FINELY IN CAPE COD

We were on the road by about 7:30am headed for Cape Cod to visit Judy's brother David and his wife Barbara. Getting to the Cape from the West is not easy as there is no direct route by Major highway so we had to take some 2-lane State highways. We headed North on I-84 and turned East on local CT-74. When we exited I-84, they had been doing some work on the emergency lane and had ground off the pavement creating about a 2-3 inch drop-off which was not marked. When we made the turnoff and hit the drop-off, there was quit a teeth jarring jolt. A little ways down the road we had a downhill and curve to the left and as we entered the curve, it felt as though we'd hit a patch of ice for an instant but the feeling went away quickly. We proceeded on down the road and turned East on CT RT44. About 45 minutes later, we spotted a Wal Mart and decided to stop for a potty break. I found a spot in the back of the lot to park and headed to the 5th wheel. As I walked back, I quickly realized what the 'Icy Feeling' we had encountered earlier was. The tailgate on the truck had popped open and when we made the downhill turn, had contacted the front of the 5th wheel and tore the front storage bin door off. The whole door and frame were nowhere to be found and the truck tailgate was bent in half and hanging by the support cables. Fortunately, there was little other damage to the 5th wheel. So we emptied the bin into the back seat of the truck, went into Wal Mart and purchased a tarp and duct tape, and covered the hole. When we can, we'll get a new one made. Another peril in the life of an RVer.
We arrived in Orleans about 2:00pm and David met us at a laundromat parking lot and led us to their house. We were parked and set up by about 3:00pm. David took me to get propane since we hadn't gotten any in quite awhile. I will warn you all - Don't buy propane on Cape Cod. We paid $4.50/gal and needed 19.3 gallons - you do the math. This evening we had supper with David and his family and had a nice visit. About 7:00pm, I decided since I hadn't done it yet, I'd go to the 5th wheel and light the hot water heater. When I turned on the water pump, it just kept running and wouldn't pressurize so I went out to investigate and found when the bin door exited the trailer for distant places, it removed a drain valve on a water line and the pump was pumping our water onto the ground. Fortunately, I carry plumbing repair material and replaced the valve. It seems OK but I'll check for further damage in the AM. So ends another day in the "Adventures With Dharma's Family". We'll try to upload new pictures tomorrow.