Last Thursday we took the Keller Ferry across the Columbia river. It's a small boat that can hold a semi. We've taken it several times before on our way to Curlew Lake state park. Unknown to us, at the time, a new deckhand had us load onto a side lane (thee are 3 lanes). This is one of those boats with an arch that holds the wheelhouse. The clearance in the center lane is 15 ft. On the far side it is only 11ft. We've been loaded that way once before. We had no issues. The deckhand directed us correctly to avoid hitting the arch.
Not last week. The deckhand got us on with no problem, but directed me to pull straight off. The rear cap caught on the arch and before he told us to stop, had broken the corner off (still held on by something, but the fiberglass is separated). In addition, the roof was torn. It took over an hour for a supervisor to arrive and figure out how to unload us without further damage. We ended up dropping the trailer from our pickup. Then a front end loader from the DOT, very gently raised the nose which lowered the back of our trailer. It moved us forward enough to clear the beam, then we rehitched and went to the maint parking area on shore. The maintenance team used a lot of silicone and duct tape to temporarily seal the gaps and we went up to the park.
The state accepted all responsibility. My collision insurance is handling the claim. It looks like well over $15,000 in damage (a new end cap and a new roof). There doesn't appear to be anything structurally hurt.
Needless to say we are bummed by this mess. To make matters worse, if the fixes aren't completed before the rains get going here, we won't be able to put the trailer in our side yard where we normally park it. I have no idea how long it will take Heartland to make us a new rear cap. At least there will be no delay from our insurance. Geico is great about claims. They will be able to get all the money from the State. I was called by the Washington torts department who informed me that all that is needed is the estimate and completing a form. Thankfully, there is no question about liability.
If the repairs take much more than a month, we will have no place to put our camper.
Just the latest news from us.
Bob
Not last week. The deckhand got us on with no problem, but directed me to pull straight off. The rear cap caught on the arch and before he told us to stop, had broken the corner off (still held on by something, but the fiberglass is separated). In addition, the roof was torn. It took over an hour for a supervisor to arrive and figure out how to unload us without further damage. We ended up dropping the trailer from our pickup. Then a front end loader from the DOT, very gently raised the nose which lowered the back of our trailer. It moved us forward enough to clear the beam, then we rehitched and went to the maint parking area on shore. The maintenance team used a lot of silicone and duct tape to temporarily seal the gaps and we went up to the park.
The state accepted all responsibility. My collision insurance is handling the claim. It looks like well over $15,000 in damage (a new end cap and a new roof). There doesn't appear to be anything structurally hurt.
Needless to say we are bummed by this mess. To make matters worse, if the fixes aren't completed before the rains get going here, we won't be able to put the trailer in our side yard where we normally park it. I have no idea how long it will take Heartland to make us a new rear cap. At least there will be no delay from our insurance. Geico is great about claims. They will be able to get all the money from the State. I was called by the Washington torts department who informed me that all that is needed is the estimate and completing a form. Thankfully, there is no question about liability.
If the repairs take much more than a month, we will have no place to put our camper.
Just the latest news from us.
Bob