Summer's Bliss or Escape the Heat!

Since my last post a lot has transpired. We got well acquainted with our truck camper. Not having experienced an RV before we were pleasantly surprised with the luxury compared to sleeping on foam pads in the back of the pickup. This is living!

Our next weekend getaway consisted of driving about an hour north and west to Massacre Rocks State Park. We figured it would be a good plan to escape the heat of late June by camping in a campground that featured electrical power. This would allow us to bathe in air conditioning during the hottest parts of the day, especially since we have no such amenity at home. Yep, we have no a/c at the homestead.

Karren Chillin' with the view

The State Park had nice campsites with water and power, a two-way dump station, good views of the Snake River, and a visitor center with friendly staff. It also had a rather steep fee schedule -- it cost us around $95 for three nights! Lesson learned, huh? Anyway, the trip was pleasant and we learned more  details about how our camper worked and were able to somewhat disguise the fact we were newbies.

Massacre Rocks is about 30 minutes west of Pocatello, ID right off Interstate 86. Very convenient for travelers who can afford the cost of around $30 per night with hookups.

It was about this time that I began to plan how to integrate the ATV into our camping trips, so I did a shakedown cruise with the camper and trailer combo into the next valley from our house. We took a wonderful ride up to the saddle of Scout Mountain (about 7000 ft) and successfully deployed and retrieved the four wheeler. Ready for the next trip!

By this time July 4th was approaching and we decided to cash in some of my hard earned comp time for a ten day vacation. Where? Anywhere to escape the 90 plus degree temperatures. That meant altitude, and what better place to try than Meadow Lake Campground near Leadore, ID. It must be cool there because it is at 9500 feet! Right?... RIGHT!!! That place had just been plowed open four days prior to our arrival and the first night was 36 degrees! Testing out our heater was not really on my agenda for mid July, but we gave it a go anyway!

We ended up trying our hand at fishing the frigid waters of the lake with our new pontoon boats. While we did catch some beautiful trout (brookies and rainbows) we also found out the wind tunnel characteristics of our boats. "Come back Toto!" Further injury was incurred when we happened to drag our boats past the feeder stream for the lake, where a young teen had discovered he could simply snatch 14 inch brook trout from the riffles with minimal effort. Kind of made us look like complete idiots for struggling all day with the wind machine!

When we had had enough of the sub freezing night temps (26 must be a personal best/least
for July) we decided to break camp for a trip to gold country, the Yankee Fork region near Stanley, ID. Unfortunately there are no photographs of this part of the trip.

Driving north from Leadore to Salmon, ID is a beautiful drive on well maintained two lane highways.  We found Salmon to be a lovely small town with a bustling main street, perfect for a day or two of poking through the shops and restaurants. That would have to wait however, since it was our goal to get to Bayhorse Lakes Campground just past Challis.

Surprise! The steel bridge across the Salmon River was placarded with a warning sign that put the weight limit at 4500 lbs per axle. Being the rule followers that we are, we determined to bypass this bridge and find another locale. We succeeded in turning into the Yankee Fork area, where we proceeded all the way through Bonanza and Custer, old mining ghost towns, to Custer Campground Number 1. This was a fairly unused forest service CG with six sites and a perfectly modern and sanitary pit toilet. This place is a jewel -- rarely used, i.e. empty, and off the dirt road enough to avoid ATV dust, it is also far enough off the creek to harbor few bugs. And you can't beat $5 a night for a nice picnic table, fire ring, level wooded site and spotless toilet.

Anyway, the rest of the trip involves finding a club of friendly gold prospectors that invited us to camp with them. They took us to their dig, showed us how to pan effectively, and even let us eat their food! We were also just in time for "Custer Days!," a celebration of the ghost town's history that included a real live shootout. In this one the sheriff gets whacked! Super fun and nice folks. We spent the rest of the time running the mountain trails with the ATV. Love it!

July 30 After a brief hiatus at work our next trip found us running back to fish the trout at Mormon Bend. Again... Can't get enough of that place. Trout. Cool wading in gin clear current. I have video of Karren catching three fish on three successive casts. Pretty incredible. This is perhaps the nicest campground in the Stanley area. Quiet, paved road, water available, and killer fishing. What more could you want?

Aug 6 It was time to set our sights on somewhere completely different, but still mountains, so we headed out for Lake Cleveland CG about an hour south of Twin Falls, ID. Only two hours or so from our house I wanted to see if this could be a nearby retreat. Well it turns out it is... sort of.

Lake Cleveland is another high alpine campground that can take a night or two to adjust to if you are subject to high altitude problems like headaches or fatigue. Well that's me every time. Meadow Lake just about killed me the first night, but I only had mild symptoms at Cleveland. We were able to luck out and find a great site with only two left, so I was thankful. Turns out this place is a locals hangout and what a noisy bunch they are. No CG host means it is party central and the sites show some severe wear and tear. The scenery is breathtaking. The ATV took us to the fire tower observation area which is nicely paved to the top. There are numerous fire roads that run over the bald peaks but we spent our time trying to fish the lake. We didn't catch much, but what we caught were quality 'bows.

A flower found nowhere else, this is Chris' Paintbrush, just below the fire tower.

This is the more common Indian Paintbrush found almost everywhere else in Idaho

The last night, Saturday, was so noisy we left the following morning like our ass was on fire. Never again! On the way down the mountain we discovered a HUGE CG only a mile away that had just been renovated, had tidy, forested sites with modern pit toilets, and outclassed the run down sites at Lake Cleveland by a country mile. That's the next place to try when we get over that way.

August 21 We took a trip to Boise to get my hand operated on to relieve "Viking's Disease", properly called Dupuytren's Contracture. This meant another ten days off. So...

Sept. 4 Off to the Craters of the Moon Star Party. We love Craters. I don't know exactly why. Perhaps it is just the remoteness and desolation. Well we got there and it began to rain. No problem, we are totally self contained in our new camper. The next morning it rained. Still not a problem. But it was for the National Park Service. They cancelled the event, even though the night before I had abused the few tourists that did show up with facts and trivia about the night sky. At the end I had them eating out of my hand -- er -- at least I think they were. It was dark after all.

So the Park Service told us we could stay the entire weekend even though there was no official camping on the property. After all, it was Labor Day and the pickings would be slim for us to find a good spot at that late date somewhere else. So we ended    up     totally      alone. All the other folks left. It was sooooo peaceful there.

Lava for miles and miles. Imagine trying to drive an ox team and wagon over that stuff!

This brings me to the last adventure with the camper for the season. My sister Suzanne flew in from Maryland to visit and boy, were her arms... never mind. She had wanted to take a trip to Kalispell, Montana to visit a friend, and wanted me to drive us there. Sounded like a fun adventure to me as long as I get to take, wait for it..... THE CAMPER!!! So we set off for the Big Sky country and pulled a one day road trip to the outskirts of Glacier Nat'l Park. Judy and Jerry were gracious hosts but I mystified them by wanting to stay in the camper for the duration of the visit. Different strokes, right? Or just Truck Camper Love.

We did take a side trip to Glacier the last day we were there and drove the hair-raising "Going to the Sun Road." Glad I wasn't driving. Two hours up and two hours down of vertigo and terror. Add in a burgeoning snowstorm. Yuck! Very pretty though.

As far as western Montana being big sky, Idaho is bigger I think. MT has some impressive mountains, no doubt. But there is something about the ones that just seem to leap out of the desert, like Mt. Borah. A return trip included a side trip to the Daly Mansion in Hamilton, MT, a stay at a Darby, MT RV park, and a night at the MacKay BLM campground, which is one of the nicest full featured CG's around, for only $9 a night. We paid half that because Suzanne had some old person's special pass (teehee).

So, the camper is winterized and being put to bed as the snow begins falling on the mountains around our house. Soon I will be plowing the roads dreaming of where we will spend the next summer in Idaho. Or Utah. Or....  The only limit is our imagination!

Sundogs in Stanley

So we packed up the gear in the camper and took off to Stanley, Idaho for the weekend. Last summer we fell in love with the Sawtooth Mountains and I thought it would be a great way to avoid the inevitable cell phone calls from work. Plus, I wanted to test the truck/camper combination on a fairly challenging high pass climb and knew Galena Summit was the highest around at more than 8000 feet. The forecast was calling for cold temps on Saturday night so I thought the crowds would be minimal
 and I was right, except for some crazy Sawtooth footrace.

After a fairly uneventful interstate drive we passed through the Hailey, Ketchum, SunValley area and began the ascent. My truck has had a lot of work done lately. It is a Ford 6.0 diesel and has had a tough time of it recently through no fault of its own. I had some bulletproofing done and there were parts dropped into intakes and pistons beat up -- it gets really ugly so I will spare you the grief. Suffice it to say that it is back in one piece and is in better running condition than ever.

This is the first overlook once you cross over the pass to the Stanley side. Note the snow on the peaks and the clouds. It was a warm day in Twin Falls (85 degrees) but two hours later we were in 65 degree weather. Throw me in the briar patch! Sorry for the obscene amount of pavement included in the shot.

The ride into the upper Salmon River valley is serene and bucolic. It is so green and placid, yet the Sawtooths show a ragged vista that competes for the mood of one's soul.

Having left later than planned we had a camping destination figured out and made tracks for it sans pics. More of those later. On to our rendezvous with Mormon Bend Campground.

This is just one of dozens of U.S. Forest Service campgrounds located along the Salmon. There are others that are much more popular, particularly at the larger lakes like Redfish, Petit, and Altura. Those are breathtakingly beautiful spots but have power boats and tons of huge fifth wheels. The inevitable loud music, boat motors, yelling parents and slamming car doors are also present so we opt to find other, more placid locations.

We found Mormon Bend last year while we were wading for trout. The campground is quiet and features good access to the river, even a nice boat/raft ramp. It is suitable to launch a river dory there. We slayed the trout there and were going to try again. The river had other ideas. There was too much snow melt and it was raging. Perfect for rafting but not good for wading unless you have a death wish.

This required a change in strategy so we found pleasure in spending our first dedicated outing with the new camper getting to know a bit more about her. First up was installing a couple of insect screens over the heater and fridge vents. I had found them on line for about half the price of a typical RV store and was itching to get them installed.

The fridge vents were a no brainer too. I read in the instructions for these appliances where they don't recommend screens like this, but after my many run-ins with mud daubers I opted for protection. With all the recent truck work done I have been crawling around underneath the F350 to verify that work was done to my satisfaction. In one of these forays I found the back side of one of my rear wheels was throwing gear oil. On closer inspection I found gear oil beginning to exit the front of the differential where the drive shaft enters. NOT GOOD! I was dreading the aspect of having to tear down my axles and install new seals. Enter the Ford Enthusiast's website, knowledge base for all things Ford. One of the folks suggested that I verify the axle vent tube was not blocked before jumping off the cliff.

He was right!!! The daubers had plugged up the vent causing the lube to push out past the seals. With the weight of the new camper on a long trip home from Boise it all made sense. Some brake lube to clean it all up and get it dry was all it took to get it into a state where I can watch it closer. So far no leakage. But I digress...

Back to Mormon Bend. See how close this site is too the river? The bank became the location where the Admiral and I watched a dozen or more western tanagers intercepting moths over the rushing water. Fascinating. Also saw mergansers, geese with goslings, and other species of fowl as yet unidentified.

Yes! This is the kind of experience middle aged fat people crave! An excellent camping vehicle, lots of provisions, and a setting that rivals any other travel mecca! I have no more camper envy!

Of course there was still more camper features to explore. Yes, Carl at the RV dealership did go through and explain how to deploy the rear awning but were we listening? NOOO! We were still star struck camper maniacs totally distracted from any practical learning about how things actually work. But we finally did manage to figure out how the awning was intended to work without breaking any of the myriad plastic parts that beg to be destroyed. It is actually a fairly robust feature but could lend itself to some buffoon breaking something if not careful. Like me.

While I don't see us using this awning all the time it will come in handy to cut the heat from intruding into the rear door, not to mention the infrequent rain squall. It seems to be sturdy enough to weather some mild gusts, but I must be careful. This is Idaho after all.


Our one day escape had elapsed and the trip home began after a heavy frost on Sunday morning. I guess the temperature was near 28-32 degrees, so I was paranoid and ran the heat a bit around 3AM. We suffered no ill effects and after a hearty breakfast proceeded to the ranger station at Stanley, where I knew there was a dump station. What!!! Five bucks? It was free last year when we dumped our little porta-pottie! Pretty soon we are going to have to pay the government for the privilege of breathing air. However the view from the dump station is pretty phenomenal. Tetons, eat your heart out... no tourist crowds here... yet.

On our way out of Stanley proper I was instructed, "Quick, pull over! You've got to see this!" I figured there was a tribe of nude hippies bathing in the river but it turned out to be something even better. A sundog! Man, this was one of the brightest and biggest sundogs I've ever seen. Of course the Admiral finds even the rainbows on cereal boxes wonderful so she was really jazzed. It takes a really bright one to show up on an iPhone camera.

You know, there are all kinds of awesome mountain ranges in central Idaho. We chose to exit the Sawtooths to the east and travel down the Magic Valley from Challis to McKay (pronounced mackee). This would take us down the Salmon through its rocky gorge and up into the highlands of some really tall stuff. The highest point in Idaho, Mt. Borah (12,000 feet plus) is easily spied from the roadway and even has its own interpretive sign. These pictures do not do it justice. For those who are motivated, (ahem) younger, and have not lost their elasticity the summit is but a 6 hour hike and is rather easily accessible. Some rock scrambling is involved and it is not for the faint of heart. Just google the name and watch the videos of folks that have done it.

Alas it was time to boogie home and feed the water to the garden. We still immensely enjoy the travel through Arco and out onto the high desert where the antelope and lava rocks play. That journey is a good place for the Admiral to get a nap and for me to breathe in the fresh radioactive air from the Idaho National Labs. There is a tour of an early reactor there that we will have to visit one day, but we never seem to make time. Craters of the Moon or the Sawtooths are too powerful of an attraction.

Hope you enjoyed the travelogue and hope to post another soon. This new TC is just the ticket to get my writing off to a great start. Toodle-ooo!

Inside the Outside Pt. 2

This contraption is high on the driver side wall near the rear corner. It is the vent for the kitchen cooktop hood fan. Yep, we used it last weekend and I was unimpressed. But wait! See the little tab that has been rotated over the flapper to keep it from opening during storage and transport? No wonder the fan didn't suck! We'll need to remember to disable those tabs when we use the camper from now on.

Near the front driver's side corner on the front wall is the plug for the truck wiring . I was not familiar at all with this style plug and was glad I had the pigtail provided. I wouldn't have known which connector to choose or which pin did what.

The usual furnace vents. Ho hum...

The refrigerator vent panel. I haven't got a clue as to what is behind it but I can't find the tool to open it either. Maybe it's in the kit of instructions.

This is the pass-through from under the refrigerator into the truck bed. We use it for extra storage of water and other cargo that is weather proof. It doesn't seal very well and seems to be a weakness in the four season concept. I will need to put some better weather stripping around it. And how about a paint finish that's a bit more resistant to moisture?!! Just because it's the inside of an interior door doesn't mean it won't get wet.

Note the gas line that enters the camper using the same corrugated plastic. I need to seal that hole as well. Mice in the camper would be a crisis of huge proportions.

This is the top view.  Nine penetrations if you count the entire roof rack as one. There is a nice plug for solar just behind the bath skylight. Everything is caulked and sealed. It actually looks like a professional did it and did it well. With my luck it will be the TV antenna (not used ever) that leaks first. There is no justice in this life.

Detail of the front panel/rubber top transition and the rain spout. There is a spout on each corner. Seems like they will be the first casualty if we get too close to a tree branch. They do work very well and I will be mad if anything happens to one. I hope the Admiral is careful when she goes on her trip to see her friend in a month or so.

So that is the outside except for the rear wall. I'll get to that next. There are some places that I feel could use a touch up of sealant so I need to order some -- not sure what product to use yet. I really like the 3M products I use to use when we were boating (4200 and 5200). Until then, keep on truckin'.

Inside the Outside

In this post we will take a very close look at the 840's outside covering and features. Also, we will try to find anything at all to pick at -- hey, I told you we would be turning a critical eye on things! Some would say that I am obsessed with this thing but I just view it as an in-depth look at the state of the Wolf Creek's Evolution. I promise to have enough photos to make it meaningful.

Above is the fresh water fill. This orifice accepts a narrow diameter water hose for filling the fresh water storage tank. Since it is narrow it is designed with a vent immediately next to it so that it won't pressurize the tank and expand it, possibly damaging surrounding structures. Be sure to fill slowly and allow the port to "breathe." You can fill until the water exits the vent. It has a lockable cover.

This is the shore power hook-up for 120 volt power. It is a twist lock connector and has three conductors. It is rated for 30 amps and Northwood provides a 20 foot, heavy gauge cord with the camper. This will power the interior and exterior outlets, air conditioner and microwave, along with providing power to the 12 volt converter. Note that the interior 120v outlets, A/C, and MW do not work off the 12v system by itself. This is also a way to continually keep the battery system maintained when not in use. I keep it plugged in at home.

The 840 has two 20 lb. tanks stored upright in their own compartment. It is vented to the outside and has an unlockable door. This is code I believe. They are regular tanks that can be replaced or filled at any convenient location. No weird tanks that have to be certified or filled by special dealers. The door is about 2/3 insulated and there appears to plenty of room to extract the tanks.

This is the propane control valve that switches the tanks automatically when one is emptied. I still haven't figured out how to read it properly. The compartment is sealed from the interior and is pretty simple.

Our camper came with one battery located in an outside accessible compartment. It is a box that is sealed off from the interior also. There is room to fit two batteries and I will be sticking another one in there asap. The compartment also has two wires that are part of the pre-wired solar panel hook up. The dealer made me a jumper for a second battery for free. Not sure I want to keep this lead acid battery but we'll see. Would rather have a matched pair of 6 volt deep cycles. This box has a vented door that locks.

This is the control interface and venting for the hot water heater. There is a drain at the bottom, a gas jet, and an electrical control too. This thing will work on either gas or shore power. If you are getting your camper out for the first time or just after filling the water, flip the pop off valve a bit to make sure it is full of water before heating or you may burn the element out. In order to use the electric side there is a switch at the lower left corner that must be turned on for it to work. Be sure to open the interior bypass valve too. It's under the sink. Basic stuff for any RV'er but it was all new to me!

The "City Water" connection. It is where you can hook up a hose that already has water pressure from the campground or wherever. There is a check valve to prevent water from going into the fresh water tank but you also need to get a pressure regulator from an RV dealer to prevent weird high pressures form somewhere else from blowing out your camper's pipes. Why they don't just incorporate one into the design or furnish one is beyond me. They are really cheap at less than $10 if you shop smart.

Be careful attaching your hose. The plastic fitting feels robust but could easily get cross threaded.

Satellite and other video hook ups. Nuff said.

The gray and black water drain is located under the driver side rear apron and has an access door for it from the camper rear wall. Great placement and easy to deal with. Works well and is sealed up tight.

Above the septic drain I found this wire harness that leads over to the right rear tail light assembly. As it makes the turn at the top there are a couple of wires that divert into the camper and the opening is not sealed. This is a place where water and debris from the tires is kicked up so I am suprised this was ignored. I will fix!

There are about three places on the underside of the camper where there are penetrations that are covered by this plastic corrugated material. They are not always sealed. I will fix these too. This one is the gas line starboard amidships.

This is the outside shower port. Has its own door and must have the included hose and sprayer connected before use. Pretty neat -- you either love 'em or hate 'em.

This is a shot of the side where the previous pics were taken. You might be able to pick out all the openings from this angle.

So that is all I have time for right now. More pics have been taken and more critique to follow so stay tuned to the obsessive TC channel! TTFN...

Sewage Junky?

Yes, it is fascinating to work your own portable septic system. I have memories of Dad working in the back yard trying to get the drainfield to take more water. It always seemed to happen over the holidays too. No, this type of camper doesn't need anything but a suitable receptacle occasionally to be perfectly happy.

The sewer hose is typically found inside an RV's bumper, and we do have the space there allotted for it. However The Wolf Creek has another tube mounted outside the camper just above the truck bed for another hose. Here's a pic:

This was a stroke of genius in my opinion. What can we do with the other storage spot? Well fishing rods of course! The bumper tray even has a slide out tray to hold other items. It's also locked, which is a good thing for expensive rods.