Fort Collins to Post falls, ID
Wow, let me back up and get you caught up with this trip. We had a great drive from Fort Collins, CO to Casper, WY, only about 225 miles. We saw many antelope along the roadside in small groups and sometimes in large groups of more than twenty. It was somewhat like the eagles in Alaska, you soon get tired of seeing them even though they are so beautiful. We had a nice thunderstorm in the evening and saw the terrific rainbow you see below. After the storm we went to dinner at the Outback and had a wonderful meal, as usual.
We also had a problem with a turn signal on the CR-V when we were towing. I took it to a guy in Casper and he determined that all of the wiring in the car was fine so I had him wire a new connector that plugs into the coach where there was an adapter previously. When I got back to the park and tried the new connection I found it hadn't corrected the problem so I called another guy to come out and check out the coach wiring. It turned out the connector on the coach wasn't getting an electric signal to the turn signal, right only. We checked all of the fuses we could find but couldn't find one that was burned out. What he finally did was run a jumper wire from the coach tail-light on the right side to the connector and that gave us the connection we needed and we were off to Montana the next day.
I did post a question about the wiring on an Alfa website and discovered there was a fuse box in a compartment on the side of the coach. When we got to Billings, MT I checked the box and found a fuse that was blown and replaced it. Now when I turned the turn signal on the lights came on but wouldn't blink because it was now getting two signals. After thinking about it a bit it came to me that I had to remove the jumper wire and go back to the original connection and voila it worked.
We had a great site at the first KOA ever in Billings. This is where the company started and the park is truly beautiful! Our patio site was large and very comfortable. We liked it so much we changed parks so we could stay there again when we return that way on our way to North Dakota in August. We had one dinner out in Billings at a Carino's and again, had a great dinner with enough left over for dinner the next evening as well.
On Sunday, June 29, we headed for Deer Lodge, MT which was a trip of about 270 miles. WE had lots of mountains to deal with so there was lots of ups and downs. We planned a couple of stops to walk Alex and to eat lunch so we didn't get tired at all. When we got to Deer Lodge we fueled the motorhome and checked into the RV park that was right behind the service plaza. We weren't too impressed with the looks and location of the park so before we checked in I called ahead to Post Falls, ID to see if we could come a day early. Fortunately they could accommodate us so when I checked in at Deer Lodge I just did it for an overnight instead of two nights.
When I was setting up the coach I noticed a warning light on the dash that said "Check Engine." There wasn't much I could do that evening but I checked the oil and antifreeze in the morning and both were okay. I called Freightliner in Missoula, on our route today, and was informed that I would have to take it to the Caterpillar dealer since it was a Cat engine. The coach was definitely lacking power when we left the park and I could barely get it to 65 on the interstate. We finally got to Western States Equipment, the Cat dealer in Missoula, around 11:00 and I was told that someone would do some diagnostic work in about 40 minutes. Well around 12:00 the guy finally gets to us and says there is some kind of a fuel problem because the pressure is only 8, PSI I guess. He said we could keep driving and "probably" not have a problem or he could have a guy work on it at 3:30 PM. Well I was afraid to leave without getting it fixed so we waited. To make a long story a little shorter we finally left at 6:00 PM after spending 7 hours but at least the problem was fixed. They found a faulty valve on the engine and when it was replaced the pressure went up to 80, where it should have been.
We called the RV park in Post Falls and informed them we would be arriving late and to find out when they closed the office. We did loose an hour as Post Falls is on PST, but weren't sure if we could get there in three hours since we were about 168 miles away. Anyway we headed out, the coach ran great maybe even better than before, and arrived at the RV park about 4 minutes to 8:00 with a short rest stop and snack about 70 miles out. The gal was walking out the door as we pulled in and she gave us a park map, told us how to get to our site, and said to come back and pay in the morning.
We had a drink and a snack for dinner and got to bed pretty early. We have a nice site, right on the end of a row, so we have a nice green belt on the passenger side. I will get a picture for the next report. This morning I got up at 7:30 PST, thanks to Alex, and started on the bugs after taking Alex for a walk. Two days of bugs took a bit of work but the front of the coach looks good again. Fortunately we are staying here for two weeks so I won't have to deal with that again, at least for a little while.
I have a couple of Golf Digest visits planned here and will try to get one more before we leave. I will also explore fishing opportunities but mostly we plan to sight see and relax while we are here. More in a day or so, be safe.
We also had a problem with a turn signal on the CR-V when we were towing. I took it to a guy in Casper and he determined that all of the wiring in the car was fine so I had him wire a new connector that plugs into the coach where there was an adapter previously. When I got back to the park and tried the new connection I found it hadn't corrected the problem so I called another guy to come out and check out the coach wiring. It turned out the connector on the coach wasn't getting an electric signal to the turn signal, right only. We checked all of the fuses we could find but couldn't find one that was burned out. What he finally did was run a jumper wire from the coach tail-light on the right side to the connector and that gave us the connection we needed and we were off to Montana the next day.
I did post a question about the wiring on an Alfa website and discovered there was a fuse box in a compartment on the side of the coach. When we got to Billings, MT I checked the box and found a fuse that was blown and replaced it. Now when I turned the turn signal on the lights came on but wouldn't blink because it was now getting two signals. After thinking about it a bit it came to me that I had to remove the jumper wire and go back to the original connection and voila it worked.
We had a great site at the first KOA ever in Billings. This is where the company started and the park is truly beautiful! Our patio site was large and very comfortable. We liked it so much we changed parks so we could stay there again when we return that way on our way to North Dakota in August. We had one dinner out in Billings at a Carino's and again, had a great dinner with enough left over for dinner the next evening as well.
On Sunday, June 29, we headed for Deer Lodge, MT which was a trip of about 270 miles. WE had lots of mountains to deal with so there was lots of ups and downs. We planned a couple of stops to walk Alex and to eat lunch so we didn't get tired at all. When we got to Deer Lodge we fueled the motorhome and checked into the RV park that was right behind the service plaza. We weren't too impressed with the looks and location of the park so before we checked in I called ahead to Post Falls, ID to see if we could come a day early. Fortunately they could accommodate us so when I checked in at Deer Lodge I just did it for an overnight instead of two nights.
When I was setting up the coach I noticed a warning light on the dash that said "Check Engine." There wasn't much I could do that evening but I checked the oil and antifreeze in the morning and both were okay. I called Freightliner in Missoula, on our route today, and was informed that I would have to take it to the Caterpillar dealer since it was a Cat engine. The coach was definitely lacking power when we left the park and I could barely get it to 65 on the interstate. We finally got to Western States Equipment, the Cat dealer in Missoula, around 11:00 and I was told that someone would do some diagnostic work in about 40 minutes. Well around 12:00 the guy finally gets to us and says there is some kind of a fuel problem because the pressure is only 8, PSI I guess. He said we could keep driving and "probably" not have a problem or he could have a guy work on it at 3:30 PM. Well I was afraid to leave without getting it fixed so we waited. To make a long story a little shorter we finally left at 6:00 PM after spending 7 hours but at least the problem was fixed. They found a faulty valve on the engine and when it was replaced the pressure went up to 80, where it should have been.
We called the RV park in Post Falls and informed them we would be arriving late and to find out when they closed the office. We did loose an hour as Post Falls is on PST, but weren't sure if we could get there in three hours since we were about 168 miles away. Anyway we headed out, the coach ran great maybe even better than before, and arrived at the RV park about 4 minutes to 8:00 with a short rest stop and snack about 70 miles out. The gal was walking out the door as we pulled in and she gave us a park map, told us how to get to our site, and said to come back and pay in the morning.
We had a drink and a snack for dinner and got to bed pretty early. We have a nice site, right on the end of a row, so we have a nice green belt on the passenger side. I will get a picture for the next report. This morning I got up at 7:30 PST, thanks to Alex, and started on the bugs after taking Alex for a walk. Two days of bugs took a bit of work but the front of the coach looks good again. Fortunately we are staying here for two weeks so I won't have to deal with that again, at least for a little while.
I have a couple of Golf Digest visits planned here and will try to get one more before we leave. I will also explore fishing opportunities but mostly we plan to sight see and relax while we are here. More in a day or so, be safe.
posted by Stu & Tippy On the Road | 11:33 AM
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