Trip Report!
Posted: Wed Aug 28, 2019 8:49 am
Trip Report!
This August, I took my fickle 1969 bus, my patient wife and my two rambunctious kids on an epic (to us) two week road trip. What could go wrong? Nothing, as it turns out! We had a wonderful adventure. We traveled 1750 miles, from northern NJ to Edisto Island, SC and back, zig zagging through beach towns and state parks along the coast.
We found great beach camping at Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware, Kiptopeke State Park and First Landing State Park in Virginia, and Edisto Beach State Park in South Carolina. The beach towns of North Carolina are laid back and fun, especially Ocean Isle and Kure Beach.
The kids saw sea turtles hatching, got devoured by mosquitoes, spied an alligator in the marshes and were generally intoxicated by the experience. The wife was an expert navigator, an ambitious camper and didn't flinch (well, maybe a little) when she got a massive jellyfish sting!
The bus behaved swimmingly! A couple of glitches here and there, but nothing that arrested our progress. It was hot as Hades, humid as a steam bath. But we love the heat, and apparently, the bus does as well. We packed way too much stuff and I was worried for the first few days that the weight of all of us, our crap and ambient temps were going to cause us problems. But whether it was 70 or 100 degrees, the bus chugged along, without much variation in performance.
To wit, vital stats:
Avg CHT between 350 and 400, with a couple of peaks to 425
Avg oil temp 180 to 210, with a few peaks to 220, maybe 225
Avg 18 MPG
Driving time per day - no more than 4 hours, except one 5 hour marathon.
I chose the right path down the coast, mostly two lane rural roads (Routes 13, 17, etc) where I could maintain 55 MPH, 60 max. Perfect bus driving!
And, behold, I passed 2 vehicles! One was an old lady driving 25 in a 55 mph zone and one was a tractor that was belching smoke.
To do: adjust the rear brakes, check valve clearances, change the oil, sweep out all the sand and plan the next journey!
Thanks to all for your expertise as we prepared for the trip, especially when our alternator crapped out just before take-off.
James
This August, I took my fickle 1969 bus, my patient wife and my two rambunctious kids on an epic (to us) two week road trip. What could go wrong? Nothing, as it turns out! We had a wonderful adventure. We traveled 1750 miles, from northern NJ to Edisto Island, SC and back, zig zagging through beach towns and state parks along the coast.
We found great beach camping at Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware, Kiptopeke State Park and First Landing State Park in Virginia, and Edisto Beach State Park in South Carolina. The beach towns of North Carolina are laid back and fun, especially Ocean Isle and Kure Beach.
The kids saw sea turtles hatching, got devoured by mosquitoes, spied an alligator in the marshes and were generally intoxicated by the experience. The wife was an expert navigator, an ambitious camper and didn't flinch (well, maybe a little) when she got a massive jellyfish sting!
The bus behaved swimmingly! A couple of glitches here and there, but nothing that arrested our progress. It was hot as Hades, humid as a steam bath. But we love the heat, and apparently, the bus does as well. We packed way too much stuff and I was worried for the first few days that the weight of all of us, our crap and ambient temps were going to cause us problems. But whether it was 70 or 100 degrees, the bus chugged along, without much variation in performance.
To wit, vital stats:
Avg CHT between 350 and 400, with a couple of peaks to 425
Avg oil temp 180 to 210, with a few peaks to 220, maybe 225
Avg 18 MPG
Driving time per day - no more than 4 hours, except one 5 hour marathon.
I chose the right path down the coast, mostly two lane rural roads (Routes 13, 17, etc) where I could maintain 55 MPH, 60 max. Perfect bus driving!
And, behold, I passed 2 vehicles! One was an old lady driving 25 in a 55 mph zone and one was a tractor that was belching smoke.
To do: adjust the rear brakes, check valve clearances, change the oil, sweep out all the sand and plan the next journey!
Thanks to all for your expertise as we prepared for the trip, especially when our alternator crapped out just before take-off.
- IMG_2898.jpg (1.05 MiB) Viewed 9016 times
- IMG_2892.jpg (1.71 MiB) Viewed 9016 times
- IMG_2889.JPG (1.77 MiB) Viewed 9016 times