We got up around our usual time and I had my normal breakfast. We turned on the generator around 7:45 to give our batteries a boost before the solar-electric panels could start producing sufficient power. I left in the Jeep with D&MR at 8:00.

We went down FS-14, Miller Flat Road, to photograph the aspens in the morning light (below).


We returned to the RVs around 9:50 and I turned off the generator. It probably didn't have to have been running that long, but that gave us a lot more charge in the batteries because J had been running her computer on the power from the generator without tapping into the batteries at all.

J and I went over to D&MR's RV around 9:55 for a second breakfast of cinnamon-raisin toast and Saskatoon jam (mmm) and to visit some more.

We returned to our RV around 12:10 and prepared it to move. I stowed the solar-electric panels and then showed DR the solar charger and inverter in our RV. I hooked up the Jeep to tow while J was taking pictures of D&MR, then we got our pictures taken by DR. All of us left around 12:45 and headed towards Fairview.

I had Clif Bars for lunch while driving. At US-89, we turned south and D&MR turned north.

We went to the Laundromat in Mt. Pleasant around 1:30. J put her laundry in while I took a shower, then I put my laundry in while she took a shower. I called AM Solar to see if our Heliotrope HPV-30DR solar charge controller could be adjusted to output 15.5 VDC so we could use it to perform a conditioning/equalization charge on our house batteries if needed. I left a bunch of information and then Dale called me back. He was very helpful! He indicated that we could probably get the required voltage out of the Heliotrope HPV-30DR solar charge controller and he could email me a picture of what needed to be done to the unit to do so. I started a blog entry after putting my laundry in the dryer. We finished our laundry and continued south on US-89 around 4:05.

We went to the WalMart in Ephraim around 4:25. After I picked out the things I wanted, including a box of six Blueberry Crisp Clif Bars — the first I've seen at WalMart — I went out to the RV and unhooked the Jeep. Because the US Gear Universal Brake system in the Jeep had been making noise while we were parked at the laundromat, I tried starting the Jeep just to make sure J wouldn't have a problem, and the battery was dead. I tried jumping it with our Husky emergency battery, and that didn't get it started either. Then I tried jumping it with the RV chassis battery, and that didn't work initially either. I had to disconnect and reconnect the positive jumper cable clamp on the Jeep battery before it would make good enough contact so I could get the Jeep started. (The positive terminal of the Jeep battery has lots of corrosion.) I parked the Jeep in an official spot, left the engine running, and locked the keys inside so J would be able to leave when she was done shopping. I left in the RV around 5:05.

I went to Palisade State Park, south of Manti, around 5:30. I selected a site with full hookups, then hooked up to electricity around 5:45 to start charging our house batteries. Then I dumped right at our site. J arrived around 6:00 as I was about to increase the size of the air bubble in our hot water heater and then take on fresh water. The new air bubble in the hot water heater really reduces the cycling frequency of the water pump! Now, we can frequently run the water for 5-10 seconds before the pump turns on. Before, the pump would turn on within 2-3 seconds.

We had dinner around 6:45 of a Wanchai Ferry Orange Chicken bag meal that J prepared, and we had brownies with vanilla ice cream for dessert.

After I did the dishes, I started to back up some data then I put away the rest of my laundry. We listened to some music on our Klipsch iFi for the first time since being plugged in in Parker way back around August 22, 2010, and we really enjoyed it. I processed an image for the blog then finished the blog entry.