Leisureland Road Report

What's this? A Road Report? That's right, my friends, Boo, Hapy and I took a trip to visit a small off-the-grid spot called "Leisureland" located between Eugene and Florence Oregon, near Swisshome. Today's post is your basic road report on our trip down and back. We tried out a couple new pieces of gear, but I will have a dedicated post about that later. Today, is just about the drive.

Pre-Launch

Swisshome not Sweethome

Looking back, the last time Hapy left town, it was August of 2019. That's 2 years since we went on a meaningful drive. Over those 2 years, I made many changes: new electrical bundle from front-to-back; completely re-wired the relays, fuses and such around the ECU in the spare tire well; new nozzles; Malone'd the ECU; fixed the limp mode; a new gauge for oil pressure and temp; new sensors for oil pressure and temp; added a furnace; the defroster was moved from the extra battery tray to under-belly; added/fixed side running lights; added a tow hitch; fixed the hi-beams and fixed the reverse lights. I think that's it, but I made so many changes, I may have missed something. I have also changed the oil in the engine and the oil in the transaxle. Each of these have been tested along the way, but there has not been a significant long-running test of everything. Hapy knows he has been loved on, though, so Boo and I were confident we would arrive at our destination. Looking back, he only failed to deliver us to our destination once since the TDI install; it is the return that has been fraught with perils. Still, we gave ourselves lots of time and cooler air by leaving the night before the day we intended to arrive.

river looking upstream

Packing for a camping trip, when you haven't taken one in 2 years, is almost like packing for your first trip ever. We started by removing everything unattached from the bus, and setting it under the big carport canopy. Then, we could be sure of what was going with us. That just addressed the gear, though. While we mostly have long dry warm Summers, Oregon can have unpredictable weather in the Summer, so we pack for extremes. Case-in-point, at 4Peaks our second year, we had a daytime high in the low 30's C (90's F) and an overnight low below freezing. Having winter parkas that morning seemed prescient, but it was just knowing Oregon and preparing for weird. Our destination this time was along the Siuslaw River, so we needed to pack for overnight cold (of course, because, weird), but bring swimsuits for playing in the river and everything in between. Even rain gear, which we didn't use, but it did rain overnight. We usually prepare chicken in a crockpot ahead of time, load up on food from the fridge and hit the grocery for a few final items plus ice. We ran our food supply at home down to almost nothing, so we needed to hit the store for most of our food. Since we planned to bounce through Eugene to pick up Boo's sister, we delayed the food and ice shopping for then.

To Eugene (Interstate)

river looking downstream

With Hapy loaded with gear, minimal groceries and our clothes for all seasons, we hit the road after dark. Here in Oregon in August, that's after 9PM. The route to Eugene is well-trod, and probably well documented in this blog. It is basically Interstate 5 from Tigard to Eugene with the only interruptions coming from our own needs for bathrooms, food/drink or just a break. With all the exterior lights working and the engine humming, it didn't feel like it had been 2 years, but it did feel long overdue. We did discover almost immediately that the dash lights behind the fuel gauge and the speedometer did not illuminate. The lights in the new gauge lit-up, though, so I mental-noted it for resolving. To keep our pace, I found with a flashlight that when the RPM's were around 2700, the speedo sat at 55. So, I used my tach to keep the speed.

We greatly enjoyed the drive, pulling into the rest area just north of Coburg to catch a quick nap. There were many others already doing the same. Vagabonding has become second nature, even if it had been 2 years. Still, the gear was moved, the curtains up and we were ready to sleep in less than 10 minutes. We got back on the road and over to Boo's sister's place without event.

To Leisureland (smaller and smaller roads)

OR 126 leading out of Eugene is a simple 2-lane road with a pair of yellow lines down the middle. The departure from Eugene into the great empty just west is not terribly dramatic either. Evidence of population appears less and less on the sides of the road until there is nothing, and you enter the forest. The turn off for Leisureland is a virtually unmarked road, that turns immediately onto a bridge over the Siuslaw River. Then, we turn onto a single-lane, twisty gravel road rolling past small homesteads for a few miles. Hapy took the road easily. From start to finish, Hapy's engine temp did not rise above 196, and that peak was on the steep just south of Salem near the Enchanted Forest.

Fire Routing

"porch kitty"
on the lot couch

I won't detail on the weekend; it was a family event, but it was really relaxing. The pictures show the beauty and a pair of domestic animals hanging out with us. Porch Kitty, in particular, made herself at home around Hapy, sleeping on the lot couch often. There was much resting, swimming and visiting. On Sunday, members left practically in the reverse order in which they arrived, leaving Boo, her sister and me as the last to leave. It was at this point that we learned a forest fire had started 5 miles down the road in a large pile of old railroad ties. Our oldest, K, made it past the fire, and called 911 to report it. 15 minutes behind him, K2 was prevented from passing because the fire had reached the road. He was sent back to Leisureland for new directions.

The gravel road continues past Leisureland for another 5 miles or so before reaching route 36 near Mapleton. Any other time one drives out that way, you can double-back onto OR-126. This time, however, there was a wreck blocking OR-126, so the exit was the other way through Deadwood, around Triangle Lake to US-99. This added a couple of hours to our drive home, but except for the US-99 stretch, it was a true pleasure. Once we hit US-99, the driving became more difficult. I believe Hapy's alignment had been negatively impacted by the slow, but deep-ditch-strewn, off-road driving on the Leisureland property getting to and from our camping location. Regardless, once Hapy got up over 50mph, the steering was highly interactive, reminding me of the steering before I fixed a bunch of things a few years ago (See Drag Link and Tie Rods). I am having the alignment done later this week at the same shop: HM Motorsports. In fact, when I called them, they asked if it was for the bus they did a few years ago. 

Home Again

Walter swims

We dropped Boo's sister off at her place in Eugene, and while we would have liked to visit, evening was approaching and the dash lights still were not operating. So, we had an abbreviated visit and headed for I-5. This last leg of our journey was the most difficult. We had gusting head winds that came in on an angle, so we had the worst wind conditions: head wind, cross wind and gusting. The wind was then amplified by passing big-rigs which create a considerable push-away side-force when the front passes and a pull-towards side-force when the rear passes... and then the tailwind wake. All of these wind forces were further complicated by Hapy's steering / alignment. We could drive for 30-45 minutes before I had to take a break and stretch/massage my shoulders.

The effort to keep Hapy on the road took a toll. In Albany, we stopped for some food. To me, Albany also represents a change in the surrounding countryside. South of Albany is very open prairie or farmland right up to the freeway. North of Albany, there are more trees along the freeway to buffer the wind, and there are more hills.  Eventually, the sides of the freeway are lined with forest, muting the crosswind. Also, with the consumption of dinner, more time passed, allowing the sun to drop more, which in turn reduces the intensity of the wind. So, once we were out of Albany, and into Salem, the difficulty of managing Hapy's steering was much reduced (but not eliminated). Climbing the big hill by the Enchanted Forest just south of Salem, an alarm tripped in the computer. I silenced it, noting that I needed to see what code was unexpectedly thrown after we got home. Hapy ran fine, neither his temps nor oil pressure did anything interesting, though the temp peaked near 196 again. So, we pushed on, but not quite as hard. It is interesting that this hill is the hardest part in both directions.

We pulled into the driveway after dark (after 9PM), and quickly unloaded. Boo and I have become a very efficient team, leveraging the carport as a staging area so the bus can be emptied front-to-back. From there, personal items and perishables are brought inside and the camping gear is returned to the bus. As such, we have far less work to prepare for the next trip. We emptied coolers, sorted out laundry and rested with a beverage before heading for bed.

The following day at lunch, I checked the codes: (P1550-boost intermittent and then P0380-glowplug pending). I cleared them and Hapy continued to run great; he did not throw another alarm. So, I think I just pushed him a little too hard, pushing for too much power and the pressure sensor readings did not match what the ECU was expecting. Regardless, I will keep an eye on it, and will check the hoses on the boost side before our next trip.

CoViD-delta Observed

Along the drive, in both directions, we stopped for restrooms, or whatever. Even though the CDC is showing CoViD-19 spikes that have driven almost the entire state into the red (high risk), 95% of the people we encountered were mask-less and not keeping their distance. This included the WinCo for groceries, public restrooms on the Interstate and to-go counter from a fast food joint. Clearly, the message about what I have heard called "the Selfish Surge" of CoViD-delta is not getting through. Boo and I wore masks and got puzzled looks from people. I heard one woman explaining to a passerby in the grocery store that she was concerned about her child going to school, but she wasn't wearing a mask and her husband wasn't getting the vax. Like pretty much everyone, I am tired of CoViD, being safe, staying home, wearing a mask, etc. I did all those things, got my shots, encouraged pretty much everyone to do the same, and yet here we are. I know there are many folks who cannot get the vaccine: kids under 12, resistant persons, folks who can't get time off because their employers are bastards, etc. Still, that leaves a large group of persons who won't get the CoVax just because they don't want to. Those are the persons we can thank for this surge. Unfortunately, while many will die on that sword, not all of them will be persons who had the power to make that choice.

Hapy Birthday

Hapy's birthday approaches. I send out this reminder to whoever is around NorthWest Oregon over Labor Day: we are celebrating his 50th birthday (3-September) at LL Stub Stewart State Park. Boo arranged for a duet to play on Saturday, 4-Sep, under a 10x10 in the middle of the meadow. I don't know what else she has in store, but she likes parties, especially parties with some activities. The duet, I'm sure, is just one. Drinking and smoking are not pre-arranged activities, but I expect they will be visited regularly throughout. I am assuming that CoViD numbers will retreat and we will still be able to hold the party. If not, then there will be one more casualty of the Selfish Surge. May it not be so. Please get your CoVax, wear that mask, gritting your teeth behind it if necessary. But, let's just get through this alive. We can all complain about it together afterwards. Without masks.

That's it for now. As always, thanks for following along.