Jonathan was up first and rode to the closest coffee shop for a coffee and cinnamon bun. When he got back, we left the kiddos and went for showers, then packed up the rig / dumped the sani / and signed out on the clipboard before 9:30am. Antoine was very clear that we must sign the clipboard when we sign out or management dings us $40. Eek. We had nice clear directions in our Liberty RV park folder on how to get back onto the I-95 with our rig. Getting out of Jersey City was definitely a lot easier than getting into Jersey City! We were concerned about getting onto the highway and needing diesel so we stopped at a Sunoco in Cranbury, NJ to fill up (114975km) and back onto the hwy. The tolling system on these highways has been pretty eye-opening. New Jersey seems particularly toll-happy. We had barely driven on the I-95 when we got dinged with a $31 toll - the highest yet.
Jonathan had been calling around to over 18 places trying to arrange an oil change for the rig. Apparently people didn't drive or own RV's around here because it was proving very difficult. The mechanic he had called at the Jiffy Lube in Vineland said they had 15ft bay openings and could accommodate us. Got to Vineland around 12:15pm only to find out that depsite the bay doors being tall, they had to hoist the rig up and couldn't fit it inside when they did that. Hugely disappointing. Drove over to the nearby Walmart and got groceries, while Jonathan tried to contact some other mechanics in the area, leaving there around 2pm. Jay had a lead on BiggRiggs in Allorey and had to call the AutoZone to order the parts we'd need and have them delivered to B.R.
We drove from there to find our Harvest Host: Calumet Run Horse Farm in Woodstown. Cute little town with lots of fall and halloween decorations put up along the sides of the streets. Very appealing.
2:30pm we pulled into Calumet Farm but no one seemed to be around except a german shorthaired pointer and a very angry rottweiler. We parked and waited a minute or two, but no one was around. I thought maybe the dog would calm down a bit if I got out, but no such luck... he came bounding over barking his head off and baring teeth at me so I had to get back in the car, being careful not to turn my back on it. Yikes! not an awesome welcome! I messaged the Harvest Host to let them know we were here and that the rottie was not happy about it. Jonathan had a lead on BiggRiggs mechanics not far from here and so we decided to leave and come back later when hopefully the owner was home and the dog would be put inside. We drove over to BiggRiggs, strange spot on a big property in the farmland, and met Joe, a very tough looking dude who was the only mechanic there with a huge shop and a yard with several semi trucks parked around. Parts weren't there and we were told to come back in the morning.
We drove back to the farm to find that the dog had been put inside (her son was home briefly and we think we saw him leave as we were about to pull in). With Thor put away, we were safe to park and have a peek around at the chickens and very fancy geese. Once we got out, we noticed someone was in the barn and walked over to have a look. A very friendly woman was there helping the farrier who was trimming a horse's hooves and we told her we were there for the Harvest Host. She was super nice and the kids and I watched the horse get worked on and petted all the welcoming little cats that wandered over to say hello. She comes out to the farm to help Taryn (owner) feed the animals, and she said that the Harvest Host guests usually park beside the barn/tree so we tucked in there beside a senior white horse (with a "fifth leg" haha, two donkeys, and a little bitey pony).
It was a nice sunny but cool afternoon and around 4:30pm when we rolled up and parked and got settled. We got the chairs out and sat by the rig and read while Ollie played on the swing in the tree beside us and Amelia built straw/star connector structures on the picnic table (she put the picnic blanket on the table because there was too much random goose poop on the grass). The little cats (10 of them total, apparently) came over and investigated the newcomers and were VERY curious about the structures Meems was building and wanted to "help". Ollie and Amelia used two dish towels from the laundry hamper and some clothes pegs to make walls and a roof for the cat house they made. The cats loved it and crawled inside, while one little black and white guy kept biting the straws as Amelia tried to work on it. Very entertaining.
These two were particularly friendly and were very curious about trying to get into the Rig. Thankfully they didn't reach up to scratch the screen, they just sat peering in. (The next morning we saw tiny little wet pawprints on the steps, too)
Later in the evening, Taryn rolled up with her little kiddos in tow and was hustling three of them off to football practice. Super lovely woman with 5 kiddos (youngest are twins)... busy mom, Special Ed Kindergarten Teacher part time and runs the farm and sanctuary for retired horses. Had a great chat with her when she had a moment to come out and say hello. She invited the kids to go collect fresh eggs from the hen-house. Beautiful coloured eggs!
After quick dinner of veggie sausages/broccoli/mashed potatoes, Kids worked on their homework assignment - posters about New York City - assigned by Daddy. Meems was also working hard on a new game she's designing that involves many, many tiny circles of paper which end up all over (look out for her awesomeness, it's everywhere). 😉
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