We camped on the side of the road last night, and enjoyed the fact that we were self-contained so we could camp on the side of the road and still be totally cozy. But this morning when I turned on the generator to make coffee, it sputtered and died. We tried it a few times, but it refused to power the electric kettle. The stove, oven, refrigerator, and heater all run on propane, and a DC electric system powers the lights, so the only thing we really need the generator for is to power the the AC electricity to power high voltage things like the electric kettle and the microwave when we’re not plugged into power at a campsite. Even our computers can plug into the DC converter. The generator is nice to have, but totally optional. We boiled water for coffee on the stove, figured we’d look at the generator later, and went on our way.
First stop was Face Rock beach in Bandon, Oregon, a gorgeous sandy beach with cool rocks and caves and sea life. We explored the caves and wrote in the sand.
Next stop was Prehistoric Gardens, a spot in the middle of nowhere off the highway with a bunch of life-size replicas of dinosaurs. I first came here on a road trip down the coast with the kids 4 years ago, I think because I just saw the sign and decided to stop. For some reason, the last time we came, 8-year-old Lucy decided she needed to have her picture taken in front of every single dinosaur. She doesn’t remember this, but finds the pictures entertaining, so we decided to replicate them all with her standing in the same spot this time:
As we were getting ready to leave, I was checking places to stay and trying to calculate how far into California we could get tonight after hitting one last beach. But then the RV wouldn’t start. Not like trying to turn over but the battery was weak, but like nothing happening at all. We tried a jump start, but it did nothing. The battery seemed to be fine. After doing some google searching and calling the closest auto parts store, Michael determined that probably either our starter motor or our starter solenoid was bad and needed to be replaced. At first he was thinking he’d have to bike 20 miles to the auto parts store to get the parts, but a lady who worked at Prehistoric Gardens offered to drive into town and get it for us. In retrospect, we should have started calling mechanics first rather than auto parts stores, but that’s what we did. I also called my RV insurance and determined that we did have roadside assistance service and could get towed, but that often takes forever, and it seemed like the part would probably work, so I passed on the tow. When the lady came back with the parts, we looked at the engine and realized we had no idea where in the engine they went. Michael called a mobile mechanic the auto parts store had recommended, and he explained where they went over the phone, but recommended that we wait for him to come out tomorrow and fix it. Michael ignored his advice and replaced the starter motor himself. It seemed pretty straightforward, and it really should have worked after that, but it didn’t. By that point, it was getting dark, and it seemed pointless to get the RV towed when a mechanic had said he could come here tomorrow, so we settled in for the night. We’re now more than a day behind schedule.
Getting stranded in an RV sucks, but it’s so much better than getting stranded in a car, because you still have your cozy little house. While Michael and I spent hours trying to troubleshoot, the kids played games, went to the gift store and bought candy, and ran around in the dinosaur park. They didn’t even seem to notice we were stranded for several hours. Once they started getting hungry, we made a delicious dinner.
Also, there is no cell service here, so we had to use the office Wi-Fi to do all our calling, googling and blogging, and it only works on my phone if I am standing outside next to the office. They don’t normally give out the Wi-Fi password, but she was inspired by my story of wanting to replicate our pictures from 4 years ago and needing to look them up online.
Today's route:
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