… begins with 6-feet.
Yes, folks, I have, for the first time, attached my big beast of a tow vehicle and have hauled my fifth wheel. Six feet. And I did it without causing any kind of personal or property damage. Is there a merit badge for this?
We had to reposition the coach on the campsite to get both sewage outflow pipes within 10 feet of the sewer. Last weekend, after using a plastic tote to empty the rear gray water tank manually – for the second time – I vowed to never do it again. Emptying a 60-gallon tank requires about 10 back-breaking, smelly trips through mosquito-infested weeds. Think Humphrey Bogart in African Queen. A nasty, nasty job.
So this week I bought a new flexible drain hose and a hose support thing called a “Slunky” (because it looks like a rectangular Slinky) to support the hose. Jett and I took them up to the campsite on Saturday after Jett returned from VA (she delivered the grandkids to the loving arms of their father) and had a peaceful day and night. On Sunday afternoon I prevailed on Jett to do the move. She was still exhausted from the two weeks with the kids and the trip to VA, but it had to be done. Besides, it was good practice.
So we closed up the coach just as if we would be hauling it a hundred miles. Close the windows and vents. Secure anything that could fall. Clear the floors. Close the slides. Empty the tanks. Stow the hoses. Remove the tripod stabilizer. Raise the rear stabilizer legs. Lower the tailgate. Prepare the hitch. Back the truck in VERY CAREFULLY. Snap the pin into the hitch. Attach the umbilical. Disconnect the electric cable. Disconnect the TV cable. Disconnect the hose. Remove the chucks.
Finally… gently pull the coach forward about 8 feet. Remove the leveling lumber. Reposition the leveling boards. Put the truck in reverse and push the coach back about 2 feet onto the boards. Check the level. Pull forward. Adjust the boards a bit. Back it again. Done!
Then reverse all the steps to open it up again.
The whole process took nearly 2 hours. It wasn’t fun but it was certainly educational.
I now feel like a veteran OTR fifth-wheel hauler. I have logged 6 feet.