Got the car and dolly ready

Got the car and dolly ready to go, chains, straps and all.  Still need to find the best spot to mount both spares (car & dolly).  I have a jack and correct size tire iron wrench as well form an old car we had.  As many know the Spark does not come with a spare so I went to a tire store and got a new rim (wheel) and tire for under $175.00.  Years ago I learned never to leave home without at least one spare for everything (I prefer two).

 I always like setting up new things (dolly) in our drive first in case there are any problems then I unhook it all.  This gives me experience doing all the actions of loading and unloading.

The dolly sits waiting for dry roads to take everything to the scales and get our total weight minus water.  We keep the RV ready to go, just add 10 pounds of can goods and a gallon or two of jugged water when winter camping.

Here is a photograph of the hitch and light hook up plug for the dolly. 

Looking to take an Aero Garden

We are looking to take an Aero Garden with us on the road.  I know there is at least one state that may have restrictions will be checking on others.  This winter we will play with it in our home and try traveling with it this summer to see how it goes.

Kathy is trying Herbs right now then we will try veggies down the road.  It has been a week and we have over half with good growth already.

Traveling may be a problem with some states here is one link to a blog that  may cover some travel questions.  http://squarecowmovers.com/moving-and-packing-101/moving-plants-what-can-and-cant-cross-state-lines/  We will keep looking for more information on this.

Update on the garden growth for December 30th, we are growing herbs.  We need to check water at least every two or three days because as they grow they use more water.

Some good information for an individual camper, hunter and or camper.

Here is a link to a you tube site - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs7bZZSuyamrj5jTdQAGJ-w
The creator is a former Marine Infantry and IEDD handler veteran who served in Afghanistan and spent many nights in the great outdoors here and abroad.  He happens to also be our son.

 In Flaming Gorge, UT

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 His current rig.

 In the Red Desert

Along the green River.

Here is an interesting blog that may be of intrest to travelers

Here is an interesting blog that may be of interest to travelers/campers.  We have taken a day tour in part of  S/W Wyoming with this Professor who teaches Anthropology and some Geology.  We often wonder how our land got the way it is today and who lived on it her blog is helpful.
Check it out.

http://wyomingwilds.blogspot.com/

 Cliffs and Mountains

 Streams

 Valley

 Desert

Our First Christmas On The Road In Our RV

Here is our little RV Table Tree with gifts ready to go.  Santa will add a few on Christmas morning.

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First hook up with dolly and car

Drove onto the dolly for the first time today with no problem.  Since the snow was still melting I did not set up the tire straps or the ratchets, I will wait for a dry day.  I have a baby camera ($79) set in the back window.  With a small monitor with us up in the cab to keep an eye on things going down the road.

I did all the hookups to our Class C so I could drive on.  The 2 inch ball, safety chains, emergency break away break set cable and the lights connected and tested.  Will finish the set up over the next few weeks and do our first road test and weigh-in to check our weight.

Still need to find a place for the trailer and sparks spare tires.  The car ramps are secured on the dolly tong when not in use so that area is out.  I am thinking about the RV;s rear bumper for both tires.

Got Our Dolly

Got our ACME Tow Dolly with a break between snows I we started setting it up.  We went with a dolly because of the flexibility in vehicles we can tow.  This can haul our Spark or Taurus with no problem.  Weight limit wise for our current tow vehicle (RV) we are probably limited to the Spark, but options are nice.  Plan to weight the whole outfit with the spark loaded before Christmas.

Sprong Steps

Our steps got very lose the other day.  We were told it happens more then most people think, especially if they weigh over 200 pounds which I do.  My wife has told me for years I need to be more gentle when walking up or down stairs.  I guess she is right (don't tell her I said that:)).

They still go in and out just fine, they just seem to bend down some when used.  So we now set a simple brace under the bottom step when we use the steps.  This brace not only stablizes the step but also the front of the RV when we enter.  I also bought a small RV step stablizer from amazon if I need a different height.

I checked into having new step's installed the steps and labor topped $1000.00 so we will continue to use our simple fix and I will try to walk softer:)

Tire Covers

I was not a tire cover believer but I am now!  A few years back we had a major blowout causing over $6,000.00 in damage.  Thanks insurance company you did a good job and so did Good Sam Road Side Assist.

From this we learned that you need to keep all your tires at correct pressure all the time.  So we added monitors on each tire and an alarm goes off if the pressure drops or rises above a set range.  Please note cold and hot temps can make big changes in tire pressure.

Second, age matters a lot.  If tires are over 5-7 years old they probably should be replaced, sooner if you see damage.  This is an item you need to budget for, tires are not cheep, nor is the damage they can cause if they blow do to age related causes.

Third, tire covers are a great low cost addition to reduce solar damage.  So if we park for more then one night we put our tire cover's on.  Reducing solar damage even if only 25% of the time can add life to your tires.

Just our opinions.  Feel free to add your comments.

Temp Stabilizers

In our Class C we tend to get sway when we walk around, if laying down one really notices.  Our RV does not have built in levelers so we tries these for about $80.00 for the two.  You can see the second one on the other side of the back of the home.

With these manually put in place (takes about 5 minutes) the sway is reduced by more then fifty percent in our opinion.  So we are happy with the result's. They each come in their own carry bag ready to go, so we store them in one of our basement lockers like the one you see above the stabilizers.  We plan only to put them in place when we stay two nights or longer.

Look these up online if you are interested.

Comparing two sizes of Digital Antennas for TV

Comparing two sizes of Digital Antennas for TV in our RV.  

I first bought the smaller one and it gave me from three up to 18 channels only 2 to 8 were watch able.  My old roof mounted predigital one gave me none.  In S/W Wyoming over the air channels can be hard to find.  The larger one seems to bring in more watchable channels.

We have an old antenna on our Motor Home.  In big cities such as Nashville Tennessee it works fine however in S/W Wyoming, if not for cable we would not have TV we get no over the air channels until now.  I went to Walmart and bought a $15.00 HD Digital Thin Antenna.  We now get 2 channels in our RV:)  So these thin antennas really do work.

States Covered to Date

The states covered to date are for my wife and I.  Our kids felt we should start over with each motorhome, I disagreed.  At the age of 61 I will count the trips we have made in our three Class C Motorhomes since the early 90's.  They are 28 and 30 they can start the count over when they sell their current rigs for newer models:)

We still need to cover the N/E and N/W plus Alaska and Hawaii to cover all fifty states.  We will be in Hawaii next year and would like to see Alaska in a few years.  We also want to hit our two territories in the Carrabein , Porterico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as well.

States Covered to Date

The states covered to date are for my wife and I.  Our kids felt we should start over with each motorhome, I disagreed.  At the age of 61 I will count the trips we have made in our three Class C Motorhomes since the early 90's.  They are 28 and 30 they can start the count over when they sell their current rigs for newer models:)

We still need to cover the N/E and N/W plus Alaska and Hawaii to cover all fifty states.  We will be in Hawaii next year and would like to see Alaska in a few years.  We also want to hit our two territories in the Carrabein , Porterico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as well.

Under the Sea

We enjoyed having a fine dinner under the sea/bay by pier 39 on Forbes Island.  In this photo you can see some of the windows a foot or two under water and ones above as skylights.  The diner was very nice and the boat ride out and back was free and quick.

Lake Tahoe

Spent some time at Lake Tahoe and visited the Casinos.  The area is very nice, the colors of the lake is very nice with the shallows and dark's in areas over 900 feet.   We also liked the local music artists  as well, having dinner outside was a pleasure.

San Francisco

Here are some great shots of some of the fine food we had while there.  Kathy had lived in the area 30 plus years ago but it was my first time and we had a blast.

 China Town

 Abalone, Sea Cucumber and Mushrooms

Bread Turtle

Donner's Pass

Donner's Pass is an interesting stop on the way to San Francisco.  We all know the history of this wagon train trying to get through the pass before winter (they did not make it).  Many died before a spring rescue.

When looking at the statue it is on a stone platform that is over 20 feet high.  The top of the stone pedestal is how high the snow was that winter.

Fishermens Warf

We made it to San Francisco :)

We ate so much crab and other fresh sea food it was great, here are a few photos.

 Pier 39

US Map Debate

Our kids are complaining about our new map on our current RV.  This is our third Class C and our fourth RV, so to me at age 61 I am putting on states that Kathy and I have been too in any of our four RV's.  Told our kids they can put the states on their RV's as they wish:)  One has a trailer and one has a camper.  This discussion is all fun between us.

Your comments are welcome.

Extra Storage and Counter Space in our Class C

Extra storage in the overhead has added storage and counter space for two in our Class C.  I clamped plywood over the three windows in the overhead and with the mattress folded up I added six storage bins and four small file drawers.  All files are secured by straps and totes are behind a wooden rail so they will not fall down.

When parked for more then a couple days I have fixed two shelves to fit between the files and adds about eight square feed of extra counter space.

Gen Smoke Stack

Generator smoke stack has been working well for the summer.  I have had no alarms since using it and it only takes five minutes to set up.  I only had to clamp a small supplied extension on my generator exhaust to make the connection.  Works with the slide in or out.

RV Oven Working Well

Our RV oven is working great since we added a pizza baking stone to it.  We have now baked several different things with even cooking, sorry it took so long to try.  As you can see I eat one already:)