Update: Yellowstone's Iconic White Bus Lives On -- 9/19/19

Let's face it: I'm a gearhead. As such, I would be remiss if we had visited Yellowstone (which we did) but did not reflect on the classic White park tour bus used for so many years at the park.



We encountered this example, Number 433, in the parking lot at Yellowstone's Canyon Village, and I couldn't resist getting as...

Update: Thoughts on Winnebago's Purchase of Newmar -- 9/17/19

(NOTE: I originally posted this on the RV Geeks website as well as IRV2 Newmar Owners Forum in response to a question from a potential buyer of a new Newmar, now that the company has been sold to Winnebago.)



According to early news reports, Newmar will continue to operate as an independent brand under the Winnebago...

Blog #5
REALITY RVING

PACKED LIKE SARDINES
So I met my current companion/boyfriend (Bob) in March, 2016, one year after I started RVing. He was brand new to the world of RVing and I finally convinced him to go with me on a 4 day camping trip (with electric and water hookup) at a local county park. I think he was bewildered with the whole RVing thing as he stood by and watched me hook up and then drive the RV to the pull-through site.
Bob is a strapping 6’ man...

Update: Mt Rushmore & the Black Hills -- 9/12/19

We just finished spending several days in the heart of the Black Hills of South Dakota, camped in the shadow of Mt Rushmore.



If you've never been to this part of the world, you are definitely in for a treat. The scenery is epic, and there's a lot to do; so much so, I think we hardly scratched the surface.

It...

Update: Sioux Falls - Stroll, Shop, Sup -- 9/8/19

Downtown Sioux Falls did not disappoint - it is definitely worth your time to visit.



Most of what you can see, buy or eat is located on (or adjoins) Phillips Avenue, so that's where you want to head. Most of the shops open at 10 AM and the restaurants at 11 AM. If you get there early enough, metered street parking will be available...

Update: Sioux Falls, SD -- 9/7/19

We're staying a couple nights at the Big Sioux Recreation Area outside of Sioux Falls.



This medium-sized campground hugs the Big Sioux River, and it is extremely well kept. Sites come with power only (50A) and are huge - the perfect place to spend a couple of days.

I think Site E-28 across from us (shown below) might be the nicest...

Update: Waterloo, IA -- 9/6/19

We spent the night at Deerwood Park Campground, just off I-380 in Evansdale, IA.



Deerwood Park is a large, clean, seasonal campground with a good offering over overnight spots - no reservations. There's also a Walmart right across the river in Waterloo if you need to do some shopping.

All the sites at Deerwood Park are back-in and...

Update: Road Trip -- 9/5/19

Today we pull the NewAire out of storage and embark on a Road Trip to Yellowstone National Park.



We'll keep you posted on our adventures.




TomAndPeg

For those of us who own the 2000-2003 Fleetwood Expedition with the following setup, I offer first hand experience, ideas, options and possibly advice:


XC Chassis
5.9L ISB Turbodiesel
3000 Series Allison 6-Speed
30 Amp Shoreline Connect
Onan 7.5K Generator

OEM Waterheater – The Dometic waterheater that comes with the 34W is extremely inefficient. It uses LPG at a ridiculous rate, and the offgassing temperature is hot enough...

RV Projects: Wet Bath Flooring -- 8/5/19

We have a molded fiberglass step-down wet bath in our NewAire. Some may think a wet bath is a compromise (we certainly did), but it's a pragmatic solution that fits the original NewAire constraints on overall size and space.



The bath came with a fitted carpet section that is comfortable to walk on, but pulling the carpet out when we use...

RV Projects: Battery Bay Blues -- 7/29/2019

We recently had trouble starting the NewAire; turns out one of the pair of Interstate cranking batteries had a weak cell. A closer look showed that both batteries were 9 years old and in dire need of replacement.



So we shopped around and found a great deal on a couple group 31 commercial cranking batteries (1,000 CCA each) with a 2 year...

RV Projects: Clearing the (New)Aire -- 7/23/2019

One of the few things that we disliked about our original NewAire is the lack of proper ventilation and air movement. The rig only has 6 small windows and small powered vents in the bathroom and galley. Yes, there are three doors, but who wants to leave doors open?

What to do? Install a high capacity MaxxAir 7000K Roof Vent, of course.

...

Trip to Medina Highpoint.

We left last Thursday for a quick weekend to Medina Highpoint RV park in Medina, Texas. Medina is between Kerrville Texas and Bandera Texas smack in the middle of the Texas hill country. 1 hour west of Fredericksburg for the wine drinkers, 1 hours SW of San Antonio, 2 hours from Austin, 45 minutes off I10 from Kerrville.

Medina Highpoint is part of the Katherines Landing RV Park Group. We have stayed at the Katherines Landing in ARK and...

RV Projects: Repairing a One-Of-A-Kind Mirror -- 7/12/19

If you read my previous blog posts, you know our driver's mirror was damaged in our former storage yard by an unidentified culprit. (Culprit because whoever hit the mirror tried to cover their tracks, pushing the mirror back in place and pocketing the broken pieces, but they missed a small one.) Here's the damage I found:



...

As all good things must come to an end, on day five, we had to check out of our campsite by noon. I had everything packed up by 10am and all that was left to do was hitch up. Easier said than done! No matter what I tried, the coupler latch would not engage.
After sometime, I asked the next door RV camper if he could help me. The gentlemen tried over and over. While scratching his head, he stated that he had been RVing for years and had never seen a problem like this! While we both...