May 2025 25-1 |
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE |
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Hello Chinook family, Hope this newsletter finds you healthy, happy and raring to get in your Chinook for travel and fun adventures. One upcoming adventure for me is an overnight “stealth camping” at a shop where the work is done “first come-first serve”. Rather than leaving my house at 5 am to hopefully be first in line, I’ll get there after dark, sleep in the parking lot and hope I’m the only one doing that! For times like this, or times when the camper breaks down and you are stuck in some tiny town for a few days (which has unfortunately happened to several of us in the past few years) how wonderful to have all the comforts of home with us. Wishing everyone safe and joyful travels, wherever your wheels and imagination take you. |
Cathy |
Upcoming Rallies 2025-26
Jul 14-17
Quechee/ Pine Valley KOA, 3700 Woodstock Road White River Junction, VT 05001 (802) 296-6711 Deadline past, but probably can still reserve. KOA QUECHEE
Sep 15-17
Hagerstown / Antietam Battlefield KOA Holiday 11759 Snug Harbor Lane, Williamsport, MD 21795 301-223-7571 HAGERSTOWN KOA
Officially beginning on Monday Sept 15, the KOA will hold sites for us starting on the 14th since so many people have been arriving on Sunday lately. Please call your reservations directly to the Hagerstown KOA at 301-223-7571 and tell them you’re with the Chinook Camping Club and that you’re signing up for the rally.
Do not place your reservation online, do not call the national KOA reservation number. Call the campground directly and you will be sure to get one of the sites assigned to our group. Even more importantly, you’ll be sure to get the group discount.
2026
March 2-5, 2026
Lake Oklawaha KOA, 15991 NE 243rd Place Rd. Fort McCoy, FL 32134 Phone: 352-546-5500
Email: Info@lakeoklawaharesort.com LAKE OKLAWAHA RESORT
Prices for next year haven’t been set yet, but Mark's one day deposit at the current rate was $65. That is 10% off the standard rate. KOA members can opt to take the 10% discount as a KOA discount, but you only get one 10% discount or the other: no double-dipping.
Make your reservations by phone. Tell them you are with the Chinook Camping Club and you’re coming for the rally. They told me they’ll make every effort to give us sites near the clubhouse. DIRECTIONS TO FOLLOW IN NEXT NEWSLETTER. GPS is wrong.
May 18-20, 2026
Lakewood Camping Resort 5901 South Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach, SC 29575.
LAKEWOOD CAMPGROUND
To register call 843-447-7701 and ask to speak to Julie Gregory. You’ll like her, she’s real nice. You will not need to make a deposit. To secure these spaces in this season the club has placed a $50 deposit for all sites. When you come to the rally you will have to pay $50 to the club, check or some track-able e-payment preferred: cash would get sloppy.
Fall 2026
Will be at Misty Mountain Camping Resort, 56 Misty Mountain Rd, Greenwood, VA 22943. Expected dates are Sept 28,29,30. Misty Mountain books all reservations and activities no more than 12 months in advance, so nothing is confirmed.
Obviously you can’t reserve yet.
Whenever you’re reserving, always remember to tell them you’re with the Chinook Club and you’re there for the rally.
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Show us your Chinook on location selfie
Grand Isle State Park is located on South Hero Island in Lake Champlain. No RV electric sites available, so rented a cabin and plugged in. |
Dues due New place to send them Online payment!??? |
There is a new place to send your $35.00 for membership if you haven't yet. Our newly elected Treasurer is Cheryl Blackwell.
Mail your $35 check made out to "Chinook Camping Club" to her at 1603 Rivers Street, Greenwood SC 29649
More info and the membership form can be found HERE
Update any information on the form as needed.
Payment online is available HERE
(eventually, maybe, hopefully)
Upcoming Rallies 2025-26
Jul 14-17
Quechee/ Pine Valley KOA, 3700 Woodstock Road White River Junction, VT 05001 (802) 296-6711 Deadline past, but probably can still reserve. KOA QUECHEE
Sep 15-17
Hagerstown / Antietam Battlefield KOA Holiday 11759 Snug Harbor Lane, Williamsport, MD 21795 301-223-7571 HAGERSTOWN KOA
Officially beginning on Monday Sept 15, the KOA will hold sites for us starting on the 14th since so many people have been arriving on Sunday lately. Please call your reservations directly to the Hagerstown KOA at 301-223-7571 and tell them you’re with the Chinook Camping Club and that you’re signing up for the rally.
Do not place your reservation online, do not call the national KOA reservation number. Call the campground directly and you will be sure to get one of the sites assigned to our group. Even more importantly, you’ll be sure to get the group discount.
2026
March 2-5, 2026
Lake Oklawaha KOA, 15991 NE 243rd Place Rd. Fort McCoy, FL 32134 Phone: 352-546-5500
Email: Info@lakeoklawaharesort.com LAKE OKLAWAHA RESORT
Prices for next year haven’t been set yet, but Mark's one day deposit at the current rate was $65. That is 10% off the standard rate. KOA members can opt to take the 10% discount as a KOA discount, but you only get one 10% discount or the other: no double-dipping.
Make your reservations by phone. Tell them you are with the Chinook Camping Club and you’re coming for the rally. They told me they’ll make every effort to give us sites near the clubhouse. DIRECTIONS TO FOLLOW IN NEXT NEWSLETTER. GPS is wrong.
May 18-20, 2026
Lakewood Camping Resort 5901 South Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach, SC 29575. LAKEWOOD CAMPGROUND
To register call 843-447-7701 and ask to speak to Julie Gregory. You’ll like her, she’s real nice. You will not need to make a deposit. To secure these spaces in this season the club has placed a $50 deposit for all sites. When you come to the rally you will have to pay $50 to the club, check or some track-able e-payment preferred: cash would get sloppy.
Fall 2026
Will be at Misty Mountain Camping Resort, 56 Misty Mountain Rd, Greenwood, VA 22943. Expected dates are Sept 28,29,30. Misty Mountain books all reservations and activities no more than 12 months in advance, so nothing is confirmed.
Obviously you can’t reserve yet.
Whenever you’re reserving, always remember to tell them you’re with the Chinook Club and you’re there for the rally.
Sun Outdoors Sugarloaf Key, Florida Winter Rally January 2025
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By Ginny Schenck, Secretary Because of the distance and expense, and also health issues, our rally group was quite small this year, but that never stops us from having fun! There were two coaches from Pennsylvania, two from New Jersey, and one from Indiana. We were all happy to escape the frigid blast that was pummeling a lot of the country. Most of us used at least one Harvest Host on our trek southward. If you haven’t yet looked into that program, do yourself a favor and check it out. With campgrounds becoming increasingly more crowded the Harvest Hosts are a nice alternative. We all arrived on Saturday and spent the evening in the big Tiki Hut catching up with each other, listening to music (although football was competing, unfortunately), and enjoying the refreshments from the food truck. |
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Our rally VP, Mark McCluski, was able to negotiate some better sites than were originally assigned to us since the campground was not full. We ended up all being together, on the water and near the bath house which was quite nice! Thanks, Mark!
On Sunday seven of us figured out the bus route (it took us a while) and headed into Key West to wander around, ending up at Sunset Pier to watch the iconic beautiful sunset. Returning to the campground proved to be a little more tricky, but after a long wait we finally hopped on the bus and headed back, tired but happy.
Mark rented a Ford Expedition and chauffeured us downtown on Monday, a much better ride than the bus! We went to the Hemingway House and then to the Southern most point buoy for the obligatory photo shoot. Some of us skipped the photo and opted for the fake one at the cafe just across the street which had such good food and frozen daiquiris that we were totally amazed. We had expected just so-so tourist food.
Tuesday was a chill day and some of us took advantage of the warm salt water pool. Talk about relaxing! Others branched off to do other activities.
Dinner on Tuesday night was at a little place off the beaten path called “The No Name Pub”, supposedly the oldest restaurant in the Keys. We were lucky enough to see a few little Key Deer. They are the smallest subspecies of white tailed deer found exclusively in the Florida Keys.
A few of us were really excited for the seaplane ride to the Dry Tortugas National Park. The park got its name from the fact that there is no fresh water on the island and has an abundance of sea turtles (Tortuga being the Spanish name for turtle). Unfortunately, however, we received a call Tuesday night canceling the trip due to the anticipation of high winds for Wednesday. And the prediction was correct! We woke up Wednesday morning to our Chinooks rocking, palm trees bending over, and the flags whipping in the wind, AND, it was COLD! (At least for Keys). But we all knew that it was MUCH colder at home so we “tried” not to complain.
Mark suggested that we all pile in the party bus (otherwise known as the Ford Expedition ) and go to a highly recommended breakfast joint (It was actually called the Morning Joint). We were all wondering if there was a double meaning in the name, and after some of us perused the attached store, it was obvious we were correct! We also learned a new term: Square Grouper. It is a slang term referring to bales of drugs (mostly marijuana) dumped in the ocean by smugglers to avoid capture. These bales would often wash ashore. And our breakfast was delicious but not made with any square grouper.
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The last day of the rally everyone did their own thing, bus downtown, bus out to the turtle hospital in Marathon, meeting up with friends who were staying in the area, swimming in the warm salt water pool, and kayaking. Luckily the kayakers weren’t out too long because it was discovered that one of the kayaks had a leak and was taking on water. The final event was the club picture followed by pizza in the large Tiki Hut. In spite of the unseasonably cold weather, everyone appeared to have a really good time and we had lots of memorable moments as is usually the case with Chinookers!! |
Sun Outdoors North Shore New Orleans Spring Rally April 2025
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By Cathy Rubin, President What beautiful weather we had for this rally, hot and sunny. We sure missed those who had reservations but who had to cancel for various reasons. I sure hope they never again have the disappointment of having to cancel CCC reservations. We did get to meet John and Sherri Clague, a delightful and friendly couple from Texas. They met some of us at the Branson Rally and decided they wanted to hang with us! |
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So, only 12 of us were there, and we all really enjoyed the wonderful campground Mark found for us. So many great features: air conditioned clubhouse which was available for all 3 days and beyond for those who stayed through Friday. The long, curvy, relaxing lazy river, the 2 swimming pools (with Tiki bars and underwater stools), the nice dog park, the friendly neighbors, the mini golf course (which, unknown to me, is referred to as “putt-putt”. When I was given directions to the clubhouse, she said, in a strong southern accent “it’s just behind the putt-putt”. I had to apologize for my northern ears, and say “I’m sorry, I have no idea what you just said”) We followed the usual schedule. Monday was evening meet and greet, Tuesday was tech talk (thanks, Lee, for moderating this), craft (thanks, Peggy, for all the time you spent preparing for this), and pizza dinner. |
 Of course, hours of card playing, story telling, laughing and snacks every night in the Selmon’s Clam shelter. |
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Wednesday 7 of us (and my little dog, too), piled in my camper and drove to New Orleans. We parked in the French Quarter RV Resort, a safe and easy place to park with electric hookups so the AC could run for the dog (thanks, Susan and Chet Rudy, for recommending this option vs. driving around city streets looking for a convenient and safe place to park). We spent several hours walking the city streets, first to a restaurant John recommended, “Mother’s” and then to the French Quarter for some shopping.
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Tech Talk NotesSpring Rally-Ponchatoula, LA April 29, 2025The following are notes taken during the spring rally at Sun Outdoors, Ponchatoula, Louisiana. I took notes as fast as I could, but I’m sure I missed things, and there were things discussed I just do not understand, so it was difficult to write what was being discussed. If you have a question, comment or concern about anything I wrote, please ask Lee. He understands everything! |
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Compiled by Cathy Rubin, Chinook Club President
Cathy: Turn off refrigerator when fueling? Many say YES however, refrigerator is on opposite side from gas input, some think it’s not important to turn off the refrigerator.
Cathy: Is it OK to run generator when traveling? YES, and run the A/C versus the chassis A/C Inverter generator is much more efficient and quieter.
Lee: talked about blocked refrigerator, more than 3 degrees off and the damage is cumulative.
Vents and inside fan, highly recommended, cost about $80: Take roof vent cap and screen off, install fan attached to J2, thermostat installed above condenser
Another refrigerator device to install: ARP RV monitors temp to boiler. If gets too hot will turn off the refer until it cools down
Rich: got a new 12 volt refrigerator from National RV Refrigeration, Shipshewana, Indiana. It can be run by the generator, AC plug in, or batteries. To remove the original refrigerator, the cooling device was taken off to get it out the back door.
Steve: Use generator to run coach A/C while traveling. Truck stops in the west often have 30 amp hookups for $20.
If there is even a tiny hole in the vacuum line of FORD engine A/C, the chassis AC doesn’t work. It takes a mechanic about 10 hours to fix. All A/C stuff needs to come out, but Lee found a way to more easily and efficiently fix it. Ask Lee for more details.
Hubcaps: factory installed uses clips so hubcaps easily come off while driving, simulators have lug nuts
John: porch light turns on inner step lights
Fred: LED lights come in rolls, can be cut to desired length and wired together
Rich: Changed his house batteries to lithium batteries: need to change inverter, used same battery separator
More specific battery info was discussed: ask Lee
Surge protector w/ Bluetooth. Installed vs portable surge protector.
For any RV repairs, it is preferable to use Mobile RV tech or local RV shop vs Camping World type places.
Ford chassis cruise control buttons, the resistors fail. Don’t buy cheap buttons, Lee spent $400. and had his mechanic replace. didn't want to mess with airbags. There is no dashboard light to indicate cruise is on.
Engine monitors: Cathy uses Blue Driver, which plugs into the OBD2 port, and has Bluetooth connection to an app.
Fred uses ScanGauge III which monitors many things, including fluid temps, MPH, coolant temp (253 degrees will blow cap off).
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Even if you have a code reader or one of the mentioned engine monitor devices, mechanics will generally want to recheck because a code might cover a few different things. Cathy told a mechanic what was wrong, he checked with his code reader, and said “yup, that’s it. Painting propane tank: rust destroyer from Sherwood Williams. Cathy used POR (paint over rust). Lee removed the tank to clean and paint it. Cathy wire brushed surface rust wherever she could reach, then used 2 coats of POR, then 2 coats of white Rustoleum. |
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Painting propane tank: rust destroyer from Sherwood Williams. Cathy used POR (paint over rust). Lee removed the tank to clean and paint it. Cathy wire brushed surface rust wherever she could reach, then used 2 coats of POR, then 2 coats of white Rustoleum.
Propane tank: 2 stage regulator prevents sloshing around by reducing pressure. Rich: installed new plumbing for kitchen when he put in a single bowl sink.
Spark plug: Triton V10 has very specific torque and many mechanics don’t know the proper torque according to engineered specs. DORMAN kit to “band aid” if needed.
Multimeter is a necessary tool!
Suggestion: As you travel, make a list of things that need to be addressed when you get home. It’s too easy to forget things that you notice or that just pop into your head!
Steve: carry extra rearview side mirror for emergencies. Their side view mirror was hit and not useable. Lee said replacement side view mirrors can be found on Ebay.
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From the Editor Heading out from Maryland, my usual first day, five hour ice-breaking drive, stops in North Carolina. I lived in Charlotte for three years in the late ‘80s. Love the state. Kerr Lake or Jordan Lake are my best stops to launch a road trip. Can usually get one of my favorite spots for sunset on the lake if I reserve early enough. As I troll Instagram and Facebook I copy and keep links of places I may want to visit someday. I organize them in Google Keep by states, sometimes by categories. It helps me figure out routes and possible stops along the way. This rally helped me check Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Kentucky off my state's visited map. Often what states have to offer is a surprise. North Alabama has almost 60 waterfalls. Kentucky is home to the largest cave system on earth. On some of my saved places I’ve done homework. Other times I just wing it along the drive. |
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My background as a journalist motivates me to share video, photos and observations on social media. I try to share tips on how to get there, what you’ll see, costs and pitfalls. I usually post these on the Chinook Facebook pages and my personal FB and YouTube @tvsmurphman. This trip I scoped out some free, first-come, first-served campsites in the country’s newest national park, New River Gorge. I stayed at a Cracker Barrel in Beckley, West Virginia and drove to investigate in the morning. Free does not equal desirable. The “Army Camp” site was 2+ miles in on a paved then gravel road past houses. For a while a neighborhood dog stood guard to prevent me moving. When I finally got to the site, it was nice enough, but primitive. The river was nearby, but not worth the bumpy drive in. |
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CHINOOK CLUB COMMUNICATION Chinook Facebook groups: TEST WEBSITE Chinook Camping Club officers VP, Membership Nominating Chair Treasurer Secretary Sunshine Ginni Young Schenck Newsletter Editor |
Welcome New Members! |
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Karla Llewallyn LeRoy Crockett Leslie Caveny Jerry Vella Carol Vella
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If you want to have your home added to the list to send info via email to: Chinookcampingclub@gmail.com
Instructions on how to access EZ Member Page
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