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| Site 25 |
I looked up the nearest Toyota dealer in the general direction I was going & stopped at Big Two Toyota in Chandler, AZ. I stopped at a rest stop to do the search for the dealer, and there was a temporary weigh station there. Since there were no trucks waiting, I asked if they could weigh the trailer. No problem - 2300 lbs on the front axle, 2500 lbs on the rear, and 2850 lbs on the trailer axle. All within the ratings of the truck & trailer, and well within the combined weight limit.
The reason for the Toyota visit was I tried to put the Tacoma into low range for the first time on the trip (and probably the first time since I bought it) and all I got was a series of beeps. David, a Service Manager, tried to get it to go into low and didn't have any better luck than I did. We went back to the office, looked for some hints on the Tacoma Club website, and a mechanic who's name I didn't catch wandered by stating the transfer case was probably "bound up". His solution was to put it in 4 wheel drive & rock it back & forth until you hear a loud clunk. I tried that when I stopped at the campground & after unhooking the trailer (better to rock without it), and it worked! So, I can now shift into low range & use the fancy crawl feature. By the way, the half a tank of gas I used between City of Rocks & here averaged 20MPG. Most of the drive was downhill on I 10!
I'm here for the weekend at Lost Dutchman State Park. Since I didn't make reservations, I have to take what is available. I wanted an electric site for at least the first night, but none were available for 3 days in a row. So, I'm in site 25 tonight, 20 tomorrow, and 19 on Saturday, all electric & water sites for $30.00 plus a $5.00 reservation fee each night. I would have been happy with dry sites for the 2nd & 3rd nights, but the volunteer went to so much trouble to find electric sites for each night that I took what he offered. I also bought a "T" shirt.
The Superstition Mountains loom over the campground, making most of the sites very scenic. The last time I was here I was in site 47 for a week. Lots of photos of the mountains behind the trailer on those pages, including a neat photo of the trailer & mountain lighted by the moon & showing some stars. Tonight there is a much fuller moon, and more clouds, so the combined star & moonlight images might not work as well, plus a large Class A is blocking part of the view; still a beautiful site.
After setting up I walked around the campground loop, then settled in the 80°F mixed sun & clouds for some reading. Dinner will finally be my pot pie, probably cooked outside to avoid overheating the trailer. While the chicken drumsticks were very good even on the 3rd day, I'm glad they are gone & I can move on to something else!
The pot pie is in the oven, and while I was hoping for some nice light on the mountains during sunset, there were too many clouds. No more photos unless it clears up for some star light stuff tonight.
Until Tomorrow -
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