She's Home Again

 

April 30th, a beautiful Spring day, and time to run up to London (Ontario) to collect Towed Haul from her Winter hibernation.

For the first time, I'd made an appointment to collect using CanAm RV's online system rather than by phone. The system worked because after a confirmation e-mail, we rolled up to the lot and while the old girl wasn't quite ready, we didn't have to wait too long before we could take her.

In that waiting time, we managed to drop $500 on camping gear to equip our new pop-up gazebo, and a couple of special fasteners to keep the window rock guards place, which I'd been meaning to buy for a couple of years. But heck, we had a good time looking.

We always have the dealer de-winterize and check the trailer before we get back on the road. This always causes me anguish because you never know how she's coped with being outside through the Canadian Winter. Today it was just a new Piezo ignition unit on the cooker, and a new knob to make it work, which is pretty good for a 2011 model.

Hitching up the first time of the season always takes a bit longer, and I had to mess around with the towing mirrors after replacing one side's mirror unit. Our hitch receiver on the car is looking very rusty, but as it's a modified item, I've been reluctant to replace it not least because it would necessitate a trip to London and most likely have to leave the car there while the work is completed. However, I did inspect it for cracks and failed welds, and it all looked fine. Indeed, it didn't flinch as it took the full load of the trailer, with the weight distribution system helping out, and performed perfectly on the 100Km return drive. The whole combo ran really well, and into a stiff headwind, too.

I'd decided to use Highway 3, the old Talbot Trail, for the run home as it's always very quiet and the speed limits help keep the gas usage in check. The road runs through some bucolic scenery and as you get into Chatham-Kent there are some sweeping views of the north shore of Lake Erie, and there is a bit of relief as you cross many steep sided, although small, valleys cut into the land as water makes its way to the lake. Compared to the run up to London on Highway 401, the freeway/expressway, choked at was with speeding trucks, Highway 3 was a breeze. Talking of breezes, naturally we were driving into a stiff headwind all the way home. When we've been camping on a weekend, particular a longer run, we'll drive into a stiff headwind on the way there, over the weekend the wind will change and then we're driving into a stiff wind on the way home as well. That's how it works. Sometimes.

It was all going swimmingly, but I hadn't thought about the fact that the exhaust pipe on the Sienna was blowing a little. The good people at the Toyota dealers had pointed it out but said that the cost of replacement was prohibitive and that I should visit the exhaust system shop next door to their place, where' they'd be able rig up a repair much more cheaply. Well, I hadn't done that, and driving back today with the extra load, the blowing pipe was blowing extra hot onto the underside of the car and it melted a plastic bag in the trunk area, a bag that contained a new camping blanket. The blanket was melted a little, too, and smelled horrible, but the damage was slight thank goodness. My first job tomorrow is to visit the exhaust shop and get that pipe fixed!

Melted blankets aside, we parked up on our driveway at home and had poutine and fries inside with our over-excited grandson, Charlie, just like we were camping. Towed Haul doesn't look too much the worse for wear after the Winter months, but my second job tomorrow is to get to wash and wax stuff and give her a good bath. 

Camping here we come... 

** Update May 3rd

Had the exhaust system fixed. The muffler was blown all along the seam, so it was no wonder the underside of the car was hot. New pipe, new muffler and everything is fine, and quiet, again.

Another Season on the Way

 

We're due to pick up Towed Haul from the dealership's storage facility at the end of April. 

I'm looking forward to getting her back on the driveway at home so that I can see how the winter has treated her, and to give her a wash and polish. We've been storing her at the CanAm RV lot in London every winter since 2011/12, and she's suffered very little from hibernating outside, in Ontario's Snow Belt. In only one winter was there an issue and that was because the little rubber boot protecting the hole where the TV antenna's coaxial cable enters through the roof, had become dislodged. There was the remnants of a small puddle on the front-end couch, but it all wiped up easily. There's also a small but persistent leak around the cooker exhaust outlet that, try as I might, I can't seem to stop. It only happens in certain weather conditions, and has a lot to do with wind direction I think, but at the storage yard the trailers are so close together, there's plenty of protection from the weather and there's never been any water ingress over the winter. So far.

We only have a couple of trips planned before the kids finish for the summer and we go into a self-imposed camping moratorium. It's hard enough getting camp grounds booked, but nigh on impossible through July and August, so we don't try. We'll stay at home and enjoy the garden.

We're doing a bit of non-trailer travel as well, with a trip to Toronto at the start of May and then a run to Fremont in Michigan at the end of the month. We debated about taking the Airstream to Fremont but felt that on this occasion we'd use a guest house. It's only about four and a half hours drive, but as it's trip to meet (distant) family for the first time, we'd thought we'd travel light, and be able to use the little Honda CRV for a change.

I expect we'll squeeze another trip or two into the itinerary before summer, particularly now that I qualify for senior's discount in Ontario Provincial Parks. Watch this space as I'll be blogging the trips.

More on Trucks

 

The Tesla Cybertruck. Not my cup of tea.

Someone on the Airstream Addicts Facebook group posted a photo of one of these hitched up to their Airstream. My reaction was a single word; "Awful".

My goodness, you should have seen the pushback!

My comment was based on how the truck looks. In my view, it's a design aberration, something a six-year-old might draw with it's straight lines and obtuse angles. I certainly wasn't commenting on the electric vehicle's capacity to tow an Airstream, nor that it was otherwise unsuitable for the task at hand, but seeing one of these angular beasts hooked up to the shiny curves of an Airstream just jarred my senses.

But the pushback came. I was being rude, apparently, and upsetting the clearly proud owner of the truck with my rudeness. Of course, if you publish a picture into the public domain, you automatically open yourself up to comments of all sorts, and if you're not prepared for that then I'd suggest that you don't publish the picture in the first place. The original poster wasn't fazed, though, because he had more positive comments than negative, and he said so. That didn't stop people trying to imply that I shouldn't say anything negative, ever, which is rich given the comments that pictures of my tow vehicle garner whenever I publish them.

Then, of course, there those who assumed I was saying that an EV wasn't up to the job. From what I see about EVs towing trailers, they seem perfectly capable, but I never mentioned its capability and was still assailed by people suggesting I was some kind of Luddite. Don't you just love the Internet?

I would just say that appearance aside, the Cybertruck looks a better tow vehicle than most regular trucks, although I say "looks" because I don't know how it's been put together, it dimensions and other key indicators. It does seem to have a low center of gravity, it's very aerodynamic in its shape, and it doesn't have a huge overhang behind the rear axle. If it has independent suspension then it checks quite a few towing boxes. But I still wouldn't use one, EV or not, especially as the prices start at USD82K!