Big Trip: Statistics and Lessons Learned

Now that we've been back for a while and I've had time to get my thoughts together, I thought it would be interesting and/or useful for future reference to do a run-down on some trip data and lessons learned.

If you would like to take a look, click here.

Wisconsin to Michigan - False Starts and Lake Rocks

Well, when we got ready to leave the RV park in Lake Delton on Sunday we discovered the chassis battery was dead. The only thing we could think of that might have pulled it down is that the clock display had been on for a couple days. Surely that doesn't pull much juice?  Anyway, we had trouble with this once before, when we were on Vancouver Island, and so now we were really skittish as to whether we could rely on the battery.

One of our fellow campers tried to give us a jump-start but it was no-go so I called Triple A and they put me in touch with a roadside service company.  I spoke to their dispatcher and explained to her that the battery might be kaput and they should just go ahead and bring a replacement with them.  And so we now have a new chassis battery in the Trek.

By the time we got the battery replaced, it was well after check-out time and we decided to just stay one more night. Schedule-wise, it was really not a big deal because we were at a "meandering" stage of our trip... essentially just hanging out until our next major stop in Ontario, Canada.

And so it was Monday before we left the Country Roads RV Park in Lake Delton and began to make our way to Michigan.

We drove right through downtown Chicago, which actually wasn't too bad - it was Labor Day weekend and so even though it was Monday, the traffic in the city was light. However, the traffic in the suburbs going into and then out of Chicago was very heavy, and so it took us quite some time to get through the greater Chicago area.

We stopped for the night around 7 PM at a Wal-Mart in La Porte, Indiana.  This is a very attractive area - it seemed quiet and quaint, despite being so close to the craziness of Chicago, which is the third largest city in the USA.

After our overnight stop in La Porte, we resumed our journey eastward and rolled into Lakeport State Park Campground Tuesday afternoon. Check-in was a breeze, and the young man working the registration desk dropped the $6 daily use fee when we told him we did not plan on leaving the campground during our stay.

This is a nice campground with large sites and oak trees everywhere for shade  The only hook-up is power, and so we've been using the campground showers and we'll use the dump station on our way out when we leave tomorrow.

The only criticism I have of this place is that there are no garbage cans in the campground, just trashcans in the bathrooms. The host told us this is because people were stealing the garbage cans. Hey, how about a 500-lb dumpster? ... it would be tough to steal that! So campers either hoard their garbage and trash, which is not good, put it in the bathroom (not good either), or drive/walk about a mile to the dumpsters at the entrance. We only made that walk once, but we don't produce much waste anyway. We'll drop off some more trash tomorrow, as we leave the campground.

Lakeport State Campground in situated on Lake Huron and so we decided to learn more about this Great Lake. Here are some interesting factoids: Lake Huron is the second largest of the Great Lakes, with a surface area of 23,010 square mile which makes it the third largest fresh water lake in the world.  The lake holds 850 cubic miles of water and has 3,827 miles of shoreline. Lake Huron's average depth is 195 feet, with a maximum depth of 750 feet. At it's extremities, Lake Huron is 206 mi long and 183 mile wide

Lynda and I walked on the beach along Lake Huron, which is very long and quite wide and a great place to hang out.  I really enjoyed looking at the lake rocks washed up on the beach... they are all different colors and very polished by the water and sand.

Lynda was the first to notice that the squirrels running around the campground are black, unlike the Eastern Gray squirrels we're used to seeing. The dogs also found these little guys pretty interesting.

After a relaxing little sojourn here at Lakeport, we'll be leaving tomorrow for Ontario, Canada where we're getting together with cousins from my Mother's side of the family. I'm also trying to coordinate a visit with some old family friends (the Mosbaughs) I haven't seen in 30+ years... hopefully it will all work out.

Click here for some photos of Lakeport State Park campground.  And stay tuned for more adventures!

South Dakota - Locks, Memorials, Presidents, and a Fixed AutoPark Brake!

Well, it's been quite a day and it all started when I woke up and went to take the dogs out... and the door would not open.  That's right, the deadbolt was stuck in the locked position!  I fiddled around with it for several minutes while the dogs jumped up and down, barking incessantly to go out.  What a nice and peaceful start to a new day!

I ended up going out the window above the couch.  It was little embarrassing but we couldn't just sit inside and wait for a miracle.  I was finally able to open the door from the outside using the key. I took the deadbolt apart but couldn't find anything obviously wrong, except the damn thing kept sticking. We needed to get the Trek back over to the Chevrolet Truck Service Center by 10:30 AM and the clock was ticking on getting this lock issue fixed. So I drove over to a nearby Ace Hardware store and bought a new deadbolt.  I had to modify it a bit so it would fit but we got the Trek dropped off in time.

Then the four of us, dogs included, headed south to visit Mount Rushmore. We were both somewhat indifferent about visiting this Memorial; I'm not sure why but it did not inspire much excitement in either of us. Anyway, we agreed it would be foolish to be so close and yet not visit Mount Rushmore and so off we went. We knew we would not be able to walk around with the dogs, but had to take them anyway because the Trek was in the shop. And so we decided to do what we had done the day before at the Crazy Horse Memorial: take turns staying with Sydney and Barley in the parking lot while the other person visited the Memorial. This worked out well and we each spent about 45 minutes at the Memorial which, in the case of Mount Rushmore, was a fairly decent amount of time.

What is interesting is that by the time each of us visited the Memorial, we both decided that Mount Rushmore is interesting and was well worth the visit! Click here to see some photos...

It was still pretty early when we left Mount Rushmore. I called the Chevy place and the service manager told me they had installed the part and the AutoPark brake was working, but they were having trouble with the brake light on the dashboard - it was staying on. I told him this had not been an issue before I took the Trek in to them and he agreed they needed to fix it.

So we had some time to kill before the Trek would be ready. We drove back into Rapid City, bought some Mexican fast food, and went to a nearby park to eat and then walk the dogs. I called the Chevy place again and they still had not fixed the dashboard light issue; the service manager sounded frustrated (welcome to my world, I thought).  By now it was 3 PM and I was starting to worry they would run out of time.

Anyway, we decided to go to the historic downtown area of Rapid City and take a closer look at the City of Presidents, which is a series of life-size bronze statues of past presidents placed at city street intersections. These statues are really well done, and we had fun walking along the downtown streets; the dogs seemed to enjoy it also.  Click here to see some photos.

We managed to look at about half the statues when the Chevy Truck service manager called to say they had fixed the problem!  Yay!

So we went to pick up the Trek and, after talking with the service manager, I realized they had fixed the dashboard light problem by replacing a switch for which I had a brand-new spare on board.  They were charging me $75 for the same switch I had purchased for $34.  After some discussion, the Parts Dept manager agreed to take my brand new switch to restock his parts bin and drop the part charge off the bill. 

So after 2 1/2  months and over 9,000 miles, the AutoPark brake is finally fixed! Sad to say, the brake problem that started back in early June at Yosemite National Park cost me $2,030 and four visits to various shops to get completely fixed.  Well, that's just the way things go sometimes and there's no point dwelling on it.  I'm just darn happy the ordeal is finally over!

More adventure to follow - stay tuned!

South Dakota - Crazy Horse Memorial and Unending AutoPark Brake Issue

Well today has been a mixed bag: we went to see the Crazy Horse Memorial, which is good, but the Trek is still not fixed, which is bad.  Let me explain...

We got up early this morning and got ready for the day - we unhooked the Trek, battened down the hatches, and went by the dump station to empty the tanks.  Then I drove the Trek to the Chevrolet Truck Service Center in Rapid City with Lynda following in the rental car.  I spoke with the service manager, who was concerned that the part they ordered was (a) the right part, and (b) the only part they would need to fix the issue.  I told him that the service manager in Grand Rapids had assured me this is exactly what needed to be done and so we should be fine.

Then off we went, including the dogs, in the rental car to visit the Crazy Horse Memorial.  I had done some research online that indicated the Crazy Horse Memorial was pet-friendly. Unfortunately, it wasn't as pet friendly as I had thought or hoped and it was too hot to leave the dogs in the car. Nor could we take them inside the Welcome Center or the Museum. So Lynda and I took turns staying with Sydney and Barley under a shade tree in the parking lot while the other person went inside for about 45 minutes. It was the best we could do under the circumstances, but I wish we could have toured the place together and taken a great deal more time to look at the exhibits.

Despite those obstacles, I loved being there! The Crazy Horse Memorial is an absolute must see, and the Indian Museum is probably the best of its kind in the US, perhaps even North America.

The Memorial itself is amazing, even in its unfinished state. And the sculptor behind the Memorial was a remarkable person. 

When Korczak Ziolkowski and Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear officially started Crazy Horse Memorial in 1948 they had hardly anything in the way of money or even projected funding. Since then, for the past 60 years, Ziolkowski  and others banded together and would not give up - they simply made it happen. In a lot of ways, I think the Crazy Horse Memorial has allowed people to be at their best, which is certainly a welcomed contrast to darker days of mistreatment and duplicity.

Although he passed away in 1982, Ziolkowski's family continues to play a major role in the sculpting and oversight of the Crazy Horse Memorial.

The Memorial is a private, non-profit undertaking financed by admission fees and contributions, and does not accept any government funding. Based on what I've read, it seems that because of excellent management and the generous contributions of thousands of donars at all levels, the Memorial is in pretty good fiscal shape, although this is apparently never taken for granted and fund-raising is ongoing.

While we were still visiting the Crazy Horse Memorial, I got a phone call from the Chevrolet Truck service manager.  Although the part I had them install was needed to repair the Trek, a second part was also needed and it would have to be ordered. The only way to get it in time to finish the work the next day, Friday, was to have it shipped over night. I have to say I was pretty aggravated... not at the hapless guy on the phone but at the sorry SOB in Grand Rapids who gave me incomplete information.

So what choice did I have?  I asked the service manager to go ahead and have the part expedited, and to ask his mechanic put the Trek back together because we had to come get it for the evening.

And so we drove back into Rapid City, picked up the Trek, and returned to the campground. We are relaxing tonight and tomorrow, once again, we'll pack up the Trek and take it to the service center. I just hope that the part comes in as ordered and they get the job finished!

We'll see.

South Dakota - Commodes and Horses

When we got back from the Badlands National Park yesterday evening, we discovered the commode was broken. It was late and we were tired and so we decided to deal with it in the morning... this morning.

What a fabulous way to start the day!!!

I read the commode user guide (yes, there is such a thing) and, after doing a little online research, I figured out that we needed a certain repair kit to replace cables and some other parts. I also discovered there is an RV parts supply place just a couple miles south of the campground.  So I called them to see if they had the repair kit in stock and they did - we were in luck!  Well, that is if you consider it a lucky thing to have to pull a commode apart. I won't go into detail here, but it was most unpleasant. Ugh. Anyway, I had the commode fixed and re-installed by 11 AM.  Not bad, eh?  And, after a very hot shower with lots of soap, I was refreshed and ready to go horseback riding.

We had 2 PM reservations with Paradise Valley Trail Rides in Nemo, South Dakota and so we left the campground around 1 PM to have plenty of time to get there. Uh, sure... unless your GPS is trying to navigate you over streams and up undeveloped mountain sides! Well after a while, it was evident that we were not heading the right way. So I called the stables and a very patient man gave me proper directions. Once we got going on the correct roads, it was a beautiful drive through the Black Hills National Forest - and we were only about 15 minutes late. They did not seem to mind.

Lynda and I were interested to learn that a good many of the horses in the Paradise Valley stables are mustangs that were saddle-broken by prisoners. These horses are branded with numbers that, if you know how to interpret them, will tell you where and when the mustang was captured and what prison system gentled him.  The horse that I rode was named Felon and we thought that was very appropriate, considering his origins.

Anyway, our wrangler took us on a one-hour ride through the Black Hills over some of the same territory traveled by Custer and his troops.  He was knowledgeable about the area and shared his personal opinion as to how poorly Native Americans had been treated  - he definitely has a great deal of sympathy for the Native Americans, and so do we.

Although we usually enjoy longer rides, we had signed up for just one hour  and it was a good thing! I've been having trouble with sciatica for a some time now and, although it has never bothered me before when I've been riding, it sure did today. Who knows, perhaps the girth of the horse or the shape of the saddle set it off.  Not wanting to cut the ride short or cast a shadow on our little adventure, I didn't say anything but I was very glad to get back to the stables!

And so here we are hanging out in the Trek, watching movies and eating popcorn. Lynda has done some laundry, we've had some good food for dinner, and the commode works.  I just don't know what else a person could want!

Tomorrow, we're going to visit the National Presidential Wax Museum, perhaps take a run down the Alpine Slide in Keystone, check out the Cosmos Mystery Area, and visit Bear Country USA. It's going to be a busy day - stay tuned!

Great Falls, Montana - Saga of the Autopark Brake Continues

We left Glacier National Park on Thursday, August 12th and made our way to to Malmstrom Air Force Base which is just east of Great Falls, Montana. We had an appointment for the next morning with a Chevrolet Service Center to change the oil and work on the Autopark brake.

This is only a 170 mile drive but it took us over 4 hours because at least half of our route was along two-lane country roads.  It was a very pretty drive... and I now understand why Montana is often referred to as Big Sky Country.  Its hard to put into words, but as imposing as the countryside is, the sky dominates with amazing cloud formations and a gradiated azure that is simply beautiful.  I was fascinated by that Montana sky but, sadly, we have no photos that even come close to "representing".

We arrived at Malmstrom AFB's Gateway campground early afternoon.  This is the only military campground we've been to that is located outside the base perimeter, which I actually like because we just drove on in without having to go through security gate barriers, etc.  Anyway, we both enjoyed staying here - the campground hostess was very helpful and friendly, and the facilities were great.

We had been having trouble with the black water (toilet) tank not flushing out properly and so I had the bright idea of dumping the black water tank, filling it up with fresh water, and then dumping the tank again to flush it out. I estimated that water flowed into the commode at 1.5 gallons per minute which meant it would take 26 minutes to fill up the 40 gallon holding tank. So we had 20+ minutes to do something, or just sit around. Well, we needed to get change to do laundry so we decided to walk to a nearby credit union, get cash from the ATM, ask a teller to make change, and then come back to the Trek. So off we went at a very brisk pace while I kept a careful eye on the time.

Well, my calculations were flawed (doh!) and we barely missed having to clean up a great big mess.

When we got back to the campground, Lynda ducked into the laundry room to see what machines were available and I walked to the Trek to get the laundry basket. As I went up to the campsite, I was horrified to see water spewing from underneath the RV. Although water had overflowed onto the hardwood floor in the bathroom, I got there just in time to stop it from flooding into the heating duct and out into the carpeted area. That was a close call!

Anyway, we got the darn laundry done and laid low for the rest of the evening.  Despite all the water and flushing, the black water tank is still not emptying as it should. I'll tackle this at a later date, and hopefully a little smarter next time...

We arrived at the Chevrolet Service Center around 8:00 AM the next morning, hoping to be finished by 10:30 AM so we could enjoy the rest of the day. Sad to say, we did not get out of there until well past 1 PM, and with only part of the Autopark brake issue corrected. Oh, and it cost us $567 - isn't that nice?

After sitting in the service center's waiting room with two bored dogs for over four hours, the customer service person informed us that although they were able to repair the transmission seepage that was coating the Autopark brake (and preventing it from holding), there was also a cable that needed to be replaced. Problem was that they would have to get the part from another dealership and it would be Monday before they could finish the work.

Monday?  No can do - we have reservations for a rental car and a campsite in Yellowstone the next day and there was no way we were going to cancel all that!  So Lynda and I agreed we would get the repair finished in Grand Rapids in a week or so.

After explaining to the customer service person that we had to leave the area the next morning, I asked him if he was absolutely sure the cable they identified was all that was needed to fix the issue.  He assured me that it was and they would annotate the part number on the repair ticket so we could refer to the part number later. So we sat around for another hour while they finally did the oil change and put the Autopark brake system back together. It was about 1:30 PM when we paid the bill and left.   

As I climbed back into the Trek to drive away, I stared at the piece of wood we had been using for a chock for thousands of miles.  Would we never get to throw that darn thing into a campfire?

Once we left the Chevrolet service center, we went to do a little grocery shopping and I found a place to get a haircut.  

We got back to the campground a little after 4:00 PM, still irritated that the autopark brake was not fixed, that we spent the better part of the day sitting around the service center, and that the near-repair cost us almost $600.



Well to heck with it, we're heading to Yellowstone National Park tomorrow, so stay tuned!

What's up with the Autopark Brake?

The issue with Autopark brake has not miraculously cured itself. As you may (or may not) recall, the brake is not properly holding the Trek and she rolls when we park on an incline. We first noticed this shortly before taking the ferry from Port St Angeles, Washington over to Victoria, British Columbia.

So we've driven over 7000 miles through British Columbia, the Yukon, Alaska, and Alberta without a park or emergency brake. We've been using the leveler jacks and a piece of wood to chock the tires when we park, which has worked out OK although it can be a little embarassing sometimes.

But we really do need to get this issue fixed. So I called a GM Dealership in Great Falls, Montana this morning and set up an appointment for next Friday - we'll need an oil change by then also.  Hopefully its just a matter of tightening the cable and/or topping up the brake fluid.

We'll see... stay tuned!

Alaska RV Tour - Part II of Anchorage, Alaska

On Friday, July 23rd I left Lynda and the dogs at the RV Park and went downtown with the Trek to get an oil change, have the tires rotated, and fill up the propane tank. I had an appointment with the local Chevrolet dealer - that which shall not be named. When I made the appointment, I asked how much the oil change would cost and the service representative said he would check and call me back. But, I never heard back from them and was soon to find out why.

After driving into town and figuring out the one-way streets, I was able to get into the dealership service area. And then I found out that they wanted to charge $150 for the oil change and $125 for the tire rotation, although they could not balance the tires. Yikes! After telling the customer service representative the dealership is gouging motorhome customers, I walked out and used the GPS to locate a truck tire shop. Those folks rotated and balanced the tires for $60 and recommended another place for the oil change. I paid $74 for the oil change and it was done within 45 minutes. Then I filled up on propane at a gas station near the RV park and was back home by 11 AM.

We spent the rest of Friday relaxing and I decided to make a nice dinner, including roasting some potatoes in the microwave/convection oven. And this is when the oven made an awful groaning sound and then quit... for good. Yes, it was kaput! In all fairness to this microwave/convection oven, it was 13 years old and we had been using it every day. Anyway, I tagged along with Roger the next morning, Saturday, while he was running some errands. We went to two or three places but I could not find any microwave/convection oven combinations. So then I borrowed the van and ran around some more. After hitting at least 8 stores, I gave up and returned to the Trek with a microwave and a separate convection oven. What a pain! By that time, we had to get ready to go out to a group dinner and I could not finish installing the new microwave. I would have to finish it off later that night.

So our group went to dinner at the Sourdough Mining Company - as it turns out, this place is right next to the tire shop that took care of the Trek on Friday. I had to chuckle at that. Anyway, the Sourdough Mining Company specializes in serving large quantities of food to large quantities of people and so the food is average at best. Its a fun place for kids, but that's about it. After the meal, we went to the show next door, "The Adventures of Dusty Sourdough". This is really all part of the same experience; you can take in this show after dinner if you want.

Afterwards, we went across the street to the Wildberry Products and Chocolate Factory and watched a film about Alaska. Then we went next door to see their infamous chocolate waterfall and walk around the gift shop. I actually relented and bought something: a 4-DVD set entitled, Alaska, Into the Wilderness, which we'll watch when time permits.

Although we were both tired when we got back to the RV, I finished installing the microwave before going to sleep - we were going on an all-day tour in the morning and then leaving for Homer, Alaska the morning after.

The next day, Sunday, most of our group rode the train from Anchorage to Whittier, where we boarded the Klondike Express for their 26 Glacier Tour which goes 135 miles around Prince William Sound.

Although the day was rainy and cold, this was a really good trip! We spotted numerous sea otters, a small group of sea lions, and (of course) lots of glaciers.

Here is a map of the Klondike's route and the glaciers we saw... click here to see our photos of the tour.

And, in case you haven't already seen them, click here to see our other photos of the Anchorage visit.

Next, on to Homer Alaska - stay tuned!

Autopark Brake Not Working

Well, we thought the brake problem was all taken care with the work done in Petaluma, California.  As it turns out, we are now having trouble with the Autopark brake.  This is essentially the vehicle's parking brake which  is automatically engaged when the transmission is put into "Park".  It also serves as the emergency brake.  The trouble is that the brake is not reliably holding the vehicle - it sometimes slips, allowing the Trek to roll when we park on uneven ground.

Not good, but what are we going to do at this point?  We've had enough of sitting around while the Trek is being worked on, and we're due to take the ferry over to Victoria tomorrow. 

So we've decided to do nothing. We can use the leveler jacks and/or a piece of wood to chock the tires when we park.  While this is not ideal, we're comfortable that these methods will suffice for several weeks, until we return to the lower 48 and have time and opportunity to get the issue fixed.

I just hope we don't get in a situation where our brakes fail, because we don't have an emergency brake to fall back on. Keeping our fingers crossed!

The End of the Brake Saga

So we headed to Stockton purely because a person that works at the Chevy dealership there said they could work on our ABS issue.  But, sure enough, when I called the Service Department Monday morning the service manager told me that he was sorry but they are not authorized to work on the P30 Workhorse Chassis. Fabulous!

So I got on the phone and went online and finally found a Chevy dealer in Petaluma who assured me they are authorized to work on Workhorse chassis.  So we headed to Petaluma. To make a long story fairly short, they began work Monday afternoon and also found issues with the Air Conditioning.  Once we had approval from the Good Sam Extended Service Plan claims department, they ordered the parts.  But, parts would not come in until Wednesday morning and so we were in Petaluma with a wounded RV for 2+ days.

We stayed at a bad RV park in Rohnert Park, a few miles from Petaluma. This place was fairly small and very crowded and a lot of people were actually living there in broken down, sad old RV trailers.  The cops showed up the second night and we scuttled back into our RV and locked the door.  Scary place and not at all recommended, unless you’re bored with life and want to inject some action.

But, we made the best of things anyway.  We rented a car and spent all day Tuesday driving along the Northern California coast – from Bodega Bay to Mendocino (the town featured in Murder She Wrote) on US 1 and then back along an inland route.  We even drove through a section of Redwoods forest.  It was as beautiful as I remembered from when I was stationed at Travis Air Force Base, which is located between San Francisco and Sacramento, back in the late 1980s. Northern California is truly a wonderful area!  The dogs came along for the drive and so then we had to spend an hour cleaning the car out so the rental company would not bust us for having pets on board.   It was worth it… they had fun also.  Check out some photos here.

We returned to the Chevy dealership on Wednesday to have the parts installed.  Along with Barley and Sydney, we were hanging out in their Service waiting room, prepared to spend the day reading and catching up on email, etc.  But it was not to be:  after sweet, people-loving Barley lunged at 4 or 5 other customers and the service manager, he (the service manager) very politely ejected us from the waiting room.  For those that have never been there, northern California in early June is cool and even chilly. There we were, sitting outside for hours on some old plastic chairs they rounded up for us - Lynda had on several layers of clothing and a coat and I was under a blanket.  And Barley was in deep doodoo - I was not happy with him at all.  Oh well, you think you got your dog figured out and then he surprises you.  I guess that dear dog is much more protective than I realized.

Anyway, the service guys finished up around 5 PM and the work totaled over $2200. Our share was $665… that extended service plan more than paid for itself! And so, a chunk of money and five days later the brake issue was finally fixed and our RV travels could resume. And not a moment too soon, as far as we were concerned.

We gleefully hit the road, so happy to be mobile again. After driving through miles and miles of pretty farm lands, we are now overnighting at a Walmart in Yuba City, California.

Tomorrow we head to Salem, Oregon.

A Few Notes About RV Travel

While I've been spinning my wheels at Lemoore Naval Air Station, I have been reflecting on how RV traveling has been so far.  We’ve now been on the road since April 17th  and it’s taken a few weeks to slip into a routine.  Of course, Lynda having to return home for a week or so has been an interruption but also, perhaps, a good chance for us to catch our breath and regroup.

We have driven a little over 5000 miles since leaving home and gas has cost us an average of $0.30 per mile.

All in all, this RV traveling is good fun and there are a lot of things I really enjoy about it. BUT, it has not been as relaxing as I had  imagined!  Truth be told, I’m not sure why I thought it would be that relaxing to begin with, considering our travel schedule. We've made 13 stops in 37 days, not counting the 8+ days here at Lemoore.  So, we've been relocating every 2.8 days on average and, folks, I gotta tell you that there is work associated with arriving at a a campground such as:

• Unloading the scooter
• Hooking up that power cord
• Hooking up that sewer line
• Hooking up the filters and water hoses
• Setting the leveling jacks and closing the curtains

Then, when you go to leave:

• Loading up the scooter
• Unhooking, cleaning and putting away the power cord
• Unhooking, cleaning and putting away the sewer line
• Unhooking, cleaning and putting away the water filters and hoses
• Retracting the leveling  jacks and stowing the curtains
• Checking the oil and tranny fluid
• Checking the air pressure in all six tires

Dry camping (no hookups) has a lot of advantage, particularly when you're only going to be there for one or two nights. Because there are no hookups, set up is simple and preparations to get on the road again are easy.  Park the RV, set the leveling jacks, close the curtains.  You're done!  The next day, retract the leveling jacks, stow the curtains, check the oil and tranny fluid, check the tire pressure, and off you go!  You just need to ensure you have enough fresh water on board, and your holding tanks are pretty empty.  Oh, and if you want to run your generator, make sure you have plenty of gas.

What are some of the issues we've run into?

• Well, the cursed tire problems of course - these are well documented in other posts (ha)
• A faulty thermostat for the AC and Furnace, which I easily replaced with a new thermostat from the Camping World outside Flagstaff
• Oil change for the Trek - taken care of at a Wal-Mart with minimum fuss
• Pesky scooter carrier bottoms out, damaging the anti-tilt plate. I'm still working on this
• Scooter bogging down at high altitude / faster speeds - this seems to be a fuel starvation issue.  I tweaked the spark plug gap, put a divot in the gas tank cover to avoid a vacuum forming, checked fuel and vacuum hoses for pinches or obstructions. All seems well so far... 'lil scooter is running great.

I am actually very happy with our travels so far and can see how this could become habit-forming.  And its been good for me - I've already learned quite a bit about RV care and maintenance, and I've become much more relaxed about going with the flow when things don't go as planned.

Oh, and I'm much better about picking up after Barley and Sydney! Dog poop scooping will never be my thing, but at least I can do it now without gagging. 

I leave Lemoore tomorrow to get Lynda from the Fresno airport and resume our travels.  I am so ready to go!

This is a Test, Only a Test - Aghhhhhhh!

I think we are being harassed by space aliens - the New Mexico / Arizona deserts are the perfect place for such malignant activity.  Yes, slimy beasts from places unknown are sneaking over to our RV at night and letting the air out of our tires just to mess with us!

Let me explain: We get up this morning, well rested and all excited to be going to the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest... we read up on them last night and also looked up a couple places to find a replacement bolt for the scooter carrier.  We took the scooter off the carrier this morning and I had the anti-tilt plate and bent bolt in hand, ready to go forth and get a replacement on our way to the Painted Desert.  All was well in the Universe,or so it seemed. Sadly, the truth was that those pesky aliens were up to no good again.

Just before we started up the Trek to haul us and the dogs into Holbrook for hardware hunting (on the way to sight-seeing), I decided to check the tire pressure again.  You know, just to be safe.  Sure 'nuff Lucy, the passenger side outside rear tire was almost flat!

OK... that was it! I'd had enough of wheel simulators (covers) that pretty up your RV wheels but don't allow even a skinny hand like mine to get in there to check air pressure and/or attach an air hose to inflate.  Hence you're forced to install over-priced valve extenders that (as clearly proven by our numerous flat tires over the past several months) do more harm than good.  Off with their heads!  Or, more aptly put, off with that shiny, Magpie crap!

So, we asked around about tire repair shops and headed in to Holbrook.  First stop was the tire shop and those guys were amazing!  It was like pulling in to a race car pit stop.  Four or five of them swarmed out, listened to what I wanted and went to work.  In no more than 20 minutes from the time we pulled in, we were pulling back out.  The shameful valve extenders (all four of them) were tossed in a spare parts drawer inside the Trek and the offending wheel simulators for the rear wheels were stowed in a basement storage bay.  The guys double-checked the valve stems on all six tires and all were loose - amazing!  So, they tightened them all up and topped up the air in all the tires.  Charged us $25 and off we went!

I am willing to bet $100 that we won't have tire issues again, unless we get a "real" flat tire caused by some road hazard.  Sure enough, my wheels may be ugly but those tires are full of air!

Then we went to Walt's Hardware store and bought three replacement anti-tilt plate bolts (2 for spare). Our last errand was CarQuest for replacement indicator bulbs and then, finally, we headed off to visit the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest.

Gila Cliff Dwellings - Not Meant to Be!

Well, some things just aren't meant to be.

When I checked the tire pressure this morning, as I always do before we drive off anywhere, I found the passenger side outside rear tire was completely flat. I'm not sure at what point it lost air - I hadn't noticed any change in handling when we drove into the KOA yesterday afternoon.

Anyway, long story short: we found a tire shop that sent a very nice man out to our campground site and he found nothing wrong with the tire. All six tires are new with less than 4000 miles on them. We agreed, he and I, that the #$%@ valve extender must have worked the valve stem loose so the air leaked out. So, a couple hours and $25 later (Coach-Net picked up the $35 on-site service call charge), the tire was remounted and inflated and the valve extender carefully tightened. We then had to drive the Trek to the tire shop itself so the tire man could tighten the lug nuts properly with a torque wrench.

While the cost was not terrible and, more importantly, we had not careened off the mountain at Cloudcroft, the tire issue caused a three hour delay and so we couldn't visit the Gila Cliff Dwellings without rushing around like crazy people to get to our next stop: Holbrook, Arizona to visit the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.  Remember, we had already lost a day by having to hunker down in Carlsbad because of the desert winds.

So, with a new found go-with-the-flow attitude, we shrugged off the Gila Cliff Dwellings as something we were just not destined to see, ate a couple tasty home-made burritos I bought from a Mexican man at the tire place, and hit the road for Arizona.

Life throws you lemons? Eat burritos!

RV'ing Cheetahs

Safari Treks were sold brand new with an option for painted artwork to be airbrushed on the rear panel. From what I've been able to gather, the proud new owner could chose from several themes and then a professional artist would paint the scene onto the RV.  I've seen photos of several Treks with various artwork and the scenes are very attractive!  I have no idea how much this option cost in 1998, but the original owner of our Safari Trek elected to save his/her money for something else and so our back panel was bare.

I started thinking about that blank panel - a big blank space just looking for someone to brighten it up - and I decided we needed to do something. But what? Lynda nor I am talented enough to even consider airbrushing a scene, and I was sure that commissioning an artist to do this would require too much time, coordination, and money.  However, Lynda is a graphic artist and so we decided to design a layout in PhotoShop™ and have a sign shop output the scene on high quality vinyl and apply to the panel.  And so we did.... and that's how we got our RV'ing Cheetahs!

We purchased the photograph from an online photo source and FastSigns of Knoxville did the vinyl and lettering work for us

While we were working on the back panel artwork, we decided to also put some info about this blog on the Trek in the hope that folks would visit our web site and offer up suggestions for our Great RV Escape.  We'll see how that works out, but I'm looking forward to meeting and talking to people in campgrounds, parks, and other places we visit... this will make our trip even more interesting and fun!

So keep an eye out for us as we make our way around the US - click here to see our general route (we start in the Knoxville area and we're heading clockwise). If you spot us, let me know!!

Check out these photos:

Click here to view these pictures larger

Oh, and did you notice our new curtains match our Cheetahs?  I love it when things start coming together!

Home Economics 101 – Made Our Own Curtains!

Our December trip to Houston taught us much about the Trek and the realities of living in it from day to day. One of the big things we discovered was the difficulty with the windshield privacy curtains…I think they were the original ones when the Trek was brand new. Anyway, they were made of a stiff material and tightly pleated so they “accordion’ed” into the tie-back areas on the driver and passenger side windows. They were also just a tad bit too long which made it very difficult to smoothly pull them across the windshield.

Every night when we closed these curtains and every morning when we opened them, it was a struggle that quickly became fairly irritating. Consuelo and I agreed that fighting with them for 5 or 6 months would make one of us go insane, so we decided to replace the curtains.

We started looking into our options and soon learned we had a couple choices: we could order some custom-made curtains through numerous on-line vendors that would cost us over $350, or we could buy ready-to-hang curtains off the shelf at Camping World for about $140. So we tried the latter but discovered there were very limited colors to choose from and the standard length of 36 inches was about 3 inches too short for what we needed. So, we returned those curtains and scratched that approach. We really did not want to spend over $350 on custom curtains in colors we could only view online and so we decided to just make our own. How hard could that be, really? 

So we made a bunch of measurements and examined the hardware and construction of the existing curtains. And we asked my mother – who used to be a sewing instructor – for some advice, and she offered assistance if needed. So the three of us (Mom, Consuelo and I) headed off to Joanne’s Fabric Store to find material for our new curtains. As luck would have it (and as is often the case at Joanne’s – I suspect), they were having a sale and we found something we liked for less than $8 a yard! The fabric we chose is a light upholstery material with an ivory/cream background and dark brown cheetah spots - a perfect pattern and color scheme for our Safari Trek!

From Joanne’s we bought more than enough fabric, pleating tape, and thread to make the curtains. We also needed a small collection of hardware to hang them on the existing I-beam track. We got the curtain carriers from Camping World and Wright’s ceiling pleater drapery hooks from Create For Less.

Once we washed the new fabric, we headed over to Mom’s house to begin our project. Although I have a sewing machine, I keep it stored in a closet (like a trophy)… but my mother sews a lot so her machine is always set up, ready to go and she has a nice sewing room with a big sewing table. Mom helped us figure out how much to turn over for hems and showed us how to pin it up. Then, she took the material and sat down at the sewing machine and started sewing.  It just could not have gone better than that!

As the project evolved, and after examining the pleating tape, drapery hooks, and looking at the track the curtains would be hanging on, we realized we did not have enough clearance between the top of the curtain and the track. But, no problem! We headed to Home Depot to see if we could find some tiny S hooks to add between the drapery hooks and the curtain carrier hardware. They didn’t have S hooks small enough so we bought some small “J link” chain and then used 3 links from the chain on each drapery hook to add the needed space between the top of the drapery hook and the curtain carrier doo-dad. Actually, Consuelo sat with a pair of needle nose pliers and did this… it was a little too tedious for me but she didn't seem to mind!

Click here to see photos of our new curtains

All totaled, with fabric, pleating tape, thread, drapery hooks, curtain carrier hardware, and chain our new curtains cost us $210 - a $140 savings! And we got a fabric that matches the décor inside the Trek plus we had enough material left over for Mom to make three throw pillows for the couch!

We send a big THANK YOU and hug to Mom for her help!

Update on Preparations - We've Been Busy!

The last couple months have been very busy!  Here are the highlights -

• cleaned out closets and drawers, and even the basement
• sold lots of stuff on eBay and Craigslist, and had a yard sale that went very well
• sold the camper van and the Mustang
• sold the canoe
• completed initial maintenance on the scooter and she's all ready to go!
• I got my motorcycle license
• went to Key West for a week
• completed maintenance on the Trek: caulked the roof, painted the side mirrors and steps, sealed all plumbing entry points underneath, serviced the levelling jacks system, cleaned and lubricated the awnings, etc.
• designed artwork and lettering for the Trek and had it applied
• had tinting applied to the Trek's windshield and upper panes of the driver and passenger cockpit windows
• with the help of Lynda's mother, Carolyn, we made new windshield curtains for the Trek (saved lots of $$ compared to buying custom curtains)
• purchased items to put together a spare parts kit for the Trek and for the Onan generator
• got the Trek serviced (oil change, etc)

We also bought and water-tested an inflatable Intex Challenger K1 Kayak and now have a second one on order - very portable and easy to set up!  We'll use these for floating around on calm lakes and rivers for wildlife spotting.

Whew - I am tired of chores!  We still need to finish getting the yard and gardens cleaned up, take Sydney and Barley to the vet for shots, etc., and pack up the Trek with clothes and groceries.  But we're almost ready to go and I have no doubt all our efforts will be more than worth it! 

Some RV Equipment, Gear and Gadgetry

In an earlier post I mentioned that getting into the RV lifestyle, even as a weekend RVer, involves equipment, gear and gadgetry. I've already confessed that I like this stuff... I enjoy  figuring out what is needed, shopping around for best value for money, and then installing and/or learning how to use the item.  I guess I'm a geek.

Here is a list of some RV equipment, gear and gadgetry that either came with the Trek or we purchased.  No doubt we will add to this list as Our Great RV Escape unfolds, but we're off to a good start:

Entertainment

• 22" CRT Television - came with the coach.  A 32" LCD would be lovely, but this little guy works fine and we have other things to spend money on
• Cable TV hook up - came with the coach
• TV Antenna with Power Boost - came with the coach
• Zinwell ZAT-970A Digital to Analog Converter Box - we bought this and it works great!
• Toshiba SD4200 Progressive Scan DVD player - we bought this. Inexpensive but does the job
• Sima SVS-14 4 Input Manual A/V Selector - we bought this to switch between the backup camera, the TV converter, and the DVD player
• Satellite Power Antenna - came with the coach but we will probably not use it
• Satellite Reciever and Antenna Controller - came with the coach but we removed. Decided not to incur the subscription cost of Satellite TV.  We have TV digital reception, cable TV hookup, and a DVD player.  That's about as much TV viewing as we can stand!

Communications

• Two Cell Phones on the Verizon network that we've had for years
• Verizon Mobile Broadband access with 5GB plan - we purchased through GroupAccess: no contract, no activation fee, free USB modem, and the plan costs $10 less per month that dealing direct with Verizon.  A no-brainer!
• Two laptops (one each) - we've had for while
• Canon PIXMA MP250 All-in-One printer that we purchased for the RV - this has a bad review on Amazon, but it works great for us and you can't beat the price! We found out during the two week Fall Foliage trip that not having access to a printer is inconvenient. Even with a GPS, its good to be able to print out maps. Its also useful to be able to print out other material, such as sightseeing information, campground maps, etc.

Navigation

• Garmin NUVI 465/465T 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Truck GPS Navigator - we bought this although I already have a TomTom.  The difference is that this Trucker GPS model allows you to enter the dimensions of your RV and then navigates via roads that are suitable for your vehicle size - length, width and height.  This models also includes Traffic updates, and the Points of Interest database hasTruck Services for tire repair, engine repair, etc.  Well worth the money!

Water and Sanitation
We will be all over the lower 48, Alaska, and parts of Canada filing up our RV fresh water tank with drinking and cooking water. Because we'll be getting water from a multitude of uncertain sources, filtration is very important to our health. There is no quicker way to throw a big wrench into RV travels than by picking up some nasty intestinal bug! I researched a fair amount and came up with a 2-phase water filtration approach that should take care of just about any bad stuff, provided the water is potable to begin with:

• Camco 40651 RV CX90 Ceramic Water Filter - This ceramic water filter is Phase 1.  This filter pulls out dirt and silt and most minerals, along with several chemicals. And it helps remove unpleasant odors. Aside from making the water more pleasant to drink, removing the dirt and silt will protect the RV water pump and lines.
• Hydro Life RV/Marine Exterior Water Filter Kit with a Hydro Life® Carbon Block Filter - this is Phase 2 for our water filtration.  Removes cysts and other bad stuff that can cause serious gastro issues! Also pulls out some chemicals and helps with odors.  This filter is what could be the decider between spending a great day sightseening or being huddled up in a clinic somewhere.

Safety

• Backup camera - came with the coach. This is a must have!
• Midland WR100B Weather Radio - we bought this and hooked into the RV's existing external FM antenna.  A Weather radio is a good thing to have on board, it can save your hide.

RV Maintenance and Tools

• 13' aluminum telescoping multi position ladder for accessing the roof and cleaning the coach
• 100 PSI Air Compressor
• Digital multimeter
• Toolbox with common tools
• Miscellaneous hardware such as nuts, bolts, washers, screws
• Duct tape, Super Glue, metal strapping
• Spare fuses
• Spare parts such as air filters, serpentine belt, etc.
• Fluids such as engine oil, generator oil, fuel stabilizer, etc

The cost of RV equipment, gear and gadgetry can add up fast but most of the above items are must-haves.  I suppose we could do without some of the entertainment gear but those items did not cost much and, hey, women traveling around America the Beautiful need to have some creature comforts!

Like I wrote above, this list will probably grow but I think we're well set-up for now.

RV Equipment, Gear and Gadgetry - Safari Trek and Tank Scooter

Getting into the RV lifestyle, even as a weekend camper, involves equipment, gear and gadgetry... which I have to admit are part of the fun of RVing, at least for me.  As our RV travel adventure unfolds, I'll share more about RV equipment, gear and gadgetry we're accumulating and investigating, but the most obvious is the RV itself - the Safari Trek motor coach. After that, the motor scooter comes to mind.  Here's some info about this RV equipment:

The 1998 Safari Trek is a model 2830 Class A motor coach. She is 28 fit long and will be our home and primary transportation during our Great RV Escape. The Trek is battle-scarred on the outside but in good shape inside. The exterior damage is fine with me because it will mask any new "encounters" we will almost certainly have during our RV travels. This motor coach is built on a P30/32 chassis and has a 454 Chevy engine. It has ducted air conditioning, a furnace, a convection oven/microwave, a 3-burner range, a double sink, a 'fridge with freezer, a hot water heater, a decent-sized bathroom and shower, TV, DVD player, TV antenna with converter, a queen-sized bed, a jack-knife sofa for a double bed, and more. It is our home away from home!

After much thought, I decided not to bring a tow car, or Toad in the vernacular of RV'ers, on our Great RV Escape. A toad would add one more layer of complexity and cost. Instead, we will use a scooter for runs to the grocery store and other close-by destinations. The scooter will save us from having to pack up the motor coach if we're camping and just need a few groceries or supplies. So Lynda bought a new Tank Urban Racer 150 DS 09 from Scootermax in Houston, Texas when we were there over Christmas 2009.  We hauled it back to Tennessee on the back of the Trek on a motorcycle carrier.

One of the reasons Lynda purchased this scooter is that Tank offers a 3 year warranty - most Chinese scooters come with a 1 year warranty at most. Imagine her delight when we learned that Tank declared Bankruptcy only 1 week after she bought the scooter! So who knows what kind of warranty coverage Lynda has - probably none. Oh well, it was still a good purchase. Sometimes *stuff* happens and you just have to roll along with it.

Selecting and Buying the RV

Once we decided we were serious about taking time off to travel throughout the US and Canada, the next big step was to select, purchase and provision a suitable RV. As much as I love my 19ft Class B camper van, there is no way the two of us could live in it for 5-6 months, much less with two big dogs along for the ride. So the hunt was on for another RV and the important factors were price and living/storage space.  Who knew the search would be such a big thing?

NEWSFLASH: RVs are like shoes - lots of categories, lots of styles in each category, many colors to pick from, what kind of material would you like? And on and on. For example, here are common categories of RVs:

• Class A Motor Coaches - resemble a bus and are built on specially designed vehicle chassis
• Class C - built on cutaway heavy duty van and truck chassis
• Class Bs and B+s - conversion vans
• Truck Campers - the camper rests in the bed of a pickup truck
• 5th Wheel Trailers
• Pull behind Trailers

… and for some of these categories, there are styles or sub-categories such as:

• Class A Diesel Pushers (diesel engine in the back)
• Class A Gasoline

...and there are a host of other things to think about:

• Length
• Number of slide outs
• Construction materials
• Interior furnishings and fixtures
• Gear and gadgetry
• And so on

Although all this was a bit overwhelming, we quickly ruled out Truck Campers and Class Bs and B+s - in terms of living and storage space, these are just too small for extended RV living. Too bad because Class Bs are great for maneuverability and offer some real conveniences. Then we ruled out trailers of any flavor because I am intimidated at the idea of hauling around some big ole' trailer… sure, all is fine when we're moving forward but what the heck will I do when I have to back the bloody thing up?

So, we were left with Class A RVs and Class C RVs. At first we did not consider Class As because we thought they were all 35 feet or longer, which I did not think I could drive very well, and Lynda did not care for the idea of living in a “bus”. But the more we looked at Class Cs the more we realized they just do not provide as much living and storage space as Class A coaches, except for the really big Class Cs - and then we might as well look at Class As.

We were watching Craig’s List, eBay and a host of other online RV sale sites. And we also drove around East Tennessee with our friends, Judi and Gary, and stopped in at some RV dealers to look at pre-owned units. I can honestly say that most of the folks we dealt with were very nice. There was one place, however, that I would not have bought anything from no matter how good the deal. I won’t say the name of this RV dealer… if you come across them, you’ll know it right away. Trust your instincts and go somewhere else.

Where was I? Oh yeah… trying to find the perfect RV in the right price range. The more we looked at RVs, the more I realized there are too many things to think about and keep track of without writing them down. So, I put together a checklist of features and equipment to ask about. You can pull this up and use it if you want but bear in mind that it does not cover everything and you’ll need to tweak it so it reflects the items that are important to you.

Anyhow, with Judi and Gary's help we came to be very interested in getting a late '90s Safari Trek 24 or 28 foot coach.  The Treks, although no longer made, are considered to be well built, good value coaches.  The older ones are not particularly fancy but are better quality than most in a similar price range. The Trek floorplan includes the patented MagicBed (hold the jokes people) which lowers from the ceiling in the living area... and cancels out the need for a bedroom.  This saves at least 10 feet in length.  So, what you end up with is a nicely appointed motor home that is only 24 or 28 feet long and much more manueverable than her longer cousins.

I must say a huge Thank You and send many hugs to Judi and Gary… these folks really helped open our eyes to looking at Class A RVs. And they have spent who-knows-how-many hours helping us learn the systems and figure things out. 

It must have been fate, because Gary and Judi spotted a 1998 Safari Trek at a Nashville dealer, Cullum & Maxey, and told us about it immediately.  They went back to Nashville with us a few days later to look at the coach and test drive it, and again the next weekend to help us bring it home.  The photo below was taken of the four of us on the day I bought the Trek.

And that's the saga of how we came to have the Safari Trek. This Class A motor home was in my price range (cheap!), has good living space and storage space, includes almost all the features that are important to us, and is in great condition for her age (like me).  I think we made an excellent choice!

Click here to look at some more pictures of the Trek, inside and out. Any ideas on what we should call it?  The little stubby bus is a mouthful and not very flattering.