I was reading Tab's post about his GPS taking him down a really scary road with his fiver. It was quite a laugh.
What has been your scary road trip?
I took my two boys in our first MH, a 21 ft Class A on an all guys trip to visit King's Dominion in VA. I decided to get a campsite at the nearby Quantico Marine Corps Base. I entered the base, got directions to the campground from the gate guard and headed down the road. To this day, I SWEAR he said to turn left instead of right, I know there is no way I'd make a mistake like that.
The next thing I know were rolling down this dirt road that keeps getting bumpier and bumpier, steeper and twistier. I'm hearing more clunks, rattles and squeeks from my MH than I've ever heard before. I'm wondering how far ahead is this campground. I come over a hill and there are a bunch of Marines in full combat gear out training, they stop and stare at me as I drive by with some kind of puzzled look on their faces.
I blissfully drive a few miles further until I start seeing these crazy signs with a picture of a tank on them! Then it dawns on me that maybe, just maybe I'm driving down a TANK TRAIL and that is why it's so rough!
Lucky for me the MH was only a 21 footer, so I was able to make a three-point-turn with about 7 or 8 points and reverse course out of there. On the way out, the Marines looked even more puzzled as I drove by. Sure glad it was not a live fire exercise area!
And I didn't have a GPS to blame it on, either.
So, what's your story?
Best Regards!
-- Edited by Old Snipe at 10:49, 2006-11-30
-- Edited by Old Snipe at 10:49, 2006-11-30
Tmcblane said
06:13 AM Dec 1, 2006
Paul, that would have been a great added trip to the movie RV! Probably ruined the feel of "real combat" when they seen you rolling thru!
Old Snipe said
09:45 AM Dec 1, 2006
Didn't you know I was the real life person they based the movie on???
jomago said
10:35 AM Dec 1, 2006
A few years ago we were on our way to a group campout that we had made many times. Only about 70 miles NW of Ft Worth. As usual we were pulling a car behind our 36' MH. The only difference was this time we were taking the brides sedan with the use of a tow dolly, because her sedan did not have a base plate for towing 4 down.
The slow leisurely drive on very rural roads was enjoyable, up to the point we passed a turn off. Being we talk, laugh and reminisce while we drive, we had missed this turn before and knew we would have to go on for several miles before we could turn around. About that time we came upon a newly paved road that looked better than the one we normally use. We decided to try this road to get over to next north bound road.
We proceeded for about 3 miles before this road became graded gravel and another mile it became two bare dirt tire tracks. There had been no placed to turn around since we left the paved road. Proceeding slowly ahead we finally came to a flat concrete slab(bridge) over a dry creek bed, with a sign stating a 3 ton load limit. Right on the other side of the flat concrete bridge(?) the new paved road continued. Now what do we do? Lets see, the front axle is 3 tons but the rear axle is 6 tons and the tow dolly / car was well under the limit.
When I got out to look at my options, realized without a hitch on the sedan to pull the dolly back to a turn around point meant a bunch more effort. My thoughts were that the bridge was probably design for much more than the stated limit. If we proceeded slowly but steadily over the bridge(?) without stopping or bumping things would be OK. It was this or unhooking the car, dolly and backing the MH for about 2 plus miles.
Needless to say we got across OK and proceeded to the outing.
From then on we never took a short cut without knowing where and what.
I was reading Tab's post about his GPS taking him down a really scary road with his fiver. It was quite a laugh.
What has been your scary road trip?
I took my two boys in our first MH, a 21 ft Class A on an all guys trip to visit King's Dominion in VA. I decided to get a campsite at the nearby Quantico Marine Corps Base. I entered the base, got directions to the campground from the gate guard and headed down the road. To this day, I SWEAR he said to turn left instead of right, I know there is no way I'd make a mistake like that.
The next thing I know were rolling down this dirt road that keeps getting bumpier and bumpier, steeper and twistier. I'm hearing more clunks, rattles and squeeks from my MH than I've ever heard before. I'm wondering how far ahead is this campground. I come over a hill and there are a bunch of Marines in full combat gear out training, they stop and stare at me as I drive by with some kind of puzzled look on their faces.
I blissfully drive a few miles further until I start seeing these crazy signs with a picture of a tank on them! Then it dawns on me that maybe, just maybe I'm driving down a TANK TRAIL and that is why it's so rough!
Lucky for me the MH was only a 21 footer, so I was able to make a three-point-turn with about 7 or 8 points and reverse course out of there. On the way out, the Marines looked even more puzzled as I drove by. Sure glad it was not a live fire exercise area!
And I didn't have a GPS to blame it on, either.
So, what's your story?
Best Regards!
-- Edited by Old Snipe at 10:49, 2006-11-30
-- Edited by Old Snipe at 10:49, 2006-11-30
Didn't you know I was the real life person they based the movie on???
A few years ago we were on our way to a group campout that we had made many times. Only about 70 miles NW of Ft Worth. As usual we were pulling a car behind our 36' MH. The only difference was this time we were taking the brides sedan with the use of a tow dolly, because her sedan did not have a base plate for towing 4 down.
The slow leisurely drive on very rural roads was enjoyable, up to the point we passed a turn off. Being we talk, laugh and reminisce while we drive, we had missed this turn before and knew we would have to go on for several miles before we could turn around. About that time we came upon a newly paved road that looked better than the one we normally use. We decided to try this road to get over to next north bound road.
We proceeded for about 3 miles before this road became graded gravel and another mile it became two bare dirt tire tracks. There had been no placed to turn around since we left the paved road. Proceeding slowly ahead we finally came to a flat concrete slab(bridge) over a dry creek bed, with a sign stating a 3 ton load limit. Right on the other side of the flat concrete bridge(?) the new paved road continued. Now what do we do? Lets see, the front axle is 3 tons but the rear axle is 6 tons and the tow dolly / car was well under the limit.
When I got out to look at my options, realized without a hitch on the sedan to pull the dolly back to a turn around point meant a bunch more effort. My thoughts were that the bridge was probably design for much more than the stated limit. If we proceeded slowly but steadily over the bridge(?) without stopping or bumping things would be OK. It was this or unhooking the car, dolly and backing the MH for about 2 plus miles.
Needless to say we got across OK and proceeded to the outing.
From then on we never took a short cut without knowing where and what.