Strolling Amok

Pops goes on tour.

08 Sep 2015
25 Comments

Picky Pioneering

You don't see too many of these. These were on the leg from Pine Bluff to Cheyenne, Wyoming.

You don’t see too many of these. These were on the leg from Pine Bluff to Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Today was a short jaunt that turned otherwise, but in the end, I’m all set up in camp at Vedauwoo in the Medicine Bow National Forest, solar panels out and everything humming along. The cell data signal at my location is on-again-off-again at two out of five stars – and that’s with the amplifier –  but it works most of the time.

The day began with a drive to a Walmart in Cheyenne, made more interesting by having an incorrect address on their website. But, I made it there after some steering wheel gyrations and stocked up on fresh produce, eggs, bacon and so on. From there I keyed in the GPS coordinates generously volunteered by Flybiker. The impressive 3,000′ climb during the entire trip, plus a headwind, knocked the fuel display down to 8.0 MPG. Now I know what the title for the film High Plains Drifter refers to. There was a warning sign that the “Happy Jack Bridge” was out of commission until the 18th, but where was that? That was the exit I wanted, but where was this bridge?

Once I made it there, I found out that the bridge was the connector over I-80, and its sudden absence eliminated any chance of heading back east toward Vedauwoo. Oh well. What a great, wide trail! I was impressed that the Read more…

Posted in Campsites, E-Bike Pack Mule, The Enterprise and tagged ,
07 Sep 2015
9 Comments

Wyoming!

Ooo, birdie!

Ooo, birdie!

Just into the eastern border of Wyoming is a welcome center at about 5,100′ elevation, high enough to knock the cabin temps down to a balmy 83 degrees. There are only an official 6 truck spaces here, though more will probably pack around the perimeter. It has a slight slope to it, but nothing that the fridge can’t compensate for.

So much for rest stops in corn fields...

So much for rest stops in corn fields…

Today’s drive was the proverbial three-hour, 177-mile jaunt, and with the shift to Mountain Time, I got here somewhere after 1 o’clock. Not a tough day.  The Magic Readout initially showed 12 MPG for quite awhile, but the gradual climb up netted 11. That was until I noticed a roaring sound over the radio’s music. With the radio off, it was apparent that I was suddenly bucking a pretty stout headwind about half an hour short of this stop, and the turbo pressure gauge was higher than normal in order to keep speed up. Keeping an eye on the pressure gauge is an instant way to get a pretty good idea of Read more…

Posted in Travelin' Man
06 Sep 2015
10 Comments

Wimped Out Again!

No much for picturesque, but the WiFi signal is awesome. That's the park's #3 antenna next to the trailer.

No much for picturesque, but the WiFi signal is awesome. That’s the park’s #3 antenna next to the trailer.

Well, this was an odd end of day. I hit the Cozad Rest Area, and with only six truck spaces inline right next to the highway, mostly full, I could tell that it would not be primo. So, I went some 17 miles further west to my Plan B stop, another rest area near Brady, Nebraska. That had 22 truck spaces in diagonal. That was about half-full already, but I pulled in and began liberating the Defiant’s couch so I could lounge.

Trouble was, the cooling rain never showed up, and the trailer’s interior was once again reading 92 degrees. I listened to the refrigerated truck next to me grinding away, and the sheen of sweat began. Ugh. Another hot, moist and noisy night. Plus, Nebraska officially allows only a 10-hour stop.  I yanked out the iPhone and Googled “RV Park North Platte, NE” and found the Read more…

Posted in Campsites, Travelin' Man and tagged
05 Sep 2015
10 Comments

Comfort Wins

Good advice from Atlas Van Lines.

Good advice from Atlas Van Lines.

Pragmatism won out over Cheapskate. After a miserable overnight in Victor but a nice morning, I decided to forgo a duplicate at a rest stop near Underwood, Iowa in favor of a little-used RV stop hidden behind an Econo Lodge about 25 miles short in Walnut. The 88-feels-like-96 temps and high humidity made me not look forward to enjoying the journey after climbing out of the air-conditioned Mighty Furd. Once you climb into the 92-degree Defiant to lounge and relax, it’s more like the sweatbox in any WWII POW camp movie you’d care to name. But it is a more comfortable heat stroke, I admit.

Nighttime at the rest stop. Do people never stop finding these things? A 1930s Ford sedan, shot over the back of my 2008 Ford pickup. That duct tape holding down the edges of the roof's cloth inset will have to come off, pronto.

Nighttime at the rest stop. Do people never stop finding these things? A 1930s Ford sedan, shot over the back of my 2008 Ford pickup. How ya doin’, cousin? That duct tape holding down the edges of the roof’s cloth insert will have to come off, pronto.

I wouldn’t call this an RV park, exactly. It’s a great idea that somebody had a couple of decades ago, and then it Read more…

Posted in Campsites, Travelin' Man
04 Sep 2015
10 Comments

Victor, Iowa

IMGP1471

Rest stops in Iowa are pretty nice, overall. This one is a little toasty at 90 degrees, but that can’t be helped. I’m not busting a gut to get through Iowa because rest stops are frequent on I-80, and they let you stay up to a day. Illinois is more like 4 hours and Nebraska is 10. So I’ll be picking up the pace in Nebraska. There’s little point in getting to Wyoming ASAP, since I’d get there before any campsites opened up on Tuesday.

Labor Day traffic is up, but that means little to me since my 60 MPH cruising speed means that no one is in my way – I’m one of the obstacles to be gotten around! I was concerned for Read more…

Posted in Travelin' Man and tagged
01 Sep 2015
13 Comments

Fer PamP

Beside one travel trailer, a railroad layout.

Beside one travel trailer, a railroad layout.

Reader PamP made the mistake of admiring the lawn ornamentation in one earlier picture, so I took my camera along for my daily walk on one overcast day. Hopefully, clicking on an image will shuttle you to a larger version. The seasonal areas of Blackhawk Valley RV Campground strike me as the bucks-down version of a cabin at the lake. In this case, it’s the RV by the Kishwaukee River. For the cost of an RV of any type (some of which are like newer versions of the Defiant) and $2,000 a year fee, these stay here all year. All are owned by locals who visit on weekends, and some of the trailers have been here for many years. These are some of the more elaborate setups in the camp. Enjoy!

IMGP1453wtmk Read more…

Posted in Campsites and tagged
27 Aug 2015
12 Comments

Itch de la Hitch

Low sun look toward the Kishwaukee River.

A low sun look toward the Kishwaukee River.

With my scheduled departure approaching late next week, I find myself with a natural mix of dread and anticipation. Dread of the necessity of shoveling out the Defiant’s interior to make it ready for travel, swapping wheels to get the new tire mounted in place and to put the spare back on its perch, and hefting those big panels. What can I say? I’m lazy, and all that’s too close to being actual work.

Yet, there’s the anticipation of getting out to the big sky and solitude. A lifetime of points East and their own wonders makes me pine for less familiar terrain. True, the West is technically a place of relative desolation, but the connotation of a bleak and barren wasteland doesn’t cut it for me. It has its own rewards which cannot be matched here. Each area has its appeal, and the West’s is Spectacle.

Here's something you don't see every day - except here.

Here’s something you don’t see every day – except here.

Mind you, the trip out there won’t have much entertainment value. I’ll be leaving at the start of the Labor Day weekend, a Duly Authorized Holiday Camper taking my allotted space just hours after I yank the Defiant out. All campgrounds from here to Seattle will be packed with them. So, it will be Interstate rest stops for me, all the way out to Wyoming. Rest stops are, on average, quieter and less closely packed than truck stops.

With a full two months before I will roll into Yuma, Arizona, four two-week stops are planned. That’s how the Defiant is oriented. Find access to a perfectly level or at least correctable spot, unhitch, break out and hang the solar panels, and put interior accouterments into a living arrangement. From there, it’s a matter of Read more…

Posted in Daily Life, Navel Gazing, The Defiant
18 Aug 2015
8 Comments

Did I Miss a Meeting?

Imagine waking up and looking out your window to find this...

Imagine waking up and looking out your window to find this…

Since I’ve been on a confusion trip of late, recent events have not helped much. The Christmas in July phenomenon has also been a mind bender. I’ve never heard of it, myself. I stared at the view presented above for awhile, dumbfounded, then got out of the trailer to see if this was a solo mental blowout. It wasn’t.

Just your standard Christmas fare, a nativity scene and a blow-up alligator wearing a Santa Clause hat.

Just your standard Christmas fare, a nativity scene and a blow-up alligator wearing a Santa Clause hat.

Okayyyy! I cautiously backed inside the Defiant again, reflected a moment, and locked the door as a precaution. Then I got online and looked up this camp’s Activities Page. It was there, right alongside Read more…

Posted in Daily Life, Navel Gazing and tagged
08 Aug 2015
6 Comments

A Day at the Races

Quite a few people out today!

Quite a few people out today!

I recently had the chance to put in a weekday afternoon with my son and his family at Arlington International Racecourse, aka Arlington Park. Though I once lived in adjoining Palatine for over two decades, I’d never made it there once. Too much going on. Too much going on these last couple of months too, but that’s just been a stack of to-do’s to get buttoned up before I depart the area in early September. This was my chance to be a tourista for a little while.

From my unique vantage point of unfamiliarity and stark ignorance, the impressions that the facility laid on me were like suddenly being immersed in a different culture. Ninety-nine percent of the people here were of course very familiar with every aspect of the thing, knowing exactly how it all works and what to expect next. For me, it was like wandering the streets of the once-kingdom of Siam. Nothing familiar, everything new to me.

Not particularly helping in this immersive experience was the fact that Arlington has been adamant about Read more…

Posted in Daily Life, Navel Gazing
26 Jul 2015
13 Comments

The Last Calculator You’ll Ever Need

Hewlett-Packard's HP-41CV.

Hewlett-Packard’s HP-41CV.

Okay, I admit, this is a weird one. You know how sometimes you wake up thinking about that nonsensical dream you just had, that project you need to start into today, why your child gags on cooked peas, or why it’s important to not get audited by the IRS this year? You have your own list. Me, I woke up today realizing that I’ve been using the same calculator almost daily since 1980, with hardly a thought. No dead keys, no quirky keys, no popping apart, no worn away markings. Except for the sturdy coat of dust from being left out forever, it looks and acts the same as when it was new. Then again, it should. Why? Two reasons.

First, it cost somewhere over $800 in 1980 dollars. Think that’s a lot? Today, that would be $2,300. Memory was horrendously expensive, among other things, and the HP-41CV had plenty of it. In 1975, I’d gotten the earlier HP-65, the first magnetic card-programmable handheld calculator made. That listed at $795, and wasn’t much less going across the Read more…

Posted in Navel Gazing and tagged

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →