Catching up
9 months since I posted. That’s the problem with these things, really, in my mind. There are people who make their livings posting their daily activities. I simply can’t imagine being interested in our daily activities enough to want to read them. Unless there’s something big or exciting going on, who cares really? That said, thanks to those of you who do come to read. It’s not that I don’t appreciate you, it’s that I don’t want to bore you!
That said, we’ve so completely enjoyed Qubie this year. Far from losing its lustre, we only appreciate her more every trip we take. And we’ve taken some trips! Here’s the 2 minute catch-up rundown of our year.
Disney!
We returned to Disney’s Fort Wilderness for Spring Break this year. No drama, excellent trip. It’s a perfect family outing.
Jordan Lake
As usual, we hit Jordan Lake more than anywhere else. Thankfully, it’s one of our favorite places, too. It’s hard not to love, with gorgeous waterfront sites and usually wonderful privacy.
The Big Summer Trip
This summer we did a whirlwind tour of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, starting with the Asheville Spartan Super and briefly visiting Cat’s alma mater and home town in the process. We stayed at some wonderful campgrounds, starting with Mama Gertie’s near Asheville which was truly lovely and to which we hope to return soon.
From there we ventured to Bluewater Resort in Dayton, TN which was different but pleasant in its own way. We sallied forth from there to visit Cat’s “hometown” in Chattanooga. We had a wonderful time in Chattanooga, visiting the aquarium and much of the city.
From there it was a visit to our “midpoint” hideaway when we were long-distance dating, Gatlinburg. We stayed at an upscale RV resort, Anchor Down. A different vibe here, and a comfortable stay though I don’t know that we’ll return. Nothing wrong really, just maybe not our flow.
We really appreciated all the comforts of home in Qubie on this extended trip. We never felt cramped, and just loved it. Best decision ever!
Carolina Beach
For Labor Day we headed to the beach and stayed at Carolina Beach State Park. What a great find! They have only a few RV sites, but they’re well-appointed and comfortable and a short trip from the beach. We’re returning there for a few days over the Christmas break for a final hoorah in Qubie for 2016.
Carolina Spartan Beast
We returned to Winnsboro, SC for the Carolinas Beast obstacle course race this year. We couldn’t get the beautiful site we had at Lake Wateree State Park, unfortunately, but found a cozy if primitive site near the race venue at Oak Plantation. Again, this is a large reason why I in particular wanted to have Qubie, and it’s awesome to have her for these types of thing. Worked out perfectly!
Thanksgiving at Myrtle Beach
We had such a great time last year that we rebooked at Ocean Lakes in Myrtle Beach for this year (and booked next year’s while we were there). We had a wonderful week with Cat’s good friend from Canada and her son visiting, too. Cat had a friend there, Julia had someone to do things with, it was delightful. We had a bit of drama Thanksgiving night with a propane detector going off which I won’t go into too much detail here, but aside from that it was a perfect stay.
A year of maintenance and repairs
Qubie has done well, I really can’t complain. Sure, there are little things here and there that seem to pop up. We had only one “large” repair done this year when the fresh water tank sprung a leak. Had to have that replaced, but Tiffin covered it under warranty even though I was out from under the coverage. I have to credit Tiffin’s warranty, they do stand behind their product.
Pretty much everything that has gone wrong has been some non-Tiffin component that failed. Here’s a list of everything I can think of that I’ve had to deal with this season.
- The water tank. That’s the big one.
- The cable/antenna switch went bad, causing poor reception. Tiffin sent a replacement under warranty and I installed.
- The night shade at the driver’s window would no longer stay down. Tiffin sent a replacement shade assembly under warranty and I installed.
- The shower has a leak under the door where Tiffin put a screw through the fiberglass. That one continues to be a pain. I’ll have to get rid of the screw, I think, and seal it up good.
- The bathroom door wouldn’t stay closed while traveling. The wood behind the strike plate wasn’t bored out so the door latch wouldn’t extend far enough to provide good closure. I bored it out with a chisel and now it stays closed.
- With the slides open, water infiltrates at the rear of the driver’s side bedroom slide and at the rear of the kitchen slide. Haven’t had this one addressed yet but will likely be making a trip to Red Bay this winter to have a punchlist of warranty items repaired.
- I finally got my brake light weirdness fixed once and for all after Ford issued a TSB for a TCM reflash to correct the issue. Yay! That was cause for my most stressful event with Qubie, so the fact that there’s a fix was awesome. Since the reflash the problem has not returned, and I have been in plenty of stop and go traffic which seemed to cause it. Phew!
A year of enjoyment
Like I said above, we’re not tired of it. We all miss Qubie when we leave her in storage. Cat lamented that it didn’t feel like we’d used her enough this year, so we might have to try to ramp it up more next year. That’s not a bad thing!
We certainly feel lucky to feel comfortable enough to do this. It’s not as crazy as it might seem to get into something even as nice as Qubie. According to Edmunds, the average new car payment is $429/month. Our Qubie payment is not drastically more than that. So rather than a new car, we have a new Qubie. I’ll take that trade any day :).
Shallow Roots 