Hi All, We just got back from the Rhodedendron Rally in Florence Oregon, hosted by the Oregon Unit and the Western Oregon unit. It was the first trip out with the
Caravel. Boy did we have a great time!
First off, the
Caravel towed behind the van like a dream. We were nervous at first, but after we had a few semi's blow by us, we realized it wasn't going to give us any trouble. Even fast semis (bus-type motorhomes were the worst) only gave us alittle push, nothing scary at all. We got to drive on both the freeway and on two lane highways. Once we got used to it, and got the brake controller adjusted just right, it was like we were just driving the van by itself.
We stayed at the Oddfellows Park in Florence. There were about 20 AS there. Our spot was tucked away under shady pine trees. It was super nice. The friendly 'streamers around us quickly sensed we were new and came over to help us figure out how to hook up for the first time. We ended up parked next to a couple from Ridgefield, WA - about 10 minutes away from our home in Battle Ground. Funny we had to go five hours away to meet neighbors!
Everyone there was great. The previous owners of our
Caravel were there. We asked them a bunch of questions we'd come up with about the trailer since we took it home, and he went over some stuff with me again. All the other folks were friendly, had lots of tips. We all had a bunch of meals together and there was lots of time to mingle and hear people's stories. We also went on a tour of a coast guard station and got to walk onto one of those boats they have that can completely roll over and then right itself again.
Our only problem was we had trouble hooking up the water hose to city water because it didn't seem to thread on tight, so I took it off and used the tank instead. Then later the tank was empty, and we realized we had a leak. The water pump had been pumping the water back out of the city water inlet because I hadn't got the cap screwed back on tight and the one way valve wasn't working to stop it. Luckily it only flooded a small area in the side compartment. Everyone was very sympathetic and regaled us with stories of the time they had flooded thier trailers, including one gentleman who flooded his with margarita mix. They said everyone floods their trailer sometime :-)
So now we're home. Everything went so good, we slept like a baby on the pull out bed. The dogs were well behaved (we took both of them, the eskimo and the dalmatian puppy) and didn't destroy anything when they had to stay in the trailer alone. We even figured out how to take showers without flooding the trailer again. After spending four days in it, the trailer didn't seem as small as when we had started. I think it's just right, and we can't wait to take it out again.