BOONDOCKING

Having a quality water source when boondocking is a key factor in having an enjoyable experience while “roughing” it. We put together a simple water transport system. It will ride on our small utility trailer. Here is a look.

The power comes from a jumpstart battery pack. Next is a closer look at the pump and power supply.

The pump and jumper pack travel with us, but, the tank stays home, until needed for extended lake trips. Here is a short video of the system in operation.

Boondocking water tank, pump and power supply

I was a bit surprised at it’s volume and quietness !

WORMS

It is pretty handy, when you are camped out in your favorite lakeside boondocking site, to have a place to dig fishing worms. Well, actually we don’t dig them, we call them up with a chainsaw ! Yeah, that’s a over simplification. What actually happens is that we set the running chainsaw on the ground and the vibrating makes the worms come to the surface.

This year will be different though. Feral hogs have rooted up the worm bed and eaten the worms. Here is a look.

Don’t ya’ just hate it when an invasive species destroys what mother nature has provided.  .  .  .  .  . The long time campers there at Big Fir would save a few scraps from vegetables that they prepared for a meal and mix it in with the leaf mulch that covered the worm bed. It was their way to keep the worm population robust and fit in well with the idea of giving something back to Mother Earth.

There is four and a half miles of gravel road  to get out to our campsite. The good news is that the road has been flagged and staked, for gravel to be spread over much of it.

The forestry commission has done controlled burns nearby which will help with insects this Summer.

The burn seems complete and a soaking rain is forecast for tomorrow, so the smoke and burnt smell will be mostly gone after that.

BURN

Drove over to the lake to see if any one was camping out over there yet.

On the way over we saw a very large controlled burn that was nearing completion.

The wind was light and variable. Sail boats were sailing and bass boats were a’ bassin’.

The lake level was coming up to it’s normal Spring time level.

The Corps of Engineers contractor has the trash cans put out, and all it needs is for us to be parked right there !

PUMP

By adding two brass fittings to an old used water pump that we repaired and carry as a spare, we are making a transfer pump. Here is a look at the “stuff” we will need.

The pump is at the top center, with the brass fittings to the left and right. At the bottom is a short hose that many of us use to hook up a water filter to our trailer supply. The brass adapter fittings make it possible to hook a water hose to the pump’s 1/2 inch NPT input and output’s. These came from Ace Hardware. Here is a look at them, both in and out of the package.

  

Click any photo for larger view.

When the brass fittings are on the pump, all it will need is a couple of hoses that we all seem to carry, and a power supply for the pump. Here is a look at the jumper pack power supply.

The two wires are hooked to the battery clips and is turned on and off by the switch on the front. All of this will hook to a water supply in order to transfer water to a Rv. In this case a water barrel. Here is a look.

This tank does not travel with us, but is used during extended boondocking at local lakes. To put the pump in service as a emergency replacement part, we will just remove the two brass fittings.

REPAIRS

As we gear up to go to the lake for our annual jug fishing trip, one of the things that we check is the condition of our fishing tackle. Read that as “lookin’ over our jugs”.

You might note the lawn chair, well, it gets better than that ! What you can’t see is that it is in the sunshine and my cup of coffee is just out of sight behind the tackle box.

Replacing some hooks,

some line,

as well as some sinkers. Then there is the mandatory identification number on each jug, applied with a paint stick each year.

This tackle is classified by AGFC as unlimited class tackle. The line is rated at 750 pound test and is braided nylon.

Whew ! It has been a rough morning, it may call for a nap, so I’ll be rested up for lunch !

SORTING

A spanking cold breeze gusts and I am behind the boat, out of the wind. As Spring nears, I am sorting my way through the tackle box, to see what I will need from the local tackle shop. 

The rechargeable vacuum makes quick work of removing  small debris from the corners of the cockpit.

Gear lockers always seem to gather “extra” stuff and ropes are always needing untangled.

Next will come checking and repair of the jugs.

TERRORIST ?

Traitor Hanoi Jane Fonda was in North Vietnam, Betraying America’s Service Member’s, while I was serving America with Honor and Dignity. She was never pardoned or prosecuted.

Now, the Department of Homeland Security says that I might be a domestic terrorist, because of my service to America.  That caused me to take a long look in the mirror.

After my retirement from serving the public for many years, I seem to be cutting my hair less often, shaving less, and wearing those old worn and comfortable camo shirts more often.

Moving around America’s Heartland in a Nomadic lifestyle, is something that our government has trouble coming to grips with. And, we all know that our government deems things they don’t understand as suspicious, so  .  .  .

Hey listen, is that the whirr of a drone that I hear ?

He, he, it is twelve days until Spring and I am sorting my fishing gear.

Someone else can worry about them drones ! I am going fishing !

SHOW

The Daytona 500 and the Hot Springs RV and Boat Show are on the same weekend. The 500 is on Sunday  so we went to the Rv show on Friday, the opening day at the Hot Springs Convention center. This is pretty much a annual event for us. We like to see what new stuff the manufacturers have coming up. The old Mexico size shopping bags at the Camping World display was just the thing to tote all of our plunder around.

 

There was so much to see and do that we didn’t get around to it all. However we got a good look at a automatic hydraulic leveling system that we liked.

A couple of the freebies that we liked were the US Corps of Engineers waterproof cell phone cases, and the Direct TV notebook with ball point pen.

Our Lake Bag was full of reading material about RV’s and systems that caught our eye. We did see a 5er design that had a bath and a half, with the largest front fifth wheel bath that we’ve ever seen. With a shower that a full grown man could turn around in, and it had a His and Hers sink and mirror !

Mints, candy bars, suckers and ball point pens abounded, but nothing could keep us away from the fudge man’s display. Fudge was the only thing that we bought at the show. Betty says that I’m a cheap date !