Hello From Portland, Oregon

[DonnaDuane]

Don, thank you. Mine arrives tomorrow. Then I may ship to Oliver for mounting prior to my arrival. Thanks for the reassurance that I got a solid unit.

[ScottyGS]

Wow!  What a thread... sorry I have been remiss on checking the forums and didn't see it sooner.   I will add three things.  (ok... maybe say some again)

 

One.... Get the Tow Ready 20142 now and take it with you. https://www.amazon.com/Tow-Ready-20142-7-Flat-Adapter/dp/B00C4AYR3U  Amazon has it for $18 bucks and its cheap insurance to eliminate the annoying trailer disconnect message.  Trust me, even if you know lights and brakes are working it is a major pain and startling when it goes off.   Thanks again to David S for saving us Ford 150 owners from this hell!

 

Two ...  I have recently been  driving back and forth from NC to NJ.  650 miles and we have been doing it without towing in one long day.  When you add the trailer to long days like that it is just HARDER to do.  Can't put my finger on why that is but IT IS!   So, please give yourself every break that you can and support each other on the trip.  Adding winter.. mountains.. and multiple long days in a row is a LOT to deal with.

 

Three...   When towing and needing to burn some miles, we use what we call the meander strategy.  Start damn early, share the driving, take breaks when we need them and hit Wal Marts, Craker Barrels, casinos and any other place that will allow an overnight stay.  We use the All Stays app for ipad - worth every penny of the $10 it cost.  Sleeping this way is very efficient as you can get a meal, buy supplies, and bed down early so you can get up early and start all over again.

 

Finally..  Please keep us informed of how you make out.  Best of Luck and if the going gets tough the tough can GET A MOTEL ROOM and be safe and sound.  Better late than never.   Have a better one and looking forward to hearing of your safe and successful trip home with your new Oliver.

 

Scotty

[DonnaDuane]

Thank you Scotty. I did get the Tow Ready 7 pin Adapter.  I plan on taking 3 days to drive out and 5 days for the return. I plan on keeping the Forum updated, and boondocking where convenient. Thanks for the heads up on the App for finding places

[bugeyedriver]

Duane,

 

I guess you are on your way now.  Best of luck!  Be safe . . . be flexible . . . and let us know when you are back in your nest with your Ollie.

 

Godspeed.

 

Pete

[DonnaDuane]

<p style="text-align: left;">Yes Pete, I arrived in Hohenwald today about 1. It was a mostly easy drive with the exception of the snow storm that closed I84 from Rock Springs to Rawlins WY for 6 hours. Google rerouted me South to Craig, CO on a narrow snow covered road for 40 miles that turned to dirt for another 40 miles. From Craig, I went through Steamboat Springs and over a near white out blizzard over Rabbit Ears Pass before connecting with I70 and making my way to Denver. It actually wasn’t that much further in distance, but saved me at least 4 hours. I stopped at Oliver and met Heather when I hit town. I’m now in Linden, TN at the delightful Commodadore Hotel. I highly recommend it when in the area. The owners are great. They’ve done a great job of refurbishing this old place and have yummy food and music on weekends. Can’t wait for my Orientation tomorrow. Bye for now. </p>

[bugeyedriver]

Glad you've made the distance in 3 days.  Your Audi looks like it ran the gauntlet of weather issues. Ha!

 

Hoping you get a good night's sleep and you are ready to soak up all the great information tomorrow.

 

Are you traveling solo?

 

 

[DonnaDuane]

Yes, the car actually had much more ice on it than the picture shows. Thankfully I was able to clean it at a car wash in Kansas the next day. Other than the four hours in the snow and ice, the driving has been very easy. I’m amazed by the comfort and mileage (34 mpg over 2450 miles)of this thing. Yes, I’m doing this solo sort of. My wife and I talk by phone frequently and I’m enjoying listening to my music collection. Weather reports look promising for the return trip. Thank you for the well wishes.

[SeaDawg]

On the return,  I'd watch the weather really close. I  wouldn't want to do a mountain gravel road with a new trailer.

 

Keep us posted... we're all following ...

 

Sherry

[John E Davies]

Good luck on your return trip, stay SOUTH there is a lot of snow forecasted for the Rockies starting Thanksgiving and again on Saturday. This is a good site for seeing weather at a glance .... the entire center part of the country  looks teriffic at this moment but there is a bunch of moisture coming.

 

 

 

. .... https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/exper/nationalforecastchart/map.php

 

and the Weather Underground Storm app is good for severe forecasts for cities along your projected route.

 

I know you have a deadline but take great care and don’t take any chances. And do take some pics.,. Enjoy your delivery experience. If I were sitting in your drivers seat I would take I-40 to Vegas, and then cut north thru NV on US 95 to miss the Rockies and high plains.... it adds a towing day, compared to direct, but that is way better than sitting in a rest stop waiting for the plows, or lying stuck in a ditch.

 

Check your trailer tires, they come set at 80 psi, they need to be 40 to 45 psi for a light load. This will give them a larger footprint and better braking, and soften the ride significantly.

 

John Davies

 

Spokanw WA

[John E Davies]

One more - snow totals by Sunday:

 

 

Go south..... SLC looks bad.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[DonnaDuane]

Thanks everyone for the weather warnings. I definitely not taking my new baby on the route through the Rockies that I took to get here. I will be prudent to avoid any nasty storms. I have five days to get home so should be easy going. Delivery was fun. Love Heather and the crew. Got my Tecumseh brake controller mounted and working great. Pulled out of the garage without any mishaps. Cruised Hohenwald like a pro till I got hungry for Mexican at Rio Colorado. How do she look?

[Mike and Carol]

That looks great! Have a safe trip home. Mike

[John E Davies]

That is a great looking setup. but add a few ball bungees to secure those dangling electrical cables on TOP of the black box and on top of the tongue, so you don't collect a stick or something and damage them. Have fun.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[bugeyedriver]

Very pretty.  It may be the slope of the land, or the crookedness of my eye, but it appears the trailer has a slight rise and the front tires of your Audi are a bit unloaded.  Not horrendous looking, but combined, if these are true observations, you could have stability problems in adverse conditions.  Be cautious and conservative on your trip homeward.  Our thought for safety are with you on your journey home.  Enjoy the ride.

[DonnaDuane]

I hope you all are enjoying Thanksgiving. I’m in Grand Island Nebraska for lunch and fuel. I’ll be with my family via FaceTime a little later today. Here’s the latest on this adventure: While driving through Missouri coming and going, I saw more accidents and crazy driving than I’ve seen in the last few years in Oregon. Turns out Missouri drivers are the third worst in the country behind Florida and Arizona. Despite the Highway Patrol posting funny and not so funny signs along the freeways (ie. “Gobble gobble, easy on the throttle. Mashed potatoes, not your head. Don’t be a turkey, take it easy. 837 traffic deaths so far this year.). Audi and Oliver seem to be getting along well. 22mpg till I got to Nebraska. With the headwind here now getting 19.5.

[John E Davies]

You can count on reduced fuel economy. You are headed into 45 mph west winds tomorrow with up two feet of snow. Do you plan to hole up somewhere? Got chains? They might shut down the Interstate. Posted an hour ago:

 

A Major Winter Storm to impact western Wyoming for the holiday

weekend...

 

.A strong winter storm will impact western portions of Wyoming as

well as Sweetwater County Friday and Saturday. This storm is

expected to produce significant snowfall, especially Friday night

and Saturday morning.

 

...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM FRIDAY TO 11 AM MST

SATURDAY...

 

* WHAT...Heavy snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 9 to 22

inches expected. Winds gusting as high as 45 mph.

 

* WHERE...Teton and Gros Ventre Mountains and Salt River and

Wyoming Ranges.

 

* WHEN...From 11 AM Friday to 11 AM MST Saturday.

 

* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Travel could be very difficult to

impossible. Areas of blowing snow could significantly reduce

visibility. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning or

evening commute including Teton and Togwotee Pass.

 

 

Good luck. Stay warm. Take lots of pictures.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[DonnaDuane]

Hello Ollie’s. I hope you’ll all be relieved to hear I arrived safely back in Portland last night around 9pm. Picking up the Ollie has definitely been an exciting adventure. Despite the challenges of being terrified by Missouri drivers, a Google Maps goose chase through Kansas City (interstate under construction), 10 miles of snow packed road and blowing snow between Cheyenne and Rawlins, WY, and fog so thick crossing the Wallowa’s of Oregon I had to slow to 10mph for 20 miles, I made it home safely. I was very fortunate to stay just ahead of kind of Winter storms that shut down the freeway for days. Signs in Wyoming warned of 60mph winds and heavy snowfall coming Friday morning. Because of that, I drove into the night to get to a warmer gentler place. I intended to sleep in Rock Springs but realized that would not get me out of its way, so continued to Evanstan, Wy. Thinking I was safe there, I pulled into a Walmart, called my wife. When I walked out, it was snowing5 hours before it was supposed to LOL. So, back in the car, I drove on to a rest stop down the hill to a rest stop just outside Ogden UT. I must say, I love sleeping in the Ollie. Despite being along side a freeway, it’s pretty quiet and very cozy and comfy. Hit the sack at midnight, slept like a log for 8 hours (right through a dozen semis leaving before I awoke), then made my way to Ogden for a yummy breakfast at Criddle’s Cafe. The drive from Ogden to Oregon border was easy. But, this is where driving took a lot more focus. Although the roads were always free of snow, it was either snowing or raining hard, with occasional high winds, from here to Portland. The worst part was the last 20 miles coming out of the mountains down to Pendleton,OR. The fog as so thick on the ground I had to slow to 10mph to see the lane line. The other lane wasn’t visible and there were no other vehicles to follow. Finally getting below the fog was a relief and made the final stretch into Portland seem easy. All in all, the Ollie and Audi performed amazingly well. Without an Anderson system, there was never any sway. Even when trucks passed or winds blew, there was barely any movement noticed. Having the Tecumseh RF Brake Controller definitely left me quite confident in the vehicle/trailer braking abilities on any road surface. Now it’s time to find a car wash to spruce my babies up.

[topgun2]

Welcome home - glad to hear that you made it safely.  Now - all those Holiday presents for your new baby!

 

Bill

[DavePhelps]

Glad you made it back safe and sound!

 

Sounds like quite an adventure. We had a similar drive back from Red Rock Lakes NWR two For ago... Being chased by a major early Winter storm. The Oliver sure was/is a cozy shelter to retreat to when the weather gets ugly. And they do tow like a dream. Glad you made it home safely.

 

Dave

[DavePhelps]

That is "two Falls ago"... Damn auto spelling.

[bugeyedriver]

That does sound like quite an exciting adventure.  Thanks for keeping the Ollie family informed on your progress.  We are glad you have made it home safely.  Did you have any time to take pictures of your rig in the snow?  Enjoy camping in your special rolling palace as you attend your skiing events this winter.

[DonnaDuane]

Thank you Pete. Will definitely post more pics of our new baby in our various locales. BTW how do you get 110ac when boondocking? I thought the inverter provided that automatically. Is there a switch?

 

Are the outside running lights supposed to stay on dimly all night?

 

First beginner mistake: sprayed water at frig vent while at the car wash. Mop up job wasn’t too difficult thankfully.

 

First big accomplishment: backed it into storage area and parking spot all by my lonesome. It was great practice backing into a camping slot. Love the backup camera.

[ScottyGS]

If your running lights are on dimly check for moisture or condensation in the pigtail.  Where you plug into your Audi. Moisture will make a connection that keeps the lights on

 

Scotty

[Mike and Carol]

Your inverter should have an on/off switch somewhere. Keep it off until you need to use it. Glad you make it back safely! Mike

[ScubaRx]

Duane, I am relieved you're at home although reading your account of the last part of the trip wore me out!!!

 

Now the fun really begins.