On Wednesday, we drove from Silver Creek Campground to Gros Ventre Campground in Grand Teton National Park.
I don’t know if it’s part of getting older, but after 5 plus hours on the road I was ready to park the van and relax for the rest of the day.
It’s definitely fall, most of the willow trees have already turned yellow.
First thing Thursday morning, we got a few groceries to avoid the traffic in Jackson. I was surprised how heavy the traffic was on Wednesday afternoon since its late September.
After that, we started doing some sightseeing! I’ve spent more time in Grand Teton National Park than any other National Park, so being here feels like seeing an old friend.
Timing was on our side and we got to see the moon setting behind the Tetons.
And then the van started acting up… At the Tetons Glacier Pullout, the van throw several errors – get breaks service, get airbag service, some fluid is too warm. I eventually got the van to start, but didn’t feel great.
We drove to the next pullout and turned the van off. When I tried to start it – nothing. No lights, no sounds. Nothing. We waited a few minutes to see if the van just needed to cool down, but still nothing. I started filling out the AAA wizard for getting a tow, when the wizard said it sounds like a battery issue. So what the heck, I took out the driver side floor panel to wiggle the battery wires. And the engine started!
I still didn’t feel confident and I had left a few things at camp, so I decided to go back to camp to collect the rest of my things. If I still need a tow, I’d have all my stuff and the cell signal is stronger at camp.
After about 30 minutes at camp, I try starting the van again, and again nothing. There is a mobile mechanic in Jackson, so I left a message with them. After a while, I decide to play with the battery again. There are several things connecting to the battery on the Promaster (and I’m no mechanic), not just the positive and negative cables.
I tightened a couple loose nuts and boom, the van starts! The van is even more responsive to the buttons on the key fob. I was thinking the battery on the key fob was going bad, but it looks like it was just loose connections.
I’m guessing the evil washboard on the gravel roads shook things loose. I’ve started the van a few times and it seems solid now.
I was so looking forward to a hot shower at Colter Bay Village today. Hopefully, I can do that tomorrow!
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