New 178 HRE Owner - Event Date: 21 Mar 2014 |
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bcskimiller
Newbie Joined: 14 Mar 2014 Location: Hollywood, FL Online Status: Offline Posts: 20 |
Calendar Event: New 178 HRE Owner Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 1:05am |
Hello All!! We picked up a
2014 178HRE in late March and are really excited! Taken 3 trips so far;
one to our favorite beach camping in San Onofre, a 50 hour 1,000 mile road trip
to Mammoth (for 2 days of skiing of course!) and a quick one night in Coronado
at our first ever real "RV Park" (no picnic tables, cable hookups
etc...blah). We have a 9 month old and are still in the process of
figuring out the best sleeping arrangements and finding a tension rod that is
long enough to hold a blackout curtain across the dinette. We bought a
trailer because we are moving this summer and have almost 2 months off...so our
goal is from San Diego to north of the Arctic Circle (Prudhoe Bay hopefully)
then across Canada, eventually ending up in North Carolina; sounds easy except
our son will turn 1 about a month into the trip! On a whim, we stopped by
an RV dealership and was amazed to learn you can actually tow a trailer with
our 2013 Explorer 4WD, so the search was on.
Thanks to this page (and that other one), I saw that there are loads of
good people and info on what appears to be a quality product so we tracked down
our local dealer, saw the 178 and the new 179 and determined the 178 dinette
was far superior (ie more suitable for us) and here we are. The dealer had 2 on the lot, we chose a color
and it came with “all the options” since “that’s the way they order them” and
upgraded to a dual 6V battery. I have
done 1,500 miles or so with the combination and it held over 50MPH without much
trouble clearing the Sherman Grade (to over 7,000ft leaving Bishop in the
Eastern Sierras) and managed to pass some other less formidable RVs on a 2 lane
road. So far, gas mileage has been right
at 10MPG overall with the cruise at 60MPH, including significant mountains and elevation
changes. There are several podmods forthcoming, first up is going to be 2 additional 12 volt adapters and then a shelf over the bed. Hope to get time to get in an outdoor shower before leaving in June. Will post more as we go along! Three pictures, one “in its home”, another in the parking lot at Mammoth on a beautiful day and the 3rd at dawn in the hills outside of Bishop. |
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Me, the Wife, 3 Kids 5 and under...its Crowded!
2014 RP-178 HRE 2017 Expedition EL 4WD |
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Leo B
podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 13 Jan 2012 Location: Lyndonville, VT Online Status: Offline Posts: 4516 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 6:25am |
welcome to the group!
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Leo & Melissa Bachand
2017 Ford F150 2021 Vista Cruiser 19 csk Previously owned 2015 Rpod 179 2010 Rpod 171 |
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Hairy Podders
Senior Member Joined: 05 Mar 2014 Location: Northwest Ohio Online Status: Offline Posts: 217 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 7:12am |
The pictures look great & it sounds like you are going to get a lot of use & enjoyment from your Pod in a short amount of time!
Be safe out there. |
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Darryl, Julie & Lindsey
Cooper & Libby- Devoted Canines 2014 RP178 2006 Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon |
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CasaJack
Newbie Joined: 19 Feb 2014 Location: San Gabriel, CA Online Status: Offline Posts: 36 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 9:35am |
Welcome and Happy Camping. Nice Pics!
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Jackdaddy
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Camper Bob
podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 26 Sep 2011 Location: Portland Oregon Online Status: Offline Posts: 913 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 10:10am |
Welcome. Safe Travels.
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Camper Bob and Camper Sue
Gracie the Wonder Dog (12 LB. Mini Dachshund) 2013 Rpod 171HRE(ORPod) 2016 Lance 1685 2015 Nissan Pathfinder |
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furpod
Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 11:17am |
Welcome!! Long time since I was in the southern Sierra, beautiful part of the country for sure.
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techntrek
Admin Group - pHp Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 1:08pm |
Welcome, and nice pics.
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Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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freezingalaskan
Newbie Joined: 20 Mar 2014 Online Status: Offline Posts: 34 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 1:29pm |
Congratulations on your purchase. I have a 172 and we had a great first season last year. I do have to comment on your travel plans..."We bought a trailer because we are moving this summer and have almost 2 months off...so our goal is from San Diego to north of the Arctic Circle (Prudhoe Bay hopefully) then across Canada".
I cannot say for sure if you plan on using your own car or tow the RPod up to Prudhoe Bay, but I would not recommend driving up to Prudhoe Bay with anything you own. Especially not your nice car and trailer. You are looking at mud, fine silt-type sand that will find each and every nook on your car/trailer. You have no services along the road, so you will have to haul gasoline with you. No water to fill the tanks, and no dump stations. No cellphone coverage. You would have to bring two spare tires for your car and two spares for the RPod. Car rental companies won't let you drive that road either. A motorcycle rental place in Anchorage will rent a motorcycle to you if you pay extra to drive that road due to the wear and tear on the motorcycle. Or, you could join a group ride that they organize. Sorry to tell you this, but it is the reality. I have lived in Alaska for 20 years and have no desire to go that road due to the troubles once may find oneself in.... However, drive north to Fairbanks and then north east to Chena Hot Springs. Great place! I recommend taking the Parks Highway up from Anchorage, and then return back on Richardson Hwy (or reverse it). Glenn Hwy is beautiful as well (between Anchorage and Glennallen), but you will work your vehicle hard going up long hills. Anchorage to Seward and or Homer is great. Seward is a favorite of mine and you can camp right by the ocean.... I do hope you make it to Alaska. freezingalaskan |
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Volvo XC90 '13
rPod 179 '16 |
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bcskimiller
Newbie Joined: 14 Mar 2014 Location: Hollywood, FL Online Status: Offline Posts: 20 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 7:24pm |
freezingalaskan, Thanks for the thoughts...was already figuring out where to add 3 jerry cans to the car/pod, maybe now only need one! Already planning for spare tires on the roof (silly Ford only putting a mini on something as big as the Explorer). I am used to camping in the desert for days, so no water/pump station/cell/help isn’t really a major concern. Having a trailer for a hard shell to sleep in is already a luxury! The silt in the car/trailer is more concerning...my goal is at least to the Arctic Circle and may be to Coldfoot...there is gas there. This will probably will be my only chance to get up that far north, and north of the Arctic is a strange fascination of mine. In reality, knocking off that extra couple days to get all the way to Prudhoe Bay and back will provide more time to get other places. Homer is on my list, the Parks/Richardson Hwy loop, including Denali is as well. I've got several friends in Kodiak, so I may try and get a ferry down for a couple days (if I can get a reservation). Regardless of how it works out, it's going to be an adventure! Another reason why I like this forum...there
are people willing to help from all over the country! Thanks!
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Me, the Wife, 3 Kids 5 and under...its Crowded!
2014 RP-178 HRE 2017 Expedition EL 4WD |
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bcskimiller
Newbie Joined: 14 Mar 2014 Location: Hollywood, FL Online Status: Offline Posts: 20 |
Posted: 29 Apr 2014 at 7:27pm |
furpod, the Southern Sierras are absolutely spectacular; I will probably miss them more than anything else about living in Southern California; so much variety and something for every season!
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Me, the Wife, 3 Kids 5 and under...its Crowded!
2014 RP-178 HRE 2017 Expedition EL 4WD |
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