19th Dam Gathering of the Tears, May 3-6, 2012

[Newfisher]

Hello,
We just found this site last week and am juggling the schedule and burning the midnight oil on our 55 wagon to pull the TD down from Eugene this weekend. My wife will not be able to make it. Are well behaved dogs allowed? This will be the longest out of town trip for the recently restored wagon ( sat for 20 years and still working out some bugs) but not for the Drop! Hope to meet everyone on Friday (crossing fingers for good weather and don't blame me if it follows me down )
Jon

[S. Heisley]

Dogs must be on leash and controlled. There will be other dogs there, too.

[Reddiver]

Sharon what are they saying today? The weather channel now says RAIN Thursday showers Friday. Should we do the Woodstock rain dance oh wait I dont think it worked anyway . I hate to drive 6 hours in the rain to sit around in the rain ..

[S. Heisley]

update: This morning, the weatherman said that the storm that will be moving through here is not only slowing down but also weakening. The latest is that it won't even come on shore until sometime Thursday morning. Light rain is a 70% possibility then, with maybe an occasional small shower on Friday (30% chance). The rest of the weekend will be sunny. Let's hope that storm continues to weaken. We've had enough rain for now.

[S. Heisley]

update: As of 6:45PM today, the weatherman says it will be rain showers, not necessarily steady rain. The storm continues to weaken. Most of the rain activity will start Thursday morning and will be done by 5:00 PM, with maybe a shower or two lingering into Friday. The total rain expected out of this little storm is around 1/10", which should be just enough to keep the dust down. So, I would say, no need to cancel your plans.

[rmclarke]

We're heading out for the Dam on Wednesday morning....I've never pulled my trailer over Mt Ashland with my tired old Ranger yet...wish us luck! (there should be an emoticon for 'nail biting" but I guess this: will do.) I've been looking for a newer TV but haven't found what I want yet.
I figured if I start a day early and broke down, there would lots of friendly teardrop folks who would stop and help..

Anyway, come rain, or break downs or whatever, it"s "Shasta or bust!".....see you all at the Dam!!!!

[Reddiver]

La Tortuga Zeke and I will be on the road early Thursday. Going to be fun.

[Newfisher]

We're heading out for the Dam on Wednesday morning....I've never pulled my trailer over Mt Ashland with my tired old Ranger yet...wish us luck! (there should be an emoticon for 'nail biting" but I guess this: will do.) I've been looking for a newer TV but haven't found what I want yet.
I figured if I start a day early and broke down, there would lots of friendly teardrop folks who would stop and help..

Anyway, come rain, or break downs or whatever, it"s "Shasta or bust!".....see you all at the Dam!!!!

Tired old Ranger? How about a 55 chevy wagon that sat for 25 years and has just recently been back on the road less than 1,000 miles! Hills, ummm I'm glad I'm pulling a trailer in case the tow truck from my recently renewed AAA is a long wait. I will look for you when I get there and mabey we can share tools and repair cars/trucks in the camp area LOL

[grant whipp]

As Sharon said, the weather reports just keep getting better ... ... there's a lot to be said for the positive energy of a bunch of dedicated teardroppers ... ...!

Monday night there were already 5 trailers here ... last night over a dozen ... and Doug Hodder started the flow of teardrops in this morning (he said he left at pre-0-dark:30 this morning ... ..!) ...!

Looking forward to seeing everyone again, and meeting many, many new folks! It's already a great one, and only gonna get better, so come on out ... we'll have a campsite for you, along with welcoming arms & smiles ... ...!

CHEERS!

[S. Heisley]

update: Tonight, the weatherman back tracked a bit on that forecast. They are now saying we could get 1/4" instead of 1/10", with a possible thunder shower tonight or maybe tomorrow. Also, be aware that they are now predicting windy weather tomorrow, with up to 50 mph gusts. The wind is expected to die down by about 6 PM tomorrow.

Knowing about the possible wind gusts might be important for people towing a trailer.

[DragonFire]

oh poop. That's all I can say. First time out..in 50 mph winds and rain. oh poop.

Think good thoughts, say hi to Doug for me, and the grasshopper should arrive tomorrow mid day (sooner, if I'm lucky!!)

[S. Heisley]

Watch the weather channel before you leave. Things seem to change daily, maybe even hourly. Tonight, they said that the winds are supposed to be gone by 6PM; so, you could simply drag your feet a bit and probably be okay. There's also a chance that the weatherman will change his prediction again as the storm gets closer. I'll try to update with what the local guy says, tomorrow morning, too.

[S. Heisley]

Update: It looks like the local television weatherman may be using a sensationalism to get people to watch. The local weatherman is the only one predicting possible windy conditions. The storm has come about halfway on shore and appears to be almost a non-event so far, just some very light rain. There may be a few spotty thunder showers between 2 and 6 PM and possible winds....It doesn't sound like they really know as they are saying there could be a wind advisory this weekend....I suspect games afoot.

According to the weather channel, local conditions for today will be scattered showers with winds around 10 to 20 mph. Friday will be cloudy with winds at 5 to 10 mph; sunny the rest of the weekend. No wind gusts have been reported.

Weather.com Antlers weather forecast:
Tonight: Overcast with rain showers at times. Low 53F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Tomorrow: Overcast with rain showers at times. High 64F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
Tomorrow night: Chance of a shower or two during the evening, followed by partly cloudy skies late. Low 49F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Saturday: Partly cloudy. High around 65F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday: Partly cloudy. Highs in the mid 60s and lows in the mid 40s.
Monday: Sunny. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the low 50s.

...Not too bad.

[S. Heisley]

I guess I'm the first one back from the Dam Gathering! I went up on Thursday evening and got situated just before it started to rain. From about 8 PM on, the rain came and it just kept raining until most everyone had given up for the night and was tucked into bed. When we awoke in the morning, the storm was gone and the rest of the weekend had absolutely perfect weather (at least for my tastes). From then on, the weather was sunny and there were no thunder showers and no wind; just an occasional pleasant breeze.

Our group pretty much took over the campground and there were so many of us that we were doubling up in the campsites. I think Grant said that it was the biggest turnout ever. It appears that a good time was had by all.

Thank you, Grant, for organizing this event and for all your hard work. Thanks go out to all who helped make this event so pleasant. A special thanks to all who gave me advice; helped and encouraged me, and kept this nervous, still learning rookie out of trouble as she drove in and out of the campground with trailer in tow. You all rock!

[Reddiver]