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A couple years ago Jeanie and I were on the very cruise ship, the Grand Princess; on the very same 15 day cruise to Hawaii that is currently in quarantine in Oakland CA. because of the Corona V scare. This got me to thinking about how fortunate we are as truck campers to be isolated from the teeming mobs of folks in close proximity. We have our own air to breathe with no one except family to cough on us. We don’t have to stand in line. We sleep in our own bed and travel at our own pace and leisure. With a certain political segment of the U.S. population wanting us to squeeze closely packed into cities to live a better life, owning and using a TC is truly a breath of fresh air. We have two trips planned for this spring, out for several weeks, one to Death Valley and environs, and one to Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, and the Black Hills. I can think of no better way to avoid the fear and contagion of the Corona V scare. Yes, our portfolio has dropped like a rock, but at this point only the most important things in life matter. jefe
2020 Ford F-350 XLT FX4 4WD SRW SB SC 7.3L Godzilla Gas TorqShift 10R140 397 amps dual Alt dual batts Frnt Dana 60; Rr Dana M275 E-locker 4.30's 4580/4320/4066# payload 7243# curb wt. 11,300# GVWR 5-er prepped. 2020 Northstar Laredo SC, 12v compressor fridge, cassette, 320w Solar sub zero insulation.
Ha!! True enough, I’m Just now recovering (3 1/2 mos into…) from my latest near immobility health episode (L & R achilles heal damage, episodic for 16yrs), so I put stuff into proper perspective (current news events = mostly, man made kabuki theater)… Can’t tell you how special it is now just to briefly hobble into Home Depot!! For the reasons you’ve stated (and more!), Truck campers just cannot be beat! Sometimes I feel bad for those folks hauling around those gigantic fivers and Class A’s, because they don’t know what their missing – lol!…Up-fitting a new battery now for lots more memories to come!
Phil
Your right Phil, only some of us know. I was once told by a TC dealer that most of there customer base was made up of of people who went big and then decided small or medium was sufficient. Even with that said, I will start big with the biggest fiver I can pull. The Excel Winslow or maybe a New Horizon summit will be my only choice. But with that said I have every intention to become a Northstar owner.
Well, DW just returned yesterday from Spain, and said people awaiting screening at LAX (mostly a mere questioneer) were in line shoulder to shoulder for hours with the likelihood of a cross infection…Sure makes one wonder about what the heck has been going on with America’s contingency plans – some peace of mind, eh? 🙁 , Since it’s the Gov’t, I’m at least 110% sure that no one will be ever held accountable for institutional malfeasance – SOP, sure must be nice!
So, in advance of her return I loaded up and bugged out in the camper and am enjoying the rapid harvest recovery of new 200a/hr Lifepo4, seems to be charging nearly as fast as my dang iPad…I’m about an hour away (at a NAS safe camping spot), and my plan is to stay gone for about two weeks, since says she’s feeling a bit scratchy and under the WX…Hopefully just the normal travel bug though…
These are sure some crazy times…
We drove our truck camper home to Alaska from snow-birding in AZ. Got back in the state last Monday (Mar 23). Our anxiety was high, not from Corona, but a fear of getting stuck in Canada and couldn’t get home. There was talk of closing borders between provinces…..they did close the border to NWT. Crossing the Alaska border was such a GREAT feeling.
We felt quite safe from the virus. Had enough food to get home and cooked all our own meals. Had our bed to use and we stayed out of campgrounds…..parked at various rest stops, truck stops etc. Pumped our fuel at pay at the pump stations. There were only a few places where we had to talk/deal with anyone.
One of the positive things of the trip, was the lack of traffic…..even in California. Great trips traffic wise!!
RV’s are the perfect way to travel during these tough times.
2016 3500 HD Durmax
1994 S and S 9.5' Camper (SOLD)
1999 S and S 9.5 Camperjefe here again. “It’s good to live rural”. You can quote me on that.
A lot has transpired in the short month since I posted this about the Corona V and our travel plans. Every day new restrictive measures are added to save us from ourselves, mostly geared to keep people away from each other in big cities like New York. Once you understand how the virus is transmitted and how wide spread, and how politics get in the picture, it is easy to see how our lives have turned into one giant quarantine. During the week while I was out firewood cutting (by myself, for next year’s heat) I saw quite a few truck campers moving east away from Coastal and Central California to recreate, i’m thinking to an even more remote locale, in direct opposition to Governor Newsome’s decree to shelter (cower and whimper) in place.
After looking at all the NP and BLM closures today online, the very places that Brother John and I were contemplating camping are now closed. Who, who would have ever thought the the BLM could close anything. They have only land…not gates or kiosks, or many restrictions. So, John, Jean, Jefe, and Krys had a conference call this a.m. and we agreed to ash can the trip scheduled for next week. It has slowly and inexorably come to this.
It’s not Biblical, but an ancient slogan gives some comfort:
“THIS TOO SHALL PASS”
The one consolation is I pulled the TC out of it’s shed today as the sun was actually shining for the first time in 4 weeks and much of the 5 feet of snow that fell during that month was gone.
I just hope we have a country left to visit when phase I of the Pandemic ends.
jefe2020 Ford F-350 XLT FX4 4WD SRW SB SC 7.3L Godzilla Gas TorqShift 10R140 397 amps dual Alt dual batts Frnt Dana 60; Rr Dana M275 E-locker 4.30's 4580/4320/4066# payload 7243# curb wt. 11,300# GVWR 5-er prepped. 2020 Northstar Laredo SC, 12v compressor fridge, cassette, 320w Solar sub zero insulation.
The virus response is just another silly offering of what’s devolved into a Nanny State…Yes, the virus is very REAL and yes very transmittable, but from Japan’s perspective, a far less impulsive and more practical solution (rather than to regulate behavior and kill off an entire economy…) was just the simple wearing of face mask…Wearing a mask (and common sense hygiene) is what the Japanese did, and it’s worked well – they avoided the reactive impulse to shutdown their own economy …
A generation or two ago, this foolishness would not have been considered or even tolerated!! Per my previous mention about the sanctioned shoulder to shoulder Customs lines at LAX (huh??), whatever happened to America’s ’once great’ repository of Learned Experts??…
Please excuse my 0.02 cents worth of animal frustration here – lol
I guess I’m missing it, but we already have mask requirements that no one is doing. I really don’t give two hoots about what anyone else does as long as it does not affect me. To do something as simple as having folks wear masks would be great if they would do it, but in this country everyone gets to do whatever it is they want to do and I think that is the makings for a real problem. 🙂
Steve
Steve and Andra
2012 F350 6.2 gasser SRW LB
Fab Fours front and rear in case we run into a rhino
2019 Northstar Laredo SCPres and I were able to venture out for a 2-day self-contained camping trip to a location within a couple of hours’ drive from our home in early April. Folks that were camping in the area were great to keep to themselves and maintain social distancing – words I didn’t even know a few months ago.
Sadly, the authorities have decided to close off most of the connecting roads and all of the coastal access to that location. Boondocking means freedom and sadly more and more places are getting closed off for access.
I wish truck campers and those who are self-contained could get exemptions as an alternate means for self-quarantine.
Like the TCA t-shirt says, Happiness begins where the pavement ends. I look forward to resuming adventures in our truck camper soon.2004 4x4 F-350 utility truck
2004 Alaskan camper
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