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Last season, when Northern Tool had a sale, Paul bought this nifty device for splitting logs. We spend a lot of time camped on our property in North Carolina, and cook a lot over the fire. We bought the biggest Kindling cracker, but a smaller version could actually be carried, but probably most practical for those of us who stay in one spot for a lengthy period of time. Safer than our traditional splitting with an axe, and definitely easier for me to use to split pieces further into tinder. With a few swings of a 4 pound hammer, kindling becomes tinder to start a fire in a very damp pit. (We've had a lot of soaking rain the last few days.) Made in Australia, naturally. https://m.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200676883_200676883?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Logging > Logging Tools > Wedges&utm_campaign=Kindling Cracker&utm_content=118995&gclid=CjwKCAjw7cGUBhA9EiwArBAvon7meyjn2mQnrwjwZho1rTCu2bLm6LgRnN2pVu2SNtTEnrLVpxTibRoCTUwQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

One other caution concerning the electric antifreeze kit that is not really explained in the manual is that the electric antifreeze module should never be energized if water has been drained from the Truma. It would be like turning on the heating elements in a home hot water heater that was emptied of water. The heating element would overheat and fail. There is no need to remove the electric antifreeze module when draining the Truma, but to be safe, one should probably unplug the 12 volt wires into the antifreeze unit when winterizing, so it cannot be accidentally energized after the Truma has been drained.

Here’s a photo of my Rock Tamers, mounted, as John described, at an angle so they sail back a bit at speed and deflect rocks downward. I’ve towed our Elite II over 20,000 miles now and so far the Rock Tamers have protected the front of the Ollie very well with no chips or dings at all. I do travel mainly on paved roads though, the only place I typically encounter significant amounts gravel is usually at the campgrounds and that’s low speed limits on those properties (5mph) so not much gravel thrown up there. Other Ollie owners seem to prefer more protection due to more travel at speed on unimproved roads, boondocking/forest service/CoE/BLM camp areas, abandoned rock quarries, combat zone minefields, etc.

My new propane leak detector has a seriously intense green spot that lit up the front half of the cabin at night, plus it created a bunch of green dot reflections. There is no reason for it to be so much like a miniature sun! I applied a single 1/4” square dim dot on top: Much better, but there is nothing that can be done about the disbursed green glow inside the unit. I added two round dots to my inside-the-window Furion radio antenna to cover that miniature red sun. https://lightdims.com/index.php Highly recommended to dim your interior! I have to use a sharp knife to pry them up, mine don’t simply peel off. My small pack came with a larger full sheet of material that can be cut to whatever shape you want. John Davies Spokane WA

Yes, definitely, but there wasn’t a car wash within maybe 400 miles (Stewart/ Cassiar Hwy, BC, about half way to White Horse YT.) But it rained for a week longer, so washing wouldn’t have done any good. Yes, two genuine Wedco NATO jerry cans, 12 gallons total... No fireballs yet. Ever seen a Jeep with cans on the back? Same concept. No worries. Don’t do this with plastic jugs. Since I removed the rack, I now carry an ebike there and a single NATO can inside the LC200. No, I permanently removed and wrapped the spare cover the day after I got it home from Hohenwald. John Davies Spokane WA

I see they're on sale again at northern tool! I love this thing. Campfire, building a coal bed for flank steak, sweet potatoes, and asparagus tonight. Paul and our friend deserve a good meal, after today's hard work. A huge American beech was uprooted over the winter, falling across one of our many trails. Husqvarna rancher chainsaw to the rescue.

My wife and I pickup up our LEII, Hull 990 on 2/17/22. We spent the nearly a week at or near Oliver's operations in Hohenwald shaking down the systems before returning to our home in Dallas. Our Truma water heater worked as expected and we marveled at how it was "just like out tankless water heater at home". I winterized the trailer upon our return home, including installing the antifreeze option for the Truma water heater. Our LEII spent the next 6-7 weeks in our driveway while I made additions to it. On April 23, I moved the trailer to an enclosed storage facility approximately 30 miles north. We have three Lithionics batteries, for which I followed the recommendation to turn OFF the batteries during storage for 30 days or less. On approximatly May 8, I retrieved the trailer from the storage facility to prepare for departure on May 11 to South Carolina. Everything appeared to be in order prior to our departure, although I did NOT test the Truma water heater. After a full day of travel, late on the night of May 11 I discovered the Truma water heater would not operate. We had two full 20 lb. propane tanks, the stove easily lighted verifying the flow of propane. I verified the power switch on the Truma unit was ON, however, the interior control located to the right of the pantry did NOT display an amber light. No hot water. I contacted OTT Service the next day and was advised to check the fuse, which proved to be OK. I was also advised to check for 12 volts DC at the rear of the Truma remote control. Today I removed the access portal from the forward interior wall of the pantry to discover the Truma remote is apparently epoxied to the hull. A black cable with an RJ11 type telephone connector plugs into the rear of the Truma remote, making testing for 12 VDC difficult. I again called OTT Service, and after four hours have still not received a call back. I searched Google for "Truma service near me" (now Paris Mountain State Park, near Greenville, SC) and found the Truma Dealer Partner Locator on Truma.net. The first listing was for Retromodern Campers, in Pickens, SC. I phone them and spoke with Scott Whitmire, who indicate his company had recently become an authorized servicer for Truma and he had been installing Truma units in refurbished trailers, many from the 1940s and 1950s. After describing the symptoms of our Truma unit, Scott indicated he had encountered the same symptoms twice, once as recently as two weeks ago. He said he would call Truma for guidance. In about 10 minutes I received a return call from Scott, saying he had spoken with Truma and received the following directions: Power ON the Truma unit at the main power switch. On the interior mounted remote control, turn the dial to OFF Wait a few seconds, then turn the power to ON at the remote control The remote control unit should now display the amber light on the dial. I was pleasantly surprised the amber light came on. I went outside to the external shower (not wanting to fill the gray tank) and ran the water for less than a minute, when hot water began to flow. I then verified hot water was available at both the bathroom and kitchen faucets. Scott said as long as the power is not shutoff to the Truma unit, it should work just fine on the next trip. I point out that I expect it to be common practice for Oliver owners, many of whose whose trailers are equipped with lithium batteries, to power the batteries OFF between trips. This will necessitate performing the Truma re-boot process described above after each storage period in which the lithium batteries are turned OFF. I can find no reference to this re-boot process In the Truma section of the 2022 Oliver Optional Features Component Manual. I hope others with lithium batteries and Truma water heaters will recall call this procedure after they have turned OFF their lithium batteries during storage.

I had zero issues during an amazing long Western NC to Maine and back trip even with the random diesel regen heat. So my answer is no exhaust heat issue on these flaps. They worked great and would absolutely purchase again. I ordered a set of the rock tamers, but returned them. I just prefer the custom clean look, solid fit and finish and simplicity of the install of “Rock Stoppers” instead. Plenty of clearance for exhaust heat.

Here is a thread where I talked about 10 mil PPF or paint protection film I had professionally installed.

Kimberly and I have had our inaugural road trip… and feeling pretty good about my understanding of the various systems of our new Oliver. A big thanks all in the forum! IMG_5046.MOV

My Rock Stoppers have worked excellent on all gravel roads. In fact most if not all the CGs we visited last season had gravel roads and I can’t imagine towing without them. With the install of the 10 mil XPEL PPF I feel like I have done all I can do to keep the front of our Ollie looking decent. See a recent photo of our Ollie above.

👍🏻 Yep. I have the same. One of the best campfire accessories ever invented!

It was very good to meet you as well Bill! I think you showed me around at least a hundred good ideas! I expect to be working on many of them very soon now that we are home! We even did a couple of nights off grid... and could not have been happier with how well the Ollie performs. It meets all of our expectations and even hopes!

We have on demand hot water Rinnai at home, love it. We are very happy with the Truma and have never looked back. Super easy to winterize and easy to clean and very efficient. The new 2023 Olivers will have Truma furnaces, Truma AC, and the option for the Truma water heater. Just something to think about.

You should already have a plug clipped into a holder on the inside of the Truma door. It looks like every Truma comes with an exhaust plug even if no electric antifreeze kit is ordered. See picture below from the electric antifreeze instruction manual. I used the electric antifreeze kit several times before I realized that the plug existed and was supposed to be used. Oliver should really make a point of explaining how to install and use the antifreeze kit upon delivery. I had to teach myself.

Do you carry spare plates? I can’t tell, but it appears that they are bolted to the flap supports. If so they are going to be really vulnerable and short lived, aluminum is not durable for that purpose. Stainless steel would be a better choice and it could be bent back into place a couple of times after the inevitable collision when backing, or with a piece of road debris like a tire carcass or piece of wood. If I had those they would be trashed within a month. Mudflaps need to have some flexibility! And I would like to add that this is not just for boondocking, if you travel in a state that does “chip sealed” road work, you need stone protection. Even a few miles of fresh oily chip seal will make an ugly mess of any unprotected Ollie and TV. And you will acquire a new list of swear words. This shows a worst case scenario - 50 miles in steady rain in BC: (The back of the Land Cruiser did remain clean.) John Davies Spokane WA

I had the Livelymachine shop fabricate these “Rock Stoppers” for our F 350 and have been extremely pleased with the design and performance and most of all a clean Ollie. Constructed of powder coated aluminum tubing and all stainless fasteners these are high quality. They are also custom fit to the F Super Duty trucks for a clean install on the side openings of rear hitch and can be easily removed if not towing. The aluminum face plate In front of the rubber flap deflects debris and stones as and also facilitates rubber flap anit sail. I have zero sailing issues with this product. If anyone is interested or you have questions about pricing contact Lively machine @Livelymachine.com. After a recent camping trip - a clean front and XPEL 10 mil PPF did its job a long with Rock Stoppers performed great.

1: SS is 100% custom so there is actually no “out of the box”. They build to your specifications (tow vehicle width, trailer width, distance between trailer and hitch, and hitch type). It is up to the owner to install it, the SS supplied angle brackets that would typically screw onto a boxy stick and staple trailer won’t work at all on an Ollie with its unique shape. As far as I know, I am the only Ollie owner who has done this mod. In all my travels in the last five years I have never seen another SS on any kind of trailer.There is no reason a local fabrication shop couldn't do it for you, just be sure to pick one that works with structural aluminum, not steel. 2: You don’t need additional mud flaps on the TV with a SS, because the SS crossbar that clamps to your stinger has its own extremely effective flaps. And the system truly is effective! It and the mesh fabric channels practically ALL the chaos underneath the trailer. This is why you need additional,flaps to protect the frame and axles, otherwise they would get really blasted. When towing on dusty roads the rear glass of the TV stays very clean, and in heavy rain at 60 mph it remains dry. All the nasties go underneath the trailer. A set of moderately sized factory mud flaps is still helpful in keeping rocks chips and crud off the truck’s rear quarter panels. 3: Yes, RT is a stand alone product. It works adequately well if you don’t drive on lots of gravel, especially if you rig it “Aussie Style” so the flaps fly back at a 30 to 45 degree angle with the road surface, so that debris does not simply bounce straight back at your tailgate, bumper and tail lights! 4: Ollie mud flaps are 100% custom, which is a big shame. Complain to Oliver Sales and maybe they will make them a factory option at some point. It would be dead simple to pre drill the mounting holes onto the subframe, so that a flap support bracket could be added to each side at delivery or later. John Davies Spokane WA

I'll let the Stone Stomper guys speak about that. Mud flaps have to be custom made for the Ollie and I'm not aware of anyone selling copies of what they have done. A number of owners including me have applied automotive type clear film to the front exposed and elsewhere where rocks might hit. In most cases due to the curves involved these films are applied by a "professional". I'm certain that this could be arranged in virtually all medium and large cities. Even Columbia, TN might be big enough. If you go that route then plan on the installer having your Ollie for at least a day. Also, if you can get it, ask for 10mm film as it is a little thicker and therefore gives more protection. At a minimum I'd suggest that you plan on applying a good coat of wax to - at least - the front of the Ollie and those areas underneath where tar, road dirt and other stuff could get thrown by your tires - the wax will make cleaning it once you get home easier. Unless you plan on traveling on gravel/dirt roads on this first trip, your new baby should not be too bad when you get home. But that is what I always think with a new vehicle of any sort and am usually disappointed when I find that first dink😒. Bill

You said that you winterized the trailer when you got home and installed the Truma anti-freeze option. I am assuming you mean the 12 volt powered electric heating element into the Truma. I have installed the same option. If I am understanding you correctly, when winterizing the water system, you closed the water valve to the Truma and left normal water in the Truma to be protected with the electric antifreeze option (which is nothing more than the equivalent of a 12 volt dipstick heater). If that is in fact what you did, turning off the batteries would have cut power to the electric antifreeze dipstick heater in the Truma and it would not have protected the Truma against freezing. The electric antifreeze option in the Truma is really designed to protect the Truma while in transit during freezing weather when the propane is turned off while towing. To gain full protection from the electric option, you need to also install the provided plug into the exhaust port of the Truma when using the option, or cold air can enter the Truma combustion chamber while driving and potentially overpower the weak electric antifreeze heating element. If you later de-winterized the trailer and tried to start the Truma on propane before actually turning the propane on, and/or removing the plug from the Truma exhaust port, then the Truma would have tried to ignite a few times, and then it would have locked out. Just like the Norcold refrigerator, if the unit tries to ignite on propane when the propane is turned off, the unit locks out and must be turned off and then on again to reset the error codes. Same thing if the Truma senses a blocked exhaust port. When winterizing the trailer, it is probably best to follow the winterizing instructions in the manual that basically call for closing the water inlet valve to the Truma and then draining the water out. It only takes a minute or two. The electric antifreeze option will also work when winterizing, but then you will need to ensure that the batteries provide continuous power to the trailer over the winter to run the electric antifreeze option. Simply draining the water from the Truma when winterizing is a safer approach.

Thank you for that story. I have to finalize my order in the next few weeks and still can’t decide on the Truma

Let me preface this story by making it clear that I am NOT a hunter but I do now understand why we SHOOT deer in the wild... I never liked the taste of venison, too gamey or too wild or too something. So, I had this idea ...that I could rope a deer, put it in a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill it and eat it. The first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed while I am in the back of the truck not 4 feet away), it should not be difficult to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then hog tie it and transport it home. I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at the end with my rope. The cattle, having seen the roping thing before, stayed well back. They were not having any of it. After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up-- 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope. The deer just stood there and stared at me. I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would have a good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation. I took a step towards it, it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope, and then received an education. The first thing that I learned is that, while a deer may just stand there looking at you funny while you rope it, they are spurred to action when you start pulling on that rope. That deer EXPLODED. The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down with a rope and with some dignity. A deer-- NO Chance. That thing ran and bucked and twisted and pulled. There was no controlling it and certainly no getting close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an idea as I had originally imagined. The only upside is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals. A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my feet and drag me when I managed to get up. It took me a few minutes to realize this, since I was mostly blinded by the blood flowing out of the big gash in my head. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to get that devil creature off the end of that rope. At the time, there was no love at all between me and that deer, but I figured if I just let it go with the rope hanging around its neck, it would likely die slow and painfully somewhere. At that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was mutual. Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer's momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in. I didn't want the deer to have to suffer a slow death, so I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder - a little trap I had set before hand...kind of like a squeeze chute. I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back. Did you know that deer bite? They do! I never in a million years would have thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when ..... I reached up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist. Now, when a deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and slide off to then let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head--almost like a pit bull. They bite HARD and it hurts. The proper thing to do when a deer bites you is probably to freeze and draw back slowly. I tried screaming and shaking instead. My method was ineffective. It seems like the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only several seconds. I, being smarter than a deer (though you may be questioning that claim by now), tricked it. While I kept it busy tearing the tendons out of my right arm, I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose. That was when I got my final lesson in deer behavior for the day. Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back feet and strike right about head and shoulder level, and their hooves are surprisingly sharp... I learned a long time ago that, when an animal -like a horse --strikes at you with their hooves and you can't get away easily, the best thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggressive move towards the animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape. This was not a horse. This was a deer, so obviously, such trickery would not work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed like a woman and tried to turn and run. The reason I had always been told NOT to try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance that it will hit you in the back of the head. Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as strong and 3 times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right in the back of the head and knocked me down. Now, when a deer paws at you and knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and covering your head. I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away. So now I know why when people go deer hunting they bring a rifle with a scope......to sort of even the odds!! All these events are true, so help me God...An Educated Farmer

Patriot, I really like the look of your Rock Stopper. I also like the idea of the XPEL 10 mil PPF. Do you mostly stay on paved roads or do you also travel and boondock on gravel and dirt roads? Would your Rock Stopper work well on gravel and dirt surfaces? Although the majority of our miles will be on paved surfaces getting to and from, we expect to do a fair amount of remote traveling and boondocking on gravel and dirt surfaces, so I am trying to figure out which anti-rock system would work best with those multiple surfaces. FrankC said he travels mostly on paved roads and his Rock Tamers work well on those surfaces. I wonder if they would also work "well enough" on rock and dirt surfaces? John Davies uses a Stone Stomper that he modified and it apparently works well on all surfaces. I love the functionality of the Stone Stomper for that reason. However, I re-read John's excellent posts regarding his purchase, modifications, and installation of his Stone Stomper and I was exhausted just reading about the time and effort it would take for me to replicate that process, even with the detail that John provided. I decided I must try to find a simpler, if less effective, solution. A Rock Stopper or Rock Tamer type system would certainly be a simpler solution. I just need to determine how effective they would be on gravel and dirt surfaces. Thanks to all for lending the benefit of your experiences. Marv

I know this is a few weeks old, but I just had a read. I'm literally laughing till I cry, what a great story (and an education)! Many thanks for the story. It was nice to meet some of you folks at the Rally. Chris/Duke, we're the Elite 1 folks that were next to you. Hopefully see you next year too, we're planning to be in the same spot next year. Looking forward to saying hello to the pups again. Safe travels all. Lee & LInda

Try looking here, but there are other threads, scattered. With a new hull, prep time will probably be less, but still necessary. Need to make sure the mold release agent/wax is gone. Prep, of course, is a big factor in the process and price.

We're getting hull #996 done by CGI next month in Murfreesboro, TN. We saw hull# 67 on display at the rally and then made our decision. We're probably going to do our 2019 Silverado as well. It's just becoming quite a chore waxing them. The Casita was a lot easier to do 🙂 John

My GMC tow vehicle has a 400 watt plug in the rear corner of the bed. I cant see much use for it except for plugging in a portable fridge cooler. I’m wondering, if a solar panel can put out 1-2- 3 400watts with a charge controller can this 400watt plug be used in connection with a solar port connection and a charge controller as how a portable solar panel works? Of course the truck would have to be on and idling for the plug to work. Just thought this would be another possibility for battery charging.

Why not simply run the electrical cord to your shore power input (via whatever adapters you need to use to get from your truck to the 30 amp plug)? Be aware that in places such as Yellowstone National Park, they consider this type of arrangement nothing more than using a generator (your relatively large truck engine is the generator basically) and in places where generators are prohibited this arrangement of using your truck for this purpose is also prohibited. Bill

We also chose the traditional water heater. Price and added complexity were the deciding factors. But thank you to @dhaig for providing useful info for those with Trumas and lithium!

Yep - $1,000 (or whatever) is a high price for instant happiness - particularly when camping. Bill

I’m glad you found a solution. It sounds like Truma was pretty responsive. I know the on-demand units have advantages. The Truma option was not available when we ordered our Oliver in 2015 so we have the suburban 6 gallon hot water tank. It is simple and reliable. If I were ordering today, I would go with the traditional tank. Mike

Also, talked to Vinnie's in Tallahassee today and was told the ceramic coating is for the "life of the camper". Was told it would loose some of it's luster in about 10 years, but the coating would still be there. It is costing me about $3500...one trip climbing a ladder, falling off and breaking another hip would cost me that much! I am happy to let them do it. I have been dealing with Briston at 850-999-3842

It sure would be "slick" if you and ScubaRx were in adjacent sites so that a side by side comparison could be made. Going to make sure that I've got an extra pair of sunglasses for this one!😁 Bill

Thanks everyone. I will have it at the rally in Gunterville next month. See everyone then.

I’m sure Vinnie is happy with the exposure he gets on LOLOHO! I will be interested in what you think when they’re done. Mike

I special ordered the 10 mil material directly from XPEL, I think it was a 5x10’ roll, to cover specific areas on our Ollie. I supplied the material to our installer who cut and installed it. I honestly can’t remember exactly what the install cost was for the Ollie. At the time as we also had our TV done, so it was combined price. I would have to review my file. Your best bet is to consider getting an estimate from your local XPEL dealer. I can tell you it’s not cheap. XPEL 10 mil is a special order PPF but it really protects the gel coat when installed properly. Find a really experienced well trained installer that does high end cars and you will likely be happy with his work.

We recently had our new F350 Super Duty completely covered in XPEL 8 mil PPF (paint protection film) and had XPEL’s Ceramic Fusion Plus applied over the PPF. The results are amazing with regard to an amazing shine that pops, shedding water and ease of washing the truck. We have had XPEL PPF installed on all of our cars and trucks over the last decade It’s held up extremely well. We even had areas of the front of our Ollie covered in 10 mil PPF. It’s all about the install. https://www.xpel.com/ceramic-coating-fusion-plus

We also follow LOLOHO and have thought about Vinnies. Looks like they do quality work. I wish Florida was closer to Texas sometimes…. Mike

Bill, that is exactly why I took the Oliver to Vinnies. I also follow Shawn and Christy.

Nan, Can't wait to hear about the results!

Duh!☹️ Lets also throw in a plug for Mirna (Foy's wife and all around nice person).🥰

We have had a number of "vendors" as members here in the past. Off the top of my head there is/was Andersen, MicroAir, and the fellow that produced the laser cut plastic protection plate for the Dometic fridges (Tractors1). Frankly, I wish that all of the Oliver vendors would be on the Forum so that we had direct access to help via this platform when we need it and/or to get questions answered. I too am looking forward to seeing ScubaRx's #50. Bill

I was told you’d be coming through Texas and normally we’d get in line. But, the plan now is to leave for Colorado the first week of June and probably won’t return until end of July or early August. It would be easy enough to visit you in Tennessee which is what we might do. For older trailers the like-new shine and protection would be worth it! We’ll see you at the rally and I’ll be checking out Steve and Tally’s Hull 50. Mike

I am looking forward to seeing #50 at the rally as well as speaking to the folks from CGI Detailing. It will give me a chance to kick the tires, so to speak. Mossey

We used to have a different color designation for vendors, but I don't know if that's still available. I'll ask. All Oliver employees show up in green. Mods blue. Admins red. Members black, or bold black, if they've been around long enough. Fwiw, Colin clearly identified himself as a vendor, so definitely being careful to not break any rules. I appreciate the pricing info, as I'm sure others do. It's an expensive process, but clearly something many are interested in. An additional subforum is a consideration, but it's so infrequent, I'm not totally sure of the value.

Truth. Sadly, we learned this the hard way.

And, if you change tow vehicles, you can purchase replacement flaps. Actually, most of the bits and pieces for rock tamers can be purchased online. We've used Rock tamers for over a decade. We don't travel enough gravel miles to justify John's stone stomper. That's the ultimate, though.

FYI, one disadvantage with Rock Tamers is that they do need to be close to the ground to work correctly, but when you are traveling briskly on a gravel road, they can drag when you encounter a dip, and shoot up a rooster tail of gravel onto your trailer. This is a non-issue with a Stone Stomper. John Davies Spokane WA

Cool little things that happen, along the way, you never know, ya' gotta' be on the lookout for em', or they might just slip by. We were camped above 10K elevation in the conifers by the old steam train station at Cumbres Pass. The days were warm to mild, the nights cool to cold, the air was clear and refreshing. We walked up to look thru the windows of the station, there was no operator on duty at the time. A young man that sat on the porch said hello. Looking like he had been out in the woods for weeks, he was shaggy and dressed in what I would describe as strechy lycra hikeing tights, tattered ones. He was clean and we learned later that he had "borrowed" a shower from a camper nearby. He was trying to call on his cell phone that he had mailed to himself. It wasn't working well. Using our cell phone, we learned more about his adventures. He was hikeing the high country trails and the higher than usual snow accumilation made some places impossible to get through. Finaly, after days of struggling, he gave up and came down to lower elevations to look for transportation home. His calls home were to get the post offices along the way to send his supplies that he had mailed to himself, returned to his home. The train came into the station, whistling, wheezing and belching black smoke, with all of the passengers waving cheerily, he bought a ticket, and dissappeared. Now, if a person chooses to be negative about such an encounter, you know, worring about cell phone charges and looking up call times, they can diminish the quality of their experience. We didn't look or ask. We waved bye and wished him well along his way. Later that day, we made a pleasant discovery. He had camped overnight very near our campsite while waiting for the train. He had Connifer Boughs made into a bed / ground cover that he slept on, and he had gathered firewood. In the firewood that he left behind, there was another thing, he had left a zip lock baggie of carefully shaved dry kindling to be used by the next camper ! Though we don't remember his name, we will remember his thoughtfulness and unselfish labors on the behalf of the next camper that came along. He made us smile, warmed us up as the night chill arrived and the boughs from his bed, ran the Snow Mosquitos away, as they were placed on the campfire. Just a little thing that happened along the way that made our trip an grand experience. Oh, yeh, we replenished the shavings in the baggie and left a corner sticking out from the wood pile, as he had, just incase it was one of those damp highcountry days that can chill to the bone, and someone else could use a quick fire. Maybe when you pull in there that baggie of shavings will still be there to welcome you with a cherry fire !