Original plans called for travel from Rodeo, NM, to Whitewater Draw near McNeal, AZ, to “boondock” for a few days to photograph Sandhills Cranes. However, the dust blowing across the desert, from traveling a lot of gravel roads, and in most of the parking lots has activated my allergies, with the consequential result of not feeling great, i.e. itchy eyes, runny/stuffy nose, and headache. Thus, this Sunday I opted to travel directly to Fort Huachuca, a less dusty environment. The short drive (112 miles) allowed setting up the motorhome just after lunch. With strong internet, a number of photos were posted as were several blog entries (https://dunngone.wordpress.com). Still not feeling well, the rest of the afternoon and evening were used to recover from the allergies, now turning into a winter cold.

I awoke Monday with the intent of traveling to the nearby San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area for hiking and birding, and then to Ramsey Canyon to photograph hummingbirds. However, the wind was howling, with a forecast of continued heavy winds and warm temperatures. I opted to remain in the motorhome, continuing to recover.

Still not feeling well on Monday, I decided Tuesday morning to travel to our winter residence, Palm Creek in Casa Grande, AZ. It would position me to better take care of health issues should the virus progress. The 141-mile drive Tuesday morning was mostly via I-10, through Tucson, and without issues. After checking in and being escorted to the site, the motorhome was partially setup. The potable water was connected, via the water softener, and an external propane tank was connected to the Extend-a-Stay installed a few weeks ago (to save on the exorbitant cost of propane delivered to one’s site. Some of the bays were emptied, though I brought so many toys and so much junk that it’s hard to sort through all of it. The bicycles were unloaded and the bicycle carrier and front tow bar were removed from the toad (old Honda CRV). A quick wash and vacuum partially removed all the dust and grime, though enough remains that it will have to be done again, and again. Tonight, bedtime came early.

With lots of time only hands, I opted to go to the Rodriquez property one more time. I arrived about noon, and it was warmer (55°) than in previous days. The usual suspects were around, including lots of quail. A Broad-billed Hummingbird made its rounds to the feeder about every 15 minutes. A few Scrub Jays also dropped in and a not-often-seen Crissal Thrasher made an appearance.

Mr. Rodriquez walked by to say hello and we conversed for several minutes; nice gentleman!

The evening was spent editing photos, and catching up on email and social media—to the extent that poor internet service allowed. Numerous attempts were made to load blog entries, but no success. Tomorrow is moving day, it was early to bed.

Up very early, a few posts were made to FaceBook, and breakfast was prepared and eaten. Smoked turkey sausage was added to the frijoles and heated, and a tortilla was browned—that was breakfast, and it wasn’t very good! {NOTE: Farts were far and few between, maybe because of the hiking!) The dust in this area is unbelievable; despite an allergy pill each day, my eyes still itch and I sneeze constantly. Some had to have crept into the motorhome via wind, shoes, and clothes. Consequently, the interior of the coach was dusted and vacuumed, and a few windows were cleaned.

Today, the plan was to complete the loop of Paradise Road, Turkey Creek Road, and Mountain Road, stopping at the George Walker House, and then hike the South Fork Trail. Again, it was cold and breezy, though not as windy as yesterday. After studying the birding map, a deviation to Willow Tank was made. I attempted several birds-in-flight photos of Flycatchers feeding.

After a 5.5 mile drive on gravel to Paradise, AZ, the George Walker House birding area was found; it is in a couple’s yard. Ice was still surfacing the creeks in the area. A gentleman greeted me, and began supplementing the bird feed already in the feeders. He was a talker, and talked the entire time, mainly about birds and butterflies. He was interesting, but annulled the peace and quiet. I did pick up a LIFER: Arizona Woodpecker.

The South Fork Trail was an unexpected pleasure. Though birds were few, the scenery was spectacular, and the hiking was on a slightly ascending trail. After the hike at Chiricahua National Monument, the South Fork Trail seemed effortless. And, I carried the small camera and lightweight lens, adding to the pleasurable hike.

Dinner consisted of heated overnight oatmeal and blueberries, and pineapple and cottage cheese. And then, it was off to bed.

Tired from all the hiking and driving yesterday, I was late getting out this morning. Today’s intent was to photograph birds and scenery at the Herb Martyr Picnic Area, the John Hands Picnic Area, Cave Creek Ranch, and the Rodriquez house site. If time permitted, I would drive the Paradise Road to Paradise, bird at the George Walker House, and complete the driving loop to Turkey Creek and the Mountain Road bak to Portal. It was COLD (low 20s) and WINDY (15 mph), though the temperature did rise to the high 30s; the wind however, never ceased blowing!  The first stop was at the Cave Creek Nature Trail trailhead. Birds were observed at the beginning of the short hike, but the wind altered their feeding. It was the same story at the two picnic areas.

Out of desperation, I visited the Cave Creek Ranch where there were scores of birds at the myriad of feeding stations. Regretfully, a Roadrunner kept scaring the birds and I left after an hour or so. From their I returned to the Rodriquez place, and the same species were there as were there on Tuesday afternoon. Nevertheless, a few good shots were made, including a LIFER, a Blue-throated-Mountain-gem Hummingbird.

Back at the motorhome, I cooked a pot of frijoles (pinto beans) that had soaked all day, and downloaded and edited photographs while sipping on a gin and tonic, and was so disappointed in my ability to adequately capture the profound beauty and depth of the hoo doos; some things are not meant to be as I am not a good landscape photographer. Bedtime was at 8 PM

Though not a “bucket list” item, Chiricahua National Monument had been on my list of “want to see” places for a couple of years. After checking the gas gauge for the 2 hour drive over the Chiricahua Mountains, I drove to Rodeo, NM, for gasoline, but no stations were to be found. Oh well, I had just over half a tank and it was only 34 miles. The road was gravel, had countless switchbacks, and hardly traveled; and, it was in good condition. The views were breathtaking, but no pullouts were to be found. A 2-mile section of washboarded road ended the gravel part of the drive on the west side of the mountains. Though there were several paved state highways in the area, no gasoline stations were to be found; the nearest was in Wilcox, AZ, some 40 miles away.

There was no fee for visiting the national monument. A stop at the Visitors Center provided maps and information on photo ops. The first place to visit was Massai Point, and a half mile nature trail where landscapes of hoo doos were in every direction. The hike proved to be more of a walk, though a few birds were flittering about.

Next, I drove to the Echo Canyon Trailhead where a family of Carti Mundi were scurrying around looking for food. I kept seeing a black screen in the camera’s viewfinder, and discovered that the lens cap had not been removed; not off to a good start. By then, the animals had left the area. Switching cameras and lenses, I began the 3.2 mile Echo Canyon Trail hike. Views were overwhelming, and difficult to photograph. The boulder-filled trail wound down though a myriad of switchbacks, small openings in the hoo doos, and then to the canyon floor—tough hike—and there were few people on the trail. I dreaded the hike back up the side of the canyon, especially the boulders and switchbacks. However, there were few switchbacks as the trail hug the canyon wall in a gently ascending route. Finally, back at the car, I wolfed down a couple of sandwiches and a bottle of water before beginning the drive back over the mountains.

Faraway Ranch was the home of Swedish immigrants, Emma and Neil Erickson. Emma Peterson bought a two-room cabin in December of 1886. Originally used as a ranch, it became a dude ranch and is now part of the national monument. It’s located at the entrance (or exit).

The destination for today was Rusty’s RV Ranch near Rodeo, NM, and just across the state line from Portal, AZ, one of the top birding destinations in the US. This has been a target destination of mine for some time. The 200-mile drive went quickly and I arrived at the RV park just after 12 noon. Sitting in the middle of nowhere, it proved to be a really nice RV park, and close to a lot of photo ops. Rusty, the lady proprietor, provided a great description of birding places nearby, already pre-marked on a map. Several were at people’s houses. After checking in and setting up, I emptied the car, readying it for several day trips; the campsite looks like a gypsy compound!

It took a few minutes to sort through the photo equipment, making sure tripods and the monopod were stowed in the car, and the right lenses, filters, and teleconverters were on the right cameras. My first stop was at a residence just inside Arizona. One parks in front, and walks a fairly long path to a small area where there are several feed stations and chairs for bird watchers/photographers. It so reminded me of an all time favorite, Salineno, TX. The number of birds was amazing, with Gambil’s Quail everywhere. One of my favorites, the Pyrrhuloxia (aka Desert Cardinal) provided several good poses. Other species included the Scrub Jay, Cardinal, Curved-billed Thrasher, and Broad-billed Hummingbird.

After the wonderful photo shoot, I traveled the short distance to Portal, AZ, and the Cave Creek Recreation Area within Coronado National Forest.

After setting up the iMac and downloading photos, it was early to bed for tomorrow’s adventures.

We were up early Saturday morning, taking the freezer and refrigerated foods and last minute items like meds and CPAP. The “old” Honda was hooked up to the motorhome, lights tested, and auxiliary brake installed. I departed at 7:10 AM.

The almost 400 mile drive to Coffee Creek RV Resort was uneventful, including navigating through the Dallas and Fort Worth metro area. It was early to bed.

Sunday’s drive of just over 300 miles to Monahans Sandhills State Park again proved uneventful. This 3,840 acre state park is located in the southern Llano Estacado, in Texas’ rich oil/gas-rich Permian Basin. The site I reserved was narrow and un-level—back wheels off the ground—but the price was only $19 and suitable for overnighting.

Monahans Sandhills State Park is noted for the presence of sand dunes up to 70 feet high. Although desert-like, the Monahans Sandhills are not a desert; they are a part of a semi-arid ecosystem with average annual rainfall of 12.3 inches characterized by the presence of both groundwater and relatively nutrient-poor windblown sand. There were several families enjoying the dunes, and many of the camp sites were occupied.

Near sunset, I walked over the dunes making a few photos along the way. As day turned to night, a near full moon rose above the horizon and highlighted a working windmill on the campground.

Another 300-mile drive on Monday took me into the Mountain Time Zone, through the busy city of El Paso, and into New Mexico to White Sands Missile Base where I have RV park privileges as a retired Department of Defense civilian. Plans to tour the facility where the US space program began was thwarted by the strictly enforced policy of “absolutely no photography allowed.” I hunkered down, and listened to an audiobook—a western, of course.

Tomorrow brings a new month, and birding opportunities.

It’s been a while since a blog posting was made; every day is pretty much “Groundhog Day” and then life got in the way. We only see the kids and grandkids via FaceTime, exercise care to mask up and socially distance, and avoid crowds. I go out only to do cardiac rehab necessitate by the episode with arterial heart disease, play golf and pickleball, and visit with friend Dan Olson. Kay has kept busy with her social obligations, women’s golf, pickleball, and occasional grocery shopping; even she has cut back on going out.

I have been busy finishing a few projects, mostly with respect to RVing. If you recall, a list of projects was posted several weeks ago as follows:

• Commode repair for house
• Dishwasher repair for house
• Designing and building briefcase solar system 
• Replace resin in RV water softener 
• Collect and organize tent camping equipment 
• Clean and reorganize RV storage
• Add gutter spout to RV
• Make solar shade for RV windshield
• Make shock cords for RV awning and sunshade

BRIEFCASE SOLAR SYSTEM.  It took several attempts to get the Briefcase Solar System completed, and it is still considered a prototype. It could never have been completed had it not been for the encouragement and advice from longtime friend, Wayne Bodenhamer.

After the trial on Sunday (November 1), it was largely taken apart, and a 4-in-1 combination cigarette lighter socket, dual USB ports socket, voltmeter, and on/off switch panel was installed. A template for cutouts was made, holes were cut on the right side of briefcase, and the panel was fitted into the briefcase.

Next, wiring was performed to include an ON/OFF/ON switch for charging either the briefcase battery bank OR the motorhome battery bank, and a fuse block was incorporated to serve all the components. Everything worked, or so I thought. After talking with Wayne, he advised that the wiring was not of sufficient size, the switch should be immediately removed, and the cigarette lighter receptacle should be wired directly to briefcase battery bank so it could be used to charge the RV battery bank.

It was almost like starting over, but the second time around was much, much faster—and more deliberate. Everything worked like it was supposed to—FINISHED!

“ON THE GO” PORTABLE WATER SOFTENER.  Next, I tackled completion of rehabilitating the On the Go Water Softener. The additional plumbing that was thought was to be a big job proved to be insignificant and was quickly done, remaining parts were collected, and another project was FINISHED.

COLLECT AND ORGANIZE TENT CAMPING EQUIPMENT. An old saying when I was a kid was that “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” It had been my intent to go tent camping this fall, but arterial heart disease got in the way; hope I’m not destined to hell! Nevertheless, all the old and new camping equipment was organized and stowed in large plastic containers; they are still in the garage awaiting disposition. Typically, the two boxes would be stored in the crawl space under the house, but the stale smell infiltrates virtually everything. The containers are too heavy to store in the attic. So, the tent will be stored in the garage closet, the sleeping bag in the house, and the other stuff (mostly plastic and metal) in the crawl space. Life is too complicated.

The remaining projects will be done in the days preparing for the photography trip to southeastern Arizona after Thanksgiving, and during the winter stay in Casa Grande, Arizona.

I was just a wee bit discouraged after yesterday’s (Saturday, October 31) attempt to check out the Briefcase Solar Generator (BSG) minus built-in batteries and combination cigarette lighter socket, dual USB ports socket, voltmeter, and on/off switch panel; in addition, there was major concern as to whether or not MPPT Charge Controller had been “fried” in yesterday’s attempt to charge the Rockpal 250 Portable Solar Generator. Consequently, this morning Anderson connectors were installed on a 5-foot section of twin wires (+ and -), and everything was loaded into the old Honda and driven to the RV storage garage. There, I measured the positive and negative terminals for lug size, and installed lugs on the positive and negative wires. An excellent crimp was made on the wires using an inexpensive combination crimping and stripping tool. And yes, I did remember to put heat shrink tubing on before installing the lugs!

And then, the battery terminal nuts were loosened; of course, one of the hex nuts fell between the batteries and one battery had to be removed to retrieve it. The connecting cables with lugs were installed; the negative wire easily connected to the briefcase via Anderson connector, but the positive refused to cooperate. After much cajoling, it finally connected but the Epever MPPT controller did not work. I tried several times with no luck. It must have been fried in yesterday’s folly. 

So, it was back home and possibly back to square one with the BSG. First, I wanted to try it on the old Honda to see if I had done something wrong in connecting it. However, the Anderson connector contact separated from the housing on the positive cable (poor job of installing). It was reinstalled, correctly this time, and the positive and negative cables were bolted onto the Honda battery terminals, after which the cables were plugged into the briefcase, much easier this time connecting the positive side of the Anderson connectors. THE MPPT CONTROLLER WORKED; it was NOT fried in yesterday’s experiment!

The next text was to determine if a solar panel would connect and operate. The 30-foot cables were connected to the solar panel via MC4 connectors and to the briefcase via Anderson connectors. EVERYTHING WORKED!

After minor heart surgery on October 23, I have been taking it easy—aided and abetted by the cool and rainy weather. 

Kay had a break from her busy schedule of activities, moderated by the rain. She did have lunch and a great visit with lifetime friend, Sue, on Monday, but had to cancel golf Tuesday because of rain. It was the same with Paddle Wheelers Pickleball and happy hour on Wednesday, again because of rain. I spent most of the down time, countless hours in fact, learning how to program the old Canon 5d Mark III full frame camera, a small but complex computer in and of itself. Wednesday was the start of a cardiac rehabilitation program at CHI St. Vincent, Hot Springs, involving about an hour of exercise and stretching. 

Our normal “abnormal” life during this pandemic somewhat returned on Thursday. I played pickleball after lunch, despite a light mist, though sun shone through the clouds several times the last 30 minutes. We did have to squeegee the court before playing to remove the standing water.

Kay played golf with the Ladies’ Winter Golf group on Friday—not a great day for any of them as they played one of Hot Springs Village’s toughest and longest courses, Isabella Santa Maria. Saturday was a nice day to clean out the house basement, aka the “crawl space”; it has become our “go to” storage area. 

I am trying to wrap up remaining projects before leaving for Arizona on Sunday after Thanksgiving. With afternoon sun warming the garage, the “On the Go” water softener was overhauled. It was disassembled, the old resin removed, the tank cleaned and sanitized, new resin added, and new fittings installed.

It was back to the Briefcase Solar System Saturday afternoon, temporarily connecting both the “battery” and solar panel wiring to the charge controller.

For the battery, I tried substituting the Rockpa 250 watt portable solar generator, but it has only worked sporadically the 7 weeks I’ve had it; good use will be made of it but it doesn’t fit the criteria for which it was purchased!

The lugs ordered from Amazon came in, and will be used to build a cable to connect real batteries to the charge controller, perhaps next month, i.e. tomorrow, November 1. A couple additional parts should be in next week including two 15AH batteries which will be incorporated into the briefcase at just over 15 pounds, and a combination cigarette lighter socket, dual USB ports socket, voltmeter, and on/off switch panel to be mounted on the front or side of the briefcase.

By golly, I think this thing is going to work!!!

Happy Halloween, y’all.