There is always talk of the border fence in the news, here is a section of it near the refuge. The Fish and Wildlife Service haven't allowed it to be built on refuge property so that the wildlife can pass back and forth across the river. This of course makes the refuge a funnel for illegal immigration. It is quite common to run into them while working on the trails and drug busts happen quite often around here.
Wednesday was predicted to be 80 degrees and sunny so we took our first trip over to South Padre Island. In front of the visitors information center were some large sand castles. The builder is quite an artist.
After a little sightseeing in town we headed out north to the beach where you can drive on it with 4x4 vehicles.
After a late lunch at the local must-go-to place called Dirty Al's we headed home. Passing through Port Isabel on the way home we saw a big tower in the distance, so we had to go check it out. It was this oil drilling rig that had been beached in the shallow water. Looked huge up close.
If you like Ceviche — you have to try the ceviche at Pelican Station! It is wonderful. Same ownership as Dirty Al’s. There’s also a Dirty Al resto in Brownsville. You may like Mambo restaurant in McAllen TX — more of a hispanic place but really excellent too.
ReplyDeleteAlso there’s a boat tour company that does tours down to the Brownsville Ship-Wrecking yards — it’s a 4 hour excursion but quite interesting. They just pulled a US navy ship in last year about this time.
Hey Bob — I know you tow a Jeep but I don’t know what model — not sure if this notice about Cherokees affects you.
Fiat Chrysler today (January 20, 2016) released the following information exclusively to Family Motor Coaching magazine:
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA) has announced plans for resolving a problem that sometimes occurs when 2014-16 Jeep Cherokees are towed four wheels down behind a motorhome.
FCA released a statement in response to inquiries by Family Motor Coaching magazine and concerns of a number of Jeep owners who reported problems when flat towing their Cherokees. The owners reported that the vehicle sometimes wobbles significantly, raising safety concerns. The wobble reportedly has occurred at slow speeds and at highway speeds, and has happened with a variety of motorhomes and towing systems. The only way to stop the wobble, owners have said, is to bring the vehicle to a complete stop.
The FCA statement said: “Under certain operating conditions, such as traveling excessively bumpy or poorly maintained roads, the flat-towed vehicle may not consistently track in line with the tow vehicle.” The cause, according to the statement: “The vehicle’s Electronic Power Steering (EPS) system is inactive while the vehicle is being flat-towed with the ignition in the ‘off’ position. Accordingly, the vehicle does not benefit from the system’s function.”
A Jeep official said the company knows of several dozen Cherokee owners who have experienced the problem. For those owners, FCA will “provide a complimentary jumper wire harness and switch to ensure the vehicle’s EPS system has power to function while it is being flat-towed. These components have been engineered and validated by FCA US LLC and will be made available to all customers through MOPAR, as early as January 29. In addition, all Cherokee owners will be contacted directly by FCA US and provided with updated instructions for flat-towing. These instructions supersede all previous instructions. Also, the vehicle’s online owners manual will be updated.”
Family Motor Coaching brought the problem to the attention of Fiat Chrysler in September 2015 after an FMCA member contacted the magazine and provided a link to a video showing a Cherokee wobbling as it was being towed behind a motorhome. FCA assigned engineers and technicians to investigate and resolve the problem.
For more information, Cherokee owners can call the Jeep Customer Assistance Center at (877) 426-5337.
John Johnston
Associate Editor, Family Motor Coaching
Family Motor Coach Association
8291 Clough Pike
Cincinnati, OH 45244
(513) 388-5209 www.FMCA.com | www.FMCmagazine.com Flat-towing a 2014-2015-2016 Jeep Cherokee: Fiat Chrysler Automobile and the FMCA just released the following statement regarding this issue. less
Peter,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up, ours is a 2005 Wrangler. We may give those restos a try.
Well, color me dumb, but I've always heard of South Padre Island and don't know anything about it. How do you get there? Ferry or bridge? Or is it a real island at all? Is it part of Texas? I could Google it, but I like real info from Bloggers that I know :-) I love you both and wish we could visit! -Becca
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