Thursday, October 21, 2010

October 2010

Me sitting in the coach on the very first outting in it almost 4yrs ago now.

Me looking around at all the clutter our camping group had drug out that weekend with our coach being the base camp. It was all I could do to just sit there and not clean. Note exterior camping "oven". Baking outside keeps it cooler in the coach in the summer. 2010
Carl prepping breakfast for the group using every inch of the expanse of counter space. 2010
Our friend Mike sealing the roof of the motorhome, summer 2010.

A nice moment. Rear corner of bedroom.
Sitting at Chatfield State Park summer of 2010.
Camping at lake summer of 2010.
Camping at lake summer of 2010. Note window covers and window awnings.
Immaculant 32 year old Motorhome. 1978 Foretravel 33ft.
A shot taken from around the corner of our house at a park overlooking the mountains.
Chatfield State Park Labor Day 2010.

Yogi Bear KOA campground just outside of Denver, 2010.

Nice relaxing day trip at Chatfield State Park not even 7miles from the front door of our house.

It's been a while since I have posted on this blog, but a few years have gone by and a whole bunch of trips and a few thousand miles have been logged on the Foretravel and she has performed as if she was a brand new motorohome...underneath I guess she is.

We have used the coach in the dead of winter with snow flying and temperatures in the single didgets and less and we have used the coach in the scorching summer heat. There is never a time of year when the coach sits in the driveway for longer than a month without being used in some way or another. Be it a quick jaunt around the block to work the engine and drive train to prevent damage from lack of use or whether it's a day trip to the lake or garage saleing or tailgating at the game or Drum Corps event, or sitting out in it in the driveway for a game of scabble followed by cocktails and dinner. Yes, in the driveway.

I've never understood when people would purchase a gigantic RV be it a fifthwheel with 17 slides or a 40ft motorized land barge with more amenities than most people have in their homes and slide outs galore just to leave them sit in a storage facility or their driveways unused!? I wish I had the kind of dollars to make payments on a second rolling condo just to leave it sit lol. We are usually barely making ends meet but by golly our coach is our "get-a-way", our escape from the everyday hum drum, our pride and joy and the biggest toy we'll ever own and it sitting there is just a plain waste of money...especially if it sits too long. Long term and very expensive damage can happen to the engine, drive train, roof, tires etc. Not worth it in the end. So, we'll plop in $20 into the tank (not too much especially in the winter), start it up (starts like a dream every single time - trust me, it wouldn't if it sat - it's a vintage Dodge - new engine or not they don't start right up everytime usually), pack a lunch (the icemaker pre-cooled the night before make a great daytrip frig for two), grab a light jacket or coat depending on the time of year, load up the dog and head out for the day...no where far, a local state park and take in the views, take a nice long walk and just chill.

I have attached today several more pics of the coach in all it's glory and in a few of our favorite places.

Our coach has been "homebase" for many a camping excursion with friends and family and while in the driveway has been used for a hangout spot for family and friends during cookouts or get togethers at the house.

To say this coach has been a joy, a blessing and an amazing treat would be an understatement. We have enjoyed it emensly and will continue to do so for some time to come.

Having a motorhome brings freedom, we've all heard that many times, however, when our pet dog also has learned that, it bears sharing.
Our dog, Scooter, was rescued from an abusive home by a friend and dropped off at our place. Since then, Scooter has "come to life" having been extremely shy, never held his head up and never "spoke" to becoming a lively part of our lives who loves RVing and knows when we're packing it up for an outing and knows the sound of the motorhome starting and darts out the front door of our home and heads straight for the motorhome and then runs right into the side of it....scooter is blind, but yet feels competely free to be when in the coach. He keeps his head up, sits at our feet or paces up and down the isle in excitement while the coach is in motion and then once to the campsite or day spot quickly jumps out to enjoy the new smells. He's a completely different dog when in the motorhome. He's as excited as we are and it's absolutely adorable.

Some of the things we've done to the coach over the few years has been to seal the roof all around the roof line where it meets the sidewalls, the vents, AC areas, front and rear caps and as a result, this 32yr old coach is still in prestine like new condition.
We also still continually, monthly, polish and wax the entire interior of the coach to keep the georgeous wood work like new. We also steam clean both the carpet and upholstery at least once a year. This past year we worked on the drivers side exterior of the coach removing all of the oxidation from the side wall and then polishing to a blinding white.

We have had a few mishaps but nothing too abnormal for any coach owner. The water heater blew this summer. It split at the bottom (like they can do). This was the first time in my RV owning life that something like that had ever happened. This was during pride weekend (An RV at pride is the perfect home base for the day) and in our rush to prevent any damage to the interior we completely bypassed the water heater with a bypass kit we already had tucked away in the coach for a future installment. It proved to be the perfect solution and allowed us to be able to use the pressurized water system the rest of the weekend without issue. The windshield also cracked this past winter while sitting in the driveway (the coach windsheild faces directly West while parked in the driveway and I hadn't had the windsheild cover on).
We plan on taking it out again within the next week or so. This time of year, fall, is one of our favorite times to camp. It's not too hot nor is it too cold during the day and waking up to a bit chilly coach (we NEVER go to bed without a ceiling vent AND window cracked) turning on the furnace to warm up the bones while brewing that oh so important cup of coffee while being surrounded by golden, red and orange leaves and deer grazing right out side the door...is simply amazing, comfortable, exciting and brings us such peace while the fast pace of the Christmas holiday waits patiently in the wings.




















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