We took off to a local trailer store and asked for a new plug. He suggested we upgrade to an anode plug that would go in instead. Hopefully someone reading this is as novice to RV’s as we are, and they can learn something here as well. It turns out that this rod actually works to combat the minerals in the water tank, and give you cleaner water. Unfortunately, it cost us $20 and I have no idea how long it will last. Either way, after the hour it took to remove the burst nylon plug, this went in effortlessly, and not a drip has leaked out since.

Not a drip, from the water heater that is.

A few days later we moved up the road to the San Jose area. I can tell you that the drive was nothing short of amazing. We left late at night and spent most of it driving to black skies. Come morning, we were lucky enough to be driving through the San Luis State Park. I still regret that I didn’t have time to pull over, but we were already at the point of only getting 3 hours sleep before work. Driving through the park was like driving through the hills of England. Soft rolling hills were everywhere, and the giant State Reservoir sat in between them still and calm. Every twist and turn, and every hilltop, gave you a new view that was absolutely jaw dropping. I promise, we will be going back to get a few pictures of this beautiful area.

Two days after we parked in San Jose, we noticed a puddle of water in the bathroom. Do we really need more water leaks? Apparently we do. There happened to be, 2 leaky water pipes under our bathroom sink. We made a quick run out to Lowes and picked up a set of ‘push to connect, self sealing connectors’. These were garbage. Totally worthless, and a giant waste of time. We had the pipes cut smooth and square. I seated the connections just as the manual directed, and we fired up the water connection. Water went EVERYWHERE. Each connecting point became a geyser aimed right at my face-and it was hard to run when lying on my belly on the floor. At that point, we removed all the new parts, and went to Home Depot. The big orange might be a bit harder to navigate at times, but we did manage to find the Shark Bite connectors that I had in mind. We picked these up and went back home. Finally, we have water in the trailer again. The new pieces did the job they described, and sealed everything perfectly.

I also managed to get a bit of silicone tape on the shower drain valves, so now we aren’t leaking outside at that point either. Of course, as soon as all these repairs were made, the water pressure regulator on our hose…broke. So I’m still leaking-but at least this one is outside and only affects us by lowering the pressure when we first open up a line. This RV is starting to turn into an episode of ‘This Old House!”

We went inside, found the group, and commenced in having a great day. The LA group provided a ton of laughs, and never ending conversation. We went through several rounds of drinks, a mound of cigars, and even managed to meet a celebrity or two! After the music died down and we left the Sagebrush, we headed out for oysters and mussels. While it was definitely a new experience for both Karen and I, it’s also one we don’t plan to do again. Ever. For the sake of our readers-I will let that subject drop right there.

Here are a few pictures we took at the Cantina, enjoy!

www.vitabellapizza.com

Wow. I wish I had been able to take pictures of the food from this place, but once it hit my mouth-I couldn’t stop. A good friend of mine had mentioned that Vita Bella was his favorite place in Chicagoland to pick up an Italian Beef sandwich. I have had a few of these sandwiches in the past, so I was ready to see what the hype was about on this one. We agreed to try it out for lunch the next day-and that was one of my best decisions to date.

Warren set off to pick up our order, and came back with a bag full of delicious. Vita Bella uses a sweet pepper that tastes like it has been simmer with powdered sugar. The beef was perfectly tender, and amazingly juicy. This meal has literally transformed my expectations for Italian Beef sandwiches.

And, their thin crust cheese pizza was VERY tasty as well!

Actually, we just pulled into our awesome RV park, and saw her. I must say, it’s pretty much exactly what we would like to get in a future rig.

Until that point, I need to tell you about this RV park. I’ll have another post up shortly that will give the ins and outs of it all, but the basics: Cheap. $20 a night. Very large slots. Cheap laundry. Onsite RV Repair.

We have been here, at the Oasis RV Resort in Amarillo, TX for about 2 weeks now. We did have one issue with our cable TV not working at one site, but it’s been chugging along just fine since we moved. The Pull-through spots are 75 feet long. Thats pretty much insane, and is one of the reasons we saw the beauty pictured above. There are at least 3 bath houses, and each one houses 4 washers and dryers-at half a buck per load.

This park is a winner, and I wish it was ours!

The Basics
Lots-Very generous. 75 feet long, and twice twice as wide as a rig., mostly pull-through sites, big rig friendly. Very little shade.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Every site. Clear skies and nothing to block you.
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite ($0.50 wash/$0.50 dry)
WiFi-Yes, free
Pool-Two. Family pool and hot tub, as well as an ‘adults only’ spa.

The Extras
Sites-Level, fully paved, no tables or fire rings
Cable-Yes
Bath House-Yes-3 onsite, each with 4 washers and dryers.
Camp Store-Ice, basic RV Supplies, BBQ restaurant
Onsite Recreation-Rec Room
Propane-Sold onsite.

Parting Thoughts

We really like this park. Sign up for their VIP club (free, just fill out your name and address) and you get every 3rd night free, as well as discounts on food, and repairs at their onsite repair facility. I did utilize their repair center, and I must say I am very pleased. Their service was prompt, and all the staff was great to work with. We had our tow vehicle (my truck!) fixed, and they would drive it to your site, so you could relax at your rig while it was worked on. For RV repairs, they will do what they can to repair things right where you were parked.

The Basics
Lots-several options. Most are average with a few large sites. Big rig friendly.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Not every site, but it is available.
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite
WiFi-Yes, free for the first day, $1 per computer-per day, after that.
Pool-Yes

The Extras
Sites-Level, gravel parking, picnic table
Cable-No
Bath House-Yes
Camp Store-Ice, basic RV Supplies, fishing supplies
Onsite Recreation-Playground, Rec Room, 2 lakes
Propane-Sold onsite.

Parting Thoughts

We enjoyed this park. Initially stayed here for 2 nights, and later came back for another 3 nights. It was easy in and out, but not the closest to the highway. There is a great dog walk area, and several really nice sites with wooden decks and a view of one of the lakes.

The Basics
Lots-Wide and spacious, big rig friendly, no pull-through spots.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Some areas, heavy with trees.
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite
WiFi-Yes, in certain areas.
Pool-Yes

The Extras
Sites-Level, gravel parking, picnic table, fire ring
Cable-At select sites for $2 per day.
Bath House-Yes
Camp Store-Still opening when we were there.
Onsite Recreation-Catch and release fishing pond. Multiple playareas
Propane-No

Parting Thoughts

I think my only real issue with this site, is it’s general location. If you need to get to a Wal-Mart, mall, etc-you are looking at a 20-30 minute drive. We did enjoy the walking path in the site, and the proposed off leash dog area will be quite nice!

The Basics
Lots-Average, mostly pull-through sites, big rig friendly.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Didn’t try
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite
WiFi-Yes
Pool-Yes

The Extras
Sites-Level, gravel parking, picnic table
Cable-No
Bath House-Yes
Camp Store-Ice, basic RV Supplies
Onsite Recreation-Playground, Rec Room, Fishing lake
Propane-Sold onsite.

Parting Thoughts

We just stopped at this park while driving south. It was only an overnight stay,  but the way they had things arranged for this-was very impressive. We pulled in late at night, and the after-hours check in had multiple maps posted to their board. Each map clearly marked the site length, the power available, and which hook-ups it had.

The Basics
Lots-Wide and spacious, all pull through.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Most sites
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite
WiFi-Yes, full park coverage
Pool-No

The Extras
Sites-Level, gravel parking, picnic table
Cable-No
Bath House-Yes
Camp Store-Ice, basic RV Supplies
Onsite Recreation-Catch and release fishing lake.
Propane-Sold onsite.

Parting Thoughts

We stayed at this park for nearly 2 weeks. They had an interesting layout with the perimeter sites having you pull forward into your spot, and you would loop through the grass to get your rig back out. It worked well, but was interesting. This appears to have been a former KOA, so there were a lot of trees and space around-as is typical for KOA’s.

The Basics
Lots-Average width, several pull-through, tight entries.
Pets-Welcome
Satellite Friendly-Not likely-lots of tree coverage.
Sewer-Yes
Laundry-Onsite
WiFi-No
Pool-Yes

The Extras
Sites-Level, gravel parking, picnic table
Cable-No
Bath House-Yes
Camp Store-Ice, basic RV Supplies
Onsite Recreation-Two large ponds, walking trails, softball fields.
Propane-No

Parting Thoughts

When they say cottonwood, they aren’t kidding. The cotton flying off the trees was so bad here, that I’m still trying to get my AC unit fixed. My condenser pulled in a massive amount of the white fluff, and has been a pain for nearly 2 months now. The large trees also made it a challenge to get in and out of the spots. It’s the only pull through site I’ve been to, that required fully backing out to get adjusted.