ROS AND JOHN RV LIFE: That was too scary!

Friday 11th November 2022

We set off for Norris Dam for what we thought would be an easy 70 mile drive but we did not envisage a road closure that sent us up a mountain and back down. Then a road we needed to go down was marked "No Trucks", so we took a different turn which the RV GPS app rerouted us onto that took along teeny tiny roads a mountain goat would have had trouble with. How John got us out of there and how we didn't bottom out the truck or RV I do not know. Even the access road to the campsite was major sketchy with blind hills that felt like the drop on a roller coaster. This campsite should be marked as not recommended for big rigs!

Friday traffic in the rain

No that's not me on a roller coaster at Disney,
that is me on mountain roads in Tennessee!

Prior to hitting the road we did a lot of research on road navigation and debated on buying a RV specific GPS (sat nav) or using RV specific apps. Most people recommended a paid subscription to RV Life and Trip Wizard as you can research campsites and the route then have it accessible on your cell phone. You enter your tow vehicle dimensions so it can make sure to not take you on roads for example with low bridges but so far we have not been happy with it and are using a truckers app on my cell as a back up. We may end up buying a Garmin RV GPS.

I looked into the No Truck sign, it usually refers to tractor trailers as in this case the road led to a dam where they would not be allowed to cross.

We stayed in the East campground site 23. We didn't love this campsite, the access was scary, the pitches were very very close and the bathhouse area was old and run down.

https://tnstateparks.com/parks/norris-dam

Mr Red Cardinal popped by for a visit.

Saturday 12th November was cold, wet and dark. We had a quiet morning hoping the weather would perk up but it didn't, so we wrapped up warm and went to the Dam. It was a great place to walk around with a visitor center - just wish it had been a nicer day. Though the bad weather did mean we had the Dam to ourselves!