I am on the road !.. I prepared this moment for more than a year, spent countless hours choosing the right vehicle (rv ? Trailer ? Fifth wheel and truck !!) reading rv forums, watching videos to be ready for that moment. And here I am, driving my good big truck (family name : snow, for he s white - first name : yeti because he is incredibly powerful but gentle) - (and yes, yetis are gentle, read Tintin in Tibet book if you are not aware of this useful information!)
I have towed my fifth wheel for more than a hundred miles on the roads, and after a few minutes of fear and doubt - God, do we look big ! - I realized that ... It s quite easy... With the right truck !
Power means security, I have heard since I was a kid - for hauling horses as well as on snow or in difficult weather - : it s true also for towing.
With my big yeti (my powerful Chevy silverado) I tow my fifth wheel with no effort, and I always have the power I need to make a towing effort, and the good breaking system to slow or stop.
I took nearly 5 months to decide myself on the truck I was to buy, and then to find (thanks carguru !) the perfect second hand model I wanted (thanks Trevor at Toyota dealership - the truck is just as perfect as you said !).
(I hate to buy new car, knowing you loose about 15% of your money the minute it passes the door of the dealership, so I got a good second hand with low mileage)
Here I have exactly what I wanted and it has no fancy equipment, but all the power and security I need. I am proud of my yeti !
For my fifth wheel, I am really happy with my choice too. It s a Elkridge 34tsre with a separate bedroom and a cute living room , and believe it or not, it feels as spacious as a nice apartment in France (yes, you south westerner have no idea of how BIG everything is here compared to old small France !)
I have everything nicely organized there (I used to be a professional organizer in France, years back, and I really enjoyed during my last months in France the preparation of the perfect list for the rv in 2014 - lot of work with amazon, blogs, reviews.)
I was eager to check if everything was right, and I am mainly satisfied with my choices . Everything has its place, I travel light, and during my towing trip nothing fell on the floor or broke (I will make a special post about all the organizing tips I found and how to make your rv trips smooth and ... safe !).
I am still discovering the subtilities of hooking /unhooking , amperage , water tanks, electricity plugging - but truth is , if you work before your subject, it s not that complicated - and people around are mostly helpful (not all of them however- you know how some humans are - and with a woman alone on the road ! You get to see the best - but the worst also if you are not careful !
So, I am getting my first degree in RVing without too much hassle, and I ... really have fun.
Want to know the truth ? Yesterday on the road, when the landscape started to change, when the cities were forgotten and all I could see were cows, farms, and suddenly a wonderful large pray bird flying in the sky -
I cried.
Of joy and pride.
I have dreamt of this minute for such a long time . I was ten when my parents took me and my brother from Switzerland to the US for a few days trip with a rv (a Winnebago, and I could still draw the floor plan and the strange textile patterns !). We spent a few days in Yellowstone, and there I fell in love with the road, the freedom, the house that goes with you everywhere, even on the shore of a wild lake or in the silence of the giant trees.
Took me 40 years of hard work to get back
And here I am !
;-)
And my pets ? Well, they are... in love with the rv concept ! The carpet, the fake furnace that blows hit air in the chilly night (God you can really experience all four seasons in a day on Texas !) the windows, the huge bed ... They loved the trailer the first minute they set a foot in it :
I had not started the unpacking they were already home and cosy. And my cat, who is a real travel lover (I took him in many places in France and he is always eager to discover new places) has already "linked" to the trailer. He asks politely to get outside when we are in the camping areas (safe for the moment , no coyotes or bear around - and yes, Charles, I have learned from you on this and I will be careful in wild environments !).
He takes his morning and evening tour, careful but obviously happy, and then comes back to the door meowing to get in.
I think he has been preparing himself for this all his life !
And he spends the most of his days watching birds through the large window, preferably seated on my last drawing or my computer - he s a cat after all.
So I am now on my way, discovering Texas before heading to Santa Fe by strange roads,
for it s true, I just follow my instinct and my envy to draw
with my team in perfect shape,
and my "big" wheeled home,
And believe it or not, now I even feel small with my Yeti and my Elkridge : watch what a truck parking is here ! My "équipage" looks like a prairie dog waiting peacefully near bisons grazing...
Next post, probably a few drawings from there. We ll see... Now that the material part of the trip is set , place to art !
See ya !
No comments:
Post a Comment