The Last Hurrah …

It’s that time of year in Colorado that one needs to think of winterizing your motorhome. But wait! We had only gone camping one time this year and that’s not fair – so we decided to go one last time before the winterization process began.

Last Saturday we loaded up and headed up the Poudre Canyon to Jack’s Gulch Campground. We had never been there before, but friends, Ann and Gary, told us that it was really nice, so we thought we would give it a try. We camped in the Yarrow Loop without electricity for $18 a night.  Being the end of the season, there were very few campers so we had our pick of sites.

Usually we look for shaded spots, but Tobey wanted to test out his new solar panel so he wanted a sunny spot. We had a hard time finding  one. Most of the sites were fairly level and lots of trees!  We ended up with one that got partial afternoon sun. There is also a nice trail – about a mile - that circles the campground with good views.

http://campincolorado.com/federal/arapaho_roosevelt_nf/jacks_gulch/jacks_gulch.html 

On Sunday, Ann & Gary came up and spent the day with us. After breakfast we drove up the Pinegree Park Road and turned off at Twin Lakes to hike to a 1943 B-17 crash site. The hike is about 4 miles round trip and has about 1000 foot elevation gain! We traveled through beautiful forest areas and noticed the aspen trees are beginning to turn golden yellow.

When we popped out of the trees we were at the crash site. It is amazing to see – 4 engines, the landing gear, and large chunks of the fuselage still there almost 67 years later. On October 18, 1943, just below timberline the B-17 crashed into Stormy Peaks. The night training mission, which originated in Rapid City, S.D., ended in a fiery crash when the plane failed to clear the l2,148 foot mountain peak. There is conflicting information about how many of the crew died – from 4 to 8. At least 4 survived – two hiked out and got rides back to the Fort Collins area to telephone for help.

We did take time to look out at the view from the site – it was amazing! It was a clear day and you can see all the way to Wyoming!

Going down was much easier than the hike up. Penny was one tired dog when we got back to Gary’s truck since she hiked at least 2 miles farther than the rest of us as she raced up the trail and back to make sure we were coming!

After two nights at Jack’s Gulch we weren’t quite ready to head back to town so we decided move to the national forest which borders the camp. We had a beautiful spot with lots of sun to generate electricity (and it was free)! Tobey was happy! 

On Monday, the weather was great so we hiked up Old Flowers Road and took the Beaver Creek Trail down and back. It was a MUCH easier hike than the crash hike – and with the promise of water at the end of it, Penny was a happy dog!

We crossed the creek and hiked another half mile or so when the trail ended – at least the trail we were on! Even though Tobey thought we could bushwhack our way back to camp, he agreed to turn around and retrace our steps back to our camper. This hike was about 4 miles round trip.

So now we’re back home and the winterization is almost finished. We’ve done the laundry, cleaned inside and out, blown out the water lines,  and added the antifreeze to the drains. Once we move the RV back into storage we will can start finalizing details and begin gathering up the supplies and documents for the Mexico trip !

Solar - AT LAST!

The new solar panel arrived. Tobey was so anxious to get it installed – the only problem is it takes two people and I don’t do motor home roofs!  Poor Tobey had to wait almost two weeks before Tyler was back home to help finish the installation.

Late Sunday afternoon they climbed up and rolled out the panel which has an adhesive backing – similar to contact paper, and hooked it up. During the installation process they had to keep the panel covered so it wouldn’t start generating electricity and shock them.

After they attached the panel, Tyler helped smooth out all the bubbles underneath. On the first walk through he was really close to the edge of the roof so I made him hold his dad’s arm to make sure he didn’t fall off!

I made a quick trip inside to see if the install was successful – and it was! 

Even with the late afternoon sun  -  6:00 pm - we were generating .4 amps!  A little detail work to complete and in less than two hours they were done! 

At 8:30 this morning Tobey checked and the panel was generating 1.3 amps and by 9:00 a.m. it was up to 1.7 amps. I’m sure he will go out every couple hours to check the progress as the days warms up. His ambitious goal is the panel will generate 20 amps a day to offset the energy drain on the house battery. We’ll see. 

Overall, he is quite pleased with his purchase and their installation. This is how the RV roof and panel looks now.