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As has been mentioned a number of times on the Forum - everyone SHOULD know how to operate this emergency exit window just in case. I open and close mine at least a couple of times per year and find that the window wants to "stick" if I don't keep it clean around the frame. Bill

Seems a bit much but I’m sure that Steve has it all organized intuitively.

As many Oliver owners already know, there are a number of spots over at the old Oliver Sales office where an owner can camp overnight. There is water available (still) on the south side of the old sales building and there are a number of pedestals with 30 amp electric service. However, for a number of months now Oliver has been working on converting a grass area on the south side of the new Sales/Service building into a camping area for owners and new deliveries. This area is almost complete and will have seven sites with electric and water at each site (I didn't see or ask about sewer/dump). With the exception of obviously dead sod that will be replaced it appeared that everything is in place and I was told that by early September it will be in use. Bill

We have returned from our vacation and are ready to roll out the details for our Second Oliver Mini-Rally at Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park in Jacksonville, FL. If you have not been to Hanna Park before it is right on the ocean with 1.5 miles of beautiful beachfront, this 450-acre park has everything you could want in a Florida oceanside park. There are 275 full hookup camping sites, all under mature coastal hammocks with giant majestic oaks trees. Hanna has over 20 miles of scenic trails that provide opportunities for hiking and biking. It is also just a short 10-minute drive from Neptune Beach, a quaint seaside town with lots of shops and restaurants to explore. If you are in the area or just need a reason to camp, we would love to have you join us. We are planning a Meet & Greet Fish Fry for Friday night, a Saturday Beach Lunch, and a Group Dinner in town Sunday night to close it all out. Everything you need to reserve a campsite is below. We are in Campsite 74 and have reserved Shelter 9 for our Meet & Greet Fish Fry. Once you make your reservation, please email me (48ocean@gmail.com) your site number. I will create a map of all Oliver Owners' locations in the camp as well as keep you all updated. This is not an Official Oliver Rally but one that Foy & Mirna Sperring host. Dates: October 15th – October 18th Location: Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park 500 Wonderwood Drive, Jacksonville - 32233 (904) 249-4700 or hannapark@coj.net Full RV Camping Hookup $33.81 per day, including tax Check-in 1:00 pm Check-out 12:00 pm Link to Hanna Park Campground Reservation: https://web1.myvscloud.com/wbwsc/fljacksonwt.wsc/search.html?module=RN&display=Graphical&primarycode=Hanna Campsites&SessionID=7476f4977f3074bcf2686fc02da499cd576968c8b2d57833b30c500d3dca5b958c61f372112609375e1cd87392a38b1395b5ba1e90c4f9a0521112ccecf5a8d2 Agenda: Friday, Oct 15th 1:00 pm Check-in 5:00 pm Meet & Greet Fish Fry – we will bring the fish and French fries and ask everyone to bring a side dish Saturday, Oct 16th 12:00 pm Lunch on the beach – we will be taking orders for sandwiches and ask everyone to bring drinks Free Evening Sunday, Oct 17th Free Day 7:00 pm Dutch Group Dinner – restaurant to be announced Monday, Oct 18th Free Morning & Farewells Check-out 12:00 pm Onward, Foy & Mirna Sperring

This picture (taken on August 23, 2021) below shows a line of new Olivers that I was told are mainly patiently waiting for their new owners to pick the up. WOW! I remember that I simply could not wait to get my new Oliver. Let's get camping! Bill

West Glacier KOA is a wonderful campground and only 6 miles from the Entry Portal to Glacier.

Yes, the electric at the pedestals is working and there is water available on the south side of the building. However, the building is empty and locked with security cameras (at least there were signs that said so) Bill

Many probably couldn't afford those trailers. Let's get realistic.

Yes that’s right. The whole window hinges up, frame and all. Personally, I wish that Oliver would just make the rear window a fixed, single pane unit. The extra ventilation isn’t needed and a single light picture window would make for a much nicer view out the back. I’ve posted before that we removed our screen after delivery and every time we take the trailer in to Oliver, they add it back. I think I have three in a box in the basement. Sort of like the screws that hold the access panels shut. Every time I leave Oliver I’ve got a new set of screws to remove.

Towing an Ollie EII with F-150: I put this together (generally from an example somebody else posted) and then plugged in my particulars. Ultimately, I should be good when towing my Ollie. Interestingly, what I discovered was that I have plenty of towing capacity... but my payload capacity in the truck is going to be close... ok, but still close.

I've just returned home from two months fly fishing in Wyoming. One morning as I was getting my gear together to start fishing, I looked up the road and saw a cow moose just walking over the guardrail. If you look carefully on the right side of the picture below you can see what was right behind her. Given the size of the calves they paused at the guardrail not knowing just how to get over it. After a few moments they decided that they simply were not tall enough to walk over it like Mom did and therefore simply bounded over it. Other than being worried about traffic coming at 70 miles and hour it was wonderful to just stand there and watch these creatures. Bill

Thanks, Mike. Good to know about the Vornado - we bought ours after seeing yours in a post.

IMO the Oliver needs something on the front. A custom logo or the factory one. Honestly, can’t believe that many are being ordered naked (maybe they haven’t gotten to that yet, although I see some in the distance). I also like the Oliver name and model number on the side.

We’ve camped in heat many times and our Dometic 3-way has performed well. That includes a few times in triple digits, it kept up. We’ve also boondocked at elevation and it had no issue working on propane. It’s 5.5 years old, not sure what we’ll do when it expires, we may go a different route. But, up to now it has worked well for us. Mike

This sounds like fun. Tali and I will plan to attend and I'll finally get Florida on my travel map. We will be in Site # 083.

Sounds like fun. We’ll be at a family wedding then…. Mike

John, I have a Sureline Tongue Wt. Scale. e-trailer had a really nice scale for tongue wt. that is much easier to use. https://www.etrailer.com/Tools/etrailer/e99044.html

For anyone sitting on the fence with regards to this mini-rally, I'd say that you should not miss it. Small enough to be able to talk to everyone in attendance yet there is plenty of space to roam. Even with the threat of a hurricane during the first Florida mini-rally it really was a very enjoyable event. Foy and Mirna really know how to make everyone feel welcome. Bill

Interesting comments @Jim_Oker regarding hot weather and 3-way fridges. While I can't ever remember being in triple digits with our Oliver we have certainly been out in low to high 90's many times without issues or lack of cooling with our Dometic 3-way. Curious different peoples experience with these things.

Obviously Overland has taken the tour! 😊

Agreed. Spend your time and money on a quality fridge/freezer for the truck first. Best of both worlds plus a ton of extra space.

The older units, like our 2008, have an awning window. Same sort of clip/spring attachment for the screen Pros and cons: Pros: Full view, no divider. Rain sheds off the awning window, so we can leave it open in the rain . Cons: No weepholes, when closed. Ev gutter is an important addition. Folding Mechanism for holding window out is a bit fragile . Don't force it. It allows about 4" at the bottom, which gives plenty of airflow. We can only use privacy blind, one way. (No day /screen shade) Emergency exit handle is a stopper, allows light in about 1/2 inch, at the bottom, in the morning. I stuff pipe insulation into the space, to close the blind completely. I am particularly sensitive to light. Doesn't bother my husband, at all. I think his eyelids must be thicker. 😄 The spring mechanism is a safety feature, on the the screen. Hit it with your fist,, and it will pop out.

Good thing you had a third camera to document the event…. You really do haul around everything imaginable in triplicate in that big ol truck of yours🙂

There is also an Elite II owner that is here on the Forum from time to time that has designed and installed window awnings on their Oliver. Perhaps a PM to "Cheryl" might work for information. Good Luck. Bill

I too do not drink from the fresh water tank and bring my own. My experience with different water sources (aside from plastic taste) is that most campground water tastes terrible! Mineral content and rust come to mind. At the NF campground I managed the water was tested every day for public safety however it always had a tinge of yellow from the two sixty year old 50K gallon tanks and wasn't the best tasting. This begs the question about cleaning out the fresh water tank. Obviously, sediment settles. How on earth is one to clean the bottom of the Oliver tank? I have first hand experience with a clogged fresh water outlet. The black gunky grime/algae from the stagnant water clogged the outlet, the bathroom faucet and the pre-filter! I used a combination of bleach first then vinegar to get things rolling again...but I hate the idea that there is rust and sand sitting flat against the bottom of the tank. On my Casita, I added a waterproof marine deck plate that allowed me to completely wipe out and clean the tank at the end of a season. There was ALWAYS a film of rust no matter what sources or pre-water filtration I used attached to my fill hose. I hope that the tank in the Oliver doesn't ever need replacing due to a build up of sediment. I can't even fathom how it would be done. I will continue to do a fresh water vinegar treatment every year and try not to lie awake at night about sediment. I don't intend to ever drink out of the tank unless I'm dying from thirst.

The water pump comes on in response to the change in water pressure when a faucet is turn on. Since when connected to city water you would normally have the power to the water pump turned off water is supplied from the city's water pressure. However, IF you are connected to city water AND you have water in the tank AND the water pump is on, you're still going to get water when a faucet is turned on. You can tell which system is active by listening for the water pump to kick on. But, doing so may cause a disruption in the space-time continuum, make the tides reverse and start a chain reaction. I'm not sure.....

Bubble net feeding. The humpback whale blows a ring of air bubbles to confine a school of fish, then surfaces though them with gaping jaw. You can see the ring. How cool! John Davies Spokane WA

I had a first generation Toyota Tundra. the truck was rated at 1350 lbs for payload. After trailer tough weight (600 lbs), I had 750 lbs pay load left. Then filling the gas tank (160lbs), the A.R. E. cap (200 Lbs) my wife, large dog and me (500LBs), Anderson Hitch 60lbs , pickup bed slide (180 lbs). The truck was tapped tapped out before we put any gear in the truck. Our absolute minimum basics listed above total 1,700 lbs. I don't know about you but we are all about easy access and that adds to the need for more payload. We barley use the basement of the trailer because I hate getting on my knees. We got over worrying if my wife can bring an extra bikini and bought a short box F250. Everything goes in the back of the truck under a canopy,, Including an extra 35 gallon tank of water for boondocking. More power than you will ever need and tows like a dream. The down side: a big truck is not as nimble and not as easy on the fuel. We get an average of 14.5 mpg towing. A big truck is no for everyone but it works well for us.

Went down to the Wind River Range in Wyoming the 3rd week of July and just now finishing up with photos from the trip. We camped one night the Grand Canyon of the Snake River which by the way is a drop dead gorgeous canyon with some nice USFS campgrounds although close to the road. From there we headed down to the Green River Lakes area in the northern part of the Winds. Had crystal clear blue skies and no fire smoke until the last day. Great hikes beautiful country just an awesome trip. For anyone inclined to take this on be forewarned there is 20 or so miles of very rough gravel road to get back in there, no cell service for at least an hours drive out. Figure about 15-20 mph going in with a few patches of smoother gravel for a few but not many miles. To provide an idea of how rough the road is, we shook 3 of the window frame shades of their mounts, the solar controller in the basement became dislodged from its installment screws, one of the cables for the pins that latch the rear bumper broke loose. Anything not tied down was strewn all over the camper. I'm probably forgetting a few things. Trudi and I had briefly visited this place some 40 years ago and its been on my bucket list ever since. Highly recommended, I would go back in a heartbeat. Regarding true boon docking there are many places along the Green River to accommodate and initially this was our plan until talking with another family who tried it for one night but the bugs and ants were so bad they couldn't even get out of their camper, a Lance in this case. With those words of encouragement we opted for the USFS campground @$6 per night for the geezer crowd. By any measure the vast majority of campers here are tent campers, and the new rage of clamshell tents that carry on top of trucks, suvs and fold out into a top mounted tent. There are two loops here, one small higher the other a bit large and closer to Green River Lake. No reservations, its far too remote and in fact never saw a ranger and there was no camp host at all for the entire week. No problem at all getting a good site and most people only stay one or two nights. BTW the lake and campground itself are approximately 8,000 feet elevation give or take a few. Posting a few quick and dirty iPhone photos below. Green River camp above. Most of the sites here are very large probably between 1/4 or perhaps 1/2 an acre on average. Campsite at the Grand Canyon of the Snake River. Green River Lake sunrise with Sqaure Top Mountain. Preferred a b&w for this one. Beach at the far end of Green River Lake, about a 2-3 mile hike one way, we did the complete loop around with a few other excursions for a total of about 8-9 miles View from the west shore of the lake returning from hike up Clear Creek Canyon Clear Creek approximately half way to the end of the canyon where a natural bridge crosses the creek. Another view of Square Top on the route out from Clear Creek. I was nursing a plantar fasciitis one one foot this day so the almost 12 mile hike just about did me in. We had a few outrageous sunsets accompanied by a rising near full moon. Thanks for looking.

The manuals have always had questionable content, which appears to be bulk “cut and paste” from other sources with little regard for how it applies to an Oliver. In the 2017 manual the warranty section talks about dealing with a problem - “talk to the dealer that sold it to you”.... And the tires section is excessively full of generic technical information like sidewall date codes, tread wear and speed ratings, information that is readily available everywhere, but there is nothing about the correct pressure for an Ollie. And five years later they still have nothing about that item. Omitting detailed electrical diagrams in the last two years’ books is inexcusable! Sometimes I wonder if the folks who write the manual even own and use a travel trailer; if they did, the written guidelines might make a little more sense. John Davies Spokane WA

“Water are” pains me almost as much as the thought of using regular antifreeze (ethylene glycol - please don’t do that, as your death will be quite painful.) But to your point, yes that’s a curious addition. Here I thought I was just being uppity, choosing Evian over Eau d’Ollie.

When you pick up your unit - Oliver does a good once over to introduce you to all the various systems, and it can be an all consuming - data overload for some. Try to take your time, take notes, and insist on reviewing anything you don't fully understand. As you go through the review - look at everything - fit, finish, action, workability, - anything that catches your discerning eye - make a note of it - and come back to it at the end. Run every system you can - Oliver will/should take care of your concerns. If possible take advantage of the night in the local campground - and test every system - make sure it works properly. As you are just down the road from the Service shop - any issues can be remedied quickly. Take time to read and review the owners manual - it is amazing what happens when one reads the instructions (note to me!!) As I think back - There would have been a few issues to clear up - all minor. I did have an issue with the furnace (didn't run it at delivery) - which required a return. Over time there have been other issues - but most were not initial quality failures. Luckily, I'm just a few hours drive from the Oliver factory - and every issue has been taken care of by the service folks. I am a satisfied customer - were I to purchase again- I would do just as I have posted - but mo better! RB

Kudos to Mrs. Davies! I have a bit of a spreadsheet aesthetics OCD problem and your spreadsheet is not only functional, it is visually appealing. Thank you for sharing! Chris

Needless to say, she was devastated. While departing yesterday morning, she was helping me gather up some of the LEGO blocks from under the stabilizer jacks. Ten minutes later we were leaving the dump station, after emptying the grey tank and she exclaimed “I’ve lost my phone! Don’t move the trailer!!!” She was afraid it might be underneath and did not want me to drive over it. She hiked back to our site and found it. Of course, I had driven over it while leaving. It had an Otterbox Commuter case so it wasn’t destroyed, but it was face down, so the super hard Apple glass was driven down into the sharp gravel. Tears and a hug followed, it is not even paid off yet. It still functions, sort of, but the screen won’t come alive and obviously she can’t call out or use any touch functions. She does’t use Siri, so she can’t just tell it to do things. The alarm just came on at 5:30 AM and she had to let that run until it self cancelled. This happened in Prince Rupert BC, on the west coast half way up BC; there are no great resources there to get a phone repaired or replaced with a Verizon one, since all the Canadian carriers are different. We are now in nearby Terrace BC (sizable enough to have a shopping center and a Walmart Super Center) at a municipal CG (quite nice, 4 stars) waiting for “Broken Glass” to open at 10:00AM. It’s an ex-phone store manager who runs a shop from his home and sells used phones. We are hoping he can switch the Verizon SIM chip to a cheap refurbished Apple or Android phone to get her up and running with her old number. I doubt if he has the parts to repair hers while we wait…. Maybe it would, after all, be prudent to have a cheap disposable Burner Phone with a Canadian calling plan when venturing into this country, if only as a backup. We might end up with one. Update to follow, but we are headed north on the Cassier Hwy to Whitehorse, so it’s going to be “cell phone desert” for quite a few days. OTH we had a spectacular whale watching trip Sunday, in glorious sunny weather. A few of those pics of the stunning scenery and closeups of broaching whales are still on her phone and were NOT yet uploaded to iCloud because the WiFi was terrible at the CG and we only have 500MB of cellular data daily through Verizon. but she was mostly using her Nikon DSLR, so all is not lost, unless I drive “Mouse” over that too😳😳😳 John Davies Spokane WA

How could anyone be dumb enough to drive over a Nikon? Or, better yet, two of them at the same time.

It took me a bit to figure out the two switches too. It didn’t help that we were told at orientation that the inside one was to turn on the electric and the outside one was for the propane.