Category: RV’s (Page 1 of 2)

I would rather be in an RV then in the wet city

August 24, 2018 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

The second weekend away in Chateau Sugaree, our new RV. We were able to capture a spot at our former home away from home – the Delaware Water Gap / Pocono Mountain KOA Holiday. True to form it was a wet weekend. This has been the case just about all summer.

Wet and Wild Ride

Being as we have not secured a “permanent” camping home for Sugaree yet we have been picking her up on Friday afternoon and returning to the storage lot Sunday afternoon. Not that bad, but would love to have a place to go to without the setup and breakdown. This will come in time.

The ride up to East Stroudsburg was a wet and wild ride. Rachel and pugs meet the RV along the PA turnpike and we caravaned up to the KOA. Traffic was heavy but moving. To our West, we could see grey clouds headed our way. As we traveled up route 33 they got closer and darker. We just past the exit for Wind Gap when the rain started. The winds picked up and the rain came down hard. To say it came down in sheets would have been an understatement. You could not see the front of your vehicle, let alone any cars in front of you.

Small branches from trees along the side of the highway broke off and were blown across the road surface. The shoulder of the road is narrow and not a good place for a car to pull over, let alone the RV. Along with the rest of the traffic, we slowed down to about 5 MPH and stayed in the right-hand lane. Before long, the rains eased and we made to our destination with minor periods of lite rain.

Setting up in the rain

It is not fun. That is all I can say.

As we could not get proper alignment of the site we ended up being a little too much to one side of the site. This did not prevent us from hooking up to shore power or the water outlet. We were a little tight to a couple of trees and could not access the sewer connection. The slide had enough room to extend fully, the AC was kicking out cold air, dinner was on the table, and life is good. Tomorrow, weather permitting, we would move the rig to sit in a better position within our campsite.

What to do on a rainy weekend?

As this was our second trip in Chateau Sugaree, we were still in move-in mode. While most things were brought into the rig on our maiden voyage, there were new things to organize and find a proper home. While this did not take too long, it had to be done.

After a long week and a stressful drive in the rainstorm, we spent the rest of the evening relaxing, talking and spending time with the grumble. As we could not sit out by a campfire, we decided to call it an early night. It didn’t take long for the pitter-patter of the rain on the roof to allow us to fall fast asleep.

Saturday morning came and fortunately, the rain was taking a break. This allowed us to get the dogs out for a morning potty run before breakfast. After the dogs ate, bowls and kitchen counter cleaned it was time for coffee and tea. Yes, we got all this done without our morning coffee and tea – and everyone survived. It didn’t take long for the grey clouds to move back in and the rain to start up again.

By this point, the humans were getting hungry. So we made eggs, toast, and turkey sausage. After cleaning up from our breakfast it was time to do the prep work for chili. That was going to be our dinner Saturday night. We heard great things about the Instant Pot, so we bought one last summer and love having it in the RV. We browned the meat and drained off the excess grease. Then cut up the vegetables – did I tell you how nice it is to have a little extra counter top space? Put the Instant Pot into slow cooker mode and dumped everything in, and put the cover on. It was not long before the RV was filled with the wonderful smells of the chili cooking. YUM!

Saturday night the rain had let up enough that we could get a fire going and enjoy the night air.

Entertainment system

The original owners did not replace the old tube style TV. They did, however, install a surround sound system in the living room and a small flat screen TV in the bedroom. The TV antenna, cable feed, etc are housed in a cabinet over the front dash with the TV in front of and over the co-pilot’s seat. The wires in the cabinet next to the TV was a jungle. So I spent a little time trying to trace some the cables and just generally organizing the mess. This is the first step in getting upgrading the entertainment system.

Lesson Learned

Get out of the RV and walk the site prior to trying to back into, especially at twilight or after sunset. The mirrors and backup camera do not give you all of the information you need.

In the end

In the end, we had a great weekend. Learned a lot about our new to us RV and get some time to relax and just enjoy time with each other.

Out with the old In with the new

August 8, 2018 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

It has been a long while since we added a new post to this site. Honestly, it was too painful to even think about writing. Here is the story.

The beginning of April of this year (2018) we moved our RV from our seasonal location in the Poconos to our RV mechanic just outside of Philadelphia for its annual inspection and some routine maintenance. Somewhere between the Poconos and the mechanic we lost the reverse gear in the transmission. Not a big deal during the transport as we did not have to back up at any point. So we were shocked when the mechanic called to let us know that they could not back the rig into a parking spot on their lot prior to doing any work on it.

Additionally, we saw some signs of leakage in a couple of areas around the RV. Considering the cost of the transmission, unwalled cost of repairing the leak and related damage, and who knows what else was lurking around the corner we decided to sell our beloved 1989 Tiffin Allegro for scrap.

What to do now???

We started to look at used RV’s in the area within our price range. There was just not much out there. So after much consideration, we decided to scape and save our pennies and purchase something in the spring of 2019. YUP! That would mean a whole year out of an RV.

As June rolled into July we all missed our weekends in the RV. So we would look to see what was available. We found a couple that looked interesting. Took a three-hour drive to the Delaware shore only to find out the unit was sold earlier that day. Looked at another unit in Delaware that same day and was in poor shape.

Rachel had foot surgery scheduled for the end of July so we figured the search would be put on hold until after she was mobile again. However, the star must have been falling into line for us. The Saturday before surgery, we looked a 1999 Fleetwood Southwind 35S. It was being offered for sale by its current owner. We were in love. Sunday morning we exchanged a few emails and before long we had a deal. Not only that, but the sellers were coming down to Philly (a four-hour drive) the following weekend and would bring the RV down for us.

Our Southwind will need some minor repairs and replacements. These include tightening some screws, replacing a couple of cabinet door struts, and similar items. We will also be looking into replacing the captains, co-pilot and lounge seats. They are showing their age. We are not planning on doing much with the decor other than to make it our home. All of this will take some time, but we are in no hurry to get everything done at once.

Now that we are into the second week of August, the RV is mostly filled with our stuff and Rachel’s foot is doing well. It is time to hit the road and make some new memories in Home d’Pug v2.

If you should happen to see us at a campground, stop on over and say hi and give the grumble some lovings.

Here is are some pictures.

Indian Summer And No Air Conditioning

October 4, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

It always seems that as autumn comes to Eastern Pennsylvania and the surrounding areas the temperature drops and the leaves start to change color. Then, without warning, the heat and humidity return for one last gasp of summer.

Normally, this would not be a big deal. Except, this year as the temps and humidity head up our AC at home died. We learned this when we returned home on Sunday night after spending a nice weekend at Home d’Pug RV. We could have suffered through the next few days until it was fixed, but the pugs would not have survived the higher temperatures. This was especially true of our two forever fosters – Casey Jones and Maggie – who both have a collapsing larynx.

After the 2-1/2 hour drive home we packed the pugs and Tiger, our cat, (Yes! we also have a cat), additional dog, cat food, litter, litter pan, additional clothing we made the return trip to the Poconos. Finally got back to the RV around 12:30 in the morning. There we stayed the entire week. I drove the two hours each way to work every day.

The AC motor was replaced on Wednesday. We decided since the week as just about over, why not stay until Sunday. This meant we spent 10 days at Home d’Pug RV. Two adults, six pugs and one cat living in a 31-foot motorhome.

Tiger’s Big RV Adventure

Tiger and Casey Jones

Tiger has been with us for over 10 years now. She has moved from one home to the next and just rolled with the punches. As the pugs started to come into our life she would leave them alone for the most part. We did not take her to the RV as we were not sure how she would adapt to the small space with two humans and 6 pugs. Of course, there was also the fear that she would get out which would not be good as she is an indoor only cat. But the situation necessitated that she come along.

Tiger with the grumble

Much to our surprise (it really should not have surprised us), she just rolled with it. We unloaded the cars, set up her litter pan, food and water dishes and let her out. Tiger looked around and gave everything the once over. By this time we were exhausted and I had to get up early to go to work. Throughout the night, you could hear Tiger moving around, but no more than at home.

By early Monday morning, she had staked out the copilot’s seat as her own. This is where you could find her asleep most of the day. Her food and water were up on the covered stove top. This way the pugs could not get to it and she could eat in peace. Before long, she figured out the best way to get there was to hop up on the dining table and then make the short leap to the stove top. She even found time to spend with the pugs on the sofa bed.

It got us thinking that maybe Tiger would do OK coming with us to the RV on our weekend trips. Will need to plan out where to keep her litter pan, etc. so they are not in the way. That will be our winter research project.

Keeping them behind the fence

The campground managers, who live on site, have two Papillons and had a fence built on their site. In talking with Donna and J one quiet Sunday afternoon, they suggested that we do the same. One of the grounds crew built theirs and we were welcome to approach Kevin to do the same on our site.

After talking with Kevin, we made a deal to have a fence built on our site. It is not a normal in a fence as there are no posts dug into the ground. Rather, it sits on top of the ground. This means we need to find another way to support the longer runs. This is still a work in progress.

Having the fenced in area allows us a lot more freedom in allowing the pugs to join us outside – especially as the weather becomes more comfortable for them. The best thing about the fenced in area is at potty time we can just open the door and let the kids run out. Ollie and Ming are a little slow in getting with the program. They are eager to go outside. However, both still look forward to going for a walk to do their business.

Having the fence has become a must for us if we are planning on staying in any one spot for an extended period with the pugs. This fence has sections so it can be unassembled and moved to another site or campground. We still use one of our x-pens to keep the dogs away from the fire ring when we have a campfire going. The fire ring is one corner (not too close) of the fenced in area and we use the x-pen to block off that area. It has worked great. Of course, with any campfire, we keep a close eye on the grumble to make sure they don’t get behind the x-pen and near the fire ring.

Renovations ahead

We have planned an animal-free weekend for the first weekend of October. It will be good to have some quality alone time. The interior is also going to get a couple of renovations we have planned.

The kitchen area is going to get a new backsplash. The carpets in the living room and bathroom are going to be replaced with vinyl flooring. More on the renovations next time.

In Memorium

As we have talked about before, we forever foster two pugs for the rescue we founded. Both have collapsing larynx. Maggie came to the rescue in early June 2017 and underwent major surgery to fix her stomach that slipped past her diaphragm. It was after the surgery that we learned about the collapsing larynx and she became a Philly Pug & Short Nose Rescue Angel pug.

Monday (10/2/17) morning Maggie was having a very difficult time breathing and was in distress. From the beginning, we knew our time with her was limited. With great sadness, we helped her across the bridge. We did all we could for her. Our hearts are shattered.

We hope you are having fun at the bridge our sweet Maggie Moo Moo. We love you so very much.

Til we meet again. ❤️💔😪😪

Fall Comes Early To Home d’Pug RV

September 13, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

Here we are the weekend after Labor Day and the mornings have been a bit on the cooler side. Woke up Saturday morning with the temps around 48° F and 50° F Sunday morning. While these are not the coldest temperatures we have gone RVing in, after the hot, humid summer it was a little bit of a surprise. We do expect the heat and humidity to make a return as is usual in this part of the county.

Along with the cooler nights comes shorter days. That means that fall colors cannot be far behind. A couple of trees are already starting to change. We are looking forward to a spectacular fall with tons of colors before the trees shed their leaves.

The crowds leave along with the (unofficial) end of summer

Now that Labor Day has come and gone, so have the crowds at Delaware Water Gap / Pocono Mountain KOA. It very quiet back in our little corner of the campground. After the summer weekends with just about every campsite and cabins filled it is almost spooky at night.

With the cooler weather and lack of neighbors, the grumble was able to enjoy some outside time. We set up the x-pen between our canape and the RV. So long as the sun was not shining directly on them they were fine. Our two Philly Pug & Short Nose Rescue Angle fosters would sit in the sun and start to over heat, so in they went into the cool RV.

Pugs are also enjoying the cooler weather

After spending part of the afternoon outside enjoying the fresh air and the sunshine they were eagerly looking forward to dinner. After dinner, they all decided that they would take over the sofa bed and fall into the ‘post dinner food coma.’ Here are some pictures of the grumble.


The Whole Grumble	Rosie
Maggie	Sugaree
Casey Jones	Ming, Ollie, and Rosie

Labor Day Holiday Weekend – 2017

September 10, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

The unofficial end of summer started with a cool blast.

Tuesday we both had to be back in the city for work and early appointments so we could not stay over Monday night, which we would normally do. To enjoy as much of the Labor Day weekend we decided to head up to Home d’Pug RV on Thursday night. By the time we arrived, it was already dark. It was quiet and peaceful. This is what we love about our spot in the Poconos. We settled in and relaxed a little before turning in for bed.

I had to get up early in the morning and drive down to my office for a short day. We had no water in the rig until late Saturday morning. (More on this a little later). So I got up early, went to the shower house and got dress and left for work. The pugs did not get up with me so Rachel and the pugs got to sleep for a little while longer.

About the cool blast. After weeks in the 80’s and 90’s with high humidity, Friday morning was something we were not accustomed to. When I awoke it was 41 degrees. A very brisk way to start the day. This made things nice for the pugs, especially Casey Jones and Maggie who both have collapsing larynx.

Holiday Weekend Officially Starts

The unofficial tradition at my day job is that we get to leave early on Friday between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Generally, I can get out of the office by 3:00 in the afternoon and be with Rachel and the grumble by 6:00~6:30 depending on traffic. This Friday the boss closed the office at 2 and I was up to Delaware Water Gap / Pocono Mountain KOA by a little after 5:00.

Our campsite is next four sites that are generally rented by the night. This means we have different neighbors every weekend. Often, two or three or even all four sites are rented to an extended family or group of friends. This weekend, all four sites were rented to a related group. Well, things did not get off to a good start. They did not show up until very late – sometime after 10 pm. They were tent campers. This means that from 10 pm until almost 1 am they were making all kinds of noise setting up their tents, blowing up air mattresses and shining lights into the windows of our RV.

They were an annoying group for most of the rest of weekend, but we did not complain. Not wanting to start any issues with them, we tried to let it slide. Maybe we were wrong in not saying anything to the group or management. Will have to think about how best to handle this type of situation going forward.

No Water To Start The Weekend

As has been noted in earlier posts, our campsite has water and power, but no sewer hookup. This means two things. First, we have to manage our gray and black tanks levels, and, second, have the tanks pumped out. Normally, we can get through the weekend without overloading the gray and black tanks. However, when we get pumped out or dump our tanks in a sewer connection, the gate to the gray tank would drip a little. We were told about this a couple of times by the guy who does the pump outs. Being as the Tiffin Allegro is an older rig, I was afraid that I would run into something I could not handle. So this weekend we called our mobile RV repair guy to come and replace the black and gray tank gates.

While he was there, I had him replace the water faucets in both the shower and bathroom sink. While these were not major changes, it makes things a little more useful. Our old shower head had a fixed mount. You could point it in any direction within the shower, but could not get everywhere. With the new faucet, we also installed a hand held shower head. This makes rinsing off both yourself and the shower walls so much easier.

The bathroom faucet head was too long for the size of the sink. Would wash your hands or brush your teeth and water would splatter everywhere. The new faucet has a shorter head and the splash stays within the sink for the most part.

These were not major upgrades. However, they make life at Home d’Pug RV a little nicer.

Hope you enjoyed your Labor Day Weekend.

Mosquito bites – Some Home Remedies

August 16, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

In our last article, we talked about how bad the mosquitos have been this summer.

OK, we have come to the conclusion that we cannot get away from them. Having mosquito bites are something that we will have to live with for now. So what to do about these bites when they do occur? We thought that we would look at some home remedies for mosquito bites.

First, what is a mosquito “bite.” Actually, it is not really a bite. Mosquitoes inject a proboscis, a tiny straw looking thing, to suck up tiny amounts of your blood and release anti-clotting agents. The immune system reacts by releasing histamine. It is the histamine that creates a small, itchy bump. So the simple answer is an antihistamine. Best would be a cream or lotion applied directly on the bite. But what if you don’t have any available?

Hold a refrigerated, dampened green tea bag on the bite.
Try a dab of honey because it has an antiseptic ingredient.
Putting Scotch tape (or a bandage) on the site will help remind you not to scratch, especially at night.
Aloe vera has anti-inflammatory properties, so this could help the itch. For even more relief, stash your aloe vera gel in the fridge, since the cold will also help with the itchiness.”
Preparation H takes care of swelling and itching.
Rubbing alcohol (also witch hazel and tea tree oil). If it burns, it just means that it is working!
Rub a basil leaf on a mosquito bite will help stop the itching.
Try using regular Listerine for itchy bug bites.
Soaking in a soothing oatmeal bath.
Eat raw garlic — however, studies claim that a topical blend using garlic and beeswax may be even more effective.
A very hot bath in a tub filled with water and 2 1/2 cups of vinegar.

How do we protect the pugs

As any responsible dog (and even cat owner) should do, all of our dogs receive a monthly oral heartworm preventative. They get this on the first of the month. We chose the first of the month so it is easy to remember. Turn the page on your calendar, the dogs get their heartworm preventative. As for fleas, tick, mosquitos and other insects, we use a combination of ‘natural’ products.

We are making every effort to keep harsh chemicals off of our dogs and out of their food. After researching alternatives to the commercial flea and tick preventatives we have come up with a two prong approach. Everyone gets a few drops, depending on weight of Earth Animal Flea & Tick Program Herbal Drops in their food daily.

First, everyone gets a few drops, depending on weight of Earth Animal Flea & Tick Program Herbal Drops in their food daily. We have found this to be very effective. The grumble started with the Earth Animal Flea & Tick Program Herbal Powder**. This worked well for many months until one of the dogs could not tolerate it. She would puke after eating. We have been using the drops for over a year now with no side effects.

The second prong is the Earth Animal Flea & Tick Program Spray. All of the dogs get sprayed either before we leave for Home d’Pug RV or shortly after we arrive. If it seems “extra buggy” they may get a second spray over the weekend. The pugs may also get a spray at home.

Our two prong approach seems to work for our grumble.

**Affiliate Link

July is a Hot Time in the Summertime

August 4, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

To say it’s hot is an understatement. The average temperature in Philadelphia is in the mid to upper 80’s with high levels of humidity. It seems that most of the middle of the month, average temperatures ran more in the low to mid 90’s. Between the above average temperatures and the humidity, air conditioners just could not keep up.

We do our best to keep the grumble cool. This means limiting their time outside in the middle of the day. We keep them off the cement and asphalt as much as possible. Lots of cool water available. And special treats, such as watermelon, cucumbers, cantaloupe, a frozen Kong with peanut butter or home made doggie ice cream.

Shore Run

The third weekend in July we decided to take a little break from the Poconos. Rachel and I took Saturday for just the two of us. We headed down the shore to Cape May for the day. As we were in South Jersey with no real schedule we decided to stop in at Camping World in Swedesboro, NJ.

We have never been in a Camping World store and wanted to see what it was all about. The store is just off of I-295 and was an easy drive. Outside, they had a huge lot with many different types of RV’s available for sale. They had about eight service bays filled and many rigs either waiting to be worked on or for their owners to return. Rachel and I had the same reaction to the retail store, it was small but had a nice selection of camping and RV related items. We figured we would do any shopping from Camping World on their website. Greater selection of items to choose from.

After our visit to Camping World, We headed to Cape May. On the way, we passed a couple of campgrounds. Naturally, we had to stop in and take a look around. Really liked Avalon Campground. Seemed quiet, clean and well cared for. The roads within the campground are a little narrow, but nothing we can’t handle. They have seasonal rentals from mid-April to early October. We like to start the camping season as early as we can and extend it as late into the fall as possible. Just not sure if a shore campsite would work for us for the season. More thought will be given to this idea.

Decided we “worked” enough on this Saturday and deserved some time to unwind. So we headed to the Willow Creek Winery located at 160-168 Stevens Street, West Cape May, NJ 08204. We found this little gem a couple of years ago after leaving the Cape May Lighthouse. They have a great selection of wines and menu of lite foods that accompany the wines perfectly. This is a must stop if your in the Cape May area.

We finished the day at one of our favorite restaurants down the shore, the Tuckahoe Inn at 1 Harbor Road, Beesley’s Point, NJ 08223 (just outside of Ocean City, NJ). The Tuckahoe Inn holds a special place in Rachel’s heart. Often her parents would drive down on a Friday night just for dinner. When Rachel was younger, she would often join them.

The food is superb. The wait staff is very friendly, knowledgeable and accommodating. Word of advice, if you’re planning on dining here during the summer season, call ahead to make reservations. Tuckahoe Inn has plenty of dining space, but they do book up quickly.

Sadly, the day went by too quickly. We went home and spent the rest of the weekend with the pugs trying to stay cool.

Another Hot and Humid Week

The next week was even warmer and it seemed like the humidity was higher.

Rachel was planning on going up to the Poconos Thursday night with the grumble. However, after running some errands and taking all of the dogs out for a potty break before dinner she was exhausted from the heat. When I got home, she asked if I wanted to drive up to Home d’Pug RV and go to work Friday morning from there. I agreed.

The pugs got so excited as we started to pack the car. They know when an adventure is about to start.

Arrived around 9:00 pm. Unpacked the car, walked the pugs, they all got treats and then we settled down for the night. Having two A/C units cools down the RV in quick order. Was up by 5:30 the next morning and on my way to work by a little after 6, as it is a little over two-hour drive to my job from Home d’Pug Rv in the Poconos. But so well worth it to have a few more hours in our little slice of heaven. After work, I headed back to spend the rest of the weekend.

Rest of July – Misqueto City

The rest of July we continued to try and beat the heat on the weekends at Home d’Pug RV. However, the mosquitoes have taken over. We are trying everything to deter them as-well-as deal with the itching from the many bites.

With so much in the news of diseases that are carried by mosquitoes, we conferred with our doctor. As we have no other symptoms other than itching, we have nothing to worry about.

We have tried all types of creams, ointments, and lotions. So far nothing is working. Any suggestions are welcome.

We Have a Toad – Our Towing Set Up

July 28, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

Been asked about the specifics of what we use to tow our Honda CR-V behind the Home d’Pug RV. So I thought I would take this opportunity to explain our set up in some detail. First, what is a TOAD?

As in most worlds, there are numerous slang terms. The RV world is no different. The vehicle being towed behind a motor home is often referred to as a toad or dingy.

There are a couple of different ways to tow a vehicle behind your RV (we will save that whole discussion for another day). Our 2001 Honda can be towed 4-down. This means that all four tires are on the ground.

There are several items required to safely tow a vehicle behind your motorhome. Our equipment includes a trailer hitch on the RV, tow bar, base plate on the Honda, safety cables, tow lights and supplemental braking system. The first step was to select a manufacturer of the base plate and tow bar. It is important to note that most manufacturers have proprietary methods of hooking the tow bar to the base plate on the toad. We decided to use the Blue Ox system.

We decided to use the Blue Ox system. This was based on numerous customer reviews and comments in several different RV discussion boards.

Trailer Hitch

Trailer hitch device attached to the chassis of a vehicle for towing. Trailer hitches come in two main configurations: receiver type and fixed-drawbar type. Receiver-type hitches consist of a portion that mounts to the frame of the vehicle that has a rearward-facing opening that accepts removable ball mounts, hitch bike racks, cargo carriers, or other hitch mounted accessories. Fixed-drawbar hitches are typically built as one piece, have an integrated hole for the trailer ball, and are generally not compatible with aftermarket hitch accessories.

The trailer hitch was already installed on the 1989 Allegro when we purchased her. The receiver has a 2″ square opening that receives the tow bar.

Tow Bar and Safety Cables

The tow bar is the most recognizable part of a towing system. It is designed to link your car to your tow vehicle (RV) so that it can be safely flat towed. The function of the tow bar is the same regardless of model or manufacturer. The differences lie in the type of mount, towing capacity and basic design. Beyond those aspects, there are a wide variety of features associated with the various models (we will not go into that here).

Blue Ox Aladdin Tow Bar

After doing an extensive amount of research on the different manufacturers and models we selected the Blue Ox BX4325 Aladdin 7,500lb Tow Bar**. The Honda weighs a little more than 3,000 pounds GVW. Figured a 7,500-pound tow bar would give us a nice safety margin.

The tow bar slips into the receiver and is held in place by a hitch lock. The two “arms” then are connected to the base plate’s attachment tabs and secured with tow bar pins.

Blue Ox BX4325 Aladdin 7,500lb Tow Bar** tow bar also has telescoping arms as opposed to fixed arms.Tow bars with adjustable arms are easier to hook up. You do not have to drive your toad into an exact position to connect your towing system rather; you pull the telescoping arm out or push it back in, to get the length you need.

A pair of safety cables is used in case the connection between the RV and vehicle being towed fails. On either side of the hitch receiver, there are “loops” to which you can secure the safety cable to. The base plate has two corresponding “loops” to connect the other end of the safety cables to the toad. It is a good practice to cross the cables so the vehicle does not sway across lanes of traffic in case of a failure.

Base Plate

Blue Ox Base Plate for 2001 Honda CR-V

A vehicle that is being towed requires custom-designed base plates that specifically fit its frame. Once installed on your car’s frame, the base plates provide attachment points for your tow bar. This is the only piece in the system that is specific to the vehicle being towed.

Since we are towing a 2001 Honda CR-V we needed the Blue Ox Blue Ox BX2221 Base Plate**. The manufacturer’s web site will help you select the right base plate for your vehicle. Since a base plate is attached directly to the frame of the car, we had our mechanic do the installation.

Tow Lights

It is the law in every state that a towed vehicle have indicator lights. In our opinion, it just makes common sense. Tow lights let drivers around you know when you are braking or want to turn – YES, you should always be using your turn signals.

One type of system is to have a system installed in your vehicle that will use the existing lights on the vehicle being towed. The system we choose has magnetically mounted lights that we stick to the roof of the Honda. In either type of system, the motorhome provides the power and inputs from a connection point on the motorhome. This connection point is usually located near the trailer hitch.

You must make sure that the connector to your tow light system matches the connector on your RV. The most common types of connectors are 4-pin flat connector, 4-pin round connector, 6-pin round connector, 7-pin round connector, and 7-pin flat connector. The connector on our Allegro is a 6-pin round connector.

We decided to go with magnetically mounted lights. Our choice was the Larson LED Tow Lights With Magnetic Base** with the 6-pin round connector, model HDTL-LED-2X-M-30. The Larson Electronics describes the HDTL-LED-2X-M-30, “a wired magnetic tow light consisting of (2) round 2lb tow lights, (2) 90# temporary magnetic mounts, a 30ft standard cable ending in a customizable trailer plug, and 7” of wire space between the two tow lights. The durable LED lights on this unit are stop, trail and turn capable and emit a very visible red light that is very clearly signaled to other drivers, helping prevent rear end accidents and other potential road oversights.”

Supplemental Braking System

What is a supplemental braking system and why do I need one? A supplemental or auxiliary braking system helps shorten the overall stopping distance and keeps your legal with all North American towing laws. Most states require that any towed vehicle have its own braking system.

We purchased the Hopkins 9499 BrakeBuddy Classic Braking Package**. The package includes the brake actuary, breakaway system, and alert system. The brake actuary sits the floor between the driver’s seat and the brake pedal. The actuary is then clipped to the brake pedal. When the system senses that the RV is slowing, it will “push” the brake pedal and help slow the toad.

The breakaway system will apply the brake to the towed vehicle should it become separated from your motorhome. The alert system will provide you an audible notification in the RV should you have it installed. Installation of the alert system is simple. A transmitter is connected to the BrakeBuddy in the towed vehicle. The corresponding receiver is plugged into a cigarette lighter or other powered 12v socket. A cord is connected between a pull-pin on the front of the toad and the RV. Should the pull-pin get pulled out, the transmitter sends a signal to the receiver that gives the driver an audible alarm.

This part of the overall system is not only the law but helps everyone on the road to travel safely.

In a future post we will talk about how all of this fit together and some lessons we learned.

**Affiliate Link

4th of July – Sit Down & Patch My Bones

July 21, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

Ollie misses his dad

After almost two weeks on the road, it was time to get away for some serious rest and relaxation. As the pugs were not with us on “tour”, we felt they deserved some quality time with us. So we went to Home d’Pug RV from June 30th to July 9th. Actually, Rachel and the grumble stay up there all that time. I had to come home for work July 5th through the 7th. After work on the 7th, I made my way back to the Poconos.

I had to come home for work July 5th through the 7th. After work on the 7th, I made my way back to the Poconos. Ollie really missed his dad while I was away. He decided to sleep in one of the captain’s chairs.

Being an extra long holiday weekend, the campground was packed from Friday until check out on July 4th. Generally, the weekenders who camp around us are not a problem. Fortunately, we were able to get the much-needed rest and spend quality time with the pugs. They were not complaining.

Fireworks

The DELAWARE WATER GAP / POCONO MOUNTAIN KOA is about a mile down the road from Shawnee Mountain Ski Area. As part of the holiday festivities, on July 3rd Shawnee had a fireworks display. Fireworks may be beautiful, however, many dogs are scared by the loud noises the make. Knowing this we had a plan.

Before it got dark out, all the pugs went for their final walk of the night and got their treats. Everyone snuggled in on the sofa (laid flat in its bed configuration) and we put on a movie. The volume was turned up much louder than normal in an effort drown out some of the noise from the fireworks. It worked mostly.

Ming, Rosie, Ollie, and Sugaree (who is deaf) all snuggled down and slept through most of the noise. Casey Jones was another case. She was terrified by all the noise outside. Finally, I was able to get her to snuggle into my shoulder and she settled down but was still on edge. After about 45 minutes the fireworks ended.

We will have to rethink staying in the RV when Shawnee has fireworks planned.

Wildlife

Bear walking along Route 209

It’s Sunday, July 2nd around 10 am and we decide to go to one of our local favorite diners, Mullers, for a late breakfast. As we are making our way South on Route 209 traffic starts to slow. I look to my right to say something to Rachel and the only thing that comes out of my mouth is – Bear! Rachel looks at me “like, yeah, right!” She realizes that I am looking past her and she turns to her right and guess what she saw. YUP! A bear walking in an open field right next to Route 209. Rachel quickly grabs her cell phone and gets a couple of pictures of the bear.

One of the things that we like most about our camp site is that it faces a wooded area. Often, we get to see or at least hear some of the wild life that wonders close to if not into the campgrounds. We have seen deer, wild turkeys, chipmunks, squirrels and a great number of different types of birds.

Doe through screen window

Wild turkey on hill behind rig

On Tour – What A Long Strange Trip

July 14, 2017 / Jeff Koltoff / 0 Comments

Back from seeing Dead and Company and time to catch everyone up on our goings on. Here are some highlights and misadventures.

On Tour with Dead & Company (Kind of)

As mentioned in a very earlier post, one of our goals with our RV was to travel to see concerts and music festivals. If you don’t recall, let’s get you up to speed.

In December 2016 Dead & Company announced a summer tour. As longtime Deadheads, we decided that our holiday gifts this year would be tickets to see several shows. We got tickets to six shows. The RV would be our home on the road and we would tow our 2001 Honda CR-V. That was the plan anyway.

Towing the Honda CR-V

In order to make the plan work, we had to setup the Honda with a base plate, get a towbar, supplemental braking system, and towing lights. After much research, we selected the Blue-Ox equipment. All of the equipment was ordered, base plate installed (that is a story all by itself) and we were ready to hit the road.

NOT SO FAST THERE SON!!!

The one thing that I forgot to check was the towbar fitting into the hitch on the back of the Allegro. As (our) luck would have it, it did not fit due to a large amount of rust in the receiver of the hitch. Therefore, we had to resort to plan B. Plan B was to leave the RV at our site in the Poconos and drive the Honda to the first threes shows in Burgettstown, PA, and Boston, MA. On our way home from Boston we picked up the RV and took it to our regular mechanic in Philly to get the hitch fixed in time to take the RV towing the Honda to Bristow, VA. Thankfully, it was done in time.

Back to the plan

Left Thursday morning with the Honda in tow for the show that night in Bristow, VA at Jiffy Lube Live. Life was great again!!! This until we got into the Washington, D.C. area. Let me just say, traffic is a nightmare. Don’t know how people do it to commute on a daily basis. The worst part is trying to change lanes in a 31′ RV with a car being towed behind. Most people just would not give us a break. Next time we travel this part of the country will find a different route or plan on going through in the middle of the night.

We spent Thursday night at the Prince William Forest RV Campground in Dumfries, Virginia. We choose this campground because it was only about 30 minutes away for Jiffy Lube Live and a very easy drive. For the little time we spent there, it seems like a very nice place. Very quiet. Not a lot of kids evident. You are right on the edge of the forest and close to hiking trails. The staff was very friendly, courteous and helpful. Will have to return when we can spend a little time – of course avoiding the D.C. traffic nightmare.

Back to the Poconos

Friday was our travel day. We drove the RV towing the Honda through some of the worst traffic I have been in ever. In trying to get around Washington D.C. we could not make one of the left lane exits and was forced into downtown D.C. traffic. All in all, it was not as bad as it could have been. Finally, made it back to I-95 North. Our next traffic nightmare was a couple of miles South the Baltimore Harbor tunnels. Traffic was moving at a snail’s pace. We finally got through the tunnel and traffic moved at a “normal” pace again.

Hit the Delaware state line and decided it was time to stretch our legs and grab a quick bite to eat. Once we got going again it was not long until traffic returned to a snail’s pace. Later on, we learned that there is construction on I-295 that backed up onto I-95. After the split between I-295 and I-95 traffic moved smoothly again.

After more than 12 hours (including stops for gas and food) we finally made it back to our seasonal spot. Had a little difficulty getting into our site there were several cars parked around it. This prevented me from having the room swing the rig around and back into our site. Once the cars finally moved I was able to back the rig in “like a boss” as one of the tent campers near us said.

Back on tour

Once we got everything setup we crashed. Spent Saturday morning just chilling. Early in the afternoon, we drove the Honda into Queens, NY to see the show at Citi Field. After the show, we headed back to Home d’Pug RV in the Poconos.

Sunday afternoon we left the Poconos for our final stop on the Dead & Company 2017 Summer tour in Camden, NJ. After the show, we headed “Back home, sit down and patch (our) bones, and get back truckin’ on.”