OUR ‘SHAKE-UP CRUISE’

By Barry Zander, Edited by Monique Zander, the Never-Bored RVers

It’s been a while since Monique and I ventured out in search of RV adventures.  We are happy to say that hiatus is about to end – we’ll take to the road again in March for a six-month land-voyage across America from California to South Carolina and then up the East Coast to Maine.  And then … well, I’ll save that for later.

The primary reason for our delay … and then another delay … in hitching up again is our desire to have our recently purchased mountain cabin made livable – enlarging it from 680 square feet to a bit over a 1,000, with a wood stove, a pellet stove and it now has closets.

But, we’re not here to discuss cabins.  Our passion is “Kokopelli,” our travel trailer, and we are eager to once again put the rubber where it meets the blacktops – and at times, the loose dirt.

With a long trip staring us in the face, we decided it would be a good idea to spend a week in our rig to check it out and become reacquainted with the switches; e.g., when to use the big shore power water heater switch versus when to revert to the battery version.  It has been a somewhat costly experience, but one we are very glad we undertook.

The temperature at our mile-high cabin dipped to an unusual 16 degrees in January.  We kept the heater on while it was parked, but apparently it wasn’t enough.  We set sail last Friday for “the O.C.” (Orange County, California), a 2 million-population suburb of Los Angeles that we had escaped years ago to get to know North America, and what greeted us – in addition to the never-ending seven and eight lanes of traffic non-respectful of our 50-foot length – were plumbing leaks.

Within minutes of putting down the stabilizers and hooking up the water, we realized we had a problem.  I called it a “leak;” Monique referred to it as a “gusher.” After an hour of battling with

Ty Turner wriggles into a small space to make the necessary repairs.

a broken under-the-vanity-sink PVC pipe, I admitted defeat.  Monique was relieved when I gave her the go-ahead to walk over to the camp host for a recommendation of an RV repairman we could trust.

AT THIS POINT, we’re at the crux of this article.  You already understand that a “shake-down cruise” is a smart way to start or restart your RV travels, even for veterans with years of on-the-road training.

Despite having loaded up the back of our ¾-ton truck with tools, I didn’t have enough to repair the plumbing problems in hard-to-access places.  Later that afternoon, Ty arrived, driving a

mechanic’s truck, loaded down with tools, parts and his on-the-go computerized billing system.

Honestly, Ty is what I consider a member of the heavenly host of mobile RV repair angels.  He arrived at space No. 52 and went to work.  (I’m grateful he didn’t take the time to make snide remarks about my attempts to solve the problems.)

It wasn’t a slam-dunk for him, but he got the first problem solved in a few minutes, then a second in the toilet and a third under the kitchen sink.  It wasn’t cheap, but when I think about heading out across the deserts of Arizona and New Mexico in a few weeks, I’m satisfied that an inconvenience that could have been a disaster has been averted.

That was the “shake-up” part of the shakedown cruise.  Meanwhile, we’ve been adding to a list of other projects we need to tackle to get ready for the big trip, plus, I’m writing down a few things that we want to take along that would have made this voyage easier.   Just as important, Monique is considering everything she’s going to take, asking the question, “Do I really need this or can we live without it?”This trip is a success in that we are preparing for what’s ahead with practical experience.  It’s a much better test than sitting in our driveway thinking everything looks great.

Now, for where we are going after Maine:  we’re excited to be joining up with a Fantasy RV tour into the Canadian Maritimes, comprised of the five most eastern provinces of our neighbor to the north.

We will leave confident that our rig is solid and prepared for the long haul though about 20 states and six or seven Canadian provinces, depending on our whims along the way.  Just like our fantastic expedition through western Canada and into Alaska, we want you along with us as we travel the highways of North America.  It won’t be boring, as you probably remember from our past tours.  That’s why we’re the “Never-Bored RVers,” We’ll see you on down the road.

P.S.  We welcome your comments below.  If there is a problem posting the comment, please email us at [email protected]

© All photos by Barry Zander.   All rights reserved