We didn't get far on our path to Colorado Springs. In fact, as we climbed the pass that crosses from New Mexico to Colorado, red lights on the dash started flashing, so I pulled over immediately. There was an oily (but not oil) liquid that had bubbled over, and I knew that we were running hot. I found the nearest truck shop that could handle a big rig like this, nearly 37 feet long with a Catepillar diesel engine. Luckily, one was nearby. They weren't able work on it immediately (I'm learning that this is normal). So, we stayed the night in Trinidad, Colorado, a quaint little town at the foot of Fisher's Peak which is the highest point of the Great American Plains (9,631ft). When the mechanics looked at the rig the next morning, the best of all possible scenarios was the problem, a extremely dirty radiator caused the overheating which in turn caused the lower oil pressure due to lower viscosity of the oil resulting in antifreeze boiling over. There is a science lesson for sure in this as well!
A steam clean and test ride and we were on our way.
At our unexpected stop in Trinidad, we found out that the RV camp and entire Royal Gorge area had been burned by the forest fires recently. In fact, much of the area that we had planned to visit had lost all buildings and was "closed indefinitely." I will have to find a new place to complete the content for my gravity lesson now. Although the fire's aftermath would have been a good video lesson on nature's fury and the necessity of occasional blazes, for safety reasons, I decided to travel North and camp closer to Denver. We are now in Golden, Colorado with plans to check out the absolutely incredible area around us for the next few days before heading West to Utah, Oregon, and Washington.
No comments:
Post a Comment