This was our 2013 Jayco Flight Swift 198 RD

THIS WAS OUR 2013 JAYCO FLIGHT SWIFT 198RD, PARKED AT THE TOMBSTONE TERRITORIES RV PARK IN ARIZONA



Thursday 5 December 2019

So it turns out Willi is a Gopher!

Blue Jay MH & RV Resort, Dade City, Florida

Wouldn’t you know it; Willi woke up today and decided to work on another tunnel system. The previous opening had been closed up and had laid undisturbed for a couple of days. But behind our trailer there was some activity just as we came home at lunchtime from a shopping trip. A new mount was in progress and Willi proceeded to pile more dirt onto it. At the same time two RV lots to our left there was another mount just being created. Wow, Willi has a Missis or Buddy and they are in competition which one makes the biggest mount the fastest! I went to investigate and to capture their doings. I haven’t figured yet out how to put my video clips into the blog, as it seems to be too big in bytes. However a few photos might do.

Willi labouring away at the mount

Willi's buddy or girlfriend


When I asked the Internet for information on Willi and his family I discovered that he actually is a pocket gopher and not a mole.  I’m not sure which is worse for the garden. Moles, I learned, can dig a tunnel 15-18 feet long in an hour and move really fast in them. They eat earthworms and insects while gophers eat plant roots, shrubs, and other vegetables such as carrots, lettuce, radishes etc. they also may gnaw on electric cables. Their tunnels are more in a straight line and they move backwards in them. One thing is for sure; those rascals will be a nuisance to the park management and an entertainment to us.


While we were in town today to pick up a few items at Walmart, a visit to Lowe’s which is next door, yielded two flower pots that are now holding down our outdoor carpet. Hopefully their weight will be enough so that the carpet will not flap or sail away should we get some strong wind. We’ll see.


Benno unpacked his package this afternoon and I can report he is a happy camper. It had been a replacement for our weight distribution hitch. The following is Benno’s words as he can explain this better than me.  

We noticed that our hitch system which we had since 2013 showed seizing marks where the spring bars mate the hitch head. On top of this it gave strange sounds from it while driving around corners. (It moaned and groaned) We inherited this hitch as a freebee when we bought our first trailer to live in while working on our house. Our present trailer’s tongue weight was close or right on the border of the hitch’s limit. Short story, we needed a new weight distribution hitch and got a Curt #17062 hitch system which has a grease jerk fitting at the critical parts where the spring bars meet the hitch head and the hitch specs can easy handle our 1000 lb. tongue weight and the trailer’s GVWR of 6500 Ib. I think the grease fittings at the bushings, which house the fitted spring bars, are the major plus of this system.

A nice gathering of our neighbours

We ended our outdoor activities this afternoon at a nice happy hour gathering at our neighbor’s porch area where we had an opportunity to meet lots of nice and friendly residents here. We are looking forward to many more gatherings.
Hope everyone had a good day too and thanks for visiting again.

4 comments:

  1. The flower pots and flowers add a nice cheery touch to your patio area.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Flowers are nicer than a brick or rock to hold the carpet down and yes, looks homey.

      Delete
  2. It appears that you are settling into your park very nicely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Guess we have settled and are starting to get to know the neighbours. Its a nice bunch.

      Delete