Sometime in May we headed off to the dealership to take delivery. We were excited and anxious, feelings we’ve had throughout this entire process but, it was the day!
After a brief orientation with one of the RV Techs, it was time. The trailer was hitched up to the truck and we were off. The drive home was uneventful and we took turns driving. Now came the hard part; backing it into the driveway, yikes! It all went fairly well except for…
We had purchased a set of walkies-talkies, which were recommended for communicating in remote areas where mobile phones may be unreliable; cell service at our house is such. We waited for the opportune moment to begin the backing up process off Route 57. We were both a bit anxious, me more so, which translated into abrupt, terse, responses through the walkies-talkies. This resulted in a slightly less than a full, blown out, screaming match; okay, maybe I’m exaggerating slightly. We did get it into the driveway after a few attempts and the only damage was a scrape on the passenger door from the across-the-street neighbor’s mailbox which I didn’t see in the side-view mirror because it was below the mirror. One of many lessons to be learned.
Our first camping trip was in Mystic, CT, not far from Misquamicut 
Beach. Our research told us that we needed to lay our our route for each trip in advance. The GPS unit we purchased and the build-in unit on the truck have features that allow for a course that would meet the needs of our trailer. The trailer is 34’11” long. Adding the truck makes for a total length of about 50′. Those dimensions are certainly a concern but, more importantly is the height, 13’4″. You might be surprised how many underpasses are near or below that height. The GPS units and a Road Atlas designed for Truckers, makes note of these hazards.
We arrived at the campground, checked in at the office and located our site. Every movement has to be thought out carefully. Before pulling into the site, we take a good look around. We make note of the utility connections, clearance for slide-outs, low hanging branches, and the general layout. Also making a mental note of exiting the site so we don’t run into an issue when it’s time to leave. Once that’s done, we pull in and start the setup process.
We had connected (hitched/unhitched) the trailer to the truck a few times by this point but it was always a challenge for us. Mid-week we had to hook up the truck and pull the trailer to the “dump station.” This is where we connect the “black” and “gray” tanks to the campgrounds sewer and empty our tanks. Some campgrounds have a sewer connection at each site but this one did not. By mid-week our black and gray tanks needed emptying.
While hitching the truck to the trailer, we were having more trouble than usual. A fellow camper from across the way timidly stopped by to offer some advice. I think from across the way he could see we were doing it all wrong and were newbies. He made one suggestion that meant making a minor adjustment to our approach. It made a world of difference and hitching/unhitching became so much easier.