RV Podcast 224: America’s National Parks During the Government Shutdown

Most of our National Parks remain open… but the partial governmental shutdown is causing some major problems across the country. In this episode of the podcast, we’ll update you on the latest. Plus, we talk about the controversial practice of wolf hunting near Yellowstone National Park. And, as always, we have your questions, comments and tips. And this week, we also have a huge list of the many RV Shows being held around the country over the next couple of weeks. WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK MIKE: We’re excited and packing for one of our favorite camping adventures of the year, our annual Winter Freeze Out gathering up at Tahquamenon Falls State Park in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. JENNIFER: We literally had to stop the packing to sneak into the studio here to record this episode but as soon as we’re done we’ll be back loading our RV with snow shoes, ski poles, extra boots and our warm weather clothing. MIKE: It is going to be cold up there. I just looked at the forecast and it’s going to get down to the lower single digits Fahrenheit Thursday through Sunday. The gathering officially runs Friday through Sunday but it has become so popular that many of the attendees, us included, are coming up early. We’ll actually be in the UP from Wednesday through Sunday. JENNIFER: We were worried that there wouldn’t be much snow up there because it’s been a very mild winter so far. But they got hit by a big snowstorm Monday and it is supposed to snow a couple inches just about every day this week. Of the 40 or so sites that the ark plows out for winter camping, our group has reserved about 35 of them. So we’re talking a lot of RVers. MIKE: We’ll leave there on Sunday or Monday but then we have to skedaddle south… all the way to sunny and warm Tampa Florida where we will be attending the huge RV Supershow at the Florida State Fairgrounds January 16-20. Talk about contrast: We’ll be leaving a place with a foot and a half of snow on the ground and replacing our parka with shorts and sandals in the land of palm trees! JENNIFER: The RV Supershow is one of the largest RV shows in the country and we’ll be doing several reports from there on the Roadtreking.com RV Lifestyle blog and on our Facebook Page and RV Lifestyle YouTube Channel. And we’re really excited that we’ll have a meet and greet with our followers on Saturday Jan 18 from 11AM-2PM at the Roadtrek display area at the show. It’s always fun to get to meet folks in person. MIKE: There are so many RV shows over the next few weeks. We’ll itemize a bunch of them at the end of the podcast. But RV Shows are THE best place to shop for a new RV, or to find the perfect accessories you need, JENNIFER: Let’s remind everyone on where they can find more information about the topics and stories we report in this episode. A lot of people are driving as they listen, or hiking or walking the dog or working out and can’t necessarily write down the resources we share. But they are all available in the shownotes for this episode, which can be found on the Roadtreking RV Lifestyle blog at Roadtreking.com/224. We build in links to everything we talk about here and the shownotes are like a detailed transcript. MIKE: Reminder about new phone number to call in questions and comments for the Podcast - (586) 372-6990. RV NEWS OF THE WEEK JENNIFER Plan now to see the 'Super Wolf Blood Moon Total Lunar Eclipse' coming later this month Have you heard about the Super Wolf Blood Moon Total eclipse? It's coming Jan. 20-21, and has many star gazers excited. A super moon is when a full moon is closest to the earth in its orbit, making it appear larger and brighter than normal. A lunar eclipse is when the earth gets between the sun and the moon, casting the earth's shadow over the moon, and the term blood comes from the moon having an orange or reddish hue during the eclipse. And what about the name wolf? Well, apparently wolf moons happen in January because, according to ancient lore, it is in this time of year when the wolves howl outside villages. If you are somewhere away from light pollution, try to catch sight of it. The show starts around 10:30 pm eastern time and this will be the last total lunar eclipse until 2021. To read more click here or here. MIKE: RV Museum in Elkhart, Indiana, going strong Have you ever been to the RV/Hall of Fame in Elkhart, Indiana? The museum details the history of the RV industry, and was in the news this past week for being about to pay off its construction debt. Jennifer and I visited the unique museum last year, interviewed the president for our podcast and YouTube channel (click here) and absolutely loved the place! The museum has some 60 RVs, some dating back to 1913, and it is really a fascinating place. To read last week's story, click here. JENNIFER If you're in Florida and like large alligators, check this out! For those of you in Florida, or with plans to visit soon, you know of the importance of watching out for alligators n