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Aguirre Spring Campground-Organ Mountains, NM

Congrats on your decision. Planning and anticipating will be great fun. We were first timers too. We picked up our Ollie in October of 2019. We left Maine for the warmth of Florida and the South on February 3, 2019. Covid cut our first trip short at 45 days. 2 other short trips in Maine last summer of 4 to 5 days. We left Maine on November 30 this past fall. We are on a 4.5 month trip. We are currently at the Grand Canyon heading for Zion in a few days. We have been to PA,VA,TN, SC, GA, FL, AL, LA, TX, NM, and AZ so far this trip. We had no experience. We relied heavily on this forum and Oliver university. It has been fun, exciting, and at times challenging. We have boondocked, been to full RV Resort parks, State Parks, National Parks, COE parks, Harvest Host, and Cracker Barrel Parking lots. We have seen and done things we wouldn't imagined. We realized if we plan well and take our time things usually work out. We have learned to stay an extra day at some locations to just have a relaxing day. We find if something isn't working the answer is usually in the Ollie Manuals, in Oliver University, or the experience of those on this forum. In our case usually user error!!! Congrats and enjoy!

I am always impressed with the level of support that we get from the OEM parts mfg's on our Olivers. I would imagine that the amount of business any one manufacturer gets from Oliver (300 + units annual) is smaller than most of the other trailer mfg's. Yet, we still see a high level of support from just about all of them. Might have something to do with the cachet of the Oliver... Or, maybe they are just doing things right. In any case it boosts the level of confidence that Oliver TT owners have. Glad you figured it out. Good Luck.

Quick follow-up to let everyone know the new warranty replacement unit arrived late yesterday and now the trailer is back up and running without issue. Kudos to Progressive Industries for having wonderful warranty process and quick response (3-days).

No, just one more thing to lug along with you and potentially leave behind, additional cost with no additional benefit.

Hi, we just missed you but I think we did meet that couple, Terry and Laura, from Colorado. They left Dead Horse on Monday. We left on Tuesday and are now in Mather Campground at Grand Canyon. We were in site 65 I think it was Red Tail Hawk Loop. We head to Page AZ next on our way to Zion. We are in the Pine loop at Mather. The only loop open in the winter. It is very tight and no hook ups. It snowed this afternoon with highs in the low 40s and low teens tonight. Dead Horse was mid 60s during the day and high 20s to low 30s at night. Water at the dump station was frozen in the morning at Dead Horse. We liked Cottonwood, Gerome, and really liked Sedona. Sedona did seem like it could be very busy. Safe travels.

My Oliver is coming end of September 2022!! So excited! Now if I could just find a truck......hopefully by end of summer there will be some choice.

Back before my Oliver days I bought a Little Buddy propane heater (like THIS ONE ). I've used every year while camping and recently added a fan (like THIS ONE ). Unless it is VERY cold (below 25) I don't like using the onboard furnace at night - it keeps me awake and it uses both propane and electricity. So, early in the morning when nature calls, I get up, take care of the most important business and then quickly light the heater before jumping back into bed. Easily within a half hour the Ollie is warm enough to actually get up and get dressed. After seeing these wood stove fans for a number of years I thought that one just might work on the Little Buddy since it does not have a way to move heated air from one end of the Ollie to the other. Well - it works! No batteries, no plugging it in, it simply uses the heat from the Little Buddy to actually create enough electric power to run the fan. This, in turn, really helps move the air from the front of the Ollie to the back. I did purchase a long propane hose for the heater so that I could use my 20 pound tanks versus the rather expensive 1 pound green bottles. But, I've only used that hose once. The 1 pound bottles will last about 4 to 5 days of heating each day and there are places out West (like Yellowstone) that actually recycle these bottles. Bill

As you most likely know - propane does release moisture into the air as it burns. This is one of the reasons that it is recommended to open/crack a window or vent while using the cook top. I always have the bathroom vent open and that seems to be more than enough for ventilation and moisture. These little heaters also have built in safety sensors for propane, low oxygen and/or high CO plus tip over. Like any space heater, they should not be placed near anything combustible. So, the short answer to your question is - no. Bill

It’s a fun drive up the mountain to the campground! That looks close to our last site there. Mike

Deposit paid and now the great wait begins! We are first time camper owners, but Oliver aesthetics, build quality, and sense of community won us over. So excited to be a part of the Oliver family. While we patiently await our unit's delivery, help us pass the time by sharing your best trip tips or favorite Amazon find to make getaways go smoothly - please post in the thread! We look forward to hearing from you. -- CJ & Diana & Chopper (the Australian Cattle Dog) Elite II w/Twins Composting Toilet Truma AquaGo Powered Awning - Street Side Convection Microwave (duh) Solar Package (still deciding which one) Outdoor Pro Package

made it to livingston tx...heading to the hill country next.! 10-q dan

I would stay at a park outside Glacier, leave the trailer, and drive in. We didn’t do that and parking was a nuisance and, of course, we couldn’t take the Sun road. Alternatively if Canada is open, the north side of Glacier is Waterton. Much more “user friendly” and spectacular too. However we only stayed for a day on each side and this is all pre-pandemic sooo maybe one cent worth of info.

Second year here. Last trailer was shorter so more spots from which to choose but still worth the risk of the long twisty drive in to see if a spot is available.

FYI, most Glacier campsites are way too small for an LE2, or too difficult to get into due to trees or brush. This thread might be helpful. https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/3627-glacier-national-park-post-season/#comment-35915 I didn’t watch that long video, do they discuss the parking problems at viewpoints and trailheads? That has been an enormous hassle, you get up into the mountains “early”, like 8:00 AM, and ALL the (very limited) parking everywhere is already jammed with hikers who got there several hours before you did. So you end up driving past all those glorious views, and you will swear a lot. Unless this has been fixed by the vehicle ticket system, I won’t ever be returning. An alternative is a bus tour, those things are amazing. I don’t see how the drivers get them past the rock cliff faces. John Davies Spokane WA

It's a great group of people on the forum. I have learned a lot. We pick up on November 7. You're ahead of us on your delivery day.

Yes, it was Terry and Laura. We had a hiker stop us and ask if there was an Oliver Meet there as they thought they had seen at least 4. I think they counted Terry and Laura twice as they had moved to a different space that became available. 🤗 Charlie.

Nope - I'm good as the usage is not "routine" and there are already two other CO detectors in the Ollie in addition to the one in the heater. But thanks anyway. Bill

This is a great story. Love to hear things like this.

Any issues with ventilation and moisture buildup? I have been considering getting one of the heaters, the extra fan is very nifty! John Davies Spokane WA

Thanks for the pictures Bill. These little heaters come in real handy if the heat goes out.

I think mine are just a little over 6” tall. That gives some flexibility on really unlevel sites. I’ve stacked a number of legos underneath to bring it to the right height. I also have a fourth block that is only 4” tall. Sometimes the front of the trailer needs to come down quite a bit, that’s when it gets used. Mike

We use the orange Lynx leveling blocks and the blue Camco water filters from Walmart.

Basically I measured the distance from the bottom of the jack to the ground while the Ollie was level. Then I cut two blocks just a tad shorter in order to allow for ease of placing the blocks when there is gravel or "bumps" on the ground. For me, this measurement was right at 11 inches. The block I cut for the front jack is a touch shorter - about 10 inches - to allow for ease of placement given that the frame and Andersen chains can be in the way. Remember - these blocks can also be used on their sides which will be about 5 1/2 inches (for a 6x6 block). If you make a set of these, be sure to make some sort of "handle" so that they are easier to remove and carry. I used some old plastic rope I had around the shop - plastic "truckers" rope would be good - and some electric wire staples. Bill

A remote surge protector might seem like a belt and suspenders option but you can check on the pedestal before backing in.

We just use the blue Camco water filters. I have a Culligan that had replaceable cartridges but I’ve found that it is a pain to use, especially if you are just wanting to fill the fresh tank. So, we went back to the blue filter but the jumbo size. We don’t have an on board surge protector so we use one at the pedestal. It’s worked well the last 6 years. I don’t know how a pedestal protector would work with the on board system, maybe someone who has done it knows. I made some blocks, similar to Bill’s above and use them on top of the big yellow/black legos to keep jack movement to just a couple of inches.

I use 6x6 wood blocks to lessen the distance the jacks have to travel and provide some protection against driving off with the jack all the way down. While a bit heavier than the plastic blocks, the wood blocks are a touch smaller and they are very inexpensive - free if you keep your eyes open. While there is no harm in using a second SP, I do not use anything other than the one that was built into my Oliver. It has worked well over the years. I use water from home or bottled water for drinking and cooking purposes. Water from the onboard fresh water tank is filtered and sanitized (via a blue Camco filter) a couple of times during the camping season. But, I only use that water from the fresh tank for bathing, washing dishes, etc. Also, I use the Andersen leveling ramps for side to side leveling. I used to use the "lego" blocks (and I still carry one set of ten just in case) but the Andersen ramps are much easier to use - particularly when traveling alone.

I use a wood block under the tongue jack, it is some 40 years old, I guess I just don't want to part with it over the years of use. I use the red leveling pads on the rear jacks, sometimes 1, some times 5-6, just depends how long I want to hold the stabilizer switch down. I guess what you use depends on how much room you have to carry this stuff around, since we use a full size crew cab pickup room is not really a problem. Personally I like the wood over plastic, I do think the wood has a better bite for slipping over plastic, just from my experiences. I get all me leveling stuff in one large milk create (leveling blocks jacking blocks, and stabilizer pads) and carry it in the bed on the truck, so far no one has stolen any of the stuff in some 40 years of camping. trainman

Preface - we are newbies, less than one year of experience, but this is what we have done in reference to your questions. Blocks - we use the orange plastic lego blocks - the bright color helps me to not forget them LOL - they work well for us. We got 2 sets of 10 and some extra caps. We can store them easily in our tote. So far, so good. Surge protector - we use an additional surge protector. Looking at the specs of the Progressive Dynamics one provided, there are some better options, IMO. While we went with the 30A Surge Guard Portable Total Electrical Protection 34931 from TechnoRV with the remote display option, If I had to do it again, I think I would go with the Power Watchdog Surge Protector with Bluetooth - Portable - 30 Amp. I would prefer the Bluetooth to a separate display. For water filters, we decided to actually drink water from our fresh water tank. As a result, we likely went overboard on our approach. We use Purogene to sanitize the tank annually (vs. bleach) and add a tiny bit (1/3 oz) when we fill up our fresh water tanks. The actual filter we used is US Water Puredge Ultimate RV Filter - it fits in the basement during travel and sits in a milk crate when in use. Since it's filters are a bit pricy, we also use the clasic blue filter seen everywhere to help extend the life of the US Water filter. I am sure you will get lots of good input from much more experienced folks on the forum.

We use the red stacking leveling blocks. Easy to use and they are light. Link is: https://www.campingworld.com/stackers-leveling-pad-78796.html?cgid=levels-leveling-systems Have not used an additional surge protector BUT... I ask about the quality of power when checking in and keep an eye on it when hooked up. You can get sketchy power in a lot of campgrounds. Camco water filter works well: https://www.campingworld.com/camco-evo-premium-water-filter-56670.html Good Luck

Welcome to the forum! You’ll find forum members that use each of the options you mentioned. We use the Andersen jack blocks (the big red bucket style) under the stabilizer jacks. They’ve worked well but take up a lot of space in the truck bed when not being used. And we use the Camco yellow Lego type blocks under the wheels for side to side leveling. And I built a two stage water filter system into a milk crate.

We are excited for you! We were in your shoes one year ago - first timers as well. We had a blast researching all the options, deciding which ones we wanted. As topgun2 mentioned, the content on Oliver University is great. Lots of great YouTube channels as well. While I was more the researcher, my bride is more the hands-on learner and she was "cramming" some of the Oliver University videos as we drove up to pick up our trailer - LOL! Either approach, it's a wonderful exciting time - enjoy the wait - it will pass oh so quickly!

Welcome! Start reading and viewing videos - here in the Oliver University and on YouTube. Best tip - simply use it. Enjoy the journey as much as the destination. Bill

Welcome and happy to hear about your upcoming Oliver! There are a lot of us that are first time trailer owners and we’ve all learned a lot in a short amount of time. What kind of camping are you most interested in? Commercial parks, National and State Parks, no parks? You’ll get lots of advice and knowledge here. Mike

All, Talked with Progressive Industries tech support this morning and they are sending me a replacement unit as it has failed. Great support with a response to warranty request within about 10 min. I hope to get it within a few days. I have the trailer out of storage right now so the batteries are staying charged via the solar and we don't need the A/C this time of year. Think I will carry a couple of WAGO 221-612 lever-nuts with me on future trips just in case it ever fails when on a long trip so I can wire around it without much difficulty. And to the questions above: Yes unplugged and plugged back in with several sources many times (30 amp, 15 amp, generator (with neutral plug) and same result as failure appears to be the lugs not pulling in (Solenoids) as designed.

The decal was made or sourced by Olive in 2018. I found the silhouette on Etsy by an artist in the UK, purchased a small piece and requested permission to reuse the art for the decal. He approved my request and sent me a jpeg file. I added the text and sent it to Oliver and they installed it while completing some service work. I requested some additional decals from Oliver last year and they declined. Banana Banner’s come highly recommended from other OTTO'S and some have had local sign shops complete their decals and help with the artwork. Mossey

I used a local graphic designer and a local print shop. It sounds like Banana Banners does good work. Mike

I am not sure about Mike and Carol, a number of us have used Banana Banners in Bowdionham, Maine. Good materials and good to work with at a fair price.

Wow, this thread is everything we are buying an Oliver for. We will take delivery next May and hope to spend a year gaining enough experience to tackle a 2022 summer trip to MT, WY, ID. (I’ll bug you all about the details of that itinerary later.) I feel very privileged to have access to such expertise. Thanks to everyone here who so selflessly offers their wisdom and guidance. Quick question: how many hours a day of travel do you consider a reasonable and sustainable number? We are hoping to blast through the Midwest and plains so that we can get to big sky country, but want to be realistic about budgeting that time. We are fairly hardy road warriors and did the Hohenwald to MD route 11 hours straight through, though it’s undoubtedly less stressful in a small car than in a truck with a trailer. I realize that everyone will have their own answer but hoping for a survey. TIA! Dave

I know that many of the folks out in the mountain west know what they are doing with snowy weather. However, this storm is one for the record books - and even people that are "used to it" just may be caught off guard. That along with visitors that are not as experienced could combine for some real bad situations. Please be careful out there! Bill

We were at Glacier the week of 8 September. We got a site at Two Medicine at around noon. Amazing views.