SeaDawg

One of my favorite small campgrounds in our Ontario tour was Fairbank Lake. A small cg, well off the highway, so no road noise. ( A lot of potholes on the small road out, but paved most of the way. Great ice cream at the small general store/gas station, and really nice proprieters,too, in the little mining town on the way out. Though the mine is shut down, the store remains, thankfully, as we were low on fuel on the way to the park. Fill frequently in Canada once you're out of the Toronto and Sudbury areas... towns are far apart.) This little red squirrel enjoyed our campsite as much as we did, I think. He ran up and down the hollow tree stump, enjoying a sunny afternoon: We hiked the small trail, up and down, through forest and rock, and a fault divide. A nice way to spend an hour or so.... Take a photo of the board before you go. There are many numbered spots, but no printed guides. At nightfall, the view from our campsite on the lake was amazing. Not a big park, but well worth the 15 kilometers off the highway or so. Very peaceful, very beautiful. Sherry

We are back in the US, camped at Grand Marais, MN. I'm listening to the waves of Lake Superior crashing on the rocky beach beyond the pine and birch trees rimming our campsite. (We're on the edge, a good place to be. This is a huge municipal cg, 300 sites, and many of them more like an RV park than a cg.) Anyway, my aircard works again, so here are a few photos of one of my favorite campgrounds, Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario: View from the rear window of the Oliver: A video of one of our hikes, the Sand River Trail, used by the First Nation, then the Voyageurs, then campers... It's about six or seven kilometers, round trip on a linear trail. A few ups and downs, and a little rock clambering. Don't miss it. It is spectacular. Four sets of rapids. Allow at least three hours, probably more. You will want to stop often to enjoy the water, the scenery, the wildlife. Take bug spray (or wipes, as you see me using...) In the still areas, the mosquitos are on the attack... Another trail,, the petroglyphs, is short, but amazing, and not easy. I moved very slowly along this rock ledge to view the glyphs. The rocks below would not make a nice landing spot... Lake Superior is a beautiful park, huge, with many wonderful trails for hiking, and Sinclair cove for kayaking and canoeing. We met one man who'd camped Lake Superior PP every year for 44 years. I know why, now. Sherry

Congratulations and best wishes, Chuck and Geri! We wish you many happy years (and beautiful campgrounds...) together. Sherry and Paul

Under the aft single dinette seat, there's a red circuit breaker switch/trip. With this turned off, you will disconnect all electricity coming from the batteries, unless there's something else run to your battery differently than ours. Unless you trip this, or disconnect the batteries manually, you will always have a small amount of drain from sensors, etc. We had the same problem once leaving our trailer for ten days, before we had solar power to recharge. Hope this helps. If you can't find the trip, post again. I don't remember exactly where it is, and the trailer is back at Kakabeka Falls CG... no wireless there. Sherrry

Hi, everyone. I'm sitting in the parking lot of the Thunder Bay downtown library, using their free wireless. It's been a great trip across Ontario, camping in a number of Provincial parks during the past two and a half weeks or so. Tomorrow, we'll head into the U.S. again, camping in Grand Marais for a few days before we visit my family in Brainerd. The Ontarians have been wonderful hosts, the camping facilities are great, and the scenery is nothing short of incredible, especially between Lake Superior State Park and Sleeping Giant PP, Thunder Bay. We have many (thousands?) photos to share.... later. Yes, it's been marvelously cool... hardly ever above 70, usually in the sixties, and nights twenty degrees cooler yet. My kind of weather! Sherry

Sorry to hear about your tire failures. Changing tires in the Texas sun is no fun. Our tires are Duro load range D tires on our trailer, and have had great service so far. Though we've put a lot of miles on them, not many miles in the kind of heat you've experienced. What brand of tires did you have that failed in Texas?

Tonight, we're camped on part of the Georgian Bay, at Sturgeon Bay Provincial Park Campground, near Parry Sound, Ontario. I wish I had the bandwidth to upload photos, but I'm just amazed my aircard is working at all. I was told it would not work here before we left the US. (It is painfully slow, but I've been able to read my email at least every other night so far. Responding, however, takes a loooong time.) The scenery is amazing. We rented a small boat to explore the bay today, and had a wonderful day. Forecast was for showers and clouds, but instead, we had sunshine and clear skies most of the day. Lucky us! Navigating through the rocks and hundreds of small islands was interesting, but so much fun. My friend Lois met us about a week ago, towing her Casita from Iowa, and we crossed into Canada together over the St. Lawrence Seaway. Handheld radios work better than cell phones to keep us together on the small highways, winding through the lakes, bogs, and boulders, past lovely little villages and small old churches... Stopping for supplies at Huntsville, we both parked our rigs next to a VW bug towing a Boler. Had a great time visiting with the owner and her mother. We've been very warmly welcomed at each campground in Ontario, and have enjoyed each of the Provincial parks we've visited for its own special scenery. One of these days, we'll find a coffee shop in the village, and be able to upload a few photos. Till then, We're thinking of all of you often,just not on the internet much. Sherry

Well, that's an exciting night at work at 10,000 feet. I see the neighbors were camping in a popup or hybrid. I don't think I'd like to look out the bedroom screen enclosure and look a black bear in the eye. Many campgrounds in Alaska had signs posting "no tents or soft sided trailers" due to the bear problem. I certainly feel better in bear country with a solid, hard-sided Oliver. Sorry about your screen room. It'll be a job to repair that big hole the bear left.

Doug & Geneva, Chances are, we'll be back in North Carolina this fall. (We're here now, planning our trip to NY and Canada, back down thru Minnesota and Missouri to visit my family.) We love the Carolinas in all the seasons. Please keep us posted on your plans. We'd love to camp with you in the Carolinas if the schedules mesh. If there are a few other Oliver owners possibly interested in the North Carolina in the fall..... I sense another mini rally in the making. We'd be happy to host if everyone doesn't mind boondocking outside of Asheville.... no power or potable water, but great views, hikes, and the city is only twenty or thirty minutes away. (We have a big generator to share, if needed, and toilet facilites, and lots of space and clean mountain air.) I'll pm our phone number so we can keep in touch. Sherry & Paul

I plugged in the aircard Thursday for the drive to a Sarasota alternative energy seminar, and was happy to receive decent signal all the way. Truly, it was marvelous to drive across the beautiful Sunshine Skyway bridge connecting Pinellas and Manatee counties, and look up traffic, this forum, and information on the presenters at the seminar we were attending. I think back to my days as a kid on the farm, with a party line phone shared with several neighboring farms, and I'm just stunned. How did we get so far, so fast? We'll see next week how it works in the mountains of North Carolina. Sherry

Last night Paul and I attended a seminar on solar and wind power at the Girl Scouts' beautiful meeting and event center in Sarasota. On the wall was a colorful poster outlining the rules for the scouts during their meetings: 1. Always walk unless you're playing a running game. 2. Always have a buddy. 3. Always be nice. 4. Just have fun! Good rules for life, I think.

Now, aren't you the lucky "dawg".... You know, Paul's always asking me why I don't make biscuits like Betty. I tell him no one can make biscuits like Betty! (so far, it has worked.... probably because it's the truth. Those are beautiful biscuits.) Sherry

Nice ride! One of my uncles is a huge steam train fan. For my aunt and uncle, virtually every vacation destination involves a steam train ride. I'm sending him a link. Thanks for sharing. Sherry

Jerry43, Now that's service... sewn while you wait. Cal-Mark has some nice reviews, too. I noticed one distributor is running a sale on universal (not custom) Cal-mark covers. (Not as nice as the one you bought, I'm sure, but some at least have the opening for the door, so you can go in and out of the trailer while the cover is on. That's a nice feature. http://www.nationaldiscountcovers.com/C ... s-s/25.htm Sherry

Wow, that's great. I didn't know they were headed your way! Please tell them hello for us, and let them know that they're missing August heat in June here in Florida. They picked a great time to go to the mountains! Are they camping with you and Betty at 10,000 feet tonite? Sherry

Well, I decided on the Huawai device. Looks a little sturdier, both guys in the store today said they rarely had any come back. We'll see how it goes. This post is via Alltell wireless, and the Huawaii device. It's a little slower than my cable modem, but faster than the DSL we used to have, I think. Of course, right now I'm still in the middle of a metropolitan area. We'll see how it does in the mountains this weekend. That's the proof of the pudding. Sherry

Nice installation, Pete. Really makes use of the space in the bumper area. Looks like a very neat solution.

I stopped into the neighborhood Alltell store today to revisit the aircard vs. smartphone idea. Alltell becomes Verizon, at least in our area, in July. Their data contract at $59.99 a month here is still unlimited, and I was advised that it would remain so throughout the two year contract if purchased before the Verizon name goes on the billing next month. Seems like the best of both worlds, Verizon and Alltell networks, and unlimited data. (Especially since Verizon is the only cell phone that has worked for us in some areas of North Carolina where we spend a lot of time. I have a great family plan with T-mobile, but it doesn't work there... so we have to carry an extra Verizon phone with us.) At this time, Alltell only two devices to offer, but the price is right on both: free after mail-in rebate. The Huawai ec168 was recommended by the rep I spoke to, as being of a more durable design than the Starcom um175. Any of you use either device? Any problems or opinions? Sherry

Jerry43, We've experienced the same wonderful treatment by the Oliver team, as have many others. We got much more than a trailer when we bought an Oliver. Happy camping! Sherry

We took three 20 # empties to the local Suburban this week, a charge by the refill spot, and a real pain. Go inside, wait for someone, ask for refills, take the tanks outside, get a slip, go back inside, wait in line again, and pay. Long process. However, three tanks (all empty), were $17.50 apiece, and at home, weighed net of 18 to 18.4 pounds each. Still and all, it takes so long, we'll probably drive a little further to a metered Uhaul next time. No Tractor Supply here, and Flying J is a long drive. Our congested county, one long, packed rolling suburb after another, lends itself to the "exchange your grill tank" facilities, quick and easy (even automated at some here), but not thrifty. We probably saved $15. total for three fills at Suburban over the exchange spots, minimum, and got a little more propane to boot.

Thanks for all your replies. I think we'll order the 1550, since we can eliminate the amp when boondocking. Sherry

Actually, it may be 15 pounds, not 17, in a Blue Rhino or another swap tank, according to this article and others that I've read. Like the shrinking Hershey bar of other years, Blue Rhino and other swap vendors have opted to put less propane in the tank, and charge the same, rather than raise prices. Unfortunately, unlike the Hershey bar, you can't see the difference. Most people can't feel the difference in picking up a tank that's a pound or two lighter.... We like Tractor Supply, where we can find them. We pay only for the gallons filled, no guesswork. PS Until last year, I always thought I got 20 lbs of propane swapping a 20 lb. tank. Foolish me. Herm filled me in on this forum in another thread, and opened my eyes to that situation. Apparently, it's only become worse. Sherry

Hi, William & Georgia. Welcome to the forum, and congrats on your Oliver purchase. Looking forward to posts & photos of your adventures! Sherry

Nice tables, Mountainborn! Beautiful grain, and certainly sturdy. We've done the same with some cutoffs from a nice hardwood log up in NC. They make nice seating for campfire tall tales and marshmallow roasting.... Your ancestors and mine did it one better, though. The old Norwegians took a longer log section, and carved out a back, creating a kubestolen (or cube chair.) The old ones, decorated with rosemaling of the region, are highly prized. We found a similar idea in Australia, in the tree fringe next to the beach: Someone, long ago, had hacked out a seat from a stump, perfectly situated to enjoy the sunset over the water. A beach kubestolen, downunder. Sweet, I thought. Sherry

DCKiefer, Bugeyedriver, Chris, Cherie, and all the others who have purchased various models of RCA flat digital antennae, thanks for the info. How have the various models worked for you so far? With the digital conversion, there are a number of local sales on these antennae, and we're thinking about adding one to the Oliver. (Compusa, for example, has the 1450 for $19.99, and the 1500 for ten dollars more.) Chris & Cherie, were you able to by-pass the power requirement for the 1550 as you originally thought, so it can be used as the 1500 when boondocking? Thanks. Sherry