A new RV, A new blog

It's been some time since I've written and that's because of two reasons; one, we've only gone to Northern California to visit and help our kids and that gets to be boring if that's all I'm writing about. The other reason is that we've been re-evaluating where we are at this point in our life and what we want to do. 

After a lot of discussions we decided to upgrade to a Class A 2006 Holiday Rambler Admiral and take to the roads as full time Rv'ers.  Yep, we're making the big move and selling our house, storing our treasured items and selling everything else.  It was a big decision but one I've been thinking about for awhile so one day on our way home from a trip to California (again) I said to my husband "you know, I think I could live in an RV full time, how about you?"  Well this took him by surprised and he thought about it but decided he was game.

Since I'm going to have a lot of time on my hands and that means more time to write in my blog I decided to really research this topic and after doing so I've decided to continue my blog on Wordpress.  My new blog is a continuation of this one only it's now titled Living Our Life On Wheels and can be found at www.livingourlifeonwheels.com.  I couldnt continue Starflyte Adventures, although I love the name, for the obvious reason that we no longer have the Starflyte.

I hope you have enjoyed this blog and will jump over to my new blog. So until next time. . .

"Adventure is out there"

On to Sitgreaves

We left Monument Valley on to Apache-Sitgreaves National Forrest via hwy 191, 40, old route 66 and 260.  It is a 2.76-million-acre U.S. National Forrest which runs along the Mogollon Rim and the White Mountains in east-central Arizona and extending into New Mexico. The drive was nice with many, many miles of nothing and then something interesting pops up.  For example, in the city of Holbrook, out of the corner of our eye we see a dinosaur!  Just standing on the street corner minding it's business and then another and then a bunch of them!  That was pretty exciting for me after driving miles & miles watching vast amounts of open land.  

Just standing there looking at the traffic

Dinosaur coming out from behind the tree!

out from behind the tree

Dinosaurs at the Rainbow Rock Shop

The Rainbow Rock Shop is home to 7 dinosaurs.  It took the owner 20 years to finish building them and they surely are a sight to see.  The shop has rocks and petrified wood for sale and "dinosaur" bones for tourists to look at.  You can also take pictures with the dinosaurs for .75 cents or do what I did and take pictures as you drive by or from across the street.  You can find more information on The Rainbow Rock Shop at http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/15815.

Rainbow Rock Shop

We also drove by the infamous Wigwam motel, aka Wigwam Villages.  This is a quirky roadside attraction where the rooms are built in the form of a tee-pee or wigwam that you can actually still stay in.  The Wigwam motel is a chain in the U.S. built during the 1930s and 1940s. It originally had seven different locations: two locations in Kentucky and one each in Alabama, Florida, Arizona, Louisiana and California.  There are only three locations remaining; Arizona, California and Kentucky and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

 

 

Along interstate 40 you will see a few dinosaurs randomly standing along the highway.  These dinosaurs were originally part of a 14 member group as an advertisement for a museum until it closed and most of the dinosaurs were auctioned off.  Eight of the original dinosaurs are now located at Jim Gray’s Petrified Wood Company south of Holbrook. 

We arrived in Heber just a few miles from Forest Lakes Campsite in the Sitgreaves National Forrest.  We fueled up and headed for camp.  

Welcome to Heber/Overgaard.  Why is Summit Healthcare bigger??? 

I almost missed the welcome sign.

We were greeted at the park entrance by two very nice ladies.  We showed them our America the Beautiful Senior Pass and paid $11 per night versus the regular $21.  We got our assigned campsite which was dry camping and close to the restrooms and entrance. There are some sites that have electric only but those need to be reserved in advance.  There is a general store about a mile from Forest Lakes that has everything you need for camping and RV's.  That is such a convenience if you forget or run out of something.

 

  It was so peaceful and relaxing we really enjoyed ourselves. We even made our first campfire!  The campsites have fire rings to build campfires but we didn't have any wood so we collected pine cones and needles.  We also found some down branches to add and it made a pretty good fire.  We sat at the fire until it was pretty much burned down which was about an hour.  Not bad for not having any wood to burn.


Next trip is set for California & Utah.  Until next time . . .

"Adventure is out there"

Monument Valley

We decided to take a short trip before heading to Kanab.  My husband searched around and decided on Monument Valley.  We headed out at 8 a.m. Sunday and by 3 p.m. we were at Goulding's Campground. 

Harry & Leone, aka Mike, came to Monument Valley in the early 1920's.  Harry & Leone were able to purchase a substantial plot of land when the Paiute Indian Reservation relocated.  In the beginning Harry & Leone lived in tents and traded crafted items in exchange for food and clothing.  Later Harry constructed a permanent building which houses the Goulding Trading Post Museum.  Harry and Leone went on to meet with John Ford who filmed many John Wayne movies such as "Stagecoach" and "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon".  They built a lodge and dining facility and continued to host photographers, artists and tourist. In 1981, the Lafont family bought the property and Harry passed away later that year.  Leone spent her final days in Monument Valley passing away in 1992.

If you ever have the chance, take a trip.  You'll be glad you did.

We stayed at Goulding's for 2 nights.  It's a great campground with views of Monument Valley and surrounding mountains.  They offer daily tours although a bit on the expensive side.  We decided to take the RV through the 17 mile scenic drive located in the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park.  The drive takes you around the Butte Monuments.  When we arrived at the entrance we were told that there would be a $20 entrance fee and no RV's are allowed to drive the 17 mile roads but we could park at the visitors center and take a tour.  Since we felt that tours were a little pricey for this trip and we couldn't take our dogs on the tour buses we decided to drive around to the places we could take the RV and our dogs.  We drove to the Mexican Hat Rock located in the Valley of the Gods north of Monument Valley.  It was a nice drive out but since we weren't in a 4-wheel drive vehicle we could only look from the paved road. 

We turned around and decided to go to Goulding's Lodge where they have a restaurant, gift shop, Trading Post Museum and John Wayne's Cabin; aka ‘Captain Nathan Brittles’ Cabin’,  is located just behind the museum.  In actuality, it was Mike (Leone) Goulding’s potato cellar, where she stored her fruits, vegetables, and other perishables.  When ‘She Wore a Yellow Ribbon’ was filmed there in 1949 by director John Ford, the structure was used for exterior shots only as the personal quarters for the Cavalry Post’s commanding officer, played by John Wayne. 

The gift shop was very nice.  They had lots of handmade crafts from various Indian tribes, pictures of the Monument Buttes and the usual tourist trinkets.

When we got back to camp we decided to make dinner and I'm proud to say that this time dinner was great!  I can honestly say that my husband has mastered the new barbecue.

Goulding's Campground is very peaceful and serene.  The facility is clean and the employees are friendly.  We really enjoyed our visit and will definitely be returning. Tomorrow it's on to Apache-Sitgreaves National Forrest.

Until then . . .

"Adventure is out there"

RV Repair - Round Two, or is it three?

We picked up our RV last Friday.  When they called to tell us it was ready they also told us that 2 hours prior the technician had trouble with the entry door and couldn't get it to open but he was able to fix it and that it would be the cost of the labor, which was $125.  No problem we thought.  We were just glad the problem happened while it was at the repair shop and not somewhere on the road. 

I followed my husband to the storage yard where we park the RV.  When I pulled up next to the RV after he had parked it I rolled down my window and asked him how it rode. He said it rode well, the braking seemed better.  He planned on going back to the yard the next day to wash it because it was pretty dirty from the rain & dust we had during the time it was at the repair shop.

As planned, my husband went to the yard to clean the RV and when he came home he was really upset.  The bathroom fan was still not right, the technician left greasy footprints on the carpet and rugs and greasy hand prints everywhere he touched.  During the stay at the repair shop our spot mirror on the driver's side mirror had fallen off and the technician tossed into the cup holder.  Now, we appreciate that he didn't throw it away but COME ON!!! How about using a little glue and re-attaching it!?  AND . . . the entry door won't open.  At this point my irritation meter is off the charts.  I wrote an email to the repair shop letting them know the condition of the RV and how I felt about it.  Since this was a Saturday I knew I wouldn't get a reply until Monday. 

On Monday I waited for a call but nothing. I waited until 1 p.m. and then I called.  I asked if they received me email, and as I expected, they didn't.  I told them we would be bringing back the RV that day because the entry door wasn't working. I didn't want to go into all the other things on the phone, I would wait until I was there in person.  I printed out the email that I sent them so that I could give them a copy when we arrived just to make sure they received it.  My husband usually lets me handle these types of situations because I'm pretty calm but can get my point across in a way that they know I'm irritated and expect the job to be completed the correct way.  I'm direct but not in a disrespectful way and not without my usual amount of sarcasm.  I told them that I'm irritated that I have to bring the RV back for the third time for the bathroom fan and the second time for the door and that I expected the repairs to be done in no more than 3 days.  Also, I wanted the grease cleaned and the spot mirror put on and if they needed me to bring them some Gorilla glue to do it I would. They laughed at the last part and said no problem they would have it done and off we went.

We picked up the RV today, one day sooner than I had asked.  They said they replaced the entire fan unit in the bathroom, repaired the door and glued on the spot mirror all at no charge.  They also shampooed the carpets (we cleaned the rugs at home).  I told them that I appreciated that they didn't charge us but couldn't help thinking to myself , "if you would have done that in the first place we wouldn't have needed to bring it back".  In any case, the RV is fixed!  or is it???  My husband still thinks the door is a little janky but I told him to wait and see how it goes during our next trip.

Buying a used RV, especially one that is 13 years old, we knew there would be things that come up that would need repair but we didn't expect to keep bringing back the RV for the same repairs.  Oh well, I hope that I won't be writing about this again.

Until the next time  . . .

"Adventure is out there"

RV repair blues

As I mentioned in my "California Here We come" blog we had some concerns about the RV refrigerator.  As it turns out the refrigerator worked just fine.  Maybe because we have the leveling down now?  I think that is the case.  Anyway, I'm glad we don't have to spend $2000 to get a new one, at least for now.

While we were on the road I received an email ad for the Good Sam Extended Service Plan and we decided to look into it.  A service plan has always been in the back of my mind because there are so many things to keep maintained on the RV, it's like a second home.  The Good Sam Extended Service Plan covers everything we have concerns with; the generator, appliances, the slide, chassis, power train\engine, suspension, plumbing, AC and more.  We made the call to Good Sam and after speaking with Jaime Carolina, the Insurance Representative, we decided to sign up.  So, for $136 a month we have some piece of mind.  Good thing because 2 days after signing up for the plan the grey water flange broke.  Not bad enough to where we couldn't use it but bad enough to worry us.  We also had a concern about the exhaust from the generator when the carbon monoxide alarm went off one night when we were running the generator.  We knew the exhaust was pretty rich but that scared us.  Oh, and remember me writing about the bathroom fan handle falling off and the fan blade falling low enough to hit the plastic casing?  Well, the RV repair shop said they fixed it by pushing up the fan motor and screwing on the handle tighter.  My husband thought that the vent cover wasn't closing all the way since the repair shop pushed up the fan motor and he was right. On our way home south of Salinas, CA in the town of Chualar we had to pull over to let the dogs out for a break.  It was real windy and as we got out guess what came flying off the top of the RV right onto the ground in front of us? The bathroom vent cover!  I couldn't believe it.  I took a picture of the bathroom vent with no cover and now the fan blade has fallen off and is lying on the screen of the vent.  I emailed it to the repair shop and then I called to let them know what happened.  They were really nice about it and said to bring the RV in and they would take care of it since it was their fault.  On our last day home my husband had a concern with vibration in the steering wheel so we added that to our list of repairs.

Bathroom fan blade fallen off motor

no vent cover

When we got home we took the RV in to have everything on our list looked at and it turns out that we need the front rotors turned and the wheel bearings repacked, $425.  While they were testing the generator for the exhaust issue it stopped running. The circuit board went out, $300+ labor.  Need to replace the grey water valve & flange, $400+ labor.  Everything is covered under the new service policy except the rotors and we have to pay a $500 deductible but that's still better than paying for everything.

Looking out from the refrigerator (bathroom right behind)

Looking from the cab.  Couch makes into a bed and so does the dinette but that's a little too small.

I always mention how little storage we have in the RV so I thought I'd add pictures of the inside. When I say that we always take storage into consideration now you can see why.  Not only is the storage limited inside we only have one storage compartment outside and it's 3' long by 1' wide! Thank goodness we have storage under one of the dinette seats. We use it for the leveling blocks, sewer hose cradle and a few other small items.  We don't have an oven but we have a NuWave oven that can bake, broil, barbecue, roast, grill, steam, sear, & air-fry.  It's a bit cumbersome because it's bulky for the space but it does the job. I'm looking for a smaller version of the NuWave called the NuWave Mini but I haven't found one yet because it's been discontinued.  I'm sure someone has one they don't use and want to sell.  I'll keep my eyes open for it.  If we don't use the NuWave we either use the stove or we barbecue on the space saver grill I told you about in the last blog.

   

bathroom close quarters

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bathroom with cabinet storage on the left and closet on the right

 I'm constantly reorganizing to utilize as much space as I can.  I think I just about have it perfected.





Our next trip is in a few weeks to Chico, California for a couple days then off to old highway 50 through Nevada to Kanab, UT.  We think that we may dry camp along the drive this way we aren't pressed to make it to an RV campground before they close but we will stay at a couple RV Parks too. We are calling this trip "Beat the Heat" because it's been 100+ every day here at home.

Until then . . .

"Adventure is out there"

"On to Indio"

We left Buellton 10:30am Friday on our way to Shadow Hills RV Resort.

It was a long drive and after we got through the L.A. basin we started seeing windmills everywhere along the highway.

   
I couldn't help but wonder if California is really benefiting from all of them.  To me, they are an eyesore and I'd much rather see solar panels for alternative energy.  Maybe because they don't take away from the landscape as much as the windmills.

When we arrived at Shadow Hills we were welcomed by a very nice lady who gave us fresh baked chocolate chip cookies, 2 packets of Crystal Light Pur lemonade (that was so good!), a list of the parks policies, a site map, a map of the area and an calendar of events.  There were a handful of RV's there that looked as though they are there all year but no one in them.  Maybe the owners pay by the month for that particular space until they come in the winter months, I'm not sure.  It was like a ghost town for us. Only a few trailers and RV's looked liked someone was in them.  We set-up the RV, ate dinner and called it a night.  We didn't site see while we were there since we arrived at 5:30 and really there wasn't much to see anyway but in the winter months Shadow Hills looks like this: 
We left Saturday morning and were right back in all the traffic.  We made a couple rest stop breaks and soda stops before getting back to the storage facility where we store our RV which was about 2pm.  I have to come up with a better/quicker way to take the fridge items, clothes, laundry, perishables from the RV to our house and vice versa.  It just seems like we have so many bags and boxes of items.  I know there is a better way!   We put everything into the car and left our Starflyte until the next trip.

We have to make another California trip next month but we make take a short 3 or 4 day trip before then.  I'll be sure to write about it.

Until then . . .

"Adventure is out there"