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Dead batteries and Desert dilemma with clouds, moon, and rain

Even at lower elevation, temperatures dropping caused me more than one desert dilemma beyond being cold.

02 IMG_20221102_095910164_HDRlecwfbr junk left behind BLM Stanton Rd Congress AZ-3My first desert dilemma was the seemingly abandoned and broken trailer near where I decided to camp causing me to wonder if I should even park there.  I have camped in this area before.  Two days later, after dark, some noisy truck towed it away.  Sadly, they left trash behind, lots of it.  I had considered doing a video of the trailer and mess.  This, is one of the reasons public land management agencies use to close dispersed camping.  If we can’t take care of the land, we’ll loose the right to visit.

03 DSL_7949lewfbr desert Vulture Pk clouds BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2Halloween caused no desert dilemma without trick or treaters, not even on the trail-cam.  Good thing, as I had no candy.  When I grew up, Halloween was mostly a community holiday, dressing up and joining local friends to beg from the neighbors.  Community is different now with many not even knowing their neighbors.  I don’t socialize with neighbors, if I can even see them often just due to distance.  Maybe your community is closer knit.  Much of my community is visited online, here on the blog, social media, and now YouTube who recently opened a Community option to my young channel.  I’m still trying to figure out how it works, and think many others are also.  My interpretation of the Geogypsy Community is a tribe of like minded people who enjoy communicating.  I posted a video about it here, and put up a short poll here that got one response in 11 days.  I guess my community isn’t very big, yet.

04 DSL_8198lewfbr cow BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2The Congress camp community has nearby human-dug waterholes for livestock so I figured that would bring in more than just cattle.  I set the trail-cam pointed at said waterhole but other than cows, seems only quick moving birds or bats triggered it after dark.  That felt like a desert dilemma as water usually draws wildlife.

05a DSL_7988lewfbr sunset clouds camp Congress 1 AZ fb g-2

05b DSL_7992lewfbr sunset clouds camp Congress 1 AZ g-2Sunsets frequently cause the desert dilemma of which way to look because it’s 360°, especially at the end of an otherwise gray cloudy day.

06 DSL_8084lewfbr last light Weaver Mts clouds Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2And I do love clouds, but gray days mean less solar charging and that causes a desert dilemma because I live off-grid and rely on my camper battery to operate lights, start the fridge, and charge phone and laptop.  A drive 20 minutes each way to Wickenburg helped charge the “house” battery.  Yet after every stop in town I noticed the solar controller flashing “b01”, an error warning for very low or dead battery.  My cheap battery tester indicated the one-year-old battery was good.  Lights worked, fridge lit, and phone charged.  Now what?  I checked fuses and wiggled wires which solved the error, briefly.  Loose wires are always a nightmare.  Being I had an appointment for an oil change in two days at B&B Automotive just five miles from my Congress camp I figured to let them solve this desert dilemma.

07a DSL_8000lewfbr desert Vulture Pk sunset clouds BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2

07b DSL_8006lewfbr desert sunset clouds BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2And enjoyed another night of gorgeous sunset.

08 DSL_8053lewfbr desert Vulture Pk storm clouds Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2Except the next day was raining with awesome cloud shows and most of my desert dilemma was which way to look and point the camera.

09 DSL_8029lewfbr tripod in doorway with curtain BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2While it rained I set the phone on tripod in the camper door with my drape over it to keep the rain out and Sierra in.  I took some awesome time-lapse and shared a video here.

10a DSL_8067lewfbr desert Weaver Mts storm cell Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2

10b DSL_8074lewfbr desert Weaver Mts storm cell Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2In between rain drops I was in and out of the camper all day taking photos.

11a DSL_8089lewfbr reverse sunset Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2

11b DSL_8087lewfbr sunset Stanton Rd Congress AZ fb mss g-2Sunset was no slouch either.

12 IMG_20221104_104013768_HDRlewfbr dead truck BLM Stanton Rd Congress AZ-3Friday morning I got packed and ready to roll for that oil change.  The shop called to say I could come in before my 11:30am appointment.  Oh boy, stop at the dump on the way and get rid of a week’s worth of garbage for $1.  But the truck wouldn’t start, as in dead batteries.  No problem, I put the handy jumper on it and waited 30 minutes.  Truck still wouldn’t start.  Now that’s a desert dilemma.  Called the shop and they eventually sent a mechanic out but his larger jumper still wouldn’t start the truck.  Only five miles from the shop but I’d have to get a tow.  My first thought was the old fashioned way of finding a BIG truck and pulling my unit with a chain, but now days that means the driveshaft would have to be dropped.  It was just a thought.

13 DSL_8108lecwfbr horses Vulture Pk camp Congress Stanton Rd AZ g-2Wild horses

Being the shop is closed on weekends I figured the tow could wait until Monday morning.  I’d rather stay in my pretty camp than a parking lot over the weekend.

14 DSL_8117lewfbr sunset clouds Stanton Rd BLM Congress AZ g-2Started by calling a couple tow companies in the closest town of Wickenburg and several didn’t have a truck big enough to tow my truck with the camper on it.  No way the camper would be coming off.  It’s a pain to come off and on, plus I couldn’t abandon it on public land with Sierra inside.  I finally called Good Sam Road Care Assistance.  I’ve paid for this service almost 20 years and thankfully only used it about seven times.  One tow pays for all.  But they are a pain in ass to deal with.  Last call years ago the lady I spoke to in Georgia didn’t even know what state the Grand Canyon is in.  Duh!  This lady in Illinois at least found me on maps but didn’t know what a “slide-in cabover truckcamper” is or what is boondocking/dispersed camping/off grid.  I recommended she ask for better training from Good Sam and tried to educate her.  I also gave her the name and number of the nearest tow company with a truck big enough that could find me.  But no, Good Sam has their system, a rather screwed up system.  She tried several tow companies out of the Phoenix area (two hours away) but when I followed up they couldn’t tow my truck with the camper on.  But finally found one and I scheduled the tow for Monday morning, when I would get a text conformation.  I have heard many horror stories from RVers about both Good Sam and AAA.  They will get to you, eventually.

15a DSL_8138lecwfbr Painted Lady butterfly Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2Painted Lady well camouflaged

15b DSL_7938lecwfbr Painted Lady butterfly on Broom bush BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ-3With that done I had the whole weekend to just enjoy the sunny desert.

16a DSL_8154lewfbr desert framed Vulture Pk sunset clouds BLM camp Congress AZ g-2

16b DSL_8181alewfbr desert Weaver Mts sunset clouds moon BLM camp Congress AZ Pano g-2Except, the solar controller still indicated a dead house battery.  Could there be a correlation?  While driving the truck should help charge the house battery, but it shouldn’t deplete that battery.  Oh well, everything was working so I falsely assumed it was the controller and not the battery.

17 DSL_8188lecwfbr Raven bush BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2I spent most of the weekend reading and outdoors soaking up the sun watching my world.  Plus I ate a little extra ice cream just in case the fridge stopped lighting.

18a IMG_20221106_171612262_HDRlecwfbr Gaelyn shadow shooting moon rise BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-3

18b DSL_8217lewfbr moon rise Weaver Mts Stanton Rd Congress AZ fb g-2And I watched for the rise of the almost full moon over the Weaver Mountains.

19 IMG_20221107_113543608_HDRlewfbr Moorish Roadside Rescue tow truck g-3By Sunday night I had no interior lights, dead laptop battery, and low phone battery.  But I’d be OK because my tow would come Monday morning.  Except for yet another desert dilemma.  Morning text from Good Sam listed a tow company that couldn’t tow my truck.  I lost my patience and vented on Face Book tagging Good Sam and within 30 minutes they responded and we were private messengering with much better service than the phone call.  After several more tries they finally enlisted a company from the Phoenix area and it would be two more hours before they’d get to me.  I talked the driver into my rather remote location, but only about one mile off SR89 pavement.  Poor guy was way out of his element.

20 IMG_20221107_113704067_HDRlewfbr Moorish Roadside Rescue tow truck & truckcamper g-3Sadly, my truck couldn’t be pulled onto the tipped tow truck bed without tearing off the back of the camper.  I had thought that would be a problem.  But before just putting the front wheels up only a bit instead the driver hooked up his mega jumper, and the truck started.  Yea!  He followed me the five miles to the repair shop where I had to buy two new truck batteries.  And OUCH, have they gotten expensive!  They also charged my house battery up to 85%.  No time for an oil change and a reschedule would be two weeks out.  Not happening.

21 DSL_8262lewfbr moon rise towers Weaver Mts Stanton Rd Congress AZ fb g-2With the fridge back on I went back to the same camp to watch the moon for a couple more nights.  And maybe the lunar eclipse.

22 DSL_8315lewfbr full moon rise Weaver Mts clouds Stanton Rd Congress AZ fb g-2But that night I woke up feeling nauseous and lost dinner into a waste basket.  Trust me, you don’t want to pray to a RV toilet.  And maybe not eat ice cream right on top of lemon chicken.  So no lunar eclipse and Tuesday was a down day.  Except for a cloudy full moon rise.

23a DSL_8352lecwfbr sunrise clouds Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2

23b IMG_20221109_093943892_HDRlewfbr low clouds Weaver Mts BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-3Rained over night but not enough to flood, which can be a desert dilemma.  Woke to an amazing sunrise followed by heavy clouds and more rain that was suppose to clear before noon.  So I waited until around 10am to roll on to Quartzsite.

24a DSCN1432lecwfbr rainbow SR71 AZ fb g-3

24b DSCN1456lewfbr mts light clouds SR60 AZ g-3

24c DSL_8361alewfbr rainbow SR60 AZ Pano fb g-2

24d DSL_8360lewfbr hills rainbow SR60 AZ fb g-2Did rain a bit in between bursts of sunshine causing me to pull over twice to photograph the rainbows.

25 DSCN1481lewfbr I10 W exit 19 Quartzsite AZ g-3Exit 19 off Interstate 10 to Quartzsite

Actually bought diesel for under $5/gal in Quartzsite.

26 1000001616lecwrr Solar Bill g-3This is not Gus

Went to Solar Bill, met the new owner Gus, and bought yet another battery, this time for the camper to solve that desert dilemma.  Come to find out all the employees stayed on when the business sold.  It’s a good outfit.

27 IMG_20221109_155435872lecwfbr Aerial view Shady Lane RV Park Quartzsite AZ g-3Old aerial of Shady Lane hanging in laundry room

Then went to Shady Lane RV Park for the night (320° video of camp site) to take care of other chores.  Bonus, got to see Finius and Breezy on their last day at the park they just sold.

28 IMG_20221106_121442732lewfbr Sierra sleeping BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-3Because I solved the current desert dilemmas, I took off to an absolutely favorite BLM camp with views of mountains all around because it is not a dilemma to be in the desert.  Enjoy that camp video here which almost catches me up to real time.  Except for writing about the train ride which I’m still working on.

29 IMG_20221109_093936135_HDRlewfbr bumper rock collection BLM camp Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-3Camp Congress bumper collection

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30 DSL_8076lewfbr desert Weaver Mts storm cell Stanton Rd Congress AZ g-2Order Geogypsy 2023 Calendars while they’re still available.

Arizona, Congress, Places I've been, Quartzsite, repairs, RV life, United States , , , , , , 37 Comments

Time to head to the desert

Although I’ve been feeling real lazy, cold mornings motivated me to head to the desert.  So over several days I slowly prepared the truck and camper for my winter months further south, where it’s warmer than Skull Vall

shadow people Verde Canyon RR AZThe day after the train ride—that I promise to share soon—I felt tired and took a nap.  Four hours mostly standing outside rocking on the rails in beautiful weather challenged me physically.  I loved it!  Yet as morning temperatures drop below 50° I’ve been thinking it’s about time to head to the desert.  Also time for an oil change at my favorite shop in Congress, a 2000 foot drop in elevation and 15-20° increase.  Frequently my first fall/winter boondock camp area of the season.

Waking up to mid 40s and cold house made me feel unmotivated yet I managed to post a video from the trail-cam.  Also made me think about my winter destinations as I head to the desert.  I don’t spend much time in the town of Quartzsite, but it’s a place to get some chores done.  For many years I’ve used the affordable and friendly Shady Lane RV Park as my overnight place every 2-3 weeks to dump and fill camper tanks, do laundry, and shower longer than a solar-bag.  I don’t know what to expect as the ownership is about to change.  I considered buying a BLM LTVA (Bureau of Land Management Long Term Visitor Area) for $180 to get access to dump and fill plus camping with too many people from September 15 to April 15, the winter season near to Quartzsite or west of Yuma.  Either way, still have to go beyond Quartzsite—Parker, Yuma, or Blythe CA—to stock up on reasonably priced groceries.

tree reflection Fain Lake Pk Prescott Valley AZ

catails Fain Lake Pk Prescott Valley AZBut I wasn’t there yet and ended up lucking out with an almost 80° day in Prescott that included laundry, shopping and fun with Joann at Fain Lake Park.

tree arch trl Fain Lake Pk Prescott Valley AZ

boulder reflection Fain Lake Pk Prescott Valley AZWasn’t quite as Autumn colorful as another visit but still very pretty.

drive home sunset clouds Iron Springs Rd AZDusk by the time I got home and unloaded the groceries.

trail cam Stripped Skunk Skull Valley AZ

trail cam Stripped Skunk Skull Valley AZThe day after a town day is often a down day, and this no exception.  I managed to get a long overdue blog post out.  Then decided to move the trail-cam closer to the water bowls.  I downloaded the previous images of skunk and racoon visits before tying it to a tree.  That night Skunk came for a visit.  The next thrift store visit I’ll be looking for a convenient traveling container for wildlife water.

storage bins back seat

open space in back seatI saved room for rocks

With the next mornings bout of ambition I reorganized the backseat of the truck, also known as the closet when I head to the desert.  I keep a decent sized 12v/110 cooler for a pantry to store back-stock of liquid products so they don’t explode from heat or cold.  I added two plastic tubs for craft supplies that don’t need constant—if ever—access for the “when I get bored” projects.

sunset clouds Skull Valley AZThen the wind picked up and I returned to lazy mode with good intentions.

storm clouds Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZI woke to 33° and took hours to thaw out then wrote and scheduled a blog post.  I had every intention of writing the train post and maybe even revive Foto Friday Fun, if anybody is still interested.  Instead the gray sky day made me sleepy, so I took a nap.

trail cam Stripped Skunk Skull Valley AZ

trail cam Stripped Skunk Skull Valley AZWhen I awoke to 32° outside and less than 50° inside my mind was made up.  Time to head to the desert.  I looked at the 7-day weather forecast here and in Congress, 15-20° warmer at the later.  Time to go south!

truckcamper bed

Once I make up my mind, I am ready!  Unfortunately the camper wasn’t ready and I wasn’t packed.  It took over an hour just to make the bed.  Not so easy when basically in a hole, surrounded by walls, crawling on the mattress, and struggling with a fitted sheet.  Like they aren’t bad enough just to fold.  I also put up curtains in the “bed room” and cleaned the freezer and fridge before turning them on.  I made piles in the big house and worked more things out to the camper throughout the day.

unidentified hawk Skull Valley AZEventually my shoulders gave out and I called it quits.

last light Bradshaw Mts Skull Valley AZUntil the next day when the morning started at 35° and barely 50° inside.  I put together clothes that cover from high-heat of summer to yes-it-can-get-freezing-cold during winter as I head to the desert.  Frequently the wind makes a cloudy 50° day feel like Alaska.  Well, at least to this Arizonan it does.  Because both kitchens are stocked with dishes, utensils, pots and pans it’s just food that gets moved, dry goods, fridge and freezer.  Thank goodness my food storage space is comparable in both RVs.  I fill reusable grocery bags and move two at a time making several trips.  Joann stopped by for a timely visit that gave me a break.

truckcamper camp Congress 1 AZThere’s always last minute moving like the coffee and breakfast stuff.  Plus I showered before winterizing the 5th-wheel/big house.  I didn’t need to rush, especially at 36°.  But I was looking forward to a high of 75° instead of 65° plus waking the next morning to 50°.  Said goodbye to Skull Valley around 1:30pm after dropping off my ballot.  Within an hour I parked at my first of this season temporary home boondocking on BLM in Congress, Arizona, and here’s a 360° video from camp.

sunset crescent moon Falcon 9 StarX Congress AZWhat a huge surprise as I watched the orange glow sunset with crescent moon and saw what turned out to be a Falcon 9 SpaceX launch.  I’ll probably be here for the lunar eclipse, if I get out of bed, or maybe head to the desert further south.

This & That

Opened a Geogypsy Community on YouTube.  Hope you’re subscribed.  Will put up a video to introduce the Community. Please stop by and drop a comment.

Join me in the desert of Congress, AZ to watch November’s moon.  I’m sure to be awake for the rise and set, and maybe for the lunar eclipse.

Still have to write about the train.  I hope being warm will continue to motivate me to write and create a video about the train.  How do you all feel about Foto Friday Fun? Yea or Nay?

Don’t forget to order Geogypsy 2023 calendar  https://geogypsytraveler.com/2022/10/14/time-to-order-geogypsy-2023-calendar/ .

Arizona, Congress, Places I've been, RV life, Skull Valley, United States , , , 20 Comments

Recovering for a train ride adventure

I’m still not caught up but am recovering from “traveler’s revenge” and taking a lot of naps in preparation for a train ride adventure while also working on blog posts and videos.

Raven cemetery Skull Valley AZAfter what felt like an all day trip to town I drove the 30 minutes home with a stop along the way.  Actually, the Skull Valley cemetery is one mile from my turnoff that is a sharp 70° right turn at the bottom of a hill.  I often stop to let traffic go by.  This day I noticed a Raven also visiting the cemetery.

Bark scorpion Skull Valley AZOnce home and unpacked I went to walk up the berm and stopped dead in my tracks at the sight of a four inch Bark Scorpion.  It’s the first one I’ve seen on the ranch and I’m alright with that if they stay outside.  Went to bed early as I was recovering from a full day in town.

Sierra cat on desk Skull Valley AZDuring the cool of the morning and before the high of 81°, I cleaned the truckcamper floor and put down a new carpet runner.  I’m slowly working on getting it ready for winter occupancy in the desert.  Didn’t take long before I was hot and tired so took a nap.  I’m still recovering you know.  Later, I worked on a blog post and trail-cam videos.

How is it that my website was fine when I went to bed but “unsecure” and not opening in the morning?  Rebooting didn’t help so I contacted Hostgator (my web host) and they solved the error problem of  “SSL expired”.  Seems that’s one of the things I pay them to do, automatically.  (SSL, Secure Sockets Layer, is “a standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a server and a client—typically a web server (website) and a browser, or a mail server and a mail client (e.g., gmail).”)  Secure is the key word.  If an URL is https versus http, it’s secure.  Anyway, with that problem solved, I took a nap.  This time recovering from website shock.

Later, while outside I saw this cute two-inch Horned lizard, also a first sighting on the ranch. They are harmless, eat ants, and are said to bring good luck.

driveway trees storm clouds Skull Valley AZThe next day it rained, slowly at first, on and off yet steady.  Had to update software to continue working on video.  Exhausting.  So I took a nap.  Thunder and lightning filled the evening air.

clouds Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZAwoke Sunday to rain cleaned air, ah petrichor.  May have been the last of monsoon.  Snow is already falling to the north.

boulder tree sunset clouds Skull Valley AZ

last light cliff Bradshaw Mts clouds Skull Valley AZI was motivated to clean the camera sensor though I’m scared at the same time.  For months now there’s been a reverse “C” shaped something probably dust on photos with the lens set between 18-30mm.  It shows up in the sky about half way between center and 2 o’clock.  If it’s on clear sky I can remove it post-processing.  But it needed to go.  I recently bought a camera cleaning kit that includes anti-static gloves, camera cleaning cloth, cleaning swabs, air blowing, cleaning brush, screen and lens cleaner.  After wiping down the outside including degreasing the view finder I removed and cleaned the lens glass. Then the scariest part.  Locked the mirror up to expose the sensor and first blew air with the bulb (not wet breath) followed by two quick sweeps with the sensor cleaning swab.  Put the lens back on and voila, the “thing” is gone in several test shots.  I was told that dust and hair gets stuck to the sensor by static.  So I was nervous about adding to it in my never that clean home with floating cat hair.

trail-cam Striped Skunk Skull Valley AZtrail-cam fox Skull Valley AZ

While I mess with the DSLR camera, the trail-cam works on its own.  A Striped Skunk wandered by about 3am and that night after dark a fox came through.

train over tressel Camp Verde RR AZBut I was asleep for that because the next day I was off on a train ride adventure and the Verde Canyon Railroad deserves its own post.

I’m done recovering from traveler’s revenge and now planning for the next journey.  When the days drop into the 50s and the nights head toward the 30s it’s time to move further south into Arizona’s Sonoran Desert.  Won’t be long.  Feel free to join me in the desert of Congress, Arizona to watch November’s Beaver moon.  I’m sure to be awake for the rise and set of the full moon, and maybe for the lunar eclipse between 1-7am.

Campark trail-cam on ladder Skull Valley AZTo watch the video from a couple months of wildlife caught on the trail-cam and my review on the cam, follow this link https://youtu.be/7n_jDP-6WKc.  (I am not being paid or compensated in any way.)

To order Geogypsy 2023 calendars please leave a comment below or use the contact tab above.  Final photo choices can be seen here https://geogypsytraveler.com/2022/10/14/time-to-order-geogypsy-2023-calendar/.

Arizona, life, Skull Valley , , , 29 Comments

Lijit

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