Gunsight Wash January 18th 2018

From Gunsight Wash Jan 18^th 2017

JW and Rad with CC at Gunsight camp

Stayed at Hickiwan for 2 nights and went over to Gunsight Wash on Dec 30^th. There I met Ted Webber from Las Cruces, NM. The BLM area, one of my regular haunts, is very quiet with lots of vacant spaces, so I had no trouble manoeuvring  in to my favourite site in the shade of an ironwood tree

Lunch in Why at Granny’s Café was on the agenda a few times. Ted also has an E-bike (Rad-Mini) so cruising the desert trails in search of lunch was a worthy project. I found that, on relatively flat terrain, I don’t have to use my e-motor much, if at all, so the battery can last a long time (50+ kms at a guess). It charges quite quickly on the motorhome inverter and only draws about 7 amps while doing so.

Ted departed Gunsight on Jan 8^th for Gila Bend and points west while I remain to soak up the Gunsight. Daytime temps are back close to 80F, though nights can be cool (high 30’s).

Being at Gunsight means that I am in proximity to Ajo and my friends, Don and Gayle. Wednesday scrabble trips become the norm for a- week or two. Am proud to report that the first game, while Gayle was under the weather with a cold, I pounced, and won. Since then, I have been trounced several times.

At some stage earlier on one headlight on the Jeep stopped working. I ordered a new wiring bridle at the Ajo Napa which seems to do the job. I don’t drive much, if at all, at night but one should have both eyes open, just in case.

Much of my time at Gunsight seems to be spent fixing bike tires. I have been getting goat thorn-punctures. Green slime in the tubes is a pretty good preventative measure but I have ordered two extra tubes and a second spare tire to be delivered to the Oborne house in Apache Junction. Also on the list is a warranty replacement bottom bracket. Mine has come loose and clunks all the time. The big problem is getting the pedal handles (crank set) off so I can get at the bracket to fix or replace it. On a desert ride of 10 miles, I got about 3 miles along when the pedals started to seize. Somehow, the bracket cap ends had come loose and got jammed which made pedalling quite hard. I reckoned that this was a good occasion to test the battery and so motored home the remaining 7 Miles, partly uphill on a gentle grade. Everything worked like a charm – lots of power, though I didn’t max out (the bike goes too fast for desert scrub).

Think I am going to have to get a piece of pipe to use for extra leverage on the crank removal tool. When I go to stay in the Oborne driveway, we can go to the local bike shop and see if the professionals have an answer.

The plan is to go to AJ on the 23^rd, stay for a short while and then go North-east to Roosevelt Lake, where I have been going for the last couple of years. Sounds as if Darch might come as well, though he will have to find riders more dynamic than I to accompany him on his challenging rides.
Christine Richards has been down to the desert to visit a couple of times with different friends and her new dog, McKenna. She and a friend from Vancouver Island drove her motorhome south and are staying at a Park in Ajo.

I find it amazing that California areas, only a few hours away on the freeway, should be

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

suffering such devastating conditions, first wildfires and recently, floods and landslides that have killed a number of people. Here in southern Arizona, touch wood, nothing ever happens. I heard about an hour of rain one night a little while ago. Other than that, every day is sunny and every night is clear. The coastal weather stays to the west and AZ gets spared - which is why people come here, of course.

Plomosa Road December 26th 2017

Sorry, folks – from sheer laziness, I may have saved this excerpt up too long since the last e-mail. To speed up the process, I have eliminated a few non-essential bits of grammar (such as pronouns and verbs)

 

Back in mid-November, you may recall that I had made it in one piece as far as Boardman Marina and RV Park on the Columbia River south shore.

 

From Boardman to 7 Feathers Casino at Canyonville, OR took about 7.5 hours. Arrived just at dark. 7 Feathers Service station across from the casino offers easy access for fuel. Camp in “RV Dry Lot” (follow signs turn right at Burger King). Big spaces fit me and Jeep without unhooking. Short walk to the casino though there is a free shuttle.

Buffet excellent (prime rib + everything else) for $17.99 after a half hour wait. First, one waits in the “wait” line to register as “one who is waiting”. Then, they text you (if you remembered to bring your cell), or give you a pager gizmo that vibrates when they are ready. Meanwhile one sits on a bench and chats with other “waiters”.

Dry roads from 7 Feathers over mountains to Rolling Hills Casino at Corning CA (about 5 hours) where temps were quite a bit warmer (68°). Fuel Station at Casino handy so I topped up tanks – getting about 7.5 mpg (US).

 

2 miles north of the casino is the town of Corning, famous for the “Pit Stop” a shop that sells all sorts of olives. Also at Corning is a Blue Beacon Truck Wash (signs on Freeway) where I went to get the muck cleaned off the CC and Jeep for $39.50

Rather than camp in the parking lots with the semis, I opted for the RV Park where I stayed before – walking distance to the casino and very attractive.

Even though this is an optional cost, there are some advantages. Plugged in, I use mostly the electric heater rather than diesel for warmth and hot water and, since I connected to the sewer dump, I was able to do laundry in-house The Park had good Wi-Fi and there was no noise from the trucks. When I camp without power and use the heater, it can draw .35 gallons of diesel/hour, though this depends on how cold it is and could easily be less than that as the heater circulates according to the thermostat.

 

Rolling Hills buffet right up there with the best, as it should be at almost $20 with tip. I tried to recover this expenditure on a slot machine and, after dropping almost $10, had a big win of nearly $12 (not exactly a jackpot) to come out ahead by $.0.46. This is my system of gambling on the slot machines, which I don’t really like. Play for high stakes ($1 per spin) to a maximum bankroll of $20 and quit if ahead (even on the first roll) or lose the entire $20. I think that I might be slightly ahead over the two years that I have been playing by this principle. In any case, the system gets me out of the casino after only a few minutes of gambling and back to the coach to watch TV.

 

Nov 24^th 2017 Tachi Palace Casino. Quite an adventure from Rolling Hills to Tachi. Started out smoothly but at Stockton on I-5, warning lights and alarms sounded to indicate high temperature and the temp gauge shot up to near max. I was able to pull off the freeway and park on a street in Stockton. A check revealed that all coolant had leaked out. Used my Good Sam Roadside Assistance to get Ernie’s Mobile Truck Repair out (took an hour or more) He diagnosed a cracked cylinder head (bad news). We filled with 7 gallons of water and I made it to Delta Truck Center at French Camp CA, about 8 miles south of Stockton. This is a huge place with over 15 service bays, and caters mostly to Freightliner semi-trucks. They were closing early for the Thanksgiving holiday but took me in on compassionate grounds. The mechanic discovered that a coolant supply hose had rotted out at the fitting. There was no cracked cylinder head, for which I was thankful. Apparently, this was caused by having had a gas line hose in place rather than a proper hot water hose. Gas line hose is not designed to take the high temperature of circulating coolant. This was my second instance of losing coolant (a different hose last time in Bakersfield) but, at least the job got done, the part was cheap, labour expensive) and I got on the road again in the dark about 6:30.

First I had to hook up the Jeep and fell subject to one of my most frequent hook-up errors – that is to connect jeep to coach and forgetting to put the transfer case into neutral. This locks up the jeep transmission so I skidded a few feet in the Delta lot before discovering the issue. Bumper to bumper traffic all the way (several hours) to the Tachi turn-off at Hwy 198. I discovered on arrival at Tachi that my brake in the Jeep had been on the whole time because I had somehow connected it too tightly to the pedal. Lots of brake shoe dust but no real damage, I hope. As the brakes and brake lights were on the whole trip, the Jeep battery was dead the next day. This I jumped using the battery charger and generator from the coach – not sure if the battery is punched but will find out – the Jeep seems to run fine but time will tell – did a test milk run into the Harlan Walmart and all seemed well.

I arrived at Tachi after following my GPS about an extra 15 miles (at least) through the surrounding countryside in the middle of the night, even though I knew the actual route from having been there before. I thought that, in the dark, the GPS would give me good warning of the turns – another error in an error filled day/night! I think that it did not recognize that highway #198 was new and decided to send me on a secondary route. For such a huge place, the road signage was pathetic. I can imagine the surrounding farm fields filled with RVs, endlessly circling.

In the parking lot, I pulled in beside another motorhome on fairly level ground, set up the slides and went to bed. My neighbours, Gerry and Linda, were on their way to Pasadena and had a coach similar to mine so we inspected each other’s premises. Gerry also helped advise on the brake and battery situation.

 

The buffet at Tachi was excellent, a Thanksgiving theme with turkey along with everything else imaginable. Gerry and Linda were there at the same time so I sat with them and discussed the state of the world. After dinner, I went and found a slot machine to play, was up a dollar in a few minutes and returned, victoriously, to the coach to watch TV. I decided to stay over for a third night as life in the parking lot was quite pleasant and stress-free. I also wanted to take out the shelves in my fridge and reverse them so the small raised bar sat at the front to prevent things from sliding out. Security and shuttle carts passed by every few minutes and everyone was quite friendly.

 

Next on the list – Orange Grove RV Park outside west-Bakersfield. The trip started slowly as my run of misfortunes continued, even before I started the engine. The large slide-out on the passenger side of the coach would not budge when I pressed the switch to retract it. After about three hours and checking the manual, I found that I could crank it in by using a crescent wrench on the main shaft that holds the pinions that move the two racks in and out. I made it to Bakersfield and a Camping World there, where they discovered that the “slow-blow” fuse had blown so no power was getting to the mechanism. This fixed, I headed to Orange Grove RV for a couple of days of stimulating orange scents from trees that line each site in the park. Driving in to town, I looked around for some spare fuses but discovered that these are as rare as hen’s teeth.

 

The Tehachapi pass is just east of Bakersfield and is known for extremes of weather. One time in the past, I encountered a violent snow storm on my way west. This trip, nothing too violent, though winds were strong and rain was sheeting down near the summit. I had decided to make an on-line booking at Lake Havasu State Park that night, which was lucky as the Park was full. A couple of nights there, my first stop in Arizona, plus one trip to the Golden Corral buffet nearby and I was ready for the desert.

 

Bouse is about an hour and a half from Havasu, through the town of Parker en-route, so I managed to get to Plomosa Road in good time. There, I met up with Susan and Walt Brugger who were camped at the top end of the trail. I found some free ground about half-way up and settled in. After having extended my slides, I discovered a bolt sitting in one of the compartment trays. Turns out this was a shear pin that had snapped but not completely disconnected. It would, no doubt, have fallen out at the first opportunity. Having some spares that I managed to find in Havasu, I changed this one out for a new one. Walt came by the next day and discovered another one in similar condition so that got changed as well. Why these pins break is by design but can often be traced back to a factor such as misalignment or overweight on one side of the slide causing the rails to twist.

 

My other main preoccupation since arriving at Plomosa has been a circulation pump on the Aqua-Hot heater. Suddenly, it stopped delivering hot glycol to the zone 1 registers located in the living area These, in turn, blow hot air inside the coach. In the end, I discovered that wires leading to the pump motor were the cause of the problem. Walt came over sprayed WD 40 on everything and, so far, we’re back in business.

The weather has been mild enough (75/40) that I haven’t really needed any heat but it is nice to know that I could get some if global cooling returns to the desert. Days are mostly clear and sunny despite the fact that wildfires are raging all over southern California – I guess smoke is going off-shore with Santa-Ana winds

 

Another looming threat is that the Aqua Hot heater may have a split copper water line inside. This has been leaking into the coolant tank. I'm being told that there may be no way to fix this other than replacement. These things are north of $10000.00! I don't understand why, if they can build the device in the first place, they can't take it apart to repair one component (copper pipe coil that may have frozen back in Canada). The water system, and even the heating system, still works fine but the expansion tank for coolant was filling up by itself, presumably from water leaking from the copper line. This has stopped for now since I unhooked from "shore" water back at Havasu S.P. Maybe the pressure there was higher than what my water pump delivers and that is the difference?

I could probably use another solar panel for November/December - particularly now that I am charging the bike battery (7.5 amps) on top of everything else. Come late-January, longer days and higher sun angles, I can stop using the suitcase as I then have plenty of power. My roof panels are 24V/250W, so I would have to coordinate the MPPT controllers with anything new. The alternative and possibly the simplest solution is to run the generator for an hour every few days . Handy Bob would not be proud but I suspect that he doesn’t nuke his potato and morning latte – or have an e-bike battery to charge!

Meanwhile, back at the slide-out, Walt and I changed out 2 shear pins. We discovered that one, additional to the one that I fixed, had broken but was still hanging in with half the pin - it would have gone, so good that we found it. Each of the big slides has 3 pins, one of which is very hard to get at. Weight could be the issue (probably is) but each big slide has two sets of four bogey wheels that the rack passes over - none seemed to be stuck so it should move easily. Anyway, Walt re-lubed everything so all I can do is hope for the best.

I have opened up the back of the water compartment to find a heat register and thermostat there. This seems to work well as long as the bedroom (zone2) is activated. The water pump itself, however, is on the floor and in front of the panel so does not seem to receive much heat, if any. I bought some insulation in Parker and covered the gap – hopefully, this will work.

 

Walking around the coach and reinstalling the wheel covers that blew off in a high wind, I found a flat tire on the outside rear passenger wheel. Several calls to Good Sam Roadside Service got me to C & S Tire out of Salome, AZ. A truck arrived about two hours later and the man jacked up the CC with an air jack, took off the tire and inserted a patch. I was quite nervous about this guy crawling around under the coach placing his jack under the axle because I have heard horror stories about  air-bag systems occasionally self-releasing, coaches dropping down with consequent injuries and even a fatality of some mechanic with his head stuck in the wrong place.

 

Good Sam told me that they would not pay for this service as the repair had involved a patch. Had this been a simple valve stem replacement, they would have paid the whole bill. Needless to say, I was disappointed with this and told them so. In any event, the tire was fixed and will hopefully remain so

 

Dec 24^th Breakfast with Darch and Catherine at Bad Boys in Quartzsite. They are on their way to Palm Springs for a family Xmas.

Am going to drive over to Why (4½ hours) on Dec 28^th and meet Ted Webber at Gunsight Wash on the 30^th. Will check in to Hickiwan Trails RV Park for a couple of days to replenish water etc. and do laundry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boardman RV and Marina November 17th 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This has been a summer of odd events at the Shuswap

 

Firstly, it was one of the wettest springs on record with the result that April mudslides destroyed a couple of houses down the road; another mudslide about a month later and closer to me took out two more homes and killed one occupant in the middle of the night.

Later on in July, I experienced a severe windstorm that flattened about 10 trees and dropped one onto the front of the motorhome. At the same time, the new neighbours lost an equipment building that sailed over the trees with parts reaching my shoreline. In addition, they lost an ATV and had a motorhome damaged. A second windstorm about a month later knocked down several more trees so my property resembles a war zone with uprooted stumps and downed timber all over the place.

 

Negotiations with insurers ensued as to whether cutting the tree off the coach was covered or not. In the end, ICBC agreed to cover tree cutting and tree removal (but no further than was necessary to extricate the coach and certainly not as far as my woodpile)

A bucket truck arrived and took care of the offending tree, including bucking up into fireplace lengths at no extra charge.

 

Damage was not huge but the front end cap was crunched above the splintered windshield, plus some cabinets inside were displaced or had cracked panels. Then followed a delay in getting the coach into a body shop but finally it reached the top of the list and went for repairs in late September. Delay followed delay as another concern dealt with the interior work and then yet a third place did an annual service. During this last, it was by now the first of November and our weather turned nasty with cold and snow. While checking the coach it was discovered that the rear shocks had ripped away from the frame rail on one side and bent on the other – this purportedly due to having too long a shock. The coach was parked outside at the Service Centre so water froze and cracked the pump. Anyway, it was eventually ready just before mid-November but then the Aqua–Hot heating/hot water system started to leak. I didn’t want to take the coach home as my road was a sheet of ice all the way from the highway to home, even slick for the Jeep in 4-wheel drive, so I camped out at Bruce Coach, the RV dealer who was repairing things on an almost daily basis.

 

Back at the cabin, I had also been having an interesting time. When the cold weather struck, I managed to keep my water active by running the pump full time – but then the power went out; not a normal power failure but one where a single phase on the main line separated and delivered only 240 volts into my panel. The upshot of this was that I fried the microwave when the 240V somehow made its way into the 120V breaker system. I had an electrician come out and check things for me. In addition, the power company was very good in sending a crew to replace the line. While this was happening, I fired up the trusty Honda generator (for the 6^th time this year) for lights, TV and to keep the fridge running. Of course, this development stops the water pump running and the water freezes. After about a week, the weather relents, warms up a bit and I get water again, just in time to drain the system (with help from Bryce down the road).

Finally, I was ready to go and on November 15^th had smooth sailing down to Omak in Washington State. Friendly US Customs let me through with only a cursory check in the fridge where they missed the limes that I had forgotten. The guard and I discussed fat bike tires more than we did immigration matters as he saw my 4” tires sticking out from under the cover behind the Jeep. At Omak, the tribe has added an RV Park to their Casino Parking lots so I tried it out for $22.

 

The next day, about 7 hours on bare roads to Boardman on the Columbia River, where I have booked in for two nights to replenish water, dump the tanks, have a shower etc. – also maybe take the bike for a cruise along the 5 mile paved pathway along the river. From here I will head to Portland and I-5 south, stopping at Casinos en-route as much as possible.

 

 

Shsuwap lake April 26th 2017

Meanwhile, back on March 20^th, 7 hours north of Lake Pahranagat, nice, gradually cooling weather found me at Cactus Pete’s Casino in Jackpot, Nevada (Hwy 93, almost at the Idaho border). I circled around their regular RV Park but decided that, since there was no water or sewer dump available - just power, I might as well park with the trucks and save $20. This I did but regretted the decision later as I was surrounded on one side by a “refer” that ran all night and on the other by a coach like mine that ran its generator for much of the night. The buffet, however, was very good. The next day - on to Farewell Bend State Park on the Idaho, Oregon border (N44 18.441 W117 13.442), just off 84 about 60 miles west of Boise, ID. This is a campground on a bend in the Snake River created by the Brownlee Reservoir. Almost empty at this time of the year, only power was available with water and dump facilities still closed for the season. I approached a fellow wearing a bright yellow vest to ask about the park. He turned out to be an inmate at a nearby penitentiary, so wasn’t too helpful. These guys, attended by a custodian, came around every day to handle maintenance chores such as washroom cleaning and trash pickup around the campsites, presumably a bonus for good behaviour at the jail. A little while later, the young Park official in charge told me that his department was being charged so much for these custodial services that they could no longer afford the help. Watching a few of these guys “work” certainly brought into question their value. A crew of about 6 were overseen by a guard who drove them around the campground and delivered cleaning supplies etc. in his truck. Every time he came to check on his men, there would be a flurry of activity. When he went off to see to his other crews, activity would slow, not actually stop, but slow. One man must have gone in the same washroom with the same mop about 4 times while I was watching. Quite often, he stood behind a corner of the building peering out from time to time to see whether he was about to be supervised, a situation that reminded me of the old days at Lake Louise when “management” rode the lifts and the operators were often seen, industriously shovelling their ramps on arrival at the top stations. I think these guys (or their agency) were definitely overcharging, whatever the price.

On a milk run through the local community of Weiser, I noticed a number of buildings that had collapsed. According to the campground manager, they had over 4’ of settled snow earlier in the winter and everything simply caved in from the weight. Included were a bowling alley, local supermarket, a church, barns and many other structures. Incorrect building standards were quoted as possible causes. To me, it looked like a tornado had come through town.

March 24^th Away from Farewell Bend in the morning and a short hop to Wildhorse Casino at the western foot of the dreaded Blue Mountain Pass. Rain at lower elevations presaged the possibility of snow higher up but this was not the case. Temps were high enough that it just kept on raining and an easterly wind blew me into the Wildhorse parking lots. Here the trucks and RVs are separated with semis getting a dirt area with gigantic potholes; RVs had a nice paved lot with painted RV-sized lanes.

Shuttle buses and tribal police circulate almost constantly, so one felt that this was a safe place to camp. The casino also has a proper RV park but I could see no need to pay $35 for something I got for free. The security people told me that I was good for 24 hours though I suspect that they didn’t really check as there was no form to fill or licence plate number required. Having missed breakfast I went inside for brunch and had an excellent chowder and salad bar with dessert at the senior’s rate of $10.80. To while away the afternoon, I put $20 in a slot machine, played for half an hour until I got bored and cashed out with a profit of $20. This seemed a shame to waste, so I went to a different machine that played for $1 a roll and won another $40.

Following, is a description of my accident with the Rad bike at Wildhorse Casino. It is part of an e-mail written to the Rad Power Bike company on March 25^th, 2017.

_{“I took delivery of my new Rad Rover e-bike from you over the course of a couple of days, March 2}^nd _{and March 3}^rd_{, 2017. The bike and various accessories (fenders and a headlight) arrived to the address of my friends Darch and Catherine Oborne in Apache Junction, AZ. A couple of the parts had to be replaced as they broke, one in delivery (the Shimano shift lever) and the clamp for the rear fender which broke when I tried to tighten it. I enjoyed several rides in the Apache junction area with friends but then had to begin the journey home to Canada.}

 

_{On the way home (driving my motorhome, towing a Jeep with the Rad Rover and my other bike on the bike rack), I stopped and camped at various places. At most of these I took the opportunity to get out and go for at least one ride and sometimes multiple rides. On March 21}^st_{, 22}^nd _{and 23}^rd_{, I camped at Farewell Bend State park in Oregon and took short rides around the campground area. In all these instances, the bike operated normally. On Friday, March 24}^th_{, I arrived at the Wild Horse Casino near Pendleton, Oregon after a drive during which there was some rain. Overnight, in the parking lot of the casino, there was more rain.}

 

_{On Saturday, March 25}^th_{, I took the bike out for a short ride around the parking lots at the casino and went to their RV Park to inquire about rates etc. The bike performed normally at this time. On arrival at the RV park, I stopped the bike and put it on its kick stand while I looked for the manager. While I was talking to the manager, I heard a sound and turned to see the Rad Rover moving in circles because it had somehow self- activated and was rotating around the kickstand. I tried to get to the bike before it created some damage and was attempting to grab it when the bike pulled me over and I fell on top of it with my left knee getting caught between the parts of the framework and my left ankle receiving a gash from parts unknown – possibly the chain or pedal.}

_{In the end, I righted myself and did get the bike to stop by shutting off the battery. Even though a little shaken with a wrenched knee and a bleeding ankle, I was still able to ride the bike back to my camper. All the way, it wanted to go at full throttle, even with the “mode” level set at “0”. In order to get back to my camper, I used the brake at first and then turned the “mode” completely off.}

 

_{To my way of thinking, I now own a dangerous piece of equipment and consider myself lucky that I wasn’t up in the mountains or on a narrow trail when the bike started making decisions for itself. The casino, as it happens, has a security camera video of the incident which they would not show me citing “security reasons” but that they did confirm existed. I will put their contact information on the bottom of this letter.}

 

 _{I have recommended several friends to buy your bikes (different models) and will alert them to the possible hazards involved, presumably, when there is wet weather.} 

 

 

One night, after the buffet, I almost lost my $20 budget, then recovered and eventually won $2.00, enough to keep my winning streak alive.  With time to spare, I decided that I would move over to the RV Park for a couple of days of hook-ups, laundry, showers, tank refilling and dumping etc. I had thought to go over to Boardman RV and Marina but as I was now feeling a little stiff in the knee, the bike trails wouldn’t get much use. I reckoned it was time to leave as I lost my $20 stake the next night on the slot machines, having experienced 20 consecutive “spins” without a single win - was up about $40 for the visit, though eating the buffet every night can’t be all that good for me – tasty, though!

Rad Power Bikes agreed to send me a new bike, plus some accessories that I didn’t have before (2 panniers) as a result of the accident. They said that they would pay the Canadian shipping surcharge, taxes and duty as well. In their e-mail, they were quite apologetic and have dealt with me in a positive way – I think they might have been worried that my situation could lead to a lawsuit, though I told them that I would have no intention of suing as I dislike people who use the courts to get benefits that they don’t deserve. My knee has recovered a bit and I think that I might be back to my normal limping gait quite soon.

Made it home safely with one camping spot after Pendleton. The Omak Walmart parking lot had a few motorhomes in residence, so I just slid in between a couple of them. The next day (March 30^th), crossed the border with my list of things to declare. There was no duty on the new bike, which got classified as an exercise machine but GST and PST added up. The border agents spent an inordinate amount of time calculating my excess rum and brandy.

I arrived home to find construction of a new house happening over at the farm next door. The roadway was very muddy from recent rain and heavy equipment driving in and out. In making my turn-around, the CC slid sideways in mud and got stuck. Luckily, Eric (the gravel-delivery man) was on hand and pulled me sideways with his loader to get me on the road again. After that - no problem backing into my slot in the driveway.

I had called a friend, Bryce Thomson from down the road to get help activating the pump this year (tossing the ejector into the lake and priming the lines in two stages using a small electric pump). That went well until I turned it on, at which point, spray appeared from split pipes under the sink and behind the shower as well as from the “pump drop” pipe. All these sections had cracked lines, meaning that they froze up in the winter and that, possibly, I didn’t properly drain everything last Fall. This occasioned a run into town for new parts and a fair bit of plumbing work by Bryce to repair but, finally, everything was operational again with hot water for dishes and showers. Despite the fact that I have a nice shower in the CC, it is always a pleasure to come back home where there is endless water.

Since arriving home, I have been

 occupied by opening five months of mail, boxing up the “killer” bike and shipping it back to Seattle, putting together the new bike and taking a few short rides, digging out the culvert that goes under my gate to drain the area above it, doing taxes both for myself and my mother’s estate and keeping the fireplace fed as it has been cool, windy and wet most of the time.

And speaking of rain, a mudslide occurred down the road, wiping out a couple of houses, a fifth wheel trailer, at least two vehicles and a pontoon boat. Two people were injured and carted off to hospital. I feel fairly secure, perched here on my bedrock but have to think that anyone building a house at the bottom of a very steep slope should question the location as these mudslides do come down every once in a while when it rains.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Upper Lake Pahranagat March 17th 2017

When last heard from, it was early February and I was camped at Gunsight Wash, near Why, AZ. Since then, I have travelled around a bit and am sending this e-mail from Upper Lake Pahranagat, North of Las Vegas.

At that time in February, nighttime temps were at or about the freezing mark (only 31 one morning), I set the thermostat at 48 during the night, just in case the water pipes needed a little thawing (not the case unless much cooler). During the day, after a morning heat-up, I turn the system off, because, by then, sun is coming through the big front windows to warm the coach. Aqua-Hot also heats the water except I rarely use it for that unless having one of my occasional navy showers. Dishes get washed once a day if they're lucky, from water heated in a pot on the stove and supplied from my 5 gal jug that can be refilled from time to time. Overall, I would say the Aqua-Hot system is excellent even though I don't use it to full potential. In addition to heating water it will run in reverse to warm the engine (acting as a block heater) and can run in conjunction with the regular coach heater while in transit during cold weather (rarely, if at all this year).

Early in February, cousin David Asquin and wife Louise came to visit for a night. They were the first couple to test the new “sleeper couch” and proclaimed it acceptable. I had been worried that 48” of width might not be wide enough. Their itinerary brought them from Scottsdale and saw them headed off to San Diego to visit the zoo and Marineland with stops at various golf courses as they travel.

Gunsight was great for about three weeks after which I pulled up stakes, went back to the nearby Casino at Hickiwan to dump tanks again, and did more laundry. Then it was off to Apache Junction to visit Darch and Catherine Oborne. Their driveway is just big enough for me to navigate – one or two cacti had to be consoled after I nicked them with the rear tires but no lasting damage was done. The CC has picked up a few scratches, firstly by threading through the narrow, creosote bush-lined access trails at Gunsight wash, and also because I tried to squeeze into an RV site at Hickiwan Trails where a mesquite tree branch somehow leapt out and caught me.

At Apache Junction, I went to look at an e-bike that Darch had found at his local bike shop. E-bikes would be a good fit for me as they can assist the pedals, or just move the bike along on the throttle setting. This particular bike, I didn’t get but have now ordered a different one to be shipped to me at Apache Junction from Seattle. If anyone wishes to look at it and read some information, then check out Radpowerbikes.com. Mine is the Rad Rover model – looks like a mountain bike but has 4” wide tires and can help push me up hills with minimum effort, depending on where I set the “assist” mode.

From Apache Junction, I followed Darch in his “rig” to a free-camping site at the Picket Post horse encampment. Along with his biking friends Dave and Donna Morter, we were surrounded by people with horses, mules and donkeys. From this spot, a section of the Arizona Trail goes in both directions. I rode it for about a mile and a half while the others rode further. I suspect that my days of riding narrow single-track trails are coming to an end. Balance (and stamina) have disappeared to the extent that I am no longer very confident riding along narrow tracks.  When my e-bike arrives, it will stay on reasonably wide surfaces.

Just down the road was the Boyce Thompson Arboretum in Superior. This is a very informative outdoor desert museum that displays local plant life and has a self-guided hiking trail of about 1½ miles. That same day, I visited the local Walmart in Claypool/Globe for supplies. Across the highway was an interesting sight. Cattle were grazing on the bank of an old mine tailings slope that had grassed over. This slope must have been at least 50° and every time one of the cows tried to move, it staggered and nearly fell down the hill. I’m sure no one told those cows to eat there, so they must have had a meeting at which it was decided to ignore the risk in order to get the good grass.

From Picket Post, we went north for about 2 hours to Roosevelt Lake, where I camped last year. The price is still $8 per night for a very attractive campground overlooking the lake (Windy Hill – Coati Loop) with hot showers and bathrooms (run from solar).  Scattered throughout are isolated water taps, including one near me from which I was able to fill and refill my 20 litre jug to use for dishes once per day. There is no power and generators are allowed though I haven’t really been bothered much by them. Also, there are a couple of sewer dumps up the road that open each for 2 days per week. This place was ideal for me as I had plenty of water on board (probably 2 months worth) and the waste and sewage tanks can probably hold out for the same amount of time. Power, I don’t need because, by this time of year, the days are getting longer and the sun is high enough to give me all the solar I can use, plus, hopefully, enough extra to charge the e-bike battery when that gets added to the fleet. While at Roosevelt, I took a few short rides and hikes, volunteering once to shuttle the other bikers up to the top of a trail at Mills Ridge Trailhead. I have also bounced around the countryside in the Jeep, exploring different tracks on my own.  Trailheads visited include Thule, Campaign Creek and Cottonwood (roads 449, 449-A, and 83). On the last of these jaunts, I followed Mike Quinn, a new acquaintance, on his dirt bike above the actual trailhead to a ridge from which there was a great view of the surrounding countryside. Mike and his wife, Sissie, volunteer with the Tonto Forest Reserve to do trail work throughout the Park, so they are very knowledgeable about the local terrain. This particular trail was quite steep, rough and worn from erosion but the Jeep handled it all with aplomb.

From Roosevelt, I went to visit the North Ranch Escapee RV Park at Congress, just north of Wickenburg. There, I added to my scratch collection on the side of the coach. I had been assigned a “pull-through” site but when I got to the actual spot, there was only a narrow gap between a tree on one side and the electrical pedestal and water box on the other side. I should have gone back to the office to get something different but, foolishly, thought maybe I could slide through unscathed. Not to be! Concentrating on keeping the wheels on the driver’s side away from the water tap, I accrued some new scratches from trees on the skier’s right. These added on to previous markings from creosote bushes at Gunsight Wash and a similarly placed tree at Hickiwan Trails RV Park. I stayed at North Ranch for 3 nights and did a little sightseeing while I was there. Driving the steep and windy road to Prescott for lunch was interesting as I had done it with the trailer many years ago. In the car alone, I was able to concentrate on the scenery and not worry about dropping off the side. While at North Ranch I took a daily ride for exercise through the park on bike. This was not a particularly beautiful campground as sites were all gravel, some roadways were quite muddy and rutted from a recent storm and there was very little vegetation around, except the tree branches that came out of nowhere to grab me. I took a short trip up the road to see my old site at Vulture Mine – definitely too rough for the CC!

While I was camped at North Ranch, E-bike parts were beginning to arrive by USPS and UPS at chez Oborne in Apache Junction, so I planned to return there on Sat., March 7^th, Darch had the bike pretty well assembled when I arrived. Only problem was that the manual shift lever (Shimano) had broken off in transit so I had to ride in 7^th gear. I have since replaced and had installed the broken component and the bike works well. If I pedal, the rear hub motor helps me (“pedal assist”). I can travel for miles without getting too tired. There is also an option to turn on the throttle if I need max power for some reason, usually on a hill. The battery seems to hold out quite well – one ride of 27Kms with lots of up and down still showed 40% remaining. On flat, hard ground, I think a lighter person could easily ride 40-50 miles (up to 80 kms) if they pedalled all the time and only used the motor judiciously. Darch has been guiding me along several trails in the area. Some, the smooth ones, I enjoyed. If trails are rocky, then I have problems. Several wipe-outs and lots of bloodletting have marked my biking career since acquiring the e-bike. Now that I am back on my own, I shall try to be more moderate .

I have now started to move north as temperatures in Apache junction (Phoenix area) had been rising to the low to mid F90s (C30-35). This note comes to you from Upper lake Pahranagat, north of Las Vegas, where temps are a bit cooler and camping is free on the shores of a lake full of waterfowl. The only excitement here has been that the bike had a flat tire when I arrived. Taking off the rear wheel was a bit of an issue as there is an electrical cable that has to be unplugged, and then each side of the axle has a small washer with a tab that fits into the appropriate notch on the frame. If this tab is wrongly aligned, the wheel refuses to fit where it belongs. I had help from neighbouring campers but finally had to call the Rad dealership in Seattle to get instruction on how to reinsert these tabs. This done, the wheel just fell into place. We were unable to find a leak in the tube and now, overnight, the tire has lost air again. The lake is only 15’ away, so I am hoping that maybe a little bicycle swim will show some bubbles.

Next stop in a few days will be Cactus Pete’s Casino in Jackpot, NV, a day’s drive from where I am now.