Tombstone & Bisbee

Tuesday, Nov 27, Mark and Jan headed out at 8:00 so they could stop at White Sands for a short visit.  We left about 9:00 and met them on a pullout in front of the WS Visitors Centre.  We had a long drive to Benson, Az ahead of us. 

About half way through our drive we pulled into a rest stop for a bio break and Mark noticed that our truck was smoking hot.  And not in a good way.  I got under the truck and saw smoke coming off the DPF filter and part of the underside of the truck was coated with fluid.  It looked and felt like Diesel fuel however it was hard to be certain given all the road grime.  We carried on with Mark following close behind to warn us of any issues.  Like flames shooting out the back.  

We pulled into another rest stop and there was no more smoke and didn’t look like there was any fresh fluid.  We kept going.  I slowed my speed a bit and tried to keep my RPMs down on grades.   Got into Benson without any further issues although thats not to say our problems were fixed.  Over the next few days I talked to a few Ford dealers trying to determine what the best course of action was.  Drive it into Tucson about 40 miles away or arrange a tow for the truck and 5th wheel.  More on this later but first a couple days of sightseeing. 

First up was a drive to Tombstone on Wednesday.  This is our second time to Tombstone, sight of the Earps famous Shootout at the OK Corral.  It was a pretty slow day in Tombstone, tourist wise.   It is typical of these old western towns with gun fight reenactments, men dressed in cowboy garb and women dressed in dance hall garb, stores with old western fronts but filled with souvenirs and t-shirts for sale.   Tombstone does have a very interesting graveyard though and you can’t say that about every old west town.   None of the Earps or Doc Holiday are there but plenty of Clantons and other characters with interesting stories.   

A sense of humour, even in death

Stage coach rides available up and down Main St.  

The cemetery has quite the view.  
Not that the permanent residents can enjoy it.  

Lori outside the saloon we chose for lunch.
Going from memory but with a population of 5,000 in its hey day
they had 120 saloons and 50ish gambling halls.

Waiting for a gunfight to break out.
Not today.
It ok, seen one gun fight seen them all.

Hey Bruce.  Look.  Dirt Shirts.

Inside Big Nose Kate's.
Our watering hole of choice. 

Had lunch at Big Nose Kate's
She was a "lady of the evening"
Claim to fame - she was Doc Hollidays girlfriend.
From pictures she was certainly no "looker"
Limited supply in a mining town, much like too much liquor,
can make a man less discerning.  

Thursday we took another drive (Mark’s driving as our truck remains stationary).  This time past Tombstone and on to the mountain mining town of Bisbee.  This town made its bones, as they say, with the mining of Copper, Turquoise and other minerals.  The mountains are mined out now however it has become a tourist attraction with plenty of old restored buildings housing hotels, restaurants and quaint little shops.  We had an excellent lunch at a very small local restaurant.  Also found a shop selling hats of every style and with everyone telling me how good I looked in a particular hat I broke down and am now the owner of a cowboy hat.  When we left home I told Lori that the last thing I needed was any more T-Shirts or hats (mostly I have baseball caps).  So now I have purchased 3 t-shirts and a cowboy hat.  So much for my self restraint.  Still not sure where I’m going to wear this thing when I get home.  

Lots of restored buildings matching the red rocks of the mountains.

The patio outside one of the main hotels

Original post office still in operation. 

Arizona sunset.
The first of many. 

Friday, November 30.  We decided to leave Benson a day early so we could get into Tucson on a Friday and drop the truck off at a Ford dealer.  I had made a number of phone calls to the 2 Ford dealers in Tucson and both were booked up for weeks.  They need more Ford dealerships in Tucson.  One of them, given our circumstances, seemed willing to squeeze me in.  We set out at 1:00 with the plan being to drive slow, keep the RPMs down, and check into our Lazydays KOA campground at 2:00.  Most RV Parks have a designated checkin time however most will let you in early as long as your site is empty.  This KOA was going to charge us an extra $25. to check us in before 2:00.  RIPOFF.  

We got checked in and I set off for the Ford dealer to drop off the truck.  Mark picked me up so as of right now we are set up in the trailer waiting for the word on what’s wrong with the truck.  In the meantime I’m catching up on this blog, doing some M&R on the trailer and Lori is cleaning and washing clothes.  Its actually been a nice couple of days with good weather and a chance to recharge our batteries.  I have also set up an appointment to get the trailer into the neighbouring RV service centre as I think my pin box needs some adjustments and our furnace is only working sporadically.  Always something.   

Update.  Dec 9.  Truck is back and fixed under warranty.  A seal on the rear of the transmission was leaking and they squeezed me in and a week later we have wheels again.  I'm pretty sure I know exactly where the seal blew.  One of the truck's features to assist with downhill grades is a combination of engine brake, tow/haul mode and cruise control.  Set your speed and when coming down a hill the truck automatically downshifts and with the combination of engine brake and tow/haul its supposed to keep you at your set speed.  Works fine till the grades get to 5-6%.  At that grade the transmission, already down to 4th from 6th, will shift to 3rd throwing the RPMs from 3,000 up to 3,500.  If I know a steep grade is coming I take off the cruise at the top of the hill, apply brakes and downshift manually, keeping the RPM in the 3,000 range (red line is 4,000).  I just don't like the huge and sudden boost in RPM when I let the truck handle it even though they say the truck is built to withstand it.  Turns out I was right.  Unfortunately there was no sign posted on this grade saying it was much steeper than the rest and when the 4th to 3rd downshift happened I heard a change of tone in the engine.  I looked over at Lori and said "that doesn't sound good".  Turns out I was right.   I will be controlling both my ascent and descents manually from now on.  

We are sitting in Barnes & Noble using their lightning fast wifi and Lori is now finished her browsing so time to wrap up.  Turns out the wifi at the KOA is not able to handle blogs so more trips to B&N in our future.  

Till the next time.