From a step to a leap

Hey, Y’all! Like I said in my last post, before the Canal Campground camping season came to a close at the end of October, we knew we weren’t done with camping for the year. There was one small problem….our little Jayco wasn’t an “all-season” travel trailer. For those that don’t know the significance of that, it means that the underbelly of the RV is open, leaving the vital plumbing exposed. This means that if we wanted to travel during the winter months we would have the added concern of trying to avoid freezing temperatures and/or deal with winterizing the plumbing more often than if we had an RV that had an enclosed underbelly with the ability to keep the space containing the plumbing heated. This fact, along with the realization that we needed more space and a better layout than our little Jayco had are what lead us to the decision to actively look for a fifth wheel RV to replace the Jayco.

Yes, I had initially been hesitant to spend the money on a fifth wheel as our first RV. But, the time we spent using the Jayco and how much we fell in love with camping made me realize it was a smart investment. It was actually an easy decision to go from that first step to this big leap…even if it was less than three months since we purchased the Jayco. 

Before we got too serious with our search, we decided to put a for sale sign in the window while we were camping. We were hoping someone that was in the campground might be interested or know of someone looking to purchase a small travel trailer. This worked well. We had numerous people stop by and check the little gal out. Once they checked out the layout, though, the interest was gone. It was painfully obvious that although the layout made sense for a couple like us who have no children/grandchildren and who prefer to spend more time outside rather than in, it wouldn’t work for most folks. It only slept 1 or 2 people and had a removable table that was placed in front of the reclining chairs for a dining table in lieu of a dedicated booth or table/chairs. Again, made sense for us at the time, but definitely not a huge selling point. This is most likely why the dealership still had it on the lot when we bought it and why we realized we’d be better off trading it in rather than waiting for that rare perfect private buyer.

We started out looking locally, going back to the original dealership we’d purchased the Jayco from. But, their inventory was still rather low, having only one we’d even consider purchasing. It sold two days after we looked at it, and I wasn’t the least bit upset. It was nice, it just didn’t feel like it was the right one for us.

We had a week’s vacation during the middle of last October. Of course, we were camping at the Canal. One day, Tom checked the online inventory at Camping World in Nashville. They, and the camper dealership next door to them, Gander RV, had quite the inventory and appeared to have a few worth our drive to check them out. So, we took advantage of the fact we no other obligations and headed out to Nashville early the next morning. We started at Gander RV, looking at several fifth wheels and narrowed it down to three possibilities. They were each very nice in their own right, had the color scheme I was hoping for as well as the layout and length we’d been hoping to find. But, the pricing was still a little more than we were looking to spend. So, over to Camping World we go. They also had several options that checked most of the boxes on our “wish list”: 34″-36″, farmhouse color scheme, layout to sleep a family of 4 (lesson learned from previous purchase!), an outdoor kitchen, and of course it had to be an all-season unit. We were able to narrow it down to two at Camping World. Mainly because most of their inventory were larger than 36′ and since we do not want to limit our camping possibilities, we wanted to stay at or even better, under 36′.  (A majority of campgrounds cannot accommodate large RVs, or only have a limited number of sites available for them.  The larger your RV = less site possibilities in a lot of cases.)

We kept going back and forth between a 36′ Montana and a 34′ Montana High Country. Their layouts were similar, but also quite different. They both had the farmhouse color scheme. They were both all-season.  The biggest difference was the pricing. After Tom and I discussed and compared the two, we ultimately decided on the Montana High Country. It was within the spending limit we’d decided on (and, I’d mentally prepared myself for), and it ticked off the most important boxes from the list we’d made. All that was left to do was negotiate the pricing. This ended up being so much easier than we’d anticipated, them accepting our return offer with no long and drawn out ordeal. We paid our deposit and headed home. Well, back to our second home.

The next feat was going to be getting our new purchase home. As soon as we started our search for the fifth wheel, Tom started contacting local fifth wheel hitch installers. With the temporary shutting down of many manufacturers earlier in the year, as well as the increase in new RV owners, there was a shortage of fifth wheel hitches. Most installers gave a 30-day wait in most instances. That is until Tom contacted the owner of a small trailer sales in Salem, KY, who also installs hitches. Within two days he’d found the hitch Tom wanted and had it ordered. Although we’d hoped to be picking up the High Country the week after we’d made our down payment, it ended up being two weeks later. Of course, having made the amazing Canal friends we did, there were offers of lending their truck or taking us in their truck to go pick our new beauty up. As kind and generous as the offers were, we chose to wait and do it ourselves. 

So, on October 31, 2020….just four months after bringing home the little Jayco, we took her down and traded her in. I’m normally a sap when it comes to trading vehicles in, but not this time. She was a great starter-unit, and I’m grateful for the memories we made last summer with her. But, this new guy was going to be opening up travel opportunities she could not.  It was an easy “goodbye”, followed by a very excited, “HELLOOOOOO!”

Saying ‘goodbye’ to the Jayco after trading her in.

And, ‘Hellooooo!’ to our Montana High Country!

Next time, I’ll share with you our maiden voyage with our new guy.

See you then!
XOXO, T