Somebody took my motorhome!

 

A quote this morning from Rufus.  It was an early morning; Joan set an alarm for 6:00, but I was up way before that.  We had an 8:00 a.m. appointment at HWH to get our leveling jacks serviced.   As usual, we were early.  Prior to that, Rufus and I got in a chilly walk before we left the campground (9 miles from HWH).

 

Once at HWH, we moved some of Rufus's stuff from the motorhome into the Equinox... litter box, food dishes, his over-sized man cave ('cause he is an over-sized boy).  We were told it might take up to 4 hours for the work we had scheduled.  I turned over the keys to the motorhome and we drove to a nearby convenience store for some fine breakfast dining.

Rufus sat up big and proud on the center console of the Equinox while we went inside... he was looking large and in charge.  We topped off the fuel tank on the Equinox (non-ethanol premium - whoohoo!) and drove back to HWH.

Joan took Rufus for a walk while I went into the service office to see what their procedure is to let us know when they're done with it.  When I came out, Joan and Rufus were at the far side of the gravel parking lot, where he found some nice grass to walk in.  I went over to them, Joan turned the leash over to me, and Rufus and I continued his walk.  He marched back to where we first parked in that huge lot... and couldn't find his motorhome... "Somebody took my motorhome!"  The boy was not happy.  (He does not hide his emotions).

As I was walking him back to the car, the large bay door where I drove the motorhome in opened - the service guy backed our coach out.  I walked that way and asked, "A problem?"

He said, "Nope - it's done.  I replaced a valve in the pump - that was your problem.  Tested it - it auto levels just fine and retracts fine."

Less than an hour.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I put Ruf back in the car with Joan and went inside to pay.  The lady at the service desk had my bill ready, I swiped my credit card, done.

I pulled the motorhome to the far side of the parking lot to back it up to the cargo trailer.  Rufus saw his motorhome and was delighted!

Honestly, I was pretty delighted, as well.  We made reservations for an RV park east of Des Moines.  The big wind from yesterday hadn't let up any, and now it was a quartering headwind.  Even figuring a lunch stop and a stop for propane, we were off the road around 12:30.

This RV park is our kinda place: paved sites, wide grassy areas between them, enforced rules about pets on a leash, picking up after your pet, and picking up your cigarette butts.  It seems to be a lot of long-term folks in here, but it is very nice, obviously well kept-up.

After this early morning, it is nice to take a "day off" in a nice park.  Joan is going to get some laundry done, we'll find a grocery store, and maybe get a nap in.  As I am writing this, Rufus is laying next to me, happy to have his "rolling home" back.

--------

A Walk-about...

This park is a real find.  It's off the Interstate a few miles, so not the "easy on and off" of the campgrounds you see right by the road.  The price is an amazing $30/night... especially surprising considering the paved interior roads, the concrete pads and the generous grassy areas between the sites.

You can see on the map that the sites on the left side are shorter and closer together, all back-in sites.  The sites around those circles are significantly longer and more spacious, with nice landscaping.  The sites just right of center are the pull-through sites, and they are the longest.  We were fortunate to get one of those pull-through sites.  The pads are a single width, but the grassy areas between the sites is even bigger than Hart Ranch.

After supper, Rufus and I took a walk; he enjoyed the grassy areas...

 

We made our way to that path in the middle of the map; it is a pretty walk...

We walked down that path, where it opens onto a pond with a bridge over it...

There were two ladies walking 3 big dogs near that bridge.  I held Rufus back to see which way they were going to go.  When they saw us, the turned and went over the bridge.  Yes, Rufus likes dogs, but when there are three of them (and one pulling hard against the leash), there is the chance for that "pack mentality," and I steer my big furry boy away from that.  He often wants to go up to dogs while we're walking, but he was OK hanging back this time.  Smart boy.  And when I told him it was "time to go home," he led the way.  I probably haven't mentioned this before, but he is a good, good boy.  ;-)