Frm Hickiwan Trails Tribal RV December 22nd 2015

December 22^nd, 2015

From Hickiwan Trails RV Park – Why, AZ

 

Hello and a Merry Christmas to all

 

Here I am, on the road again after a two year hiatus. Last winter, I stayed in Canada sampling the mild climate of Sidney, Vancouver Island while adjusting to varying strengths of medications related to blood pressure and heart rate. My right hip got replaced in June, after which I recuperated and was given VIP treatment by Glenn and Moya Petznick at their farm for a couple of weeks. After this, I decided to brave the steps and hillside perils of my own cabin and went home to fend for myself. The hip is now more or less recovered, though still a little stiff and sore most of the time- possibly a by-product of age, combined with an awkward golf swing I have been told.

The big projects at the cabin this summer included replacement of the deck which was becoming unsafe – thanks to Joe Nexhipi for a great job. In addition, Neil and Bonny McKendrick re-decked one of the docks for the same reason. Their visit came a little too soon for my hip recovery to allow golfing, so I arranged for them to team up with friends Patrick and Margie from around the corner. Later in the summer, I started golfing again and tried out a few different courses, also with Pat and Margie plus, later, with friend Vidar Skofteby. Tony Worrall was out for a week in mid-September, also for some golf and to enjoy the by then refreshing temperature of swimming in the lake.

Have been to visit my mom several times this year, including a pre-trip November week in which Tony flew out to Victoria (Sidney) from his home in Toronto. We went for walks (her in a chair) on most days when weather permitted. She enjoys the fresh air and usually becomes increasingly attentive to things around her as soon as we step out the doorway.

 

In October, I traded my trusty Golden Falcon fifth wheel trailer in for a Country Coach Motorhome. This has been a big change but the truck had 350,000 Kms on it and I have been scrutinizing and drooling over diesel-pushers for the better part of three years. Anyway, this one was calling my name and I decided to get it. The dealer was in Kelowna and had serviced the unit for the previous seven years, so I had some confidence that the coach had been well-cared for.

At 40’, this thing feels quite massive as it floats down the highway on its air suspension. It has a 425 Cummins motor, plenty of power for freeway driving and climbing grades without excessive down-shifting as I had to do with the truck and trailer. The trailer, by now, had been fitted out to my specifications and will make someone a fine “boondocking” RV. I have installed solar panels on the new coach but it gobbles up battery power at a much faster rate than the trailer (see below). Everywhere are little lights telling me of some power load, an issue that I will, no doubt, be researching for the next decade or so. Slowly, I am changing light bulbs from incandescents to LEDs.

 

 

Following are some of the issues that I have had to deal with to this point and that any one else buying a coach might find worthy of inclusion in their pre-purchase checklist. This list is the essence of one of my many e-mails to the dealer in Kelowna – hence the numbered format:

 

1. The original house batteries were very weak and had to be changed a few weeks after purchase on my way south at the end of November. I added two more batteries to have a total of 6 X 6V. Normal things, such as lights, a radio or a small LCD TV might still operate on low batteries, but other accessories such as the fridge (even when on propane but using some power for the controls), a larger TV along with satellite receiver, the heating system and most kitchen appliances, will be compromised. Even the trusty in-house generator might not start if house batteries get too low. Because this did happen to me long before I left the cabin, I packed aboard my faithful Honda portable generator along with a container of fuel to provide backup for the backup. Anyone thinking of camping as I do should get a battery monitor (Tri-Metric?) almost before anything else so that precise voltages and amperages can be scrutinized.

 

2. Slides need to move smoothly and without effort. One of my slides got stuck in the driveway at home, having suffered a broken shearpin. Extras of these should be carried.

 

3. The windshield had a tiny crack in one corner. The dealer had already ordered a replacement and installed it before final pickup. A new windshield costs close to $3500.00, so inspect carefully. In addition, a good insurance policy including replacement is almost mandatory.

 

4. There is a lot of play in the Demco hitch (for towing the Jeep) at the back of the coach. It seems that the receiver is 2¼” square while the tow bar is only 2”. Because of this, the security pin hole is beginning to elongate a bit (possibly my imagination) and I expect that will increase with time and movement. This was something that I only discovered once I arrived at Plomosa Road and friend Walt pointed out to me. Walt and Susan from Quesnel were camped nearby (400 m) and we had frequent daily chats about things that work well – or not, out in the desert (mostly cell phones, solar panels and batteries). Some days ago, I met up in Parker with Dave and rGail Lewis, so off we went to the Blue Water Casino for lunch. They are camped at Cattail Cove up nearer to Lake Havasu and plan to move on to Desert Gold  RV Park in Brenda, Az, not far from Quartzsite.

 

5. I am not sure if the original radio was hooked up so it could be used with house batteries. I am, however, reluctant to have the ignition key “on” all the time just to listen to the radio. Apparently some coaches do have a toggle to switch from one set of batteries to the other. Further research will continue on this topic.

 

6. The dashboard “Hyd Oil” light has been on for the bulk of the trip, even though the hydraulic fluid container is full and there is no perceptible problem with steering or anything else that might relate to hydraulics. I have spoken to the dealer about this. He says that I shouldn’t worry too much and that it is probably a computer glitch of some sort.

 

7. The two 250 watt flat solar panels and MPPT controllers are capable of producing up to 17.4 amps in December at high noon (with fridge momentarily turned off as it takes .6 amps). The daily total input is about 80 amp/hours, roughly the same as I got at this time of year with my trailer and its 280 watts of tilted panels. Based on past experience I already knew that, in December, the sun is so low that flat panels achieve only about 60% of what a tilted panel would produce. Also, days are quite short so useful hours for solar charging are limited. In addition, a coach like mine has rather significant loads that draw down the batteries, particularly with the inverter turned on. I have no intention of crawling up on the roof or changing to a tilt and will have to be satisfied with firing up the generator every few days just to catch up. It just happens that, as I was strolling down the Quartzsite Main Street one day, I came across a 160 watt solar panel in a suitcase. This, I couldn’t resist, so it now adds to my arsenal of sun-seeking equipment

 

8. The Aqua-Hot system is more or less dormant down here in the desert as temperatures, so far, have remained comfortable enough for me in the coach without any extra heating. This may be a factor for other people who do require lots of heat or who encounter cooler ambient temperatures than I am experiencing this year. The Aqua-Hot takes about 12 to 17 amps of power when fully on, maybe a little less when the main burner and pump shut down, so that would be a huge factor for boondocking. I am considering having a free standing propane heater installed, like the one I had in the trailer. This is an excellent addition for heating while saving on battery power because there is no fan.

 

Disconnecting the Jeep from the Coach continues to be one of my bugbears. Nearly every time I try to disconnect, the pins are jammed tight and no amount of effort gets them loose. One day, I had to use a hammer. I am pretty sure that a little more practice will lead me to some helpful insights as to how to do this properly (possible a bigger hammer?).

 

In an ideal world, someone with a coach like mine who camps off the grid  in the winter months should have about 750 or 800 watts of solar panels (flat), or have 500 watts with a tilting mechanism, so one does not have to go up on the roof, or, with the same 500 watts, just go up on the roof and manually tilt one’s panels, not my first choice due to complaints from knees and hips that don’t bend as well as they used to, even the titanium ones! 

 

Pilot error – believe it or not, the pilot has to bear most of (all) the blame for having to brake sharply at a stoplight on a downhill pitch on Bullhead City Boulevard. The cupboard in which I had plates and saucers stored opened and all my “unbreakable” Corel eatingware came shattering down the main coach towards me. Plates and bowls (25 years or more old), I can replace. The big problem was that all the small shards got caught up under the slide and made a horrible grinding noise. I have managed to dig most of it out and hope that the slide will keep working. The lesson learned is either to block one’s plates from making a hasty exit by use of a cutting board or something similar or, to put any breakables in cupboards along the side of the coach where doors will not pop open.

 

Luckily, the TV dish works fine, even though Shaw has lost most of the Canadian HD channels – all but those out of Toronto. Cable and US Networks are fine so I’ll live with those.  CBC and CTV News Networks and any of the Missing HD channels can be acquired in “standard definition” on other channel numbers.

 

From home, it took me the better part of 7 driving days to reach the south, having had stopovers at Enterprise RV in Kelowna for some deficiency work, the Omak Walmart, Wild Horse Casino in Pendleton, OR, Boise Stage Stop parking lot in Idaho with the “other” big rigs, Cactus Pete’s in Jackpot, NV where it was cold so I booked a room, plugged in the coach in their RV lot and only had a short elevator ride down to the buffet. Then came Picketts RV Park in Alamo, followed by my favourite site for two days at Upper Lake Pahranagat, the Avi Casino across the Colorado River from Mohave City, the overflow parking lot at Lake Havasu State Park for two days and finally on to Plomosa Road, where I

Moon over Plomosa


Plomosa site to NE

 

 

hung my hat until Dec 21^st. Then I drove to Hickiwan Trails Park at Why for a couple of nights to dump tanks, take on, do laundry (yes, there are both a washer and a dryer neatly stacked in the bedroom), plus spec out the BLM at Gunsight Wash to see if there are some large spaces that can accommodate both me and the Michauds who plan to meet up in time for a Christmas dinner.

I stopped at several casinos en route and enjoyed excellent buffets, all fattening me up for the long lean winter ahead.

 

Apologies to those who find “RV talk” less than interesting but that’s about all you get for now. My usual indiction about the occasional response fits neatly in here. If anyone can offer a response anywhere near as mind-numbing as the above, please don’t hesitate. I now have a reasonable Internet signal for the next few weeks. Attached are a few photos of me, the coach, and some crab legs that I eschewed at the Wild Horse Casino buffet.



Crab legs at Wild Horse Casino



Group e-mail sent Dec 21^st, 2015.

 

 

 

 

Me in the distance at Plomosa to NW

Plomosa site
 view to North me in foreground