USA bound!

Prior to this, we had some pretty rough around the edges campers but they did get us out and a bit of a taste for wanting to get a camper that would fit us all comfortably so we could travel and stop on the road wherever with beds for everyone. I had been searching high and low for sensibly priced campers but that summer it seemed like campers were priced through the roof and we had too many other things going on to spend a large amount on a camper. We continued our search with low expectations of finding something that would work for us and fit our budget. A couple of months prior we had messaged about an older motorhome that appeared to be in nice condition, and had bunks beds, and enough beds for us all, however, it was $4500 and we decided not to spend the money.

Around 3 months later the owner sent us a message out of the blue and said she lives around 12 hours north of where the motorhome was located and she needed it gone. She offered it to us for $800 as the owners of the house where it was being stored had reminded her when it was parked that the transmission was bad and only had one gear. We had limited information on it other than pictures so we made a $400 offer assuming we would have to tow it home from British Columbia to Saskatchewan around a 15-hour drive from home. Kevin had recently switched to a camp job so he had 7 days days off at a time. We left for British Columbia on April 14, 2016 to pickup the camper. It was getting dark when we got to the motorhome on the 15th, however, we figured we would install the new battery we purchased, check over the fluids, and see if it had a chance of even running. While the camper was actually in very good condition, the owner failed to mention it hadn’t been started or moved at all in 12 years so it was actually settled into the ground. We aired up the tires and put some gas in it with the assumption we would be towing the camper home the following day. We gave it a whirl trying to start it and with the first bump of the key it fired off like it had been driven 15 mins prior which was incredible!

With the excitement of the engine actually running, we forgot about the obvious problems that it was sunk in ruts from sitting so long and that the transmission was apparently shot. Upon checking the transmission fluid there was almost nothing in it so we topped it off hoping the one gear they said was working would be enough to drive it to the hotel. The motorhome did start moving and after some rocking, we got it out of the ruts and into the driveway. The reverse wasn’t working but we were planning to replace the transmission once we got it home anyways. We thought we better drive it to the hotel for the night before the owners changed their minds on what was a seemingly incredible deal at $400. On the quick trip to the hotel, all the forward gears worked as they should but there was still no reverse which was WAY better than expected. The next morning we made the decision on Kevin’s birthday to start the drive home until the transmission completely gave up at which point we’d tow it the rest of the way home. The trip ended up being the exact opposite. It was a beautiful trip through the mountains and across the prairies home problem free with the exception of a couple of laughable moments while trying to backup with no reverse.