Intro: Travels in Rosita Casita
Hard
to believe but I have been encouraged to write about our continuing travels
after the sale of Gosling, our Camper and Nicholson 42 sailboat, regrettably
which we parted with last week in Guaymas. I guess some people like reading my
ramblings or they like the photos that I attach to them. Anyway, for those who
asked for it and those who will read this out of sheer curiosity, here goes.
First a bit of history on Rosita Casita. Casita trailers are
built in Rice, Texas and Rosita came off the production line in 2006. She is a
17 ft, Freedom Deluxe edition, the largest and best equipped model that Casita
has produced to date. However, 17 ft is the overall, tongue to bumper length so
it is still a micro habitat and Fran and I bump into each other a lot. It has
most of the options available for this model, including gas stove, air
conditioning, 3-way fridge and gas hot water. It was originally ordered for and
owned by a resident of Arizona so it was not outfitted with the gas heater, an
option which would have been nice for us but we have done well so far with an
electric heater. Since then we have installed a TV (which we hardly ever use)
and an awning.
Near Comala, MX
We purchased both the truck and trailer separately in 2012
on our way through Phoenix after leaving Gosling in El Salvador for the summer.
Before leaving Guaymas we had sold our old but dependable Chrysler van to SaM
and Dave (SV Islena) who we had met in San Diego while prepping Gosling in Feb
2008. Our maiden voyage with Rosita and truck was from Phoenix to Lake Tahoe,
to Bodega Bay on the California coast, south through San Francisco to the wine
district of Paso Robles and the Nadeau winery (no relation), up the coast of
Big Sur, back through San Francisco, north through the Napa valley, north along
the California coast to the Oregon border and then inland to I-5 and north to
Canada. We had no mishaps on that trip, we cleared the border without any
difficulty and arrived in Victoria safe and sound.
For the last 3 years Rosita has been parked in Mike and
Dove’s, our son and daughter-in-law, back
yard, on Mayne Island (just north of Sidney BC), from May to November where we used
her as a home base for 4 of those months while helping Mike and Dove renovate their
log house. For the winter of 2013, while we were sailing in Panama and back to
Mexico, we stored her at friends in Kelowna who also looked after Rosie, our
Sheltie. For the last 2 winters we have towed her south to Mexico and used her
as accommodations in the boatyard beside Gosling, last year as we prepped her
for our season of sailing the Sea of Cortez (see blog: http://svgosling.blogspot.com) and
this year while we transferred ownership to Gosling’s new owner.
In November 2014 we really got into the RV life as we drove
South from Kelowna (where we left Rosie again), through Idaho, Nevada, Arizona
and into Mexico. The weather had turned quite cold so we didn’t dally too much
on that trip except for a few stops in Palm Springs and Sierra Vista, Arizona
to visit some good friends. Driving north last spring we chose a much more
spectacular route through Arizona, Nevada, Idaho (Monument Valley, Canyonlands,
Arches and Dinosaur national parks and Lava Hotsprings). In northern Nevada an
unexpected cold snap and snow caused us to abandon plans to drive through Grand
Tetons and Yellowstone national parks. By the time we arrived back in BC, near
Cranbrook, we were back in normal BC springtime weather.
On that trip, back north, we had our first mishaps with 2
blowouts on the Casita, the first in Mexico a few hours north of Guaymas and
the next in southern Nevada. After we left Cranbrook just after passing the
peak of one of the passes we almost lost Casita when a faulty tow hitch pin
came loose and she detached from the truck. Luckily then chains held, the
electric brakes locked and, apart from some frayed nerves and some damage to
the lower end of the front leveling post, all was well. Needless to say, we are
now using a much more secure hitch pin.
So far this year, as I write this near the Colima volcano,
we have had a great trip.
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