanagan Valley. It is a beautiful land of plenty and we recommend that you visit. You could perhaps even stop and be a guest at one of our campouts.

Speaking of campouts, we still have a couple of them to look forward to. They are: (1) Kettle Valley RV Park, Rock Creek, BC – September 7-10. (Also a good chance to visit the world famous Rock Creek Fair.) (2) MK’MIP RV Resort, Osoyoos, BC – September 28-30 and October 1. (Good chance for we non-drinkers to visit half a dozen quality wineries.) Our RV group is active 12 months of each year. Six months of campouts, and six months of buffet gatherings complete with games. If you are interested in meeting our Club or even attending a campout, you can obtain information from Gerry and Sue McConnell at (250) 765-7023 or at email gersuemc@shaw.ca. Well folks, Sue is once again “suggesting” that I “cool it”. The Valley Explorers hope and pray that in your travels all the road signs you encounter lead you to peace, happiness, health and a good life.

ALBERTA

Alberta Wildrose Explorers

submitted by Otto and Hildegard Neitsch

By the time you read this, our 12th annual campout in Torrington, Alberta will be over. A write-up will follow in an upcoming issue of RV gazette.

MANITOBA

Manitoba Explorers

submitted by Phil Lauterer

September 17-19 we will return to Champagne’s at Lac du Bonnet. Look for a write-up about our summer rallies in a future issue.

If anyone is interested in joining our group, please call Phil at (204) 632-8551.

ONTARIO

Durham RV Club

submitted by Gary Andress

For information on our chapter, please contact me at (905) 404-9624 or e-mail at wolfeneye@rogers.com.

Happy Campers – Drayton

submitted by Mary Neumeister

Happy Campers Drayton Rally was held June 1-4, 2010. The highlight of our RV gathering had to be the awesome entertainment at our first night’s campfire. It was a perfect night for sitting around a campfire, clear, and not too cool. We had our usual entertainers, Bill McDowell, Ted Lloyd, Audrey Latsch, Claire Hermann and Gerry Hemmings with their guitars and great voices, but we also had a new couple Ken and Linda Clarke playing fiddle and guitar. To add to all this, since Claire’s musical family lives nearby, her sister, brother and mother, Anna, Brian and Clara Post along with their friend Art Miller joined us with their guitars and banjo. Clara Post is 88 and belted out her songs on her own and with the others to the campers’ delight. No one wanted to leave early and hardly noticed when the mosquitoes came around.

There were 84 at the campout with 5 new couples, Ken and Barb Heibein, Bruce and Diane McGimsie, Harry and Ruth Anne Moyer, Roger and Mary Van Neste and the Ken and Lynda. It was a good crowd but with the old ice rink, there was no problem accommodating all even when it started to rain. We just took our activities inside. Carole Atkinson organized a great trivia game and Doug Good kept us all busy organizing teams for the beanbag baseball and washer toss.

Wednesday we were delighted to again have Edith cater our roast beef dinner, and what a meal that was, complete with a choice of homemade pies. Edith and her crew sure know how to cook a meal that’s truly delicious.

Since a trip to the theatre to see “Tap Dogs” was scheduled for St Jacob’s theatre on the Thursday afternoon, most people made it a day in St Jacobs. The market was colourful with all the fresh flowers, plants, fruits and vegetables mostly put out by the Mennonite farmers. You could buy maple syrup, honey, summer sausage, various cheeses etc. and it was no problem finding a place to stop and eat a delicious lunch. “Tap Dogs” was an energetic, fascinating group of young men who tapped there way up ladders on the ceiling and never stopped moving.

Our “Texas Bluebells” joined the indoor campfires, Wednesday and Thursday with their RV songs that went over very well. Of course, there were also all the others to give us more lively entertainment.

Thanks Mary and Ken Neumeister and Jean and Ed Weiler for organizing the event. You did a great job. Three couples, Doreen and Frank Ley, Carole and Mike Atkinson, and Maureen Flynn and Paul Hynes have taken on the job of organizing the event next year back in the same location.

Happy Campers – Severn Bridge

submitted by Ursula Keck

Our annual campout at Severn Bridge Fairground will just winding down by the time you read this. Look for the write-up in a future issue of RV gazette.

Quinte Wagoneers

submitted by Janice Parker

It’s hard to believe that it is time to do another magazine article. Where has time gone? The older I get, the faster it seems to go!

The founder of our Quinte Wagoneers chapter, Wally Turner, passed away suddenly on June 8th at the age of 87. On behalf of our chapter, Lewis and I attended his funeral in Picton. A donation from our chapter was made to the Alzheimer Society in his memory. Although Wally and wife, Lee, have not been able to RV with us over the past few years, they were life time members and had their motorhome in a seasonal park in order to continue RVing.

Prior to the June camp, 6 or 7 of the group met at Presqu’ile Provincial Park in Brighton for several days. A couple of our members were going in, so others joined in once word got around.

Our camp in June was held at Golden Beach RV Resort and we had a record attendance! There were seventeen of our member units and one guest unit from Hamilton area as they were in the area for the weekend. Many of us arrived on Thursday and most set up in the pouring rain. One good thing came of it though, we changed into dry clothing and then went to their restaurant for coffee and/or dinner. Later in the evening, the sun came out and treated us to a spectacular sunset before the rain returned once again. It cleared up nicely for the rest of the weekend and we managed to have all of our activities outdoors. We basically followed our standard format for the remainder of the weekend. We had a quick meeting on Saturday after the potluck as not a lot to discuss at this point. Again, many stayed over until Monday or Tuesday as it is such a great park. So, on Sunday over 20 of us went to the restaurant for dinner. (We kind of took over the place.) It was great to have someone else do the cooking and cleanup!

We will have held our next campout at Adolphustown and finished up at Double M RV Resort by the time you read this article. After that, our remaining scheduled campouts are as follows:

• September 16-19 - National Rally, Cherry Valley/Picton
• September 17-19 - Hanson’s Wilderness Retreat, Elginburg (no services camp)
• October 1-3 - Quinte’s Isle Campark, Cherry Valley/Picton
• October ? - Hanson’s Wilderness Retreat (to be confirmed)

Hopefully everyone is enjoying a wonderful RVing season despite all the rain we have had to date this year.

South Eastern Ontario Explorers

submitted by Elizabeth McDonald

Our first campout for the 2010 season was well attended and all are well on their way to enjoying an adventurous summer season. Our new meeting place at North Shore Park proved absolutely fantastic. The owners were very accommodating and our group was able to enjoy the hot spell in May. The pool proved to be a popular spot and enabled us to cool off from the extreme heat. What would a campout be without an evening fire to enjoy the past winter tales and reacquaint our friendships. We were pleased to have two new visiting couples with us. We enjoyed our potluck in the community hall. The food was very tasty and plentiful.

Some of our members attended the Jamboree in Marmora in June and the Hollyrood Jamboree in July in Corbyville. Two couples are travelling to the Maritimes for July, and others will be enjoying our excellent adjacent RV Parks.

The Morrisburg Old Home Week, with all its exceptional activities, will be well attended by a large group of our Club members. It includes a steak supper, Antique car show, Tubie race and many other site seeing adventures. The St. Lawrence River is a great area of beauty and offers many places to see and explore as well as providing ample availability for camping. We will not be bored with so much to keep us vibrant and active.

The Explorer RV Club National Rally at Cherry Valley, which is right in our own backyard, will be well attended by our members. Making contact with other clubs and meeting people from across the country will be a very rewarding experience. It is a wonderful time and opportunity to be able to share time together and swap information re other RVers experiences.

SEOX group would be pleased to welcome any new inquiries and RVers to our group. I am located at the following e-mail address eliz.mcdonald15@gmail.com and am available to answer any possible questions. Please join us for any of our outings. Hope your summer is filled with fun and laughter.

Southwestern Ontario Chapter

submitted by Peter Summers

We now have had 2 tremendous outings for the year highlighted by plenty of rainfall. Our May excursion was outside the darling little town of Petrolia. We arrived later in the day as the wine and cheese was being served, which the writer alas was unable to attend due to problems with the RV. Everyone was having a great time catching up on the winter’s tales and ports of destination while meeting with the new club members. The rain did not co-operate for the event and everyone went scurrying for cover. It turns out the campground was on a field of clay and as it rained the ground got soggier. Next morning, we awoke to see small lakes of water over our area and many of the RVs slowly sinking into the mud. Rain decided to bless us on this day as well as it ruined our day of planned games. Those who braved the inclement weather talked in small groups or toured the local area on their own. The potluck supper was the highlight of the day as the entire group met under shelter to enjoy one another’s company. On the Wednesday morning, we met under shelter to attend a breakfast on a bun event put together by the campout hosts. Later that afternoon, most attended a fascinating tour of The Petrolia Discovery, a museum with working oil wells. Who knew that Canada was the first to figure out how to drill for oil or that our expertise was exported around the world! Later that evening, we all attended a restaurant referred to as ‘Actors Casual Dining’ in Petrolia since Petrolia has a playhouse that unfortunately opened after our outing. Thursday was “so long” day, and after coffee and goodbye wishes, we had to leave. Some had to be towed out by others with four-wheel drive vehicles, while those in dire circumstances had to be towed from the mud by a large tractor owned by the campground.

The rain was still a theme at our next outing held at the beautiful Woodland Park in Sauble Beach. It was less officious this time as we were able to hold our campfires at night. The campout hosts welcomed arrivals at the chapter tents set up in a central location. Members were welcome to use the heated swimming pool and many took advantage. Wine and cheese was the central event of the day followed by a well-attended campfire that night. On Tuesday, many took the time to explore the area, including Sauble Beach and Sauble Falls, as well as hiking the nearby Fairy Lake trail. That evening, our special potluck dinner produced a bountiful repast enjoyed by all, followed by our nightly campfire. Rain was the topic of discussion on the Wednesday as it eliminated the planned games in the afternoon so we all gathered for dinner at a local restaurant, where service was slow, giving lots of time for kibitzing. Departure days bring your own coffee event was brief as everyone had to leave their campsite by 10:00 am (the rules of the campground).

By the time you read this we will have had out campout at Red Oak Travel Park near Tillsonburg and at Mitchell’s Bay Marine Park Campground near Chatham.

September 27-30, 2010 our campout is at Cathcart Park, 2959 St. Clair Parkway, Sombra, near Sarnia. Hosts are Velma Anderson, Connie Swales, Charlie and Martha Knight. October fest is the theme for this event.

For more information, please e-mail me at psum1115@sympatico.ca.

NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR

Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter

submitted by Victoria Pennell

“Go Canada Go!” This was the theme for the first rally of the Newfoundland Labrador Chapter, which took place from June 18-20, 2010, at the Harold W. Duffett Shriners’ Park, in Eastport. The theme was chosen in an effort to capitalize on the Canadian spirit that swept the country during the Olympics. The wagonmasters for this event were Linda and Dave Reeves and Gerry and Doreen Noseworthy. There were 28 units in attendance from our Club, one guest couple, our two honorary members and 4 couples from the Newfound Chapter, for a total of 68 RVers, eager to kick off the camping season.

The rally got underway with a Meet and Greet at the Recreation Centre on Friday evening. Campers arrived, sporting their reds and whites, in all sorts of Canadian regalia and certainly in a fun mood, which set the tone for the rest of the weekend. The wagonmasters provided a wonderful spread of veggie, fruit and cheese trays, as well as a few choice beverages, as everyone mixed and mingled and caught up on all the news and events of the winter. There was a welcome from President Tom Kieley to members and guests with a wish for a terrific weekend. Then, to the shouts of “Go Canada Go” from emcee and wagonmaster, Dave, a few instructions were given regarding sign-up sheets for participation in the games on Saturday, and the “Help Required” sheet, with the list of names and assigned tasks, requesting members’ assistance throughout the weekend.

Following all this fun and frolic, the instruments came out and a wonderful evening singalong began. Musicians and singers Dan Green, Andy and Pat Leonard, Una Joseph, Joe McIsaac, Merrill Rogers and Doreen Noseworthy lead the group in many wonderful renditions of old (and not so old) favourite tunes, with a few jokes and stories thrown in for good measure. A great time was had by all.

Saturday started around 10:30 in the morning with a new game, “Softball Homerun Derby”, introduced to the Club by Dan Green and Joe Southwell. Around noon, a BBQ of hot dogs and hamburgers was served for lunch. During this time, it was announced that there would be a ticket raffle on beautiful prizes, donated by some of our sponsors, in aid of The Shriners’ and their many good works. This was followed by an afternoon of games of horseshoes, ring toss and cribbage. Time passes so quickly when you’re having fun and, before we knew it, it was time to dash back to the RVs for a shower, etc., in preparation for cocktail hour and dinner.

Around six o’clock, we all gathered, once again, at the recreation centre, to be treated to a lovely cocktail hour with liquid refreshments and hors d’oeuvres, followed by a wonderful BBQ of steaks or chicken, baked potatoes, salads, mushrooms and onions. For dessert, there were two large, beautiful cakes with “Happy Fathers’ Day” written on each, in honour of all the dads. Then there was the presentation of awards and prizes for the winners of the games. Ambassadors, Doreen and Gerry Noseworthy, brought greetings on behalf of National and wished everyone a safe and enjoyable summer. This was followed by a dance, with music provided by Pete Seaward, manager of the park. We danced the night away and returned to our units around midnight to rest up for the next day.

Sunday morning, from 10:30 to 11:30, we all gathered for our Gospel Sing. We had extended an invitation to all campers in the park to come join us for this event. There was quite a turnout! During the proceedings, we passed “the basket” and collected for our “Loonies for Cancer” from all those present. This was followed by a delicious potluck lunch, some well-wishes for a great summer, and a few parting words of thanks from our wagonmasters to all those who helped, in any way, to make the first rally of the season run as smoothly as it did. A special note of thanks was given to our sponsors for their kind support of this rally, as well as for their continued support of our Club. These local sponsors are as follows: Molson Brewery, Islander RV, Exxon Mobile, Downhome, Triple E, Country Trailer Sales, Mobile Trailer Sales, Johnson Inc., Ashford Sales, Coastal Marine, Maloney’s RV, Labatt’s Brewery, Survival Perk, as well as Betty and Tom Kieley.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are not certain, at this point in time, when or where the next rally will be. However, we do know that the AGM and last rally of the season will take place in Pouch Cove, on the weekend of September 17-19, 2010, hosted by Vicki and Wayne Pennell and it will have a Mexican theme. So get your sombreros ready and we’ll see you there. Adios, for now!

For further information concerning our Club and its activities, please contact Victoria Pennell at vpennell@nl.rogers.com.

Newfound Chapter

submitted by Herb Dowden

After an excellent winter for those of us who wanted very little snow in Newfoundland and Labrador, we were ready and excited to start our planned Caravan Trip for 2010 across our Island. We all met in the Shrines’ Park in Eastport and started on Friday night with a singalong with everyone showing their musical talents. Some members from the Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter were also there. We had a meet and greet party on Saturday night followed by a dance. We had a buffet breakfast on Sunday morning, followed by a Gospel singalong, continuing with games in the afternoon. Monday, the Caravan of nearly twenty units headed out to Gander. In the afternoon, we celebrated Joe and Betty Southwell and Bob and Betty’s Healey’s Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary. The Royal Canadian Legion catered to a lovely roast beef dinner. Afterwords we sat back and enjoyed a leisurely evening telling jokes and reminiscing about times past.

On Wednesday morning, we left for Twilllingate and on July 1st, Canada Day we had a lobster boil with music and dancing. Joining us in our celebrations were people from the Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter and also people from Alberta, Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia, the United States and Poland. There were fifteen people screeched in as honorary Newfoundlanders by Max Baldwin and David Boland. Eating peppermint nobs was sweet but I can’t say the same for having to kiss a cod fish. Afterwards, each person was presented with an official certificate making them an Honorary Newfoundlander.

Keith and Cathy Adams celebrated their 33rd Wedding Anniversary on July 2nd. In the evening, sixteen members went to the dinner theatre “All around the Circle”.

On July 3rd, we had a lovely roast beef dinner presented by the Masonic ladies, followed by a wonderful singalong with Karen Churchill on her guitar accompanied by Max Baldwin on the ugly stick.

July 4th was a quiet day around the park ending with 12 to 14 people going out for a feed of fish and chips.

On July 5th, we headed out to Grand Falls where everyone went out for Chinese food at a restaurant. On July 6th, we all had a quiet day in the park.

On July 7th, thirteen units set out for Rocky Harbour in Gros Morne National Park and all arrived safely. On July 8th, some people went for hikes while others just had a leisurely day shopping in the local craft stores. The men went to the fish plant and purchased fresh Cod fillets and cooked up a lovely dinner. A campfire was planned for later that night.

We went to the Anchors Aweigh show on July 9th.

July 10th, a Jigs dinner was planned and on July11th a buffet breakfast in the morning. Then on July 12th, seven units left for Corner Brook then on to Burgeo, and four units headed to the northern peninsula and L’Anse aux Meadows. All who participated in the caravan had an excellent time and were sad to see it winding down. Our Newfoundland scenery is beautiful and the pristine air makes everything worthwhile and most enjoyable.

For additional Club information, contact Herb Dowden at hsdowden@nf.sympatico.ca.