Duncan Mills

We took TT out on the shake-down trip this past weekend. Part of the purchase package was a free night at Duncans Mills Camping Club along the Russian River in Duncan Mills, CA so that we could check for anything that needed addressing on the travel trailer for the dealer to fix.

MeeOk enjoyed the view of the river. I think she was watching for those annoying frogs that kept jumping into the river. For an RV campground, the sites were nice, but I still prefer a boondocking site.

This was the best site of the campground since it had a view of the river and easy access since it is a pull-through site. Fortunately for us the campground was mostly empty; so, the sites on either side of us were empty.

We explored the campground while walking MeeOk. This was down by the beach area where one could launch canoes and kayaks.

The cute depot that was built in 1907 is now a museum. Duncans Mills got its name from two brothers by the last name of Duncan that started a lumber mill in this area. In the town's heyday, tourists from the Bay Area would travel to town by train. It was once a getaway spot that had four hotels, restaurants, and a saloon for travelers that came to enjoy the Russian River and fishing. By 1935, the town had declined and fell into disrepair. Sometime in the 70s the town went through a restoration and folks started to travel again to enjoy the town and surroundings.

After our visit to the coast (which I'll post next), we relaxed at camp and snacked on goat cheese, gorgonzola, crackers, and tomato and mozzarella salad.

This was our view from the camp chairs. We had fun watching kayakers and ducks traversing the river.

The picnic table was never used since we ate dinner around our dinette. A future blog will show the inside of the cute TT.

TT's New Home

The week of October 6th was a busy week lining up workers to remove and haul away a shed and installing new gate doors to the fence so that we can park the trailer trailer behind the fence. This was what the area had looked like with the shed.

The roses made the shed look pretty. But truth be told, the shed was rotting away at the base, and the shed was at a point of needing work or being torn down. So, no great loss except for the climbing rose.

We were not able to pick up TT until October 9th; so, that gave me time to do some work of ripping out plants in the front side. This was some of the plants that were removed.

This photo was from last year when we were not in a severe drought. The plants were not as pretty looking when I removed them. So, don't sigh and think she is nuts. Since the plants didn't look very pretty, it was very easy to remove them. This is what it looks like right now, but later I will landscape with my favorite no-mow, low, ground cover dymondia margaretae aka silver carpet. I plan to put down plastic pavers that can be filled in with dirt and the silver carpet. That will look better than filling the area in with concrete.

 

The best little TT had to sit out front for two days while the fence work was being done. Here she is waiting to be parked beside the house.

Once the fence work was done, we then had our first challenge of backing the TT into the spot beside the house. That took about an hour. Backing up into a snug spot isn't easy. My husband did an excellent job for first time backing!

This is how TT looks from the street. Yup! The best TT is sitting in that snug spot waiting for our first outting.

RV Shopping

...is different from food shopping. RV shopping can be as fun as candy shopping, but it cost much more than a delicious truffle.

At first, researching and learning about the different classes of RVs can be a wee bit intimidating and daunting. Since the Class A RVs are humongous buses, those were immediately eliminated. My husband and I wanted something small enough that we can store on the side of our house or on the driveway when not in use. So, we started with the idea of a van. I quickly realized that I wouldn't like making the bed into a sofa each morning. Plus, the vans are way out of our price range. They are just too expensive for the small size.

I then started looking at the Class C, but they are too large to store on our property. I did fall in love with the ugly Lazy Daze RVs since they have large windows in the dining area for that unobstructed view of the great outdoors. That's the reason for camping...viewing the nature.

 But the Lazy Daze is just too dang big; so, that was out. Even this cool red one.

Then we started to research Casitas and Escapes since they were small and light enough to tow. Those are the cute fiberglass RVs that look like eggs.

But the space in the "Eggs" are too small...

...and by then I had decided that I wanted something with much larger windows. Plus, my husband wanted a dry bath.

While having my routine dental cleaning, the hygienist and I discussed travel trailers. She owns a lightweight travel trailer that I hadn't heard of. I went home with new information, and my husband researched lightweight travel trailers with a slide. Lance makes a lightweight travel trailer with a slide that was just the right size and has a layout that we love.

After numerous hours looking at Lance travel trailers, we purchased a Lance 1575. More photos will be posted after we pick up the trailer from the dealer. They are cleaning, inspecting, and getting the trailer ready for our first RV camping trip.