Yesterday and today I could not get the app Libby to connect to the Seattle Public Library system. The app kept saying I needed to verify my card by entering my PIN number but after doing that I got a response the system was busy. So used my search engine to look for chatter about that issue. Turns out that when library IT admins went to do an upgrade to the system they got hacked with a ransom ware attack! So no new Ebooks or audio books from my home base library source for now. Fortunately I do have a couple of books I have not yet finished as well as an account with a different library and also several other options for free books and videos. Redundancy is very good to have for these situations!
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I was looking online for various resources for a “cooling station” location where I could just hang out in an air conditioned space for several hours in the hottest part of the day without needing to buy food or beverag s. It turns out that inside the Grand Canyon National Park there is a good sized Community Recreation Center building that even has a computer stations area as well as longing areas. It is close to the school district building. The Grand Canyon is a large enough park to have year around neighborhoods of housing for employees and their families as well as on site public schools and a medical clinic too. I knew about the schools because I have had to slow down for school zones in the spring and fall months when I visit the National Park.
Wednesday is the 1st day of the 3 day excessive heat warnings of lower 90 degrees weather. Tomorrow I will be checking out that recreation center facility to see if I can take along my older laptop, sit at a desk or table, plug in and then attempt to start designing some new miniature cardstock buildings to sell online. But it will also be my go into the park for laundry and a shower time, plus fill water jugs up time, before I go do any other activities.
I am camped close enough to the park entrance that I use very little fuel to drive into those facilities. It is very odd this week. There are very few people camping along this road except on the weekend. It looks like most of the full time nomads have headed on north to Utah and Colorado. Maybe because the fuel prices are lower this year so travel cost less? I have a friend I was just camping with who has gone to check out some Arizona high elevation camping east in the Sitgreaves National Forest. If she finds a good location I might head in that direction for part of the summer. It is supposedly around 8,300 feet elevation. I am pretty burned out on camping near Flagstaff but I will rotate next to camp near Flagstaff to get a few Amazon packages sent to a hub counter there.
Wednesday is the 1st day of the 3 day excessive heat warnings of lower 90 degrees weather. Tomorrow I will be checking out that recreation center facility to see if I can take along my older laptop, sit at a desk or table, plug in and then attempt to start designing some new miniature cardstock buildings to sell online. But it will also be my go into the park for laundry and a shower time, plus fill water jugs up time, before I go do any other activities.
I am camped close enough to the park entrance that I use very little fuel to drive into those facilities. It is very odd this week. There are very few people camping along this road except on the weekend. It looks like most of the full time nomads have headed on north to Utah and Colorado. Maybe because the fuel prices are lower this year so travel cost less? I have a friend I was just camping with who has gone to check out some Arizona high elevation camping east in the Sitgreaves National Forest. If she finds a good location I might head in that direction for part of the summer. It is supposedly around 8,300 feet elevation. I am pretty burned out on camping near Flagstaff but I will rotate next to camp near Flagstaff to get a few Amazon packages sent to a hub counter there.
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Apache-Sitgreaves is one of the most beautiful areas I've ever camped in. With your appreciation of Ponderosas, I think you'd like it very much, and you have the experience and skills to truly enjoy it. (You know to be aware of restricted areas adjacent to the National Forest, remain alert to fire risk, and plan ahead for provisions, for instance.) Alpine has a nice library. Hoyer NFS campground near Greer (relatively busier area) has showers. Lake Lymon State Park has amazing Petroglyphs. Wouldn't take a trailer down the Coronado Trail (LOL), but lovely drives abound.
In my lifetime, I have felt literally "pulled" to certain areas. That is one of them, and was the actual intended destination when we made our side trip to the Grand Canyon a few years ago.
Need to pack. This is killing me. (Probably the last night with storms here, then the heat will be back for good.)
Heads up alert for anyone camping in the CoconinoNational Forest. On June 6, 2024 stage 1 fire restrictions begin. This restriction is very much normal to see put into place in the month of June as the temperature is rising and the monsoon rains have not yet begun. Be aware you may also get visited by a ranger giving you updated information about that restriction. Not at all unusual for them to drop by and make sure you know not to light campfires, etc. Tidy up your camp, if you have any firewood lying around outside put it out of site. Remember rangers are always appreciative of tidy campsites that do not look like someone has settled in to live there.
Finding campsites that work for me is not all that easy as my small self employment business means I need a cell signal and relatively easy access to an outgoing USPS mail box. One reason I like this current campsite is I have super quick and easy access to one of the blue USPS mailboxes in front of the General store in Tusayan. The Verizon signal is great and speedy at my campsite but awful in the town due to overcrowding on the tower. It is also not very good inside the park.
Time for me to begin sorting, cleaning and packing things away for moving to a new campsite early in the morning on Monday or Tuesday . In this heatwave I will not be able to work on these camp chore task except in the early morning or after sunset when the heat is gone. I prefer to tow my trailer in the very early morning when it is still cool as I will going up in elevation over a mountain pass to return to the Flagstaff area. Heading to the Flagstaff area because I have run out of shipping labels that are for me only affordable by buying through Amazon. I have added printer ink and also a stainless steel flip down cup holder to my Amazon order. There are other supplies I need to get shipped to me that cannot be ordered using a general delivery address. I cannot make either Amazon or street address deliveries happen in Tusayan AZ or in Williams AZ. So I will need to use the UPS store address in Flagstaff. Sometimes heading to camping near a small city versus a small town is what I logistically need to do but overall I much prefer camping near the smaller towns versus dealing with the city street traffic or freeways.
I will take the “backroad” scenic hwy 180 route from the Grand Canyon over to Flagstaff. That way I can see if there are any easy access campsites on FS 222 and FS 222b open. If not then I will need to camp on FS 171 or FS 222 accessed from Bellemont. It will be getting crowded at this time of year but maybe the heatwave will have sent a lot of Nomads on into Colorado.
I will take the “backroad” scenic hwy 180 route from the Grand Canyon over to Flagstaff. That way I can see if there are any easy access campsites on FS 222 and FS 222b open. If not then I will need to camp on FS 171 or FS 222 accessed from Bellemont. It will be getting crowded at this time of year but maybe the heatwave will have sent a lot of Nomads on into Colorado.
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Morgana
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Between the crazy gringo do-gooders, the charming Mexican slackers, and their little power struggle, I swear it's like having two alcoholic parents, and one of them is a committee.
I drove all the way down there, was supposed to finally have the talk with the shelter manager about what he wants me to do long term, and after 2.75 hours (11:45) he was still a no-show and I had run out of things to do and was too embarrassed to stick around any longer.
So far I've scored four friendship bracelets though. And I get my revenge. Whenever the little kids say "Can we make slime?" I say "sure!"
I drove all the way down there, was supposed to finally have the talk with the shelter manager about what he wants me to do long term, and after 2.75 hours (11:45) he was still a no-show and I had run out of things to do and was too embarrassed to stick around any longer.
So far I've scored four friendship bracelets though. And I get my revenge. Whenever the little kids say "Can we make slime?" I say "sure!"
Looks like my choice of places to camp near Flagstaff just got changed to one fewer option.. Bellemont is now off the list. I subscribe to the Coconino National Forest Service Facebook page as it is a handy way for me to get updates about that area. This morning shows a wildfire has started to the South of hwy 40. It is close enough to have the potential for the wind to carry the smoke into the dispersed camping by Bellemont. The photo was taken in the morning before the winds start increasing. The fire is on the Camp Navajo land but the area just to the north across an interstate 40 where there is an RV and camping tiny house Village is under a Get Set to Go order. Meaning get ready to evacuate. To get to the Bellemont NFS dispersed camping the road goes right past that camping Village.
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Ninety-eight degrees here today, but I was wrong about the end of the storms for the season. Looks like some will be here again toward the end of the weekend. The good news: it will be cooler.
Thanks. I have camped on 222 in years past but last year Verizon sold off their tower in that area so I could not get a reliable signal. I have purchased a tablet that uses AT&T to owners but have not yet activated a cheap plan to use on it. Bellemont is a better option and hopefully the Wild Fire will be contained by Tuesday, the National Forest Service is now overseeing the fire management out of mutual aid with various groups participating in the fire fighting even though the fire is not on NFS lands.
"Mail Delivery" - Just curious why you couldn't use "Parks In The Pines General Store" (& Postal Annex) for that? They're conveniently located on Old Rt 66, near Bellemont. My recollection is that they handle mail, and packages for you there.
(12963 E Old Rt 66, Parks, AZ 86018) Ph (928)635-4741
If I went to Parks the only reason to go there would be to pickup mail.
The reasons people do things a certain way are not always obvious in postings. For instance you have no visibility for my current to-do list. When I go into Flagstaff this coming week I will be picking up those packages as well as running other errands on my to-do list. That means going to Flagstaff worked best as the place to have my orders sent.
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Morgana
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First Dog on the Moon gives advice on how to read books.
https://firstdogonthemoon.com.au/cartoons/2024/04/26/how-to-read-books/
I loved #6, that is so me. I will literally be so sleepy I drop the book on my face, then I turn off the light and boing!
https://firstdogonthemoon.com.au/cartoons/2024/04/26/how-to-read-books/
I loved #6, that is so me. I will literally be so sleepy I drop the book on my face, then I turn off the light and boing!
Last month I bought a portable, rechargeable Bluetooth speaker on Amazon. It had lots of very good ratings. But right out of the box no sound came out of the speaker so I returned it and declined to have it replaced as I was moving camp to an area where there is no Amazon locker or way to receive a package from Amazon. Today, because I was still on the list of purchasers of the item, I received a recall notice that the lithium battery in the unit might cause a fire! It is a good thing I opted to get a refund and return it. Looks like the speaker was not the only manufacturing mess up in that factory!
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Morgana
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Saguaro cactus with nurse tree (palo verde, I think). Gives the seedlings a protected place to get their start. Sometimes when the cactus grows up it kills the nurse plant, and sometimes they both thrive and look like they were arranged by some crazy florist.
Buds on an organ pipe cactus. I think they eventually fall off and start a new plant?
Buds on an organ pipe cactus. I think they eventually fall off and start a new plant?
One more hot afternoon by the Grand Canyon before i head to the Flagstaff area camping in the early morning. My incentive to move is I have some packages that has to be picked up at an Amazon locker tomorrow in Flagstaff.
I will have to figure out a way to force myself to do the hitching up chore iat around sunset when it is cooler but before it gets dark.
One of the reasons people do not come to this South Rim Grand Canyon area is the cost of gas. But in two weeks I have used very little fuel as everthing I need to do for errand or sightseeing is very close to my campsite.
I will have to figure out a way to force myself to do the hitching up chore iat around sunset when it is cooler but before it gets dark.
One of the reasons people do not come to this South Rim Grand Canyon area is the cost of gas. But in two weeks I have used very little fuel as everthing I need to do for errand or sightseeing is very close to my campsite.
I did not get my move on as early in
The morning as I wanted but things still worked OK. When I reached the area where the Kaibab Plateau starts transitioning into climbing up into the San Francisco Peaks the sky had clouded over and the temperature dropped on down so I was comfortable without having the windows wide open. Just running the fan with air coming out of the dash was good enough for comfort.
I have a friend camped nearby here at Bellemont, not camped adjacent but he walks his dog over this direction most days. I snagged a spot that is likely going to work for me. I won’t know for sure until hopefully the sun come out tomorrow. There are no shadows being cast today, it is all just a uniform grey color. I leveled out my trailer as good as I can without unhitching. This being a forested area I need to see how efficient the sun on my solar panel is in the morning. Just a few feet one direction or another can make a big difference in good solar input.
I took Arizona Hwy 180 from Grand Canyon Junction to Flagstaff. It is such a pretty drive and no major traffic on it. Very relaxing versus taking Interstate 40 with all the big semi tractor trailers and people traveling at 75mph. Hwy 180 enters directly into the NW corner of Flagstaff and my deadline for going into town was picking up a package at the Amazon Locker plus a package at the UPS store.
I will get back to Flagstaff pretty soon for doing laundry, getting a few groceries and having a new battery put into my cell phone.
I met up for a short visit with my friend before I drove into my own campsite. He asked me if time lately seemed to be passing fast or slow. For him it’s has felt like time is going very slowly. I replied it just seems normal, not fast or slow. But thinking about it as I am in my mid 70s now I think that as long as I am reasonably healthy I would overall want time to move at a snails pace, except for those times there is very uncomfortable weather. But I would rather those move on by quickly than having time moving quickly
The morning as I wanted but things still worked OK. When I reached the area where the Kaibab Plateau starts transitioning into climbing up into the San Francisco Peaks the sky had clouded over and the temperature dropped on down so I was comfortable without having the windows wide open. Just running the fan with air coming out of the dash was good enough for comfort.
I have a friend camped nearby here at Bellemont, not camped adjacent but he walks his dog over this direction most days. I snagged a spot that is likely going to work for me. I won’t know for sure until hopefully the sun come out tomorrow. There are no shadows being cast today, it is all just a uniform grey color. I leveled out my trailer as good as I can without unhitching. This being a forested area I need to see how efficient the sun on my solar panel is in the morning. Just a few feet one direction or another can make a big difference in good solar input.
I took Arizona Hwy 180 from Grand Canyon Junction to Flagstaff. It is such a pretty drive and no major traffic on it. Very relaxing versus taking Interstate 40 with all the big semi tractor trailers and people traveling at 75mph. Hwy 180 enters directly into the NW corner of Flagstaff and my deadline for going into town was picking up a package at the Amazon Locker plus a package at the UPS store.
I will get back to Flagstaff pretty soon for doing laundry, getting a few groceries and having a new battery put into my cell phone.
I met up for a short visit with my friend before I drove into my own campsite. He asked me if time lately seemed to be passing fast or slow. For him it’s has felt like time is going very slowly. I replied it just seems normal, not fast or slow. But thinking about it as I am in my mid 70s now I think that as long as I am reasonably healthy I would overall want time to move at a snails pace, except for those times there is very uncomfortable weather. But I would rather those move on by quickly than having time moving quickly
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Morgana
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Southern Arizona ... I keep hearing a noise that sounds like a woodpecker trying really hard to peck on something metal. Could that really be? I've never heard that sound in other places with woodpeckers. Wouldn't they hurt their little beaks and stop? Whatever it is just took a crack at my air conditioner. It didn't stay long but I've heard this go on for quite a while other times ...
