Revelstuck

June 16

Another 'where-to-begin?' blog. We are having a terrible time with our trailer and have renamed Revelstoke to 'Revlestuck'.

We got a good start to the day, out of the campsite by 8 am. Feeling good until we stopped at the tourist info centre in Golden. For a while we noticed a funny sound coming from the trailer wheels (like chains dragging) and DH noticed the tires were really worn on the inside. In fact the original tire (the one that didn't blow) was worn right through the rubber. On a hunch, DH got under the trailer to check out the axel. It's bowed. In the wrong direction. Crap.

We called our dealer who told us to try to get to Vernon, BC where a sister dealership can help with repairs. Thankfully an RV repair in Golden could replace the bad tire with a good one.

But that was the highlight of the day. We couldn't get to the Vernon repair shop before the mechanics are gone for the day. It's a Friday – of course – so it won't be seen until Monday. Now we are very worried about driving too far with the trailer. It's not towing well, or is that our imagination? My FIL found an RV repair guy in Revelstoke, so we stopped there and had him take a look at it. The axel is bent. Badly made, badly designed, and doomed to fail.

Its a warranty job which is good and bad. Good in that we don't have to pay for it, but bad in that it could take weeks to get the work approved and order the part. Double crap. The mechanic in Revelstoke could order us a custom-built axel in less time to get it from the manufacturer, but how to get that approved? Of course, our dealer in Ottawa is now closed for the day. I wonder if we go to the Vernon dealer, can they invoice our dealer and let them deal with warranty stuff. But the Vernon guy does not have the part and would have to order it. He recommends we stay in Revelstuck, get the custom part, and force our dealer to swallow the cost and deal with warranties. We are on 'vacation' and can't wait 2 weeks for stuff to happen.

Had my first cry of the trip, very frustrated and overwhelmed. I have been trying to stay calm and relaxed through all of the crap we've been dealt, but this is a little much. Still, we are all healthy (now) and the kids are happy – all they really need is a park to play in and parents that are happy.

So we are not sure what to do. Our itinerary is kyboshed, but we still have reservations to try to meet or cancel. Turning back isn't an option, we are in BC! Short term plan – call our dealer Saturday am, play hard ball (I'm good at it) and get a game plan. Call relatives in Vancouver and Vernon and let them know what's going on. Try to relax and enjoy where we are. If we have to be stuck, it's beautiful here.

Spent most of the drive on the phone trying to sort out trailer stuff, but I did notice lots of tunnels along the T-Can through Glacier National Park. I assume they are for protecting cars from avalanches and rock slides.

Pretty scenary as we drove through the Selkirk Mountains.

As I write this, I can still hear the trains and their high pitched squel – I have always loved to hear trains as I fall asleep. I've been hearing them every since we started in the Rockies.