Because of the impending rain we hitched up the trailer to the truck today. Gassed up the truck, filled the freezer, bought fresh groceries and loaded them up. Played with batteries and flashlights - I found my flashlight on a head band. Only looked for it in the same drawer three times! I have wanted to leave early all week but had to do some online banking today and the last load of laundry etc blah blah blah, but the main reason I couldn't leave was that I have a hair appointment tomorrow! The Ace's sister gave us a good bye party this afternoon. She is ecstatic as she gets the house for two whole months to herself!
I am seriously wondering about what my handy and always reliable GPS is up to. I recently loaded it with updates but I know it can't hold enough data for completely updating the whole country. It is only a Garmin Nuvi 200 and either needs an extra data card or needs to be replaced. I programmed in our first two stops but when I tried to program in the Gateway Arch in St Louis and our timeshare in Branson, it didn't recognize my input locations. UMMMMMMM makes me wonder, if I won't be buying a new one or using maps the whole way.
Until I can figure out how to put a picture directly on the blog it will end up separately on Facebook.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Backing up is SO WRONG
There is a bit of work to checking out all of the systems for the trailer. There is a 12 volt battery and propane so that we can do what is called dry camp. We run the electricity off the 12 volt, heat water, cook and heat with propane. When dry camping there isn't enough power to use the A/C, microwave or electric percolator. We have a 30 gallon water tank and grey and black water storage systems so if we conserve, we can use the bathroom, shower and kitchen sink. If a camp ground has facilities we hook up to a 30 amp circuit and to city water and sewage. Then we can use the A/C, microwave, percolator and hair dryer. From my experience of using the RoadTrek RV that I used to have, it is best to use the provided facilities when dry camping whenever possible and not fill up the tanks. At some point you have to get water, find a sewage dump and buy more propane. But the truck engine charges the trailer 12 volt so as long as we keep that charged we will be OK.
I got a 4g iPhone to use on the trip but there are a lot of remote areas and mountainous areas where there is no 4g coverage. Then we will have to look for free wifi or wifi at campgrounds.
There is a TV on board with an antenna but we aren't counting on that working very well. Some campsites have cable so we have that capability. Hopefully watching TV will be the last thing from our minds. Don't tell me who wins Dancing with the Stars!
To help with the budget we plan to park overnight at some Walmarts. Walmart publishes a list of their stores that do not allow parking but we have to ask each manager permission and park where they tell us. Yesterday we were playing with our leveling blocks in case the ground or campsite is not level. Should be interesting to back the trailer up onto leveling blocks.
I took the truck with trailer attached ( a combined total of 46 ft) for a spin around town. I only rubbed the back trailer tires twice on the curb!!!!!! We had to add extra mirrors to the existing ones in order to see around the 8 ft width of the trailer. Backing up is so WRONG! It is so counter intuitive! You have to send the rear of the truck the opposite direction than you think! We have walkie talkies so that we can guide each other without shouting to the whole world that we are backing up. People tend to come out of the woodwork to watch people back up their rigs. And then they snicker, snicker, snicker. For some reason campsites love to make the trailer sites so that you have to back into them!
So from what I have read we are obliged to stay in the slow lane, let people pass and try not to get ourselves anywhere where we need to back up, with the exception of campsites. I will pay extra for a pull-through! The first few days are just interstate driving with Walmart stays so we should get the hang of driving the rig before we encounter more difficult conditions. (She says with her eyes rolled skyward!) The rig is 10 ft 3 inches high, remember that 10 ft 3 inches! I intend to tape a sticker on the dash with that height just as a reminder!
I got a 4g iPhone to use on the trip but there are a lot of remote areas and mountainous areas where there is no 4g coverage. Then we will have to look for free wifi or wifi at campgrounds.
There is a TV on board with an antenna but we aren't counting on that working very well. Some campsites have cable so we have that capability. Hopefully watching TV will be the last thing from our minds. Don't tell me who wins Dancing with the Stars!
To help with the budget we plan to park overnight at some Walmarts. Walmart publishes a list of their stores that do not allow parking but we have to ask each manager permission and park where they tell us. Yesterday we were playing with our leveling blocks in case the ground or campsite is not level. Should be interesting to back the trailer up onto leveling blocks.
I took the truck with trailer attached ( a combined total of 46 ft) for a spin around town. I only rubbed the back trailer tires twice on the curb!!!!!! We had to add extra mirrors to the existing ones in order to see around the 8 ft width of the trailer. Backing up is so WRONG! It is so counter intuitive! You have to send the rear of the truck the opposite direction than you think! We have walkie talkies so that we can guide each other without shouting to the whole world that we are backing up. People tend to come out of the woodwork to watch people back up their rigs. And then they snicker, snicker, snicker. For some reason campsites love to make the trailer sites so that you have to back into them!
So from what I have read we are obliged to stay in the slow lane, let people pass and try not to get ourselves anywhere where we need to back up, with the exception of campsites. I will pay extra for a pull-through! The first few days are just interstate driving with Walmart stays so we should get the hang of driving the rig before we encounter more difficult conditions. (She says with her eyes rolled skyward!) The rig is 10 ft 3 inches high, remember that 10 ft 3 inches! I intend to tape a sticker on the dash with that height just as a reminder!
Monday, April 21, 2014
OH NO NOT AGAIN, the grand circle tour redux
I met a friend, The Ace, who has a 21 ft Avenger RB travel trailer and since he has done little traveling in the past he wanted to start now. So I signed on as first mate. So far my duties have included: itinerary researcher and writer, reservation maker, equipment list maker. The Ace has concentrated on the vehicles and their care and upkeep. We are only days away from leaving with just a few important things left to accomplish. Last winter the trailer was winterized and we are waiting for mother nature to be kind enough to take out the non-toxic antifreeze, flush the systems and refill. We have tested the refrigerator and freezer, installed the wireless TireMinder, checked the tire pressure, greased the wheel bearings, tested the battery and hooked it up, loaded the propane and tested the heating and A/C. We have loaded our clothing and basic staples as well as all the equipment needed to live and eat like a King and Queen for 63 days. Yup, it is a long one and very intense. But if you followed my last blog you know I drove 9654 miles in my Prius by myself and camped the whole way over a period of 10 weeks. Compared to that, this should be much easier………… we hope.
How do you write a Grand Circle Tour itinerary? This time I started with maps of the US spread all over the house and jotted down what The Ace needed to see and what I wanted to see and tried to fit them into a logical sequence. I have already traveled to some of the places but there are musts for The Ace. But I have added a twist where possible and added places I missed the first time. We'll have our first major stop in Branson, then to the west to Canyon de Chelly, Four Corners, Monument Valley, "The Wave", Bryce, and Vegas. Then we intend to get all the way to the Pacific and do the whole coast road Route 1 north from San Luis Obispo to Olympic National Park. That stretch will be 1000 miles done over 10 days so that we can drive a few miles every day but still have time to LOOK AROUND. Then we will work our way back east via Mt Rainier, Coeur d'Alene, Glacier, Yellowstone, and the Black Hills.
Our home away from home has pretty much everything we need. The Avenger 21RB is considered an ultra light trailer so you can supposedly tow it with a large SUV or pickup. If you Google the floor plan of the unit you can see it has a great lay out. TV, CD/radio, refrig, freezer, banquet table and booths that makes into a bed, Sofa that makes into a bed, double sink, 3 burner gas stove, oven, microwave and tons of over-head storage. There is a heater, fan, A/C, separate bath with tub shower, vanity, bath sink and toilet and a separate queen bed area with hanging storage. Under storage across the whole front and a back storage area for the barbecue. Sewer, electric and water hookups when necessary/available. 12 volt battery and propane. Awning that extends electrically, lights for the awning.
We have reservations at a few key locations or places I felt would be heavily trafficked. We have already heard from a State Park in San Simeon that they have no water because of the drought. We also wanted to be on the side of Yellowstone where you can only camp if you have a hard sided trailer. Why you ask???? I wanna see a bear…….. from a distance. The last trip the Bear Policies in every national park were different and it was pretty funny particularly at Kings Canyon where they wanted us to guard our food if a bear came along. That was so that the bears wouldn't learn to steal food. Yikes. I would have run so fast despite carrying a canister of Pepper spray all the time! Apparently the bears in all of the different national parks have different levels of experience of living near campers. Some, as the sophisticated ones in Yosemite know what a cooler is, what it contains and will tear into a car to get to it.
The Ace just bought a new camera in Sint Maarten so we are all set for taking some great pictures which I hope to post on the blog for you. If we get in to see "The Wave" near Kanab, UT (done by lottery on the day of) I will be ecstatic. We also intend to see a different slot Canyon in Antelope Canyon near Page.
Kickoff day is coming and I am very excited. I could be gone as soon as we do the water system! I will post on Facebook when I have posted to the blog.
How do you write a Grand Circle Tour itinerary? This time I started with maps of the US spread all over the house and jotted down what The Ace needed to see and what I wanted to see and tried to fit them into a logical sequence. I have already traveled to some of the places but there are musts for The Ace. But I have added a twist where possible and added places I missed the first time. We'll have our first major stop in Branson, then to the west to Canyon de Chelly, Four Corners, Monument Valley, "The Wave", Bryce, and Vegas. Then we intend to get all the way to the Pacific and do the whole coast road Route 1 north from San Luis Obispo to Olympic National Park. That stretch will be 1000 miles done over 10 days so that we can drive a few miles every day but still have time to LOOK AROUND. Then we will work our way back east via Mt Rainier, Coeur d'Alene, Glacier, Yellowstone, and the Black Hills.
Our home away from home has pretty much everything we need. The Avenger 21RB is considered an ultra light trailer so you can supposedly tow it with a large SUV or pickup. If you Google the floor plan of the unit you can see it has a great lay out. TV, CD/radio, refrig, freezer, banquet table and booths that makes into a bed, Sofa that makes into a bed, double sink, 3 burner gas stove, oven, microwave and tons of over-head storage. There is a heater, fan, A/C, separate bath with tub shower, vanity, bath sink and toilet and a separate queen bed area with hanging storage. Under storage across the whole front and a back storage area for the barbecue. Sewer, electric and water hookups when necessary/available. 12 volt battery and propane. Awning that extends electrically, lights for the awning.
We have reservations at a few key locations or places I felt would be heavily trafficked. We have already heard from a State Park in San Simeon that they have no water because of the drought. We also wanted to be on the side of Yellowstone where you can only camp if you have a hard sided trailer. Why you ask???? I wanna see a bear…….. from a distance. The last trip the Bear Policies in every national park were different and it was pretty funny particularly at Kings Canyon where they wanted us to guard our food if a bear came along. That was so that the bears wouldn't learn to steal food. Yikes. I would have run so fast despite carrying a canister of Pepper spray all the time! Apparently the bears in all of the different national parks have different levels of experience of living near campers. Some, as the sophisticated ones in Yosemite know what a cooler is, what it contains and will tear into a car to get to it.
The Ace just bought a new camera in Sint Maarten so we are all set for taking some great pictures which I hope to post on the blog for you. If we get in to see "The Wave" near Kanab, UT (done by lottery on the day of) I will be ecstatic. We also intend to see a different slot Canyon in Antelope Canyon near Page.
Kickoff day is coming and I am very excited. I could be gone as soon as we do the water system! I will post on Facebook when I have posted to the blog.
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