SeaDawg

We often don't have electric available, and I'm not a huge fan of our old standby percolator coffee, so I bought a little inexpensive French Press coffee maker at IKEA. However, the process is cumbersome... heat the water on the stovetop in the teakettle, pour over the coffee grounds, let it bloom, stir, press, wait awhile... for coffee that's not all that great, and cools down too rapidly in the glass carafe. I went back to a couple of one-cup Mellitta pourovers that a friend had given me years ago. Kind of like a little funnel that holds a tiny cone filter & coffee right over the cup, pour hot water over and let it drip down... The coffee is better, but I'm not a one-cup person.... Meaning the process has to be repeated several times.... I'm shopping again. I saw Pete uses a 12-volt Cuisinart coffee maker. I'm kind of intrigued.. but does it draw down a lot on battery power, Pete? Anyone else with an idea? Sherry

Hi. It's funny you compared the Oliver to an Airstream, too. My brother's inlaws, long-time (25+ years, various trailers....) Airstream owners compared it right off the bat, too. We liked the pricetag (and weight) of the Oliver compared to the Airstreams. Since then, we've had a number of people draw the same comparisons... We're really glad we made the trip to Howenwald. We love our little trailer... Sherry

Lisa, That is so cool... thanks for sharing all your great ideas.... In such detail, too in the pix. Did you and your husband ever write for Popular Mechanix? Seriously, you make it very easy for anyone to understand the process on all your mods. Thanx very much. Guess I'll go looking for the knife block and throw away those cardboard scabards I made for the three knives I carry.... Sherry

Hey, Chuck, Loved the video.... just cannot handle the thought of sticking my arm up a submerged tree stump... nor the mouth of an unseen catfish..... Owww.... These guys are obviously braver than I.... See you next week in Dade City.... I, too, think I'll stay with the hook & line kind of fishing Sherry

Looks like we'll be getting up to Dade City Monday night... Tuesday at the latest... Really looking forward to our second trip to this very cool campground... This time, I'm bringing my hiking boots... there are so many tempting trails to explore in this park... Just got back from North Carolina, and my new boots are pretty well broken in... We'll see how they do on flat land now! Sherry

Yikes! The name makes it sound so easy.... Not so from the video... Not for me, me thinks Sherry

Wow, Bugz, You post one amazing set of photos after another.... thank you so much!! I love the layered mountain views from your property... It has to be a really fun experience to be out there. Sure would be fun if you decide to have a rally there.... PS did your brother-in-law have any comments on the shower door? Thanks for sharing... Sherry

If I remember correctly, today is the day the Whaleys pick up their new Oliver, isn't it? Looking forward to seeing your pix of little Traveller, Olivia or is it Wendell? Best wishes! Sherry and Paul

Congrats, Pete! Looking forward to seeing your photos! Sherry and Paul

Hi, Pete... We know you're on somewhere on the way to Howenwald..... Looking forward to hearing your good news about your new Oliver. Want you to know we all wish you well with the new WonderEgg! Happy Easter. Talk to u when u have internet again.

Love that oak.... All it take is an amazing eye and a good camera.... I have the cameral... but.... Sorry, geri, my pix don't hold a candle to yours.... I'm so glad you were there, camera in hand. See you next week. Happy Easter. Sher

Thanks for the great photos, Geri. You have an amazing eye. I love the cypress on your flicker website. It's a beautiful campsite. See you there again soon! Sher

Wow, Pete... The egg is truly about to hatch, isn't it I really like the swivel lamp... it looks great. The happy face tire cover graphic is ... really happy! It would put me in a good mood on the highway! I see the A/c you chose has a thermostat... nice. Interested in seeing the new photos when the gen is in the basket... Looks like they did nice job on that, too. Looking goood!! Sherry & Paul

Tom, this is Earthdancer's gem of a find, and she'll be posting more on it tomorrow in camping sites thread. I can pm the link to mapquest directions if you want... I see she's not online. It's a county park, on one of the prettiest rivers in Florida, 20 minutes or so off of I-75 near Dade City. Except for large groups/events, no reservations accepted or necessary. This is our busiest season here, and yet very few other campers last week. Nature trails, walking trails, lookout tower, playground for little kids (don't know how old your boys are...). Really nice informative rangers. Well maintained, and out in the country. Access after I-75 is all paved state and county roads except the last mile and a half, and that wasn't bad for a Florida dirt road. The trailer camping area is a big open field lined with big old Florida oaks on the perimeter. No dump station or sewer hookup, but water & electric. Public bathrooms are clean and neat, no showers, but would be quite a hike from the trailer camping area. Bikeable. If you and your wife meander east instead of west, make sure to let all of us Floridians know. It's just a little over an hour's drive for us... and if we're around, we'll meet you there....We all might be there anyway... We're meeting Tumbleweed & Earthdancer there for a few days near the end of March/beginning of April. Unofficial rallies are great! Sherry and Paul

Come on Chuck... We were counting on you and Mountainborn to handle the catfish arena... noodling... jug fishing.... You have a whole year ahead to hone up on your techniques with Mountainborn.... mmmmm we usually go fishing at the local fishmarket, but we still have connections with the restaurant supply house as a fallback position Paul and Sherry

If you'd like an unofficial, non-sanctioned vote (like the kind we like to cast in Florida primaries.. counts for half if Republican, "zero to maybe" if Democrat, and totally zero if you're independent)..... I really like (1) Traveller spelled Lee's way, and (2) Wendell. Wendell also reminds me of one of my favorite TV characters, Oliver Wendell Douglas from Green Acres... Olivia is also a lovely name.... By the way, we love pigs here in Florida, so much so that we passed a state constituiional amendment a few years ago regarding gestating pigs and their treatment, though I have yet to see a hog farm around here anyway.... We really love to vote.... Some people even read the ballot.... What was the name of that pig on Green Acres? Oh, yea, Arnold..... Sherry

BuffaloBob, We're in! thanks for the offer... spring, 2009... 2nd Annual UnOfficial (soon to be official) Oliver Rally in Dade City, Florida (March and early April are beautiful in Dade City...) Banners, tee-shirts, and main course (catfish?) provided by Oliver.... Everybody else bring your own chairs and silverware, and a hot dish and lots of stories to share.... Is it ok if we post this (when we have a firm date and commitment from the park) on the other boards so our friends with other style campers can come too? I owned a local restaurant for over 12 years, so, I do have a few connections on tee shirts, banners, and yes, I can help cook. We'll bring one propane burning turkey fryer... I'm sure other members have them, too. Tumbleweed and Earthdancer are in Florida, too. We'll be seeing them in the next 10 days or so. As more experienced rally campers, they're bound to have some great ideas to make this a really fun rally.... Sherry OMG... we're about to become official Thanks!

Tom, Looking forward to the 2nd Annual Unofficial Dade City Springtime Oliver Rally .... Hope you can make it. Everybody on this forum seems to have a really nice sense of humor.... hmmm, didn't we all buy an Oliver to de-stress, get out of town (even if only fifty miles?), and see a little of the USA in our Chevrolets (remember the commercial from the early 60's?).... with a happy little trailer in tow.... Perhaps even meet some other nice folks.... We can throw a couple kayaks in the back of the truck to go that short hop.... We'll keep you posted on the date.... as for now, vaguely sometime in March, 2009 will have to do. Hope you guys have a great time in Howenwald next week. Wish we could be there too. We've had so much fun with the Oliver already.... it's a great little trailer. Sherry and Paul

Ya'll are starting to sound like my teenage boys...lol O.K. Meanderthal and Bugeyedriver...after carefully reviewing all the data, endless committee meetings and checking for "hanging chads" the Official standing of the Company is that ya'll will be the 1st “Company Sponsored Multiple New Oliver Owners Delivery and Shake Down Overnighter Rally at NACO Campground of Hohenwald TN for 2008” There, does that help? Ok, guys, we'll concede... we weren't factory sponsored... This way we can all be first... I like it!!! It's perfect, BuffaloBob. To BuffaloBob, Whaley, Bugeyedriver, and all of you on the forum, how about joining us next year for the second annual unofficial Oliver gathering in Dade City next year? We'll keep you posted on the date. It's a beautiful spot that Earthdancer found, and we'd love to share it with all the Oliver folks out there. Sherry

Paul found this in today's Harbor Freight flyer. He thought it would be a big help to me in seeing where the hitch and ball are as he's backing up and I'm signalling... It's tough for me to tell sometimes. Would probably be easier to see with a backup camera, too. I'll let you know how it works out for us. Sherry Magnetic Trailer Alignment Kit Item # 95684 Harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95684

Hi, Lisa, Thank you so much for posting all the wonderful pix. Loved the shots of the cactus in the snow. I'm sure you and your family will never forget this second Oliver outing! Inquiring minds want to know.... Who drew the short straws and had to sleep in the tents in the snow??? Sherry

Tom, I Join me at the camp on the 25th and we'll have the first Oliver purchaser rally!! WOOOHOOO!! We can put pics on the site to PROVE IT! Sorry, guys, but you can't have the first rally... Paul and I just got back from Dade City where we camped with Tumbleweed and Earthdancer.... (Since Geri is the better photographer, maybe she'll post pix of the first Oliver mini-rally...we should start a new thread for this anyway.) It was very cool to camp side by side and meet them. We had beautiful weather and a wonderful time talking about Olivers, camping, and life in general. Geri and Chuck have done a lot more camping than we have, so they were a wealth of wonderful ideas for us. Hope you have a lot of fun with the second Oliver purchasers rally.... hmm, it's the first in Howenwald, I think... Sherry

Hi, Geri, I spent the day packing up the Oliver for our first outing... not counting the trip home, which became really rushed.... Getting excited. Thanx for your kind comments... The real artist in our group is obviously you... Love your photo website. You have an amazing eye and talent. Looking forward to meeting you, too! Hopefully, we'll be able to stop in Pasco county on our way home. I sent Chuck 2 pm/emails, but outlook doesn't always work on my network... Please give him our greetings. Don't think it will be too hard to find each other.... We'll just look for the other trailer that looks just like ours I grew up in a small town... That's how Tar-jay got its "elegant "name, I think. We drove 45 miles to get to a town big enough to have a big box store, McDonald/s, etc... Just think, now many of us drive further to find a town that DOESNT have a big box store, McD's, etc.... How our priorities change .... Sherry

When I saw Bugz's post today on "Why We Chose an Oliver", I was reminded of this older thread with a similar title. To be simple, we chose the Oliver based on value, longevity, and workmanship. We believe that it is a truly innovative product based on the tried and true molded fiberglass trailer history of many wonderful brands. After looking at many, many trailers, stick built, aluminum cage, and molded fiberglass, we were convinced the Oliver was the best choice for us.... especially for the long run. Perhaps the moderator could merge these two threads.... Sherry

Lisa, That looks really nice... and very functional... I'll add that to the honeydew list! Sherry