No Power Is Not My Thing .. I'm Spoiled!

Very early morning in Bakersfield saw Cooper and I playing on the floor.  It was our last hurrah.  The long 7-1/2 hour drive was ahead of us.  I really need to find some place to stay that's in between.

  Not helping matters was the really bad fog.  The higher we got, the worse it got until I was going about 40 mph.  Luckily there were no slow trucks going up Tehachapi Pass on this day.

Cooper slept most of the way while I stewed about fuel.  I haven't gone this way pulling the trailer, so I really had no idea just how far I could go.  I stopped at Flying J in Tehachapi, only to find the truck lane pumps pump too much fuel too fast for my truck.  It foams up terribly and quits pumping.  It was a long slow drizzle before I finally gave up.  

The further I got, the more I was sure I would end up getting fuel in Needles.  Not my fav!!  So I ended up stopping AGAIN in Barstow, to the tune of $4.69 a gallon, to fill it to the brim.  Finally unstressed, we cruised along Highway 40 like a champ.  It was a totally unexpected nice smooth ride.  I'm going to be singing the praises of these air bags.  

Finally all the fog left and we had sunny weather the entire trip, even if it was 30 degrees until we went over the hill towards Parker.

My plan was to stop on Plamosa Road and dry camp for the night.   The nice BLM lady let me in free since it was late and I was leaving early.  I only went about a quarter mile before turning in and finding a place to park.  

Let me just say that what LOOKS level, is NOT level.  It took some time to find a spot where I didn't have to unhook.  Cooper was thrilled to finally get out of the truck and smell the smells.

Dinner was less than desired.  I didn't plan well, although there's lots of stuff in the freezer.  So a little leftover salad and an English muffin was it.  See the pretty red on the gas knob?  That means (hopefully) I won't be leaving it on when not in use.  

I tried several of the USB outlets to charge my phone, which died about 50 miles back,  but couldn't get them to work.  How disappointing!  I didn't even turn on any lights because I was afraid of using up too much battery.  I probably could have started the generator, but was totally distracted by the discovery that I did not bring one single chair to sit in outside.  

So I ate my dinner while scouring the rig for just ONE plug for my phone.  AHA!!  It's underneath the counter in a back dark corner.  

So here I am, parked way too close to the road because I can hear all the traffic noise.  Hopefully I get better at this quickly.  No power is not my thing ..... I'm spoiled!!  Rotten!!

The story of the generator began about here.  I finally decided I should get it out of the truck, even though I was exhausted, just to see if it would work.  I lugged it around to the side, drug out the big heavy electrical cord and said a little prayer.  

Believe it or not, that thing started up in TWO pulls.  I was so excited!  I let it run a bit and plugged in.  It jumped to life .... POWER!!!  It worked for all of 20 minutes before making funny sounds and quitting.  Hmmm must be out of gas.  I crawled in the truck and got the gas, filling the tank way too full.  I mean really, how do you know how much to put in?  I'm now covered in gas. 

I unplugged the rig and began the big pull ... and pull ... and pull about thirty times, with the choke and without.  Nothing.  I was so exhausted I could barely stand up.  I put the cord away and barely lifted the generator back into the truck.  I'll just buy new batteries when I kill them because this is WAY TOO MUCH TROUBLE!!!!!

With no TV, no radio and no lights, we went to bed at 7:00, trying to conserve the batteries for Jonathan's heat.  It's only 48 degrees this morning, enough to make that heater run every 30 minutes or so, waking me  up every single time, even with two pillows on my head.  

I know, I'm a wimp, but I don't care what it costs, I'm getting a big inverter and solar.  This has NOT been fun.  It might have been a tad bit better if I had remembered to stick a chair in so I could sit outside and listen to the traffic, or maybe a stick or two of wood for a nice fire.  NOPE ... I got nothing!!

So this morning, after stashing everything I pulled out trying to cook breakfast, we will be off for Vail.  It's about a five hour drive.  I checked the batteries just for laughs, and it's interesting to note there are five lights.  They start at LOW, then 11.2 all the way up to 12.3.  The 12.3 light is still on, so apparently my two batteries are still in somewhat good shape.  Hopefully they last until I leave this perfect camping spot!