A post from Deb

Ok, its been roughly four months since Lindsey and I "went on the road" in the fifth wheel and people want to know how I like it. I can honestly say, I've never been happier in my life. It has been a grand adventure so far, not without bumps, but generally, the time of my life.

I won't rehash our journey since Lindsey posts every aspect of our travels (feel free to hide us if it is too much sharing). But we spent four months roaming the southwestern portion of the US. Saw a lot of friends around the area and hope to see more as we go. After Christmas, we're heading east, through the south to Florida and the keys. In general, we only plan about 2 weeks out so I don't have an exact timetable.

So what makes this lifestyle pretty perfect for me right now? It is a combination of freedom and stability. Adventure but with the comforts of home when I want it. Being on vacation....without having to go back to work completely exhausted from the trip with a suitcase full of dirty clothes and a ton of everyday chores to get caught up on. And yes, we really do have all the comforts of home...full kitchen, dishwasher, washer/dryer, a real shower, a real bed, internet access and cable tv. Really. It is a complete home.

Do we feel cramped? Not really. Despite having a huge house, we actually "lived" in a very small portion of it. And we do a lot of things outside the trailer....that is the point of the journey. And the huge upside of a smaller space? The liberation of less stuff. And the liberation of not being tempted to buy more stuff because I don't really have the space.

Is towing a 38 foot trailer with the big ass dually F-350 scary? It gets easier all the time...and yes, I drive when we're towing it on a regular basis. Yes, we hauled the trailer over the Million Dollar Highway in Colorado without incident (although it certainly was an adventure). The learning curve has, as expected, been steep. But we've mastered it pretty well. We can set up camp or pack camp up in about 30 minutes...45 if we're in a hurry.

How have the boys handled it? The puglets LOVE being road dogs. They've made the trailer home and love getting to ride in the truck when we move. In fact, they are getting better and better at recognizing the "moving" routine and yodel until its time to get in the truck (where they sit and wait to be lifted in). In short, perhaps my biggest relief has been how much they've thrived.

Any regrets? Not really. I imagine we'll continue to refine some of the details of daily living but on balance, we're having a such a good time that I think we made a good choice for us. Traveling by road is a different (and broader) experience that flying somewhere and that has been great for us. Probably the closest I get to regret is that I didn't learn the important life lesson until the last few years that experiences matter more than possessions. When I'm old, I hope to have a lot of great memories and not a lot of "stuff" (and if my memory goes, I won't need stuff anyway).

Any surprises? A few. A little surprised by how many kids live in RVs full time (with parents). The RV park in north Houston actually has a bus stop out front for kids whose essentially live in the park and go to school. I would have expected kids during the summer but there have been kids in almost every RV park we've stayed at this fall. Also surprised as how kind and friendly the truckers have been. We usually try to fill up (with diesel) before we hook up to tow but often, we have to fuel while towing and the easiest place to do that (height and length issues) is truck stops. And the drivers have all been very friendly and helpful.

Any place we loved or hated? We've pretty much enjoyed everywhere we've been. They've all had their charms, whether small towns or cities. And their downsides. Loved Santa Fe and Durango, but the altitude it tough for folks like us who are used to sea level. Generally thought Phoenix was a little "meh" but I did have one of the best bahn mi sandwiches ever there. Sedona was beautiful but a little to hippy dippy even for me.

So, to all the people who have asked, life in the RV is great. I realize its one of those things people talk about doing but few people ever pull the trigger but I am delighted that Lindsey and I did jump off the deep end into this lifestyle. I really can't imagine living any other way right now, especially when we're still young enough and healthy enough to enjoy it. And to everyone who has said "I could never do that", I'd urge you not to sell yourself short. Lindsey and I probably seem like the most unlikely people to do this and yet, I can't endorse it heartily enough.

So Merry Christmas and stay tuned for more from the road.

How We Plan our Travels

Dubravka Romano asked do we have a plan for travel or do we wake up every morning and say “where shall we go today?”

Currently, a little bit of both. We have been touring for less than a month, so how we make our plans is still in flux. We do have targets, for example we want to be in Moab for the Moab Folk Festival from November 5 to November 8, will be in Austin for Christmas, and need to find some time to return to Houston to repair Deb’s BoBo. With a goal in place, we start to fill in. Major considerations are (a) a location we can reach in a day, generally no more than 300 miles away and (b) can we find a park with an open spot. As we are heading west to Moab, our next stops will be in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. Once we are in Albuquerque we will pick our next stops. Not sure if we will travel through Colorado along the eastern or western Rockies. We do try to make reservations at least a day in advance - learned that traveling through Europe

A few things we have picked up over the past three weeks.

• Do not plan to go out at the end of a travel day. Driving 15 tons is physically tiring. After setting up the camper, all you want to do is veg.
• Two nights is too short a period for a stop if you want to visit a location. After a travel day, there is generally a need to do some kind of general maintenance like clean the trailer or wash clothes.
• Mondays are excellent travel days. Many museums or other sites of interest are not open on Monday. Also interstate traffic is less busy than on the weekend.
• We have taken heed to the RVers adage given to us by Gus Sterneman and Kevin Hedgecock – “Out by 10, in by 4.”

On the Road - Finally

Yesterday, Deb and I finally hit the road. Is it permanent – no! We have to return to Houston later in October or November to repair the window and siding as well as the warranty work for items that were broken when we picked up the trailer.

A slight digression. It amazes me how slow the supply chain is in the RV industry. It often takes 3 to 6 weeks for parts to be found and delivered, then another two weeks before the repair shop can fit you in.

Before we could take off, we had to take the RV to DeMontrond one more time to fix the washer. We had taken the trailer in three times previously because the washer shook so bad it felt like a 6.0 earthquake.

We first found the issue while at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Deb decided to wash clothes. The washer’s shaking was so bad that the dryer began falling off. I wasn’t in the trailer at the time. Deb spent the next 30 minutes holding the dryer in place until the washer finished. When I returned I found Deb crying wondering if we had made a grave mistake. I tried to console her, but I am not very good at that. The support she received from friends after she posted something on Facebook about second guessing the decision helped more than anything else.

Tuesday, a Whirlpool repair person visited the trailer, and in less than 5 minutes identified the problem. The service people at DeMontrond had left the shipping bolts in the back of the washer, which caused the washer to be imbalanced and was tearing the washer’s back panel. Called DeMontrond and had the Whirlpool person talk to the service person at DeMontrond, scheduled an appointment the next day.

BTW, if you are wondering why we keep taking the trailer to DeMontrond, we bought the trailer from them, the installed the washer, and they are the only shop in Houston licensed to perform warranty repairs for DRV.

Wednesday, we packed up the trailer, checked out of the RV park, and dropped off the fifth wheel at DeMontrond. Since the repairs were expected to take 4 hours, we needed something to do. Took the Boys to PetSmart to be bathed and groomed, went to breakfast, and then hung out at the Barnes and Noble in the Woodlands Mall for a couple of hours. Picked up Pancho and Lefty around 1, returned to DeMontrond and waited in the lobby. Picked up the trailer around 2:30. Repair people swore the washer was finally fixed. Didn’t have time to run a load. (Note: we tried a load later, it appears to finally be repaired. Yea!)

Deb decided she was ready to try driving the trailer again, so she took the wheel. Plugged in our destination into Waze, and off we went.

Our first destination is Rainbow’s End, an RV park in Livingston, Texas operated by Escapees. Escapees is one of many clubs that offer discounted camping and other support services for full time RVers. We are members. We chose Rainbow’s End as our first stop not because it is the home base (i.e. Mecca) for Escapees, but because it offers a program called SmartWeigh. According to its website, SmartWeigh provides a much more accurate and detailed weighing of recreational vehicles than if you go to a standard weigh station. It is one of Escapees’ many educational programs. Considering the limited information given to the RV buyers by dealers, any information about using an RV is valuable.

Livingston is about 75 miles northeast of Houston. It is on the southeastern edge of the Big Thicket. For those of you either not from Texas or who are unaware, the Big Thicket is a heavily forested area in east Texas. It is part of the Piney Woods, one of the largest contiguous forests in the United States.

Most of the drive to Livingston was uneventful. Basically, get on US 59/I-69 and go. There was one hiccup. We missed the exit for the road to Rainbow’s End. A quick search on Waze identified two routes. One involved a U-turn on US 59 back to FM 1988, the other a drive down Windham Ranch Road. Deb was worried about performing a U-turn, so we took Windham Ranch Road. What Waze failed to tell us was that Windham Road started out as a paved road but soon became a one lane gravel road for 2 miles. 

I could tell Deb was nervous, but she did well. Two times we met up with an oncoming vehicle. The first was a Jeep. The driver pulled over as far to his side of the road as he could, and we crept by without a problem. The second vehicle was more challenging, as it was another fifth wheel. Fortunately, we met at a straight stretch of the road. Because it was so tight, no one could get out of the tow vehicles to observe and direct. Passing each other was like a very slow hippopotamus mating dance. We would creep up a few feet, the other trailer would move forward a few feet, then repeat. After about 5 minutes, the dance was complete and we were able to move on.

After that, no other problems, well except a GFCI breaker blew and we can’t find the switch. Wouldn’t be an issue except the dishwasher is on that circuit. With a little luck, that will be resolved today.

We have set up camp and will be around Livingston, Texas for two days. No real plans other than to sweep and vacuum the trailer. Yes, that is part of Living the Dream, keeping your RV clean. If you have any suggestions of things to do while in Livingston, let us know. 

L² out.

An Inauspicious Start Day 1 – Low Riding

Almost immediately after I had posted the picture of the truck and the trailer and had started driving, friends posted comments that the truck seemed to be riding low. For a while, I tended to dismiss them because the suggested causes didn’t make sense to me:

• You need a bigger truck – We have an F-350. It can haul trailers 3-tons heavier than our fifth wheel;
• Need to check the weight distribution – Weight distribution hadn’t changed since we picked up the trailer. Everything was balanced.
• The hitch was installed improperly – The truck included the fifth wheel package, where the guides for the hitch were integrated into the frame

As the messages regarding the truck riding low in the rear continued to be posted to my Facebook page, Deb’s worries grew. Finally, like most stubborn men, I agreed to stop to check things. Besides it was almost time for lunch. As we were near Columbus, we planned to stop at Pilsner’s; however, by the time we saw it, it was too late to stop. So, we headed a mile down the road to Jerry Mikeska’s Barbecue. After eating marginal barbecue, we looked at the truck and the fifth wheel. Yes, the back end was riding low. Checking for obvious issues, we observed that the air ride pin box was underinflated. We made plans to stop at the next truck stop to add air.

An air ride pin box is an attachment to the trailer that uses a series of air shocks to buffer the impact between the tow vehicle and the trailer. The air spring absorbs the road shocks that are transferred from the truck to the trailer. When it works, the air pin box produces a smooth, stabilized tow.

That settled, we returned to the road searching for a truck stop. From what we knew and a quick internet search, we determined the closest stop was in Luling at Love’s and Buc-ee’s. Our first stop was Loves, as it was on the same side of the highway we were driving on. Pulled up to the compressor, inserted $1.00 of quarters, and took the hose over to the trailer. Very quickly, I realized the hose fitting was too long and rigid to fit in the space between the trailer and the air pin to attach it to the air pin’s valve stem. Slightly frustrated, I got back in the truck and told Deb we were headed to the Buc-ee’s.

Deb pulled out of the Love’s parking lot, crossed 183, and turned left to drive under I-10 to Buc-ee’s. For those of you not from Texas, Buc-ee’s is like the Taj Mahal of Travel Center’s whose reputation rests on immense and sparkling clean bathrooms and Beaver Nuggets, which are sweet puffed corn. Driving through the parking lot, we searched for the air compressor. We saw it to the right about 200 yards from where we were. Deb drove to the end of the aisle and began turning right.

When driving a trailer, right turns are more difficult than left turns. Simple geometry as there is less space in which to turn. Often when turning right with a trailer, the driver will need to either pull over to the left side of the road before starting the turn, or turn into the oncoming lane then return to the right lane. As Deb was executing the right turn, I watched the right mirror. I soon realized if she continued she would hit a new Porsche Carrera someone had parked far away from the building so no one would ding their car. Good theory, but bad execution, as they had parked on the corner of one of the busier aisles. I told Deb to stop and described why. I got out of the truck and gave Deb directions that resulted in no damage to the vehicle and a successful right turn (FYI, this is foreshadowing). We then headed to the compressor.

When we arrived at the compressor, someone had just pulled in and was airing the tires on their truck and their 12 foot trailer. We waited patiently for 10 minutes. After they finished and left, we began to pull up to the compressor, but some guy in a Buick decided he needed air before us and pulled into the space. Apparently, Texas being an open carry state has not stopped people from being rude. We waited for him to finish (actually, I stewed), then pulled up to the compressor to fill the air pin. I checked the hose fitting, placed $1.50 of quarters in the machine, and then began to inflate the air pin. The only flaw in executing my plan was that the compressor’s maximum pressure was 72 pounds, and I needed 120 for the air pin box. More frustrated, we returned to the road and tried to figure out what to do next.

Deb suggested I call an RV dealer and ask them to help. Having dealt with RV dealers while looking for the trailer, I did not like the idea. However, with Deb giving me looks and me not having a better idea, I agreed to call. I searched Google and found three RV dealers about 20 miles down the road from us. One was the ExploreUSA RV Supercenter dealership in Seguin which was the first dealership we visited first during our search.  No way I was going there.

The top rated dealer that appeared in the Google search was San Antonio RVs in Seguin. I called them and described the problem, saying we needed help inflating the air pin and our tires. The person who answered the phone said they would be happy to help.

We arrived twenty minutes later. Talked to one of the guys at the front desk. They called Tom, the service manager. Tom looked at the truck and trailer and told me that adding air to the air pin would help and that he had a chuck to fit in the gap. Aired up the air pin then checked the truck tires and added air to the rear tires. He was the nicest guy. Didn't charge me for the assistance and gave me the chuck. Told me to call any time I had a question. I asked if I could buy him an adult beverage, and when he said yes I handed him $20. I asked him one last favor, back the trailer out onto the I-10 access road for us. Seeing it took him about 10 minutes to do that, I was glad I asked for help.

With the truck riding level, Deb took the wheel and we headed off to Kerrville.

 
Next up: Gate Post 1, Trailer 0.

Moving In

Sunday, September 13, 2015

We moved into the fifth wheel last Tuesday. Deb decided it was too frustrating to have half of our stuff in the house and the other half in the trailer. Now to get into the habit if referring to our former home as “the house” and the trailer as “our home”.

The Boys are with us and adapting nicely. They have learned to go up and down the stairs into the trailer and have found their places on the chairs and the couches.

We moved the trailer to the Northlake RV Resort. Much nicer than the trailer parks I grew up in when my father was on a geophysical crew. Less park and more subdivision for RVs. At the center is a retention pond to which they have added a fountain and stocked with fish. Several dog runs are available. So many trucks hear that I have begun to refer to this place as DuallyWord

Our neighbors are a young couple (early 20s) who have been on the road for 3-1/2 years. Chad is an electrical lineman contracting with Centerpoint. Marissa is working as a receptionist at a veterinarian. They follow the seasons (Midwest and Northwest in the summer, Texas and Florida in the winter) for contract work.

On Thursday, took the trailer to DeMontrond to get estimates on the repairs to the window and side and to repair items that we found broke during the shakedown run. Since they had to keep it overnight, we slept in the trailer on the property. That night, a hose under the sink disconnected, flooding the kitchen. Turned off the water, but that meant no flushing the toilet or showers on Friday morning. We will be taking it back to DeMontrond on Monday to finish the repairs they were making along with fixing a new plumbing leak.

During the day, we took the Boys with us to the house to continue clearing it out. Amazing how much stuff one accumulates over 20 years of marriage, and 12 years in one place. It seems that everything has a place, and every place has a thing. On Thursday, Deb’s sister and Mary Gibbs shared a mover to take most of our furniture (bedroom suites, shelves, office desk, televisions). All that is left are the two dining room tables and the couch in the living room.

Friday evening, picked up the trailer and returned it to Northlake. This Sunday will be the first day we do not go to the house to pick up stuff. As I type this, Deb is practicing scrambling eggs on her induction stove top.

If you are wondering if you missed the other posts about the shakedown trip, you did not. Been way too busy during the day moving stuff to have time to write. Don’t worry, there will be more about the shakedown trip to entertain you or make you think we are idiots.

The Shakedown Ride - An Inauspicious Start (Part 1)

Thursday, September 3, Deb and I took the fifth wheel out for its first trip. Our destination - Quiet Valley Ranch, 7 miles south of Kerrville, Texas, to attend the 2015 Kerrville Fall Music Festival. The following recounts the travails of our trip. If I covered everything in a single post, it would be as long as a James Joyce short story; so I will be covering each topic related to the trip as a separate post.

Day 1 – Hitch

Our plan was to be on the road by 10:00 am. We were loaded up and ready for me to hitch the trailer to the truck by 9:45. Things were looking good.

Like most motorcoaches and fifth wheels, our trailer come with an automatic leveling system. The auto level is computerized system that will raise and lower the jacks until the unit is stabilized and level. Watching it work is very cool, kind of like Transformers. 

When it is time to leave, the auto level system should return the unit to the height at which it was disconnected from the truck. Of course it helps to follow the instructions as written. I thought I remembered what to do. (Yes, this is referred to as foreshadowing.) Don’t remember exactly what I did, but looking back and rereading the instructions, I realize I did not properly unlevel the unit.

Once I had the unit at what I thought was level, I backed up the truck to connect the trailer to the hitch. After a couple of tries, we had it lined up perfectly. I looked like the unit was low enough. Maybe the king pin was a little higher than the hitch, but that shouldn’t be a problem. Or so I thought.

Backed the truck up, heard the click of the king pin in the jaws of the hitch and the handle releasing. Got out to inspect pulled on the handle and realized it wasn’t completely closed and that I could not move the handle at all. Further inspection found the king pin was trapped between the hitch plate and the top of the hitch jaws.

For 45 minutes, I tried everything I could to release the king pin. Raised the fifth wheel. Lowered the fifth wheel. Back up the truck. Try to drive the truck forward. Nothing. Deb searched the web for solutions. Nothing. Finally called Reese Products’ technical support.

I forgot his name, but the technical support guy was very nice and very helpful. He confirmed my hope that I was not the first person to make this mistake and told me the solution was straight forward.  It involved releasing the hitch from the truck bed. While this sounds complicated, it is easy. The hitch is held onto the truck by two pins. Remove the pins, slide the two guides on each side from the bracket, and the hitch is released.

I followed the above, and the hitch was released from the truck. What I forgot to do was put the truck in park and engage the parking brake. The truck moved forward and the king pin was released from the hitch. However, the truck kept moving forward. Deb yelled, I muttered an obscenity, then went racing to truck cab, pushed the gear into park and slammed the brake with my hand. Vehicle stopped. Fortunately, the truck did not hit anything. The only damage, other than to my ego, was the barrel connector to the trailer rear view camera was torn from the wiring. Considering everything that could have gone wrong, that is an easy fix.

After taking a few deep breaths, collecting our thoughts, we started over. Backed the truck up, made sure the unit was lowered so that the king pin was at the proper height, then backed the truck so that the hitch was engaged. Get out to close the hitch handle and to put the locking pin in place. Victory.

Took a picture of the truck and trailer together then took off for Kerrville.

Why a Fifth Wheel?

Since announcing our new adventure, a question many friends have asked is “Why a Fifth Wheel Trailer and not a Motorcoach?”

Both have their strengths and weaknesses. Before making our decision, we researched the question in depth. There are strong opinions about which vehicle is better. You will find many web pages comparing the choice between a fifth wheel and a motor home, including

• Your RV Lifestyle: Motorhome versus Fifth Wheel
• Living the RV Dream: Motor Home or Fifth Wheel Trailer
• RV Buying 101: Which Type Of RV Is Best – A Motorhome Or A 5th Wheel Trailer?
• RVers Choice: Motorhome or Trailer?

The following are some of the elements we considered in making our decision.

Travel Style. Generally, we are stop and visit for at least three or four day travelers. Our understanding is the Fifth Wheel is better suited for such travel style. 

Space. We found the layout of the Fifth Wheel more livable than a Motorhome. The one we are purchasing is 38’ and provides around 400 sf of living space.

Purchase Price. All in, the cost of our Fifth Wheel and the F-350 will be around $150,000 before trade-in. We couldn’t find a 2015 Motorhome of similar quality for less than $200,000. Since we are not sure if we will do this for more than 2 years, we did not want to invest a lot of money into the vehicle. 

Costs. Maintenance costs for a truck and a Fifth Wheel are generally lower than for a Motorhome and a towed vehicle (e.g., oil change for a truck is around $75 for a motorhome, over $300). Generally, even when hauling a trailer, a truck gets better gas mileage than a motorcoach.

As we have two of the cutest Pugs ever, traveling with pets was a significant factor in our analysis. No matter which vehicle we selected, they will be traveling in a carrier for safety reasons. Motorhomes do allow you to leave pets in an air conditioned space if you stop for lunch or visit a place for a few hours while traveling from camp spot to camp spot. However, the Fifth Wheel we are purchasing can run a/c for at least two hours without a generator. If we stop for lunch, we can place the dogs in the Fifth Wheel with the A/C running after walking them and giving them a snack. 

Examples of others decision making, can be found at  the following:

• Downgrading From a Motorhome to a 5th Wheel Trailer
• Buying an RV: Motorhome or Fifth Wheel (Motorhome)
• Ditching Suburbia - Why a 5th Wheel

One Step Closer to the Adventure

This road trip idea is getting realer y’all. We have put a down payment on a 2015 DRV Tradition 384RSS fifth wheel.

On Facebook, we have asked people to suggest names for the trailer. Some names have been pretty creative, a few are lame. If you have any ideas, please post in the comments.

The Announcement

Deb and I are selling our house, buying a Ford F-350 and a fifth wheel trailer, and traveling the U.S. and Canada.

Most likely, it will be two to three months before we are on the road. We need to sell most of our furniture, stuff, and all three cars. If you are interested in anything we own, let us know. I will post a list of things we are selling later.

Pancho and Lefty will be traveling with us.

We are really excited about this new path. We have not made this decision lightly. We have crunched the numbers and looked inside our hearts, and concluded we can and want to do this.

We promise to keep everybody informed through this blog as to how things are going.