Life Happens when you are busy making other plans....

Sometimes the best laid plans don’t work out the way you had hoped…. and in that moment we have a choice… go with the flow and see if there are other options or get stuck… I admit, there have been times in my life that I have gotten stuck because something had not gone as planned.  I’m pretty sure we all have. 

My ability to be ‘zen’ about thing was challenged as I had planned to go to Rangeley but it did not go according to plan….

I bought a tent camper, brand new!  I was excited about this as it meant I could pack up, take off, and find  new adventures for kayaking.  When I knew I had a week to do this I wanted to find a place to go where I had a lot of bodies of water to choose from.  To be honest my first investigation led me to Mount Desert Island… I haven't spent time there in ages… In the late 90s I worked there in the summers, as a nanny.  It is a beautiful place.  Since then I haven’t taken much time to go back. I thought camping would be a great venue for revisiting some of my favorite places and even though MDI is probably more all known for it’s sea kayaking, there are freshwater ponds and lakes that are open to paddlers.  I called all of the campgrounds on MDI… and some are, in my opinion, ridiculously expensive!  One place, I cannot remember which one charged $76 a night! For a lot on which people bring their own beds and kitchens??!!  Part of me felt like I wanted to be  a little bit more ‘true’ to what I believe camping should be… an inexpensive way for people (families) to go on vacation.  That’s probably because that’s how I grew up… we were not a wealthy family, financially… and when we had time off we went camping.  It was affordable for a family of four and the memories we have are priceless.  So, $76 a night… and that’s for one person, can’t imagine they would add more for more people, but… I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.  I then looked at the two park campgrounds, which are very reasonably priced, but are booked solid through the summer.  (Lesson here, book early!) 

So… after crossing Acadia off the list for this trip I searched elsewhere.  A friend of mine, Shannon from www.fitmaine.com has done some camping and she is a believer in state parks.  So… I followed her lead.  I think the state parks is a great place to start.  So I looked at which state parks in Maine have camping.  Turns out there are TWELVE:
- Aroostook
- Cobsocook Bay
- Lamoine
- Peaks-Kenny
-Lily Bay
-Warren Island
-Camden Hills
-Rangeley Lake
- Lake St. George
-Mt. Blue
- Sebago Lake
-Bradbury Mountain

I am VERY intrigued by Cobsocook and think a few days there next summer will be on my list for sure… but it felt very far away from everything and being still inexperienced I figured I should hold off until I get some successful camping days under my belt.  So… next up was Rangeley Lake… I have never been to that part of the state.  I have seen photos and it looks really beautiful… and yes, Rangeley also seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, but for some reason felt less remote… (Not once you get there!)

So I started researching the area… camping…check… pet friendly…check (with a 4’ leash) … reasonably priced…check… and perhaps most importantly, places to kayak… CHECK!  Now, captain obvious would say that a state park that has the name of a lake in its name has kayaking options.  Of course!  BUT… I like paddling in places that are a bit more off the beaten path.  I like little ponds, narrow places protected from the wind, with few to no motorboats, where the chances of seeing wildlife are greater.

As I started looking at the Rangeley area I thought I had hit the jackpot!  Long pond, Saddleback Lake, Gull Pond, Loon Lake, Cow Pond, Greely and Little Greely Ponds, Pepperpot Pond, and the list goes on!  SO. MANY. WATERBODIES.  Now of course looking at a map and seeing the bodies of water is one thing, finding where you can access them is another whole adventure.  I had looked at the maine.gov website that provides information about the bodies of water, mostly for fishing purposes, but they do include things like ‘accessible via the Camp Wayaawi Rd. off Rt. 16’ This information helps me narrow down how I may access said waterbody.  Some of the ponds in the Rangeley say things like ‘accessible by a footpath at the northern…..’  Well… I have no idea if those footpaths are clear enough to pull a kayak behind me and use it to get on the water, but the idea of it was fun and exciting.  I envisioned Gladys and I, in my 4WD truck exploring old fire roads and coming across some kind of path… at which point she and I would walk the path and see if it took us to the pond and assess whether or not the kayak could be pulled behind us as we walked said path.  I figured a day would be spent scouting and making notes about where to kayak and then, from there, paddle on!  I had compiled a list of 15 or 16 possibilities and knew I would not get to them all… but I had done my research and was so excited to share it with my kayaking blog followers…

So I made the reservations…. I could check in on Monday July 23rd anytime after 1 pm.   1 p.m. seemed like a wonderful check in time… time to set up and get situated AND perhaps take a drive or a walk to familiarize myself with the campground and area.  (I have heard Rangeley is a cute town…)  I left my house, all ready to go at about 11:30 a.m. I anticipated leaving at 10:30 but had forgotten to get gas and ice and to do that last batch of dishes…. I packed a lunch, planning to stop at “Height of Land” to eat it.  (Friends had suggested that as a ‘Must See’ if I was I that area.  (They had also suggested Quil Hill and Coos Canyon!)

The drive from the Portland area towards Rangeley was beautiful despite it being a cloudy with intermittent showers kind of a day.  I had looked at the map and knew sort of where I was going, but put a lot of trust in my handy dandy GPS and did what it told me to do. We got off 95 at exit 75 and headed into Lewiston/Auburn, following Rt. 202 and Rt. 4 I believe… Then we got to Mexico Maine, yup… there is a Mexico, Maine… and while I only saw a very small part of it, it looked like other towns in Maine with less worldly names.  Then Rumford and a few other towns… (By the way many bodies of water on this route that made me turn my head to see if there was a launch site in view!)  Then we got on Rt. 17.  Rt. 17 is narrow, hilly, and winds over the hills beautifully.  I can see how hitting a moose here would cause a lot of issues!  Also it is a road over which some logging trucks travel, which is a little intimidating!  (Be careful!)  But the word I could use to best describe this drive is picturesque! It reminded me a bit of the Kancamagus highway in NH.  Along parts of it was a river that was almost dry exposing the many rocks that lined it.  So pretty!

I passed Coos Canyon in Byron and almost stopped. (There was enough parking to do so, even with the camper, but I bet on a sunny weekend day the same could not be said!)  But it was on my list of things to do when we weren’t kayaking, so I figured we would come back to it… I continued up 17 and eventually there is a sign that notified me I was on the Rangeley Lakes Scenic Highway… or something like that!  I stopped at a couple of overlooks and was impressed.  This really is a part of the state that people could call ‘God’s country’… if you believe in that sort of thing… and then I saw an overlook area that was more defined than the others I had stopped at….it overlooked Mooselookmeguntic Lake… we had found HEIGHT OF LAND.

It was stunning!  I couldn’t believe how much we could see on this overcast day and couldn’t imagine how much more would be visible on a clear day.  WOW.  A fall trip here would be spectacular!  I ate my sandwich as planned, but did so quickly because the GPS said I was only about 15 minutes from the campground.  I was super excited to get there, to set up, and then take Gladys for a good walk.  She had been a very good riding companion, no complaints and deserved a good long walk. 

We got to the ranger station, checked in and headed for our site, #29.  I honestly did not know which site I should reserve when I called.  I asked for one that would be easy to back into… I got to site 29 and it was a decent sized lot.  I moved the picnic table and proceeded to get the camper in just how I wanted it.  It took a while because of a little indentation in the site made by trees… but I got it. It was perfect!  Gladys stayed in the truck as I worked to get it level and even got the refrigerator turned on so that by the time I was set up I could throw the chicken and steak into it.


Setting up the camper… step one (after leveling it and lowering the jacks) is to unhook all the latches, then crank it up… so I am cranking and get to the point where I know it is as extended as it should be and grab one of the supports that have to be placed in opposite corners in case something goes wrong with the camper… and get it installed no problem.  Grab the other support and walk around the back of the camper and find that one of the 4 support arms did not go up… WHAT? There was the roof, up above me… but no support arm.  Are you freaking kidding me? A NEW camper and it isn’t working? I tried to see my cool… I tried to go into what I perceive as my dad’s problem solving mode… Dad is very good at that kind of thing!  I hemmed and hawed… I pulled the metal structure up from the hole and it wouldn’t stay… and there was this wire looking thing that had come out the top…. well… my problem solving/mechanical skills were not good enough to fix the problem…

So.. instead of crying and swearing, which I wanted to do… I sat in the truck for a moment with Gladys and told her things had not gone according to plan… Here I am in the middle of nowhere, a place where I know no-one, don’t know what is nearby for resources… and have to figure out a plan… I knew I wasn’t going home because that was another three hour drive which would then be followed by another two hour drive to get it to the dealership where I bought it in Bangor.  So even though I was losing daylight I decided I would head for Bangor and figure out the rest on the way.  (Dealerships provide warranties but you have to have them service your camper to use the warrantee…figures!)  So I managed to get the camper back down, which was not easy given that it was off cockeyed a bit… I could not get that corner to latch but at that point figured that would be the dealership’s issue, not mine! 

I went to the ranger station and told them I had to check out and explained what had happened.  They could not have been nicer.  They were sorry that it had happened and told me it was likely I would be able to get some kind of refund.  Probably not the entire amount, but partial.  I was grateful.  I asked the ranger the quickest way to get to Bangor from there… he smiled and said there is no quick way… I smiled back, “I know,” I said, “… but if you were heading to Bangor from here how would you get there?”  He paused then started rattling off route numbers faster than I could listen and I thanked him, got in the truck and hoped my GPS would have a signal despite my phone having none… and told my GPS to get me to Bangor.  “Route Calculating…” she chimed back… well, I did not look at the map to see where it had me going, but trusted the technology and listened to her and made every turn she told me to make… including one that seemed to turn me back 3/4 of the way from where the turn started… up over hills, and eventually into places that seemed familiar… Madison Maine (Ok I went to UMF I had heard of Madison, and I think that’s the town where they have an incredible tomato growing operation and a solar farm…), and then saw signs for Skowhegan.. Ahhh… once I get to Rt 2 I KNOW I can get to Bangor.

The problem at that point was that it was well after closing hours for the dealership… So I knew I would be heading to my dad’s house, about 45 minutes above Bangor. Well… after leaving Rangeley State Park  around 4:45 p.m. I got to my dad’s almost exactly 4 hours later. 7 hours on the road plus time to set up, almost, and take down…made for a long day. But I was grateful to get to see my dad and step mom and grateful Gladys and I had a place to sleep for the night!  

Once I had gotten into cell phone reception range I had left a voicemail for the general manager of the dealership explaining what had happened and asked for a call back as soon as they opened Tuesday morning.  (8:00 a.m.) … By 9:30 I had not heard from them and decided to just show up.  On my way there I thought about my strategy.  Would I be fairly reserved and non emotional, simply explaining the situation? Would I get angry and make them face the wrath? I wasn’t sure… What I was certain of was that I was upset, disappointed most of all… I had worked to plan a trip, hours of researching, and I was so excited to take time off, really off, just for me… and I felt like it had been sabotaged when it should not have been.  But… tried to keep it in perspective too… this is a first world problem…and given the state of our country, how people are being treated because of where they were born or the color of their skin… I knew this was minor… but that didn’t mean I wasn’t upset and disappointed. 

So… around 10:30 I pull into the dealership and was met at the door by the guy who was my salesman.  (I later referenced him with the wrong name in front of him… which in hindsight was kind of funny!)  He asked how I was doing.  I said not well.  I explained what had happened and he asked what I meant about the fourth arm not going up.  I showed him a picture of it partially up after I had gotten all greasy trying to pull it up... and he made a face of disbelief.  He said we could take it to service and get it fixed right up and get me back on the road.  (He seemed to have a sense of urgency, which I appreciated.) 

Well, Mr. Wrong named sales guy… going to service sounds pretty good, but… there are a few other steps we are going to take first.  I said I had left a voicemail for the general manager and had not heard back from him and wanted to talk to him.  So while he ‘tracked him down’ he had me pull the camper back to the service area.  We got to service and I explained what had happened and the guys there couldn’t seem to comprehend that one of the support bars had not elevated.  I showed them a picture and eventually they opened up the camper to look at it themselves.  The service manager, who I found to be the nicest guy in this whole mix, said after he had fixed it that he had never seen that happen before.  It was a simple fix.  There are pins that secure the support to the roof… the pin had popped out.  Lucky me!  I got to be the person who had something go wrong with the camper that they had never seen. 

While service was assessing the camper Gladys and I got to ride on a golf cart back to the showroom/office area to meet with the general manager.  I asked him why he had not called me back given they had been open for 2.5 hours.  He said he didn’t have a good reason and he should have called.  He told me to tell him what was going on.  I started from the beginning…

I wanted a camper, specifically a pop up, so that Gladys and I could go adventuring and find new places to kayak.  I also shared that I am a blogger and author with a strong following on social media and that I share the good, the bad, and the ugly with my readers… and told him that he should know up front that somewhere, somehow, this will be in my posts, good or bad.  I said that I had been pricing campers, used ones at first, but then had seen their sale on a new one and decided, for me, that made more sense.  In my mind I wanted to feel that I had a reliable camper with less chances of things going wrong…told him that once I had gotten the camper home, only about a month earlier, I had set it up, no problem… but had found a hole in one canvas and teeth missing from a zipper on the other.  When I had shared that with the dealership they had said they would order them and within a few weeks they would be replaced.  (Still has not happened.)  I said that when I was shown how to lower the camper and secure it I had questioned why there were no pins to secure the latches in the back two corners and was told they were not needed… but when I had gotten the camper home one piece of the back latch (same corner ironically) had fallen off… which would not have happened if there had been a pin… but what do I know? I am just an inexperienced camper, female, who trusted what the men at the dealership told me.

I had reached out to the dealership to get that fixed, to have a new part sent to me and was told it would be in the mail THAT day… after a week I reached out and was told they had waited because they were not sure of the color… white or black.  Not sure? Well, in an email from one of their people she had said,  "I assume the latch is black, if it is not let me know, otherwise I will get it in the mail to you today."  Well, I did not respond because I was following the directions of not telling her it wasn’t black.

I told him that those things seem pretty minor and I wasn’t that worried about it… but then.. to be in the middle of nowhere, by myself, and have the NEW camper I just bought NOT work, was upsetting.  I explained what had happened and stated I was wondering if I bought a lemon, if the only good part of the deal was the sales guy (used the wrong name with him sitting in the room) who has to be nice in order to make sales.  And  I said it was rude that he had not called me back first thing.  (I mean how many other customers had called saying that there camper was non functioning? I hope not many!)  He said he had forwarded the message to their warrantee and service departments and asked if I had heard from them.  I said I had not and added that I had not called either of those departments, I had left a message for HIM.

We talked for a while, during which the sales guy popped in and out updating us on what they knew and what they could do… They had offered to trade out the canvases on my camper for another one they had in stock but I said I wanted new if they were going to be replaced… My dad is heading my way next Monday so I told him if he could get everything, EVERYTHING done at once, the canvases, the post, the sink (which had not drained well) and the latch fixed that I would leave it and have dad bring it down on Monday… But...that wouldn’t work because the canvases are still a week and a half out… seriously? Seriously.  So… mister manager said they could fix the camper, get it in operable condition for me to take that day and then we could arrange to have them either come to my house to replace the canvases in my yard or they could come down to get it, bring it to their dealership, change the canvases , winterize it, and store it for me for the winter, then get it ready for summer for me, free of charge…. in addition he could ‘help’ with some of the cost of my gas and camping fee which may or may not be refunded.   (Fortunately I did get a partial refund, thanks to the State of Maine!)

I told him that I felt that there should be a bit of a refund on the camper.  That having sold it to me ‘new’ I should be able to assume it will be in pretty perfect condition and work for at least the first month… and suggested a dollar amount that I considered reasonable…saying if there had been a disclosure about the canvases and the support beam not working properly (which I know he could not have known) a reasonable dealership would have taken some money off the price of the camper. 

He said that in his opinion he was working harder than most dealerships would to ‘make it right.’  He said other dealerships wouldn’t offer to pay for gas or cover cost of camping… I listened to his sales pitch, clearly he was trying to promote his dealership, and then I said point blank, “I don’t agree, I think that’s BS.” and asked how he thought dealerships could function if they didn’t try to make things right with their customers.  I said that I understand the way dealerships work whether it be vehicles or campers, it is about making money and wise businesses do what they can to keep customers in hopes that they will return and buy more of their product. 

He didn’t know what to say.  He then said something about being sorry that it had happened and said he was doing what he could to make it right by fixing it on the spot and giving me some financial funding to make it right. (by the way he tried to give me two prepaid visa cards that had existing balances like $64.17…. I said no, I wanted a check.  I hate those cards, and seriously? having me take partially used cards off your hands because I know what a pain they are to use… that was another slap in the face.)  He then said this…something along these lines… “Most people would seem a little more grateful than you do for what we are doing to help you out and I’m just not getting that warm and fuzzy vibe from you.”

I paused. 
Warm and Fuzzy? After being ALL THE WAY in Rangeley with a camper,a NEW camper, I could not use, and he wants warm and fuzzy because he is fixing something that should not have been broken?!!  (This my male friends, is what we women sometimes have to deal with!  would he have said to a man, ‘I’m just not getting a warm and fuzzy feeling of gratitude from you?’  NO!  He sure as hell would not have said that, would not have dared to say that, to a man. ) 

I responded… “Warm and Fuzzy?… I am not sure yet if I feel warm and fuzzy about this purchase. Perhaps if I had been able to use the camper for more than one night of actual camping and if I had been able to set up the camper without it being inoperable on its second trip, inthe middle of NOWHERE... perhaps, perhaps THEN would I feel a little warm and fuzzy.”  I said that I did appreciate that he was going to give me a little money to offset my costs (and did not tell him that the visa cards was insulting on many levels.) but that in my mind that was the very least he could do to make it right.  Warm and fuzzy? Seriously… 

And that comment came AFTER somewhere in there I had said that it is hard sometimes as a female who is very independent, not knowing if people are trying to screw you over, and wondering if I had been a man if I would have gotten a better deal on the camper to begin with… and he went on to tell me about his 80 something grandmother who has been widowed since the 90s and does a lot independently and that she gets treated like gold wherever she goes and gets all kinds of help.  I hope that is true, but by the way he talked usually he and/or his father/uncle go with her to do those things… I also had commented on the photos of his baby daughter and said that one day when she gets stranded somewhere for reasons which could have been avoided he will make damn sure the people responsible will be held accountable. 

Warm and Fuzzy…. Okay folks,  you can tell that one stuck with me!  So… they fixed the camper support, made sure the ceiling wasn’t damaged from it (when I had to put the camper down I hauled pretty hard on that end…) fixed the sink drainage issue and made arrangements for the next steps about the canvases and potential winter storage… and I drove, with the camper, away from the dealership.  I was starving and really wanted pizza, (one of my go to comfort foods!) but have been doing well eating healthy and decided instead to go to the nearest grocery store and got a salad from the salad bar.  (Usually plenty or parking at a grocery store parking lot for a camper.) 

As I sat in the truck in the parking lot with Gladys  eating my salad… I thought about what I should do.  I had planned to just go home and regroup...especially if they could have fixed everything and Dad could have brought it to me on Monday.... perhaps just park the camper at home and do some more kayaking day trips… but… I had all kinds of food packed and had been REALLY looking forward to this adventure… and while I really wanted to go to Rangeley and explore… what I wanted more was adventure, camping and kayaking… so I got out the trusty Maine Gazetteer (don’t leave home without it!) and looked to see what was fairly nearby (heading somewhat towards Portland)  for campgrounds… I looked up a few and wasn’t too moved… then I saw Lake St. George State Park… in Liberty, Maine.  Liberty…. a nice name for a town, especially in our political climate.  The campground is right on Lake St. George and there are other waterbodies nearby that appear to have public launch sites.  I called… and they had a few sites that are ‘non-reservable’… sites where when you show up, if it’s open, it’s yours until you want to leave.  So… I figured within an hour and a half my chances were pretty good that they would still be open when I got there.  And that was true!


So… Gladys and I went camping… and depended on the ol’ Maine Gazetteer to lead us to public launches… it was a great adventure.  For more on my paddling adventures in this neck of the woods, check out the kayaking blog.  (I will be posting trips for Trues Pond, Bartlett Stream Reservoir, Kingdom Bog, and Stevens Pond.) 

The biggest lesson here is this… my mother used to say it all the time… while we cannot control what happens, we CAN control our reaction to it.

I chose to still go on an adventure.  The other lesson is that sometimes not having an exact plan is okay just like it is okay, albeit frustrating, when a plan gets blown up for reasons out of your control.

 Also in the mix are the lessons about advocating for yourself when it comes to customer service, that it is okay to not be warm and fuzzy even though people expect that from women, and ..... having a camper is no guarantee that things go smoothly when you set out for adventure.  I realize that I now own something that will break, but can likely be repaired… and part of the reward of getting to go to amazing places for fun adventures is realizing there is also risk, that something can, and probably will go wrong.  I just hope I can keep it all in perspective when it does! 

Happy Camping!