Arrived at Perry Lake, Ks Friday, June 11, at 6:00 pm.
Hot and humid. Proceeded to set up. Bolts to install air conditioner left in Omaha garage. Deely makes trip to Topeka to get new bolts.Returns with bolts---that are too big for holes. Fellow camper has drill---holes enlarged, a/c installed. Cools nicely, but notice that the electric circuits begin to trip off and we have to push reset button on camp
electrical box periodically to restart a/c and everything else. None of our friends (who have very same a/c and their fridges are running) are having this problem.
Friday night---stars shining as we go to bed. Skippy lays down with me and immediately falls asleep. Elli is freaked and walking all over the bed, looking around. A/C begins to trip off more and more. Deely has to go out to push reset button ---gets to be almost every 20 mins. Finally give up and turn overhead fan on. Everybody falls asleep.
Early Sat. morning---rain begins. HARD rain, lots of rain, Dripping rain. Knew we had a leaking problem, now we can see where from. Put pan under leak. But rain is building up between roof and ceiling paneling and traveling down the paneling and dripping on my bed. Grab towel and begin dabbing. Rain begins to drip from corner back window. Did NOT expect this leak---dab with towel. Raining and LIGHTNING too hard to go out and put tarp over roof. Place towels in pan to muffle dripping noise!
Sat. am---wake up to feeling damp, and mud all around camper. Still raining. Deely goes back to Topeka and buys a heavy duty outside extension cord. Comes back, hooks a/c directly to camp power box (rather than going thru the camper). Everything working now! Feeling cool! Put tarp over roof of camper. Leaking subsides. Were going to visit parents in Pamona and Baldwin, but decide we should stay and take care of camper. Don't feel like trying to make breakfast admist the drips. People and dogs pile in car to go to Topeka. On the way, say "screw it", and keep going to Pomona. Visit Deely's mother (and sisters), then go see his Dad. Rain has stopped. Arrive back at camp area at 5:00 pm. Have dinner with fellow
fiberglass camper friends. Not raining. Go to bed---it's now cool and drier, although the floor is dirty and covered with little rocks. We don't care.
Sat. night/early morning--rain starts again. No worries--tarp and a/c are working. Good sleep. Sunday morning---still raining. Fix breakfast in camper. Works pretty good---dogs and humans have scrambled eggs. Deely looking at radar on computer. At next "break" in storm we pack up, and head back to Omaha at 11:20 am. Good-bye new camping friends--hope to do this again when it's NICER!
Sunday afternoon--Highway 2, 50 miles from Omaha. Camper has a tire blowout. Pull over---time to change tire. Jack is under all the stuff in the Element. Unpack back of Element, find jack. Stand watch on road so Deely doesn't get killed while he changes tire. All goes well, EXCEPT the blowout has caused damage to camper. Side
light is broken off, "door" to hole where power cord comes out is gone, a repaired crack is cracked again, and a hole in torn in the
fiberglass on the underside behind the blown tire. Wires and the inside of the storage under the dinette seat are now exposed. Get home, unpack camper, clean mess, duct tape camper damage, and take camper back to storage. Place tarp over roof.
Good news---my enthusiasm to be a mobile Diva has not waned, and I am still happily married.
In 5 days we will head for North Carolina with just the car and two dogs. Thank goodness we had decided to stay in the Four Paws 30 ft. camper, rather than take ours! We trust this next trip will be alittle easier--tho the extended forcast for Rutherfordton, NC shows 90 degree temps! Hopefully there will be less rain (and their a/c works!)