Wandering Sagebrush

Jason, congratulations and welcome to this benign cult of enthusiasm!

Tomorrow, November 10th, is the 248th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. Founded in Tun Tavern, Philadelphia in 1775. I hope that my fellow Marines stop to remember all those with whom we served. The following Day, November 11th, is Veterans Day. Please take a moment to honor those who gave their lives in the service of our nation. Semper Fi

I have deep respect for this man and his legacy.

Some years ago, we visited the Custer area and stayed in a commercial CG on the outskirts of Custer City. While there, we had two credit card purchases that seemed somewhat “unusual”, but not enough so that I stopped the process. After we left the area, we received a call from the fraud department of our bank alerting us to a few significant purchases made in England. 😳 We locked that card, requested a new issue, and used cash on the remainder of the trip. I suspect the merchants in England had to eat the loss. It could have been a coincidence that it happened after leaving there, but I don’t know. Don’t let a merchant take your card out of your sight, and don’t allow a merchant to use a device you don’t recognize. The first incident is what occurred at the CG, the second was at a famous tourist attraction. Caveat emptor.

I really like those deck plates. Our Ollie may soon sport a few, including one for the propane doghouse. After all… plagiarism is a sincere form of flattery.

I’m also using this hitch, and after a little over 1000 miles since buying our 2018 Ollie, I haven’t noticed any wear or undue scratches/gouges. This morning, Google News had an article about ball grease that set my worry box in motion. BTW, the article recommended dry graphite to minimize dirt. I’m going to continue to not use a hitch lubricant unless I see something concerning. Am I being overly optimistic? Inquiring minds need to know.

The young mule deer are out. There was one little buck and six does and fawns.

Big? Fritz is only 92 pounds, Ketzel a mere 72. To be honest, it’s tight, really tight. Fritz can’t even turn around between the beds, he backs out.

Here in Oregon, we don’t have a general sales tax, so there’s no advantage to trade in a vehicle or RV. While I enjoy not having a sales tax, I often wonder if we are missing out on revenue from tourists. That’s assuming a sales tax would mean a decrease in state income tax.

I couldn’t resist, one more…

Fritz, Ketzel, and their personal Sherpa who carries their water, treats, and the shotgun in the event we stumble on a Dusky (Blue) grouse. Both dogs are German Wirehair pointers.

People like that are why we can’t have nice things.

If anyone is interested in using a Melita, and making coffee in a thermos, here is the filter holder that works best. They’re about $12-$15 online. They take a #6 filter. We use unbleached filters.

With our Airstream, the simplest method was to just disconnect the trailer leads to the battery negative terminal. If I recall, there were three, the heavy gauge for the trailer, the lead from the solar controller, and the tongue jack. That eliminates all paths for current draw.

The dogs are back in from yard patrol, I’ve got a nice cuppa joe going, and in an hour or so the sun will peek up over the Wallowas. No complaints other than I’m sore from yesterday’s unsuccessful chukar chase.

Counter and storage space is tight, but the black nectar of the Gods is life sustaining. I don’t have a solution for you (we use Melita cone and pour into a Stanley thermos), but I’m interested in seeing the responses. Maybe we’ll find a better way. And… Welcome to the tribe, and congrats on the soon to be new Oliver.

Nope, but I’m following. Thanks for getting the question started.

They’re extremely detailed topographic maps, great for planning exploration of a state. Another atlas is published by DeLorme, but I believe Benchmark is better. For countrywide route planning, I use a free atlas from State Farm Insurance, but would prefer something like the Rand McNally because of the spiral binding. Edit: I just saw the post by @Patriot, and in general really like their guide books.

I can’t answer the “best” question, but I prefer the individual Benchmark Road and Recreation Atlases for each state I intend to visit.

Other than “convenience”, why would anyone trade anything in?

The CO/LP monitor is a DC (12VDC) device. While you’re not going to electrocute yourself, best practice is to not have power on while working on a connection. I recommend you find the fuse/circuit breaker and remove power from the monitor. You could also remove shore power and disconnect the negative battery cable that comes from the trailer to the battery pack.

The following link is to an almost 10 year old tire review by Scott Brady of Expedition Portal. While dated, I think it still has some interesting information.

Superb point! I had not taken that into consideration and now retract my musings.

I truly love this forum, but have to ask the question, is it time for a non Oliver controlled forum? Example gratis, Air Forums…