Nomadic in Massachusetts
You'd think that 5 months on the road wouldn't be enough time to have culture shock coming home, but when so much of that 5 months is spent in places much more leisurely than Massachusetts, the intensity can hit you like a ton of bricks. We got used to not needing to worry about traffic. We got used to our only obligations being remote work, RV work, and chores. We apparently even brought the sweltering heat along with us! But all the stressors aside, we were happy to be back, because this is home. Planning a few weeks in MA meant we got the opportunity to see family and friends. We got to resume parts of our old routine. We got to visit some of our old haunts. Best yet, we got to bring nomadic life home. Sure, there might be Boston traffic and Boston attitude, but we were going to be camping! We had cracked the code: Find a campsite away from the hustle and bustle and use it as a retreat. That's exactly what we did.
We booked the maximum allowed stay of 2 weeks at Wompatuck State Park, a park that used to be one of our choices for bike rides and dog walks. Now we'd be adding a new recreational activity to our Wompatuck list: camping! Only for us, that's less recreation and more living. We were excited to see the campground because we had only passed by the outskirts on one of our woodsier hikes. The park technically allows only a 28-foot maximum RV length, but most of the sites are much longer than this, and we saw plenty of big rigs make it into their sites without issue. At first we weren't sure what to feel about our site because we had to navigate backing in really close to a big tree, but after walking the campground several times, we think our site might be one of the best (Site K11). Once we were situated between branches and trunks, we needed no leveling from left-to-right. There is no room for a picnic table and firepit on the pleasure side as usual, so the park staff put them on the business side. Near them is a lovely open space that was perfect for our tent.
It's quite an adjustment to only be one town away from our old sticks and bricks. Being in our old stomping grounds is both re-orienting and disorienting. We had big plans to visit our local friends and family, eat at our favorite restaurants, and enjoy local ventures that we no longer take for granted. But we also felt like completely new people, and we needed to integrate our new perspectives on life. When we left MA, we were not in a good frame of mind, and being in familiar territory has the tendency to bring up old emotions. We didn't want that, which is why it was so important to focus not on everything we left behind back in December, but everything we've gained, and all the wonderful things we still have when we come back to this area. Having loved ones nearby really helped us with this. That truly is the best part of coming home.
Our two weeks in Wompatuck helped us get back into an old routine. I was able to go back to my Zumba classes and schedule some harp yoga workshops in the area. Anthony spent a day in Boston working and visiting both old and new coworkers. We also planned a lot of social gatherings. Between our packed schedule and the heat, we didn't have a lot of time for outdoor leisure, which is one of our favorite parts of New England summers. We did, however, make a command decision, one that lots of RVers make sooner or later:
We got ebikes! This was something that was on our minds for a while, but we assumed we would wait a year or so because they're an expensive purchase. But being in Wompatuck, biking was on our mind. The park is big, and we're not really fans of hiking it because it's mostly flat woodlands. Biking the park has been our favorite activity there for years. We left our old bikes at my parents' house and decided that, if we missed them, we'd find a way to bring them on the road. The challenge with that is, we don't have an easy place for a bike rack, nor would we want to constantly keep the bikes outside when we're at a campground. The ebikes fold up and can be stored in the back of our truck, away from the elements and securely locked away. While at Wompatuck, we considered bringing our old bikes up from Marshfield just for the two weeks, but the more we discussed it, the more we sold ourselves on the idea of just investing in the ebikes now. So that's what we did!
The advantage to the ebikes is that you can still use them like normal bikes, but you can maintain speed much better on hills, due to the pedal assist. Contrary to the stereotype, they are still a workout because you are pedaling. There is a throttle you can use that will engage the motor so you don't have to pedal, but this depletes the battery if you use it too much. Besides, we want to get exercise! So we tend to keep our bikes on a low-level pedal assist, but the rest of the time, we're using our legs.
We had a tough time setting the bikes up initially. Each bike was packed differently, so we had to be extra diligent making sure we had all the parts: charger, keys, battery, etc. Then, once out of the package, we had to inflate the tires, and as our luck would have it, both our air compressors were giving us trouble. (We discovered that one compressor had died, and eventually got the other to work. I guess this is why we have backups). When inflating the tires, you need to be really careful to make sure the stay in their rims. One of ours did not, which caused the wheel to lock up. Then we also had some issues with our gears, one that seems we won't be able to resolve without taking it to a bike shop. It wasn't the best start to our ebike experience, but once we were able to actually ride them, we fell in love. They're a ton of fun, and we can use them for short distances when we don't want to take our gas-guzzling truck.
Our maiden voyage with the ebikes was a ride across Wompatuck and into the adjacent Weir River farm area. Weir River Farm, owned by the non-profit Trustees of Massachusetts, is one of our favorite areas on the South Shore, and they were hosting a sunset picnic. We thought it would be fun to arrive in style, and we definitely turned a lot of heads rolling in on our ebikes! We had some food and listened to live music before heading up the street to Turkey Hill, a park where we could try our ebikes off-road. The bikes have 4-inch fat tires, making them easy to use on non-paved roads. It was a lot of fun taking them through the field and on one of the (less rocky) hiking trails. Then we ended our evening back at Wompatuck, taking a dusk ride to the Aaron River Reservoir, before returning to the campground.
The ebikes were a great way to cap off our first "camping at home" experience. Being able to test drive them in familiar territory felt safe, and now we're ready to take these babies on the road!
Though our time at Wompatuck had come to a close, we still remained in Massachusetts for another week and a half. We had more people to see, as well as some appointments booked. It was time to change the vibe and move from a state park to a private campground. Better yet, we were headed to one of our favorite towns on the South Shore: Plymouth!