Archive for Uncategorized
April 26, 2007 at 5:31 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
The early start I had envisioned didn’t happen. I was up at 6 a.m. with the sun while the temperature was still a lovely 68 degrees, but Emma didn’t wake up until after 9 a.m, and then with some slight work emergencies and puttering around it was nearly 11 before we found ourselves at the trailhead.
It was also 88 degrees by then, so we were expecting a challenging hike. The Hunter Trail is 2.1 miles to the peak, and climbs 1,500 feet in that short distance. The trail is also rocky and difficult, with numerous switchbacks and several steep sections that require scrambling over sharp eroded lava.
Emma discovered some scat along the trail and asked me if it was indeed animal poop. I teased her by suggesting she pick it up and sniff it. Her response: “I’m not Bert!” (Sorry, Bert, but I think you’ve gained a reputation as a scatologist.)
About 2/3 of the way, the trail doubles back and crosses over the range at a saddle. At this point we had gained about 1200 feet of elevation in about 1.4 miles, and it took about 90 minutes. At this elevation (close to 3,000 feet) it was beautifully cool and the view was stunning. We stopped for lunch and a rest in the shade.
The trail beyond the saddle drops steeply before climbing again, and is not recommended for children under 10 or inexperienced hikers, so we decide to turn around there. Emma was disappointed in this decision. Along the way up, she was telling other hikers of her conquest at Glacier National Park (“12 miles!”) and so bailing out on a difficult hike after only a mile and a half and 1200 feet of vertical ascent was, to her mind, just plain weenie.
Still, coming back down was no picnic, and we were consuming water at a high rate. I drank about 36 ounces of water during the hike and more afterward. Reaching the bottom we found 92 degrees waiting for us.
The good news is that the little roadside village at the interstate highway includes a Dairy Queen … and DQ means Blizzards, which are concoctions of ice cream and ground-up candy bars. That, and a quick cold shower for everyone brought us back to life for the rest of the afternoon while we waited for the heat to abate.
Boondocking report: We used 58 amp-hours yesterday and overnight, mostly to run the laptops, lights in the evening, the refrigerator boost fans, and all three Fantastic Vents. Normally we’d regain all of that in a sunny day (this time of year). But today, with a few hours of laptop time and fans running constantly, we were only able to pick up a net of 23 amp-hours over what we used. So we’re about 35 amp-hours below our total capacity of 300 amp-hours.
That’s not a problem, but it does show that in very hot weather we use more power than we can regenerate. If we had tilting solar panels on the roof we’d probably generate much more power, but I haven’t yet seen the solar panel mount that would work for our situation. Since we can’t readily access our roof, such a system would need to be tiltable from the ground, using a pole or something.
The new dual refrigerator boost fans are working well. Our refrigerator has maintained 40-42 degrees all day, which is a huge improvement over its prior performance in hot weather. We run the fans all day and turn them off at bedtime, when the ambient temperature is below 80 degrees.
There are other little attractions in this area, including an ostrich farm ($5 to feed the birds if you care to), the “Arizona Nut House”, and two more of the ubiquitous tourist souvenir shops operated by Bowlin’s. I think we’ve captured the best of the Picacho Peak area already, so while we might stop in at the nut shop on our way out tomorrow, we’ll pass on the rest of the stuff. Our plan is to head up through Phoenix and into Prescott, where the elevation is much higher and the temperatures are perfect right now.
April 24, 2007 at 8:58 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
Today was a rare bust. We were planning to leave Tucson and head northwest, but suddenly a pile of work issues popped up and the next thing I knew it was 11 a.m., check-out time, and I was still in my pajamas in front of the laptop.
So we paid for another day and I spent the rest of the day tapping the keys. We’ll hit the road tomorrow instead.
One reason I was so busy is that a few last-minute touches needed to be made on the Summer magazine. I finished editing it six weeks ago, but there’s still work to be done as the layouts are completed, and when it goes to the printer there are still more tasks.
Since we’ve completed the bulk of the work and it’s now mostly in the hands of the printer, I can take a moment to share with you a peek into the process. Long-time readers of this blog know that we test alternate covers before choosing the final cover of the magazine. The image above is one such test (headlines are taken from the previous issue).
Here are two other tests we did for the Summer issue (above, and below). We also considered several other photos. None of them made the final cut. You’ll have to wait for the issue to appear in print, later in May, to see the image we ultimately selected!
Starting with the Fall issue, Airstream Life will have two covers: one for subscribers, and another for book stores. The photos will be the same, but the headlines will be different. Subscribers will see only the three small headlines above the magazine’s title, which we’ve always put on the cover. Copies intended for book store distribution will have more headlines (called “sell lines” in the industry). So a benefit of subscribing will be to get the cleaner-looking cover (and at a better price).
April 23, 2007 at 10:05 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
I’m going off the track a bit here tonight, for two reasons: First, we haven’t done a single thing today worth blogging. Really. Second, it’s my blog and I can write about whatever the heck I want, right?
OK, now that we’re all clear on that, I’m going to do a little housekeeping and mention a few utterly unrelated tidbits that I need to get off my chest.
Item 1: Generators are not efficient at charging batteries. All the time I get inquiries from people asking if we tote a generator around. I got one such query this morning. You can skim the old blog entries using the Search box to the left to pull up our history with the generator, including why we got rid of it.
But here’s the short version: generators are great for powering electrical appliances that use a lot of AC power, such as a microwave, air conditioner, hair dryer, toaster, etc. But when you plug your RV into one and wait for it to re-charge the batteries, you’re fighting an uphill battle. A partially-charged battery can only accept a certain rate of charge, which declines as it gets fuller.
It doesn’t matter how big your generator is. If the battery is more than half full, it probably won’t take even 1/10th of the power the generator is putting out, which means you’re making noise and smoke for not much return. Battery charging happens slowly. That’s why we don’t carry a generator. Solar has proved much better for our style of camping.
Item 2: Airstream Life is coming to a bookstore near you. Well, it is if you live in one of the 19 states which have Books-A-Million stores. All 155 Books-A-Million stores will have copies of the Summer 2007 magazine, which should be on sale by May 22. Find a Books-A-Million store near you.
Of course, you already subscribe to Airstream Life magazine, don’t you? (You don’t have to own an Airstream to enjoy it.) So tell your wanna-bee friends to look for it at Books-A-Million stores and buy a copy at the newsstand price of just $4.99 per copy.
Item 3: Yogurt should not have pectin in it. (Hey, didn’t I warn you this was random?) For some reason, most yogurt brands sold in the United States have either pectin or gelatin, or both, added to them. I find this annoying. It changes the texture of the yogurt, makes it slimy, in my opinion.
Why do manufacturers do this? I’ll bet if asked they’d say the American consumer prefers it this way, but I think they have other reasons having to do with manufacturing cost. They also seem to load up with pectin on the fat-free and low-fat varieties, probably to make up some mouthfeel lost when using low-fat milk.
Attention yogurt makers: yogurt should contain MILK and CULTURES. Period. No gelatin, modified food starch, artificial sweeteners, etc.
Brown Cow is my current favorite brand. I eat plain yogurt, a habit I developed as a youth making my own in a Salton Yogurt Maker. Brown Cow’s has a delicious taste, and nothing added. But it’s hard to find. We’ve visited grocery stores all over the country and I can only find it once in a long while. So I welcome nominations of other brands that are pectin-free, gelatin-free, and free of everything else except milk and beneficial active cultures.
Item 4: Rhubarb pie. We were too full for birthday pie yesterday so we didn’t cut into it until this evening, but it was great. Just in case you were wondering…
April 22, 2007 at 9:04 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
Our daughter is 7 today, and she had a very happy birthday, thank you. She got some very nice presents (lightweight and small, too, which makes Daddy happy), went to the Pima County Fair, and had dinner at a Mexican restaurant. Later tonight or tomorrow, we’ll break out the rhubarb pie that Eleanor made (from fresh rhubarb purchased at Beatty’s a couple of days ago), and that will be the “birthday cake”.
Lost in the hall of mirrors, Pima County Fair
Emma has been living the Airstream Life since she was three, and has celebrated two birthdays while full-timing, so she’s a travel expert now. At this point she is in no hurry to stop living in the trailer or traveling, but I doubt she will celebrate another birthday on the road. This phase of her life is coming to an end, to be replaced by a more traditional existence in a stationary house, conventional schooling, and fewer opportunities to explore the world.
As you might imagine, we have mixed feelings about this, but it was always part of the plan. Change isn’t bad, it’s just different. We started this trip with a 5-year-old and now we have a 7-year-old, and that’s pretty cool.
Google Earth location of the Pima County Fair.
I have not put up a Sign of the Week lately. I’d like to say that’s because I’ve been busy, because it sounds better than “I got lazy.” Whatever the cause, there were plenty of good sign opportunities at the Fair. Here’s an example:
How do you deep-fry a Coke?
April 21, 2007 at 7:18 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
For the past three days it has been breezy here. Our campsite is on an exposed plateau with no natural windbreaks for miles in any direction, and it’s springtime, the season of fair weather breezes. Occasionally a gust will come up and rock the trailer slightly, which is actually kind of fun. We’re in no danger of tipping over until the winds get to hurricane force, and even then they’d have to hit us broadside.
But last night the wind really came up and it has remained strong into this morning. Storms from California are coming through, which for us desert-dwellers means wind, occasional cloudiness, and a slight chance of scattered showers. This is a nice change. The rapidly-moving clouds give the desert a dappled appearance, and the rain showers and virga by the mountains are beautiful to watch.
Yesterday we headed over to Ramsey Canyon again for a quick browse through the bookstore. On the way up the road we nearly ran over a rather larger gopher snake. It was about three feet long and very thick in the cross-section. So the first books we checked out were all about identifying reptiles of Arizona, but ultimately we settled on a book about western birds.
Buying books at the Ramsey Canyon bookstore
The clouds today cut into our ability to make power through the solar panels. Even though our current campground offers a full hookup, they charge separately for electricity, so we were considering just leaving the power off and living off solar alone. This got me thinking …
Metered electric for daily stays is something we’ve never encountered outside Arizona. It’s common for monthly stays, but most places doon’t bother for short-term visitors. The reason they do here is simply that some people will flagrantly waste the electric if they think it’s “free”. Here in air conditioning country, the campground owners are forced to encourage conservation or lose money. I can see why. In the past month I’ve walked past many an empty trailer or motorhome with the roof air running all day long, even on comfortable days in the 70s.
For our three days in Huachuca City, temperatures have been ideal, so we haven’t needed air conditioning. But since the campground provided an easy-to-read meter right at our site, I thought it would be interesting to see how much power we actually used. It turns out that we used 19 kilowatt hours in three days, or about 6 kilowatt-hours per day. That’s a lot more than we consume when boondocking, and much more than our solar panels can generate.
Why the discrepancy? Well, when we plug into AC power, a lot of new power loads get introduced. Our refrigerator automatically switches to AC, which draws up to 2.7 AC amps, or 324 watts. I am not clear on whether the electric element in the refrigerator cycles on and off or runs continuously, but if it ran continuously, that would be a potential 7.7 kwH per day all by itself. In any case, the refrigerator uses more power when running on AC than the combined output of both our solar panels. That’s why, when we are unplugged, energy for the refrigerator is provided by propane instead.
Another load is the power converter. It takes AC power and converts it to DC to maintain the batteries, with some efficiency loss. You can actually hear that loss when the electric cooling fan in the converter cycles on. What it’s telling you is that it is blowing some of that wasted power away in the form of heat.
Finally, human nature takes hold, and we tend to use more lights, and leave them on longer, than we would if were thinking about conserving battery power. Other electric toys get used, too. Eleanor breaks out the electric coffee pot and the toaster for breakfast. We all use the microwave to heat things quickly. We also are able to run our big TV, so a two-hour family movie costs us about 0.2 kwH. All of this luxury boosts our power consumption from a meager 1 kwH per day to just over 6 kwH per day.
For this lesson, I was happy to pay the campground $2.47 for three days of electricity right before we departed Huachuca City. We’ve towed the Airstream back up to Tucson and will remain here three nights. We’ve got mail to pick up at General Delivery, there’s the County Fair, and we’ve got a bit of homework to do for Emma’s future school. Then the plan is to migrate northward and explore some of central Arizona.
April 20, 2007 at 8:23 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
If you haven’t guessed by the previous few blog entries, this is the top place in the United States to see hummingbirds. Fourteen species live here in the summer, and people come from great distances to get a spot near the feeders and photograph the birds.
I’m not actually a birder, but I like the photographic challenge of capturing a hummingbird in flight. It has been an exercise to hone my skills — an exercise which I haven’t yet mastered. That keeps it interesting.
From Sierra Vista, you can take Miller Canyon Road up into the Huachuca Mountains to visit Beatty’s Guest Ranch and Orchards. The rough dirt road winds up the canyon through the Coronado National Forest lands, and at first we had the impression we were on the wrong track. A mile or so up, there’s a trailhead and a few acres of privately owned land — Beatty’s.
Beatty’s is a mecca for hummingbird watchers. In addition to selling honey, apples, rhubarb, eggs, and renting out some very private guest accommodations, they have a bank of hummingbird feeders. This time of year the hummers are consuming 6 quarts of sugar water a day, and by this summer Beatty’s will be serving many times that amount. So it’s a superb place to view the birds. For a fee, they have some exclusive areas for particularly nice viewing.
A female Allen’s Hummingbird
Google Earth location of Beatty’s Guest Ranch and Orchard
Now what I really need to get better photos is a longer, faster, image-stabilized lens … I got myself a lens for my last birthday, perhaps it’s time for another?
April 17, 2007 at 7:13 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
Nice to have a change of scene. Even though we are only about 60 miles from our last spot, and the view is still mountains and desert, it looks and feels completely different. Our spot today is situated on a rise of land overlooking Tombstone (“the town too tough to die”), 10 miles away, and the Dragoon Mountains to the northeast.
We’re told that the Dragoon Mountains turn gold in the sunset, which is about to occur as I type this. In a minute I’ll head out and see if there are some good photos to be taken. Earlier, Emma and I went for a walk around the campground and practiced taking photos of the hummingbirds.
I have found that I need to use the flash and a high ISO even in daylight, if I want to get a good blur-free image. Today’s shots were not very successful, but I feel prepped for the next few days. We will undoubtedly see a lot of them as we check out Sierra Vista and the surrounding area.
Part of our departure checklist is to clean the trailer’s interior. This means putting everything away, dusting the counters, making the beds, throwing out the junk, sweeping the floor and vacuuming the carpet (if we have an electrical hookup). Since we haven’t moved in a while, we had more cleaning than usual, but because it’s a small space the trailer cleaned up quickly. It’s a nice ritual because it means we pull into our new space with a home that looks neat & new, like we just moved in.
So here we are in a town that is new to us, a view that is new, and the Airstream looking and feeling new again too. It’s a really enjoyable sensation, sort of like going to a nice hotel on vacation. All the detritus is left behind, all the dullness is washed away and it feels like an adventure just to go 60 miles. Every new campsite is a reboot on life. No wonder we like it.
Still, the mundane aspects of life continue. We’ve had a couple of rounds of paperwork related to the house. The roof needs replacement and that meant plenty of documents with signatures and counter-signatures getting faxed back and forth between us and the seller. The seller has agreed to split the cost of a new roof.
In case you are wondering how we handle the paperwork without a fax machine or a regular telephone line … We carry a laser printer with us, and a flat-bed scanner that is USB-powered. We receive all of our faxes through eFax, which means they arrive in my email box as PDF documents. For documents for our records, I simply save them in a folder and they get included in the next regular disk backup.
If a signature is required, we print it out, sign, then scan as a PDF and email it back, or send it out as a fax through eFax. I also keep a copy of all the documents we’ve signed on my computer. In the end, nothing stays in paper format — it’s all digital, which is much more convenient, searchable, and safe. We are able to store the equivalent of several file cabinets worth of paper in virtually no space at all. As I’ve been reminded, buying a house generates a lot of paper!
At this point the house seems to be under control, so we can leave that job behind for the next week. We’ll do some adventuring. I’ve got a little break before the crunch comes for the next magazine, and I plan to use it as well as I can.
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