Well....

I indicated on Tuesday that our blogging might be limited due to lack of cellular signal at the campground. When we returned to the campground on Tuesday afternoon, we drove the Jeep through a loop of the campground that we had not looked at on Monday, found that there was cellular service from some of the sites and there was one site that we thought Gracie would fit into... we thought, "Should we do it?" We decided, "Yes!", so we headed down to our current campsite and started packing up to drive up to the new site.

We got all packed up and Carl started driving Gracie toward the other loop, with me leading in the Jeep. As we started up the road (there is a huge hill down into the campground that we need to use to get out of the campground and to get to the other loop), he honked the horn and I saw that he was stopped... I watched, and he came a little further up the hill and then stopped again. I parked the Jeep in a side pullout and walked back down. The engine was stalling each time Carl tried to get it to go up the hill. We tried several things, eventually it was to the point that the engine wouldn't stay running for him to even put it into gear. We figured we needed to get Gracie off the campground road -- he couldn't put it into reverse without stalling either, but he could coast backwards with the engine running. We figured we'd get down to the flat and figure out what to do then. I was concerned that the only way we could move was by gravity, and once we got to the flat, we might really be in a pickle. We noticed a gravel area near where the dump station was (now only a dump for totes) and we coasted backward into that space. Carl tried and was able to get it into drive forward for a few feet, and then backward a couple of feet, but the engine again died.

At this point, it was after 6pm Pacific, after 9pm where our diesel expert in Virginia (my brother, Jimmy) is... we left Gracie at the gravel pulloff and drove back up to the campsite where we had phone signal and called him. We described the problem, and he thought it sounded like a "fuel delivery issue" (we were concerned about bad fuel). He gave us several things to check and we headed back to Gracie. We checked things he had indicated (we took a sample of fuel and it looks clear and the right color) and tried to send him an update, but, by then, we guess other folks were busily streaming movies or doing other things that kept us from being able to get reliable internet.

By Wednesday morning, we determined with Jimmy that we weren't going to be able to resolve the problem ourselves. We called Coach-Net and they said that they could either pay to dispatch a mobile tech or a tow truck (one or the other). The fellow I talked with indicated that what some folks do is pay for the mobile tech out of pocket and save the Coach-Net coverage for a tow. We were concerned that a mobile tech would not be able to address the problem and then we'd still need a tow so asked Coach-Net to arrange a tow. We are about 30 miles from Yuba City (the closest place with diesel services) and about 70 miles from Sacramento where there is a Cummins service center that accommodates RVs. Coach-Net would pay for a tow to the service place in Yuba City, and we could pay for the additional cost if we wanted to go to the Cummins service center in West Sacramento.

Gracie in the spot in front of the dump station

Where we are parked is safe, off the road, only blocking a dumpster that is on the far side of Gracie, but it doesn't have much trash in it.

Some deer crossing the road up the fateful hill where Gracie stopped and which we rolled back down into our spot.

Big tow truck arrived about 3:45pm... but he almost immediately told us he was not going to be able to tow us. Gracie has Independent Front Suspension which can be damaged if she is inappropriately towed.

The tow truck driver was very nice - he looked for other options on a way that he could help us, but to no avail.

We went back to the top of the hill and called Coach-Net back and said the words that the tow truck driver told us, that we need either a tow truck with "bus grids" or a low boy. They agreed to look for a low boy and we settled down to another night in the space in front of the dump station.

Funny thought: everytime we call Coach-Net, the first thing they ask is, "Are you in a safe spot?" I've been saying "yes" because we're not broken down on a road with traffic flying past us (Thank You, Lord!). But... is being parked at the dump station a safe spot??? Inquiring minds want to know!

Praise 1: we were supposed to leave this campground on Sunday and would have had to climb that same hill then. Had we not tried to change sites, we would have been stuck on that hill on Sunday when probably lots of other campers would have also been trying to go up the hill to leave. And... we would have had the Jeep attached, so backing up would have required getting the Jeep out of the way first. So we're thankful that we found this out when we did.

Praise 2: having a brother who has 30+ years as a professional diesel mechanic is SUCH a blessing. Not only does he do the annual maintenance and a thorough examination for any wear items or anything "odd" on the rig, he is available by phone to do remote diagnostics and talk us through trying to do additional debugging or things to try. We're a bit hampered in that at this point as we have no cellular service where Gracie is and have to drive a mile or so to a high point in the campground for connectivity, but we can get a message when we drive back up there.

Praise 3: the tow truck driver readily admitted that he was not going to be able to safely tow Gracie instead of trying and damaging her. He is also a Thousand Trails member and he and his family camp here, so he knew where he needed to go to get a cell signal to call back to his office. He also talked with us about the service center in Yuba City that we are supposed to go to and said the shop has a good reputation. (side note praise: he got there at 3:45pm and let us know immediately that he would not be able to tow us, so I quickly drove up the hill to cancel our motel reservation for that night which I only had until 4pm to cancel!)

Praise 4: that we were able to back into the "safe" area by the dump station and that we are not on some highway or back road.

This is now Thursday morning, and we got a call from Coach-Net that the same towing company that came out yesterday has a truck that can tow us... he said that there were 3-4 calls in front of us, and it won't be until afternoon, but... maybe we'll get towed to Yuba City on Thursday!

We appreciate that a lot of folks are praying for us to get resolution of this problem! We may have been surprised by it, but God is not!