I just returned from a trip from WA to Elkhart to pick up my new North Trail 26RKS. The folks at Great Lakes RV / RV Capital Wholesalers did a great job of getting the unit ready for me. The lengthy PDI did not find many issues and those that were identified were addressed quickly. I did have them show me how to manually retract the slide and that that turned out to be quite an effort. I hope I never have to do it myself. We also got to spend an hour or so with Chad Martin at the North Trail assembly site and were able see how these TT’s are put together.
We had great weather on the trip over but when it was time to head back home, the weather took a decided turn for the worse. Side trips that had been planned got scratched and we made a beeline for WA. We got snowed on one day and the temps dropped down to freezing (maybe below) that evening. The heater kept us quite cozy all night long and although it ran often, it wasn’t nearly as obnoxiously sounding as my old TT.
The 5 day return trip only introduced a few problems: a leak at the hot water tank which was easily fixed and drawers that won't stay closed while traveling. I need to figure out a way to make sure that they stay secured while traveling. Unfortunately, today, I took the trailer out around the block to show off a bit and ended up dropping the right rear wheels off the pavement when trying to avoid an over-sized vehicle. My right-rear stabilizer took the brunt of the drop off and I now need to get it replaced. Darn.
I also had a great concern that my 2001 Tahoe would not be able to pull this unit across the mountain passes but all went very well. The Equal-i-zer hitch performed flawlessly and I never had any issues with sway, even when hitting strong head winds and cross winds. We got passed by several 18 wheelers and the trailer stability remained rock-solid. Gas mileage, however, was abysmal when towing but I managed to average close to 13mpg for the entire trip.
DW, Boxers Ruby and Styder and I are heading out for a quick 2 day trip so that they can become acquainted with our new travel trailer. I hope they will enjoy it as much as I have so far. This configuration of the North Trail TT is really very nice and I can't believe how much storage is available.
Frank is a happy boy!
We had great weather on the trip over but when it was time to head back home, the weather took a decided turn for the worse. Side trips that had been planned got scratched and we made a beeline for WA. We got snowed on one day and the temps dropped down to freezing (maybe below) that evening. The heater kept us quite cozy all night long and although it ran often, it wasn’t nearly as obnoxiously sounding as my old TT.
The 5 day return trip only introduced a few problems: a leak at the hot water tank which was easily fixed and drawers that won't stay closed while traveling. I need to figure out a way to make sure that they stay secured while traveling. Unfortunately, today, I took the trailer out around the block to show off a bit and ended up dropping the right rear wheels off the pavement when trying to avoid an over-sized vehicle. My right-rear stabilizer took the brunt of the drop off and I now need to get it replaced. Darn.
I also had a great concern that my 2001 Tahoe would not be able to pull this unit across the mountain passes but all went very well. The Equal-i-zer hitch performed flawlessly and I never had any issues with sway, even when hitting strong head winds and cross winds. We got passed by several 18 wheelers and the trailer stability remained rock-solid. Gas mileage, however, was abysmal when towing but I managed to average close to 13mpg for the entire trip.
DW, Boxers Ruby and Styder and I are heading out for a quick 2 day trip so that they can become acquainted with our new travel trailer. I hope they will enjoy it as much as I have so far. This configuration of the North Trail TT is really very nice and I can't believe how much storage is available.
Frank is a happy boy!
