SeaDawg

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

At 8 am this morning in Orlando, it was 85 degrees in the shade according to our Oliver's thermometer. I wouldn't mind seeing a little of that fresh white stuff! (I suspect you had no mosquitoes, either, and we had plenty....) Glad you're having fun!

We had a great time this week catching up with relatives from both Florida & Texas. We don't often get to see the Texas transplant cousins... Met the new cousin- in-laws, too... great folks. We had a blast. We had to laugh, though, and I think you will too. We were assigned a space next to a 45 foot motorhome... beautiful coach, too. Our group managed to wangle sequential spots in the premier coach loop... pretty funny for us... Yes, we feel our little trailer is premiere, but it's hardly of the size of the rest of the guys in the loop. We wound up with a great space (for Ft. Wilderness, anyway...), twice as wide as our truck/trailer, and twice as long, too. It was designed for the big boys with toads... oh, well. The extra space meant room for chairs & tables for the fourteen or so of us who gathered for the cookout. For the bigger coaches with slides, the spaces really only allowed for the coach, toad, and one picnic table.... We had great shade, and nice trees and a little breeze, too. Really lucked out.

Herm, We'd like to meet both of you, too. We're looking forward to camping in Minnesota, and visiting friends and family there and in Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin. I'll send you a pm with our contact information. Haven't figured out whether to circle east or west first.... and, without any birthdays or weddings this year to attend, we'll probably make up the route as we go along. Sherry & Paul

Ohhh, that looks so good! Crispy trout and home fries. Does life get any better?

We're home. Getting ready for a family reunion trip to camp at Disney's Ft. Wilderness next week. Then on to North Carolina, the Midwest to visit my family, and then... see where time allows and the road takes us. Summer plans?

Last month, we caught a great sale fare on Qantas (wonderful airline), and rented small class C's in New Zealand and Australia for about a month. We really missed our little trailer, and the familiarity. It was so much fun, however, to camp in two countries where camping and rving is just as much fun, or more so, for the locals, as it is here in the U.S. In New Zealand, recycling is far more important than it is here, even in our city, where we have curbside pickup for many recycled items. A couple photos of our last campground in NZ: There were so many recycling bins at the campgrounds, it was difficult to have much for trash at the end of the day. This campground also had a worm farm, and a butterfly garden, so there were very few rubbish only cans left, or needed. Sherry

Most of us on the moderator board have been out camping, and out of touch. We apologize that you've not received your welcome messages. Welcome, phoneciansailor, shezonit, and peaceandquiet. Sherry