Rock n Roll and Atmospheric Rivers

It’s Spring in New Mexico. That means the weather is intense. We spent three years on the Gulf Coast and prepared every year for hurricane season. I was not prepared for the windy season in the southwest. It’s like a hurricane without the water. We’ve experienced 75+ mph winds several times here outside of Albuquerque which just kicks up dust into what I can only describe as a wall of

brown that is reminiscent of the sand creature in The Mummy.

Every local I talk to about the crazy weather says that this year is an exception. “It’s never this bad. Our weather is usually pretty mild.” Huh. If so, the local meteorologists are telling tall tales every day when they excuse this insanity as just the windy season. I get that the atmospheric rivers charging in from the West Coast are wreaking some havoc. Feet and feet of snow in California, rain on a scale of the Apocalypse, and record tornadoes across the midsection of the country. Ok, yep. I get it. What I don’t accept is that the Southwest isn’t very windy this time of year.

The worst part is the effect extreme weather has on our camper. So far (knock on wood), it has stayed upright. We’ve been really lucky. I’ve seen some flip overs that scared me paranoid. Being in a camper with hurricane force dust winds is similar to being in the agitation cycle of a washing machine. Those of you who RV know what I’m talking about. We’re rocking and rolling like a Stones concert.

The one thing most people don’t think about is how the wind affects the water heater. Yes, I said water heater. Ours is propane and is vented beside the front door. When wind hits us broadside, it forces the propane gas inside. We didn’t realize it would do this until the LP alarm woke us up one night and wouldn’t stop announcing the lack of O2 in the camper. The poor dog may not ever be the same as the alarm is extremely high pitched and apparently uncomfortable for the canine sort. The longer you RV, the more you learn. Consider that lesson learned. We turn off the water heater when it’s windy.

When it’s not windy, it’s snowing. We’ve had more snow than sun this season. The cold weather creates its own problems as you can imagine. Our pipes freeze much easier than a house. Unfortunately, we don’t have a heated, sealed undercarriage. Some fancier rigs do and don’t have as much of an issue. We use a heated hose and space heater which help. We haven’t had a frozen pipe so

far, for which I am eternally grateful. We can leave our faucets dripping, but not in certain states, such as New Mexico, where there are water restrictions. We just have to prepare in advance. The Weather Channel and local news programming are essential for us. Plus, if Jim Cantore shows up around here, we’re leaving. In a hurry.

So how do we deal with the weather while in a fairly lightweight house on wheels? We follow the trailer park rule. We don’t play with tornados. Ever. Severe sustained winds are a hard pass as well. Gusts are a little different and it depends entirely on how strong and which direction they are coming at us. At our nose or back, not as big a deal. Intense winds headed straight at our side and we’re seriously considering bugging out.

Most people see RVing as smooth rides with perfect weather and glowing pink sunsets. You can thank

movies and videos for that. Sure, we

get our share of great weather and amazing sunsets, but we also get the rest of it. All of the weather. Most RVers try to head south for the winter and north in the summer. That makes sense. We decided to take on Mother Nature to see how beautiful the southwest is off season. I’m not sorry (yet). It has been spectacular. So we’ll just keep on rockin and rollin with the seasons until the atmospheric rivers dry up.