It's been not quite a month since we brought the little trailer home and it's slowly changing from a tiny house on wheels to a tiny home on wheels. It's set up with sheets, towels, dishes, spices and all matter of staples. The beds are made up, the bathroom is ready for showers and other daily ablutions. Clothes are hanging on hangers and folded in cupboards.
Minimal was the word of the day so we only packed the bare minimum of anything...clothes included! I'm not used to packing minimally and this was quite a challenge. The weight issue is so important so we tried to pack only things that can multi-task. For instance, we have one of those footstools that has a lid and storage inside. It can be a footstool, a storage place and can be a booster to help the Chihuahuas get on the beds. That's a triple-multi-tasker!! It's given us a whole new way of looking at things and deciding what to take.
We've tried the heater and it works like a champ. Good things since it will still be cold as we travel south for a couple nights. We've laid down on the beds and both think we will sleep well. That's a biggie!
We're just about ready to leave on our first adventure. Good thing since we only have about 36 hours before we leave. We're feeling a little nervous about hitching up, using the facilities ...all of them, and even beginning to know what the heck we're doing. We're so worried we'll do something to mess up some major thing! I guess the best way to learn is to just get out there and do it. And we'll keep the trailer manuel right beside us at all times!
Our reservations for our campsite at Edisto Beach, South Carolina is confirmed and we've checked the weather there and it looks like it's going to be in the 50-70's. Yahoo, finally we'll see some Spring!
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
The Booking
Yesterday I booked our first campsites. We wanted to spend a couple weeks at Hunting Island, South Carolina. It's a good thing we're flexible because since I'm booking late (yes, March IS late for booking campsites for the spring/summer of the same year) I was unable to find a campsite that was available for 14 consecutive days. I tried to think outside of the box, a trait I'm trying to develop since I soooo envy people who do that, and decided to find another place to visit that was equally as well-endowed, so to speak, as Hunting Island, with beautiful sea, sand, sites. I looked at the South Carolina state park website and found a nice place on the beach a hoot and holler up the road from H. Island. (I've gotta get in S.C. mode verbally as well as mentally, so I'm practicing, gol durn it.)
I found Edisto Beach. It looks great and has all the features of it's counter-part and best of all, I could book a site for 9 days. I've got us locked in for a 9 day site and we'll go there first.
Since we still wanted to stay at Hunting Island, I found a 5 day site that butts right up next to our stay at Edisto. So we'll ultimately get our 14 day camping trip and get to see two of South Carolinas beautiful beaches and parks.
I also planned our trips down and back and tried to set all it up so we could stay at least once in each state we go through. We'll probably try to stay at Flying J truck stops since they are RV-friendly and have dumps, gas discounts and WiFi. Now we have to go get a Flying J RV Rewards card...or whatever it's called.
That's on the list to do today.
I found Edisto Beach. It looks great and has all the features of it's counter-part and best of all, I could book a site for 9 days. I've got us locked in for a 9 day site and we'll go there first.
Since we still wanted to stay at Hunting Island, I found a 5 day site that butts right up next to our stay at Edisto. So we'll ultimately get our 14 day camping trip and get to see two of South Carolinas beautiful beaches and parks.
I also planned our trips down and back and tried to set all it up so we could stay at least once in each state we go through. We'll probably try to stay at Flying J truck stops since they are RV-friendly and have dumps, gas discounts and WiFi. Now we have to go get a Flying J RV Rewards card...or whatever it's called.
That's on the list to do today.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
The Shopping
If you like to shop, get an RV! There are so many things you'll need that shopping becomes like a new hobby. Or an old hobby gets a new shot in the arm if you are a shopaholic. I'm somewhere in the middle. I know I'm not a shopaholic because I'm getting tired of shopping. Well, almost!
It's like trying to set up a small apartment. The furniture and appliances are already there, for the most part but there are all the little things, like kitchen utensils, spices, towels, pots and pans, an on and on and on. Of course, there are lots of things we had that we don't have to buy but since weight is a big issue, we are trying to be sure we use small things that are light and very minimal. And we're weighing everything that is going into the trailer and keeping track.
Andy's an old Navy man so he's spent a lot of time on narrow, hard cots. He wants to try sleeping on the mattresses that came with the trailer. He likes hard pillows and these mattresses are like big, hard pillows. I, on the other hand, am used to a Sleep Number bed and am totally spoiled. I opted to get a custom made mattress from a local factory. I had to buy a twin mattress and give them the smaller dimensions and they re-made the bed to fit into the bed frame in the trailer. With both of the trailer mattresses stacked up for Andy, they will be the same depth as the mattress I had made, so when the beds are all made up, it shouldn't be obvious that they are two different mattress-types.
We had an extra TV that we're going to use. We didn't like the dining, card-playing, computer desk, art easel table that came with the RV, it's too big and heavy to move around easily so we are going to take it and it's legs out and leave it home. We will substitute a couple of wooden TV tray tables instead. They will be easily moveable, lighter and smaller. We had those too, so that's another thing we don't have to buy.
Storage space is at a premium, so any place there is an extra few inches of out-of-the-way floor space we'll put some sort of multi-purpose shelf, drawer or storage footstool. I'm still looking for one of those over-the-toilet, tension rod, shelving units but they aren't easy to find ... not as narrow as we need, anyway.
One of my favorite things, at least right now, is my camper clothes washing apparatus. I wish I had some cute anagram for this little marvel of science. Well, maybe not science but innovation at least. I took a 5 gallon bucket with a lid and cut a hole in the center of the lid. Then I took a cheap rubber toilet bowl plunger, the rusty red kind you can get just about anywhere, and cut 3 or 4 holes around the body of the plunger between the neck and the bottom rim. This keeps the suds from taking over when you're plunging away on your dirty laundry. Then you just put hot, warm or cold water with a little laundry detergent into the bucket along with a few pieces of dirty laundry and plunge! Use the same movement you would imagine a pioneer woman would use to make butter in an old-fashioned churn. I may learn to hate this cute little idea, but for now, I'm living in oblivious bliss imagining washing our clothes this way.
There are a few things we still need but we're doing pretty good at getting all our trappings gathered up. Saving money when we can and keeping it light.
Oh and one word to remember... Amazon! It's where we shop online and we have a Prime membership so we save because we get free shipping on Prime purchases and get the stuff in two days. And most everything we've bought, so far, is priced comparatively to other stores, sometimes even cheaper.
It's been raining for two days now. I hope it stops so we can start loading all this stuff in the trailer. I don't need a lot of extra stuff in my house. Already have that.
The Orientation
We made an appointment to have our orientation. That's when they walk you through the trailer and show you how to do all the things you have to do, to live in a trailer. All the things you DON'T know how to do in the first place. Which is just about everything. We learned about how to put the pretty blue and white awning out and the sand-colored slide room out ... how to hook up the white water hose to the city water hookup ... how to dump the black and gray water ... this is such a colorful pursuit! That appealed to the artist in me.
The bad thing is, we can only remember about 1/3 of what they told us. It all went by so fast, and our memories aren't what they used to be. I don't think. I can't remember. But we're finding out that the best way to learn is by experience. And boy, are we going to get that, in spades!
While we were getting educated in Heartland Wilderness 101, the Trailblazer was getting a few little tweaks. We had to have a trailer brake package installed and the part of the hitch you put the trailer on, too. Oh and they installed an electric gadget to raise and lower the trailer tongue.
Then we finished up all the paperwork and the trailer was ours. It had snowed really bad the previous couple of weeks so we asked if we could keep the trailer there for a couple more days until we could clear a place in our driveway to keep the trailer. They were great about it. In fact, the entire staff was super to work with and very helpful to a couple of real, honest-to-goodness greenhorns.
Two days later we went to pick up our new home-on-wheels. After a quick stop at the insurance office to sign insurance papers, we went to the dealership. I'm not sure about Andy but I was scared to death. Neither of us were talking about our worries, in fear of upsetting the other. It was like bringing home a huge, new baby and not knowing anything much about it's care and feeding.
After a very quick hookup tutorial by the mechanic on our fancy, complicated (or so it seemed) Reese hitch, off we went. We immediately got onto the interstate and one of my first big fears was looming down on us. Being passed by a big, scary semi-on-a-mission was one of my biggest nightmares. Our little Wildebeest tracked like a champ, held it's own and stood up to those speeding semis with the bravery of a much bigger rig.
We made it home in pretty good time, even after it was drilled in our heads by every RV book we've read that you must NEVER go over 55 mph or your tow vehicle will suck gas like...well, it will really suck gas!
Facing us was another big bugaboo. Backing! Andy had made a narrow tunnel in the deep wet snow in our driveway but our snowblower picked a bad time to quit on us, so he did it all by hand. He's got physical limits, imposed on him by the doc who did his surgery last fall and he can't lift much more than 20 lbs. He took it slow and easy but did as little as possible to get make space for the trailer. The snow was deep to begin with but it was even deeper on the sides right next to where the trailer would be parked due to snow being thrown no farther than necessary to get it out of the way. Snow walls.
I got out of the Trailblazer and guided Andy into this narrow slot. He did a great job for his first time. The trailer was parked safely in the driveway and now we had to unhitch it. All went well but for one thing. The trailer's hitch wouldn't let go of the Trailblazer's hitch. With some fiddling and poking and prodding, suddenly Andy hit the right combination and the trailer thumped down off the truck. We heard something snap and I was afraid to look. Andy went into sailor-mouth mode. It turned out that the cover to the electric light receiver on the truck broke off as the trailer dropped. The only place we could find the part to fix it was the car dealer parts dept. It cost $70 but Andy saved the $170 labor cost by putting the part on instead of letting them do it.
The main thing was, the trailer was home, parked and unhitched! We had done it!
The bad thing is, we can only remember about 1/3 of what they told us. It all went by so fast, and our memories aren't what they used to be. I don't think. I can't remember. But we're finding out that the best way to learn is by experience. And boy, are we going to get that, in spades!
While we were getting educated in Heartland Wilderness 101, the Trailblazer was getting a few little tweaks. We had to have a trailer brake package installed and the part of the hitch you put the trailer on, too. Oh and they installed an electric gadget to raise and lower the trailer tongue.
Then we finished up all the paperwork and the trailer was ours. It had snowed really bad the previous couple of weeks so we asked if we could keep the trailer there for a couple more days until we could clear a place in our driveway to keep the trailer. They were great about it. In fact, the entire staff was super to work with and very helpful to a couple of real, honest-to-goodness greenhorns.
Two days later we went to pick up our new home-on-wheels. After a quick stop at the insurance office to sign insurance papers, we went to the dealership. I'm not sure about Andy but I was scared to death. Neither of us were talking about our worries, in fear of upsetting the other. It was like bringing home a huge, new baby and not knowing anything much about it's care and feeding.
After a very quick hookup tutorial by the mechanic on our fancy, complicated (or so it seemed) Reese hitch, off we went. We immediately got onto the interstate and one of my first big fears was looming down on us. Being passed by a big, scary semi-on-a-mission was one of my biggest nightmares. Our little Wildebeest tracked like a champ, held it's own and stood up to those speeding semis with the bravery of a much bigger rig.
We made it home in pretty good time, even after it was drilled in our heads by every RV book we've read that you must NEVER go over 55 mph or your tow vehicle will suck gas like...well, it will really suck gas!
Facing us was another big bugaboo. Backing! Andy had made a narrow tunnel in the deep wet snow in our driveway but our snowblower picked a bad time to quit on us, so he did it all by hand. He's got physical limits, imposed on him by the doc who did his surgery last fall and he can't lift much more than 20 lbs. He took it slow and easy but did as little as possible to get make space for the trailer. The snow was deep to begin with but it was even deeper on the sides right next to where the trailer would be parked due to snow being thrown no farther than necessary to get it out of the way. Snow walls.
I got out of the Trailblazer and guided Andy into this narrow slot. He did a great job for his first time. The trailer was parked safely in the driveway and now we had to unhitch it. All went well but for one thing. The trailer's hitch wouldn't let go of the Trailblazer's hitch. With some fiddling and poking and prodding, suddenly Andy hit the right combination and the trailer thumped down off the truck. We heard something snap and I was afraid to look. Andy went into sailor-mouth mode. It turned out that the cover to the electric light receiver on the truck broke off as the trailer dropped. The only place we could find the part to fix it was the car dealer parts dept. It cost $70 but Andy saved the $170 labor cost by putting the part on instead of letting them do it.
The main thing was, the trailer was home, parked and unhitched! We had done it!
The Hunt pt.2
The first dealer we visited two times just didn't have the right RV for us. I couldn't believe it since they had 10,978 RV's on their lot. Well, almost that many. We thought it might be a good idea to look around a bit more.
There is a dealer a bit closer to us and after the obligatory website investigation, we made a stop there one day in Feb. 2012.
We met salesman #2. He was a nice man ("nice" must be the main prerequisite of being an RV salesman). I told him which trailer we were interested in seeing and WOW! It just happened to be right inside the door, not 3 steps from the dealership door we had just entered. We took a tour, if you can call it that. The trailer was 22' of snug, cozy wonderfulness. It's a Heartland Wilderness. I think they just misspelled Wonderfulness. It fit within all our constraints of weights, lengths, amenities and we felt it was made for us.
We thanked the salesman, took the obligatory paperwork and business card.
I called him within 24 hours and put a down payment on it, to hold it for us.
There is a dealer a bit closer to us and after the obligatory website investigation, we made a stop there one day in Feb. 2012.
We met salesman #2. He was a nice man ("nice" must be the main prerequisite of being an RV salesman). I told him which trailer we were interested in seeing and WOW! It just happened to be right inside the door, not 3 steps from the dealership door we had just entered. We took a tour, if you can call it that. The trailer was 22' of snug, cozy wonderfulness. It's a Heartland Wilderness. I think they just misspelled Wonderfulness. It fit within all our constraints of weights, lengths, amenities and we felt it was made for us.
We thanked the salesman, took the obligatory paperwork and business card.
I called him within 24 hours and put a down payment on it, to hold it for us.
The Hunt
So, we know what to look for now. That's a big help with all the RV's out there. It's so true, what they say. If you don't like the RV you're looking at there are a bazillion more out there, so don't give up. After continually striking out on Craig's List, we decided it was time to visit a dealer. We were open-minded about either a new or used RV, especially since there are no motors or mechanical engine parts to worry about. Well, I suppose there are mechanical parts to consider but they aren't going to get us stranded in the middle of nowhere if they break down. Well, hopefully!
We visited our first dealer and met a nice salesman who wasn't pushy or condescending at all. In fact he was rather laid back. I liked that in a way. He did know his business (well, pretty much) and that was good, too. When we told him the features on a travel trailer we were looking for, he said he had none that fit our criteria. I had been pouring over the dealer's website for the past couple of days, so I asked him about the Z-1's I saw there. He slapped his forehead, I assume to clear the cobwebs of laid-backness, and said he'd forgotten all about them. He just happened to have the one we were interested in right in the next room, on the display floor. Go figure! Maybe I should have been offered a huge discount for doing his job for him?
We toured the trailer and it was very nice. There was some doubt though, but I couldn't put my finger on it right then. We left with some papers on the trailer we'd seen and a little (erroneous) information about how much our Trailblazer could pull. Salesmen sometimes tell you what you want to hear just to sell a unit to you. Just as we were leaving, there again was a nagging doubt rearing it's ugly but useful head when the salesman said, "Well you won't be pulling it in any mountains, will you?" He said it as more of a statement than a question. This kept rolling around in my mind.
We went home, talked and bided our time. Time is your friend, if you let it be, when making a big decision like this. I did more research and figured out that we didn't like the first trailer we saw and why. We needed a more comfortable sleeping arrangement. We have two little Chihuahuas that sleep with us, we sleep in separate beds otherwise there is too much fighting for bed space and blankets. The dogs don't get along in bed either! In the first trailer there was a queen-sized bed and a nasty little fold out couch... "little" being the operative word. It wasn't really nasty but I tend to be a bit "flowery". One of us would be comfortable and one would be miserable. That wasn't going to happen.
It didn't have an oven, in fact, none of the Z-1's we looked at did. Not a deal-breaker but definitely something to consider.
A week later we went back and looked at another trailer. It was much better in the bed department but we would learn through the internet that there was still something wrong with this picture.
We were getting a little weary of all the thought and time we were putting in on this venture and when I get that way, I tend to settle. Thank goodness we didn't knee-jerk and buy that trailer. I found out that the numbers (wheel base, weights and towing capabilities) were VERY important! Gee, no one had bothered to tell us that! Wake up, Mr. Salesman! This trailer was way too long for our Trailblazer, which is extremely wheel-base-challenged. We needed a trailer that was much shorter to be safe from the dreaded sway that plagues the unaware RV'er. We were looking at 28'-30' trailers...we needed closer to 21'-22'. I didn't find that out until I spent more time on the internet after seeing that second trailer. Now, we were planning to have a good Reese hitch and heavy duty sway bars, but I am a worry wort and wanted to stay within the parameters of safety.
Besides, on an RV forum they said to.
We visited our first dealer and met a nice salesman who wasn't pushy or condescending at all. In fact he was rather laid back. I liked that in a way. He did know his business (well, pretty much) and that was good, too. When we told him the features on a travel trailer we were looking for, he said he had none that fit our criteria. I had been pouring over the dealer's website for the past couple of days, so I asked him about the Z-1's I saw there. He slapped his forehead, I assume to clear the cobwebs of laid-backness, and said he'd forgotten all about them. He just happened to have the one we were interested in right in the next room, on the display floor. Go figure! Maybe I should have been offered a huge discount for doing his job for him?
We toured the trailer and it was very nice. There was some doubt though, but I couldn't put my finger on it right then. We left with some papers on the trailer we'd seen and a little (erroneous) information about how much our Trailblazer could pull. Salesmen sometimes tell you what you want to hear just to sell a unit to you. Just as we were leaving, there again was a nagging doubt rearing it's ugly but useful head when the salesman said, "Well you won't be pulling it in any mountains, will you?" He said it as more of a statement than a question. This kept rolling around in my mind.
We went home, talked and bided our time. Time is your friend, if you let it be, when making a big decision like this. I did more research and figured out that we didn't like the first trailer we saw and why. We needed a more comfortable sleeping arrangement. We have two little Chihuahuas that sleep with us, we sleep in separate beds otherwise there is too much fighting for bed space and blankets. The dogs don't get along in bed either! In the first trailer there was a queen-sized bed and a nasty little fold out couch... "little" being the operative word. It wasn't really nasty but I tend to be a bit "flowery". One of us would be comfortable and one would be miserable. That wasn't going to happen.
It didn't have an oven, in fact, none of the Z-1's we looked at did. Not a deal-breaker but definitely something to consider.
A week later we went back and looked at another trailer. It was much better in the bed department but we would learn through the internet that there was still something wrong with this picture.
We were getting a little weary of all the thought and time we were putting in on this venture and when I get that way, I tend to settle. Thank goodness we didn't knee-jerk and buy that trailer. I found out that the numbers (wheel base, weights and towing capabilities) were VERY important! Gee, no one had bothered to tell us that! Wake up, Mr. Salesman! This trailer was way too long for our Trailblazer, which is extremely wheel-base-challenged. We needed a trailer that was much shorter to be safe from the dreaded sway that plagues the unaware RV'er. We were looking at 28'-30' trailers...we needed closer to 21'-22'. I didn't find that out until I spent more time on the internet after seeing that second trailer. Now, we were planning to have a good Reese hitch and heavy duty sway bars, but I am a worry wort and wanted to stay within the parameters of safety.
Besides, on an RV forum they said to.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
The Decision
Andy and I have been thinking and talking about getting an RV for quite a while now. After the 2012 holidays we got the bug to become more proactive in finding something that would work for us. We scoured the pages of Craig's List many times as we tried to decide which type of RV style would best suit our needs. Every RV we saw was either way too big for our parking area, way too old, or way more than we wanted to pay. And in some cases all of the above!
Our first thought was to possibly get a Class C motor home. They are about the size of the mini-bus I used to drive, when I was a school bus driver. I thought maybe that would be comfortable for us and I'd be able to drive it, should the need arrive. Again, off to Craig's List. We saw a few promising candidates but even though they looked good and the price wasn't too high, we wondered about gas mileage, the care they had gotten over the lifespan of the vehicle (or lack of care). Since we don't have a pickup truck, a 5th wheel trailer was out of the question. Andy has a nice 2009 Chevy Trailblazer with a factory-installed towing package.
Oh duh! Why not take advantage of having the Trailblazer? We finally figured out that having a travel trailer was probably the best way to go since if we got a motor home, we'd want to tow a car behind to use as transportation while we were parked at a camp site, anyhow.
At least now we knew what direction our search needed to go.
Our first thought was to possibly get a Class C motor home. They are about the size of the mini-bus I used to drive, when I was a school bus driver. I thought maybe that would be comfortable for us and I'd be able to drive it, should the need arrive. Again, off to Craig's List. We saw a few promising candidates but even though they looked good and the price wasn't too high, we wondered about gas mileage, the care they had gotten over the lifespan of the vehicle (or lack of care). Since we don't have a pickup truck, a 5th wheel trailer was out of the question. Andy has a nice 2009 Chevy Trailblazer with a factory-installed towing package.
Oh duh! Why not take advantage of having the Trailblazer? We finally figured out that having a travel trailer was probably the best way to go since if we got a motor home, we'd want to tow a car behind to use as transportation while we were parked at a camp site, anyhow.
At least now we knew what direction our search needed to go.
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