We had a pretty quiet last several days here in Minden. My sister Jamie arrived from Yreka, CA on Friday to visit for the weekend - so that added a bit of extra fun. It was a short visit but I was glad to see her and Nan was glad as well. Speaking of Nan, she seems to improving a bit each day. She is getting stronger, walking a bit more each day with her walker, and her voice is strengthening. Hopefully this trend will continue and she can be back to "normal" soon.
Since things here in Minden seem to be going in a positive direction - we are planning on saying our goodbyes a week from today and starting our meandering trip back east.
I think we will once again head east by first heading south and even a bit west. Last fall when we left here we traveled south along US 95 here in Nevada - pretty much the same path as we traveled up here this time from Kingman, AZ. This time I think we will head south on US 395 - into Southern California and passing the east side of Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia National Parks. It would be great to see these parks on our way south but they are just about impossible to enter from the east this time of year - so we will save those visits for another time. Once we get to Barstow, CA we will link up with I-40 once again - this time heading west to Needles and then I think we will head a bit south to Lake Havasu City, AZ. Why? Because I've heard it's a nice place - but mostly because we've never been there!
After seeing what there is to see in Lake Havasu I think we will head further southeast to Tucson, AZ for a few days - then on to Deming, New Mexico. Perhaps we'll get to visit some ancient Indian dwellings we missed last time we were there. From Deming we have a decision to make. Do we head into Texas and then on to San Antonio - an area we have visited several times in the past that we really like ... or do we head west through Texas along I-20 through Pecos, Odessa, and Abilene --- a path not yet traveled by these Maineiacs? Either way we will probably exit Texas heading east on I-30 through Arkansas and then through Memphis and then Nashville, Tennessee. Since we will be in middle Tennessee we might as well track down our RVing buddies Darrell and Judy Patterson to see how they are faring in their new "home" location in Crossville, TN.
Now all that travel took only a paragraph or so to describe but will take about a month to accomplish if we do it right. We then plan on heading pretty much due north to Goshen, IN to attend the Escapee RV Club's "Escapade" Rally being held from May 12th to the 17th.
By the time the Escapade is over we will have been gone from home for about 11 weeks and I am sure we will both be ready to get back home and settle in for the summer back in Maine. I sure hope the snow is gone by then!!
As always - these plans are subject to change at a moments notice -- but now we have a plan to change!
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
More Maineiac Maintenance and Mods
Among the many nice things I like about staying put here in Minden for a few weeks, I like having some time to catch up on some motorhome maintenance/modification items that have been on my list for a while.
I've mentioned a few - like replacing the Winne's tow bar and working on my entry steps. The tow bar replacement project was easy to accomplish -- once the credit card bill is paid. The entry steps repair is a different issue. The problem with the steps is that they frequently (especially when it's cold outside) do not retract all the way. They make it up about 3/4 of the way and then stop. They stop because the step controller senses high current through the motor and figures they are all the way up. I have lubricated everything I can find to lubricate, adjusted everything that I can find to adjust, and even replaced the motor - but alas the problem still exists occasionally. I have decided to live with that problem through the rest of this trip and then remove the steps when I get home to look into the problem in more detail. It may just be that the step mechanism is worn. I haven't given up yet - I just put this repair on hold for a while.
While I was playing with the step I remembered another project I wanted to attempt. The step has a light underneath that illuminates the steps when the door is opened. This is a nice feature - but wouldn't it be nicer if the steps were illuminated before you got to the door in the dark! Well - it seems the Kwikee step people thought of this when they designed their system and provided a connection into their controller that could be connected to the porch light and would light up the steps when the porch light was turned on. It seems the Winnebago folks decided to forgo that feature - or at least they did on Winne - so I decided to make yet another Winne modification. It was pretty simple to hook a wire into the porch light circuit and run it to the step controller and viola! it works like a charm. Should have done that years ago!
Next on my repair list was the solar panel. When Winne was built the Winnebago folks installed a small 10 Watt solar panel on the roof and hooked it to the 12 volt DC system supplied by the "coach" batteries. Winne has two 12 volt systems. One system is supplied by these coach batteries and provides power to almost all 12 volt appliances. The other 12 volt system supplies power to "chassis" equipment and is supplied by a separate "chassis" battery. Chassis equipment includes the engine starter, the room slide out and leveling jack hydraulic pump, the electric entry steps, and a few other minor items. But I digress ...
The solar panel quit charging anything about a year ago and I found that the wires to the panel had been broken off at the panel. Since the power from the solar panel is not really a critical need, I decided to put off repair until an opportune time ... like now! So the first project required removal of the panel from the roof and determining how to reattach the broken wires. Removal was easy enough - remove the dicor sealant over the 4 screws - remove the screws - and off she came. Wire repair was a little more difficult as I had to un-solder the broken wire leads and then re-solder new wires. While I was at it I installed a quick disconnect connector at the panel to aid in future panel removal. After re-installing the panel, reapplying some new dicor sealant, and connecting it electrically I was happy to see that the panel was once again functioning.
Now a 10 watt solar panel really doesn't provide much battery charging capability - but it will help in keeping a fully charged battery from loosing its charge over time and will make up for some small parasitic loses from the battery. Since we are usually hooked up to "shore" power and that provides all the charging capability we need for those coach batteries and since the chassis battery is not charged while we are sitting still on shore power and therefore it looses charge the longer we sit -- it made sense to me that Winne would be better off having the minimal charging capability from the solar panel going to the chassis battery instead of the coach batteries. A quick check of Winne's electrical schematic revealed that moving a wire from one point to another in the battery compartment could accomplish this task. So I did. With a half day of experience behind us after this modification I am claiming success. The Chassis battery was reading around 12.6 volts yesterday before the modification and it was up to 12.8 volts last night after the sun went down and the solar charger quit charging. I really like it when stuff works the way its supposed to!
Now ... if it weren't for those pesky entry steps!!
I've mentioned a few - like replacing the Winne's tow bar and working on my entry steps. The tow bar replacement project was easy to accomplish -- once the credit card bill is paid. The entry steps repair is a different issue. The problem with the steps is that they frequently (especially when it's cold outside) do not retract all the way. They make it up about 3/4 of the way and then stop. They stop because the step controller senses high current through the motor and figures they are all the way up. I have lubricated everything I can find to lubricate, adjusted everything that I can find to adjust, and even replaced the motor - but alas the problem still exists occasionally. I have decided to live with that problem through the rest of this trip and then remove the steps when I get home to look into the problem in more detail. It may just be that the step mechanism is worn. I haven't given up yet - I just put this repair on hold for a while.
While I was playing with the step I remembered another project I wanted to attempt. The step has a light underneath that illuminates the steps when the door is opened. This is a nice feature - but wouldn't it be nicer if the steps were illuminated before you got to the door in the dark! Well - it seems the Kwikee step people thought of this when they designed their system and provided a connection into their controller that could be connected to the porch light and would light up the steps when the porch light was turned on. It seems the Winnebago folks decided to forgo that feature - or at least they did on Winne - so I decided to make yet another Winne modification. It was pretty simple to hook a wire into the porch light circuit and run it to the step controller and viola! it works like a charm. Should have done that years ago!
Next on my repair list was the solar panel. When Winne was built the Winnebago folks installed a small 10 Watt solar panel on the roof and hooked it to the 12 volt DC system supplied by the "coach" batteries. Winne has two 12 volt systems. One system is supplied by these coach batteries and provides power to almost all 12 volt appliances. The other 12 volt system supplies power to "chassis" equipment and is supplied by a separate "chassis" battery. Chassis equipment includes the engine starter, the room slide out and leveling jack hydraulic pump, the electric entry steps, and a few other minor items. But I digress ...
The solar panel quit charging anything about a year ago and I found that the wires to the panel had been broken off at the panel. Since the power from the solar panel is not really a critical need, I decided to put off repair until an opportune time ... like now! So the first project required removal of the panel from the roof and determining how to reattach the broken wires. Removal was easy enough - remove the dicor sealant over the 4 screws - remove the screws - and off she came. Wire repair was a little more difficult as I had to un-solder the broken wire leads and then re-solder new wires. While I was at it I installed a quick disconnect connector at the panel to aid in future panel removal. After re-installing the panel, reapplying some new dicor sealant, and connecting it electrically I was happy to see that the panel was once again functioning.
Now a 10 watt solar panel really doesn't provide much battery charging capability - but it will help in keeping a fully charged battery from loosing its charge over time and will make up for some small parasitic loses from the battery. Since we are usually hooked up to "shore" power and that provides all the charging capability we need for those coach batteries and since the chassis battery is not charged while we are sitting still on shore power and therefore it looses charge the longer we sit -- it made sense to me that Winne would be better off having the minimal charging capability from the solar panel going to the chassis battery instead of the coach batteries. A quick check of Winne's electrical schematic revealed that moving a wire from one point to another in the battery compartment could accomplish this task. So I did. With a half day of experience behind us after this modification I am claiming success. The Chassis battery was reading around 12.6 volts yesterday before the modification and it was up to 12.8 volts last night after the sun went down and the solar charger quit charging. I really like it when stuff works the way its supposed to!
Now ... if it weren't for those pesky entry steps!!
Sunday, March 23, 2014
The Golden State
Yesterday was visit California Day. Peggy and I left Minden around 10 AM in the Vue and made our way to US Highway 50 and headed west over the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We started off here in Minden at somewhere near 4,800 feet and quickly found ourselves climbing to over 7,000 feet at Echo Summit in just a few miles. From Echo Summit we made our way to the south end of Lake Tahoe.
It was a beautiful day and the lake looked particularly blue. After a few pictures at Cave Rock we continued on along US 50 to "State Line" and then the town of South Lake Tahoe in California. Going to Lake Tahoe was always a special treat when I was a kid growing up in Sacramento. Us kids would look forward to going to the beach and seeing all the beautiful trees while the adults would look forward to Harrah's and Harvey's Casinos at State Line. This area is only about 80 miles from Sacramento but that seemed really far when I was a youngster. Seeing State Line also brought back memories of that summer Sunday in 1968 when I waxed up the yellow '57 Chevy, lowered the convertible top, and drove Miss Peggy to State Line for lunch at Harvey's. We were only 18 so we couldn't enter the Casino but we were able to go into the restaurant. Fun times.
After cruising through South Lake Tahoe we continued on towards Sacramento - a mostly downhill trip through the Sierras for about 60 miles and a beautiful drive. For those of you who have never made it into this area of the Golden State - and only think of California as Los Angeles or San Francisco - you are missing a real treat. California may be really messed up politically but it certainly has its beauty.
We stopped for lunch in Placerville - AKA "Hangtown" back in the Gold Rush Days - at a nice Mexican restaurant downtown - Tortilla Flats. Good chips and salsa, good Chile Rellano, good Tamale, good Enchilada --- good stuff all around!
We finished our westward trip to Sacramento at Peggy's sister Vicky's place around 1:30 and spent the rest of the afternoon visiting with her 4 sisters, most of their kids, some of their grandkids, and a few more friends for good measure. It was just like the old days at Peggy's parents house .... lot's of folks ... lot's of visiting ... and lot's of fun.
We left much later than originally planned and headed "back east" to Minden. The trip through the canyons and over the mountains in the dark was much different than the trip heading west -- but we made it home safe and sound around 9 PM.
A fun day in California for sure.
It was a beautiful day and the lake looked particularly blue. After a few pictures at Cave Rock we continued on along US 50 to "State Line" and then the town of South Lake Tahoe in California. Going to Lake Tahoe was always a special treat when I was a kid growing up in Sacramento. Us kids would look forward to going to the beach and seeing all the beautiful trees while the adults would look forward to Harrah's and Harvey's Casinos at State Line. This area is only about 80 miles from Sacramento but that seemed really far when I was a youngster. Seeing State Line also brought back memories of that summer Sunday in 1968 when I waxed up the yellow '57 Chevy, lowered the convertible top, and drove Miss Peggy to State Line for lunch at Harvey's. We were only 18 so we couldn't enter the Casino but we were able to go into the restaurant. Fun times.
After cruising through South Lake Tahoe we continued on towards Sacramento - a mostly downhill trip through the Sierras for about 60 miles and a beautiful drive. For those of you who have never made it into this area of the Golden State - and only think of California as Los Angeles or San Francisco - you are missing a real treat. California may be really messed up politically but it certainly has its beauty.
We stopped for lunch in Placerville - AKA "Hangtown" back in the Gold Rush Days - at a nice Mexican restaurant downtown - Tortilla Flats. Good chips and salsa, good Chile Rellano, good Tamale, good Enchilada --- good stuff all around!
We finished our westward trip to Sacramento at Peggy's sister Vicky's place around 1:30 and spent the rest of the afternoon visiting with her 4 sisters, most of their kids, some of their grandkids, and a few more friends for good measure. It was just like the old days at Peggy's parents house .... lot's of folks ... lot's of visiting ... and lot's of fun.
We left much later than originally planned and headed "back east" to Minden. The trip through the canyons and over the mountains in the dark was much different than the trip heading west -- but we made it home safe and sound around 9 PM.
A fun day in California for sure.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Spring has Sprung?
Here we are - once again - from beautiful Minden, Nevada. The weather here has been pretty boring. Mostly sunny everyday with highs in the 60s and lows in the high 20s to low 30s each night. I recon it is Spring here in Nevada - while I see Maine is still struggling to get out of Winter - with a few more inches of snow as the calendar turns to Spring.
We have spent most of our last few days getting Nan to and from a couple of doctor appointments, visiting, and running a few errands. Nan seems to be slowly improving but she still tires very easily with the activity of getting to doctors and participating in the various therapies that she is receiving here at home.
Peggy and I did take a few hours yesterday to get out and about to see what we might find in nearby Carson City. We found our way to the Nevada State Museum and enjoyed learning about the early exploration days of John C. Fremont and life during the silver and gold rush era in the mid to late 1800s. The Museum is situated in the old Carson City Mint building that produced millions of dollars of gold and silver coins up until it was closed in 1893. Part of the museum contains the coin stamping machinery used here and plenty of coins were on display - but no samples were being handed out!
The museum also houses a very well done re-creation of a hard rock mine of the era. You walk down into a dimly lit mine shaft and learn all about how ore was dug, blasted, and transported back in the day. A tough living for sure for the miners!
We hope to get out and see what other treasures the Carson Valley may have over the next couple of weeks.
Since Peggy's four sisters live just "over the hill" (the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range) in California - and since we didn't get to visit with them all last fall - we are planning to take a day trip into the Golden State on Saturday for a few hour visit. We are planning to take US 50 over the mountains and around Lake Tahoe to Sacramento so that ought to be a pretty drive. I suspect we will see some snow during our trip over - but I don't intend to get out and experience it up close and personal. I've shoveled enough for this Winter!
My attempts to fix Winne's motorized entry steps have not been successful. In spite of all the lubrication and adjustments the steps will still not retract all the way on a consistent basis - especially when it is cold. It seems like they will work correctly after being cycled up and down a few times - so I suspect the drive motor is faulty. I have ordered a replacement motor from the local NAPA store as I'm led to believe that the motor is the same as an electric window operating motor for a certain Ford Taurus. We'll pick the new motor up on Friday and see how that works out.
Hope you all are getting some warm Spring weather. We all deserve it!
We have spent most of our last few days getting Nan to and from a couple of doctor appointments, visiting, and running a few errands. Nan seems to be slowly improving but she still tires very easily with the activity of getting to doctors and participating in the various therapies that she is receiving here at home.
Peggy and I did take a few hours yesterday to get out and about to see what we might find in nearby Carson City. We found our way to the Nevada State Museum and enjoyed learning about the early exploration days of John C. Fremont and life during the silver and gold rush era in the mid to late 1800s. The Museum is situated in the old Carson City Mint building that produced millions of dollars of gold and silver coins up until it was closed in 1893. Part of the museum contains the coin stamping machinery used here and plenty of coins were on display - but no samples were being handed out!
The museum also houses a very well done re-creation of a hard rock mine of the era. You walk down into a dimly lit mine shaft and learn all about how ore was dug, blasted, and transported back in the day. A tough living for sure for the miners!
We hope to get out and see what other treasures the Carson Valley may have over the next couple of weeks.
Since Peggy's four sisters live just "over the hill" (the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range) in California - and since we didn't get to visit with them all last fall - we are planning to take a day trip into the Golden State on Saturday for a few hour visit. We are planning to take US 50 over the mountains and around Lake Tahoe to Sacramento so that ought to be a pretty drive. I suspect we will see some snow during our trip over - but I don't intend to get out and experience it up close and personal. I've shoveled enough for this Winter!
My attempts to fix Winne's motorized entry steps have not been successful. In spite of all the lubrication and adjustments the steps will still not retract all the way on a consistent basis - especially when it is cold. It seems like they will work correctly after being cycled up and down a few times - so I suspect the drive motor is faulty. I have ordered a replacement motor from the local NAPA store as I'm led to believe that the motor is the same as an electric window operating motor for a certain Ford Taurus. We'll pick the new motor up on Friday and see how that works out.
Hope you all are getting some warm Spring weather. We all deserve it!
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Settling In - Carson Valley, Nevada
Greetings once again from here in the Carson Valley in the great state of Nevada. We have been enjoying sunny days with highs in the high 60s and lows in the low 30s so -- compared to many -- we have no complaints there.
First -- an update on my external propane tank experiment. With temps falling to near freezing these past few nights I have learned that a full 20# propane tank will last 2 and 1/2 nights. I know this because the 1/2 night was last night and I had to turn on the main propane tank to get the heater working again at around 4 AM! OK - now I know and will adjust accordingly.
In between visiting with the gang around here over the past few days I have managed to accomplish a few more Winne maintenance projects. I disassembled the entry step operating mechanism on Friday, cleaned and lubricated all the parts, put it all back together and made some adjustments. The steps seem to be working correctly now but I'll do some testing over the next few days before declaring victory over that problem.
Yesterday our new Blue Ox Aladdin tow bar arrived. I had ordered the tow bar through Amazon.com and signed up for their "free" 30 day trial of Amazon Prime to get the two day free shipping. I gotta admit - being able to order what you want/need - at a good discounted price - and have it at your doorstep in two days is pretty nice. I'll be cancelling my "Prime" membership before the 30 day trial runs out since I doubt it is worth $79 per year to me -- but it is convenient nonetheless.
The new tow bar is the same model as our old tow bar but is now rated at 7,500 pounds capacity - an upgrade from the 5,000 pounds on the original version. I noticed that one major component seems to be made of steel now instead of aluminum and that may be the reason for the upgrade in capacity. After inspecting the new tow bar here are my first impressions:
1. The overall quality of manufacturing looks pretty good. The welds on the aluminum tubes of the new bar look much better than the welds on my old one. Those old ugly welds held up pretty well over 110,000 miles of use but still ... I'm glad the welder on this one had a better day than the last guy.
2. Attention to Detail is not what I would call Excellent. It's the little things that tend to disappoint me. One tie wrap on one of the flexible boots was over tightened and broken, one set screw on one of the latching handles wasn't tight, and the end caps over the latching handle housings were sealed using silicone sealer - applied by a semi-blind technician and quality checked by his possibly drunken brother. All of these items are easily fixed - but still - for this kind of money I would expect better.
3. The new tow bar definitely has less "slop" than my old one so I'll feel better about that. I also like the higher load capacity.
Overall I'm happy for now. We'll have to see how it works and hold up with use.
Nan seems to doing OK. She is sleeping much more that she was 4 months ago and her ability to walk has gone downhill, but she is pretty "with it" during her awake hours and I think she is getting a little better each day. She has a bunch of therapy sessions next week and a few doc appointments as well so we'll see how things look next week.
That's about it from here in Nevada.
Keep thinking Spring!
First -- an update on my external propane tank experiment. With temps falling to near freezing these past few nights I have learned that a full 20# propane tank will last 2 and 1/2 nights. I know this because the 1/2 night was last night and I had to turn on the main propane tank to get the heater working again at around 4 AM! OK - now I know and will adjust accordingly.
In between visiting with the gang around here over the past few days I have managed to accomplish a few more Winne maintenance projects. I disassembled the entry step operating mechanism on Friday, cleaned and lubricated all the parts, put it all back together and made some adjustments. The steps seem to be working correctly now but I'll do some testing over the next few days before declaring victory over that problem.
Yesterday our new Blue Ox Aladdin tow bar arrived. I had ordered the tow bar through Amazon.com and signed up for their "free" 30 day trial of Amazon Prime to get the two day free shipping. I gotta admit - being able to order what you want/need - at a good discounted price - and have it at your doorstep in two days is pretty nice. I'll be cancelling my "Prime" membership before the 30 day trial runs out since I doubt it is worth $79 per year to me -- but it is convenient nonetheless.
The new tow bar is the same model as our old tow bar but is now rated at 7,500 pounds capacity - an upgrade from the 5,000 pounds on the original version. I noticed that one major component seems to be made of steel now instead of aluminum and that may be the reason for the upgrade in capacity. After inspecting the new tow bar here are my first impressions:
1. The overall quality of manufacturing looks pretty good. The welds on the aluminum tubes of the new bar look much better than the welds on my old one. Those old ugly welds held up pretty well over 110,000 miles of use but still ... I'm glad the welder on this one had a better day than the last guy.
2. Attention to Detail is not what I would call Excellent. It's the little things that tend to disappoint me. One tie wrap on one of the flexible boots was over tightened and broken, one set screw on one of the latching handles wasn't tight, and the end caps over the latching handle housings were sealed using silicone sealer - applied by a semi-blind technician and quality checked by his possibly drunken brother. All of these items are easily fixed - but still - for this kind of money I would expect better.
3. The new tow bar definitely has less "slop" than my old one so I'll feel better about that. I also like the higher load capacity.
Overall I'm happy for now. We'll have to see how it works and hold up with use.
Nan seems to doing OK. She is sleeping much more that she was 4 months ago and her ability to walk has gone downhill, but she is pretty "with it" during her awake hours and I think she is getting a little better each day. She has a bunch of therapy sessions next week and a few doc appointments as well so we'll see how things look next week.
That's about it from here in Nevada.
Keep thinking Spring!
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Made it!
Well .. we made it once again. 3,700 miles in 14 days. We arrived here in Minden around noon, stopped in at a local RV Park/Gas Station where we filled up with Winne fuel and also topped off the propane tank in preparation for an extended stay at the Redeker RV Park and Eldercare Center, drove the couple of miles here, and backed Winne into her "spot."
It was great to see Marcie, Don, Niece Mindy, and of course Nan. Nan is doing "OK." It is sometimes difficult to understand what she is saying when she talks because she speaks in such a whisper now ... but her eyes still tell a story. I'm pretty sure she was glad to see us both.
I'm not real sure how long we will be staying here in Minden, but for now we are just glad to be stopped for awhile. We have some short term chores to get caught up on ... like laundry, grocery shopping, and that kind of average everyday stuff.
I did accomplish one motorhome project yesterday after our arrival. While we were in Las Vegas a couple of days ago we stopped into the local Camping World store and I picked up a "Stay-A-While" gadget that will allow us to hook up an external propane tank to Winne's propane system. When we sit for long periods of time in one spot and in cold weather where we are using a lot of propane for heat - and since Winne's on board propane tank is not removable, we end up having to "break camp" and drive over to a local propane supplier to refill the propane tank periodically. With the "Stay-A-While" gadget we will be able to use smaller refillable bottles to supply our propane needs and Winne can stay put. I installed the gadget yesterday and hooked up a 20# bottle that Marcie/Don had here at their place and tested the new setup. It looks like it will work just fine ... so later today I will see about picking up a full 20# bottle at one of those propane bottle swap places. I figure I can use the bottle for a few weeks and then turn it back in - paying only for my gas use. We'll have to check into that more today. I am guessing that we will use about a gallon a day here as the evening temps get down to about 32 degrees each night. We'll call this whole experience an experiment.
Besides getting in a bunch of visiting over the next few weeks I have a couple of other Winne related projects to investigate further. Our electric entry steps continue to act up periodically and fail to retract all the way so I need to take a look at that and then there is our car tow bar to deal with. When we purchased Winne some 10 years ago I found and purchased a slightly used tow bar that we use to pull the Vue behind us. I figure that tow bar has been used for at least 110,000 miles by us and who knows how much before we bought it. The mechanical joints of the bar are subject to wear and I have replaced the teflon washers in these joints several times over the years to keep those wear points in good shape - but there are a few wear points that just cannot be taken care of with normal maintenance. I have noticed more and more "slop" in the extendable legs of the tow bar and it has gotten to the point that my concern level has risen to the point of worry about sudden catastrophic failure. Now "sudden catastrophic failure" is not something I like to worry about as I tow a rather expensive vehicle down the road at 60 plus miles per hour near other vehicles full of people .... so I am contemplating replacing the bar here in Minden before our return trip. Replacing the tow bar will be an easy task - except for getting over the cost of the replacement! But I'm pretty sure my "peace" of mind will be worth it.
So that's pretty much it here in Minden. We are both glad to be here - not driving - and looking forward to some "normalcy" - whatever that is!
It was great to see Marcie, Don, Niece Mindy, and of course Nan. Nan is doing "OK." It is sometimes difficult to understand what she is saying when she talks because she speaks in such a whisper now ... but her eyes still tell a story. I'm pretty sure she was glad to see us both.
I'm not real sure how long we will be staying here in Minden, but for now we are just glad to be stopped for awhile. We have some short term chores to get caught up on ... like laundry, grocery shopping, and that kind of average everyday stuff.
I did accomplish one motorhome project yesterday after our arrival. While we were in Las Vegas a couple of days ago we stopped into the local Camping World store and I picked up a "Stay-A-While" gadget that will allow us to hook up an external propane tank to Winne's propane system. When we sit for long periods of time in one spot and in cold weather where we are using a lot of propane for heat - and since Winne's on board propane tank is not removable, we end up having to "break camp" and drive over to a local propane supplier to refill the propane tank periodically. With the "Stay-A-While" gadget we will be able to use smaller refillable bottles to supply our propane needs and Winne can stay put. I installed the gadget yesterday and hooked up a 20# bottle that Marcie/Don had here at their place and tested the new setup. It looks like it will work just fine ... so later today I will see about picking up a full 20# bottle at one of those propane bottle swap places. I figure I can use the bottle for a few weeks and then turn it back in - paying only for my gas use. We'll have to check into that more today. I am guessing that we will use about a gallon a day here as the evening temps get down to about 32 degrees each night. We'll call this whole experience an experiment.
Besides getting in a bunch of visiting over the next few weeks I have a couple of other Winne related projects to investigate further. Our electric entry steps continue to act up periodically and fail to retract all the way so I need to take a look at that and then there is our car tow bar to deal with. When we purchased Winne some 10 years ago I found and purchased a slightly used tow bar that we use to pull the Vue behind us. I figure that tow bar has been used for at least 110,000 miles by us and who knows how much before we bought it. The mechanical joints of the bar are subject to wear and I have replaced the teflon washers in these joints several times over the years to keep those wear points in good shape - but there are a few wear points that just cannot be taken care of with normal maintenance. I have noticed more and more "slop" in the extendable legs of the tow bar and it has gotten to the point that my concern level has risen to the point of worry about sudden catastrophic failure. Now "sudden catastrophic failure" is not something I like to worry about as I tow a rather expensive vehicle down the road at 60 plus miles per hour near other vehicles full of people .... so I am contemplating replacing the bar here in Minden before our return trip. Replacing the tow bar will be an easy task - except for getting over the cost of the replacement! But I'm pretty sure my "peace" of mind will be worth it.
So that's pretty much it here in Minden. We are both glad to be here - not driving - and looking forward to some "normalcy" - whatever that is!
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
One More Time
One more short driving day to go.
Peggy and I left Las Vegas yesterday morning at our normal 9:00 AM, made it through the Las Vegas traffic to north of the city, and then continued along US 95 as it paralleled the California-Nevada border. US 95 is a relatively good two lane highway winding its way through a few of the remaining mining towns of western Nevada. Towns like Beatty, Goldfield, Mina, and Tonopah. Not what you would call big metropolis' -- but each one interesting in its own way.
We settled in for the night at a nice RV Park here in Hawthorne, NV. Hawthorne is only about 120 miles from our destination in Minden, and I suppose I could have finished the drive yesterday, but my body was ready to quit after 330 or so miles.
So now that we have had a decent nights sleep we are getting ready to finish our western leg of the trip. See ya soon Nan, Marcie, Don, Carin, Mindy, and whoever else we might meet in Minden!
We'll see ya soon ... if we can get these Mainiacs Moving - one more time!
Peggy and I left Las Vegas yesterday morning at our normal 9:00 AM, made it through the Las Vegas traffic to north of the city, and then continued along US 95 as it paralleled the California-Nevada border. US 95 is a relatively good two lane highway winding its way through a few of the remaining mining towns of western Nevada. Towns like Beatty, Goldfield, Mina, and Tonopah. Not what you would call big metropolis' -- but each one interesting in its own way.
We settled in for the night at a nice RV Park here in Hawthorne, NV. Hawthorne is only about 120 miles from our destination in Minden, and I suppose I could have finished the drive yesterday, but my body was ready to quit after 330 or so miles.
So now that we have had a decent nights sleep we are getting ready to finish our western leg of the trip. See ya soon Nan, Marcie, Don, Carin, Mindy, and whoever else we might meet in Minden!
We'll see ya soon ... if we can get these Mainiacs Moving - one more time!
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
A Day of Warmth - and Back On The Road
This will be another quick entry ... just to keep you all up to date on our whereabouts.
We continued on past Kingman, AZ yesterday after stopping for fuel at the really crazy-busy Flying-J. Since it was still pretty early we decided to push on another 100 miles ... over the bridge near Boulder Dam ... and on into Las Vegas, NV. Actually, we stayed the night in nearby Henderson.
We have about another 450 miles to go before we reach our destination in Minden. I'm pretty sure Mikee's body doesn't have a 450 mile driving day in him after driving for 11 out of the last 12 days ... but we will get as far as we can. Driving in the high desert of southern Nevada means the RV parks are few and far between so who knows where we might end up?
We did enjoy the low 80 degree temps yesterday afternoon here in Vegas and the lows in the 50s last night were welcome as well. Unfortunately the lows in our future look to be back in the high 20s and low 30s ... but we also have a few highs in the low 70s to look forward to.
Time to get these Maineiacs back in Motion - Again ...
We continued on past Kingman, AZ yesterday after stopping for fuel at the really crazy-busy Flying-J. Since it was still pretty early we decided to push on another 100 miles ... over the bridge near Boulder Dam ... and on into Las Vegas, NV. Actually, we stayed the night in nearby Henderson.
We have about another 450 miles to go before we reach our destination in Minden. I'm pretty sure Mikee's body doesn't have a 450 mile driving day in him after driving for 11 out of the last 12 days ... but we will get as far as we can. Driving in the high desert of southern Nevada means the RV parks are few and far between so who knows where we might end up?
We did enjoy the low 80 degree temps yesterday afternoon here in Vegas and the lows in the 50s last night were welcome as well. Unfortunately the lows in our future look to be back in the high 20s and low 30s ... but we also have a few highs in the low 70s to look forward to.
Time to get these Maineiacs back in Motion - Again ...
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Gettin Our Kicks ... on Route 66
The wind really picked up Friday night while we were in Amarillo. So much so that we brought in the living room slide to minimize the racket from the slide awning flapping in the breeze. The wind was coming directly out of the north and kept up all night long bringing the temperature down from the high 70s on Friday to a bitter cold 28 degrees on Saturday morning! Our original plan was to get on the road early for the 300 mile drive to Albuquerque - but I changed my mind after getting up around 6:00 AM and listening to the howling wind. I really wasn't looking forward to driving this box in a stiff crosswind for 300 miles! We hemmed and hawed for a while. Should we sit still for a day and let the weather improve? Should we go ahead and try to get in at least a hundred miles and see how the driving was?
Around 9:00 AM the wind seemed to be subsiding a bit so we changed gears back to the original plan on got back on I-40 heading west. Although the temperatures stayed pretty cold through the day - the wind did calm down and we made it all the way to Albuquerque. Whenever we stop in Albuquerque we try and take a few minutes to go over and visit my niece Cathy, her husband, and their 10 kids. I always have a tough time naming them all ... and they keep growing up making it even harder ... but we had a nice, although short, visit. Who knows - perhaps we can visit more on our return trip.
We were back at it again this morning. Heading west along I-40 on a bright sunny spring day. Seeing all the sights that are still left along iconic Route 66 - and just -- making miles. We settled in for the evening here in Holbrook, Arizona ... just a bit west of the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest National Parks and a bit east of Meteor Crater ... both a couple of interesting stops on your travels through this area ... but not on our agenda for this trip.
Our plan tomorrow is to make a few more hundred miles west before stopping in Kingman, AZ -- our westward stopping point here on I-40 before turning north for our final leg into Nevada.
Around 9:00 AM the wind seemed to be subsiding a bit so we changed gears back to the original plan on got back on I-40 heading west. Although the temperatures stayed pretty cold through the day - the wind did calm down and we made it all the way to Albuquerque. Whenever we stop in Albuquerque we try and take a few minutes to go over and visit my niece Cathy, her husband, and their 10 kids. I always have a tough time naming them all ... and they keep growing up making it even harder ... but we had a nice, although short, visit. Who knows - perhaps we can visit more on our return trip.
We were back at it again this morning. Heading west along I-40 on a bright sunny spring day. Seeing all the sights that are still left along iconic Route 66 - and just -- making miles. We settled in for the evening here in Holbrook, Arizona ... just a bit west of the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest National Parks and a bit east of Meteor Crater ... both a couple of interesting stops on your travels through this area ... but not on our agenda for this trip.
Our plan tomorrow is to make a few more hundred miles west before stopping in Kingman, AZ -- our westward stopping point here on I-40 before turning north for our final leg into Nevada.
Friday, March 7, 2014
Time Challenged - Again
First off - we made it to Amarillo without incident. Our fuel mileage suffered as we climbed from about 800 feet to over 3,000 feet ... into the wind ... but we made it without incident.
It dawned on me today that we are supposed to change from regular time to daylight savings time this weekend. SO ... tomorrow is Saturday and we will be driving into New Mexico ... from Central Time to Mountain Time. Sometime around noon tomorrow we will need to fall back an hour due to this change. Then at 2:00 AM that night (Sunday morning) we will need to "Spring ahead" to daylight savings time. So I guess if we don't change our clocks at all - we will be fine by Sunday morning. Then on Sunday we will travel to Arizona - also in Mountain Time but Arizona doesn't participate in the Daylight Savings Time change ... so I guess we Fall Back again. Then just to complicate things some more - we will enter Pacific Time around Tuesday where we will "Fall Back" another hour --- or is it two hours since Arizona is on Regular Time???
I give up. I think I will just leave the clocks on Central Time until we reach Pacific Time and then I will check with my cell phone to see what time it is.
2,400 miles down ... about 1,300 to go!
It dawned on me today that we are supposed to change from regular time to daylight savings time this weekend. SO ... tomorrow is Saturday and we will be driving into New Mexico ... from Central Time to Mountain Time. Sometime around noon tomorrow we will need to fall back an hour due to this change. Then at 2:00 AM that night (Sunday morning) we will need to "Spring ahead" to daylight savings time. So I guess if we don't change our clocks at all - we will be fine by Sunday morning. Then on Sunday we will travel to Arizona - also in Mountain Time but Arizona doesn't participate in the Daylight Savings Time change ... so I guess we Fall Back again. Then just to complicate things some more - we will enter Pacific Time around Tuesday where we will "Fall Back" another hour --- or is it two hours since Arizona is on Regular Time???
I give up. I think I will just leave the clocks on Central Time until we reach Pacific Time and then I will check with my cell phone to see what time it is.
2,400 miles down ... about 1,300 to go!
Amarillo By Evening
Another day and another almost 300 miles finds us in Wichita Falls, Texas this morning. Yesterday's travels were uneventful as well - except perhaps for my decision to go through the heart of Dallas instead of around it. We have traveled near Dallas a few times in the past and had always skirted the city on secondary roads and never really had any problems ... but Mikee decided to see if the route through the center of the city would save time and miles. After-all, I have driven through lots of major cities with no problems in the past as long as you avoid the morning and afternoon commute times. So what the heck - I thought I would give it a try!
The bottom line is - I'll probably not try that again. We made it through OK but if it weren't for Jackson - our trusty GPS Navigation Gadget - I'm sure I would have ended up somewhere where I really didn't want to be! I suppose we did save some time - and a few miles - but it really wasn't worth it.
You may have noticed that we are traveling pretty much every day and not taking the "days-off" that we originally planned. Nan is having a tough recovery from her bout with pneumonia and it looks like our presence in Nevada may be helpful - so we have decided to keep driving daily until we get there. We may need to take a delay if the weather gets ugly - but the forecast looks pretty good right now. I still hope to keep our travel days under 300 miles each day - but that will be a day-by-day decision.
I see that the temperature at home in Maine is near 0 degrees again this morning - so I'm not going to complain about our 40 degree morning with highs forecast in the 70s for today. Besides - it is supposed to get back down into the 20s tonight at our destination in Amarillo. I know it's hard to believe but Spring really is just around the corner. But where is that corner??
The bottom line is - I'll probably not try that again. We made it through OK but if it weren't for Jackson - our trusty GPS Navigation Gadget - I'm sure I would have ended up somewhere where I really didn't want to be! I suppose we did save some time - and a few miles - but it really wasn't worth it.
You may have noticed that we are traveling pretty much every day and not taking the "days-off" that we originally planned. Nan is having a tough recovery from her bout with pneumonia and it looks like our presence in Nevada may be helpful - so we have decided to keep driving daily until we get there. We may need to take a delay if the weather gets ugly - but the forecast looks pretty good right now. I still hope to keep our travel days under 300 miles each day - but that will be a day-by-day decision.
I see that the temperature at home in Maine is near 0 degrees again this morning - so I'm not going to complain about our 40 degree morning with highs forecast in the 70s for today. Besides - it is supposed to get back down into the 20s tonight at our destination in Amarillo. I know it's hard to believe but Spring really is just around the corner. But where is that corner??
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Maineiacs In The Lone Star State
This will be just a short post to bring you all up to date on the latest travels of us Maineiacs.
Yesterday was a pretty uneventful travel day - just the way we like them. We awoke - we did our morning routine to get going - we crossed the Mississippi River, we watched the countryside of Louisiana and Texas pass by, and we arrived here at the very nice Fernbrook RV Park in Longview, TX. Winne continues to run great and her fuel mileage is starting to improve as our travel path has "flattened out." Those up hills and down hills of the east do make a difference!
We are going to continue our trip west today by heading back towards the north on our way back to I-40. We will be traveling around Dallas this morning and towards Amarillo by way of Wichita Falls. How far we travel today and where we end up for the night sorta depends ... on many factors ... but mainly on how the driver and passenger are holding up.
The weather is a bit warmer this morning as I see the temp outside is about 40 degrees at the moment. An improvement for sure but I'm not ready to break out the shorts and tee-shirts just yet!
See ya down the road.
Yesterday was a pretty uneventful travel day - just the way we like them. We awoke - we did our morning routine to get going - we crossed the Mississippi River, we watched the countryside of Louisiana and Texas pass by, and we arrived here at the very nice Fernbrook RV Park in Longview, TX. Winne continues to run great and her fuel mileage is starting to improve as our travel path has "flattened out." Those up hills and down hills of the east do make a difference!
We are going to continue our trip west today by heading back towards the north on our way back to I-40. We will be traveling around Dallas this morning and towards Amarillo by way of Wichita Falls. How far we travel today and where we end up for the night sorta depends ... on many factors ... but mainly on how the driver and passenger are holding up.
The weather is a bit warmer this morning as I see the temp outside is about 40 degrees at the moment. An improvement for sure but I'm not ready to break out the shorts and tee-shirts just yet!
See ya down the road.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Still Looking For Warmth
We spent last evening in East Tuscaloosa, AL. I had hopes of posting a blog update then but believe it or not --- you can barely get a broadband signal in East Tuscaloosa even though you are right next to a major interstate highway and not far from one of the biggest Universities in the south. What the heck is up with that?
Our drive from Knoxville was rainy and cold for the first hundred miles or so and then just cloudy and cold for the remainder of the drive. From all evidence I observed from the ice falling off trucks that passed me by, comments from others - including a reader in Arkansas, and TV reports - I think we made the right decision by heading further south. It was still cold - but at least we didn't have to deal with snow and/or ice!
We drove further south and west today as we continued along I-20. We drove through more of Alabama and then across Mississippi to here on the banks of the Mississippi River in Vicksburg. The weather continued cold. I don't think the outside temperature varied much more than 1 degree either side of freezing all day.
For those of you who have never driven through Jackson, MS on I-20 ... especially in a RV ... let me give you a sage piece of advice ... Don't Do It!! I've done it twice now and hated it both times. That has to be the worse 20 mile stretch of the nations interstate highway system! I hope they fired or better yet - jailed - the engineers who designed that road bed and the construction outfit that actually did the work. Grrrr.
Tomorrow we plan on traveling west along I-20 some more - through West Monroe, LA - the hometown of the Robertson's of Duck Dynasty fame - through Shreveport - and into the Great State of Texas. We will probably stop for the night in Longview, TX.
A bit over 1600 miles down and somewhere near 1900 to go as we continue to search for some warm weather. It is supposed to stay near freezing here tonight -- so we haven't found it yet!
Our drive from Knoxville was rainy and cold for the first hundred miles or so and then just cloudy and cold for the remainder of the drive. From all evidence I observed from the ice falling off trucks that passed me by, comments from others - including a reader in Arkansas, and TV reports - I think we made the right decision by heading further south. It was still cold - but at least we didn't have to deal with snow and/or ice!
We drove further south and west today as we continued along I-20. We drove through more of Alabama and then across Mississippi to here on the banks of the Mississippi River in Vicksburg. The weather continued cold. I don't think the outside temperature varied much more than 1 degree either side of freezing all day.
For those of you who have never driven through Jackson, MS on I-20 ... especially in a RV ... let me give you a sage piece of advice ... Don't Do It!! I've done it twice now and hated it both times. That has to be the worse 20 mile stretch of the nations interstate highway system! I hope they fired or better yet - jailed - the engineers who designed that road bed and the construction outfit that actually did the work. Grrrr.
Tomorrow we plan on traveling west along I-20 some more - through West Monroe, LA - the hometown of the Robertson's of Duck Dynasty fame - through Shreveport - and into the Great State of Texas. We will probably stop for the night in Longview, TX.
A bit over 1600 miles down and somewhere near 1900 to go as we continue to search for some warm weather. It is supposed to stay near freezing here tonight -- so we haven't found it yet!
Monday, March 3, 2014
New Plan
First - the good news.
1. We had a fun visit with Gene and Judi Curp yesterday while at lunch at the Golden Girls Restaurant in Clinton, TN.
2. We made it through I-81 in Virginia before Winter Storm Titan arrived (have I ever told you how much I dislike the naming of winter storms?).
3. We didn't drive into western Tennessee before Winter Storm Titan arrived.
Now for the bad news ... well it really isn't "bad" ... just news I guess.
It looks to be a bit icy around Memphis (our intended direction) and it will be turning colder for awhile .... and I really have no idea how well these southerners can keep roadways safe from ice/snow ... although I have my suspicions ... so I think we will head south some more as we continue to head west.
We were right on the southern edge of the storm here in Knoxville and although it rained pretty steady all night - it looks like we missed the snow and ice and the weather to our southwest looks pretty decent.
So our new short term destination will be near Birmingham, AL by way of Chattanooga, TN. I figure we will head along I-20 west for awhile and then back to I-40 at Amarillo, TX if the weather cooperates. This route will be kind of the reverse of the route we took home last fall and I know the roads are generally good except around Jackson, MS.
New day - New Plan - Same Destination
1. We had a fun visit with Gene and Judi Curp yesterday while at lunch at the Golden Girls Restaurant in Clinton, TN.
2. We made it through I-81 in Virginia before Winter Storm Titan arrived (have I ever told you how much I dislike the naming of winter storms?).
3. We didn't drive into western Tennessee before Winter Storm Titan arrived.
Now for the bad news ... well it really isn't "bad" ... just news I guess.
It looks to be a bit icy around Memphis (our intended direction) and it will be turning colder for awhile .... and I really have no idea how well these southerners can keep roadways safe from ice/snow ... although I have my suspicions ... so I think we will head south some more as we continue to head west.
We were right on the southern edge of the storm here in Knoxville and although it rained pretty steady all night - it looks like we missed the snow and ice and the weather to our southwest looks pretty decent.
So our new short term destination will be near Birmingham, AL by way of Chattanooga, TN. I figure we will head along I-20 west for awhile and then back to I-40 at Amarillo, TX if the weather cooperates. This route will be kind of the reverse of the route we took home last fall and I know the roads are generally good except around Jackson, MS.
New day - New Plan - Same Destination
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Taking a Break
With travel day #3 behind us - we find ourselves in a familiar spot here at the Escapees Raccoon Valley RV Park in Heiskell, TN ... just a bit north of Knoxville, TN. Our travel day went pretty smooth as we continued down I-81 to I-40. We had a nice sunny day again with temps steadily climbing to near 60!!
The weather is supposed to be warm again today with a high in the mid 60s. But the warmth wont last long as a front will move through tonight bringing rain, freezing rain, and a bit of snow for tomorrow AM. We plan on taking a day off from travel today and may again tomorrow depending on what the weather brings. I think we are on the line between snow and rain so we will just wait and see what happens. If sitting still is the smart thing to do ... I think we'll opt for "smart."
Although we are taking today "off" from travel we still have a bunch of things to do. We need a shopping day to load up on groceries since we left Maine without really stocking the larder ... and Winne and the Vue could really use a bath to remove all the salt yuk on their exteriors from travel though the northeast in winter. Who knows when we may get another opportunity on our trip west?
Fortunately I seem to be recovering from my head cold. At least I think I am. At least the sneezing and runny nose have subsided. Peggy thinks it may have been an allergy. Perhaps I have developed an allergic reaction to snow and cold?! Regardless - it's nice to be able to breath again!
We do have one fun thing planned or today ... we plan on meeting up for lunch with our RVing friends Gene and Judi Curp who live nearby in Maryville, TN. It will be fun visiting with them and catching up on their exploits.
So far - Winne has performed pretty darn well considering we awoke her with little notice in the midst of a cold winter. Except for our electric entry steps being a bit balky to retract while the temps were frigid - all systems are working as designed. The steps are working better now that it has warmed up and I'll do some lubrication and maybe some slight adjustment to keep them working. There is always something to keep Mikee busy maintaining.
Speaking of Winne ... We are really liking our new LED lights. The whiter color is very nice, instant on, and no noisy ballasts to deal with. I love it when a plan works out! For those of you who followed my conversion posts a few months ago -- the extra two strips of LEDs I installed in the florescent fixture conversions wasn't really necessary. They are plenty bright with only two strips ... although the switched additional two strips may still come in handy from time to time.
So that's the story from here aboard the SS Winne - taking a break from our trek west, re-provisioning in warmer weather, and preparing for the next leg of our journey.
The weather is supposed to be warm again today with a high in the mid 60s. But the warmth wont last long as a front will move through tonight bringing rain, freezing rain, and a bit of snow for tomorrow AM. We plan on taking a day off from travel today and may again tomorrow depending on what the weather brings. I think we are on the line between snow and rain so we will just wait and see what happens. If sitting still is the smart thing to do ... I think we'll opt for "smart."
Although we are taking today "off" from travel we still have a bunch of things to do. We need a shopping day to load up on groceries since we left Maine without really stocking the larder ... and Winne and the Vue could really use a bath to remove all the salt yuk on their exteriors from travel though the northeast in winter. Who knows when we may get another opportunity on our trip west?
Fortunately I seem to be recovering from my head cold. At least I think I am. At least the sneezing and runny nose have subsided. Peggy thinks it may have been an allergy. Perhaps I have developed an allergic reaction to snow and cold?! Regardless - it's nice to be able to breath again!
We do have one fun thing planned or today ... we plan on meeting up for lunch with our RVing friends Gene and Judi Curp who live nearby in Maryville, TN. It will be fun visiting with them and catching up on their exploits.
So far - Winne has performed pretty darn well considering we awoke her with little notice in the midst of a cold winter. Except for our electric entry steps being a bit balky to retract while the temps were frigid - all systems are working as designed. The steps are working better now that it has warmed up and I'll do some lubrication and maybe some slight adjustment to keep them working. There is always something to keep Mikee busy maintaining.
Speaking of Winne ... We are really liking our new LED lights. The whiter color is very nice, instant on, and no noisy ballasts to deal with. I love it when a plan works out! For those of you who followed my conversion posts a few months ago -- the extra two strips of LEDs I installed in the florescent fixture conversions wasn't really necessary. They are plenty bright with only two strips ... although the switched additional two strips may still come in handy from time to time.
So that's the story from here aboard the SS Winne - taking a break from our trek west, re-provisioning in warmer weather, and preparing for the next leg of our journey.
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