One of our slides is stuck out. We had this problem in Yuma four years ago. I'm not the engineer/mechanic in the family, but the gist of it is that the bolts that hold the struts together get sheared with time and then they break. At least that is my limited understanding. Four years ago, I would have been in tears and panicked, but this time I managed to hold it together. I just kept affirming that Divine Intelligence would guide us on how and/or where to get it fixed. Kim had a good idea of how to fix it, and he jerry-rigged replacement bolts in place. But unfortunately, they were not strong enough and broke off every time we tried to put the slide in. The management at Heceta Beach RV gave us the name of an RV Repairman, Keith's RV Repair here in Florence. We gave him a call, and although he was working on another rig, he gave Kim some pointers. A quick trip to True Value Hardware for some heavy duty bolts, and some patience on Kim's part, accompanied by just a little bit of swearing, and it looks like we are good to go. Kim bought extra bolts to have on hand just in case. Hopefully, she will hold together at least until we get to San Juan Bautista, where we will be for about a week. Luckily for us, we have friends in the area who will put us up (and put up with us), if the rig needs more than a day's work done to her.
So now, we are off to Crescent City. Hope to be there before dark.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Monday, March 3, 2014
Born Again RV Virgins
Our grandson just celebrated his 4th birthday, which means it was 4 years ago that we were summoned home from our first long RV journey by his mother, who had been put on bed rest for the last 3 weeks of her pregnancy. Choosing to opt to be our grandson's primary daycare providers, we put off our travel plans. Just when we were about ready to start to think about hitting the road again, along came Grandson #1's brother. We put in another 15 months as Grandma and Grandpa Daycare when our daughter found a "regular" daycare that met the criteria that she, my husband (Kim) and I were happy with.
We started formulating plans to leave March 1st, planned the itinerary, and started making lists. I had forgotten how much work it is to load up the rig. I'll let Kim post about all his work in prepping the rig itself.
Day One - We actually departed on time, waving good bye to our house sitters who were there to make sure we cleared the driveway without running over the boulders that line the driveway. We had a short drive to Kelso, WA. We stayed at a nice little park called Brookhollow RV Park. Easy access about one mile off I-5. $35 a night for full hook up. We had stayed there on our way home four years ago. You can see the pictures and read my review of that park here:
http://rv-virgins.blogspot.com/2010/02/back-in-washington.html
A couple of snags the first day. The ABS light came on in the truck. It is something that we will check out when we get to the Santa Cruz area where we will be for 5 days. Research showed that even if the light comes on, the brakes are still working. The other thing was that the propane sensor decided to shriek. Not sure why this happened and there was some relief in remembering that it does this from time to time. Perhaps it was just annoyed that we woke it up after a 4 year nap. Who knows. It stopped after we pushed the mute button, and we turned off the propane furnace just to be safe. Thank God for space heaters and electric hook ups.
Day Two - We left only 5 minutes after our planned time of departure. I was pretty proud of myself. I'm the straggler. I'm up early, but by the time I've done my morning spiritual reading and journalling, had some breakfast, and am starting to get ready to think about showering and getting dressed, Kim is up and chomping at the bit. Oy vey. Aren't we on vacation? In an effort to keep the peace, I did a few things two months prior to our departure that I hope will help. First, I cut off my hair. This was not a big deal for me. I had worn my hair very short for years. In my late 40s, I decided to start growing it out. A mid life thing? Not sure, but I did it. Even when it was long, there was not much styling involved. There was, however, lots of time involved in washing and drying. I am now sporting a short wash and wear hair style. That cut (pun intended) about 30 minutes off my prep time. The other thing I did, and I'm kicking myself for not doing this years and years and years ago is waxing. I'm almost 60 years old now, and I experienced waxing my legs and underarms for the first time in January. OMG, what a difference. Not having to fuss with that aspect of my morning routine is such a blessing. My first wax experienced lasted close to 2 months. I'm sure part of that is my age. The older you are, the slower the hair on your legs grows. I wish I could say the same of underarm hair. The underarm waxing lasts 2-3 weeks for me. So worth the momentary discomfort of the waxing experience. I'm glad I tried it out early so I knew what to expect. We should make it to Phoenix before I will be looking for another wax job.
So groomed and on the road with a happy husband (not only that we were off pretty much on time, but the ABS light was no longer on) we headed south on I-5. If you are going through the Portland, Oregon area and have no reason to stop in Portland, take I-205. It bypasses all of the downtown area and its awful traffic. (Does every big city have awful traffic?) It is so much better than driving through Portland. We stopped for diesel just south of Salem, paying $3.99 a gallon at a Flying J station. The drive was very relaxed and smooth. Roundabout Rhonda (our GPS) took us on a different route from the one I had intended. She took us off I-5, down Hwy 99 E (yes, I know, odd numbered highways should go north and south, but this is what it was called), to Hwy 36, then connecting with Hwy 126 into Florence. Oh well, we saw places we wouldn't have seen otherwise. Lots of sheep farming followed by some delightful tree lined two lane highway, with very low hanging branches. Very glad we cleared them and our AC unit is still intact. It was a very pretty drive. We had done it before, just picking up Hwy 126 in Eugene.
We arrived at Heceta Beach RV Park relatively early, before 3pm. We had stayed here before as well. You can read about our experiences by clicking here:
http://rv-virgins.blogspot.com/2010/02/fortuna-and-florence.html
It is much the same as I remembered it. Nice check in experience. $36 per night for full hook up. We couldn't get the DirecTV dish to cooperate, so we utilized the free TV cable so that I could watch The Oscars. Ellen DeGeneres did a great job of hosting, and the musical numbers were great. I am definitely going to have to watch The Dallas Buyers Club here sometime soon.
It was rainy and windy when we arrived. Not a surprise if you are from the Pacific Northwest. We are on the coast and it is March. It would be more shocking if it were anything but windy and rainy. What I love about this park are the pyimydalis arborvitae shrubs between the sites. Great for privacy and in this case, great for wind block.
Tomorrow we are off to Crescent City. This will be about 185 miles straight down Hwy 101. Hopefully, an easy day.
We started formulating plans to leave March 1st, planned the itinerary, and started making lists. I had forgotten how much work it is to load up the rig. I'll let Kim post about all his work in prepping the rig itself.
Day One - We actually departed on time, waving good bye to our house sitters who were there to make sure we cleared the driveway without running over the boulders that line the driveway. We had a short drive to Kelso, WA. We stayed at a nice little park called Brookhollow RV Park. Easy access about one mile off I-5. $35 a night for full hook up. We had stayed there on our way home four years ago. You can see the pictures and read my review of that park here:
http://rv-virgins.blogspot.com/2010/02/back-in-washington.html
A couple of snags the first day. The ABS light came on in the truck. It is something that we will check out when we get to the Santa Cruz area where we will be for 5 days. Research showed that even if the light comes on, the brakes are still working. The other thing was that the propane sensor decided to shriek. Not sure why this happened and there was some relief in remembering that it does this from time to time. Perhaps it was just annoyed that we woke it up after a 4 year nap. Who knows. It stopped after we pushed the mute button, and we turned off the propane furnace just to be safe. Thank God for space heaters and electric hook ups.
Day Two - We left only 5 minutes after our planned time of departure. I was pretty proud of myself. I'm the straggler. I'm up early, but by the time I've done my morning spiritual reading and journalling, had some breakfast, and am starting to get ready to think about showering and getting dressed, Kim is up and chomping at the bit. Oy vey. Aren't we on vacation? In an effort to keep the peace, I did a few things two months prior to our departure that I hope will help. First, I cut off my hair. This was not a big deal for me. I had worn my hair very short for years. In my late 40s, I decided to start growing it out. A mid life thing? Not sure, but I did it. Even when it was long, there was not much styling involved. There was, however, lots of time involved in washing and drying. I am now sporting a short wash and wear hair style. That cut (pun intended) about 30 minutes off my prep time. The other thing I did, and I'm kicking myself for not doing this years and years and years ago is waxing. I'm almost 60 years old now, and I experienced waxing my legs and underarms for the first time in January. OMG, what a difference. Not having to fuss with that aspect of my morning routine is such a blessing. My first wax experienced lasted close to 2 months. I'm sure part of that is my age. The older you are, the slower the hair on your legs grows. I wish I could say the same of underarm hair. The underarm waxing lasts 2-3 weeks for me. So worth the momentary discomfort of the waxing experience. I'm glad I tried it out early so I knew what to expect. We should make it to Phoenix before I will be looking for another wax job.
So groomed and on the road with a happy husband (not only that we were off pretty much on time, but the ABS light was no longer on) we headed south on I-5. If you are going through the Portland, Oregon area and have no reason to stop in Portland, take I-205. It bypasses all of the downtown area and its awful traffic. (Does every big city have awful traffic?) It is so much better than driving through Portland. We stopped for diesel just south of Salem, paying $3.99 a gallon at a Flying J station. The drive was very relaxed and smooth. Roundabout Rhonda (our GPS) took us on a different route from the one I had intended. She took us off I-5, down Hwy 99 E (yes, I know, odd numbered highways should go north and south, but this is what it was called), to Hwy 36, then connecting with Hwy 126 into Florence. Oh well, we saw places we wouldn't have seen otherwise. Lots of sheep farming followed by some delightful tree lined two lane highway, with very low hanging branches. Very glad we cleared them and our AC unit is still intact. It was a very pretty drive. We had done it before, just picking up Hwy 126 in Eugene.
We arrived at Heceta Beach RV Park relatively early, before 3pm. We had stayed here before as well. You can read about our experiences by clicking here:
http://rv-virgins.blogspot.com/2010/02/fortuna-and-florence.html
It is much the same as I remembered it. Nice check in experience. $36 per night for full hook up. We couldn't get the DirecTV dish to cooperate, so we utilized the free TV cable so that I could watch The Oscars. Ellen DeGeneres did a great job of hosting, and the musical numbers were great. I am definitely going to have to watch The Dallas Buyers Club here sometime soon.
It was rainy and windy when we arrived. Not a surprise if you are from the Pacific Northwest. We are on the coast and it is March. It would be more shocking if it were anything but windy and rainy. What I love about this park are the pyimydalis arborvitae shrubs between the sites. Great for privacy and in this case, great for wind block.
Tomorrow we are off to Crescent City. This will be about 185 miles straight down Hwy 101. Hopefully, an easy day.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Bye Bye KM Resorts, Hello Thousand Trails
As you may recall, we did cancel our KM Resort membership last year. We have decided to try Thousand Trails. One reason is the idea of their camping zones, and the buy one zone, get one free offer. Kim's aunt and uncle belong to Thousand Trails, and we have done a few day trips when they have been camping close by. We liked what we saw. Now we will find out if we like what we use.
We've Not Been Travelling In The RV For A Few Years......
does that mean we are still virgins? Well, if not virgins, certainly we are in need of more experience. I prefer experience of the "good" sort....you know, the kind where you read about some problem and its solution before it happens to you!
We are about six weeks out from hitting the road again for a journey to California and Arizona. Both Kim and I are busy reading other blogs and checking out websites. I've got half the trip planned with our longer destinations being the Santa Cruz area, San Diego, Phoenix and Cottonwood, AZ. We may be traveling by the seat of our pants on our way home, depending on weather and how much we miss seeing the grandkids. That's the hardest part of us - missing the day to day interactions with those little buggers. However, the traveling itch has struck and it must be tended to.
If you have any must sees in the areas we will be visiting, please do let us know.
We are about six weeks out from hitting the road again for a journey to California and Arizona. Both Kim and I are busy reading other blogs and checking out websites. I've got half the trip planned with our longer destinations being the Santa Cruz area, San Diego, Phoenix and Cottonwood, AZ. We may be traveling by the seat of our pants on our way home, depending on weather and how much we miss seeing the grandkids. That's the hardest part of us - missing the day to day interactions with those little buggers. However, the traveling itch has struck and it must be tended to.
If you have any must sees in the areas we will be visiting, please do let us know.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Come full circle.
We've been stationary going on 2 years now. Originally we were living in our 5th wheel in the driveway and then after receiving anonymous complaints about lowering the property values in the neighborhood, we moved to a local American Legion campground. Now we are back in the house since the kids decided they really needed a bigger house and yard and are currently in a 4bdrm with a nice yard. We're in the process of making upgrades and repairs since we will probably stay here for a at least the next 2 years until the grand kids are in pre-school. We already said we weren't babysitting another baby so if another one comes along they are on their own.
Meanwhile, we've been painting inside, replaced the two toilets with low flush units that we got $100 rebates for each one so the total cost to us was $70. What we thought was a leaking roof around the brick fireplace turned out to be 'brick saturation'. Who knew? In heavy rainfall, which we had in abundance here in the NW last year, the rain striking the edge of the bricks where the mortar is is absorbed by the bricks, plus the cracks in the cement cap didn't help. The water then wicks down through the bricks until the warmer temperature inside the house causes it to evaporate leaving behind a chalky white residue, which I thought was from the drywall in the ceiling. The fix is to grind out the mortar to about 1" deep and re-mortar. It's called 'tuck pointing'. About $1200 later it is done and then in the spring/summer when it's warmer/dryer a sealant will be applied. Hopefully this is the end of it. Already had the ceiling repaired and repainted once and don't want to have to do it a third time. (Haven't done the second time yet.)
Next on the list is upgrading the electric to 200 amp service. Estimates so far put that in the $2300 - $2500 range. Whoopee!! Started off getting quotes for fixing a couple of dead outlets and escalated from there. In today's electronic lifestyle I'm surprised I've gotten by so far.
Next will be the kitchen. Mostly new counter tops and re-doing the cupboards, plus upgrading the appliances so I'll probably be lucky to get through that for less than $10K. We'll see.
That's probably enough to keep me busy for now and it's finally warmed up enough that I should get outside and finish washing the 5th wheel so I can get the cover on before it decides to snow.
Merry Christmas to those who celebrate and Happy Holidays to those so inclined and if you don't you can just disregard this part.
Meanwhile, we've been painting inside, replaced the two toilets with low flush units that we got $100 rebates for each one so the total cost to us was $70. What we thought was a leaking roof around the brick fireplace turned out to be 'brick saturation'. Who knew? In heavy rainfall, which we had in abundance here in the NW last year, the rain striking the edge of the bricks where the mortar is is absorbed by the bricks, plus the cracks in the cement cap didn't help. The water then wicks down through the bricks until the warmer temperature inside the house causes it to evaporate leaving behind a chalky white residue, which I thought was from the drywall in the ceiling. The fix is to grind out the mortar to about 1" deep and re-mortar. It's called 'tuck pointing'. About $1200 later it is done and then in the spring/summer when it's warmer/dryer a sealant will be applied. Hopefully this is the end of it. Already had the ceiling repaired and repainted once and don't want to have to do it a third time. (Haven't done the second time yet.)
Next on the list is upgrading the electric to 200 amp service. Estimates so far put that in the $2300 - $2500 range. Whoopee!! Started off getting quotes for fixing a couple of dead outlets and escalated from there. In today's electronic lifestyle I'm surprised I've gotten by so far.
Next will be the kitchen. Mostly new counter tops and re-doing the cupboards, plus upgrading the appliances so I'll probably be lucky to get through that for less than $10K. We'll see.
That's probably enough to keep me busy for now and it's finally warmed up enough that I should get outside and finish washing the 5th wheel so I can get the cover on before it decides to snow.
Merry Christmas to those who celebrate and Happy Holidays to those so inclined and if you don't you can just disregard this part.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
So far, So good.
We've had a bought of cold weather lately with overnight temps in the high teens and daytime temps in the mid thirties, and lately, snow. The good news is that things have held up well and the only thing I wish I had done was to heat tape and insulate the 3/4" hose from the mascerator pump to the sewer cleanout at the house. Normally I leave the gray water valves open and let them drain continuously but with the cold weather it freezes up. Not a big problem since I have a back up hose I temporarily connect to drain the tanks then remove it and make sure it is drained of all fluids, but the gray water tanks need to be emptied every other day and if the freezing weather last more than a few days, which it hasn't so far this winter, then it does become a pain in the butt.
As for heat, with the furnace and one 1500W electric heater we are keeping warm enough. We both like it a bit on the cool side so we keep the thermostat set to 66 degrees and have comforters to snuggle under while watching TV at night.
Fortunately the weather is warming and things are melting which we are glad to see since it's our grandson's first birthday and we are looking forward to our guests being able to attend.
Next time you hear from me I'll probably be complaing about it being too warm. Sigh...
As for heat, with the furnace and one 1500W electric heater we are keeping warm enough. We both like it a bit on the cool side so we keep the thermostat set to 66 degrees and have comforters to snuggle under while watching TV at night.
Fortunately the weather is warming and things are melting which we are glad to see since it's our grandson's first birthday and we are looking forward to our guests being able to attend.
Next time you hear from me I'll probably be complaing about it being too warm. Sigh...
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Life After Grandkids
So much for the RVing life. Our first grandkids, both boys, came in February and April and we, with sappy grins, volunteered to babysit for the first year. Now don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade the time spent with them for anything and am actually wondering how well I will handle being separated if/when we leave. Right now we are pretty well ensconced in our son-in-law and daughter's driveway.
We had 30 amp service installed, plumbed in a sewer connection, applied heat tape and insulation on the fresh water line and installed skirting around the trailer to help keep it warmer this winter without the propane furnace running all the time.
The skirting is 3/4" R-Tech foam board found at most big box hardware outlets. It's screwed to a simple wood frame at the bottom. We're sitting on concrete or I would have dug a trench and just buried the bottoms. The tops are taped to the trailer with foil backed tape. The vertical seams are done with white duct tape. I hung two 150W lights on the leaf springs near the holding tanks for the extra warmth. The trailer bottom is enclosed and the furnace is ducted to provide heat to the tank and storage areas, but, what the heck, more is better. Right? The furnace is set for 64 deg and we have a 1500 W electric heater we run at night. So far, with the night time temps in the low 30's the furnace has only run once or twice so that will save me extra trips to get the propane bottles filled.
I bought 2 extra 30#ers and go fill them when 3 are empty. I looked into renting a bigger tank from the distributor, which at $99/year and a one time installtion fee of $120 sounded pretty good, but one of the contract stipulations was that you purchased at least two tanks full. That was a total of about 240 gallons at about $2.39/gal and was a bit more propane than I thought we would use.
Next project is to put that shrink to fit plastic sheeting on the windows. I'll leave a couple of the openable windows uncovered for ventilation.
And last, but not least, I ordered a dehumidifier. The windows have been damp in the mornings and the cheap bucket of white pellets just isn't enough.
Enough for now and I'll try to post more often but two babies are really kicking my butt...also giving me a good work-out. My back is getting stronger everyday and not hurting as much as it used to. Kind of like going in for physical therapy.
We had 30 amp service installed, plumbed in a sewer connection, applied heat tape and insulation on the fresh water line and installed skirting around the trailer to help keep it warmer this winter without the propane furnace running all the time.
The skirting is 3/4" R-Tech foam board found at most big box hardware outlets. It's screwed to a simple wood frame at the bottom. We're sitting on concrete or I would have dug a trench and just buried the bottoms. The tops are taped to the trailer with foil backed tape. The vertical seams are done with white duct tape. I hung two 150W lights on the leaf springs near the holding tanks for the extra warmth. The trailer bottom is enclosed and the furnace is ducted to provide heat to the tank and storage areas, but, what the heck, more is better. Right? The furnace is set for 64 deg and we have a 1500 W electric heater we run at night. So far, with the night time temps in the low 30's the furnace has only run once or twice so that will save me extra trips to get the propane bottles filled.
I bought 2 extra 30#ers and go fill them when 3 are empty. I looked into renting a bigger tank from the distributor, which at $99/year and a one time installtion fee of $120 sounded pretty good, but one of the contract stipulations was that you purchased at least two tanks full. That was a total of about 240 gallons at about $2.39/gal and was a bit more propane than I thought we would use.
Next project is to put that shrink to fit plastic sheeting on the windows. I'll leave a couple of the openable windows uncovered for ventilation.
And last, but not least, I ordered a dehumidifier. The windows have been damp in the mornings and the cheap bucket of white pellets just isn't enough.
Enough for now and I'll try to post more often but two babies are really kicking my butt...also giving me a good work-out. My back is getting stronger everyday and not hurting as much as it used to. Kind of like going in for physical therapy.
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