July 2013 Oregon Gathering---Reserve the Date! (7/18-21)

[Mary F]

Originally Posted by Carol H

Border Guard: How was the meet and what year is your trailer?
Me: Its 21 years old and the meet was great. How did you know about it?
Border Guard: I am trying to find me one of those & plan to go to the meet next year. Have a safe trip home.
Me (hold a bunch of receipts): Dont you want to know what I have to declare?
Border Guard: I am assuming you bought a good bottle of wine and some stuff for the trailer at Camping World. Am I right?
Me: Yup
Border Guard: Have a safe trip home.

That's the best laugh I've gotten off this board in a very long time! Thanks, Carol!

[Evergreengirl]

We just got back home today, after laying over last night at Champoeg State Park. Peter and Lynne, having a blowout must have been a little scary. I'm glad everything turned out OK for you. Your experience is a heads-up to all of us to keep those spares for the trailer and tug filled up just in case we need them.

Our big excitement was coming upon two accidents right in the same location, but on opposite sides of the freeway, near Albany yesterday afternoon. Evidently a semi collided with a pick-up pulling a (fiberglass) trailer in the southbound lanes. I noticed that the lanes were all backed up there and saw the trailer over on the far shoulder, but that's about all I could see over the meridian. Then my husband, who was driving, said "Whoa!" and over on the right shoulder of the northbound lanes was a car rolled over and a bunch of people running towards it. That accident must have happened shortly before we arrived at the spot. I wonder if the rollover was caused by inattention on the part of the driver as he or she tried to get a look at the other accident? When we got home I had to do a bit of searching to find out anything about either accident, but finally found this: Crashes slow I-5 traffic Fortunately, at least as far as I can find out, there were no fatalities in either case. Check out that photo though and look at how those propane tanks went flying! Needless to say, we were relieved to get to the campground without further incident! Seeing accidents like these is always a sobering reminder to drive defensively and to be careful out there.

BIG THANKS to Teresa, Chris, Lyn, Dan, Gene and all the volunteers for all their work in putting together a fabulous Gathering!!! And Eric, those are great pictures! So fun to look at and they bring back great memories. Carol, your border guard story cracked me up!

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by DeadEyeDan

A few shots from the Ladder Ball Tourney today:

Snake Toss? Great game, eh? We have been playing for many years, before they even began selling it in stores. Seems not only there are many names for the game, everyone who plays seems to score differently. No matter though, it is fun regardless.

I read many years ago that it was believed that the game originated from bored cowboys killing a few snakes, and making a game out of trying to toss them to hang from barbed wire. Thus the name, Snake Toss. Who knows though?

[Donna D.]

The Saturday night awards and giveaways was fanastic. I was one of the lucky recipient's of a Brian Van Snell photo. Brian gave a half-dozen or so opportunities for winners to have their trailers photographed... or any other photo they wished to have taken (I think). I asked Brian if he'd take a photo of my "Sunshine at the Oregon Gathering" lite trailer. This is the wonderful photo. Isn't it neato!

[Jim Bennett]

Very nice, Donna. Well done, Brian.

Yep, I gotsta get my butt down there one of these years.

[Brian Van Snell]

Here is a link to a few photos taken at the potluck:

Oregon Gathering Potluck 2013 - a set on Flickr

Brian

[DeadEyeDan]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Come on you guys, what did you think of the Escape 21', I heard it was going to be there this weekend? You guys are my eyes and ears.........

It is a really nice trailer. Excellent cabinetry. Best I can tell the bed is narrower than the queen in the 19 but you can get in and out of it without climbing over. It has some nice storage under it wich can be accessed from inside or out.

The bathroom is supposed to be about the size of a Casita bathroom but seems bigger cause not curved as much in back, but larger than a 19.

Good working counter space between the sink and 3 burner stove. Big fridge. Microwave but no oven. Dinette in the back.

It is a conundrum for us as we like the bigger bed in the 19 and the bigger bathroom in the 21.

I am sure you will be happy with yours as it is a very nice trailer. But as history suggests, can I be first in line when you are done with it? LOL.

[DeadEyeDan]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

The Saturday night awards and giveaways was fanastic. I was one of the lucky recipient's of a Brian Van Snell photo. Brian gave a half-dozen or so opportunities for winners to have their trailers photographed... or any other photo they wished to have taken (I think). I asked Brian if he'd take a photo of my "Sunshine at the Oregon Gathering" lite trailer. This is the wonderful photo. Isn't it neato!

Nice!

[jwcolby54]

Too funny! He wants one!

[DeadEyeDan]

It was a real pleasure seeing everyone at Bandon.

It took us 3 days to get home. Let me rephrase that, we took three days to get home, stopping to take pics, take some side roads, and stopping for the night early.

Thanks Lynn and Teresa for the suggestion on the RV park by the Trees of Mystery. Turned out good and only 28.00 good sam with full hook ups and a pull through so I didnt even have to unhook.

Sort of sad to be home though I know Chris is happy to sleep in our KING size bed after three weeks in the Casita.

But we are going coastal again next Thursday.

Chris and I cannot wait to see you all next year!

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Yep, I gotsta get my butt down there one of these years.

Yeah you do!

[Evergreengirl]

Here are a few pics from the lighting contest:

[Brian Van Snell]

Here are a few photos from around Bandon:

Around Bandon July 2013 - a set on Flickr

Brian

[Roger C H]

After a few side trips, we returned home about 7:30 last evening.

Redwood Acres Campground, Eureka, CA.

Crater Lake National Park
(Taken between 7000-8000 ft altitude)

Between temperatures in the 60's at the ocean, and in the 90-100's along I-5, It was quite a contrast.

Hey, Dead Eye. Sorry we didn't see you guys. A belated "Hello."

[Robin G]

Great pic's everyone! Thanks for posting.......

[Sandra L]

Great people! Great fun! Thanks to all who created such a good experience. My family and I thoroughly enjoyed the rallly. Thanks as well to the photographers for the pictures.

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by peterh

Well, Lynne and I had an adventurous drive home.

The real fireworks went off as we hit the outskirts of Salem, where we had a blow out, the passenger side rear wheel of our pickup shredded. We came to a nice, controlled stop in the wide emergency lane just before Commercial Street in Salem. It took some time, but we got the spare on, then slowly drove up Commercial Street to find the first gas station where we could get some more air in our spare.

Robert and I also had an adventure after we left Bandon.
The moral of this story is to stop and investigate every abnormal sensation, even weird sounds of short duration.

Opening Scene

EXTERIOR - OREGON HIGHWAY = MID DAY

A bright sunny day.

A silver Odyssey pulling an "antique white" with red stripes fiberglass trailer, rolling eastbound on highway 42 in vacant open countryside after leaving Drain, Oregon.

INTERIOR - ODYSSEY MINIVAN - DAY

(a loud high-pitch CHIRP is heard, source location is not discernible, but seems to come from inside the car)

FRED

What was THAT?!? Do we have a squirrel in here?

Fred looks all around, down at the instrument panel, and in the rear-view mirrors. Nothing seems to be amiss.

ROBERT

I don't know. I've never heard anything like THAT before.

After about 10 minutes the trailer begins an almost undetectable vibrating motion, not much more than a slight wiggle. Feeling this new sensation Fred looks in the rear view mirrors and this time sees a cloud of dust behind the trailer with playing card size chunks of black rubber bouncing every which way.

FRED

I think we may have had a blow-out.

Signalling a right exit to the wide concrete shoulder of the highway, Fred eases the rig to an arrow-straight stop. He puts the transmission in "park" and activates the 4-way flashers, but leaves the engine running. He walks back along the driver's side of the rig and everything appears exactly as he last saw it while refueling at Reedsport. The back of the trailer looks fine too. As he rounds the back of the trailer he spots it; the right rear trailer wheel has about 2" of sidewall rubber stuck to it in a double row. The jagged rubber is on the pavement supporting the trailer. The white wheel shines untouched by either debris or concrete pavement in high contrast to the black and gray rubble that was once a tire.

CUT

[Donna D.]

I was WONDERING why a pic or two I saw posted on Facebook looked like one side of the trailer was running a RED wheel and a WHITE wheel.... NOW I know the rest of the story (Paul Harvey voice)

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

I was WONDERING why a pic or two I saw posted on Facebook looked like one side of the trailer was running a RED wheel and a WHITE wheel.... NOW I know the rest of the story (Paul Harvey voice)

The red wheel is the spare, the only un-cracked original wheel left while the white wheels are all new. This pic shows the spare mounted on the trailer and the new tire from Les Schwab on the ground awaiting switch-out.

[Frederick L. Simson]

Our campsite at the Oregon Gathering. My flamingo collection grew in the past year. I may need a 3rd large suitcase to pack them all.