Made my annual trip to Yuma for a trip into Mexico.
In the camp ground that is 700 ft from the US Mexican border, there are some big differences in the type of camping going on .
The dry camping is pretty full, the full hook up camping is quite empty.
The rates are drastically different, full hookups are $350.00 per month plus electricity used, the dry camping is $130.00 per month / or $50.00 per week. For the dry campers, there is water available, a dump station, and showers.
This is an Indian owned campground, the Indians that own this campground are a very lazy lot.
Nothing is maintained well at all so the dry camping is the best way to go if you are set up for it.
Click on Images for larger views
Sleepy Hollow camp
Dry camping in the west side of the dry camp area
While walking Cody, I took some snap shots of some of the long term RV's in the area east of the dry camping area
This one reminds me of the movie Christmas Vacation
The left side looks clean
But
the right side ?
Someone should buy this one and fix her up,
I don't know if it is just being stored or abandoned.
The car comes and goes
This one has not moved for a looooong time
This converted school bus is in good shape has a diesel engine and purrrs like a kitten
Nicely done
For the Vandwellers, this was our next door neighbor,
Nice guy grew up in the San Louis valley of Colorado
This is in the same camp ground across the road from our camp.
It can be said that this place has many contrasts
A campfire shot with Cody in the background waiting for some Quail to show up
I met many new friends, also enjoyed the time with friends from the past
This trip was too short, maybe next time I can stay longer
The second day was even colder than the first day.
We left Albuquerque around 6am, having a hard time keeping the camper warm.
We traveled down I-25 to I-40 headed for Arizona. while traveling across the high plains of New Mexico the low temps went to -10 degrees.
I kept the camper furnace running, it never shut off, at one time I stopped for fuel and the temp in the camper was 40 degrees.
The temps never got close to freezing until I got to Phoenix, I decided to keep moving to chatch up with some warmer weather.
I arrived in Quartzsite about 5pm. Tired but warmer.
Said hello to some of the folks from last year, then went straight to bed.
The next day I started to set up camp
So, I have put out most of the stuff for a long camp stay
There are quite a few dogs here, many not on leashes, Cody is not too sure of this guy, I have heard he is quite mean and bites, But, Cody did not have any trouble with him.
The participants of the RTR have daily seminars, with a separate theme to prepare newbees with information on how the mobile lifestyle can be navigated.
The Tiki Bar has been another hit this year
This a photo of tonight I will try and get a better photo later using the tripod
I will be having guests tomorrow for Pheasant Nuggets
Cody and I left late this morning, our goal is San Felipe Casino north of Albuquerque NM.
I always seem to stop there, (it;s a 8 hour drive) they have a free dump station if needed, (not this time) water (free) and free overnight stay (if you do not need grid power) it's $10.00 if you want to hook up (still not bad)
The temps when we left was 5 deg above zero, through the whole trip it never got above 12 degrees.
As seen from the picture there were spots of snow pack, we saw 2 accidents (wonder why? when you drive on snow packed lanes at 75mph ).... duh.... The semi trucks scared me the most (guess 40,000- lb trucks don't crash ) RIGHT...
Anyhoo .... we made it to our spot about 6:30pm.
Cody has not quite figured out what we are doing yet ... So he slept a lot...
Going home from Frederick, on a back road during a localized snowstorm, the interstate was stopped because of crashes, traveling on the back-roads to the house, half way home the clouds started to break up, a rainbow appeared from the snow falling to the west next to the mountains, first one I have ever seen.
You usually see Cody in pictures of him hunting.
But, In the next couple of days he will be my co-pilot during the migration to Arizona for a brief snow bird stay. With the temps in the single digits the past few days, highs in the 40's & 50's will feel good.
So, we will be off to explore new adventures in the Arizona desert.
My favorite chair decided not to work in the reclined position.
This is bad .... how am I going to take my much needed naps if it won't recline, I am getting old....
Well, I finally tipped over the chair, found (when they are new) they staple arm and head covers in a plastic bag under the chair (who knew?) well, it got stuck on the ratchet part of the chair.
I removed the bag, good as new, works
In the center of the picture you can see the ratchet bar..
Well, now I can see that the wood frame is coming apart.
The joints are only stapled together.. go figure again :)
So, I removed the frame from the springs, pulled out the stupid staples, disassembled the wood frame.
Found my Titebond super duper waterproof wood glue.
Grabbed some drywall screws, drilled pilot holes (so the wood wouldn't split), applied glue to all of the joints, screwed it back together, let it set for the day and returned and re-assembled the chair.
This is a LazyBoy recliner, too bad the Amish don't make recliners.
Disaster averted .......... again......whew
After starting this project about 3 weeks ago, getting the flu in the process, the solar battery bank box is finally finished.
The box houses 4 Trojan T- 145 6 Volt deep cycle batteries, and all of the wiring that was previously exposed.
The aluminum construction of the box will provide better protection form the elements compared to the plastic boxes with bungee chord strapped lids, although they did last 6 years.
I also changed the face plate for the solar charge controller remote display, discarding the wood black painted panel with a aluminum panel.
I removed the Doc Watson gauge, and replaced it with a lighted digital meter so I can be read it in the dark.
The meter on the top left is also a new meter for the wind charger that will give a digital readout of the output from the wind charger when it is running.
Can't wait to see how it works, but that will have to wait for a couple of weeks.
Government Security Is Just Another Kind Of Violence
The senseless and horrific killings last week in Newtown, Connecticut
reminded us that a determined individual or group of individuals can
cause great harm no matter what laws are in place. Connecticut already
has restrictive gun laws relative to other states, including
restrictions on fully automatic, so-called “assault” rifles and gun-free
zones.
Predictably, the political left responded to the tragedy with
emotional calls for increased gun control. This is understandable, but
misguided. The impulse to have government “do something” to protect us
in the wake national tragedies is reflexive and often well
intentioned. Many Americans believe that if we simply pass the right
laws, future horrors like the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting can be
prevented. But this impulse ignores the self evident truth that
criminals don't obey laws.
The political right, unfortunately, has fallen into the same trap in
its calls for quick legislative solutions to gun violence. If only we
put armed police or armed teachers in schools, we’re told, would-be
school shooters will be dissuaded or stopped.
While I certainly agree that more guns equals less crime and that private gun ownership prevents many shootings,
I don’t agree that conservatives and libertarians should
view government legislation, especially at the federal level, as the
solution to violence. Real change can happen only when we commit
ourselves to rebuilding civil society in America, meaning a society
based on family, religion, civic and social institutions, and peaceful
cooperation through markets. We cannot reverse decades of moral and
intellectual decline by snapping our fingers and passing laws.
Let’s not forget that our own government policies often undermine
civil society, cheapen life, and encourage immorality. The president
and other government officials denounce school violence, yet still
advocate for endless undeclared wars abroad and easy abortion at
home. U.S. drone strikes kill thousands, but nobody in America holds
vigils or devotes much news coverage to those victims, many of which are
children, albeit, of a different color.
Obviously I don’t want to conflate complex issues of foreign policy
and war with the Sandy Hook shooting, but it is important to make the
broader point that our federal government has zero moral authority to
legislate against violence.
Furthermore, do we really want to live in a world of police
checkpoints, surveillance cameras, metal detectors, X-ray scanners, and warrantless physical searches? We
see this culture in our airports: witness the shabby spectacle of once
proud, happy Americans shuffling through long lines while uniformed
TSA agents bark orders. This is the world of government provided
"security," a world far too many Americans now seem to accept or even
endorse.
School shootings, no matter how horrific, do not justify creating an Orwellian surveillance state in America.
Do we really believe government can provide total security? Do we
want to involuntarily commit every disaffected, disturbed, or alienated
person who fantasizes about violence? Or can we accept that liberty is
more important than the illusion of state-provided security?
Government cannot create a world without risks, nor would we really
wish to live in such a fictional place. Only a totalitarian society
would even claim absolute safety as a worthy ideal, because it would
require total state control over its citizens’ lives. We shouldn’t
settle for substituting one type of violence for another
. Government role is to protect liberty, not to pursue unobtainable safety.
Our freedoms as Americans preceded gun control laws, the TSA, or the Department of Homeland Security.
Freedom is defined by the ability of citizens to live without government interference, not by safety.
It is easy to clamor for government security when terrible things happen; but liberty is given true meaning when we support it without exception, and we will be safer for it.
Somebody Picked The Wrong Diner
25 Facts That The Mainstream Media Doesn't Really Want To Talk About Right Now
The following are 25 facts that the mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about right now… #1 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that gun sales are absolutely skyrocketing in the aftermath of the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
#2 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk
about the fact that disarming the population has resulted in some of the
most horrific massacres in human history. The following is from the Warrior Times…
1911 – Turkey disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1915 – 1917 they murdered 1.5 million Armenians.
1929 – Russia disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1929 – 1953 they murdered 20 million Russians.
1935 – China disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1948 – 1952 they murdered 20 million Chinese.
1938 – Germany disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1939 – 1945 they murdered 16 million Jews.
1956 – Cambodia disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1975 – 1977 they murdered 1 million Educated people.
1964 – Guatamala disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1964 – 1981 they murdered 100,000 Mayan Indians.
1970 – Uganda disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1971 – 1979 they murdered 300,000 Christians.
#4 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that volcanoes all along the Ring of Fire are roaring to life. It seems like a new eruption is being reported every few days now. In fact, a red alert has just been issued for a massive volcano that sits along the border between Chile and Argentina.
#5 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk
about the fact that the use of genetically engineered seeds has caused
on explosion of new “super weeds” that are incredibly difficult for farmers to kill.
#6 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that renowned trends forecaster Gerald Celente is predicting a “financial disaster” in 2013.
#7 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that it is easier to get into Harvard than it is to get a job as a flight attendant in America today.
#8 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that nearly 400 TSA employees have been fired for stealing from travelers since 2003.
#9 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that giant corporations such as Facebook are funneling gigantic amounts of money through offshore banking havens such as the Cayman Islands in an effort to avoid taxes.
#10 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the U.S. dollar is in danger of losing its status as the primary reserve currency of the world.
#11 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk
about the fact that Barack Obama has gone off to vacation in Hawaii
while the rest of the nation hopes for a fiscal cliff deal to get done.
Of course the mainstream media has to mention that he is on vacation
because they always keep track of what the president does, but they are
not making a big deal out of it because they love Obama. And it sounds
like Obama is having quite a good time on his little vacation…
The president is expected to indulge in some of his
favorite pastimes on the island where he was born and raised: golf, an
expedition for the local treat “shave ice,” and an evening out with
family and friends. He hit the links at the nearby Marine Corps base
under sunny skies on Saturday afternoon.
#12 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that there are government websites that give immigrants instructions about how to come over to our country and apply for welfare.
#13 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the U.S. economy is losing millions of jobs
to nations where it is legal to pay workers slave labor wages. The
mainstream media is totally married to the one world economic agenda
that their corporate owners make so much money from, and so they say
nothing as a steady stream of businesses and jobs continue to leave the
country.
#14 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the recent tax increase is causing large numbers of wealthy individuals to consider moving out of the state of California.
#15 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that hunger and poverty are absolutely exploding in the United States at the same time that they are telling us that the economy is “recovering”.
#16 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that North Korea now has a three-stage rocket with enough range to potentially hit the western United States.
#17 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the United States Postal Service is losing 25 million dollars a day and is on the verge of financial collapse.
#18 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk
about the fact that our biggest oil supplier in the Middle East, Saudi
Arabia, still kills people for changing religions.
#19 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that political correctness is taking over America. The truth is that the media does not see any problem with that at all.
#20 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that nearly half a million employees of the federal government are making more than $100,000 a year.
#21 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the birth rate in the United States fallen to an all-time low. The elite are actually absolutely thrilled that less babies are being born.
#22 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that violent crime in the United States increased by 18 percent in 2011 and that many major U.S. cities are seeing violent crime totally spiral out of control.
#23 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that Barack Obama received more than 99 percent of the vote in more than 100 precincts in Ohio on election day.
#24 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk
about the fact that during the first four years of the Obama
administration, the U.S. national debt grew by about as much as it did
from the time that George Washington took office to the time that George W. Bush took office.
#25 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the Federal Reserve
created the conditions for the last financial crisis and their
mismanagement of the economy has now brought us to the verge of another
horrible economic downturn. According to the mainstream media, the
Federal Reserve is “above politics” and should not be criticized.
Since the middle of the week I have been slowed down by this year's flu virus.
Before pretty much shutting down (staying inside ugh)
I took some photos of the new combiner boxes I need for the new battery box on the camper.
Simple DIY combiner boxes made from common parts found at the big box building stores.
This is a common electrical box that is the narrow variety, that you would use in a home outlet.
The two lugs will stack on each other, the holes will line up, making it so they are connected togather, giving 4 clamping spots for the wires to be combined.
This shows a lug positioned in the center of the box, then drilling a hole to enable bolting togather both lugs.
After drilling the hole flip over the box, use a countersink cutter to countersink the hole so the tapered bolt will be flush with the back of the box.
This will prevent possible shorting, you could also cover with electrical tape or silicone to prevent metal touching..
The bolt is 1/4" x 20, 1 inch long
After counter sinking, install the bolt, add the lugs, tighten them down with a ny-lock nut you are ready to punch out the access holes of the box, add wires.
Pretty simple and cheap
For outdoor use purchase blank plastic covers.
To weatherproof the areas where the wires come through, use silicone to seal the ports.
I have used these since 2006, they are still going strong
I should mention that you need 2 of these boxes for a 12 volt or direct current system ..One Positive ..One Negative
View of a combiner box installed in the new battery box
The black piece at the top is a shunt that is added for monitoring the output of the wind charger (more on that later)
This is one of the old combiner boxes being replaced it too large for the new box.
A preview of the new box, setting on the frame, mocking up for mounts.
The new and improved trailer hitch for the boat is finally finished, the receiver was moved rearward, making it much easier to hook up the boat, and the much stronger cross-member should do the trick .
Now onto the battery bank
This is the old mounting board that I installed back in 2005 to hold the 6 volt batteries for the off grid power system that has evolved over time.
Looks pretty bad..... huh
I have been increasingly nervous about the strength of the treated lumber board carrying the 4 six volt batteries that weigh about 75 lbs each.
Here are the 4 trogan T-145 six volt deep cycle batteries that are used as the power storage system to run the trailer when we are off-grid (which we like to do)
The new "rack" is made of aluminum.
This photo shows the mock up process of building the new rack.
This is the hole that the batteries need to fit in..
While upgrading the battery rack, we are also adding connections to the solar system to enable us to add additional solar panels to the system, in remote locations, and during cloudy days when a little more capacity would be welcome .
Also, a new connection for the wind charger, along with a digital meter to indicate the amount of power going to the batteries when it is operating.
