Shakedown Cruise to Camp Verde

After we brought the Diplomat home we spent the next two months discovering all the nooks and crannies, adding our own personal touches and re-loading it with all the gear, and then some, that came out of the Bounder. By April it was time to take it out on a shakedown cruise to see just how well everything was going to work. Everyone in the Bay Conspiracy was getting anxious to hit the road again so we all saddled up and headed up the road to Camp Verde, Arizona, about 90 miles north of Phoenix, for a few days of fun and frolic. The new bus performed beautifully. It sailed up the 6% grades on I-17 with a full load and the Saturn in tow and, more importantly, it handled the 6% descents even better with the help of its engine brake.

While at Camp Verde we visited Montezuma’s Castle, an ancient Indian cliff dwelling on the Verde River and explored the old mining town of Jerome which is precariously perched on the side of a mountain about 2000 feet above the Verde Valley. Both of these places are well worth a visit if you happen to be in the area. On the way home we stopped off for a few days in Mesa, Arizona to visit with some very old, dear friends that we have known since before we were married.

Our shakedown cruise was a success; we found a few minor glitches that would need attention before we take off on our big summer excursion but no big surprises and nothing out of the ordinary.