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I agree with all the comments, but I do want to caution that towing without a human partner requires constant extra awareness. I often ask my wife to hop out with her phone or a portable radio to guide me, check for hidden obstructions or walk up an unknown single lane road, to make sure there is room to turn around, if nothing else. I have been doing some solo camping with “Mouse” and enjoy it a lot, but the dynamics are VERY different. You always need to watch out for situations where you might not be able to just drive out easily. You must become very comfortable with backing, so that when the moment comes that you get “trapped” by an unexpected dead end road, closed gate, or blockage (like a double parked car in a parking lot or narrow street) you will be able to reverse out without panic or trauma. I have mistakenly entered a tight urban parking lot only to find that I did not have enough room to make the next turn. Embarrassing! The rear camera is a must have option. Do not rely on always being able to find a pull-through site, especially out West where in many parks, National Monuments and National Forests back-ins are the only option. I see a pull-through as a treat - how convenient! - but I never count on getting one. Here is Deception Pass State Park in western WA. It is a stunning place to visit but daunting with a trailer! I stick by my opinion that a small self contained motorhome or truck camper makes a lot more sense for a solo traveler. It makes these concerns moot. John Davies Spokane WA

Nan, I had no experience, had never hooked up a trailer. This forum is an amazing resource, and there were a bunch of YouTube videos that helped. I did lots or research while I was waiting for the trailer to be built. The people at Oliver showed me how to hook up the trailer. It is something one person can do alone. Anita gave me a great suggestion to videotape parts of the orientation that I might want to refer to later. Good advice, as we later had trouble getting the thermostat to work right. The manual did not help, but the video did. There are a lot of solo travelers on this forum, both men and women, with both Elites and Elite IIs. Of course it is harder to back a trailer alone. One can try to get pull through campsites. There is very little that a small person cannot deal with in trailering, except perhaps accessing the rooftop from a ladder, and I can’t think of anything that really requires considerable physical strength. Reasonable manual dexterity is required to hook up to the tow vehicle, and to connect the hoses and cables. Go for it! Camping in an Oliver is a dream.

Towing a trailer takes a certain amount of aptitude and skill, you can learn but you will need instruction and some time. If you will be travelling alone, you should perhaps be thinking about a different approach, like a Class B RV. Driving a smaller van based self contained motorhome is dead easy. You still need to learn how to operate all the systems and appliances, but you won’t have to deal with hitching, unhitching, and solo maneuvering. Backing a trailer by yourself in darkness or inclement weather can be traumatic. The Olivers are great trailers but you need to make sure one is right for you. Do you know anyone with a truck and small trailer who would be willing to give you some lessons in a big parking lot? If I were by myself I would either have the smaller Ollie or a pickup truck camper. The bigger Oliver is definitely more of a handful sometimes. John Davies Spokane WA

Hello Gypseaheart: I recently purcased a 2019 GMC Canyon Denali 4X4 crew cab long box with the Duramax Diesel. My initial thought when I test drove was "its only 181 hp" however the 369lb ft of torque was the real draw. I have not yet had the opportunity to personally road test the GMC towing I am expecting delivery of my Oliver Elite (Hull #431) late March so the GMC will get its first towing road test of around 700 miles. My previous intended tow vehicle was a 2017 Honda Ridgeline. I did not think the Ridgeline would be up to the task if I decided later to upgrade to an Elite II. So far (1500 miles) combined driving I get 23+ mpg and just over 31 highway cruising at 70 mph. While not a "rocket ship" off the line acceleration is more than adequate. I am pleased with the trade up to the GMC. There are a lot of towing comparison tests on You Tube of the GMC diesel vs the Gas V6. Check out "2017 Chevy Colorado vs GMC Canyon Duramax Ike Gauntlet".

Those loungers are great for napping, but too big for me for comfortable seating. Camping world has a bunch of loungers on sale right now. The tan fern loungers we have had for 8 years are about half price. If you are near a camping world, you can try them out for comfort and size... Sherry

Nan, Hooking up a trailer is a learned experience, like many other things, and not to be feared. Should you select an Elite in lieu of an Elite II, the Anderson hitch is not even needed. Most modern tow vehicles have integrated back-up cameras that can assist you in getting very close to your hitch ball. Over my years of travels, I've encountered numerous single women with small trailers who do very well with the mechanics of dealing with a trailer. As has been said, there are you tube videos, various devices to help, and most campers are more than glad to come to the aid of a newbie in a campground. Baby steps . . . you will be fine. My single axle Legacy Elite has almost 130,000 miles on it and I have found it very commodious for my needs, as a single traveler. I'm sure you would too. Pete

I missed that thread. Did you ever try John's idea about testing it with the dinette hatch open? If not, I may try that myself when I get a chance. I suspect, however, that the airflow would go counterclockwise, around the back of the tanks, since the space under the front entrance is mostly blocked (see the photo above). That might help keep the plumbing in the rear street corner warm but wouldn't do anything for the closet corner. I think the ideal spot for the return air would be beneath the closet door, with a duct in the closet channeling it down between the hulls. Then the air would come right down over the water lines and then travel the long way around the trailer, keeping the entire space warm. Alternatively, cutting the duct in that location would accomplish a similar airflow, and with warmer air. It would also give the benefit of positive pressure between the hulls, which would discourage the furnace from drawing outside air in through the weeps, as it surely does now. You lose the bath vent, of course, and it would be more difficult to regulate the air to the cabin. Details. It also seems like a ton of heat is lost into the back curbside corner from the furnace and plenum, both of which are completely uninsulated. That keeps the water pump area toasty of course, but it seems like some of that heat would be more useful elsewhere. It might be worth adding some insulation around the furnace as an experiment. In short, I think that there are some definite avenues for finding more efficiency in the system - it's just up to one of us owners to find the time and energy to put towards it.

That's the best I've got. You can open up the access hatches to try to get some airflow between the hulls and then crank up the heat. If you have a fan you could try to fit it in the forward dinette hatch and direct some airflow that direction. Here's a photo of where the water lines run. You can see that they're right up against the heat duct, so I still think that with time it will thaw. Door would be in the upper right, closet middle top and shower to the left. [attachment file=_JDA3205.jpg] Curious that Oliver runs the water lines on the outside instead of sandwiching them between the air duct and water tank. Always the possibility that it's something other than a frozen line, but it seems unlikely.

From all of the Oliver Travel Trailer Owner’s Rally volunteers We wish you a Merry Christmas There are a number of campsites still available at Lake Guntersville State Park located in Guntersville, Alabama. However, they are going quickly. Currently, we have 64+ campsite reservations for our rally May 16-19 2019. You can call (256) 505-6634, (256) 505-6602,(256) 505-6601 to make reservations. The rally volunteers have been busy making plans for the best rally ever. Here are some highlights PROGRAMS Our rally is inclusive, not exclusive. We want everyone to be welcome. All enthusiasts of camping adventures are welcome to attend. We will have a number of attendees that have not attended the rally before and we want to make them welcome and a part of our organization. How will we accomplish this? · Please send in a digital picture of you, your trailer/ RV/ favorite location/family/ favorite campsite in whatever combination you desire, but most importantly we need a photo of YOU! Please e-mail the digital photo to rally@olivertraveltrailers.com. Beginning with registration Thursday morning through the Thursday night activities, we will have the photo presentation running in a loop with your name and photo along with everyone else. You will be able to see everyone attending · Thursday evening activities will be centered on fun activities to become acquainted with everyone attending the rally · Our Saturday night buffet of Prime Rib will be followed by a “Sock Hop” featuring music of the 50s, 60s, 70’s so bring your dancing shoes. We encourage everyone to wear era-appropriate clothing. Pull out your poodle skirts, Nehru jackets, bell-bottoms, mini skirts, blue jeans and tie-dyed shirts, etc. We have been putting together programs that are designed to enrich your camping experiences, learn about servicing your trailer and share your camping knowledge with others. We have assembled an excellent group of volunteers to put together programs that benefits every attendee. Here is just one example: “Hospital Readiness On The Road” Program One of our Oliver Travel Trailer Owners, Dr. Malcolm Monlezun, will be conducting this informative presentation. From his personal experience in caring for patients and their families, he will share guidelines to help you prepare for a medical emergency in the event of an ER or hospital admission. He will include samples of pertinent medical documents for each person to complete and retain in a portable folder or thumb drive, which can be carried wherever you go. Malcolm and his wife have implemented this into their own lives, and find it invaluable not only on the road, but at home as well. ACTIVITIES - Here is a sneak peak at some of the events: Ladder Ball Tournament, Boon-Docking Program, Local Winery Tour, Golf tournament, and Zip lining. For those that will be attending the rally but may have difficulty with lodging, we have a block of rooms reserved with discounts at the Lake Guntersville State Park Lodge. Please call the previously noted reservations number. o Lodging while your trailer is being serviced to attend the rally o Attending the rally but does not have a trailer/RV Need a place to stay while checking out the Elite and Elite II with the sales department o Want to know more about camping and want to meet other campers On behalf of all of the rally volunteers, we wish everyone a Happy Holiday Season Mary Kay Cvacho Coy E. Gayle Foy Sperring Activities Director Chairman Food and Beverage Director