The Offending Pile!
Every Memorial Day Weekend, our church members gather at a YMCA camp near Shelton, WA for family camp. My wife heads up the meals for the weekend which means she is the kitchen before, during and after each meal. For convenience we have always parked our RV just across from the kitchen door to the mess hall. This way my wife doesn’t have far to walk when “reporting for KP” or far to go when retrieving miscellaneous items from the RV that were “forgotten” or not supplied by the camp. (Cooking utensils, can openers, seasoning, etc). However, when we arrived the Friday of this past Memorial Day Weekend I noticed a pile of dirt in our traditional camp space. Tracking down the caretaker I asked if it would be okay to block / park over the pile of dirt as I wasn’t sure if they would need access to it over the weekend. Receiving permission, I removed a shovel from the back of my truck to knock down the high points of the pile with the intention of backing over it allowing me to park my travel trailer in its normal position. However, as I sunk the shovel into the pile I quickly realized it wasn’t dirt but a pile of horse manure that was partially decomposed!!!! With nowhere else to camp within the vicinity of the kitchen and not wanting to straddle the pile of poop, I worked on parking the RV crosswise along the edge of the pile which involved extreme measures to level the RV.
Looks Safe To Me!
After raiding the supply of nearby firewood and some creative work with the stabilizing jacks, the RV was leveled and an enjoyable weekend commenced. I even had an engineering student that was camping with us inspect it. Oddly he had no comment!
Parking in the poop, just another adventure in RVing!
Dave Helgeson’s many roles in the RV industry started before he even had a driver’s license. His grandparents and father owned an RV dealership before the term “RV” had been coined, and Dave played a pivotal role in nearly every position of an RV dealership. He and his wife Cheri launched their own RV dealership in the Pacific Northwest. The duo also spent 29 years overseeing regional RV shows. Dave has also served as President of a local chapter of the Recreational Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA), worked on the board of advisors for the RV Technician Program of a local technical college, and served as a board member of the Manufactured Home and RV Association. Dave’s reputation earned him the title of “The foremost expert on boondocking,” bestowed by RV industry icon, the late Gary Bunzer (The RV Doctor). When he’s not out boondocking, you’ll find Dave in the spotlight at RV shows across the country, giving seminars about all things RVing. He and Cheri currently roam in their fifth travel trailer, with Dave doing all the service, repair and modifications to his own unit.
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