Duane

I think if they stay there much longer, Z will be driving the Jeep....

Yep! And only required a couple hose clamps and bungee cords to install.

Hey everybody knows that you can go out and buy the right thing meant for the job, however it takes a true craftsman (or craftslady) to take a bunch of parts, throw them together and make it work!

Jason is the Man! (er I mean the "other man" because Z is the real man!)

Sorry about that....

 

Yes, Fried Okra, Cheddar Broccoli Soup, and Frogs Legs!!!

Carol, they didn't happen to have mountain oysters on the menu did they?

Tah dah

This will also be used to go to and from our boat.

You guys will absolutely love that cart for the beach... We have had one of those carts for about 10 years... The factory is located about 30 miles north of us...

Did you know that you can get a bike hitch for it? After we got back from our first Topsail trip several years ago, I thought the bike hitch would work perfectly for the road down to the beach...

I rigged it so that the beach chairs wouldn't fall through, and converted a couple of the fishing rod holders to securely hold the beach umbrella. I now leave the umbrella secured to the cart instead of stabbing it into the sand...

For emergency road service we use Good Sam... Have been pleased with their service so far. If my memory serves me correctly, I have had to use their services at least 3 times and they have come through each time perfectly. I have used them to tow my pickup truck in after it left me on the side of the road. They changed a tire on a 5th wheel trailer on the side of the road on I-95 on South Carolina and changed a inner dual tire in my driveway on my motorhome. Their prices are reasonable and they cover all of the vehicles and all of the family members in my house.

For RV insurance, we use Gilbert RV Insurance. They are a broker located in Orlando. They were recommended to me by a friend of mine who works for a State Farm Agent. She uses Gilbert as well to insure their camper.

When you look for insurance, look for a company who specializes in RV's. We have State Farm for everything except for the camper. SF just couldn't offer the services that Gilbert provided... Companies who specialize in RV's are going to realize things like awnings, large windshields, etc. They will also take into account that campers usually sit parked more than they are on the road and price their coverage accordingly...

Anyway, something to think about...

John, are you looking for emergency road service providers or insurance companies who will insure your camper or both?

Mini Keurig user here as well...  If you want to go the Keurig route, in my opinion (which really doesn't amount to much) the mini is a better machine if you want to leave the brewer in the camper in between trips.  The reason I say this is because we used to have a full size machine that we left in the camper all season, and we really did not like the fact that the water remains inside the tank, not the reservoir, when we put it away until the next trip. When we got it out for the next trip we always ran it through a brewing cycle to purge the "old" water out. And over time, the machine got to a point where it wouldn't brew a complete cycle, so we tossed it.  The mini machine does not leave water in the tank and it also has a pump out feature where you can remove any additional water that is left behind...

As for liking hot coffee, I take mine with cream only, so after I put the cream in, I just pop it in the microwave for 30-45 seconds to bring the temp back up to where I like it....

Nacole,  we are in central NC and store our camper in the backyard uncovered.  It does sit under the trees, so it is shaded and not in the direct sunlight.

The water looks great!

Gwen,

Have you ever been to Destin or Santa Rosa Beach (Topsail) before?

Hey, I never claimed to pack light, especially for 2 weeks. But you're right, we've collected some pretty cool stuff over time. Don't hate. Just come to a GG I can attend and what's ours is yours!

Absolutely no hatin' here, I'm taking notes!  I too want to have what I "need" at my fingertips...  I will be the one when I die who has a U-haul trailer connected to the hearse.... I'm gonna try to take it all with me!   :hah:

Dang, it looks like the GaDawgFans should change their names to the MacGyver's... They have a gadget, item or utensil for just about anything or any purpose...  If they don't have it, then you don't need it....  I want to camp with you guys...

Let's recap just a few of the things that I have seen so far.... we have Egg's, and margarita machines, hammocks, jeeps, bikes, bike carts, swimmies, water guns, sand buckets, folding tables, all sorts of cooking utensils, chairs, e-z up's, box fans.... and there is no telling what else we may see before this trip report is done... 

I can't say anything though, because I carry a lot of things as well.  I am too afraid to weigh the camper because I just may find out that I have too much stuff....

If you ever see me doing that, look just behind me and you'll likely see a man with a gun pointed at me. 

Dave, don't want to hijack your TR too awfully bad, but just remembered that I had some pictures of the Harbor Master transfer that I spoke about earlier... Who knows, DIT, may need a career change... crunching numbers all day may get old at some point... He may have a change of heart once he sees how easy it is....

Aahhh the "Redneck Rivera"!  Love me some Topsail!  My second favorite campground/area next to the Fort...  I would much rather drive the 13 hours from NC to Topsail then drive the 2+ hours to any of the NC/SC beaches....

Can't wait to hear more!

How the heck do people board the ship from that little boat chasing you??  No way!

Dave,

Its a pretty cool thing to see when folks transfer from a small boat to a cruise ship...  The cruise ship never slows down, and if you notice the tires attached to the side of the small boat.  The captain of the small boat maneuvers along side the cruise ship while maintaining the same speed, physically contacts the side of the ship, the crew opens a doors on the lower part of the ship's hull and they just step off of the small boat onto cruise ship.... At an expedited pace I would add...

I watched them perform this operation when we were on a Disney cruise several years ago...  I think we were coming into Grand Caymen or Cozumel... The harbor master had to come aboard to help direct the ship into port...  Its pretty amazing to watch this...

Ahhhh good ole Gatlinburg.... Myrtle Beach of the mountains! Can't wait to read more. Love this part of the country!

Make sure you check the other tires... what I forgot to mention on my earlier epistle was that when I had all of the tires changed, two of the other tires were bulging and ready to blow... 

How much "chin music" would I have had to listen to from my wife had I not followed her directive and had all of the tires changed before we started for home?  :flush2:

It all boils down to this... you're riding in your living room with the motorhome, or you're riding in a truck with the trailer...

Each one has its own set of pros and cons... We have had 1 tent, 2 pop-up's, 1 TT, 1 FW and now a motorhome... There were things that I liked and disliked about each of them, but I have to say, the motorhome has been my favorite so far....

More like my stupidity, but I do think the ghost had a small part as well...  Trying to do too many things at once...

We have only stayed in the cabins once... and I seem to remember that a small bottle of dishwashing soap and a sponge or dishrag was provided.  Mousekeeping will load and run the dishwasher for you everyday...

A couple things you might want to consider bringing or picking up before you arrive (not sure if you will have a car or not), but I would pick up a bag of charcoal, and some coffee filters (if you are a coffee drinker)...

Oops :banghead:

I feel your pain...

4 or 5 years ago we had a blowout on our 5th wheel on I-95 south, exactly at the flagpole at the SC/GA state line.  Had GoodSam send me out someone to change the tire because my jack did have enough butt to lift the trailer.... Once we arrived at the Fort, I called the tire manufacturer, I think it was Kenda. They they told me there were issues with the tires that I had (they came new on the trailer). They told me to go and and have all 5 tires replaced and they would pay me $200/tire + they would repair the damage to my trailer. 

Long story longer... I thought I would wait until we got back home to replace all of the tires.  The wife was having no part of that.  She told me that I would have all of the tire replaced BEFORE we started back home.  Like you, I called Camping World and got an outrageous price... I finally found a Goodyear dealer over near Universal who had what I needed in stock.  So while the fam was enjoying Magic Kingdom, I hooked up the trailer, drove over and had them installed.

If the trailer is somewhat new, I would call the tire company, explain what happened... They may make you whole again.  They may replace the tires and repair the damage...  Make sure you save the carcass from the blowout because they will want to see it or need some part of it.  In my case, they had me cut the serial numbers from the tires and send them back to the company before they would mail me my check.

Good Luck with gettting it sorted out!

I feel your pain...

4 or 5 years ago we had a blowout on our 5th wheel on I-95 south, exactly at the flagpole at the SC/GA state line.  Had GoodSam send me out someone to change the tire because my jack did have enough butt to lift the trailer.... Once we arrived at the Fort, I called the tire manufacturer, I think it was Kenda. They they told me there were issues with the tires that I had (they came new on the trailer). They told me to go and and have all 5 tires replaced and they would pay me $200/tire + they would repair the damage to my trailer. 

Long story longer... I thought I would wait until we got back home to replace all of the tires.  The wife was having no part of that.  She told me that I would have all of the tire replaced BEFORE we started back home.  Like you, I called Camping World and got an outrageous price... I finally found a Goodyear dealer over near Universal who had what I needed in stock.  So while the fam was enjoying Magic Kingdom, I hooked up the trailer, drove over and had them installed.

If the trailer is somewhat new, I would call the tire company, explain what happened... They may make you whole again.  They may replace the tires and repair the damage...  Make sure you save the carcass from the blowout because they will want to see it or need some part of it.  In my case, they had me cut the serial numbers from the tires and send them back to the company before they would mail me my check.

Good Luck with gettting it sorted out!

Well I'm trying to wind up by reading Dave's report....

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