Note From Afar
I am an Army Reservist serving my country in Iraq. I've been here since March of last year and it looks like I'll be here a few more months. I've been a subscriber to Trailer Life for a few years and have been camping for more than 10 years. This year, however, my camping has been of a different sort. Luckily, my wife has been sending me my copies of Trailer Life to keep me wanting to go camping in my 1998 Wildwood. My fellow soldiers can't believe that I still want to go camping once we leave here. I tell them that trailer camping is totally different.
SGT. R. CONTRERAS
RACINE, WISCONSIN, VIA IRAQ
PARK MANAGEMENT
As a person who has visited Yellowstone National Park in the summer and the winter many times, and who also has 45 years experience with wildlife in Montana, I would like to share my views on snowmobiles and animals.
I have hunted game in Montana for many years and have harvested in areas where vehicles were the norm. Snowmobiles have no more effect on elk or deer than motorcycles, vans or trucks. The weather and available feed determine wildlife populations. If no one went into the park, the animals would be none the wiser. A tough winter would take its toll and we taxpayers wouldn't need to pay for park employees. If the roads weren't groomed in winter, the animals would have a tougher time moving to the available grass.
Bottom line is that there is nothing wrong with the way we taxpayers have been managing the park for decades. Park Service personnel are our employees and should do what we (the taxpayers) dictate.
As for emissions standards, I would like to see those who claim the snowmobiles are so harmful try to survive on the amount of game that these machines kill during the wintertime.
D.H. DETONANCOUR
IDAHO FALLS, IDAHO
POWER BILL
I have been camping with various rigs for more than 50 years. Currently, we have a 30-foot fifth-wheel. I realize that membership parks and private campgrounds are caught in the squeeze between higher costs of labor, taxes and electricity, and so prices have constantly escalated to keep them from going broke.
What I resent is having to pay higher prices for electricity than my motorhome or monster fifth-wheel brethren pay. They, in most cases, need 50 amps for two air conditioners and, in some cases, washers and dryers, while I have a single air conditioner with no high electrical "thieves." They probably use at least twice the amount of power per day that I do. If they can afford a $100,000 to $500,000 RV, then they can afford to pay their fair share of the power bill. It's high time we separate the rates between normal users and excess users.
MIKE LEVERSO
HUDSON, FLORIDA
AIR POLLUTION
In the letter "Status Symbol" (November 2003), the author was basically saying that SUVs should be used only for the specialized functions for which they were designed. He then said that mass-transit and mopeds should be the predominate vehicles on the road.
Well, I certainly hope that mopeds don't become the primary vehicles on the road. Almost every moped is a two-cycle engine. These vehicles combine oil and gas to burn in the engine, and are probably the worst polluting engines on the road. One only needs to visit Asian countries, where the moped is the predominate vehicle, to see the mass pollution these engines cause. Many states have passed laws prohibiting two-cycle engines in the near future, and two-cycle engines are prohibited on many freshwater lakes.
DENNIS MARGUET
PLEASANTON, CALIFORNIA
COLD STORAGE
Your article on winterizing in the November 2003 issue was very timely for those of us in the northern part of the country. For some units, one very important winterizing item is to release the check valve behind the screen on the city-water inlet. This check valve keeps water from coming out when the freshwater pump is running and pressurizing the water system. If you use air pressure to purge the water from your unit, you might get all the water from behind the check valve. If you don't use air pressure, the water remains and will eventually freeze.
Here is what I do. I use RV antifreeze to winterize, as described in the article. Once all of the lines are filled with the antifreeze and the pump is turned off, I open a bathroom faucet, remove the screen and washer from the city-water inlet and press the check valve to release the water, holding the valve until the RV antifreeze starts to appear.
GARY KNUDSON
AUSTIN, MINNESOTA
OVERNIGHT LOTS
This is in regard to the "Parking-Lot Stays" letter that was published in the November 2003 issue.
A couple from Campbell, California, wrote that they found Wal-Mart stores in Saunas, Gilroy and San Jose were not allowing overnight stays, although on their last trip they did stay at the Gilroy location, since the local law had not yet been enforced. The individual even stated the law was posted with the city-code information. Quite possibly, since the gentleman writing this letter was only approximately 25 miles from home during his overnighter in Gilroy and the towns mentioned are all within 50 miles of one another, they are all falling under the same city ordinance.
My observations of our local Wal-Mart are different. Within three miles of our store are 856 campsites at three campgrounds, as advertised in Woodall's 2003 Directory. In October when children are back in school, campgrounds have sufficient room to take in any number of guests. It's unfortunate to see Class A rigs pull in to Wal-Mart's parking lot at 4 p.m., drop their landing gear, unhook the dinghy and still be there the next day at 1 p.m. (and the dinghy is still gone). I have to wonder who they think they're kidding.
W. JENNER
WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA
WRONG FUEL
During our trip last fall from Ontario, Canada, to Apache Junction, Arizona, we often fueled up at FlyingJ Travel Plazas. In October, we stopped at the FlyingJ in Sayre, Oklahoma.
I fired up the pump and put nearly 17 gallons of premium gasoline in my diesel-fuel tank before I noticed my mistake. When I went inside and spoke to John at the cash counter he immediately contacted maintenance. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chap's name from maintenance, but he came out and in short order had a barrel and pump on hand. Due to the baffles in the filler pipe to my tank, he was unable to get the hose in and had to disconnect the pipe from the tank. We soon got the contaminated fuel out of my tank and properly filled with diesel.
I paid for my diesel and was not charged for pumping out my tank or disposal of the contaminated fuel. The FlyingJ Travel Plazas are excellent and very RV-friendly and the folks at Sayre are tops in my book.
ROSS MACKENZIE
APACHE JUNCTION, ARIZONA
CHILL FACTOR
That was a great article on winter camping in the November, 2003, issue. You covered very well what most of us Canadians take for granted in dealing with winter on a yearly basis.
You, however, did not cover the issues of dealing with propane in cold climates, which can be frustrating if you are not aware of some of the factors.
In the Southern states in particular and, in some more northern climates in the summer months, some dealers sell a butane/propane mix. During the warmer months you would not know the difference.
Butane, however, freezes at approximately the same temperature as water and, therefore, is not usable in temperatures below freezing. Some unsuspecting folks have had their tanks filled in the South and driven north in the winter only to find that their gas supply is not functional. It is always prudent to inquire before having your tanks filled, especially at locations that are not nationally recognized.
Propane can also contain moisture that has accumulated in the supplier's bulk tank. Larger reputable dealers will normally purge their systems of any moisture, but unfortunately, not all suppliers are so diligent. Moisture in the propane can cause regulators to freeze and make your propane supply unusable in cold weather. Having alcohol injected into your propane tanks at a reputable dealer at the onset of the winter season is a worthwhile precautionary measure.
