Saturday, January 18, 2014

2014 Florida RV Supershow

Yesterday we went to the Tampa RV SuperShow.  And of course there were some deals just too good to pass up.  Our RV is equipped with Solar panels which work pretty good but they can't run the AC or microwave.  And Solar is limited in some ways.  Especially when there's a long stretch without sunshine or covered up under trees.  So we've been kicking around getting a quiet generator.  Other than the price, you can't go wrong with Honda generators.  The Camping World display had them on sale for $100.00 off and that was just too tempting to pass up.  At first we were just going to get a single unit but eventually succumbed to getting the paired set which can run the AC.  We've done our share of primitive camping in the past but admit we definitely prefer the comforts of RV camping (with electricity). 

After looking at many new RV models at the show we walked away feeling pretty good about our 8 year old fifth wheel.  A few models were interesting but we wouldn't trade ours for most of them.  It's good to take your time buying these things.  The next couple months we'll be doing a lot of maintenance on the Outback so it should be A-OK to go on a long trip.

And of course we picked up a large bag of delicious Kettle Corn at the RV show.  Mmmmmm!

Friday, January 17, 2014

Let the planning begin ...

After three years of gearing up to make the journey to Alaska from Florida, we can now officially say this trip is a GO for sure.   Life changes quickly and the last couple years taught us that you have to adapt to the changes and just go with the flow for plans to work out.

Even though we'll be doing some planning, this trip will be flexible enough that we probably won't make many reservations.  If we like a place we'll spend extra time there.  If we don't, we can hit the road early onto the next destination.

The Milepost publication has been ordered and maps obtained for the trip.  We already received the Churches Alaska guide as well as their Southwestern US guide.  Also books about California, Oregon and Washington are in the stack.   A few miscellaneous publications and guidebooks as well as apps for the iphone are also in the mix.  Probably much more information that we'll ever need but you never know.

The truck has been updated to a new GMC HD Sierra 4x4 with powerful Duramax Diesel engine.  Our last Sierra was gas and could have made the trip but the mountains would have been a workout for the truck.  The Duramax with it's larger fuel tank and exhaust brake will make the drive much easier.  Especially when we boondock and drive with heavy water tanks filled.

Click here to have a look inside the RV