See you at the Oldsmar Flea Market!

It seems I have this “thing” about keeping busy so for “fun” this Winter I decided to open up “shop” at the Oldsmar Flea Market in Oldsmar, Florida (with Niki’s permission of course).

It’s all about Gadgets, Gizmos and Fixin’s for RVs, RVers and Campers. We have gathered quite a quantity of items over these past eight years on the road – some products sent to us to try out and talk about and other things we thought we’d just like to have in our RV. Well actually this is our fourth RV in that time period so the quantity of good “stuff” has grown exponentially.

As I said, some items are brand new and some are used but none are abused. Everything from a Panda washing machine and a Soft Cell Water Softener to Pro-Flex Caulk and Eternabond Roof Repair Tape and all kinds of things in between.

Everything is half price or less!

Whether you have an interest, a particular need or just want to stop by to say hello and talk about RVing, Workamping or our favorite Snowbird Routes I’d like to meet you…. So Come on Down!

I’ll be set up in G32 West on Saturdays and Sundays 9 – 4 for the next three months.

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Mount St. Helens RV Site Hosts Needed for 2017 – 11/7/16

Recreation Site Hosts play a big part in supporting not just the visitors who travel to Mount St. Helens each year, but also to Forest Service operations staff, who help keep facilities clean and available to everyone. The Forest Service does not run overnight campgrounds on the mountain, so we rely on site hosts to fulfill this role a bit differently than a traditional campground host. Recreation site hosts help by assisting operation staff, taking care of the grounds around visitor areas, and talking with guests at information centers. This volunteer assignment gives individuals a stipend of $15 per day in return for their time spent on the mountain as a host.

Currently, we’re looking for Recreation Site Hosts for the following areas on Mount St. Helens:

Pine Creek Information Station, Hwy 90, Cougar, WA 98616

Required Qualifications:

• Excellent customer service skills & a willingness to be flexible, and help out where needed.
• At least 18 years old.
• Have access to reliable transportation and either RV or trailer living quarters.
• Poses current motor home and car insurance that meets Washington state minimums for liability coverage.
• Willingness to work independently, in remote areas.

Time Commitment:
Site hosts must be able to make a minimum of a 30 day commitment between May and October.

Recruitment Information:

For each site, we try to cover the entire summer season with one, or a combination of multiple site hosts. We begin recruiting and interviewing candidates in the fall and continue until we have filled all availabilities.

Recruitment begins September and ends once all available sites are filled.

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Do you have further questions about being a Site Host? Please email Allison Watson, the Volunteer Programs Manager for the Mount St. Helens Institute: awatson@mshinstitute.org. Or go to our website: www.mshinstitute.org

 

What I did on My Summer RV Vacation (and maybe you should too?)

I do a visual inspection of the outside of our 5th Wheel at least a couple of times each year. I’m looking for screws that show rust and also caulk that is missing or in need of repair. I heard someone say there are a thousand screws holding the outside of a trailer together and I am leaning toward believing it – there are a lot of screws!

RV Water Leak Prevention
Visual Inspection and Repairs
Part I – Dealing with rusty screws
How we do it and the parts and tools we use…. on our website at
http://www.snowbirdrvtrails.com/rvleakprevention.htm

Upcoming: In Part II we’ll deal with making the ugly job of caulk removal and replacement on an RV easier and the end job looking more aesthetic when finished.

In Part III we’ll discuss the many “fun” uses for “Eternabond” and other rig-saving RV tapes. Move over duct tape you have some fine competitors in the RV world!

Ahoy Snowbirds! Winter fun ahead….

Learn to build your own fishing kayak

Bedard Yacht Design in Tarpon Springs sells DIY boat kits & plans but now also offers Boat-Building Workshops and Build-Along. The workshops are evening classes intended as a leisurely and fun introduction to small-boat building. The students will collectively build a fishing kayak kit for hands-on experience.

The Build-Along is a 40-hour/one-week seminar where each student builds his/her own boat under the guidance of an instructor.

Classes: Oct 16, Dec 16, Jan 17, Feb 17 & Mar 17
Registration: 727-488-4573
or visit us at:
www.bedardyachtdesign.com/boatbuilding-workshops-build-along/

News Release to snowbirdrvtrails.com 8/18/16

Opportunity at Weeki Wachee

DEP SEEKS PARTNER FOR VISITOR SERVICES AT WEEKI WACHEE SPRINGS STATE PARK

~Department seeks provider for additional services at busy state park~

WHAT:       Required Onsite Meeting for Potential Concessionaires

WHEN:       Tuesday, May 24, 2016
9:30 a.m.

WHERE:    Weeki Wachee Springs State Park
6131 Commercial Way
Weeki Wachee, FL 34606

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Florida Park Service has released a call for business plans seeking a concessionaire at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park. Possible services may include food and beverage services, recreational equipment rentals, merchandise sales and special event offerings.

Interested parties must attend the mandatory onsite meeting to be eligible to submit a proposal. Proposals must be submitted no later than June 23 at 5 p.m.

In fiscal year 2014-15, 390,305 people visited Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, which features world-famous mermaid shows, a river boat cruise, canoeing, kayaking and swimming. Visitors also enjoy Buccaneer Bay water park during the summer months.

To register for the mandatory meeting or to submit questions in advance, please email Duncan.Graham@dep.state.fl.us by May 23 at 5 p.m.

For more information, please click here.

Grandma they want you in the kitchen!

My name is Costa Nicolas and I’m a Casting Associate for Clash of The Grandmas, a cooking competition show on Food Network.

We are currently casting for an upcoming season of our show that will feature grandmothers competing to win a large cash prize. Last year our winner received $10,000! I would love to find some wonderful culinary grandmothers who can represent their hometowns in our upcoming season of the show. In the past grandmothers working at culinary schools, restaurants, bakeries, community centers, home goods stores, etc. have done well on our show.

We absolutely love personal referrals so it’s my job to get the word out about our show early!

Please feel free to pass this email on.

Please address all emails to Costa cnicolas@leg-corp.com

About the show:

“Four grandmas enter, but only one will emerge as champion in Clash of the Grandmas! Whatever grandma says or does is culinary law, and in this competition, four grandma super-cooks will prove they have what it takes to put together the most delicious meal imaginable. Our judges will determine which granny’s comfort food is worth $10,000.”

 

Best,

Costa Nicolas

310-417-4874

Levity Entertainment Group

direct:  424-702-3887 main:  310-417-4800

email: grandmothercasting@leg-corp.com

For additional information or to reach me at the production company offices via phone, please call 310-417-4800.

Received by Snowbird RV Trails – 21 Apr 16

Build Your Bicycle RV – 1938

Throwback Thursday:
Science and Mechanics Magazine – June, 1938

and what would a good how-to magazine be without its AWESOME GADGET page!

Be sure to “Follow” us because after you build your Bicycle RV we’ll have many more old articles of possible interest for you and other RVers.
Source: Science and Mechanics June, 1938

You’ll find more interesting (we’re trying) stuff on our
Webpage – http://www.snowbirdrvtrails.com/
Pinterest – https://www.pinterest.com/snowbirdrvtrail/
Google+ – https://plus.google.com/+JackArmstrongsnowbirdrv
…and yes we do buy, sell and collect old books, manuals and ephemera.

http://www.passportamerica.com/netid/sno_902

A LOOK BACK at the future of RVing!

Remember the fun of looking forward to your Dad’s or Grandad’s monthly issue of Popular Science or Mechanics magazines to read about the newest inventions and predictions for the future? It’s also great fun to take a look back and see which brainstorms and inventions from the past have actually made it into our present day and which ones really didn’t stand the test of time.We are going to add some RV history articles each “Throwback Thursday”. Click any of the photos to enlarge to readable size.

Science and Mechanics Magazine – August 1960

Niki and I are avid readers. We buy, sell, collect and enjoy out-of-print books, magazines and ephemera we find in our East Coast & Mid-West RV travels. We have done some research in the large quantity of early magazines we purchased at a sale this past Summer. Included were many issues of older Science and Mechanics Magazines with some great RV articles like the main articles in this issue.

Build your own truck camper for $100!
Complete plans & build instructions in the magazine.
Source: Science and Mechanics magazine – August, 1960

Look it’s a truck camper – no, it’s a cabin cruiser!

Some other can’t miss inventions from August, 1960

As mentioned on the magazine cover, this magazine has the full, fold-out blueprints for building an “Underwater Metal Detector” and a “Sport Powercycle with Sidecar”.  All of our books and magazines are available for purchase.

More articles next Thursday,

Jack & Niki
http://www.snowbirdrvtrails.com/
http://www.northwoodsbookshop.com/.

Best WiFi Booster Antenna for RVers? Making life on the road a little easier department!

Best WiFi Antenna for RVers?

Niki and I have a need to be able to access the Internet pretty much on a 24/7 basis. As you know, many campgrounds and RV parks advertise “Free WiFi” – and they do have it – but being able to access it is quite another matter. Maybe the fine print says “access it from the office porch or activity center” or maybe it’s a question of where you are in the campground in relation to the main transmitter or repeater stations.

We did our research, made our selection based on over 200 reviews. purchased it and put it to the test on our latest RV Route. You can see our review with some pros, cons and pics on our website at http://www.snowbirdrvtrails.com/bestwifiboosterantenna.htm. -Jack & Niki