tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7050765245514207672024-03-15T18:09:25.193-07:00DriveOnUpAZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.comBlogger120125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-72788916137535234272023-12-18T11:38:00.000-08:002023-12-18T11:38:29.324-08:00It's all good<p> </p><p>In my last post, I described the problems I had with Minnie when I
got home from the Mogollon Rim. The flat tire, the empty gas tank, and
the electrical systems down were very concerning. I ignored the problems
for a few weeks, but the next time Dale was in town, he went out and
did a little problem solving.</p><p>He got underneath Minnie and
inspected the gas tank as much as he could, and didn't find any holes or
even what looked like a leak. Then he tackled the electrical issues,
starting with the solar charge controller. He thought that was a logical
place to start, so he pulled it out of the bin where it is mounted and
checked it over. He found what looked like some shorted wires and
followed them to a burned out fuse on the coach. We could not find a
replacement in town, so I ordered one from Amazon. After it arrived and
he put it in, the electrical system came right back up, and the gas
gauge read half full! Hallelujah! </p><p>He also discovered there was a big slash in my tire, so we were
pretty sure I had had a blow out. Since it was one of my dual tires, I
slowly and carefully drove to Discount Tire, and they replaced the blown tire,
which was still under warranty.</p><p>He's a little concerned about
what caused the fuse to blow, so he hasn't re-hooked up the charge
controller yet until he checks it out to make sure it's in good working
order. (He had knee replacement surgery the day after putting in the
fuse, so hasn't had the time to get back to my little problems. 😉) Once
we verify that's okay, I should be good to go. If I have to replace
that, it's only a few hundred dollars. A tow to an RV service bay to
repair (or replace) a leaking gas tank and check out the electrical
system could have ended up costing thousands. I love having brothers who
are not only good mechanics, but also willing to help out their little
sister. I'm blessed!</p>I have a big Mediterranean cruise coming up
this spring so I probably won't be taking any camping trips before then,
so Minnie is sitting in the side yard for now. She doesn't mind though.
😏AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-47134100720839977112023-08-12T11:30:00.001-07:002023-08-12T11:30:00.137-07:00Eventful end to Summer 2023 camp trip<p>The second week in our campsite on the Rim, I discovered mouse droppings in Minnie. I got out my electric rodent zapper and caught one the next morning. Just in case he wasn't a solo RVer, I reset the zapper. Since I found more droppings in multiple locations, Dale brought over his zapper and I set both of them, moving them around each day. Meanwhile, Dale & I went on a hunt for small openings where they might be getting in. We stuffed steel wool in three different holes we found, though not being certain any of them were open to the outside. Over the next few days, I caught three more mice, then I had a quiet night with no activity and no mice in the traps, so thought I might have gotten them all. On Tuesday evening, as I sat reading in my recliner, I heard the zapper on the engine console go off. Sure enough, there was a mouse in it. I tossed it out the front door and re-baited and reset the trap. Fifteen minutes later, I heard it go off again. After the third one an hour later, I knew there was some super highway into my rig that the whole mountain mouse community had discovered. I crawled in bed with my covers up to my chin, but didn't sleep well. Each time I heard the zapper, I would get up & toss the dead mouse out the door and reset the trap. By morning, there was a pile of five mice plus another one scratching in my oven, and I decided to pack up and head home.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhisUXPQwzqR77RAxRTx7Bqx8SbjlZNbsUVnUdDR8s5ZUkEVuRi6IbxhKAa59d7CHFgGDq5QbEbR66z5p9jBMbGy8DDo-6ECJGApHXQ4IS5rxuYPCkMSAcd8K3Zz-VsL-oNp3tRPxnTpkAR95BMGPWM1SD9f47mPx3tj4sd8gCP7LkB7fumYnty7gTl6fg/s1067/IMG_6071.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1062" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhisUXPQwzqR77RAxRTx7Bqx8SbjlZNbsUVnUdDR8s5ZUkEVuRi6IbxhKAa59d7CHFgGDq5QbEbR66z5p9jBMbGy8DDo-6ECJGApHXQ4IS5rxuYPCkMSAcd8K3Zz-VsL-oNp3tRPxnTpkAR95BMGPWM1SD9f47mPx3tj4sd8gCP7LkB7fumYnty7gTl6fg/w201-h200/IMG_6071.PNG" width="201" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No, not this mouse. This mouse would have been welcome!<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />I pulled up in front of my house at noon. After unhitching the Fit, Minnie wouldn't start. I tried jumping it with the Fit, but got nothing. Daryl was out and about and I called to ask him to stop by on his way home to double check my jumper cable connections. He started to reconnect them, but told me to first try the key one more time. Sure enough, Minnie started right up. I pulled it around and up the driveway into the back yard, when Daryl noticed one of my back (dual) tires was flat. I remembered either hitting a bump or pothole, or something hitting me as I came through Mesa. Just then, I noticed my gas gauge was also reading empty. It had been over half full just a few miles out of Mesa. I was then very concerned something had put a hole in my gas tank.<br /><br />All of my electrical system seems to be down. and my brothers suggested the empty gas gauge might be a result of that instead of really empty. Now I'm thinking I might have had a blowout on the tire, and the electrical outage is a separate issue, possibly related to mice chewing wires. I sure hope that's the case or it could be a big expense, not to mention the complication of getting it into a shop to be repaired. It would likely have to be towed. Since I don't have any camping trips planned in the next few months, I'll wait until it's a bit cooler to start making some calls. <br /><br />Meanwhile, I slept soundly last night in my cool block house, and I'm glad to be home. It was a fun camping trip (up until that last night!) but I'll be ready to hit the road again as soon as Minnie is healed up.</p><br /><br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-6611035211593178492023-08-12T11:00:00.004-07:002023-08-24T11:26:36.445-07:00Two weeks on the Mogollon Rim<p><span style="font-size: medium;">After exhausting our 14 day camping limit in the White Mountains, we moved back down to the Rim campground and back into the same space we had occupied two weeks earlier. I positioned my Minnie so I'd get afternoon shade this time instead of the bright sun shining in my front door. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgONbWmUXTqivhYTfKbgQQS1QCqfJkjRASjE-mkG4w9fwxKa7FrC29c8u-ckmWXnKeidvH3ma37Gd_tPOMLtjdphE6FNyt-d9zZikEIpAcdezTWb4uA10X4_Q1ILh5gSXeem3m__UBvXuS5Ol57vBbwKC1j1Kc9dEzwgxdZydufw4Elpj0pBzECgRmAApg/s4032/IMG_6046.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgONbWmUXTqivhYTfKbgQQS1QCqfJkjRASjE-mkG4w9fwxKa7FrC29c8u-ckmWXnKeidvH3ma37Gd_tPOMLtjdphE6FNyt-d9zZikEIpAcdezTWb4uA10X4_Q1ILh5gSXeem3m__UBvXuS5Ol57vBbwKC1j1Kc9dEzwgxdZydufw4Elpj0pBzECgRmAApg/s320/IMG_6046.HEIC" width="240" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> </span><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Dale had an eye appointment on Monday the 31st, and we drove down to Mesa together in my Fit. We stopped at Daryl's to pick up some Amazon deliveries, then I dropped Dale at the doctor's office. While he was getting his injection, I filled up our one gallon water jugs, did a load of laundry, and took a nice long shower at home. After picking up Dale from his appointment, we turned back north and chugged back up the mountain. We made a quick stop at the Safeway in Payson (we had to take turns going in to shop so we could leave the car AC running for Hanna), then back out to our camp.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">One of the Amazon items we picked up while in town was this little portable propane fire pit. We love to make S'mores in the evenings, but the Stage 1 fire restrictions in the forests prohibited us making a campfire. This little pit is far from a real log burning campfire, but it did provide warmth and ambience, and worked surprisingly well at roasting marshmallows and hot dogs. We managed to make our way through several packs of graham crackers, half a bag of large marshmallows, and dozens of chocolate bars.😂 Plus we had chili dogs two nights.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJ2xme6SPxd2cE7wJto9Wz7BEKAZVxNpEYyriOd5-1gDfuVzxuIPmNgHBU9Op8AugUY34cj_rSDJImWm7Nqz888wQc0AF-5qaAoo-M27w1msqH-oxp11LnrIEu3uq0bzdW99aXRtlmBsjQ0RFerSXfT-Ab79JjsZJu_P4NKPqKcmFAbriYxUCcsZxKZw/s4032/IMG_6057.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJ2xme6SPxd2cE7wJto9Wz7BEKAZVxNpEYyriOd5-1gDfuVzxuIPmNgHBU9Op8AugUY34cj_rSDJImWm7Nqz888wQc0AF-5qaAoo-M27w1msqH-oxp11LnrIEu3uq0bzdW99aXRtlmBsjQ0RFerSXfT-Ab79JjsZJu_P4NKPqKcmFAbriYxUCcsZxKZw/s320/IMG_6057.HEIC" width="240" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdYyjH1Cmag1hveLUk6ewK8o5ZJCT8lULJHh1sUNFABuBioKPrlsAyCKGFg6IvwBzD2mR7cTOmt4hJVamsZMvEE1dPy6zi8O3h-sxgvZwCfH-r3meRkSpv_DgRuRc0AAk-mzhUiEikpa-YhIqTkT8CTJHI9z7o9JkD4WyzQNEfSlJrZlVqXexM8M_ndI/s3330/IMG_6067.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3330" data-original-width="2836" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdYyjH1Cmag1hveLUk6ewK8o5ZJCT8lULJHh1sUNFABuBioKPrlsAyCKGFg6IvwBzD2mR7cTOmt4hJVamsZMvEE1dPy6zi8O3h-sxgvZwCfH-r3meRkSpv_DgRuRc0AAk-mzhUiEikpa-YhIqTkT8CTJHI9z7o9JkD4WyzQNEfSlJrZlVqXexM8M_ndI/s320/IMG_6067.HEIC" width="273" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What do you think it means that one of us skewers our dogs vertically and the other one crosswise?<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepAZCqL8-Y3yZRBrcEAR0NdU9QJArwOboIfgSvZkiVQyJpdz74Fch-c6hUEDjsWZpFzjylWnnwacTvzd4KfmqhGlNht5O7-7AwtFMmFM33gN7wigCoz_-OLJz3CkDcOzVSKgYjPndiVglwaxCTQcpHmN1mKCxt3OGmkXf55ybPgUdjWSnyscYKJGqui0/s4032/IMG_6068.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepAZCqL8-Y3yZRBrcEAR0NdU9QJArwOboIfgSvZkiVQyJpdz74Fch-c6hUEDjsWZpFzjylWnnwacTvzd4KfmqhGlNht5O7-7AwtFMmFM33gN7wigCoz_-OLJz3CkDcOzVSKgYjPndiVglwaxCTQcpHmN1mKCxt3OGmkXf55ybPgUdjWSnyscYKJGqui0/s320/IMG_6068.HEIC" width="240" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Chili cheese dog!<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />One day we heard helicopters flying overhead, but couldn't see any evidence of a fire. So we got in the car and drove up toward Willow Springs Lake. We still didn't see any smoke, but there was evidence of some firefighter activity to the northwest, so we stood there watching for a few minutes. Soon we heard a helicopter coming over the trees, and this happened while we watched.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZCn3XOtDamc" width="320" youtube-src-id="ZCn3XOtDamc"></iframe></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Since there was nothing more to see, we headed back to our camp, and then noticed a couple forest service fire trucks in the parking lot of the Mogollon Rim Visitor's Center, so we pulled in beside them to ask where the fire was. They said it was just a few miles away on the reservation. We asked about potential fire danger to our campground area, and they said it seemed unlikely. We drove back to our campsite more relaxed.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Another day, we drove up to Rim 9350 dispersed campground where we stayed a couple years ago. The roads were a little better than before, and about a third of the campsites were filled. The most disappointing thing we saw was many of the trees had been cut down, and many more were marked for removal. We pulled into our favorite site to walk around, and saw that the majority of the trees were destined for the lumber mill. In speaking to a docent in the Visitor's Center a couple days later, she told us the lumber had been sold. While we can understand managing the forest, especially during drought and high fire season, cutting over half the trees in one campground seemed extreme.</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFxKyB9SPh8fsYgcAevIozqgDWuaIvDU6l_97QEyJtEnLFAYqKECMsN0-VTcSwHWirIEspb53HKSQrdoCFmkrL5w7pOEc6UIL5j5yFQUxaRAQIYAkv_ROu3yLhxelpX1t2_A4EsgrD_qxcVVR5Vaas8V4RT4_bRzZoVoiG7z_OueHmOupXHMXbi4d-nU/s4032/IMG_6058.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFxKyB9SPh8fsYgcAevIozqgDWuaIvDU6l_97QEyJtEnLFAYqKECMsN0-VTcSwHWirIEspb53HKSQrdoCFmkrL5w7pOEc6UIL5j5yFQUxaRAQIYAkv_ROu3yLhxelpX1t2_A4EsgrD_qxcVVR5Vaas8V4RT4_bRzZoVoiG7z_OueHmOupXHMXbi4d-nU/s320/IMG_6058.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Most of the trees in this site will be cut down.<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIlt3310Q6E7l_PbSxFGxIymX3EvRmBt5TPBGi1Z_sUfxKYMomvvJPxuTyHREHL8pOHNEViz9isBuqKRYfD0fQgWrWE1M1_v-SgCRxG4R2nNzDT3TT9EG7wcaB2DLfBc76TIc5a7X-lSaiKmhOEzu0PIdL6Ydx2uk15Ln9RDzIqyZal-uOkBj5eGAth9w/s4032/IMG_6060.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIlt3310Q6E7l_PbSxFGxIymX3EvRmBt5TPBGi1Z_sUfxKYMomvvJPxuTyHREHL8pOHNEViz9isBuqKRYfD0fQgWrWE1M1_v-SgCRxG4R2nNzDT3TT9EG7wcaB2DLfBc76TIc5a7X-lSaiKmhOEzu0PIdL6Ydx2uk15Ln9RDzIqyZal-uOkBj5eGAth9w/s320/IMG_6060.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see the orange ring designating removal<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>We had a lot of thunderstorms both in the White Mountains and </span><span style="font-size: medium;">on the Rim. </span><span style="font-size: medium;"> Hanna never used to be bothered by thunder, but as she has grown older, she's gotten more and more nervous of the big booms. During one evening storm we heard a big crack, and she ran over under the chair. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ_hZPHelUbVKl1xPmRi7iIZLcmorxHIVWq5raDKA0hnjcl6UP175_fvdg8iBfgcH4AkklsDXp5Y8j08g_l7ShInVCTfft1mp7HpD-hmDdnVG78ETlUyLhLJ-Vxb49x4Yi_MEnx_RH6JDi64PJ-S8DEChIRJzO8eEoc-8TqU1Dms48W7XqUIPOz3NHSwo/s1454/4A2D3E71-F6BE-467A-B544-7BBCFE52C86E.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1454" data-original-width="1393" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ_hZPHelUbVKl1xPmRi7iIZLcmorxHIVWq5raDKA0hnjcl6UP175_fvdg8iBfgcH4AkklsDXp5Y8j08g_l7ShInVCTfft1mp7HpD-hmDdnVG78ETlUyLhLJ-Vxb49x4Yi_MEnx_RH6JDi64PJ-S8DEChIRJzO8eEoc-8TqU1Dms48W7XqUIPOz3NHSwo/s320/4A2D3E71-F6BE-467A-B544-7BBCFE52C86E.jpg" width="307" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">For
the most part, we stayed close to camp and just enjoyed the cooler
weather and quiet days. Hanna and I walked up and down the dirt road a
couple times a day, and took note of the constant in and out of campers.
With 50 spaces in Rim 171 Campground, there seemed to be plenty of room
for everyone.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: small;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhghYavvgtsE3c5o9iKjIGkywZ-lKSaRrXjKHgTlN4_lutYGgDYH34Fg5VFYMnT8THGzh1LDftFqRkvbOz7xROdY0OF8prqa43vssNQWyBRduOhfLbSzF_0MaQk38ePTJ_uLP_4hyPPmtmK617gD83vCTjKHbcSYM4DCoLwS8FdSQUUmnriWwIQ2cK-2QU/s3840/758ED86E-6BE9-4AF0-A13C-E9599A58169D.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3840" data-original-width="2160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhghYavvgtsE3c5o9iKjIGkywZ-lKSaRrXjKHgTlN4_lutYGgDYH34Fg5VFYMnT8THGzh1LDftFqRkvbOz7xROdY0OF8prqa43vssNQWyBRduOhfLbSzF_0MaQk38ePTJ_uLP_4hyPPmtmK617gD83vCTjKHbcSYM4DCoLwS8FdSQUUmnriWwIQ2cK-2QU/s320/758ED86E-6BE9-4AF0-A13C-E9599A58169D.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lazy days of summer<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><p></p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-54919618357394352452023-08-12T10:41:00.003-07:002023-08-12T10:41:43.740-07:00Week two in the White Mountains<p>We took a few outings in our second week in the White Mountains. We drove down to Big Lake one day. I remembered little about the area from our family camp trips in the 1960s, but the name Rainbow Campground pinged my memory as where we stayed when we went there. It's a large campgound, and was about 1/3 full. Nothing else about it seemed familiar. We drove over to the marina, and walked around the dock and little camp store. Dale bought us both an ice cream treat.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_DktB01unxgUY6I_AqVIU_4Bov5ZHm5BVspTxp_NZlnGRur1c-I22jZluwclw_igCceojUYupp18PQTfz6jkQuXo3PqcCLKMzVENZwLPhKE7dY98U5hiXJtlfUycrTyRZ1uuyIC9PeVIcruuHYm32WCevQXCwU2dgRIxoZSsDBRCXhBcKe9-e8akkmyM/s4032/IMG_6013.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_DktB01unxgUY6I_AqVIU_4Bov5ZHm5BVspTxp_NZlnGRur1c-I22jZluwclw_igCceojUYupp18PQTfz6jkQuXo3PqcCLKMzVENZwLPhKE7dY98U5hiXJtlfUycrTyRZ1uuyIC9PeVIcruuHYm32WCevQXCwU2dgRIxoZSsDBRCXhBcKe9-e8akkmyM/s320/IMG_6013.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwTVn9n3d5jkTmWnhJEN4GporeVq5ASJnmewWiGipWIHIX-xjzmNobt0aoblX0mM95SggHOz3xSYzyLgwqpkr90pO1G5kh-hNukDN4x1xJwu3Bk8QwNBVGQlnxSrgK8A5OA2PS8VGrB4HwaiJNKixuYTvDIYa3qffmaOCeeryJlvqTVFNlxe-jfeOC4LY/s4032/IMG_6011.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwTVn9n3d5jkTmWnhJEN4GporeVq5ASJnmewWiGipWIHIX-xjzmNobt0aoblX0mM95SggHOz3xSYzyLgwqpkr90pO1G5kh-hNukDN4x1xJwu3Bk8QwNBVGQlnxSrgK8A5OA2PS8VGrB4HwaiJNKixuYTvDIYa3qffmaOCeeryJlvqTVFNlxe-jfeOC4LY/s320/IMG_6011.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><p>Another day we drove down to Hawley Lake. The road to the lake was in terrible shape, and so were the campground roads. We stopped in to the little store/cafe on the lake front and asked about campground rates: $9/night for primitive sites, and $26 for full hookups. When we came back to Carnero Lake, we saw a little rainstorm over on the hill.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIs0EjMdGdvSi3eF_mLTBMxc81RWmRUy7mNcBQa7x9x4MoXCWX3Y-JMvvbuF1wwj3UAoWxIWcgblFfiZfKxQq5HySL284XopQwVTFu2VTsxaoo2wIzH3wK5Ik50c9H-ydY4f2Xl5AtiSI-g3zc25FllkJvZvpV5OVCelQZglpicKePw8OqRfr9ZL8ahvs/s4032/IMG_6017.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIs0EjMdGdvSi3eF_mLTBMxc81RWmRUy7mNcBQa7x9x4MoXCWX3Y-JMvvbuF1wwj3UAoWxIWcgblFfiZfKxQq5HySL284XopQwVTFu2VTsxaoo2wIzH3wK5Ik50c9H-ydY4f2Xl5AtiSI-g3zc25FllkJvZvpV5OVCelQZglpicKePw8OqRfr9ZL8ahvs/s320/IMG_6017.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It did hit our campsite later.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>On our way past Sunrise, we popped up the hill to the Lodge, which we had missed on our first drive through. It is being totally remodeled and was closed, of course. If we make it back up to the area in another year, we'll stop in to see what it looks like.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWdhUiDwG_nhR1deLtYgRSwvarbFd6av4UzinWdN9mXu6g9opQJ_yfO3VGeMCxIasqnMMuzn1x_-1X_NkNNulyDSJYsUgV7Yxw5ncTSckGqVslCl8rakuH3BNyU1gKcBg_cuz2lZCd2sl25hhlmCedpLpiMJnZYz9uK2_XgWtfSOqbnFwJlqiebC57fJw/s4032/IMG_6028.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWdhUiDwG_nhR1deLtYgRSwvarbFd6av4UzinWdN9mXu6g9opQJ_yfO3VGeMCxIasqnMMuzn1x_-1X_NkNNulyDSJYsUgV7Yxw5ncTSckGqVslCl8rakuH3BNyU1gKcBg_cuz2lZCd2sl25hhlmCedpLpiMJnZYz9uK2_XgWtfSOqbnFwJlqiebC57fJw/s320/IMG_6028.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPwBULeQ61Wpa2dUj58ZZfAz4gfRuAlzG0PYN6U4JT67uLOMqZs7iGdJuELFdBYZqiHLyXQOeBDCYDd7lewcS6-zdTE5dc8fnGgdnMOWiBjq8-hLqhnjA62LIKv4dzCm7qOtWOShrKiofi2R8KUMhZyanqwTaDo-q4tBg0Pdo-W6uQSUjIJ23pvcz-UCQ/s4032/IMG_6027.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPwBULeQ61Wpa2dUj58ZZfAz4gfRuAlzG0PYN6U4JT67uLOMqZs7iGdJuELFdBYZqiHLyXQOeBDCYDd7lewcS6-zdTE5dc8fnGgdnMOWiBjq8-hLqhnjA62LIKv4dzCm7qOtWOShrKiofi2R8KUMhZyanqwTaDo-q4tBg0Pdo-W6uQSUjIJ23pvcz-UCQ/s320/IMG_6027.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div>Our time limit was coming to an end in the high country, and it was time to head down the mountain.<br /><p><br /></p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-42768425251204812552023-07-16T14:39:00.001-07:002023-08-08T12:04:51.698-07:00Escaping the heat<p>Week one of my summer 2023 flee from the Valley of the Sun is in the books, and boy am I glad to be out of that oven. With record temperatures hitting 116° for several days in a row, and nary a drop of rain on the horizon, my home sweet home is sizzling. So I loaded up my Minnie and hit the road north to higher elevations and lower temperatures.</p><p>Dale was camped in FR171 dispersed campground northeast of Payson, where we spent a rainy week last September. I drove up to join him there, and settled into site 13, across the yard from him. It was a pretty sunny site because Dale needs open skies for his Starlink and 12 solar panels. I was able to find a bit more shade, but still suffered through warm afternoons. There was a little too much wind to put out my brand new awning, so the sun shone directly on my front door. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrjqaY8DeO_0lSAQ62hd4SeM-U5PSbYBA-J0eB5fuLd_VnwTy_aZD_5FBlUFXrZE3G_ENooDoR59FQKrqAsqOnDwcv91MXwQKfLuPmYyWEomqouSRPG2swGj_dXI0aWwOuO9mniLZFol9A9uf1dpC1p3zSIM65xenS_Dw2fXOoBDVhAmgDvtC1EseXUN8/s3840/78508AAD-2E6E-45C2-BD94-69FAA53A0648.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3840" data-original-width="2160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrjqaY8DeO_0lSAQ62hd4SeM-U5PSbYBA-J0eB5fuLd_VnwTy_aZD_5FBlUFXrZE3G_ENooDoR59FQKrqAsqOnDwcv91MXwQKfLuPmYyWEomqouSRPG2swGj_dXI0aWwOuO9mniLZFol9A9uf1dpC1p3zSIM65xenS_Dw2fXOoBDVhAmgDvtC1EseXUN8/s320/78508AAD-2E6E-45C2-BD94-69FAA53A0648.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuXK4bgu20GdS1dYAGrDh3LkB0zdYZoUkOPI8M3WgRMGjdumYbUz6jOCPAFVmnCBm6gUnEQFnDvmTgRLpY0pFgvhFfokYNFesJJcvdZHVTVF_jq76rqodtdPmWrDv7FqZmrBrpb7Nufe1i6r9Gkty4ACE-l2PW4ROGsXeK0hUekSXbk4m7U7EpTRT61U/s3840/8F093B00-ACFB-436E-BB56-284AFAC83C58.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuXK4bgu20GdS1dYAGrDh3LkB0zdYZoUkOPI8M3WgRMGjdumYbUz6jOCPAFVmnCBm6gUnEQFnDvmTgRLpY0pFgvhFfokYNFesJJcvdZHVTVF_jq76rqodtdPmWrDv7FqZmrBrpb7Nufe1i6r9Gkty4ACE-l2PW4ROGsXeK0hUekSXbk4m7U7EpTRT61U/s320/8F093B00-ACFB-436E-BB56-284AFAC83C58.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>After four days there and daily temps climbing into the high 80s, we packed up and headed east to higher elevations in the White Mountains. We were in search of even cooler weather, and we found it. We had to go up to 9280 feet elevation, but there it was! Neither Dale nor I have been to the White Mountains since our childhood, but we both remember Dad liked to camp and fish at Big Lake. We looked for free dispersed camping areas around there, and decided to check out Carnero Lake, about 25 miles north of Big Lake. We figured we could set up near there, then scout out the neighboring forest and see if we found campsites we liked better. </p><p>We have been in a nice spot along FS117 since last Monday and it is suiting us very well. We found a site alongside a meadow with trees on two sides, so Dale parked near the open area, and I tucked into a little grove of pines. The temperatures were in the high 60s when we got here. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbiQ47UWoyvm40z0z8OxaVu5o-5DiQjR_0PRQFt16M3HoZ02eadMuSC3H0QkEx0VtzstVuPTNO3ftQIRiDjFNXHnLIpkR7haR_AZYOPJEkgjp2c9kMVNhXua8AwY3Tj75EyeufyjLBmCeIZOkcfm8suAfNjoVDH2zeqQDmH5gX8H3d2pc4avQLOUPF0w/s4032/IMG_5951.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbiQ47UWoyvm40z0z8OxaVu5o-5DiQjR_0PRQFt16M3HoZ02eadMuSC3H0QkEx0VtzstVuPTNO3ftQIRiDjFNXHnLIpkR7haR_AZYOPJEkgjp2c9kMVNhXua8AwY3Tj75EyeufyjLBmCeIZOkcfm8suAfNjoVDH2zeqQDmH5gX8H3d2pc4avQLOUPF0w/s320/IMG_5951.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01oDSak0kK-DEoGeaB_tXgCcBZMvfjR--SPXIQ1Op01jghuo4hpqyPrjbh0XPqL_02vf-tUMKCJXEO1cJme2JRytSXdVEFxCnuHhJt0iW9_xwOus1g2M30WDsVDDlvwcjJeOa3U-MMaqOmvIswYmLfst9UYPATUQ4BecqYhXkHWA-W1kPV0ZN5PfHK04/s4032/8F42D411-D596-4BFB-9A9F-A574CFD63B86.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01oDSak0kK-DEoGeaB_tXgCcBZMvfjR--SPXIQ1Op01jghuo4hpqyPrjbh0XPqL_02vf-tUMKCJXEO1cJme2JRytSXdVEFxCnuHhJt0iW9_xwOus1g2M30WDsVDDlvwcjJeOa3U-MMaqOmvIswYmLfst9UYPATUQ4BecqYhXkHWA-W1kPV0ZN5PfHK04/s320/8F42D411-D596-4BFB-9A9F-A574CFD63B86.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg73-7mTILJuYnOpzZZ7r_m5Rb8-LH-BFwJS0pqIj85_chfLErZfjaWjNIwhFzXoKLAVjmul5dAkWHrDtFQDoZmqph7RR6TghChONDbI8zKzkgN2mLsZv1mtD-kY7GOa05nXIx5qC5s93o60cHgdw0t5YHApkdXSJ-xnZzRDgshZ5qcKup2qi2iNyyG4/s4032/6F79D70C-1DDE-4975-8B3A-DEBF569F7A2F.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg73-7mTILJuYnOpzZZ7r_m5Rb8-LH-BFwJS0pqIj85_chfLErZfjaWjNIwhFzXoKLAVjmul5dAkWHrDtFQDoZmqph7RR6TghChONDbI8zKzkgN2mLsZv1mtD-kY7GOa05nXIx5qC5s93o60cHgdw0t5YHApkdXSJ-xnZzRDgshZ5qcKup2qi2iNyyG4/s320/6F79D70C-1DDE-4975-8B3A-DEBF569F7A2F.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>We had rain for the next four afternoons and evenings, so we had to retreat inside each day. It finally let up by Friday, and the sun came out and stayed out. We made a trip into Springerville one day to break up the routine, and had lunch at a wonderful pizza place (Dale’s treat!) and then drove by an auto salvage sculpture yard that I found on my Roadside America app. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MZnabhigMiKMrwc7DvDzJMqUNZ1ykrsp1bYmji8Pd84YiKwlYTkLRT_1vlgp482dyWSzv4sIEuKR0EaWLGw5Lc-9lY7w-cBFiXueu1kwWufddwmAFApTIx1yDS9HGdirGi8gvGIRYZCog8QzeX8E9zhtlwDtOVzXd4iR8cp4aTjRhISI-E5nPiE0T_I/s4032/IMG_5970.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MZnabhigMiKMrwc7DvDzJMqUNZ1ykrsp1bYmji8Pd84YiKwlYTkLRT_1vlgp482dyWSzv4sIEuKR0EaWLGw5Lc-9lY7w-cBFiXueu1kwWufddwmAFApTIx1yDS9HGdirGi8gvGIRYZCog8QzeX8E9zhtlwDtOVzXd4iR8cp4aTjRhISI-E5nPiE0T_I/s320/IMG_5970.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-KElVp0BTERdP2rL0ZqZKAA8YZWyi1EaNresdaWwMeGMNUhXqq_8mPQpsUuPhqmxyEkploYCWfs7aHEuKlXfo1Lrl-iGb6klCgVkMQfBadGaSh4i14mmbEHMEs9j8j6EfWYaWVBMPFE7LeqEhCqOUOY-E2sHgaYDoS_wW8fPQO-41H1jpeF87ZsJr5s/s4032/IMG_5973.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-KElVp0BTERdP2rL0ZqZKAA8YZWyi1EaNresdaWwMeGMNUhXqq_8mPQpsUuPhqmxyEkploYCWfs7aHEuKlXfo1Lrl-iGb6klCgVkMQfBadGaSh4i14mmbEHMEs9j8j6EfWYaWVBMPFE7LeqEhCqOUOY-E2sHgaYDoS_wW8fPQO-41H1jpeF87ZsJr5s/s320/IMG_5973.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_iWUisPppGSz1oxbBIgQXU1MaTbyxunEQmQTrmHLJEdxtw1NwaNczyM3owRW7qnpNZdjb3vUXYCxxzQuCWkdphD4dHxSPRQkyj9ptwfctgQLvbHzE3tSCv4SfB9EMtYYHIyhBi5mqKZd9IjkEyIQWajENe9UC8AU3rkoEHzvvJBG1h7qhew3mie6riSY/s4032/IMG_5969.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_iWUisPppGSz1oxbBIgQXU1MaTbyxunEQmQTrmHLJEdxtw1NwaNczyM3owRW7qnpNZdjb3vUXYCxxzQuCWkdphD4dHxSPRQkyj9ptwfctgQLvbHzE3tSCv4SfB9EMtYYHIyhBi5mqKZd9IjkEyIQWajENe9UC8AU3rkoEHzvvJBG1h7qhew3mie6riSY/s320/IMG_5969.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JX-TYtKSAz8VdW0zTD2PuVcBb07ioDQmWd2oOYmMU9A-cUP1oSKJGI8kZ3sE1wpTvDlkE_u54NoPE5uDx94WKLOP8K-rKaM9Pir7xj42OXUKMzQ7JOEm8kmOmi1j4t3oANl4UkpIlWq-JhmfDbBua88aS1EQqBQWjOjvXkLpAylQe22n_nt0xJnSy8g/s4032/IMG_5968.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JX-TYtKSAz8VdW0zTD2PuVcBb07ioDQmWd2oOYmMU9A-cUP1oSKJGI8kZ3sE1wpTvDlkE_u54NoPE5uDx94WKLOP8K-rKaM9Pir7xj42OXUKMzQ7JOEm8kmOmi1j4t3oANl4UkpIlWq-JhmfDbBua88aS1EQqBQWjOjvXkLpAylQe22n_nt0xJnSy8g/s320/IMG_5968.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirDn_XKEdihjt4Zzpfo8icdMmnaxy3kAH22GCOmktakhz4EklALcIeL9FLikxaV96WJVD_rk4Rk6FgPr5m6mwxAj-TnxzVPWtQgyA2vV3z3tGr5QJXHGfl2wbntfr_T4NQ5PV6ilo13TUonIk7J5HCVOsI93TTjIptUtcytv8gIdXU8c18W14Zisff18I/s4032/IMG_5971.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirDn_XKEdihjt4Zzpfo8icdMmnaxy3kAH22GCOmktakhz4EklALcIeL9FLikxaV96WJVD_rk4Rk6FgPr5m6mwxAj-TnxzVPWtQgyA2vV3z3tGr5QJXHGfl2wbntfr_T4NQ5PV6ilo13TUonIk7J5HCVOsI93TTjIptUtcytv8gIdXU8c18W14Zisff18I/s320/IMG_5971.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE8U2KHx08aE-n-scZVVoTrvt0j-A9aE7R7EtYUPXdfjNmam1IWu-qktQHA1EykBjfiRilCOMoRxIGlJ9OBy2GjGoU4jFmvrfOibYssQHWnkvWqLgz9zGC9SdEjBvDFxRNymPZfPb9nhaLsj97Ueccy_12GG5uGZAIxNJ3dij09zIie8qQS9v9Qi5YdYQ/s4032/IMG_5974.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE8U2KHx08aE-n-scZVVoTrvt0j-A9aE7R7EtYUPXdfjNmam1IWu-qktQHA1EykBjfiRilCOMoRxIGlJ9OBy2GjGoU4jFmvrfOibYssQHWnkvWqLgz9zGC9SdEjBvDFxRNymPZfPb9nhaLsj97Ueccy_12GG5uGZAIxNJ3dij09zIie8qQS9v9Qi5YdYQ/s320/IMG_5974.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Yesterday, we drove down to Sunrise Lake and ski resort area and drove through a couple campgrounds. From there, we made our way over to Greer, and drove the main road through town. Hard to call it a town, since it’s mostly just cabins, lodges, RV parks, and restaurants. No stores, no gas stations, nor any other businesses. We plan to drive down to Big Lake in a day or two and check out the campgrounds there. We likely won’t stay in a developed campground at the lake, but we like to drive through them and look for amenities. (I will need to dump in a week or so.) </p><p>We gained some neighbors over the weekend, as the working folks escaped the heat for a few days. The mother & father just across from our site came over the first evening to chat for a few minutes. Both Dale & I took note of their handguns on their hips, and politely chatted with them. We have no idea why they need to display their guns in a campground, especially as they had two little girls with them, but we tried to be good neighbors and mind our own business. Hopefully they will be gone today. </p><p>The high altitude is keeping us both a little short of breath, and Dale has suffered with daily headaches. But the nice temperatures and quiet nights make it worthwhile. Hanna and I are enjoying walks each morning and evening either up the road or through the woods. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHc2vX7yGagRfwPyuYAhVonmSep1ykX3M2ees0JJIQLmno6ttYDmhvI1YGgJQC-af49Fu2SM4sqkX1D1DDKEbajOzU7_JW48MiKFmzApJ_zweQaascSCAYgp7hPIqKCYYmIbR6_r9meSa29K7ChG9YrD9VCo7kXfDhPzoeU6l29G8NXnhJJaSrtqaxyZo/s4032/IMG_5978.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHc2vX7yGagRfwPyuYAhVonmSep1ykX3M2ees0JJIQLmno6ttYDmhvI1YGgJQC-af49Fu2SM4sqkX1D1DDKEbajOzU7_JW48MiKFmzApJ_zweQaascSCAYgp7hPIqKCYYmIbR6_r9meSa29K7ChG9YrD9VCo7kXfDhPzoeU6l29G8NXnhJJaSrtqaxyZo/s320/IMG_5978.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiCcTFY9HKI-lGioV1qNheeiKKGhxJ08o3YXgYTJ4hAZsCfl_IgPWlOtu2i0yvEG15_gWpOQ2_MNhp1VHE4m1fm8uxe7o9zg7_KhIvN_N7V6H-alBSnAGW4McnfnlMo-lzx7E1ZAod9EcVPd67i5udkDkjDNE-Kq1G8PmY7-_usWnfAhbEtP7f308lD2M/s4032/IMG_5976.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiCcTFY9HKI-lGioV1qNheeiKKGhxJ08o3YXgYTJ4hAZsCfl_IgPWlOtu2i0yvEG15_gWpOQ2_MNhp1VHE4m1fm8uxe7o9zg7_KhIvN_N7V6H-alBSnAGW4McnfnlMo-lzx7E1ZAod9EcVPd67i5udkDkjDNE-Kq1G8PmY7-_usWnfAhbEtP7f308lD2M/s320/IMG_5976.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV9HIMR5N-4_mflXlPDtq3EIR4ZeML0ArhltwQmYkzGzGWgda5gqtHsMLvXPeFwxYyO-Mr9QPtpnQ8bzwUeYGRyV4hWIM6HRWNXR0aITqhhkgFTl1ef_Gx_w8r3Fg3zpxwTj_tjEyicwbNWaPXqk3vv7_4XoYo-7WzARC__rxIf0CL95l1dsP58m5p2L0/s4032/IMG_5981.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV9HIMR5N-4_mflXlPDtq3EIR4ZeML0ArhltwQmYkzGzGWgda5gqtHsMLvXPeFwxYyO-Mr9QPtpnQ8bzwUeYGRyV4hWIM6HRWNXR0aITqhhkgFTl1ef_Gx_w8r3Fg3zpxwTj_tjEyicwbNWaPXqk3vv7_4XoYo-7WzARC__rxIf0CL95l1dsP58m5p2L0/s320/IMG_5981.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEsshwt3Vmd8QUcXsQQfuVNXiYwTSlxdcHapRt4AwfbRLSs7cPBewUvu9moF9bRL7hKXVK5ljDlNF92jNYGySVoKtXNjVAArslgAkBahk5XYH4ocFTnGrSrNUPcLqf-v7kbCyzrHN9KM5snglGiFseUJvXBMNW5N__QnTfYwwOd6S0ukXRqqqiqDrZdok/s4032/IMG_5957.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEsshwt3Vmd8QUcXsQQfuVNXiYwTSlxdcHapRt4AwfbRLSs7cPBewUvu9moF9bRL7hKXVK5ljDlNF92jNYGySVoKtXNjVAArslgAkBahk5XYH4ocFTnGrSrNUPcLqf-v7kbCyzrHN9KM5snglGiFseUJvXBMNW5N__QnTfYwwOd6S0ukXRqqqiqDrZdok/s320/IMG_5957.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>We think we will stay here another week until our 14 day limit is up, then maybe head a little closer to the Valley, with upcoming doctor appts in mind. </p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-31098898774367741072023-07-16T13:12:00.001-07:002023-07-16T13:12:52.725-07:00Minnie Updates<p>My Minnie took an adventure without me in June!</p><p>A few months ago, Heather announced their family was planning to rent an RV and take a summer vacation to a couple national parks. I immediately asked if they would be interested in taking my Minnie and Fit, if the calendar worked out. It just sits in my side yard for many months each year, and there was no reason they couldn’t take it. In the next few weeks, we worked out the timing for a short overnight trial run, for both training purposes and also for them to make sure it would suit their needs (size-wise mainly since they would be camping with 4 people.) We drove up to Usery Pass campground just north of Mesa, and I took them through setup, hookup, and dumping processes, and then I drove the Fit back home, leaving them for the overnight experience. They agreed it was a valuable trial and training run, and they eagerly began planning their trip. </p><p>They left home on June 10, and visited the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, then Bryce National Park and Zion National Park, all locations I have been to and love. They returned home on the 16th and declared they think they want to get an RV in their empty nest or retirement years. So I think that means they enjoyed it!</p><p>While they were gone, they had to deal with the inconvenience of a couple broken items that I hadn’t gotten around to fixing this year. When they got home, I figured it was time to get them done. The Balches had given me some money to put toward a new awning, so I got that ordered first thing. It was installed on July 5, the day before I was planning to leave for the White Mountains, so perfect timing! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif2UJ0T7nYV0PDGy3YxjfZk7XFCcl5O4ofmG21AXgNwy8TXs_1iO_F-3_LMJHhcAMCqQ9jA4wPZZtR9MxFuMvVE4SMEZkcisZAnXwCPVq1DcPlH9nQeS3HSzGSDx8zy9DPzx8hCAnIsTlYJGNI6SrT6oaPIKdRfWoWxcx_f8vPeBPbtydYOv4MhvClj8/s4032/IMG_5931.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif2UJ0T7nYV0PDGy3YxjfZk7XFCcl5O4ofmG21AXgNwy8TXs_1iO_F-3_LMJHhcAMCqQ9jA4wPZZtR9MxFuMvVE4SMEZkcisZAnXwCPVq1DcPlH9nQeS3HSzGSDx8zy9DPzx8hCAnIsTlYJGNI6SrT6oaPIKdRfWoWxcx_f8vPeBPbtydYOv4MhvClj8/s320/IMG_5931.HEIC" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>My pantry latch had broken last fall on my last trip to the Mogollon Rim, and it would fly open and slide out when driving if it was not tied closed. I came up with the idea of a cupboard latch, and Daryl installed it for me. It works great to keep the door closed and hold the pantry sliding shelf in place. The last thing was the water hookup valve, which sprang a leak while H&M were on their trip. I ordered a new valve that happened to come while Dale was in town for an appt, and he installed it for me. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7xtpAQwIDFJ9CKUa78wl6pRm9Mery3qzLsKU5K6G9DYaLoiZly_6PE1iqIsfx_f4AJBV3W6d_r1ZmLVHiV-SAV-cE2ZdLWIvIyROctiqcKzdD1URfD8OkLNELAP7M5u1RKRu9la_KUWVJYX9bfXpqTTbLx5756EqjKk8Nd3VMQBk1b72e9SKiLMHr604/s4032/IMG_5915.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7xtpAQwIDFJ9CKUa78wl6pRm9Mery3qzLsKU5K6G9DYaLoiZly_6PE1iqIsfx_f4AJBV3W6d_r1ZmLVHiV-SAV-cE2ZdLWIvIyROctiqcKzdD1URfD8OkLNELAP7M5u1RKRu9la_KUWVJYX9bfXpqTTbLx5756EqjKk8Nd3VMQBk1b72e9SKiLMHr604/s320/IMG_5915.HEIC" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4C5ESYfHJusgxRx5ekIe5W1kqkdGEgTZGY1XES7u4h8ixOfcTYEvbyakRE_IDRfzroGUSctIimsdXTxGWAD-gc3w-pxbiD6NfeeqO9rCQc3D7g_XIe2D_ndGVa5wApUQQkzfThuiuRUklGUtQBcUj1xzItdeWN4i6Yb2ora4_2vREIIPnCl4SKR7F6k/s2048/0b2453a1-b684-47ab-b1e8-4b2164d52f49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1152" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4C5ESYfHJusgxRx5ekIe5W1kqkdGEgTZGY1XES7u4h8ixOfcTYEvbyakRE_IDRfzroGUSctIimsdXTxGWAD-gc3w-pxbiD6NfeeqO9rCQc3D7g_XIe2D_ndGVa5wApUQQkzfThuiuRUklGUtQBcUj1xzItdeWN4i6Yb2ora4_2vREIIPnCl4SKR7F6k/s320/0b2453a1-b684-47ab-b1e8-4b2164d52f49.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><br /><p>June/July is always when my licenses and insurance come due, and now those are also taken care of for another year. So that’s the current maintenance and repairs that were on my list. As Richard loves to frequently remind me, it’s always something, and owning an RV is not free.</p><p>Now it is time to head off on my next adventure. I really wanted to take an RV trip across the country to see Barb Heimel this year, but medical appointments and the high price of gas complicated those plans. So I decided to stick closer to home, and camp in the high country of Arizona this year and hope a longer trip will be more affordable next year. </p><p>See you down the road. </p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-26157231361763332732022-09-10T14:30:00.001-07:002022-09-10T14:32:58.928-07:00Mouse!<p>I did another two week camping trip in my Minnie, driving up to the Rim area on August 21st to spend time with Dale. He had been in a dispersed camp just off Houston Mesa road north of Payson for a couple of weeks, so I joined him there. We set up my solar to give it a whirl. It was putting in amps, but since it had been unplugged for several months, we had no idea how far below 100% it was, but it was well below 14.4 volts. So we just let it charge for as many hours of sunshine as we had.</p><p>The ranger came around on Monday to read us the rules (stressing the14 day limit mostly), and we told her we were leaving on Tuesday to move up onto the Rim into the Sitgreaves forest. She seemed satisfied we were not homesteading there and complained to us about "homeless" people who plant their RVs in the forest and spend all their time making a mess.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiciYXjutyHJlsO2JvHId7y8GLYx_ZgwxzpdwqF95xrYJHNUeXfTGkJtPlLoFIf-vsK1HZsWjcUpDoJJv1vcm2vmBXR6WPXrOMIb0sU3VZWTJOg-9H4iTg49cN8jR5qQdSibx6yq9MLDvK2W4nzX36oURqrQUCXnmyudPS9Rnotpr0Ay_Bwko9zp6_A/s4032/IMG_4928.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiciYXjutyHJlsO2JvHId7y8GLYx_ZgwxzpdwqF95xrYJHNUeXfTGkJtPlLoFIf-vsK1HZsWjcUpDoJJv1vcm2vmBXR6WPXrOMIb0sU3VZWTJOg-9H4iTg49cN8jR5qQdSibx6yq9MLDvK2W4nzX36oURqrQUCXnmyudPS9Rnotpr0Ay_Bwko9zp6_A/s320/IMG_4928.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our camp near Houston Mesa</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbcCugXvDAucQQ83M4YZSTXhcn-jjrOwl0yB7AwNpCa60xZDbTMdQ6lOjRnBAP_NNYVMp7K0ctgL_CYaJNnwUeZSpoCouwdUvGZjeTeyGYnV7J5G-6quhbQgq05dVryOi44emZtYAprpKyoTHdP6bVPShVUZM2Ueez5xdt8mRduqec2xjckWElgw8/s4032/IMG_4932.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbcCugXvDAucQQ83M4YZSTXhcn-jjrOwl0yB7AwNpCa60xZDbTMdQ6lOjRnBAP_NNYVMp7K0ctgL_CYaJNnwUeZSpoCouwdUvGZjeTeyGYnV7J5G-6quhbQgq05dVryOi44emZtYAprpKyoTHdP6bVPShVUZM2Ueez5xdt8mRduqec2xjckWElgw8/s320/IMG_4932.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We saw blue skies in the early mornings<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>True to our word, we did move up to the Mogollon Rim on Tuesday morning (the 23rd), after a stop at the Walmart in Payson. Dale had previously camped in FR171 Rim campground just below Willow Springs Lake, so we went back there. His favorite site was taken, so after driving past all 48 other sites, we settled into space 16. The driveway entrances on the majority of the sites were in horrible muddy condition, and ours was no exception. In addition, our site was filled with large (and small) rocks. But it had the most important features, and that was a southern exposure for solar and a northern exposure for Starlink. Plus it was plenty large enough for us both to tuck back in away from the road.<p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7n1u864cuDxS6MUSTgMeRFpc8NNWo5eaVsrsDgnQE1gxuBwCNZr1UwLBqOJgf4QOP2Y1yCfHzsptnpv6NcTWyhzp1hPq3xpSGMRB-iEhs7tnwFBw5MZOuWG6rKyx37hAO0juJyDxj_U-4bXEe4g-d2Gxow5ZTjcsIbB8oLxtpdnlUYV_Ci1zuUqmz/s4032/IMG_4936.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7n1u864cuDxS6MUSTgMeRFpc8NNWo5eaVsrsDgnQE1gxuBwCNZr1UwLBqOJgf4QOP2Y1yCfHzsptnpv6NcTWyhzp1hPq3xpSGMRB-iEhs7tnwFBw5MZOuWG6rKyx37hAO0juJyDxj_U-4bXEe4g-d2Gxow5ZTjcsIbB8oLxtpdnlUYV_Ci1zuUqmz/s320/IMG_4936.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our rocky, wet campsite<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCdkJAPYMcn8hyDu6yooHZ-7J_10tGFsGL3AWN9mGMJs0MHuUg7qBH7aEoZAbYCjNke-GqClgWMl7puAgePcPZ1FnD7XSPIbjeEMgULKO2qsaJjnNeP1tn0bNzWsPELVWJI97HWnqEiSo-tL7SkwmPgcQJQLd6lPe02RrNgob6IkKRIvhg7yCWnE0p/s4032/IMG_4942.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCdkJAPYMcn8hyDu6yooHZ-7J_10tGFsGL3AWN9mGMJs0MHuUg7qBH7aEoZAbYCjNke-GqClgWMl7puAgePcPZ1FnD7XSPIbjeEMgULKO2qsaJjnNeP1tn0bNzWsPELVWJI97HWnqEiSo-tL7SkwmPgcQJQLd6lPe02RrNgob6IkKRIvhg7yCWnE0p/s320/IMG_4942.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mogollon Rim view<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3bNhB0lOYw_y2rv7F3QVcUb6LWXDpLiWroY8JmWi49jyQj-z8boysqPV6i99vHn64XUOYRsVtqQA7BsVI-ArW9ozhhFKgGUc2XKvwexMc9IjgvBJg_OaOH0ZPbmvQ5F5d43emVwVNKLCTY4IjtvXFJLxlLCsxxzlttzU1oo9arYFTYhmDtoArEmfW/s4032/IMG_4941.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3bNhB0lOYw_y2rv7F3QVcUb6LWXDpLiWroY8JmWi49jyQj-z8boysqPV6i99vHn64XUOYRsVtqQA7BsVI-ArW9ozhhFKgGUc2XKvwexMc9IjgvBJg_OaOH0ZPbmvQ5F5d43emVwVNKLCTY4IjtvXFJLxlLCsxxzlttzU1oo9arYFTYhmDtoArEmfW/s320/IMG_4941.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little white bear in the woods<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdE9HHAqxKoOzFKdFOaJz2ak0XRKvOyaM75tQ_VhrXaM7ERTMNtQcHQEniAAvma-lLaAiK9gUiyhCNRXxADfse2Kn241p3REMzGYtlElaRWXjAXFM-7toqAHBOdhKl7QZVJ8lg3wjHIaYFbkXviLQg8KR4_Zc9DudmuY59P-rIqjW2A5luGBF0cINv/s4032/IMG_4955.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdE9HHAqxKoOzFKdFOaJz2ak0XRKvOyaM75tQ_VhrXaM7ERTMNtQcHQEniAAvma-lLaAiK9gUiyhCNRXxADfse2Kn241p3REMzGYtlElaRWXjAXFM-7toqAHBOdhKl7QZVJ8lg3wjHIaYFbkXviLQg8KR4_Zc9DudmuY59P-rIqjW2A5luGBF0cINv/s320/IMG_4955.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All that rain brought dozens of mushrooms<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>The only outings we took was to drive up to Willow Springs Lake and into Heber one day, and into Payson another day. We didn't really need anything, but just did it for a change of scenery. Otherwise, we mostly babysat my solar panel, trying to get my new Lithium Ion battery up to float. It seemed my one solar panel was not going to cut it due to the fact we had so much rain and clouds every day. So midway through the first week, Dale disconnected one set of his own panels and brought them over and hooked them up to my battery. After about five more days, we finally got the battery up to 14.4V, where it settled back down to 13.4, which is technically floating. After that, it floated each day before noon.</p><p>We had discussed on What's App ordering a battery charger on Amazon and Richard & Dianna offered to bring it up. I decided not to invest in that right now, but we did invite R&D to come up for a weenie roast picnic lunch with us. They thought a drive up to the pines sounded like a nice (and safe healthy) outing, so came up on Tuesday, the 30th.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnjn4_o_Fy8GQLY7198TuORWYhj67s_IusmNmhU00aYSco8jBR9ktfs5tr_4JEf-UAPxID3LePwwuQZIzWKPn0h_doyw90QN39pHAGEaB537OHnzQqANLPdVMvDyPGBtoFes1gYzFdxYqyORsEyX6V1dJIieVBTqf4gPFS2oPby_2PqwuUgMRuGip/s4032/IMG_4968.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnjn4_o_Fy8GQLY7198TuORWYhj67s_IusmNmhU00aYSco8jBR9ktfs5tr_4JEf-UAPxID3LePwwuQZIzWKPn0h_doyw90QN39pHAGEaB537OHnzQqANLPdVMvDyPGBtoFes1gYzFdxYqyORsEyX6V1dJIieVBTqf4gPFS2oPby_2PqwuUgMRuGip/s320/IMG_4968.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willow Springs Lake<br /></td></tr></tbody></table> Daryl & Gisele were driving up to a church family camp in Pinetop for the Labor Day weekend, and since their route came right by our campground, they stopped and chatted for a couple of hours.<br /><p></p><p>One morning I was sitting in my recliner drinking coffee and heard a rustling near my stove. I put my ear over there and traced it to the oven. I opened the door and saw the cutest little gray and white mouse looking out at me from among my frying pans (which I store in there). As cute as he was, I didn't want him in my rig, and commenced efforts to extricate him. I set up an electric rat zapper, first under my sink beside the stove, then after a couple of days of no success, I moved it to the floor of the cab, where I had heard him scuffling about one night. Still no luck. With Dale's help (and me standing by) we removed the frying pans from the oven, but my little house guest was no longer among them. I placed the zapper in the oven for one night anyway. </p><p>This effort lasted until I drove home on Sunday before Labor Day. After getting my rig emptied and prepped for storage, I figured he must have abandoned ship in all that time and activity, but JUST IN CASE, I set the zapper trap on the kitchen floor, went out, and locked the door. Sure enough, three days later, I found him in the trap. </p><p>He never felt a thing. R.I.P.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSQU6qfuXqVs4HH_S541fHW6fAgzDI96-jNNpZpl6zupwhR_prjeIYXzin5LgQYbSyVVnogK6Gc0hlbQb7EhSqul_VI7D47Dtl1x8LIquYo83MaAWK30UpD_AxjcH4WaD62Y3Kzt9heMJ-ncmaKrMilaF_4jma0ey4RFUvG_cErNdBT7fhajYXbMoh/s4032/IMG_4998.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSQU6qfuXqVs4HH_S541fHW6fAgzDI96-jNNpZpl6zupwhR_prjeIYXzin5LgQYbSyVVnogK6Gc0hlbQb7EhSqul_VI7D47Dtl1x8LIquYo83MaAWK30UpD_AxjcH4WaD62Y3Kzt9heMJ-ncmaKrMilaF_4jma0ey4RFUvG_cErNdBT7fhajYXbMoh/s320/IMG_4998.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poor little guy...<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /> <p></p><p></p><br /><br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-37062224286294340132022-07-25T12:44:00.004-07:002022-09-10T14:04:07.343-07:00New Power Source<p> I just realized I never wrote about my new power generating system. I'm not sure how I missed writing about that, because it is a very big improvement that my brother Dale installed for me.</p><p>I've complained countless times about my coach batteries; how often I have to replace them, how they don't hold charge, having to monitor the level throughout the day and night, and running the generator to re-charge whenever I'm camped without hookups. I've been wanting to get a Lithium Ion battery for a while, and decided it was time to bite that bullet. Also, as I mentioned in my October 2021 post, I had tried out one of Dale's single solar panels while camping with him and saw how well it delivered enough charge for my daily needs, so I put a solar panel on my Christmas list.<br /></p><p>Dale was in town in February for a couple weeks, and I took advantage of that visit to get some help installing my system. I had the new battery and solar panel, and Dale had an old charge controller he was willing to pass on to me since he had recently upgraded his system to the "Tim Taylor Tool Time More Power Argh Argh Argh" set up. So with all the parts I needed, we (HE) got to work. </p><p>It was a little more involved than we had expected since the new battery would not fit in the space under the step where the two lead acid batteries were. We ended up having to put it inside behind the chair, but that necessitated drilling holes through the floor and the wall of the old battery space to run the cables to the coach hookups. In the end, it all went together okay, and it's not really in the way behind the chair. Plus it's easy to reach the disconnect switch there. I disconnect the battery when it's stored for several months to avoid discharging the battery.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VDBi81MtzSmwjOAavRDWw5sec28vR2Yt990I4ykl001ESlSh8soWkf8FYCDF7c3SjzjjDVjjwu8E1_1zRpy-xN2sg96h1lM__8ftEifSpYV3C_gONtQ4oXP-edtChFtgs8ajB8ntUHnAT8C6c3d8mScLonMvjqzr35jY2CWCyk_XTuImGzGXlq8E/s640/battery.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VDBi81MtzSmwjOAavRDWw5sec28vR2Yt990I4ykl001ESlSh8soWkf8FYCDF7c3SjzjjDVjjwu8E1_1zRpy-xN2sg96h1lM__8ftEifSpYV3C_gONtQ4oXP-edtChFtgs8ajB8ntUHnAT8C6c3d8mScLonMvjqzr35jY2CWCyk_XTuImGzGXlq8E/s320/battery.jpeg" width="240" /> </a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VDBi81MtzSmwjOAavRDWw5sec28vR2Yt990I4ykl001ESlSh8soWkf8FYCDF7c3SjzjjDVjjwu8E1_1zRpy-xN2sg96h1lM__8ftEifSpYV3C_gONtQ4oXP-edtChFtgs8ajB8ntUHnAT8C6c3d8mScLonMvjqzr35jY2CWCyk_XTuImGzGXlq8E/s640/battery.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCXDUAMZ7Wb3HhPunV1nvdIKTHavj8V7d_p0oCuWKDoNr2Kzgoi4ksmTm8SlUr3iCXvxHfq07Sdch779-5T-RwXcIVREKBnTvXMBUpYXTanEpNy1J4aJ5wQnXe1wqshxgNg1A1jN6S0KabFY674U0jd27U1yYvLxBmzGvoFtzErdnIVAGKMZkDapeS/s640/battery2.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCXDUAMZ7Wb3HhPunV1nvdIKTHavj8V7d_p0oCuWKDoNr2Kzgoi4ksmTm8SlUr3iCXvxHfq07Sdch779-5T-RwXcIVREKBnTvXMBUpYXTanEpNy1J4aJ5wQnXe1wqshxgNg1A1jN6S0KabFY674U0jd27U1yYvLxBmzGvoFtzErdnIVAGKMZkDapeS/s320/battery2.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>The basket of Hanna's toys sits nicely on top<br /><br /></div>After he got all the connections made to the coach, Trimetric gauge, and the charge controller, we set up the solar panel and checked it out. It worked perfectly! The panel was facing the early afternoon sun and charged the battery full by the end of the day. In fact, I had to run a little fan for several hours the next day to take some of the charge back off the battery before disconnecting it for storage. <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh97D7MoV-0M3OJl-Bt6JaxWOcKYDPYLl_ETv0nz-me-twmxP-dUncJjPZlfvWaqN-Nace1jg75wrwoHkX6ump76df_0D_0pU8RmZKrFOORaZV1UQ3WarXJJOMD1X1DcoXt0TxaBZOZPNWh3gz76-iytj_tcoYuSqZEk6LXMUgIESFNgZjVQV-qhwTE/s890/solar_panel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="501" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh97D7MoV-0M3OJl-Bt6JaxWOcKYDPYLl_ETv0nz-me-twmxP-dUncJjPZlfvWaqN-Nace1jg75wrwoHkX6ump76df_0D_0pU8RmZKrFOORaZV1UQ3WarXJJOMD1X1DcoXt0TxaBZOZPNWh3gz76-iytj_tcoYuSqZEk6LXMUgIESFNgZjVQV-qhwTE/s320/solar_panel.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>I think the next thing that is going to take more money out of my wallet is a replacement awning, as mine is peeling pretty badly. I did buy a repair kit, but I don't have high hopes it will do a very good job. And I need a tall ladder to work on it, so I'm not sure when I will get to that. But it's not terribly urgent.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1jlIzbYbj0VnI_cV6Q0-i1BCX9BMSz8r2Yuz4IAt5QOPV1PctL1E_00vinDMIi56XF7tCAPJ4GRF237JTfdurDW5EV3exFEr9HQ-EsOfSMT33JkmTsHU2JDSA1EFEO1_WoebB5snAv_CqBok9chv7omCnBNxPyMJ3fb5r4C8nx1CpDQdrEoIu3FHa/s640/awning.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="425" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1jlIzbYbj0VnI_cV6Q0-i1BCX9BMSz8r2Yuz4IAt5QOPV1PctL1E_00vinDMIi56XF7tCAPJ4GRF237JTfdurDW5EV3exFEr9HQ-EsOfSMT33JkmTsHU2JDSA1EFEO1_WoebB5snAv_CqBok9chv7omCnBNxPyMJ3fb5r4C8nx1CpDQdrEoIu3FHa/s320/awning.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div><p>I'm anxious to get back out camping. We've had another hot summer, so the cool mountain forests sound lovely. I've had such a busy year with one thing or another on my schedule that I haven't had a spare two weeks to string together a trip up north, but I hope I can rectify that soon.</p><p>Let me not forget to say "Thanks a lot, Dale"!!!<br /></p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-35615265153197851842022-06-02T12:14:00.001-07:002022-06-02T12:14:14.407-07:00New AC<p>I mentioned in my last post that when Dale and I were camping near Rye, AZ, it was warm enough one afternoon for me to turn on my AC, only to discover it was putting out warm air. Since RV air conditioner units notoriously do not allow adding Freon, I figured I was in for a replacement. The fact my unit is 17 years old, although has many fewer hours on it than that age implies, I wasn't too unhappy over the fact it had worn out.</p><p>I hate taking Minnie out of my back yard to drive it to a service center, leave it for an unknown length of time, get a ride home and back, then bring Minnie back home and put it back in the yard. When a Google search turned up a mobile RV service company with excellent Google score and reviews, I decided to call him.</p><p>Juan from 4 Points RV Service came out later that week, checked out the AC, confirmed it was the compressor and that the whole unit would need to be replaced. I had been checking on Amazon for ACs and asked him if he would install one that I bought myself. He said he would, but I would only get the Amazon 1 year warranty, and if I got one from him, he would give me a 2 year warranty. He quoted me a price on the new unit and it was very much in line with Amazon's pricing, and he had one in town. Winner! </p><p>He scheduled the replacement for one week later, arrived with the new unit and carried it up the ladder to my roof. After doing the installation, we checked out the temperature of the air coming out of the vents and it registered a chilly 55°. I'm really happy to have things in working order again, and very happy to have found a qualified mobile service to do future repairs for me. It sure was nice not to have to get Minnie out of the back yard.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYXRoP8wVeH4ZK1R_8hLJA6vOGQAw7ua0JUS11pDd4IAA5Z2OX3MKo5JofU7zZeB6Nsl6rKuv3HE1J1Tu7VlYCp8BvhgYpgrQvR30YHByybjqPoNO57nkOsTrtTrh27AmsZruzE2xnrwZRZGskfUiDXRiXFZ6GVASeJGhx0Y91h_O9DtDJ-RQv7KOg/s890/IMG_4440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="668" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYXRoP8wVeH4ZK1R_8hLJA6vOGQAw7ua0JUS11pDd4IAA5Z2OX3MKo5JofU7zZeB6Nsl6rKuv3HE1J1Tu7VlYCp8BvhgYpgrQvR30YHByybjqPoNO57nkOsTrtTrh27AmsZruzE2xnrwZRZGskfUiDXRiXFZ6GVASeJGhx0Y91h_O9DtDJ-RQv7KOg/w227-h303/IMG_4440.jpg" width="227" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxmcTirNNGWqj2i8fAS5pZbRg9IrXq1f0EfppcTfIGhsb-ob6weKNFmtgIpNmpUBaAwqctR1zDkFwHV1AKBtSr8T7pylCV7Pm1VEitBWQN5Z7YZGDjBY2tGHigljNANS8qNEzGRlOhypE3iVU6ObYONYXduVIpvi-Us77cCuxgoo5sdmeLXGyHQh3V/s890/IMG_4441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="668" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxmcTirNNGWqj2i8fAS5pZbRg9IrXq1f0EfppcTfIGhsb-ob6weKNFmtgIpNmpUBaAwqctR1zDkFwHV1AKBtSr8T7pylCV7Pm1VEitBWQN5Z7YZGDjBY2tGHigljNANS8qNEzGRlOhypE3iVU6ObYONYXduVIpvi-Us77cCuxgoo5sdmeLXGyHQh3V/w228-h303/IMG_4441.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><p></p><p>I'm planning to get out camping with Dale in a few weeks in northern Arizona. With the exorbitant cost of gas right now ($6.00/gal!!) I won't be going very far this summer. Hopefully next year, the prices will be more reasonable and I'll take a longer camping trip. I've really missed being able to RV travel around the country.<br /></p><p><br /></p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-43075167396660051502021-10-09T14:32:00.003-07:002022-09-10T14:04:33.825-07:00Repairs ... again!<p>It's a misconception to think if you own an RV, it's going to be a free, or even economical, means of travel. They cost money, a lot can go wrong, and repairs and maintenance can be expensive. I've sure had my share of those expenses. Part of the problem is the amount of time it sits in storage in the Arizona heat, part of it is my inexperience or ignorance, part is general wear and tear, and part is just plain bad luck. </p><p>Take for instance when I took it into Walmart to have the oil changed. You might say it was my fault for not warning the pit crew that the end was long with a short wheel base, and to be careful when pulling it out of the bay so they didn't turn too sharp and bang up the back corner. Or you might say it was just bad luck. But yes, they did bang up the back corner, so then I had matching banged up back corners. We won't dwell on who banged up the opposite side earlier. Let's just move along. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Cnq3OzQ-ljU/YWIFSMgujoI/AAAAAAAAOuc/iZyD_nre-nAqMpKa0r62www7DXd06oymgCLcBGAsYHQ/s890/Minniedamage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="668" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Cnq3OzQ-ljU/YWIFSMgujoI/AAAAAAAAOuc/iZyD_nre-nAqMpKa0r62www7DXd06oymgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Minniedamage.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p>Fortunately, Walmart paid to repair the damage they had done, and it was probably cheaper to have both corners fixed at once, so I saved a little on my portion of the bill, too. I ordered the parts online and took it into Arizona RV Service to do the install and body work. </p><p>I also had a "clunking" noise in the back end that I wanted diagnosed and repaired. The downside was it took eight weeks for them to diagnose a damaged bushing in the slide, order the parts for it and complete all the service! Luckily, I didn't have any big trips planned, other than wishing I could spend a few weeks in the New Mexico State Parks with Dale. </p><p>I finally got it back in late August only to discover that my coach batteries were on their last legs. I decided it is probably time to buy a Lithium Ion battery and end all this battery trouble. At some point, I will add a solar panel to complete the worry free power delivery system.</p><p>After getting back from my September trip to Boise for Megan's wedding, I made a snap decision to load up my rig and drive up to the Mogollon Rim and join Dale for a week or so of cooler weather and getting re-acclimated to RVing. He was camped in a large spot on the rim near Woods Canyon, and I set up beside him. It commenced raining shortly after I got there, and continued for 2 1/2 more days until we finally packed up and drove down to a dispersed site near Rye. </p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-48ZtzG3TP1w/YWIFk3uEWDI/AAAAAAAAOus/T97yOTuT_XgDYUNWg_Dx5oFplGMvxNM6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1187/puddles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1187" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-48ZtzG3TP1w/YWIFk3uEWDI/AAAAAAAAOus/T97yOTuT_XgDYUNWg_Dx5oFplGMvxNM6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/puddles.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mud puddles!<br /></td></tr></tbody></table></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_feIkgaiTy0/YWIFlXDSK5I/AAAAAAAAOuw/i0k6CqK0qPYhv7F7jruMUN_1xeoJZS0PQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1187/rimcamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1187" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_feIkgaiTy0/YWIFlXDSK5I/AAAAAAAAOuw/i0k6CqK0qPYhv7F7jruMUN_1xeoJZS0PQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/rimcamp.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> It was much warmer there, possibly even a little too warm each afternoon. That lead to me turning on my A/C one day, only to discover it wasn't putting out any cool air. Richard says RV air conditioners are not built to add freon, and I likely need to replace it. Another big expense! ...sigh...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NuWqd42xibE/YWIGfAswinI/AAAAAAAAOvs/7Pz1uoc8JTUvTvyH6KFtat0HhbbHKZSRQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1187/ryecamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1187" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NuWqd42xibE/YWIGfAswinI/AAAAAAAAOvs/7Pz1uoc8JTUvTvyH6KFtat0HhbbHKZSRQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/ryecamp.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">While we were in Rye, Dale set up his extra solar panel and small charge controller on my batteries, and it worked beautifully, delivering plenty of power to keep my dying batteries charged. It was enough to make me decide I'll be investing in a solar panel of my own the same time I replace the battery with a Li-Ion one. </div><p></p><p>After another week in the Rye area making S'mores and chasing cows out of our campsite, I made my way back down the mountain and put Minnie back in the side yard. RVing is not free, but they say travel is the only thing you spend money on that makes you richer.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lOJVfAVVq6c/YWIIko_COCI/AAAAAAAAOwk/cl5gRVDK6CwAufCrY6NSnbXu3duvFLiQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s890/cow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="668" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lOJVfAVVq6c/YWIIko_COCI/AAAAAAAAOwk/cl5gRVDK6CwAufCrY6NSnbXu3duvFLiQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/cow.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-He_NAYaJ9tI/YWIHVwlDthI/AAAAAAAAOwM/sUiCGCsB0706DtU6nLEIUaC5vTt2lYL0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s890/campfire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="835" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-He_NAYaJ9tI/YWIHVwlDthI/AAAAAAAAOwM/sUiCGCsB0706DtU6nLEIUaC5vTt2lYL0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/campfire.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E2kBxvaFdvU/YWIHchctj5I/AAAAAAAAOwQ/5RUj21bYetMw8_dWYGruK-wviyMat0REwCLcBGAsYHQ/s890/smore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="757" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E2kBxvaFdvU/YWIHchctj5I/AAAAAAAAOwQ/5RUj21bYetMw8_dWYGruK-wviyMat0REwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/smore.jpg" width="272" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ran out of chocolate bars, so tried peanut butter. Not bad!<br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-76829663781581492322020-08-13T11:16:00.000-07:002020-08-13T11:16:00.543-07:00RVing (or NOT) in the age of Coronavirus<p>I had planned on taking my RV up the Pacific coast this year, but Covid-19 has squashed all desire to get out and deal with unfamiliar places. With so much of the country shut down, including many state and national parks and campgrounds as well as private RV parks, it just seemed like too much effort to try to find a safe and enjoyable way to travel and sight see this year. </p><p>So Minnie has been sitting in my side yard since last October, and there she will stay until this pandemic subsides. I even let the license expire and reduced the insurance coverage to bare minimum, just to cover anything that my homeowners policy would not.</p><p>Every month on the first day, I get an iPhone reminder to check my generator and battery. I go out and start up the gennie and the engine. While those run, I check the batteries and add water if necessary. Then I roll Minnie forward or backward a few feet to change the position of the tires. They only have a couple thousand miles on them and I don't want them getting flat spots. Luckily, my side yard is well shaded throughout the day, so they don't get much direct sun, which could dry them out and damage them. The last thing I do is run some water into the black tank. All my tanks are nearly empty, but adding a couple gallons of water to the black tank each month keeps it from smelling. After tending to Minnie, I take my Fit out for a 4-5 mile drive around the block and put it back in the garage. I keep battery tenders on Minnie's batteries so they don't go dead. Last year Dale installed a battery disconnect switch on my Fit, so I just turn that one off. These steps keep my whole RV rig in shape while in storage.</p><p>I'm hoping that I can get back to my plan of making a trip up the coast early next year. I've been reading some blogs of other RVers and mentally bookmarking several campgrounds and places of interest that I want to visit. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4jar2LNZ5w8/XzWA3DcYpbI/AAAAAAAANNQ/NKzoYYDP16oJFmYbfuNb8X5RPr5XGCAdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IMG_2017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="328" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4jar2LNZ5w8/XzWA3DcYpbI/AAAAAAAANNQ/NKzoYYDP16oJFmYbfuNb8X5RPr5XGCAdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/IMG_2017.jpg" title="I had to put a Not For Sale sign on it because people kept ringing my doorbell asking about it." width="438" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I had to put that sign on it to stop people from interrupting my nap </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">by ringing my doorbell and asking about it. :)<br /></div><br /><p></p>AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-43109274215926565822019-10-26T11:35:00.000-07:002019-10-26T11:35:32.697-07:00Paducah to MesaI won't say I made a beeline home from Paducah, but I did drive west with purpose. Once I make up my mind I'm ready to head home, I'm typically pretty anxious to get there. So I drove 200-300 miles a day, stopping before dinner time for overnight camps.<br />
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My first stop was Maumelle Park, an Army Corps of Engineering campground just outside Little Rock, AR. While there, I spotted this beautiful rig in the campground and my siblings and I had quite a discussion on What's App trying to determine its value. We decided it was between $2-3 million, and who knows what they were hauling in that trailer.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My rig is worth less than $2 million! ;-)</td></tr>
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My next night was spent in a free and friendly spot in Whitewright, TX. Yep, I driveway surfed at Chris and Dayna's. I could not get level nor reach the 30A plug from Richard's usual spot, but my smaller rig fit great right next to the shed in front of their house. They provided a delicious dinner of ribs, beans and potato salad, and we enjoyed getting caught up on family gossip.<br />
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Night three was spent in Lake Colorado City State Park near Colorado City, TX. It was a nice, nearly empty park, and a very warm evening, so I was glad to have AC.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake Colorado</td></tr>
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My fourth night found me in Van Horn, TX in funky little Oasis RV park adjacent to Main Street and an active railroad. I counted five trains that went by (blowing their horns) during the next sixteen hours, included one at 10:15 pm and finally 2:20 am before peace settled in.<br />
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My final stop before home was back at Rockhound State Park south of Deming, NM. This is where I had stayed my first two nights out and I liked the campground a lot. However, mid-October proved to be a much busier season than mid-September, and the campground was full when I arrived. I sat along the camp road trying to decide what to do for the night when a ranger drove by, stopped and told me I could take the last hookup spot in the group site, as long as I didn't mind close proximity to some neighbors. I was very happy not to have to drive on that afternoon, and my neighbors turned out to include a couple of cute kids who fell in love with Hanna.<br />
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I got an early start the next morning, and drove the final 330 miles. As we came into Mesa/Tempe, Hanna stirred from her napping place on the floor, and at Elliot and Dobson, she stood up. At Alma School, she jumped up on the passenger seat. When we turned into our neighborhood, she began to wiggle. And when we stopped in front of our house, she ran to the door begging to get out. She was a happy pup to be home, and so was I.<br />
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I kept all my gas receipts this time, and when I get around to it, I'll tally up my miles and costs to see if I'm still getting 7.75 mpg. For now, we are enjoying our lazy days and the beautiful Arizona fall weather.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-83805166581303503302019-10-15T18:41:00.001-07:002019-10-15T18:41:41.407-07:00Nashville - Northern Terminus of the NTPAfter leaving the mechanic shop on Wednesday morning, I drove the final fifty miles of the Natchez Trace Parkway. There were a few historical spots in those last miles that were interesting and worthwhile.<br />
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I found a site at Montgomery Ball State Park campground west of Nashville.<br />
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I drove into the city on Thursday to see some sights in the Country Music capital of the world. First stop, Country Music Hall of Fame. The senior price for admission to the museum was $23.95. You are allowed to take no-flash pictures of anything inside the museum, but unfortunately, almost everything is displayed behind glass with low lighting, which makes it very difficult to get any good shots without glare. Some of the best pieces are positioned in such a way that you cannot frame them nicely in a photo. Johnny Cash’s Black suit that he wore when performing at Folsom Prison was in a corner, and glare from other exhibits covered part of the shot.<br />
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From there, I walked over to the Ryman Auditorium. They also wanted $25 for admission. Since I only had 30 minutes left on my parking pass, I decided not to go inside, but instead walked back to my car. There was too much construction going on downtown and I figured it would be another $25 admission to the Grand Ole Opry, so instead of driving to it, I just headed back to camp. I’ll visit Nashville another time, maybe with Alice and Glenda, and we will take in more sights then.<br />
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Friday morning, I packed up camp and moved up to Kentucky Dam State Park where I got a space for two nights. On Saturday, I drove to Paducah to visit with my childhood friend. Denice has a progressive disease and is quite ill, but she invited me to come by. I visited with her by her bedside for about two hours. Her sister Sharion, who helps her husband care for her at home, was also there, and we all got caught up on family news.<br />
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Back at camp that evening, I made my plans to turn west and head home.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-45568781908526324442019-10-13T19:41:00.000-07:002019-10-13T19:41:29.392-07:00Battery WoesBefore getting on the road Tuesday morning, I decided to check my generator. The weather had turned cool enough that I planned to dry camp in Meriwether Lewis Campground, so I wanted to make sure everything was good. Imagine my chagrin when the gennie would not start! After texting with my brothers we determined I likely had battery problems. As I was checking the connectors and water levels, one of the cables actually came loose, revealing a very corroded break. That definitely seemed to be the culprit.<br />
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I decided not to deal with it today, but to keep moving north.<br />
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I stopped at a small rustic RV Park just off the Trace near Hohenwald. The surrounding woods provided a nice place for Hanna and me to walk.<br />
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The next morning I drove straight to a mechanic shop where they fixed the broken battery cable. That seemed to resolve the issues with providing battery power to Minnie, but my generator still would not start. I didn’t want to waste more time and spend any more money on it while out of town, so just decided to camp with hookups the rest of the way home. Then I can take the RV in to a specialized shop in Mesa and have them deal with it and a few other issues at once over the winter.<br />
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I will complete the Parkway today and start making my way home.<br />
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<br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-31438464701618718392019-10-10T12:11:00.001-07:002019-10-10T12:11:16.029-07:00Corinth Civil War Interpretive CenterMy brother Dale hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2012, and hooked up with Woody and Cynthia Harrell (trail names X and N Trovert) about halfway through their trek north. As we followed their trail blogs, our family at home felt like we came to know the Harrells well. My brother Daryl also got to do some backpacking with them that year and the next. I finally got a chance to meet them in person when Cynthia ran the Phoenix marathon a few years later.<br />
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I knew the NTP passes close to the Harrells home in Corinth, MS, so we got in touch to make plans for lunch or dinner. While we were texting, I asked about the Civil War Center in Corinth, and if it would be a worthwhile trip from my campground about 40 miles away. Cynthia exclaimed that Woody had designed it and everything in it! She asked if I'd like a personal grand tour. Would I!!<br />
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The Center is in a beautiful setting, which sadly is the site of the Corinth Battle in October 1862. The museum building sits on a hill, and there are Civil War artifacts and memorials all over the grounds. It happened to be the 175th anniversary of the battle, so there were additional events going on. We had just enough time to explore a couple of rooms inside before making our way out to the edge of the hill to watch a re-enactment of the cannon firing.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you make out Woody's thumbprint and WH initials<br />
in the bottom corner of the bronze memorial?</td></tr>
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Following, Woody explained the history of some of the grave markers, and then described his crown jewel - the Stream of American History. He spent weeks designing the water feature in the courtyard, which provides a detailed representation of the birth and growth of our nation, then the rise of sectionalism and other momentous events, and finally the continuing legacy of the American Civil War.<br />
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I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the Interpretive Center and the tour by Woody. After we had seen all the highlights, we left and went to the Harrell's favorite Mexican restaurant, where we caught up on family news. Shortly thereafter, it was time to make my way back to my lonely puppy waiting for me in Minnie.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-63206722245120107372019-10-07T11:50:00.000-07:002019-10-09T16:06:16.226-07:00TupeloOn Thursday, I left Hanna in the air conditioned motor home and went into Tupelo. I drove to the Tupelo National Battlefield, but could not find a parking lot nor any information other than one lone memorial monument and a cannon in the middle of a grassy square, so considered my “visit” complete and drove on to Elvis Presley’s birthplace.<br />
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The house that Elvis was born and lived in is in its original location, and a museum has been built nearby. The church building he attended as a boy was moved to the site. There are several exhibits around the outside grounds. The Presley family moved from Tupelo to Memphis when Elvis was 13, looking for a better life.<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">They charge three separate fees to enter the house, church and museum, but seniors get a “three for two” discount. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elvis at 13</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Replica of the 1939 Plymouth the family left Tupelo in</td></tr>
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From there, I made my way back to the Trace where I drove to the Parkway Visitor’s Center and Headquarters. This is a typical, nice NPS style VC with exhibits about the history of the area, the Natchez Trace, and the establishment of the Parkway.<br />
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I returned home to a happy puppy and a quiet evening. The next morning, we left the campground about 10:00, as we only had ~50 miles to our next camp at Piney Grove (ACoE) Campground. On the way north along the Trace, we stopped at a couple of points of interest.<br />
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Piney Grove is a large very nice campground, that was only about half full by Friday afternoon, and I found a nice site near the lake.<br />
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<br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-61298063562839820892019-10-03T15:54:00.000-07:002019-10-03T15:54:46.126-07:00JacksonWhile I was camped at Le Fleur’s Bluff campground, I did a bit of sightseeing. On Tuesday morning, I went to the Mississippi Civil Rights History Museum. Online reviews were very good, and I concurred. It’s in a beautiful building, and the exhibits are sectioned chronologically beginning with section one covering the birth of the nation to the Civil War. Section two focuses on post war Reconstruction struggles of emancipated slaves to find their way in a violent and frightening new world. The remaining five sections highlight tumultuous efforts, tragic and pivotal events and finally slow progress toward gaining the rights and privileges that the Constitution promises to citizens of all races. I spent the whole morning there and highly recommend a visit by anyone in the area.<br />
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I went back to the campground for a quick lunch, then Hanna and I drove up the Trace to check out some of the historical highlights around Jackson.<br />
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This morning, I left the campground and headed north along the Trace again toward Tupelo, the mid point of the 444 mile Parkway.<br />
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I’m now settled in a really nice forest service campground (with elec/water) at Davis Lake just south of Tupelo. I plan to be here two nights while exploring Elvis’ birthplace and a few other sights Thursday.<br />
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<br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-32239329516600777952019-09-30T14:21:00.000-07:002019-10-09T16:07:32.390-07:00NatchezI spent two nights at Joe B. Johnson State Park just outside Hattiesburg, MS. I stayed one night here last year and liked it, so thought I’d settle in for two this time. There really is no sight seeing nearby, but I took the opportunity to catch up on laundry and shopping, and I received all the network tv channels, so watched some new fall shows both evenings. The Mississippi state parks are a pretty good deal for seniors, at just $15/night for electric/water sites. The campgrounds are typically well maintained and in nice, safe areas.<br />
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On Thursday, I drove on to Natchez State Park, which is located 10 miles north of Natchez, MS and just a mile off the Trace. I paid for three nights in Campground B and found a very nice site (26). The campground was about 75% full over the weekend, but by Sunday evening, there were just four of us in the ~30 spaces. One evening we walked over two miles up the Campground A and back, and the next evening we walked down to Natchez Lake.<br />
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I revisited some of the sights in Natchez that I had toured last year, including Melrose, William Johnson House, and the Natchez National Historic Park and Visitor Center. On Saturday, I drove north along the Trace, stopping at several of the NTP sites, then visiting Grand Gulf Military Park, Port Gibson, and the Windsor Ruins. I had seen all these spots last year but enjoyed going through them again.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the Grand Gulf Military Museum</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Windsor Ruins</td></tr>
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Monday morning I packed up and drove the Parkway north to Jackson, where I set up in LeFleur’s Bluff State Park Campground. I was assigned site 4, but when I got there someone else had overstayed their reservation and was still occupying the site. I called the office and asked if I could back into site 1 (which was actually a bit nicer and facing Mayes Lake) and she said I could. I’ve got my AC going and picked up 35 TV stations, so I’m set for a couple of nights.<br />
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<br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-63692173188426806152019-09-23T15:35:00.000-07:002019-10-09T16:09:10.414-07:00Celebration Weekend at Gulf ShoresWe arrived at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama on Thursday afternoon. This is a very large state park campground, with nearly 500 sites. The park is immaculately maintained with roomy sites, and plenty of trees, grass and water (a lake as well as the seashore). Hanna and I walked around several of the loops, and settled in for the evening.<br />
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The next morning, I met Wendy and Denny for breakfast and catch up chatter. I decided to make a drive out to Fort Morgan that afternoon. Online reviews said the site was dog friendly, including the museum, so Hanna was excited to join me. Situated out on the end of Mobile point peninsula, the wind really howled, but we walked all around the grounds, checking out many batteries and magazine areas, lighthouse ruins, as well as the museum. The fort was active during the early 1800s and under the control of Confederate forces during the Civil War, when it was surrendered back to the US government in August 1864. It was once again an active military fort during WWII, serving as an ordinance depot. In 1947, it was deeded to the state of Alabama, and became a historical park.<br />
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I went to Wendy & Denny’s condo for an evening visit. The next morning, I did a few chores, and ran into Target for a couple of items. The anniversary party began at 4:00, and I enjoyed a wonderful celebration with friends and family of the happy couple. I got back to my camp just about bedtime.<br />
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The next day, I did preparations for my next leg of my journey: starting the Natchez Trace Parkway. I went back to the condo in the afternoon for leftover party food and the Cardinals’ football game. At 7:00, I said goodbye to my friends and headed back to Hanna and Minnie. I pulled out of the campground the next morning at 10:00, and drove to Paul Johnson State Park near Hattiesburg, Mississippi, where I checked into a nice site for two nights.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-11119600417766786612019-09-22T12:08:00.000-07:002019-09-22T12:09:04.077-07:00Outrunning a hurricaneFrom Ft Stockton, we continued east to Canyon Lake just north of San Antonio, where we tucked into a beautiful Army Corps of Engineering campground. I’ve stayed in a few ACoE campgrounds and really like them. Some of them honor the NPS Senior pass with a 50% discount, but this one did not happen to. However, the week I was there, they were running a special, so I got a $15/night rate.<br />
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The next morning, I moved on toward Houston and ended up back in the same RV Park I stayed in last year when I visited Cindy in SugarLand. It rained lightly off and on all afternoon and evening, but there were enough breaks that Hanna and I got our walks in.<br />
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I knew I had enough leeway to spend two nights in another camp before my reservation in Gulf State Park, so I decided to drive to Fountainebleau State Park on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain the next day. It was ~350 miles from my SugarLand camp, so I got an early start. It was raining as I pulled out. Throughout the morning, not only did the rain continue, it increased. At some points, I had my wipers on the fastest rate, and traffic was slowed to 35mph on the freeway, where the speed limit was 65-70mph. My Nuvi gps routed me to the San Houston Tollway, but it was too congested and rainy to find my way off and deal with my navigation system, so I just sucked it up and paid the tolls ($15.75). I finally saw an option for getting off the toll road and took a city highway over to I-12.<br />
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It was a relief to get out of Houston and Beaumont traffic, but the rain was still pouring down and I soldiered on. About 20 miles west of Baton Rouge, I came to a dead stop. Traffic was backed up for 12 miles due to a semi truck accident blocking the lanes, as well as torrential rain still coming down. By this time, I was also getting into rush hour. As I crawled along at 3-5 mph I called the state park at Lake Pontchartrain to ensure I could get into a space after hours, and was assured there were plenty of sites open and also how to get through the gate if it was closed.<br />
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After a two hour delay, I finally got through Baton Rouge, and started coming out of the rain, and I arrived at the campground at about 7:15, just as the last light was fading. Finding a site in the dark and setting up camp is not a lot of fun, but I managed. I sure was glad to know I had a “zero day” ahead of me!<br />
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The next day, as I listened to the weather reports, I realized Hurricane Imelda was hitting Houston and that’s what I drove through the previous morning. They got between 2-3 feet of rainfall and devastating floods over the next couple days. I sure am glad I left when I did!<br />
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Hanna and I relaxed in the campground, taking walks around the loops and driving down to the lake front.<br />
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We packed up Thursday and drove on to Gulf Shores, where we pulled into Gulf State Park. I’ll be here through the weekend, spending time with Wendy & Denny and their friends.<br />
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AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-3807770447999734372019-09-14T17:04:00.000-07:002019-09-14T17:04:02.214-07:00Rockhound and Pancho Villa State ParksI left home at 7:00 a.m. Thursday morning. I made my way to the campground at Rockhound State Park just south of Deming, NM. My New Mexico State Park pass is still good through next April, so I decided to make good use of it. $4 for electric & water hookups in a beautiful campground is about the best deal you can find. It was in the 90s, so I really needed the electric for AC.<br />
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The next morning, I decided to stay an extra day and drive down to Pancho Villa State Park, where Dale had spent some time last summer. He said there is a great Museum / Visitors Center there, so I tossed Hanna in the back seat of the Fit and took off down the road. When we arrived at the park, we drove around the large campground, which is right in the middle of what used to be Camp Furlong in the border town of Columbus, NM. Some of the old buildings still remain, as well as old rusted equipment. I read all the signs and took several photos, then made my way to the museum. Just as I walked up to the door, the ranger docent was putting up the Closed for Lunch sign. I gave him a sad look, and he smiled and took it back down and said “Come on in! I can wait. You’re my first visitor today!” Since Hanna had to stay in the car, I assured him I would be quick. But in about 12-15 minutes, he had given me a good overview of the museum and the history of the area, especially focusing on the March 9, 1916 raid by Pancho Villa. It was indeed interesting, as Dale had said. I could have spent an hour there if both Hanna and the ranger had not been waiting. (The photos below are not in correct order, but it’s too difficult to move them around from my phone. Note the sign with info re: the touring car. That was particularly interesting.)<br />
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We took a quick look around the town and headed back to camp. I intended to drop Hanna off in Minnie, have a quick lunch and drive into the Walmart for a couple items, but a thunderstorm came up and it rained off and on the rest of the evening. It was much more welcome than the few items on my shopping list.<br />
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I packed up and pulled out early the next morning, and drove 350 miles east on I-10 to Ft. Stockton. I am in a little run down RV Park a few miles off the freeway, with electric hookups to keep the AC going. It’s only an overnight stop. Hopefully, tomorrow night I can find some place more appealing.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-55709894963410218172019-07-25T15:02:00.000-07:002019-08-27T15:09:53.800-07:00Annual choresAfter my New Mexico trip, I put my Minnie back in the side yard until my next camping trip. Or so I thought. Just a few weeks after I got home, I got the notification my license was due and I had to have an emissions test ... again! So, I had to take her out and down to the testing station. She passed, of course.<br />
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Instead of immediately putting Minnie back in storage, I decided it was a good time to get the new tires I was planning on this year. The old tires are from 2012, and that's about the limit for tires in the hot desert. They still had lots of tread, but the rubber gets old, and I didn't want to be driving down a freeway at 62MPH and have one suddenly fail. So I took it to Discount Tire and asked for the $1200 set of six. They promised to have them in the shop the next day and put on and ready for me to pick up by the end of the day.<br />
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However, after driving past the shop twice during the day, and still finding my Minnie sitting in the back lot where I had left her, I called to ask if they were going to have it ready. That's when they realized the tires never came in, and they had failed on their promise. The asked if they could put $1600 Bridgestones on instead, at no additional cost to me. Umm, YES!! So that's what she got.<br />
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I'm making my fall plans to head east about the middle of September to Alabama, where I will join Wendy and Denny's friends and family to help them celebrate their Golden Anniversary. It's hard to believe it was 50 years ago that they got married so Wendy would not have to move away from her beloved when her dad changed jobs.<br />
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After the celebration, I'm going to drive back to Mississippi and start the Natchez Trace Parkway again. But this time, I plan to drive the entire 444 miles all the way from Natchez to Nashville, while camping and sightseeing along the way.<br />
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<br />AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-62816106440202728812019-06-04T11:16:00.000-07:002019-06-04T11:16:55.193-07:00NM State Parks Spring 2019 SummaryNow that I'm home, it's time to summarize the experiences of the last six and a half weeks, including a comparison with Mom and Dad's weeks spent in the New Mexico State Parks during their retirement. It was quite nostalgic to visit many of the same places they loved so much. Richard even remembered which camp site in Navajo Lake Pine campground they liked to reserve. Unfortunately, site 4 is now designated as a camp host spot, so we couldn't camp in it, but every time I walked the loop with Hanna, I thought of them. Every time, I stood overlooking the lake, I thought of Dad taking his boat out and finding a favorite fishing spot. Every hour I spent reading, I thought of Mom relaxing in their fifth wheel while Dad was out on the water. And many of the sight seeing side trips Dale and I took were because I had read about them in Mom's journals.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mom left a stack of journals where I rediscovered the excitement of their travels.</td></tr>
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I didn't track all my expenses or mileage this year. After traveling in my Minnie for 3 years, I know what my gas mileage is (~7.5 towing my Fit), and my campground expenses were mostly covered by the annual pass I purchased for $225.<br />
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We camped in four state parks; Percha Dam, Bluewater Lake, Navajo Lake and Heron Lake, as well as a couple of boon docks outside the parks. We visited three more parks; Caballo, Elephant Butte and El Vado. My favorite campground was Heron, but the lake was so low we didn't enjoy the view much. That award goes to Navajo, especially since that lake has several arms and varying perspectives from the campgrounds and roads around it.<br />
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The best part of the trip was spending it with Dale. We really enjoyed camping together, each with our own Minnies, taking lots of trips to see the sights or running into the Walmart in the nearest town, walking the campground loops and trails, and sitting around an evening campfire making S'mores.<br />
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I really appreciated him accommodating my desire to visit certain locations. He might have wandered a little farther east or stayed longer in each spot if I hadn't been spurring him to move and discover a new adventure with me.<br />
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His summer plans are to mozy around northern Arizona, and try to find places to put his kayak in the creeks, streams and lakes there. I think I will try to escape the Valley heat and join him for a few weeks up in the mountains. Then next fall, I hope to head back east and drive the Nachez Trace Parkway end to end. Maybe I can convince him to tag along with me!<br />
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Maybe I can convince my readers to tag along too, via this blog!AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-21198734041852064632019-06-03T18:24:00.001-07:002019-06-03T18:24:45.905-07:00Headed homeDale and I left Navajo on Saturday morning, and drove south to Thoreau, where instead of turning east and driving into Bluewater Lake State Park, we kept going into the Cibola National Forest. Dale had boon docked in a nice location a couple of years ago, and we drove directly to his old site and set up camp. The road was a little rough, but doable with the big wheels on our Minnies. We spent a quiet night in the forest without seeing another soul, not even the four legged kind.<br />
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On Sunday morning, we said our good byes (for now), and I drove back to I-40 and turned west, while he made plans to turn east and back to the Bluewater Lake campground. I turned south on Highway 87 in Winslow, and made my way to Blue Ridge Ranger Station, and an overnight site next to Richard and Dianna. After Dianna and I took a nice forest walk, we had elk burgers for dinner, and I discovered they are delicious! Much chatting and an NBA basketball game filled the rest of our evening.<br />
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I made it home just before noon on Monday, to find 98° heat awaiting me.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She climbed up on the seat as we came through Mesa. She knows we're almost home!</td></tr>
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Throughout the afternoon, I managed to get my Minnie put away in my back yard and emptied. I'm pooped! No walk for Hanna and me tonight.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-705076524551420767.post-23274667803972496852019-06-03T18:07:00.000-07:002019-06-03T18:30:03.190-07:00Back to NavajoAfter a wonderful week at the Heron Lake campground, Dale and I discovered the weather forecast had turned nasty and that area was in for cold and snow the next week, so on Sunday, we packed up and headed back to Navajo. We pulled into Pine campground and took two electric sites, with plans to hunker down a few days before the weather turned nice again. I discovered I have an electric heat setting on my heat pump AC, and it sure came in handy when the snow began to fall there!!<br />
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On Wednesday night, the campground began to fill with folks getting an early start to the long Memorial Day weekend ahead. At 10:30 p.m. some campers pulled in across the road from me and made raucous noise until 3:30 in the morning.<br />
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Dale and I decided it was time to move up the road to Juniper, the quieter non-electric campground. We found two great sites next to each other on the end of the far loop, and it was bliss for the next 10 days.<br />
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We mostly hung around camp for the week, walking 2-3 times each day and ending the evenings with a campfire and S'mores. It was lovely to just relax and enjoy being together.<br />
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On Thursday (May 30), we piled Hanna and ourselves into the car and drove north to Durango, Colorado. We had googled "things to do in Durango" and found a list of sites and attractions. We started at the <a href="https://www.durangotrain.com/dsng-museum">Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum</a>, wandering through a lot of artifacts of both the railroad, and also other historical forms of transportation. From there we went to Nini's Taquerio for huge delicious burritos. With full tummies, we made our way to the <a href="http://www.animasmuseum.org/">Animas Museum</a>, which was also quite interesting, well worth the $4 senior price of admission. We drove another dozen miles north to visit the <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g33397-d1630314-Reviews-Pinkerton_Hot_Springs-Durango_Colorado.html">Pinkerton Hot Springs</a>, a cool little pull-off site where warm soda water bubbles up and over
the rocks creating streaks of color that cascade down the hill. The
green and snow capped mountain behind it is the perfect backdrop. <br />
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By that time, it was mid afternoon, so we headed back south, meandering down the pretty road through the Colorado landscape.<br />
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The following weekend, a bunch of twenty somethings filled the campsites around us, and we knew it was again time to move on. Home was calling, chores and appointments are building up, and I'm longing to see my kids and grandkids again.AZDonnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11191411549873539832noreply@blogger.com1