Leaderboard

We have finished our business in Tucson and have just filled up with gasoline. We are headed East on Interstate 10 and it will be our home for the next few days. The forum seems blessedly devoid of drama currently. We can only hope that it remains so.

For the most part we are really spontaneous and don't always look ahead of time at places to camp and most of the time we simply use "Trip Adviser" or "Yelp"when looking for a place. But then there's times when you just want to get away and really all that you need is a map. So I go to http://www.mylandmatters.org/ and download the USGS map that I want for that particular area. There are simple tutorials for this on YouTube but here's a quick run down 1st click the "Maps" button in the menu Then today we'll select "Recreation"first and it then opens the drop down menu below it and we're selecting "Topo Maps"this time but there's a ton of great maps on here and if you're a miner like I am then this place is my 2nd home - After Selecting this you click on the + button and then you can either keep hitting the + inside the map in the area that you want or I simply form a rectangle around the area that I want to see and let it enlarge that way on its own. To make a rectangle just put your pointer in the lower right hand section of where you want to enlarge and then drag it up and left to form whatever size area. Today we're going to Hohenwald - You can see the green and then look for state parks, etc. You can drag the map by hitting the button with the 4 arrows pointing in 4 directions then just drag the map up/ down/ etc... The arrows are above the most important button, which is the "i" or information button - After finding the area that you want the map of, you simply click the "i" and then click on your spot on the map and it will open the menu on the left in the picture above. Then simply download the map and open it up and you have the USGS Map of that area right in front of you - I zoomed in at the bottom so you could see the edge and also Hohenwald. Then I saw the green US Forest areas and picked one, the Laurel Hill Lake State Rec area and then typed that area into found a place to check out for the evening. Then we Googled Laurel Hill Lake and the rest is up to you. There's a ton of info all across the United States and this gives you a place to start. Honestly though it all starts with having a good GPS in your Vehicle. You can find them for under $200 in many stores - https://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Nuvi-2589LMT-North-America/dp/B00N41UTCG/ref=sr_1_6?s=gps&ie=UTF8&qid=1482271268&sr=1-6&keywords=garmin+gps Reed

Reed, you and Karen should not miss the corn chowder that is served in the Old Mill Restaurant.

+1 on what Bill said. It will change depending on what accessories you've ordered. We also got the Camco sewer hose ,which is OK, but we bought a new Rhinoflex hose to use as the main sewer hose. Ours also came with a brass water pressure regulator, a water hose quick coupler that I just don't have a need for, and some male propane connection for the extra ports that we had added. Then it also came with a 30amp RV to 15amp VAC adapter for common house electricity. What it didn't come with was any decalsifyer for the Truma AquaGo that we bought, but they didn't know about it until I had brought it up. I'm sure that will be remedied soon. You will need 1 - water filter 2 - wheel chocks or 4 pieces of firewood to block the tires 3 - some pads and blocks to use under the jacks. These work, I have 2 sets - https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0028PJ10K/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=DVETVI1ZF5E8&coliid=I2D37L01Z4XZKW&psc=1 https://smile.amazon.com/Tri-Lynx-00019-LynxCap/dp/B000UOBIZC/ref=cm_wl_huc_err Then you can look at this list for other ideas - https://smile.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/DVETVI1ZF5E8/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2?reveal=all&view=null I use pieces of cut plywood under the jacks and then put the Tri- Lynx blocks with caps on top when needed. We didn't have room to bring everything with us but you will want to bring a regular garden hose to hook up to the black tank wash and a Y adapter for the faucet so that you can run both the trailer water hose and the tank rinse hose at the same time. Also this is adaquit but ramps are better https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-43051-Sidewinder-Plastic-Support/dp/B000BUU5WW/ref=pd_sim_263_4?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=VP41P0XJ4FMY97ZVN2H4

The floor pipe extends into the tank approx. 2-3 inches, so once the level hits the bottom of the pipe you might still have space around the top of the tank (while the pipe fills). Next time while she's in there "testing" go outside and rock the trailer as hard as possible and see if that gives more "space"

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/2017-total-solar-eclipse/rv-guide-to-2017-total-solar-eclipse/ John Davies Spokane WA

geO, It would be better if you asked this question directly to the Sales Office. My February 2016 delivery came with a wrench and socket for the wheel lug nuts, a sewer hose, a 25 foot water hose and a bottle of black tank "treatment". Since I purchased the Andersen weight distribution hitch, there was also a socket for adjusting the chains on it. Finally, there was a big hug from Anita which (almost) made me forget about the check I just wrote. Bill

You are an evil man, Reed. Now, just to be sure, (and fair) you should both swap places and do it again like that. Exactly. Just to be sure. Right, Karen? (sssshhhhhhh, Karen, in the middle of the confirmation test, lower the front stabilizer about 10 degrees while Reed is "engaged in business") That'll show him.......Uh huh.

We have made tremendeous progress planning the 2017 Oliver Rally. Matt Duncan has created a portal for the rally on the Oliver Home Page. If you look carefully at the header, you will see "Rally" listed. Click on the icon. We will be regularly posting additional information on the website, as we develop each phase. Please check this website regularly !! THANKS

Thanks Hap, yes it will be fun to meet along the way somewhere. If you're going to California next week, then you should stay along the coast in Southern California because when wee have flood years like this one too many roads get closed and washed out. Right now there are closed roads all over Northern Cal; But... This is the Spring to see Yosemite and believe me, it will be spectacular like no other year before. We will be there for a week beginning April 23rd. The falls are based on water and snow melt and this year tops them all, so they will be huge, so this is the Spring to put Yosemite on your list. The falls usually dry up to almost nothing by September every year, but it's still worth seeing. We went after the 1997 & 2005 floods also just because Yosemite is really something to see at flood stage. The best way in is through Mariposa along HWY 140. Others will work but 140 is easiest with a trailer. Gas up in Mariposa for sure and you will have enough for the whole trip through the Park for a few days. Plus there is camping along 140 if you can't find anything in the Parks campgrounds. You can usually find one or 2 night spots during the week but Yosemite is booked 6 months in advance this time of year on weekends.