Hello from Texas

[BCnomad]

Did you go to the cave Mary? Way cool!

[Mary F]

No, we were stopped above it, to take a pic of the lighthouse.

[Artlady]

Originally Posted by rbryan4

Or, make a grand trip of it to go pick it up - like ourselves and most others have. I wouldn't trade that trip for the world.



The trailer is covered for two years, but having said that, very little typically goes wrong with these trailers, and out of warranty repairs would probably be more frequent with a stick-built trailer vs a molded fiberglass one. That's part of the appeal: low maintenance, reliability and no leaks. Add to that, Escape stands behind their product like few others do. We did 8 years financing, but 10 years is pretty common in the RV world - and even longer.

Well, to the OP, I do hope your dream becomes a reality! Like you, we are new to RVing, and thought that such a purchase would be out of reach. But, as another guy posted, keep on dreaming, and it may come to be!

Rbryan4, you mentioned something I was curious about. In making the trip to Canada to pick up the trailer, how do people do it in the middle of winter? Especially crossing the Rocky mountain ranges and passages, including Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho? ? I just wonder about the snow-covered roads, icy, steep slopes, and scary slippery switchbacks. Do people significantly alter their routes to go around these areas, and if so where? Mostly I'm talking about those of us located in the Midwest or further east or south of the Rockies?

[kstock11]

Many who have Escapes completed during the "dead" of winter have ETI store their trailer until they are ready to pick up. Ours was completed on 1/2/2014 and we picked up on 5/2/2014. Escape does this as a service to their customers. The warranty doesn't begin until you take possession of the trailer (physically) Payment is due upon completion of the trailer

[Artlady]

Originally Posted by kstock11

Many who have Escapes completed during the "dead" of winter have ETI store their trailer until they are ready to pick up. Ours was completed on 1/2/2014 and we picked up on 5/2/2014. Escape does this as a service to their customers. The warranty doesn't begin until you take possession of the trailer (physically) Payment is due upon completion of the trailer

Great information to know. Having that option is so beneficial to those of us located on the east side of the Rockies. The thought of trying any sort of travel in that area was frightening! Thanks for the comment, kstock. again, that just shows the quality of the manufacturer and their dedication to their consumers!

[cpaharley2008]

I do not think ETI is holding the completed trailers anymore due to the building crunch, check with them.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

I do not think ETI is holding the completed trailers anymore due to the building crunch, check with them.

I bet they still will. They are not storing trailers for people that already own them over the winter anymore.

[Greg A]

We're picking up late Nov and going through Seattle both ways and then over to 93 and dropping down E Nev to Las Vegas, then in to Phoenix. We'll be watching the weather closely and have alternates if needed. Also will have full propane, water tanks, and food so if worse case we need to hole up for a day or two it should be no problem. Nov is normally OK, not sure about how we'd approach Jan or Feb.

[cpaharley2008]

ETI will start to winterize their trailers now so any picked up will already be safe from winter issues. Just verify your unit was done, they hang a green tag inside to indicate winterized.

[float5]

Originally Posted by Mary F

No, we were stopped above it, to take a pic of the lighthouse.

Beautiful location!

[Greg A]

That's good to know Jim. Hadn't even thought about that, but sure makes sense. I guess they'll walk you through what you need to do to get them functional in the campground later that night. Once we're back in Phoenix, we've never needed to winterize.

[DonF]

Originally Posted by Rbryan4,

you mentioned something I was curious about. In making the trip to Canada to pick up the trailer, how do people do it in the middle of winter? Especially crossing the Rocky mountain ranges and passages, including Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho? ? I just wonder about the snow-covered roads, icy, steep slopes, and scary slippery switchbacks. Do people significantly alter their routes to go around these areas, and if so where? Mostly I'm talking about those of us located in the Midwest or further east or south of the Rockies?

We actually planned our pickup in January so we could stop at Yellowstone NP for a wintertime visit on the way (which was absolutely great). Yes, I was concerned about the possibility of bad weather and road closures so I planned in a couple of extra days just in case and chose to drive the Interstates thinking they would be opened up 1st if the the weather was bad. Coming from MS, once we got to Nebraska we drove I-80 across NE to I-25 in Cheyenne, WY; I-25 north to I-90 near Sheridan, WY, and then I-90 the rest of the way to Seattle. Of course every year is different but we had no delays that were weather related on our trip to Chilliwack.
Coming back with the Escape, we stayed on the coast highway from Washington down to southern California to avoid any mountain passes or chance of snow and then headed east towards home roughly following the I-10 corridor.

[cpaharley2008]

The interstates are normally kept open but once you get further west, like SD, MT they close the interstates and have big gates up to prevent driving. The reason is drifting and the area is so large. Watch the weather by state and you should be fine.