Wheelin' and Rockin' with DIanE

We started planning this trip last fall and I started booking the major stops in September. We knew the route and where we wanted to make longer stops and needed to add the minor stops that break up the driving into manageable chunks.

With that done it was time to think about getting the rig out from where we keep it on a more permanent basis up at Bennett lake. One thing we decided to do was to have a solar system installed so that we could boondock – camp off grid with no hook ups. Some of the State, Provincial and National parks are fantastic but they don’t have hookups. I did a lot of investigative work into what type of system would meet our needs and we could expand if needed. I settled on a 380 Watt, 2 panel system with a 2,000 watt sine wave inverter and a 250 amp hour Lithium battery. There is a new RV dealership in Perth called the RV Place and although they don’t carry our line of 5^th wheels I was very impressed with them. I made arrangements to have them do the install in late March so we could just leave the rig there and pick it up on our departure date.

Now for the fun part of this story. I send a note to Ken up at the lake to say I need to come get the rig. His response – “Wow, you might be in for a surprise”. I took a trip up and he was absolutely right. It is an unusual year and we have had a lot of snow and more than normal has stuck around for this time of year. It was still a week and a half away so we decide we will see what happens and give it a go. I only need to get it to the main road about 500 yards away.

I show up around 11 on the 21st and Ken has done significant plowing in advance. The first thing we notice is more ploughing needs to be done before I can even connect. Ken is an absolute magician with his tractor and bucket! He worked his magic and we got hooked up…went about 20 yards and got stuck…tires spinning…no traction. Our next step is to strap the front of the truck to the tractor(with chains on the tires)and he starts pulling…another 30-40 yards and stuck again and the rig has moved slightly off the path…not good…any more off the path and it sinks into the snow and we may not be able to move it. We ponder options while shovelling dirt and gravel under the tires. We move forward a few yards and enough for the rig to get back on path. A  few more tries and we get moving….go a couple hundred yards and stuck again and one side of the rig has moved off the path again. There is significant snow on that side and we have to cut a tree down to get by. We make a few more yards of headway and get stuck. We have now been at it for 4 hours and we can’t move. The temperature had been rising and the ground was getting very soft in some areas. We decide to call it a day and will regroup early the next morning as the ground should freeze overnight. Ken and his daughter Emily have worked their butts off and been very patient.

At this point I am more than a little concerned. On my way home I stop at Canadian Tire to see if I can get some traction aids. There many in stock anywhere and the ones that are available don’t look like the best type but I am desperate. I had to bail on curling that night as I didn’t get home until 6 and I was exhausted. When Di comes home from curling I give her more details of the effort but don’t disclose the full depth of my concern and that I have been Googling Specialty Towing Services.

Up at 6 the next morning and back up to Bennett Lake. I get in the truck attempt to move forward and alas the truck just slides sideways…sighhhhhhh. Another guy from up there, Brent, has joined us. Brent suggests putting the ball hitch into the rear hitch of the trailer, strapping that hitch to the tractor and trying to go backward 15 or so yards, reset direction and go around the ruts created from the day before. So with Ken on the tractor and me in the truck in reverse and Brent outside yelling directions as I can’t see or hear Ken…we start moving and unbelievably we get it back the amount we need. We unhitch from the tractor and I start going…and low and behold I make it to the road. I took it slow on the road out to the highway but it all went well. What a sequence of events. I was able to drop the rig off to the dealer and head home with good news 😊