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Topic ClosedUS tour - southern states, 2013

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techntrek View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: US tour - southern states, 2013
    Posted: 19 Jul 2013 at 12:09am

I tested out DC mode last night and it turns out it is working - while sitting still.  So AC and DC are ok in-camp.  DC doesn't keep it cold on the road, and gas doesn't work at all at this point even though it has a good flame.  Won't have a chance to hit Camping World before we leave, we are having breakfast with my uncle at 8 and then on the road for about 10 hours to OK.

We went to the Petroglyphs and Pueblo Indian Museum today.  We are fortunate that the temps are so far below normal, it has made the whole trip the last few days very comfortable.  Off to bed soon.

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 23 Jul 2013 at 10:19am
Tried "commenting" on your blog.. doesn't seem to have gone through..

Did you end up at Diamond Caverns? Mammoth Cave, Vette Factory, Vette Museum. I would also suggest you try to do at least one stop on the Bourbon Trail.. Jim Beam is about 2 minutes off I-65, and the Bourbon Heritage Center is about 20...

ALSO: Camping World world HQ is Bowling Green.. they do have service bays there..
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Jul 2013 at 1:10am

We've been getting to camp late the last few nights plus I'm starting to drag a bit, so I've been less active online...

Odd about the blog, we've received comments from others.  We were at Diamond Caverns RV park last night.  Got up late today and did the New Entrance tour of the cave 12:30-2:30, then walked down and into the Natural Entrance just to show the kids what it looks like.  You can actually walk in a few hundred feet before you hit the security barrier.  We did see the Vette Museum as we passed by, no time to take it in this trip (along with many other things).  We are now at Natural Tunnel State Park and will be here all day tomorrow, we scheduled it in as a bit of a R & R stop.  Next and final stop is my wife's cousin's place in WV.  That will also be a bit relaxed but there are plans to tour the big radio telescope facility in the radio-free zone and take in a steam train ride near there.

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Jul 2013 at 10:52pm

A few random comments.  First, we lost our spare tire cover somewhere in OK a few days ago.  It was always on there tightly so I do wonder if it "walked" away instead of blowing off on the highway.  Looks a bit naked back there now.

Finally had to get more propane yesterday.  We didn't start off with much from the start but showers in truck stop lots finally took it lower than I wanted.  They purged the tank in the process since I wondered if air in the tank was causing my fridge issue in gas mode - nope.  Got up to near 70 on the road yesterday even though it started off around 39 while on AC overnight.

The roads coming to the latest campground (Natural Tunnel State Park in VA) were the steepest so far.  The mpg meter got down to 2 mpg when it never went below 4 out in the Rockies.  It was also struggling at the two worst parts, I hope not a symptom of a problem.  I don't expect any struggles with over 300 hp and torque and a trailer less than 3000 pounds...

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Jul 2013 at 10:49am
When we went to the Eastern Rally in NC, I thought about kicking the monitor over to "instant mpg" going through the Cumberland Gap on the Wilderness Road.. I decided not to because I was afraid it would make me cry. 

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Jul 2013 at 11:03am
Originally posted by furpod

When we went to the Eastern Rally in NC, I thought about kicking the monitor over to "instant mpg" going through the Cumberland Gap on the Wilderness Road.. I decided not to because I was afraid it would make me cry. 

Wink

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Jul 2013 at 2:56pm
Originally posted by techntrek


 It was also struggling at the two worst parts, I hope not a symptom of a problem.  I don't expect any struggles with over 300 hp and torque and a trailer less than 3000 pounds...


That surprises me.  We had a Yukon and towed a 6800# travel trailer all throughout the Southwest, up and down 6-7% grades.  Other than having to shift to a lower gear every now and then, we had no problems.  I would not expect your Suburban to struggle either.  Back then, our towing average was always around 8.5 mpg. 

Bob
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Jul 2013 at 4:15pm
When you were in New Mexico to bad that you did not go west on US60 at Socorro for about an hour and a half to see the Very Large Array, the ones that you see in the beginning of the movie "Contact". Really pretty neat and they have a visitor center. Goose
Mother Goose's Caboose..2011 RP171..07 Grand Cherokee
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Jul 2013 at 12:19am

I can only guess the struggle was due to very high grades - I think the 2 spots I had a problem with were over 10% - and I have been running the tranny rather warm due to the generator box up front (a problem I'm going to fix before I use the box again).  

We did tour Green Bank, my wife hasn't caught up on the blog posts due to being in the "national radio-free zone" around it.

Back home safe around 5 today, time to get to bed!

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Jul 2013 at 9:23pm

Some stats from this trip.  I kept notes at each fill-up of the miles traveled, gallons bought, money paid.  I'll crunch all of those numbers later to get my own measured mpg numbers per leg and the totals for the trip.  In the mean time here are the numbers from the truck's computer, including towing and side trips:

5841.6 miles total, 9.1 mpg, 643 gallons, 120 hours 46 minutes of run-time. 

Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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