Building Gypsy Rose

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

Bilbo Baggins, The Fellowship of the Ring

At 9 a.m. on October 30th we pulled out of Marion’s Connecticut driveway, collectively holding our breath as we headed for Interstate 84 and Gypsy Rose’s first road test – the 320 mile drive to her new home in Vermont. Marion shot many photos as she drove behind. In the picture above, the text on the cell phone reads, “Kevin on the road.” We shared what amounted to a 7 hour phone call over the course of the drive.

There were anxious moments as we passed through Waterbury and Hartford, Connecticut and then Springfield, Massachusetts, but by the time we were rolling through the less populated valleys of northern Massachusetts we felt pretty comfortable with Gypsy’s road-handling skills.

Running with the "big boys," Gypsy looks more than a bit out of place. We could only imagine the conversations we were starting among motorists passing by.

Nope, we don’t need an ambulance. All is fine on this stellar late October day.

We had been planning to drive to Boston later in the week for the anticipated victory parade for the 2007 World Series Champions, the Boston Red Sox, who had clinched the series in a four-game sweep two days before, but an hour before we departed Connecticut we found out that the victory parade would be held at noon that day. Bummer. There was some hesitation as we passed the intersection of MA Route 2. It wouldn’t have been unlike us to take a detour for the celebration (we attended the parade in 2004 with 2.5 million other fans), but we stayed on course northward to Vermont.

The sign above points to bus parking, but there was no indication of where houses should go when we pulled into the Vermont Welcome Center.

Welcome (back) to Vermont!

Much of Marion’s view was from behind, but this shot gives a good sense for the whole load.

Rolling along Interstate 91 and the Connecticut River Valley of Vermont, I towed my new home near the land of my youth (Bradford, Vermont).

For those who may be wondering if I'd traded the small pickup for the full-sized "hauler," I must mention that the little green truck is waiting back in Vermont. For the task of towing Gypsy, however, we needed more muscle (which was generously provided).

Even with Gypsy in tow, our fuel economy was better than a Hummer’s, but we still could not make the trip on a single tank. Pulling into the filling station in Springfield, Vermont, we drew a lot of stares and many questions from curious travelers who don’t normally see such a sight on the road. When one man came up to me and remarked, “It looks like a house on wheels,” I knew that we’d been successful at building something that is recognized for what it is.

Gypsy rides through Vermont’s Green Mountains and sunshine along Interstate 89.

One more stop before the final leg of our journey. The Sharon rest area is not far from where Gypsy will find herself next spring when we move her to Tunbridge for the warm half of the year. How many other travelers can enjoy lunch on their own front porch while on the road?

Mid-state Vermont. We’re almost there.

Gypsy arrives in Burlington, just in time for rush hour traffic down Route 7 to Vergennes.

Five minutes later than our prediction of 4:30 p.m., we turned into the driveway of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum where we were greeted by friends Jeff and Nick, museum staff and all-around terrific folks, who had been awaiting our arrival.

After Jeff had shown us the spot they’d picked out, Marion and I were left with only one more task for the day, unhitching Gypsy and leveling her on blocks in her winter home (complete with a view of the lake). Finally, in the darkness at 7 p.m., we were settled in.