We went into the Call of the Wild RV dealership in Oxford, Maine about 10 days ago. We'd been researching travel trailers and talking to dozens of fellow campers throughout our journey. We'd spent hours online and on the phone. We thought we knew what we wanted: a hybrid trailer that was hard side in the middle and had tent ends like our pop-up. We were very happy with the quality of our Amish-made Jayco pop-up, so we chose this dealer because they had the model and size Jayco hybrid we were interested in looking at, and because they were pretty much on our intended route. Naturally, when we arrived, the model we wanted had been sold the day before. We looked at a couple other hybrids but didn't see exactly what we were looking for. Since we were already there, we decided to look inside a couple of full hard side Ultralight travel trailers, and we ended up loving the KZ 23' Vision. KZ is also a family-owned Amish business with wonderful attention to detail, superb quality, and a very comprehensive warranty. It didn't take us long to change our minds!
Here's Curt whipping out the Visa card for the deposit...just before signing on the dotted line!
Because it was approaching Labor Day weekend, it took almost a week for all the details to be ironed out. So we moseyed around Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts (the previous blog posts covered all that). Ross and Lorna, Curt's brother and sister-in-law, were gracious enough to allow us to empty our pop-up and place all our STUFF on their garage floor while we made the transfer. We showed back up at the RV dealer last Wednesday with our pop-up cleaned out and ready to trade in. Justin, one of the techs, gave us the tour of our new trailer and checked us out on all the features and systems.
We pulled our new trailer alongside our pop-up and transferred our last few belongings...
Said good-bye to our trusty pop-up, now totally empty and looking a little forlorn. . .
. . .and we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening happily moving some of our things into the new trailer. It was such fun...we felt like newlyweds with our first apartment!
That evening we camped right at the RV dealership. They recommend that new RV owners do that if they have the time, and try to use pretty much everything that night, so if there are any questions or problems they can be addressed by their staff first thing in the morning before driving the trailer away. What a great idea! We did have a few questions the next morning, and we got the answers right away.
Then a stop to their parts and accessories store to make sure we had everything we needed...
. . .and we were off! Since my cousin Kim lives close to where we bought the trailer, we visited her and her husband Brad for two days before returning to Ross and Lorna's in Massachusetts. We've been here 3 days now, finding places for all the stuff we brought from Texas. Ross and Lorna are about to be able to reclaim their garage! We've been sleeping in the new trailer at night instead of the guest room... And we're getting used to how everything works. It's SO much more spacious and comfortable than the pop-up!
Here are some photos of how things are starting to shape up:
From the doorway looking left into the living room. The floor mat we brought along fits perfectly! On the left you can see a tall cabinet which is our pantry...and then the fridge & freezer beyond.
Here's the living room/kitchen combo.
Two sofas! The one on the left is just like the sofa you might have in your living room...SO much more comfortable than the pop-up's dinette benches. And since we both love to sit and read (or knit) in the evenings, that's such a welcome change for us! The one on the right is ALMOST as comfortable, and it converts into a bed. We like the table...long and skinny so it doesn't take up all our floor space. It doubles as extra kitchen counter space as well. The floor space is increased by a slide-out section where the right-hand sofa is.
Since Curt is the primary dishwasher, he's delighted with the double sink. Above it and to the right is a flat-screen TV. Though we've never been TV-watchers much, we do enjoy movies from time to time...and there's a DVD player connected. It's also a CD player and radio, and a plug-in for iPods, so we can enjoy LOTS of great music. Indoor and outdoor speakers as well.
My favorite features are the refrigerator and freezer. I no longer have to get on my knees and duck my head into the tiny little fridge box on the floor. And we can have ice water with our own ice cubes! Wow, what a treat! Three burners on the stove are a definite upgrade from the two we had before, and now I even have a small oven for roasted vegetables and baked goods. I can't wait to use that! A microwave above completes the kitchen. What luxury!
Now here's something totally new for us...a bathroom! No more stumbling through a campground in the middle of the night!
And our very own shower! There's also an outdoor shower on the back side of the trailer.
Looking to the right from the doorway is the bedroom with a queen bed and a small wardrobe closet on each side of it. We've been able to take our clothes which have been hanging in the back seat of the pick-up and put them in our bedroom. What a novel concept. And we're still flaunting our Texas loyalty!
Here's another great space, which we know we'll use a lot: the electric awning is 18' wode, and it even has a string of LED lights already attached underneath to help us enjoy our outdoor evenings longer. In fact, all the lights in the trailer are LED, so that makes reading an absolute pleasure, rather than the struggle we had with the dim lights in the pop-up.
This shot of the back side of the trailer shows the slide. Just that small amount of space makes so much difference in the feel of comfort and roominess!
Curt's sister Patty said, "Everytime I see the name "Vision" on your photos, it reminds me of the hymn, Be Thou My Vision." Perfect. That's always been Curt's favorite hymn, so we've decided that's the theme song for our new home. Thank you, Patty!
Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me save that Thou art;
Thou my best thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
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