Once again, the Great Northeast Travelers enjoyed the wonderful amenities and stunning views of Lake Champlain for the 2026 spring rally at Apple Island RV Resort. We keep coming back to South Hero, Vermont, because what this place offers is extremely hard to beat.
11 LTVs started the rally a day early, taking advantage of the beautiful late spring weather; the other 35 coaches arrived over the next two days.
The first night, attendees enjoyed a meet-and-greet, brought an appetizer to share, and gave self-introductions. The topic this year was to share with the group the story behind how they ended up with a Leisure Travel Van. The stories they shared with each other were very entertaining and heartwarming.
Wednesday morning, members gather for breakfast in the community building, followed by a presentation from Troy of South Hero Rescue on the use of a defibrillator and CPR. He gave us a lot of valuable information on when to use CPR and how to use a defibrillator. Thank you, South Hero Rescue.
Later that day, Mark and Mary Hickman hosted bingo with all the proceeds going to South Hero Rescue. We were proud to make a donation to them, in the name of the LTV Great Northeast Travelers for $500, a job well done, Mark and Mary.
Wednesday evening was our traditional pizza party, which was sponsored by SkyMed.
How many pizzas does it take to feed 80+ hungry campers? That night, it was 24. Thank you, SkyMed, for helping us have a fun event.
Of course, the highlight of the evening was trivia. Arlen and Lea Dau challenged our group with fun topics and some difficult questions, though the eventual winners got about 90% of the answers right. Thank you, Arlen and Lea, for your hard work in putting this event together.
Thursday morning was bright and sunny, a perfect day for a golf outing, 4 groups teed off on Apple Island’s 9-hole par 3 course, with the tiniest of greens. Thanks to Larry and Judy Chin for organizing this terrific event; we were all winners on this day.
After golf, there was an organized bike ride around the area with notable stops at Snow Farm Winery and a final stop at Two Heroes Brewery. Thank you, Mark and Mary Hickman, for taking the lead, and to make sure no stragglers got lost, Leah and Tom Mundhenk were the tail gunners. Thank you, great job.
At Thursday’s open house, 16 coaches opened their doors to the group to show off their modifications. This has become one of my favorite events. I love to see how others make their LTV their own.
Thursday evening, attendees got together in the community building for a fried chicken dinner, sponsored by LTV, thank you to them for their generosity.
After dinner, Tam Benjamin and Lisa Cavanagh had a wonderful presentation on their all LTV Fantasy Tour to Alaska, it was inspiring to hear them talk about how amazing Alaska was, and on some occasions, the beauty and vastness of this land brought tears to their eyes. Their photos were unbelievably captivating as well. They told us they want to go back, but this time with a small group traveling at a slower pace. Thank you, Tam and Lisa
Apple Island Resort was an exceptional host for the Spring Rally, they had several activities for our group during this event, including rock painting, chair yoga, and, for those more adventurous people, a kayaking tour on Lake Champlain. Yes, everyone managed to make it back in time for dinner.
Friday was the time to say goodbye until next time.
So, many thanks to the Apple Island’s management team and their friendly employees for making our three days at their resort simply amazing.
Hope to see you all at Normandy Farms in the fall.
Written by: Paul & Marilyn Goodwin
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://leisurevans.com/blog/great-northeast-travelers-2026-spring-rally/