Here is a panoramic view of Casey's Riverside RV Park from our site. 
Click on the picture to enlarge.
Click on the picture to enlarge.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Yesterday, upon the stair...
When I was a kid, my dad used to share goofy poems with us. He had a great sense of humor, if you like corny. One poem that I remember went:
We got the dogs into their harnesses and packed a backpack with useful hiking accessories. I had mentioned to Jill that we could stop by the park office and inquire about the bridge, but she replied that since I had done all this research, there would certainly be a covered bridge to admire.
This was actually taken last evening, but it shows the dogs are always ready to go.
Well, you guessed it: "It wasn't there again today. Gee, I wish it would go away!" Nevertheless, we had a lovely hike from the park to the westernmost neighborhood of Westfir. We crossed the Middle Fork of the Willamette River, then walked along the highway, which becomes North Fork Road. Eventually, after about a mile and a half, we came to the bridge I had located, only it wasn't a covered bridge; it was just a bridge.
We crossed over to a lovely little neighborhood of modest but mostly well-tended homes perched between the mountain and the North Fork of the Willamette River. One of the nicer homes is for sale. It is 1888 square feet with two car garage, across the street from the river. The asking price is $139,000. So, if you ever wanted to live in a community of under 300 inhabitants, here's your chance.
This is the view from the "uncovered" bridge.
On the way back, Jill said, "Oh, look! There's Sadie."
Here's a shot of the Middle Fork of the river.
Another shot of the river. Can you tell I like water?
We calculated that the walk to and from the bridge was a total of about 3 miles. The walk around the neighborhood was probably an additional 1/4 mile. We haven't heard much from the girls this afternoon. There is a lot of snoozing going on.
Yesterday, upon the stair,Today upon the map I saw a bridge that was supposed to be there; a covered bridge, that is. I did quite a long study, in an effort to discover whether it was within walking distance. At last, I announced, "Let's take a walk up to that covered bridge I told you about." I was sure I had it nailed.
I saw a man who wasn't there.
He wasn't there again today,
Gee, I wish he'd go away.
We got the dogs into their harnesses and packed a backpack with useful hiking accessories. I had mentioned to Jill that we could stop by the park office and inquire about the bridge, but she replied that since I had done all this research, there would certainly be a covered bridge to admire.
This was actually taken last evening, but it shows the dogs are always ready to go.
Well, you guessed it: "It wasn't there again today. Gee, I wish it would go away!" Nevertheless, we had a lovely hike from the park to the westernmost neighborhood of Westfir. We crossed the Middle Fork of the Willamette River, then walked along the highway, which becomes North Fork Road. Eventually, after about a mile and a half, we came to the bridge I had located, only it wasn't a covered bridge; it was just a bridge.
We crossed over to a lovely little neighborhood of modest but mostly well-tended homes perched between the mountain and the North Fork of the Willamette River. One of the nicer homes is for sale. It is 1888 square feet with two car garage, across the street from the river. The asking price is $139,000. So, if you ever wanted to live in a community of under 300 inhabitants, here's your chance.
This is the view from the "uncovered" bridge.
On the way back, Jill said, "Oh, look! There's Sadie."
Here's a shot of the Middle Fork of the river.
Another shot of the river. Can you tell I like water?
We calculated that the walk to and from the bridge was a total of about 3 miles. The walk around the neighborhood was probably an additional 1/4 mile. We haven't heard much from the girls this afternoon. There is a lot of snoozing going on.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Another crummy day in paradise
The day dawned with a high overcast. Before long, we had sunshine. Jill got online and looked up information on Westfir, OR. There was one claim that Westfir has a perfect climate. I am inclined to believe it today. We also checked the weather in Dallas and learned that, at least according to the weather report, Dallas had rain today. We, on the other hand, had a lovely day: 65 degrees and partly sunny!
The dogs had a wonderful time walking around the park and romping in the off leash dog park. Jill and I agreed that this may be the nicest RV park we have ever visited, when you take into account the facilities, the setting and the weather we have had.
Here are a few more photos of the park:
During an early morning stroll, Jill and Lulu walk along the river (middle fork of the Willamette).
Our venerable Sadie. Even though we have a lovely view of the water, it is hard to get a picture of Sadie and the river together.
The incredible color and clarity of the water are amazing.
The park has wonderful facilities for groups, including this fire pit and picnic tables.
There is a nice covered area that includes a couple of barbecues, as well as tables, a pair of refrigerators and two TV sets. This would be a great place to have a tailgate party!
Another shot of Sadie in her surroundings.
A pair of Canada geese swimming on the Willamette river.
To be honest, our life here has been so relaxed that there is not a lot to report. We are reveling in the sheer beauty and splendor of God's creation and shedding any stress that may have been perplexing us. Perhaps, tomorrow we will do something earthshaking...but don't bet the farm on it.
The dogs had a wonderful time walking around the park and romping in the off leash dog park. Jill and I agreed that this may be the nicest RV park we have ever visited, when you take into account the facilities, the setting and the weather we have had.
Here are a few more photos of the park:
During an early morning stroll, Jill and Lulu walk along the river (middle fork of the Willamette).
Our venerable Sadie. Even though we have a lovely view of the water, it is hard to get a picture of Sadie and the river together.
The incredible color and clarity of the water are amazing.
The park has wonderful facilities for groups, including this fire pit and picnic tables.
There is a nice covered area that includes a couple of barbecues, as well as tables, a pair of refrigerators and two TV sets. This would be a great place to have a tailgate party!
Another shot of Sadie in her surroundings.
The old blogger had a grueling day.
A pair of Canada geese swimming on the Willamette river.
To be honest, our life here has been so relaxed that there is not a lot to report. We are reveling in the sheer beauty and splendor of God's creation and shedding any stress that may have been perplexing us. Perhaps, tomorrow we will do something earthshaking...but don't bet the farm on it.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
What a beautiful spot
At last, I am able to write a post that is interesting to those who are not RV Appliance geeks. We are parked by the Willamette River at Casey's Riverside RV Park in Westfir, OR. With a fully functioning furnace, and dry weather on the horizon, we took off after church and drove 111 miles to a little slice of heaven in the Cascade mountains.
The video is the view out our dinette window. The drive up here, however, was as beautiful as the destination. That's what I love about RVing and sailing. The journey is as important as the destination...and as rewarding.
My co-pilot and resident photographer, took a few shots on the way up here, and although a sunny day would have shown off the scenery better, I think these shots are rather pretty just as they are.
Here's a nice little farm we saw along Hwy 58.
This covered bridge crosses Dexter Lake, a reservoir behind a dam on the Willamette River.
This dam is at the upper end of Dexter Lake and forms a second lake, Lookout Point Reservoir. I assume the dams that form these lakes are hydro-electric plants, but that is merely an assumption.
Here's a shot of the upper lake, obviously taken through Sadie's windshield. .
We didn't arrive at Casey's until after 5:00 PM, so we haven't had time to do much exploring. You may be sure that I will post again tomorrow.
My co-pilot and resident photographer, took a few shots on the way up here, and although a sunny day would have shown off the scenery better, I think these shots are rather pretty just as they are.
Here's a nice little farm we saw along Hwy 58.
This covered bridge crosses Dexter Lake, a reservoir behind a dam on the Willamette River.
This dam is at the upper end of Dexter Lake and forms a second lake, Lookout Point Reservoir. I assume the dams that form these lakes are hydro-electric plants, but that is merely an assumption.
Here's a shot of the upper lake, obviously taken through Sadie's windshield. .
We didn't arrive at Casey's until after 5:00 PM, so we haven't had time to do much exploring. You may be sure that I will post again tomorrow.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Oh, dopey me!
If you have been following the saga of "As The Stomach Turns," (aka, Tom attempts a furnace repair) you will know that I have not had stellar success with my repair efforts. In fact, I was convinced that I had purchased a faulty circuit board.
This morning, I swallowed my pride and called the circuit board manufacturer for some advice. Well, long story short, the ground wire to the circuit board was not making contact. I snugged it up, and Voila! Heat!
The furnace repair is finished. The furnace is reinstalled, and Jill is loading groceries aboard for a trip to Westfir, OR.
I wish I had a dollar for every time I have read on the RV forum, "If you have an electrical problem, check the ground wire first." Had I heeded that advice, I might not have taken so long to effect the repair, nor pulled out so much of what little remaining hair I have! Tom, take note: "If you have an electrical problem, check the ground wire first."
Perhaps, it's my imagination running wild, but it seems to me that the furnace not only works well, but that it runs quieter, too. Whatever the case, I am elated to have the furnace working again. It is so much more fun to be able to come back from a romp on the beach or a hike in the woods and get adequately warmed up.
Happy travels. Look for another post soon.
This morning, I swallowed my pride and called the circuit board manufacturer for some advice. Well, long story short, the ground wire to the circuit board was not making contact. I snugged it up, and Voila! Heat!
The furnace repair is finished. The furnace is reinstalled, and Jill is loading groceries aboard for a trip to Westfir, OR.
I wish I had a dollar for every time I have read on the RV forum, "If you have an electrical problem, check the ground wire first." Had I heeded that advice, I might not have taken so long to effect the repair, nor pulled out so much of what little remaining hair I have! Tom, take note: "If you have an electrical problem, check the ground wire first."
Perhaps, it's my imagination running wild, but it seems to me that the furnace not only works well, but that it runs quieter, too. Whatever the case, I am elated to have the furnace working again. It is so much more fun to be able to come back from a romp on the beach or a hike in the woods and get adequately warmed up.
Happy travels. Look for another post soon.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Incompetent furnace geek!
In my last post, I described the troubleshooting process I have been using to find out why Sadie's furnace doesn't light. I finished with the conclusion that it couldn't not work after my "expert" care.
WRONG!!! I installed the furnace back into its home in Sadie, hooked everything up, turned on the thermostat and...no heat. I checked a bunch of stuff to see if there was a blockage in the gas line but found nothing.
After a little self-conscious wailing and gnashing of teeth, I removed the furnace from Sadie again. Not too bad a task after you do it a few times! Then I went through the entire troubleshooting process again. This time, I discovered that there was no voltage to the gas valve solenoid, a condition that means no gas gets into the furnace. The manual says that this situation calls for a replacement of the circuit board (the "brains" of the furnace).
Luck sometimes smiles on even the dumbest of furnace geeks. There is an RV Parts Outlet store in Tualatin, and my sweet wife just happened to be in that vicinity, when I determined that the circuit board needed replacement. She fetched me a new circuit board, and I was sure my furnace troubles were not long for this world.
WRONG!!! again. I installed the new circuit board, and now I still don't get voltage to the gas valve solenoid. What's worse, I no longer get ignition spark from the igniter! One small step for a man; one giant leap [backward] for Sadie's furnace.
I'll call the circuit board manufacturer tomorrow!
WRONG!!! I installed the furnace back into its home in Sadie, hooked everything up, turned on the thermostat and...no heat. I checked a bunch of stuff to see if there was a blockage in the gas line but found nothing.
After a little self-conscious wailing and gnashing of teeth, I removed the furnace from Sadie again. Not too bad a task after you do it a few times! Then I went through the entire troubleshooting process again. This time, I discovered that there was no voltage to the gas valve solenoid, a condition that means no gas gets into the furnace. The manual says that this situation calls for a replacement of the circuit board (the "brains" of the furnace).
Luck sometimes smiles on even the dumbest of furnace geeks. There is an RV Parts Outlet store in Tualatin, and my sweet wife just happened to be in that vicinity, when I determined that the circuit board needed replacement. She fetched me a new circuit board, and I was sure my furnace troubles were not long for this world.
WRONG!!! again. I installed the new circuit board, and now I still don't get voltage to the gas valve solenoid. What's worse, I no longer get ignition spark from the igniter! One small step for a man; one giant leap [backward] for Sadie's furnace.
I'll call the circuit board manufacturer tomorrow!
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
A not so hot post
Perhaps, I forgot to include in my previous post from Florence that we had a malfunction of Sadie's furnace on that trip. This problem is the gift that keeps on giving. On our very first outing with Sadie, the furnace fired up and worked fine, until we went to bed. Then, the fan continued running, but there was no fire. It turned out there was about a cupful of bees and other flying things in the combustion chamber! I cleaned them out, and the furnace worked fine for a couple of years.
The next failure was at Potlatch, WA. We were enjoying a fall retreat by the beautiful waters of Hood Canal, but we were not enjoying any heat from the furnace. That one was a little more complicated. After removing the furnace and going through an exhaustive diagnostic process, I determined that the high-limit switch, whose job it is to make sure the furnace doesn't overheat, had failed. That is not to say it failed to keep the furnace from overheating. On the contrary, the switch physically malfunctioned, which prevented current from flowing to the control board, which controls all functions of the furnace. That is the long way of saying the failed switch didn't let the furnace light.
Now to our current problem. I must admit that the current problem is, in one way, less daunting than the previous ones. That is because I have now had enough involvement with the furnace to know how it is supposed to work. I felt confident in going through the troubleshooting process this time...until, that is, I could find nothing in particular wrong.
Well, that is not precisely true. I did find that the furnace wouldn't light (no, duh!), but all of the circuits, switches, etc., checked out fine. I found that, on the bench at least, she went through the proper sequence for start up. 1) Thermostat calls for heat; 2) after a few seconds' delay (normal), the fan came on; 3) next, the sail switch closed, allowing current to flow to the circuit board; 4) after a few more seconds, the direct ignition electrode began to spark. The one thing I couldn't determine for certain was whether the gas valve opened.
I concluded that, since there was spark, the failure of the furnace to light, when it was in situ, could only be attributed to a lack of gas being delivered to the burner. The third element necessary for fire, of course, is air. I knew there was plenty of air, because the sail switch, whose job it is to make sure there is adequate air to support clean combustion, closed, allowing the process to continue to the spark phase.
What I wasn't sure about at this point was what might be causing the lack of gas getting to the burner. Since Jill wanted to make a trip to Salem, I decided to consult with the folks at Roberson RV. A gentleman there (I'm not sure he was even an employee) walked me through the process for checking the gas orifice and valve function. I performed those checks today, including running some steel wool through the gas pipe to clean out any loose rust, followed by some air through the pipe (but not through the orifice itself, against which I was summarily warned).
Now I know that the valve opens and closes on cue, and the gas pipe and orifice are clear. Theoretically, the furnace can't not work now. I didn't reinstall the furnace, because I wanted to paint some areas where rust had got a foothold on the furnace housing. I sanded and painted the areas with Rust-o-leum, so I will wait for the paint to cure until tomorrow. Then we will see if I am a competent furnace geek. Stay tuned.
The next failure was at Potlatch, WA. We were enjoying a fall retreat by the beautiful waters of Hood Canal, but we were not enjoying any heat from the furnace. That one was a little more complicated. After removing the furnace and going through an exhaustive diagnostic process, I determined that the high-limit switch, whose job it is to make sure the furnace doesn't overheat, had failed. That is not to say it failed to keep the furnace from overheating. On the contrary, the switch physically malfunctioned, which prevented current from flowing to the control board, which controls all functions of the furnace. That is the long way of saying the failed switch didn't let the furnace light.
Now to our current problem. I must admit that the current problem is, in one way, less daunting than the previous ones. That is because I have now had enough involvement with the furnace to know how it is supposed to work. I felt confident in going through the troubleshooting process this time...until, that is, I could find nothing in particular wrong.
Well, that is not precisely true. I did find that the furnace wouldn't light (no, duh!), but all of the circuits, switches, etc., checked out fine. I found that, on the bench at least, she went through the proper sequence for start up. 1) Thermostat calls for heat; 2) after a few seconds' delay (normal), the fan came on; 3) next, the sail switch closed, allowing current to flow to the circuit board; 4) after a few more seconds, the direct ignition electrode began to spark. The one thing I couldn't determine for certain was whether the gas valve opened.
I concluded that, since there was spark, the failure of the furnace to light, when it was in situ, could only be attributed to a lack of gas being delivered to the burner. The third element necessary for fire, of course, is air. I knew there was plenty of air, because the sail switch, whose job it is to make sure there is adequate air to support clean combustion, closed, allowing the process to continue to the spark phase.
What I wasn't sure about at this point was what might be causing the lack of gas getting to the burner. Since Jill wanted to make a trip to Salem, I decided to consult with the folks at Roberson RV. A gentleman there (I'm not sure he was even an employee) walked me through the process for checking the gas orifice and valve function. I performed those checks today, including running some steel wool through the gas pipe to clean out any loose rust, followed by some air through the pipe (but not through the orifice itself, against which I was summarily warned).
Now I know that the valve opens and closes on cue, and the gas pipe and orifice are clear. Theoretically, the furnace can't not work now. I didn't reinstall the furnace, because I wanted to paint some areas where rust had got a foothold on the furnace housing. I sanded and painted the areas with Rust-o-leum, so I will wait for the paint to cure until tomorrow. Then we will see if I am a competent furnace geek. Stay tuned.
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