Final RV Thoughts for the Year

It is now November and the RV is safely nestled in for the winter.  We will go down about once a month to start it and move it a foot or so, but it is largely done and over until we think about a possible southern trip in February or March.  The truth is that it is never over (for instance, why is that yellow light on the dashboard showing up and should it be taken seriously when the manual - what a laugh it is - says to ignore it until you shouldn't) with this hulk of machinery, but it is a lull of sorts.

Some final thoughts, at least regarding the RV

1. The final analysis of success depends on where the base line is.  If the base line is our expectations after we bought the rv, but before we actually started using the rv, then it has been a positive and worthwhile experience.  We began with reasonable hopes for fun and adventure with higher levels of anxiety than we should have.  We traveled more than we ever would have, got to see some nice country, and were able to manage small crises in the beginning.  The last trip to New England was really good with only a few rv glitches and we have learned to not be overly anxious or fatalistic about things that happen.  The seemingly major crises, which were really only inexperience, have largely been ameliorated and previous problems have been worked out to become routinized without anguish.  I would give it a grade of B from this baseline.
2. If the baseline is the romantic dreams of traveling often, far, and with great adventure - those when deciding to actually pursue the purchase of an rv - it did not meet my expectations when speaking for myself (Roger).  In particular, learning to comfortably drive without the anxiety of hauling eighteen thousand pounds, top heavy pounds buffeted by the flapping of butterfly wings, down the road safely was a real learning experience.  There are also a lot of routine procedures of setting up at campgrounds, maintenance, care/feeding of the rv, and planning headaches that are not dreamlike, unless you count the ones that cause you to sit bolt upright in the middle of the night.  This probably has more to do with me than  most people.  Gin works really hard in taking care of the rv and the dogs, more than I ever could or would want to do.  From this baseline, it gets a C- .
3. If the baseline is considered to be after the first harrowing experiences with the rv - a real down period, it has gone well.  We are reasonably comfortable with dealing with most of what caused sleeplessness at first.  These issues largely were related to many of the things above, but they have been mostly resolved.  Grade A

Overall, it has been fun, but anxiety producing at times.  Making decisions and agonizing over small problems have detracted from the overall experience, but we are satisfied.  As reported early on, we don't have to put the dogs in the kennel, we get to sleep in our own beds, use our own bathroom/shower, and have flexibility to do the things we want.  It is not a money saver in the short or long run.  We understood that to begin with.  It is a terrible investment from a strict accounting perspective, but we knew that too.  

We will begin thinking about the southern trip, if any, after a few weeks.  Right now, we are rv'ed out and will enjoy the respite with Thanksgiving three weeks away...

Braking, Winter, and Hurricane Sandy

The Stay-in-Play, the toad supplementary braking system was high on my priority list.  It was a major investment and important to any long trip or mountainous driving to be done.  I really put in some time trying to figure out what was wrong with the system and learning how it operated.  If nothing else, I wanted to be somewhat knowledgeable about it when calling.  That was a major question, do I call the installer or the manufacturer.

I called the company finally.  Without a doubt, it may have been the best overall experience with a company over a defective product that I have ever had.  To avoid me having to go 2 hours for a fix at the installer's dealership, they sent me a new unit that I thought could be replaced by me  without much anguish.  Long story short, I did replace the unit and it is now working - miracle of miracles.

After talking to an rv repair place to a man who I had made a connection with at an rv show, a time has been set up for winterization of the rv.  Never mind that the appointment is set up on the back edge of Hurricane Sandy...

We put a $100 worth of gas in the rv 2 days ago (brought it up from a quarter of a tank to about three quarters of a tank) with the intention of using it and the generator if Sandy lasts more than three or four days.  We will see...

It is now after Hurricane Sandy.  We had very little damage to the house, none to the rv, and did not lose electricity.  In this area, we were very lucky when considering the tv coverage of the folks in NJ and NY.  I can't imagine...

We delayed the winterization of the rv for a day, but took it in yesterday.  The owner, a man who we had bought a car from long ago in a Buick dealership, was wonderful.  He answered a thousand (well, maybe 999) questions we had, did the work with his rv tech, and charged us less than what we had anticipated.  It was a very positive experience with his service work.  I have to tell you that that only happens occasionally.  Most of the time we are the hydrant and the service people are the dog.

The rv is now put to bed until sometime in the winter.  It is a big relief.

I will try to wrap up some final thoughts for the year in the next episode...

Homeward Bound

On the way home from Quechee Gorge, we discussed about seeing the other areas and sights that Gin had marked on her primary planning tool, a road map.  It didn't take long to figure out that we were pretty much seeing the same thing, but in different locales.  It made the decision to head for home a fairly easy one.  I had been using the phrase, "the end of the internet," and that was the case with New England - for the moment.  At that time and at the time of this writing, about 2 weeks later, we were and are happy with our trip.  The fall foliage was terrific in Maine and the general sightseeing was interesting and fun.  However, there was a point of diminishing returns...

We decided to make the trip home in three days, two medium drives and one very short one.  It was mostly interstate.  If I haven't mentioned it recently, my driving is much more comfortable than at the start.  Though, the longer drives still gave me anticipation of fatigue.

The first day began poorly.  The supplementary braking system that was installed on the toad would not function.  That was not a major problem because of spending little time on the way home in severe mountains, but to have a big purchase for a current and future need was a bummer of sorts.  The second downer was a road map being incorrect.  No, it was not our incorrect reading of the map.  The map was wrong, dead wrong.  It took us about thirteen miles in the wrong direction, which is not disastrous  but inconvenient and a negative addition to an already long drive.  The good result was that it forced us back onto the interstate, which was easier and probably faster driving.  Before getting to the interstate, we pulled over for lunch in a semi-scenic spot.  The rv is really nice in this aspect as it allows me to eat lunch standing up - a pleasant feeling after sitting in one position for a while.  I have often wondered why fast food restaurants along traveling venues don't offer standing up tables for people to stretch their legs after sitting and driving for long periods of time.

Gin had been really good at locating campgrounds that were possible stopping for overnight points.  One was almost perfect except that it did not have 50 amp service and we were not able to locate our converter for the 30 amp plug.  The owner of the campground offered to loan us a converter if we stayed there.  This was a smart business move in his part as we ended up there for the night.  In fact, he stayed a few minutes late to make sure we got there and settled in.  Before we got to the campground, the scenery in upstate New Your was really good.  It was a somewhat cloudy day,  but we think that the fall foliage there was at its peak.

That night, I studied the map and talked with Gin about trying to make it home the next day instead of the medium and short drives over two days.  We decided to give it a go.

I drove faster than previously over the two day trip.  Our speed was between 60 and 65.  On the first day, Columbus Day, the traffic was heavy, but moving well for the most part.  We had a 30 minute backup going through Lake George, NY, a resort area.  The second day was much lighter traffic and we have to remember that in the future - long drives during the week and not on holidays.

We made it home by four or so the second day.  It turned out to be a good decision.  I was tired, though prepared to wrestle with the unhooking of the toad in the storage lot for the rv, but lo and behold, it was not bound up as it usually is.  It literally came apart with a gentle tug or two.  A good ending to a long day...

The next day we unloaded and cleaned the rv in front of our home.  It was a lengthy and tiring job.  Washing the rv is a major undertaking when especially trying to get the stains off from water dripping down the sides, etc.  It took me a couple of days to recoup.  Another thing to remember, Gin and I both agree that that job should be done over two days.

Next decisions - how to deal with the bum supplementary braking system and getting winterization for the rv.