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September 6, 2010, a Monday
near North Rim, Arizona, USA
— Moved the RV
We got up around our normal time and I had my usual breakfast. I worked up a blog entry then left around 8:25 to go for a walk and it was a pleasant 55°F (13°C) outside.
I walked along the main road where we were boondocked. On my way back to the RV, I flushed a Blue Grouse.
I returned to the RV around 9:15 and it was a warm 63°F (17°C) outside. I did some computer work then prepped the RV to move. We left around 10:40 with me in the RV and J in the Jeep.
I went to the East Rim Viewpoint parking lot and started to dump into a pit toilet there using our Flojet Macerator Pump. J drove the Jeep to some potential boondocking spots so she could get GPS coordinates for them. Then she joined me at the East Rim Viewpoint parking lot. We left around 11:30 with J in the Jeep and me following in the RV.
We went to the De Motte Campground around 11:45 to take on water. We had to use a faucet that wasn't designed for loading up an RV with water. The faucet exit didn't have any threads and the outside was slightly tapered, and the faucet handle was spring-loaded so it had to be held open by hand. We used our Water Thief to attach the hose to the faucet, and I used a pipe clamp to tighten it down to prevent leaks. Then I used a bungee cord to keep the faucet open. I still had to hold the Water Thief so it wouldn't get blown off the faucet, but at least the pipe clamp stopped the spray. Next time I think I'll try to fashion something to hold the Water Thief on the faucet too so I don't have to stand there and hold it. I had my normal ham-and-Swiss on rye sandwich while we were there.
Before we left, J had me listen to the Jeep tires because she could hear an odd noise coming from the left rear. I discovered that there was a piece of wire, like a heady-duty coiled spring, stuck in the tire. I showed J, and she wanted me to pull it out. Instead of leaving it in there and just changing the tire like I had planned, I pulled it out and the tire started spewing air. So, now I got to change the tire and we'd have a flat spare. We got underway around 1:00.
We headed west into the Kaibab National Forest and parked the RV around 1:15. We got our computers and left in the Jeep around 1:20.
We headed into Grand Canyon National Park, and shortly after we went through the entrance station, I realized that I had left my computer in the RV. :(
We went to the General Store at the campground around 1:50 so J could go online through their Wi-Fi signal and list some items on eBay. I relaxed on the porch and cleaned up my log on my Palm Treo 755p. I borrowed J's laptop for a few minutes to do a few things online, then we left around 4:35.
We went to the North Rim Country Store, just north of the De Motte Campground to top off the Jeep at $3.199/gal.
We returned to the RV around 5:20 and left again with me in the RV and J following in the Jeep.
We went in search of a good boondocking spot near Crazy Jug Point. Tim Snow, the head bat biologist at my recent Pat Photo Tour, had recommended the Crazy Jug area as a nice place to boondock. I used our Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS with some pre-entered waypoints to get us there. Almost as soon as we left, I got quite worried because some roads on the GPS map didn't really exist, and I had planned to take them. I took an alternate route, and we eventually made it back onto the road that I had planned to take. Most of the dirt road was quite suitable for the RV, but then it got narrow and the overhanging tree branches started to become worrisome. Then the road went down a steep hill with loose rock, and J suggested that we stop. At the bottom of the hill there was a small, more or less level, area among some nice ponderosa pines, and I parked the RV there around 7:00. We were practically at Crazy Jug Point, so we left in the Jeep to go check it out.
We reached Crazy Jug Point around 7:15, quite a bit after the 6:55-ish sunset. The view was nice, but neither of us could envision a composition that would be interesting. We were surprised to find an older couple setting up their tent right at the edge of the rim. It was, however, about the only flat spot around.
We returned to the RV around 7:30 and ...
Had dinner around 7:45 of J's sour cream chicken enchiladas and chips and salsa. The enchiladas were the best we've had in a long time!
After dinner, J discovered that she could get online through a weak Verizon National Access signal. I couldn't get online using my USB727 stick, so after a while J lent me her USB760 stick. I was able to get some things done, but the connection was extremely slow and troublesome. It took me about two hours to accomplish what would normally take 15 minutes with a good connection! Really frustrating!
I walked along the main road where we were boondocked. On my way back to the RV, I flushed a Blue Grouse.
I returned to the RV around 9:15 and it was a warm 63°F (17°C) outside. I did some computer work then prepped the RV to move. We left around 10:40 with me in the RV and J in the Jeep.
I went to the East Rim Viewpoint parking lot and started to dump into a pit toilet there using our Flojet Macerator Pump. J drove the Jeep to some potential boondocking spots so she could get GPS coordinates for them. Then she joined me at the East Rim Viewpoint parking lot. We left around 11:30 with J in the Jeep and me following in the RV.
We went to the De Motte Campground around 11:45 to take on water. We had to use a faucet that wasn't designed for loading up an RV with water. The faucet exit didn't have any threads and the outside was slightly tapered, and the faucet handle was spring-loaded so it had to be held open by hand. We used our Water Thief to attach the hose to the faucet, and I used a pipe clamp to tighten it down to prevent leaks. Then I used a bungee cord to keep the faucet open. I still had to hold the Water Thief so it wouldn't get blown off the faucet, but at least the pipe clamp stopped the spray. Next time I think I'll try to fashion something to hold the Water Thief on the faucet too so I don't have to stand there and hold it. I had my normal ham-and-Swiss on rye sandwich while we were there.
Before we left, J had me listen to the Jeep tires because she could hear an odd noise coming from the left rear. I discovered that there was a piece of wire, like a heady-duty coiled spring, stuck in the tire. I showed J, and she wanted me to pull it out. Instead of leaving it in there and just changing the tire like I had planned, I pulled it out and the tire started spewing air. So, now I got to change the tire and we'd have a flat spare. We got underway around 1:00.
We headed west into the Kaibab National Forest and parked the RV around 1:15. We got our computers and left in the Jeep around 1:20.
We headed into Grand Canyon National Park, and shortly after we went through the entrance station, I realized that I had left my computer in the RV. :(
We went to the General Store at the campground around 1:50 so J could go online through their Wi-Fi signal and list some items on eBay. I relaxed on the porch and cleaned up my log on my Palm Treo 755p. I borrowed J's laptop for a few minutes to do a few things online, then we left around 4:35.
We went to the North Rim Country Store, just north of the De Motte Campground to top off the Jeep at $3.199/gal.
We returned to the RV around 5:20 and left again with me in the RV and J following in the Jeep.
We went in search of a good boondocking spot near Crazy Jug Point. Tim Snow, the head bat biologist at my recent Pat Photo Tour, had recommended the Crazy Jug area as a nice place to boondock. I used our Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS with some pre-entered waypoints to get us there. Almost as soon as we left, I got quite worried because some roads on the GPS map didn't really exist, and I had planned to take them. I took an alternate route, and we eventually made it back onto the road that I had planned to take. Most of the dirt road was quite suitable for the RV, but then it got narrow and the overhanging tree branches started to become worrisome. Then the road went down a steep hill with loose rock, and J suggested that we stop. At the bottom of the hill there was a small, more or less level, area among some nice ponderosa pines, and I parked the RV there around 7:00. We were practically at Crazy Jug Point, so we left in the Jeep to go check it out.
We reached Crazy Jug Point around 7:15, quite a bit after the 6:55-ish sunset. The view was nice, but neither of us could envision a composition that would be interesting. We were surprised to find an older couple setting up their tent right at the edge of the rim. It was, however, about the only flat spot around.
We returned to the RV around 7:30 and ...
Had dinner around 7:45 of J's sour cream chicken enchiladas and chips and salsa. The enchiladas were the best we've had in a long time!
After dinner, J discovered that she could get online through a weak Verizon National Access signal. I couldn't get online using my USB727 stick, so after a while J lent me her USB760 stick. I was able to get some things done, but the connection was extremely slow and troublesome. It took me about two hours to accomplish what would normally take 15 minutes with a good connection! Really frustrating!