Aways watch where you park your RV.
That statement
should be obvious, however sometimes it just isn't. A few weeks back, we
had some serious rainfall and we had scheduled a 4 day trip about 50
miles north of our current location. We were ready for some down time.
Let
me describe the area where our RV was parked. Nice grassy area, level
spot with trees around one side and the back. Sounds good, right? Well
not when it rains for 3 days straight and you are parked on grass.
Although we did not see any water puddling, the ground became saturated
and with a total gross weight of 18,000 pounds, worry started forming.
We
hooked up the truck and let the jacks up. No problem so far. Got done
with our checklist. Yup, remembered everything. Had the grandkids load
up in the back seat and we were ready to go. Yes! Go about 30 feet and
the fear became a reality.
The truck tires began to
spin and forward motion stopped altogether. The blood left my face and
what I had feared became a reality. We had sunk into the rain saturated
soil. We hooked up our other truck with a chain and tried to pull out
both the dually and the 5th wheel, but it did not budge. After 3 hours
of trying to get out, still pouring down rain, we gave up. Trip
cancelled.
The grandkids were disappointed but they did
get a laugh as I proceeded to raise the 5th wheel tires and get some
wood under them. I didn't want them sinking into the ground any farther
then the already were.
Two days later, the ground
finally dried out enough to make an attempt to pull out the RV. I raised
the 5th wheel tires again, doing each one at a time and got more wood
under them. Finally I was ready. I hooked up the dually, checked the
hitch connection, electrical connections and yes we were ready. I let
the landing gear up and watched the dually tires for any indication of
sinking. Whew, looks good.
With fingers crossed, I
began pulling forward and we started moving. Hurray, it's working. I
pulled the RV around and got it positioned into its original place. Not
on the grass, but next to the trees where the ground was much firmer and
the tree roots and cover absorbed less water. I never had any issues
pulling out of this spot.
So as you go about your
merry way, remember to look at the ground where you park. Make sure it
can handle the weight of your RV, even when mother nature throws its
worse at you. I have learned the hard way and now knowing what to look
for, I hopefully will not get stuck in this situation again.
Have fun in your travels.