SeaDawg

A short drive from Lake Ouachita is Petit Jean State Park, the first state park in Arkansas. Near the top of a small mountain (about 1100 ft elevation) is a lovely little lake, and a lovely little campground. Some with lake view, some woodland. Along the road to the CG is beautiful Cedar Falls, viewed from a beautifully designed and landscaped handicap-accessible ramp. Many of the CG sites have full hookups, pretty rare in most state parks. Lots of history here, and lots to do with hiking trails, the falls, and a pioneer cabin.

It's just so difficult to pick a good campground in Arkansas, the natural state. You have to open the state map, close your eyes, point a finger, and set the Gps. There's an amazing variety of terrain in the state, nice roads, little traffic, and beautiful state, USFS, and Corps of Engineer campgrounds in abundance. We spent our first night in Arkansas at Lake Ouachita State Park near Hot Springs. Two of the loops are lakefront, and the campsites are amazing. $18.50 a night buys water, electric, immaculate shower houses, and incredible views. Less with senior pass, less out of season.... We got lucky, the loop was empty when we arrived because the CG had been closed for several days due to the effects of Hurricane Gustav and cancellations and power outages. Call ahead for reservations in season... way ahead... June 2009 is totally booked. If you're lucky enough to travel in spring or fall, life is good.... and the weather is mild. Lots of space, level, and really nice people in the camp office and store. Sherry

Roll call, RVerII... Mountainbon & Butcherknife, Earthdancer & Tumbleweed, and the Seadawgs... Scubarx is on the way... Tomorrow we'll have four Olivers in Van Buren AR. Wish all of you could be here with us... Arkansas is a beautiful camping state. I'll post more of that on the camping report thread. Suffice to say... it's tough to pick a place to stay in the abundance of state parks, USFS, and Army Corps of Engineer parks. Good news from home allowed us to stay on the road a little longer than we thought. Tonight, the night before the rally, half the RV resort is full of fiberglass eggs. The Oliver group is doubled up, having a lot of fun with the other fiberglass owners around us, too. Sherry

I've been intrigued by this thread. Years ago, you often saw telescopic legs in conversion vans and a few RVs. Since they're rarely seen anymore, I suspect there were problems. I found a few on the internet... mostly too small to support a table for a four-person dinette. This one, from Australia, is hydraulic, and probably strong enough, but shipping from Australia, and warranty support, would be expensive and difficult... http://www.caravansplus.com.au/catalog/ ... adaa0b1a02 The leg itself is $179 Australian, before shipping. Personally, I love the storage "cave" created under the bed. We travel with the bed made up most of the time. I have room for three storage boxes filled with lighter weight but seldom used items like rain gear and cold weather clothes, plus the table leg itself, a briefcase, hiking poles, and various other items. I'd miss the room if the center were taken up with a collapsed leg. Just my two and a half cents. Sherry

Our local U-haul dealer installed our Tekonsha Prodigy brake controller and harness in our Volvo XC90. Some Uhaul dealers will do this, others won't. Your Volvo dealer will also be able to install the harness and controller. We also highly recommend the Tekonsha Prodigy controller. Happy camping! Sherry

Our very unofficial, amateur rain guage (a straight sided coffee cup set on the tongue of the Oliver), collected roughly seven inches of rain in the last three days.... Most of it Monday night thru Wednesday am.... A lot of people are smiling... Even the trees seem to be laughing as they shake a few leftover drops onto base camp once in awhile... Everything seems green and bright today with the sunshine... Sherry, Keeping an eye on Gustav and Hanna...

No, rainy days and Mondays don't always get me down. The grass is greener today after the long night's rain, and it's great sleeping weather. But what do you do on a day like today when it rains all day.... I cleaned the camper, had coffee under the awning (kind of damp, but doable!), made some log entries, came to town to hang out with my new friends at the wifi cafe! Paul put on his rain gear and took a couple rides on the ATV in the rain... then drove into Asheville to get the oil changed in the truck... Don't know if it'll be BBQ weather tonite, or not, but we do need the rain everywhere in the south... The rain here actually has everybody smiling!

Pete, Love that photo of your Oliver and its reflection in the water at Ecofina... Really fine! Sherry

Great photo, Mountainborn... and I love that old song.... Sherry

Geri and Chuck, Wish we could, but I think it's cutting time too close... You remember how it is.... Would love nothing better than to hang with three other Olivers in Arkansaa... my old stomping grounds from days gone by. I especially appreciate your heads up on the rally a few weeks ago when we had limited access to the intenet. We think of you both often. I saw a post elsewhere today about Eastpoint and all the rain. We've had less than pleasant weather the last few days, but nothing to whine about in Pinellas county. How's everything at home? I suspect you're on the road... Take care, and happy camping, Sher

Quite true. If they're little, no need to fillet, and the bones are tender, especially after breading and frying.... Beyond little, at least the slit and the backbone has to be done. Tedious, but worth it... Yum. Even, so, my favorite is the bigger walleye... unbelievable flavor, and so flakey. (Oh, yeah, and less work, by far, per poiund...) Sherry

Thanks for the invite, but mapquest shows it's about 1100 miles home after the rally. Those long runs with little time are tough... Should plans change, we'll let you know. How great to be with so many Olivers in one place... a new record. Really wish we could make it. It's a beautiful area.... spent some time there with my family in the late 60's and early 70's. Sherry

Hope Pete and all his family are ok... TS Fay made her final pass (of four) dropping a lot of rain everywhere across Florida. A lot of flooding in some areas. Also hope Geri's place is ok in Eastpoint... they're getting hit, too. Pete's blog has some great new photos and commentary.... Hope you check it out. Happy traveling, Pete, and best wishes. Here in Pinellas county, the whole storm is pretty minimal. Sherry

We keep our meds in the cabinet with that other morning precious stuff... the coffee and filters.... Thanks, Steve, for sharing the pharmacy input. We appreciate it. Sherry

The disappearing urban campground... Lake Julian Park Campground in West Ashville, NC is (sadly) closed. A small campground tucked on the end of the lake (where you can't see the stacks of the CP&L power plant) was closed this year. The Buncombe County park service is building big pavilions there for family reunions instead of maintaining this little jewel of an urban campground. However, it's still a nice spot for a day stop and picnic and/or fishing (especially fall and winter, as it's a thermal lake), and the campground entrance is still open as a park entrance. A fishing permit for one day can be purchased at the entrance kiosk on the usual campground honor system. Restroom is still open, but the water to the shower stalls is cut off, as is the electric to the campsites. Sherry

I saw this article today, and couldn't help but think of you and your catfish stories, Mountainborn. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,407901,00.html A man in Wilkes County NC caught a record-breaking catfish... on his granddaughter's "Barbie" pink fishing rod... As Paul Harvey (sort of) used to say, click the link 'for the rest of the story....." Sherry PS I see a lot of times where others are able to bring photos from outside sources & websites into their posts. I don't know how to do this... just how to copy and paste the links. Can anyone offer instructions? Sherry Edited to include photo

I see walleye and yellow perch on the fishing list... mmmm my favorites! I'll cook if someone else will catch! Sherry

Good posts, Mountainborn. Knowing just where to find important equipment and information is just as important as having it in the first place. We keep a small first aid kit in a bag hanging in the trailer closet, and a few essential items in the glove box. I try to check the first aid kit for up to date supplies and replacements before each trip. (Usual stuff: small scissors, tweezers, guaze, bandaids, alchohol swabs, gloves, neosporin, sprain wraps, burn pads, cold meds, pain relievers, benadryl, etc.) Paul has had complete training; I've had some. We used to have a small booklet of first aid instructions in the kit, but it disintegrated years ago. Note to self: replace it! Also, I like your idea of allergy and medical instructions in the refrigerator in bags. I'm going to do that, too. Already have emergency contact on the cell phone. Sherry PS One of our friends flies for AirEvac Lifeteam. He's a great guy.

Wow. I noticed in another thread that we now have three Olivers going to this rally. So cool. Wish we could be there, too, guys, but it's a little bit too far west for us to get home when we need to for a family milestone birthday.... We'll be thinking of you, and looking for photo postings. Anybody else thinking about attending? Sherry

Robert, We'll miss you. I guess it's time, though, to separate the factory and user forum lines that have become "blurred" here. And, we certainly can't expect you or any other factory rep to monitor our user forum 24/7. It has grown too much, in numbers of members and posts, in the past few months. We all know how to reach you if we need you, by phone and email, and we'll stay in touch! Have a great weekend! Sherry

The chrome pole, along with a lower horizontal support, provides a backrest for the back cushion on the smaller side dinette when dining. Sherry

Doug, Your post is thoughtful and well written. Points well taken. One of the issues at hand is "Oliver Forums". Although the forum is underwritten by Oliver Travel Trailers (they pay the bill...), this is a user forum, and the responsibility for moderating the threads is solely that of a small group of volunteer moderators, all of whom are Oliver travel trailer owners. We do not work for Oliver. Our decisions, right or wrong, and our opinions, right or wrong, are our own. Although some of the Oliver employees visit and post from time to time, no one who posts a question to the factory should anticipate a timely response here on the user forum. Questions requiring a factory response should be addressed to the factory. Looking for an owner's opinion? Post it here. I do not believe the thread in question was closed for any reason other than those stated by the moderator. All of the owners who cared to contribute had already posted; Robert saw the thread and asked for some time to respond. He was not allowed that time by some posters, and the thread had already begun to disintegrate into, shall we say, less than the usual friendly and courteous exchange of ideas and opinions normally seen on our forum. That said, I would also like to say that I have been in business all my life, until my retirement last year. For a number of years, I sat on the dealer council of a major international manufacturer. In all those years, I have never had a better experience as a customer than dealing with Oliver. They are unique. Totally devoted to customer satisfaction, extremely open to the needs and wants of each individual customer, and willing to customize their product to an extent unheard of in the RV world. They are adament about becoming the gold standard in their field, and adament that each customer is a happy customer. A visit to the factory reveals not only heart, and brains, but a corporate culture that would be the envy of many larger manufacturers. Some of us on the moderator team are very new to our roles, and I would like to ask you to bear with us as we explore those roles, and become accustomed to our new "hats". Although I have been a frequent poster here (and on several other forums), I have never been a moderator before. (I should say, I'm a frequent poster when I have acces to a computer.... Paul and I have spent much of the last six months on the road, traveling seven or eight states, and countless weeks boondocking on our property in the mountains of North Carolina. We have loved every night, because it's a great way to travel, and our Oliver is a great product.) If you have any questions about my Oliver experience, or my actions as a moderator, you can feel free to PM me through the board. I do not feel it's a safe practice to post my personal email or phone number on a public forum.

Have a great time! We'll all be thinking of you. Sherry & Paul

The controller box does migrate... but manually... we have to walk it over to the next vehicle..... Sometimes we use the Volvo, now mostly the Dodge... Our daughter has pretty much claimed the Silverado as her ride. But, I have to say, I don't blame her. It's a fun truck to drive. Sherry

Robert, I've met your boys and you can send any of them, anytime, no charge. They're wonderful young men. Wish one of them had been with Dave... he'd have enjoyed the younger company, I'm sure. I'm not sure Paul and I fall into the "spoilers" category yet... considering all the chores Dave got to do... but I'm pretty sure he had a good time again this year, anyway. With responsibility comes independence... or so the mantra goes.... Our daughter, too, was lucky enough to spend a lot of summers with her grandparents. What a terrific experience for her... and them. Our property in NC is very empty, except for thousands of trees, great views, and springs, and a few bears.... no electricity, no hookups, no wifi. We really enjoy being there in the cool mountain air, in every season. We've looked at some cabin plans, but have decided it's pointless for now with the Oliver. We have everything we need, and then some. Bring an Oliver and the family, and visit us sometime! Sherry PS Tropical Storm Fay missed our Florida home. We were lucky, again. Thanks for asking