Regretting a turn?

[falconbrother]

You ever turn onto a street or into a parking lot and figure out you made a mistake?

We were coming home from the beach recently my wife said she needed a bathroom break. I know that means immediately if not sooner. I knew there was a McDonalds coming up but, I also knew I'd never get into and out of that parking lot. So, as we approached I noticed a little street running behind the McDonalds with a carwash next door. There was a semi-truck parked in the carwash so, I pulled in there thinking that I would just exit on the other side of the lot on the main road. When we were ready to leave I pulled up to the main road and there was no way I was getting over that curbed exit. It was too much of a bump there and I would bottom out. So I had to back about 100 yards then back the camper into the McDonalds lot to get back out onto the main drag. Of course the McDonalds lot was crowded. It all worked out even though I don't consider myself a great backer, Suburban with 30 feet of RV. I guess we do what we have to do when the pressure is on.

I can tell you it's still better than driving a motorhome with a 4 down toad. No backin with that setup.

[camperdave]

falconbrother wrote:
As to the bathroom issue. I like to go home on empty tanks. I don't want to have to find a dump station before I put the trailer back into storage. I don't have any interest in setting myself up to climb brown mountain..

Yeah, if I'm on the last leg of a trip home I don't like anyone to use the bathroom. With no way at the moment to dump at home, and the only dump station in town charges $20, I like to dump and clean the tanks at a rest area on the way. No more potty breaks after that!

[falconbrother]

As to the bathroom issue. I like to go home on empty tanks. I don't want to have to find a dump station before I put the trailer back into storage. I don't have any interest in setting myself up to climb brown mountain..

[2oldman]

Tvov wrote:
Was there a post he was supposed to reply to?

Mine, and other comments about why they didn't use their own bathroom. I rarely spend much time replying to anyone because so many of them don't come back.

[Tvov]

Wait... now I'm confused. Is the post by Falconbrother not the original post? I thought 2oldman was saying that the original poster hasn't responded to this thread.

[NJ6PACK]

This is a first ........ I've seen the Moderator close a post but never seen one completely disappear...... must of been an Alian abduction. 😉

[Tvov]

2oldman wrote:
OP is gone.

Was there a post he was supposed to reply to? Just seemed like an interesting thread topic. Or did he leave the forums completely? Profile says he has been a member for awhile with a bunch of posts.

[2oldman]

OP is gone.

[NJ6PACK]

I got burned twice

First time we were headed towards the Outter Banks in NC..... We pull up to the Chesapeake Bay Tunnel Bridge and I ask the lady at the toll booth "look at me and the trailer.... can I stop at the second island and visit the pier and gift shop?" She says no problem just hook it wide out of the Tunnel and go all the way to the end and you'll have plenty of room to turn around.... I was thinking she must know what she's talking about, this question must get asked a few times a day.....We exit the Tunnel ..... go to the end and I was like "OH ****"....Long story short the right side of my van and TT were practically scraping the building and the left side was right against the edge of the Island...... I was almost looking at the back of my TT the turn was so tight..... somehow I got out.

Another time we left the NASCAR race at Richmond (camped there and they pumped out my waste tanks)
.....Just before I95 my son says lets grab n go at McDonalds overthere so I pull in thinking that I can pull around the store just like the other 99% of McDonald's......I pull around and hit a dead end! ....... I had to back out and make a turn in reverse, With all the jerking of the trailer the grey tank opens in the parking lot and I'm screaming at my son to close it as the water pours out, after a few moments he finally gets it closed and thinks that now we're going inside to eat, I'm screaming lets get the hell out of here because I just dumped my tanks in the McDonald's parking lot....we get the TT straight and jump on 95 after all the commotion....we drive for about 20min before stopping again at the next McDonald's!

[CavemanCharlie]

BobsYourUncle wrote:
Well, many years ago I thought I would be a genius and take a short cut across the mountain on a logging road.... This was long before computers, cell phones and GPS.

Can you see where this is going?

The highway to my destination was a long round about way to get there, but there was this logging road that went up over a mountain and came out the other side.

So with my TT in tow, away I went. Got about 10 miles into that program, and Hmmmm, a fork in the road... which way? Go left young man, go left!! So away I went down the left fork on a twisty winding up and down gravel road. Couple miles in things started to look as little off kilter. The road, if you could call it that, soon turned into a goat trail, a narrow goat trail. I kept going. Brilliant choice Bob....

Another couple miles later the goat trail all but ended into something resembling a mountain bike path. I was scraping trees on both sides.

I got out of the truck, surveyed the situation, uttered a few four letter words and looked at my options. Not a hope in a hot place I was turning around anywhere.

So I put it into reverse and proceeded to back up all the way back to the fork in the road, which was a distance of approx 5 miles.

Yup, backed my 3/4 ton 78 Chev and 16 foot 63 Shasta TT 5 miles to where I could get out of the pickle I put myself in!

But?!!! Was I smart enough to learn from that blunder? NO! Of course not! Let's see where the right fork leads to..... Keep in mind this is the day of paper maps and I had never driven this "road" before.

The smart thing to do would have been to turn around at the Y in the road. I had room to do it. Did Bob do that? Of course not...

So away I go up over the mountain on this other road. Somewhere up on top of the mountain, located between Peachland and Merritt in BCs Okanogan Valley, the logging road ended. But another goat trail presented itself to me... There must have been a sign there or something that read: Hey Stupid! Let's see if you are dumb enough to drive through here to Merritt!

Yahoo, let's go! And I did.... :E:E

This time I got about 15 miles into the program and the road, goat trail, really got a little dicey. Many heaves and bumps, pushing small trees out of the way, scratching the sides of the truck and TT, bottoming out both of them, dragging the back of the TT on the dirt.

But Mr. Stupid here was determined to make it. No turning around now. Oh! One other thing I just remembered! I was going out to Merritt to build several aluminum patio covers and I had all the material up on top of my rack. A few miles further I hit a massive heave in the road. Wham! Something came crashing down on the roof of my truck. I get out to see what it was and my rack broke! My load was now laying on the roof of the truck.

More four letter words...

Hmmmm, what now? Surveyed the situation and determined I had to get this thing up off my cab. Wandered into the bush and found a stout piece of deadfall about 3 feet long. With much grunting and pushing I managed to cram it in there and tie it so the load wasn't beating my roof in. Remember, I wasn't 64 like I am today, I was about 24 and knew it all, and was invincible! Anyone relate?

So away I go again, in tree climbing first gear of my 4 speed stick, crawling along up and over everything, all the dips and heaves and everything in the goat trail, tree branches dragging down both sides of my rig.

A bunch more miles of this and wow! The goat trail widened and almost became a facsimile of a road! I got out of first gear!

Eventually, I found my way out and made it to my destination and got to the job about 4 hours later than if i had taken the "long way there"....

Pulled into the customers driveway and she said something like "what happened? I thought you were supposed to be here this morning. And what's with the leaves and branches all over your truck?"
Yeah, sorry, I would up taking a little detour..... It's ok, I'll get your cover built today anyways. And I did. I was full of p and vinegar in those days.

Took the highway home that trip....

That's a good one !

[77rollalong]

I think the worst I have done is turn down a city street in Toronto with a 40 foot School bus only to find out there was a barricade, 30feet of grass and the road continued on the other side, and the map showed it was a through road.. then backup 40 feet of bus back out on to a 4 lane main street..

[Takamine]

A number of years ago, I made a wrong turn and wound up in an airport parking lot. Luckily, I was pulling a popup, so getting out wasn't an issue. Doing that with a 30 footer could have been an experience I don't want to experience.

[camperdave]

It happens. The worst is when the wife says, 'don't do it', but I do it. Then regret it. :B

But where there's a way in, there's a way out.

[bpounds]

Anyone who has pulled trailers for very long has found themselves in a spot they wish they had not. But if you got in there, it can be backed out of, if you've got the skill and patience. Patience probably being the more important.

[GrandpaKip]

Leaving a parking lot in Scotland, the GPS says to take a left. Then I am staring down a ramp into Loch Fyne.
Several times our supposed RV GPS has wanted to take us down a dirt road and do “a u-turn if possible” even though I have put in no u-turns and no dirt roads. We call her Dumb Sam.
If a paper map doesn’t have enough detail to show the road, I probably shouldn’t be on it with a camper.