Heading out again

I decided to make a second trip with the 5th wheel to unknown territory. With an unreliable back up camera and suspected dead battery or two, I chose Goliad State Park as it’s within a couple hours drive and has pull through sites with full hookups. No worries about backing up or bad batteries. I knew to start with I needed to reconsider how to transport my feline camping crew.

Iterating on transporting the cats

Though my truck back cab setup worked with some last minute hacks, it wasn’t great. Inputting the cats was easier than getting them out, and the two young ones also found their way under the pet barrier and just stayed there, making getting them out a bit difficult. I had thought giving them the entire backseat they’d have more space than in carriers, but at least initially it was clear they weren’t going to use it. After a car ride they also were not terribly cooperative about being stuffed into a small carrier to move them on over into the 5th wheel.

I broke out the measuring tape and considered options. I found three large pop up carriers that would exactly fit the dimensions of my trucks rear seat. The same company also sold companion pop up litter boxes and I decided to give it a shot. The pet barrier still worked to provide a flat plane across the back seat to hold these big carriers up.

And we’re off – thoughts on towing a 5th wheel

Traveling unknown roads with an 11½ foot tall fifth wheel is not safe to do with Google Maps. After doing research I signed up for “RV Life” which includes RV Trip planning, Campsite reviews, and other features on top of GPS aware of your vehicle height. Long ago someone showed me 11foot8, dedicated to a bridge that regularly displays what happens if you try and pass matter through other matter.

The last time I believe I towed anything was a couple decades ago pulling a cargo trailer moving to Texas. I’ve found pulling my 5th wheel with the diesel F-350 is pretty stress free. The trucks extendable towing mirrors are very helpful on the road. In driving in moderate wind and rain, I’ve felt no sway or in any danger of losing control. Passing semi’s doesn’t move the truck at all. The extra weight is noticeable but doesn’t really phase the big diesel engine. It’ll downshift on big hills and the turbo gauge will tick to the right but it keeps on chugging.

In my early days of researching tow vehicles I didn’t think I’d wind up with a heavy duty diesel truck. Reading around changed my mind. My rough take on the conventional wisdom out there is that you can’t really go overboard in towing capacity. More headroom is always better. I’m glad I moved this direction as I think I have about as pleasant a towing experience as there is. A 5th wheel is generally easier to deal with than a bumper pull travel trailer, and I’m pulling a 6000 pound trailer with a truck rated to pull 16000. I’m getting 11 to 12 mpg which is not quite as good as I hoped, but the truck’s drag coefficient isn’t much better than a brick. Throwing 4 to 5 feet of of fifth wheel height behind it doesn’t help. I suspect I could do a little better if I kept the speed down, which I am sure one day I’ll be patient enough to do. That wasn’t this trip, though I did keep it under the 85 mph speed limit on SH 130 heading south to Goliad.

Goliad State Park has pretty nice pull through campsites

Getting to the state park is simple and navigating to the campsite didn’t cause me any heartburn with turns or trees. I didn’t get a great picture of it, but the pull through sites are just little U-shaped spurs off a campground road, no backing up required.

A wealth of Texas history

I had no idea what to expect at this state park or anything about the historical significance of the area until I camped here. There’s a good bit to take in at the museums at the park and nearby sites. I had no idea Goliad was another outpost that fell shortly after the Alamo and found the little museums and sites very interesting. They’re not huge, even reading most of the signs you can get through them quickly. If you’re into learning some about Texas history, you’ll get a nice dab of it here.

Hiking around the park

This doesn’t take long, as there’s not much in the way of hiking in this park. There is only one trail of any appreciable length, which is a paved hike and bike trail which I did a good part of. There’s also a drop in for Kayaks, but the river was questionably low to paddle even if I’d remembered to bring my inflatable. After a day the temperatures dropped considerably with spotty rain, so I wasn’t keen to explore whether there was anything nearby the park worth checking out.

Hiking around I was surprised to encounter an Armadillo in person for the first time. I decided he probably wouldn’t get along with the cats.

The nearby town of Goliad is tiny

With a population of less than 2,000, there’s not a ton to see here. I did venture into to the historic downtown area one evening, which happened to be the having a Christmas festival. In hindsight I regret not sampling some local fare, but I never made time for it. Half an hour was about right for me to take in the scene and head out. There was a stage with a loud PA and makeshift chorus “singing” Christmas Carols to no audience. I suppose technically I was included in the audience very briefly. Technically also of my own free will.

Goliad State Park in Review

I’d recommend it if you’re up for a little history and very light hiking. 4 nights/3 Days was plenty for me combined with some quality time reading and decompressing with my cats. It also checks the box for stress free, full hookups RV camping with pull through sites. If you’re into tent camping, I hiked through the tent camping sites and at time of year they were completely empty, which I did make me a little envious. While I had no issues with any of my neighbors, the full hookup RV sites were pretty full and close to each other. Sitting outside I had couples/groups no more than 30 ft away with minimal trees and no seclusion.

No trip is complete without trailer problems

Though I had moved to using a cheap bubble level over trusting phone level apps and was certain my 5th wheel was dead level, problems with my 5th wheel door worsened. I took a shot at messing with the striker plate to no effect. Without great force, the door would not close to the point I could lock the deadbolt and prevent it from popping open. The safe containment of my feline camping crew was my highest priority. Fortunately an arm on the outside of the trailer can be locked in over the door when I was headed out. Inside a companion screen door was still closing smoothly and enough to prevent the cats from escaping if it the outdoor door popped open as I slept.

I also noticed two of the shades, which I now know are “Roman Shades” weren’t working and decided to see if there was anything to do about it. Fixing them is just a matter of tightening the tension and a YouTube video assured me it couldn’t be easier. Unfortunately unlike the tensioners in the video I watched, those in my fifth wheel were screwed in one-time only, the screw hole remaining wasn’t reusable. I didn’t want to put more holes in the wall and made a trip to a nearby tractor supply for some wood filler which wasn’t strong enough to hold the screw for the tensioners and I gave up dealing with it on the trip.

Thoughts on Camping with Cats

Trip number two with the cats in carriers on the road was far more manageable. I think I’ve solved that problem for now. The cats seemed less anxious on the car ride, and seem to find the inside of the trailer acceptable accommodations. Most importantly I can give Ricky his insulin doses and monitor him. On this trip I was thrown a curve ball in that his blood sugar started dropping into the danger zone. With internet available I was able to correspond with his vets and advised to drop the dosage. While I have been told a diabetic cat going into remission twice is a rarity, it seems he may be doing just that.

I have a grand plan to provide my feline camping crew with some safe outdoor time which I have the gear for, but it is not yet realized. In the meantime I’m glad all seems well so far as we have a lot of places to go.

Postscript

Before the next journey I’ve got to deal with getting the backup camera working, door closing, and batteries working. Hopefully as time goes on my journals will feature more cats and less new 5th wheel owner problems.