GrampaDennis

verjay - While I agree that a lot of sitting unused can be a bad thing on an older motorhome, I think that a 2010 unit is new enough that it shouldn't be a big factor. A lot of folks don't use their generator much. Probably either of these units would be a good choice. Based on what you said, and if the condition of the units wer equal, the rig with only 2000 miles, and at a significantly lower price, whould be my choice. Another thing to consider is how and where they were stored. If one were stored indoors in the off season, the roof, caulking and paint might be better.

Thanks for adding your story, verjay. You've got to watch those clearances!

Mike - Have you seen the photo, being shared around Facebook, of a groundhog peering over a sign that says "I'm a rodent, not a meteorologist!"? That says a lot about this silly tradition. With that said, more power to the folks of Punxsutawney, PA, who have managed to make quite an industry out of the whole spectacle. P. T. Barnum would be proud!

Today, Grandma and I visited our "Cottage on Wheels" in its winter storage, inside a warehouse of a former lumber yard. Due to some health issues now being evaluated, we have decided to forego our previously planned winter trip to Florida. Therefore, the MH will stay in storage until April sometime. When I parked it, on Nov 16, I used the "battery disconnect" switches, but did not physically disconnect the batteries. I was pleased to find that I had ample battery power today. The engine started right up, as if it had only been shut down for a day. The generator required about 3 tries, but it does that in the warmer weather, as well. I also turned on the propane at the tank, and on the inside switch, bled out the air at the cooktop, and started the furnace. Several boats had been angle parked along the path between our MH and the door. While they did leave just space enough for me to drive out, I decided against it. I would have had to carefully back in again, threading the needle between all the trailer tongues. I just opened the big doors fully, to provide ventilation while we ran our engine and generator. Everything looked to be in good shape, with no harm or vandalism during storage even though I had neglected to lock the driver's door. After running long enough to bring the engine temp gauge halfway up (and dash heat coming), I shut it down again. I ran the generator long enough that the oil filter felt warm, but not hot. I know some folks would say I didn't run either engine long enough to really drive the vapor out of the oil. However, I didn't want to waste too much gas, and didn't want to run it too long inside (even though we were in a large building with a huge door open). I think I ran long enough to gain on the state of charge in the batteries. I shut off the propane (with the switch and the valve on the tank), used the battery disconnect switches, and locked both doors this time. I look forward to getting the MH out in the Spring, and installing the neww Bilstein shocks we bought for it.

Today, I parked our "Cottage on Wheels" in its winter storage spot. It will be dry and out of the weather - see photo. A former lumber yard in our area has converted some of their buildings to storage, and advertised locally this fall. After confirming that they could accommodate a 32' Class A, and that it could be parked such that we could take it out for a planned winter excursion (more on this below), we sent a deposit. We also checked with others who store a MH, and found that the price was about right. A few weeks ago, as our Maine weather started to dip below freezing, I winterized the coach. I'm not totally new to this. We've had trailers before. One frustration was that this rig has not had a water heater bypass installed. I would have put one in before winterizing, but the water heater plumbing is not very accessible on this rig. I thought of a scheme where I could pump anti-freeze in the hot side first, then drain and recover some from the water heater, reusing it in the cold side. When I looked things over, i found that the gas plumbing runs in front of the water heater drain in such a way that it would be difficult to rig a drain extension hose, or even a funnel, to catch the pink stuff. So, I just put in more RV anti-freeze and filled the whole thing. Using the leveling jacks, I tipped the coach up so that the inlet from the water tank was definitely the low point. That allowed me to pump from a small quantity of anti-freeze in the water tank, without sucking air. After I had confirmed how much I needed, I went back to Wal-mart and bought enough more RV anti-freeze to re-winterize on the way back from our winter trip to Florida. That way, I won't have to be searching for it on the way. Wal-mart sells an off-brand RV anti-freeze for $2.97 par gallon, and Prestone brand for $4.97 a gallon. Given that I use quite a bit of the stuff, and I'm just going to throw it away anyhow, I buy the cheaper brand. Both claim they're good to -50 F. When I got to the old lumber yard/storage place, I had a few minutes to snoop around while the proprietor was waiting on another customer. I didn't like the looks of some of the buildings, and some of the doors did not look wide enough or tall enough. I was very pleased when it was my turn, and the man led me to one of the newer buildings with a huge door and a nice concrete floor. Honoring our request, he had saved a spot for me where I can drive right out. On the way home, Grandma commented that we could store the MH for more than 10 years for what it would cost to build a shed for it on our property. She's right, though I do like the thought of having my own storage, with at least an electrical hookup. As a compromise step, I may someday make a nice level parking space next to our garden shed, then run electricity to the shed, with an outlet for the coach. In mid to late January, we'll pull the MH out of storage and take it to a shop about 25 miles from here that does truck alignments and suspension work. I have already checked with them to confirm that I can have them install the new Bilstein shocks that I have purchased, while I have it in to them for an alignment. I'll have them do a chassis lube as well. I did an oil and filter change myself, less than 200 miles ago. I also have a steering stabilizer on backorder, which will be installed at the same time. My part-time work slows up in the winter, so it's a good time to take off. We are going from Maine to Florida, where we plan to spend about a month. We haven't nailed down our departure date. It will depend somewhat on the weather, but will be at the end of January or the first part of February. I have to be back for some work-related training in the last week of March. Later, I'll post about the Florida trip, and perhaps about how our chassis handling improvements worked out.

In early September, we got a "Welcome to FMCA" letter from the Maine Wheels chapter, inviting us to join the chapter and to attend their rallies. They meet once a month,from May through October. We had another commitment on the weekend of the September meet, so we decided to join and attend the October rally. The Maine Wheels met at the Pumpkin Patch RV Resort in Hermon, Maine (near Bangor) on October 11-14. We drove there on Friday evening. This is the first time I have set up the motorhome on a campsite after dark. It turned out to be no problem. The staff led me to the site with a golf cart. The site was a pull-through and was almost perfectly level. Our coach has lights in the lower compartments, which were very handy for hooking up. I almost didn't need to use a flashlight. Another first - this place had cable TV at the sites. I had thrown in a piece of coax for just such an occasion. Soon, we had the TV's set up to receive the cable channels. After setting up, we went for a walk and found the Maine Wheels group at the meeting hall. They were very welcoming. They had already put their food away, but got out some cake, ice cream and cider for us. They had a "Yankee Swap" gift exchange, which we watched as we started to get to know people there. Soon, we discovered that the Membership Secretary grew up in the same very small town that I grew up in. We both had the same first school teacher. She knew some of my relatives and I knew some of hers. Because she was a little older, and her immediate family moved away, I didn't know her while growing up. The Maine Wheels had two seating times reserved for breakfast on Saturday morning at the adjoining restaurant. We joined the later group and enjoyed our conversation with a nice family from Moncton, New Brunswick, who are members of the Perfect Circle chapter. I think there were 2 or 3 coaches attending from Perfect Circle. After breakfast, several of us carpooled to a Civil War museum in Bangor, where we had a very nice guided tour. We learned a lot about the sorry state of the medical care that the wounded soldiers received. If you were shot, and still had a bullet in you, your chances were far better if you left it there. Surgery almost always resulted in infections, which were too often fatal. We decided to rest on Saturday afternoon, rather than partake in the group activity. However, Grandma prepared a batch of chili, which we brought to the pot luck supper. After the supper, Maine Weels had a business meeting, during which they finished settling the details of the 2014 schedule. The Maine Wheels had a breakfast on Sunday morning, which we skipped because we entertained a guest for breakfast in our coach. One of my old friends, who was also a college roommate, lives in Bangor. The time that fit his schedule for a visit was Sunday morning. We did manage to say goodbye to a few of our new friends before we left for home on Sunday. We may not make all of the Maine Wheels events next year, but we'll take in some of them. They are a good group of folks. If you, like us, are not sure you care to attend the big FMCA rallies, you might give a local chapter a try. Maine Wheels is quite low-key. It's just a bunch of folks who enjoy their motorhomes, and enjoy getting together.

Before our fall foliage trip, Grandma had heard from friends about a road to scenic lookout near Rangeley. She had heard it was a gravel road, but in good condition, and that the view was spectacular. She said it was "Quinn Road on Route 17." Well, Grandma is a bit dyslexic sometimes. It turned out to be Quill Hill and it was on Route 16, between Rangeley and Stratton. When we found the sign, the gravel road off Route 16 looked a little steep, but was well graded. I decided to try it. It turns out that some of the landowners and contractors in the area improved a route along previously existing logging roads, to create access to the top of Quill Hill, which some might call a small mountain. The story is that there was no government money involved. There was no toll, either. How about that? If Obama visited, he would probably tell them "You didn't build that." As we went along, there were signs saying "12 minutes to the top," 9 minutes to the top," etc. The middle part of the route wasn't too steep. When we got to the steeper part, we had already gone most of the way. At that point, I was reluctant to turn around. The road was just wide enough in most places to meet opposing traffic, if both drivers were careful. On the last of it, you had to pick your spot to pull over as far as you could when meeting someone. Near the top, there was an area where the road split into two one-way paths. At the very top, there was a one-way loop around, and plenty of parking. This was a near-perfect day and lots of folks were going up there. However, we were the only crazies doing it in a Class A Motorhome! The Southwind, with its Chevy 454 engine, made the climb OK, but the climb is not the only problem. Once you get up this hill, you've got to descend it! The view was all we expected and more! See the photos. You could see miles and miles in all directions. When we started down, I kept it in low gear and still had to use the brakes. A little farther down the hill, I could go in 2nd without using the brakes all the time. In the middle, more gentle, area, I got it up into 3rd. When we went down the last pitch to Route 16, it was back to 1st gear with brakes again. As I turned on to Route 16, I smelled my hot brakes! Fortunately the route from there to Stratton was gentle. I drove that stretch without touching the brakes, keeping my speed low and downshifting when coming into curves. I stopped at a rest area just north of Stratton, got out an sniffed the brakes. They were no longer hot. Should I have driven the motorhome up that little mountain? The answer is NO. I shouldn't have. I got away with it, with no harm done, but I wouldn't try it again. This experience helped me to understand and respect the limits of my motor coach. From now on, I'll be looking for other transportation when I want to do any motorized mountain climbing. We don't yet tow a car with our motorhome, but it would have been handy to leave the coach at the foot of the hill and go up with the "towed" vehicle. How about you? Have you driven your coach any places you shouldn't have?