Record-breaking Heat

Fun Fact:  Tucson has never experienced 100-degree weather in March for as long as records have been kept.  We are poised to blast through that record this weekend, along with a bunch of other individual day records next week.

Lance updates:  With a couple of hiccups, my LiFePO4 battery project went well.  I ordered two 100 ah batteries from Amazon.  The Lance has a small battery compartment on each side of the trailer, which needed to be modified in order to accommodate the wider SOK batteries.  The local auto parts store was happy to take the dead lead acid batteries.  I ended up building wood boxes that sit on top of the sliding tray in each of the battery compartments. The sliding tray locks in with a rod and locking outside door, and a strap makes sure that they don't move around.  

I bought an Eco-Worthy LiFe PO4 20 amp charger from Amazon to get both batteries fully charged before installing in the Lance, made sure that the batteries fit into my crude wooden boxes, made sure that the wooden boxes fit nicely inside the battery trays of the Lance, and then still managed to make a mistake raising my blood pressure.

The solar charger in the Lance does not have a way to check on the health of each battery, individually.  It only shows when both batteries are charged to 100%. Fortunately, the SOK batteries come with an app that allows me to monitor the batteries individually by bluetooth.  After everything was installed in the Lance, the app worked perfectly, showing both batteries with full charges.  About a week later, I went out to the trailer and could only find one battery on the app.  My first thought was somebody stole one of my brand new batteries.  A few choice words were muttered.  After confirming that both batteries were physically still in their respective battery compartments, I was at a loss for explaining why the second battery wasn't showing up in the app.  

I took the solar charger off the wall inside the Lance and couldn't find anything wrong.  Then I went to Mr. Google and saw that if one of the SOK batteries isn't being charged for awhile, the built-in operating system shuts itself down into sleep/storage mode.  But why wouldn't both batteries be charging?  The sun was continuing to blast into the solar panels in the Sonoran Desert.  I checked battery one.  Nothing wrong with it.  I checked battery two.  Hmmm, the positive post looks different than the negative post.  A washer had hung up when I tightened everything down and wasn't making contact.  I took the wires off the positive post, straightened the washers, and tightened everything back down again.  Sure enough, the app immediately showed both batteries, and they were both still at 100%.  

We are in the middle of our last three sets of guests.  Even though the Upper Midwest has experienced record-breaking snow and cold this winter, I'm afraid they aren't going to be ready for the triple digit days that have prematurely arrived.  Dave and Ruth spent last weekend here and then spent the week in Joshua Tree after driving there in a rental car.  They return today for this weekend.  I've known Dave since sixth grade, and he has always lived within a mile of the moderating climate effects of Lake Michigan.  He's going to think he's arrived in hell!

Saguaro West National Park

Margaritas on the Patio

Do we have any regrets moving to the hot desert?  Not yet.  The thing is I can still wear a t-shirt and shorts almost every day of the year.  And even though it will reach triple digits in the mid-afternoon, mornings are quite pleasant.  This morning it was 62 degrees and even a little bit chilly when I took Callie outside just before dawn.  By the time that I make morning coffee and sat on the back patio, it was a beautiful morning with the birds singing.  Compare that to Wisconsin where we had weeks when it never rose above 32 degrees or even saw the sun.  

Lance Trailer

Yesterday, I had a mobile rv technician come out to storage to get some work done.  My mechanical abilities are limited, and despite having a friend show me how to service the bearings on the Scamp, I didn't trust myself to do it for the first time on the dual axle Lance.  He looked everything over, and everything looked good-to-go by the time he finished.  Unlike some rv repair places, he was glad to take questions as he worked and showed me what he was doing and why he was doing it.  I've been having problems getting the fridge cooled down, and he figured out right away that there was some previous-owner DIY insulation blocking the hot air from going up and out the vent. He also took a look at the roof and pronounced everything good.  

Before he arrived, I had been working on the propane system, which the previous owner claimed to have never used.  I soon found out the reason why it wasn't being used:  there were several propane leaks under the stovetop that were setting off the alarm.  That would definitely provide a disincentive to also use the propane for the fridge or water heater.  Anyway, I disassembled the various bubbling connections in the line and tightened everything back up again.  

The other problem I was having with the fridge is that the flame was going out overnight.  Well, it turns out that the two conventional lead acid batteries were at the end of their lives and not holding their charge.  Unlike the Scamp fridge, which required no battery to operate on propane, the Lance fridge has a control panel and a battery-operated propane ignition. I've got two 100 AH Lithium batteries arriving tomorrow.  That will be the next project.  I have one 190 watt solar panel on the roof and will probably get a portable panel before we leave for our summer adventures.  

What's the Password?

I pulled up to the Dove Mountain Ritz Carlton guard shack in my dusty 2020 Dodge Ram. The guard came out wearing a frown and carrying a clipboard with a list of approved guests and hired help.  He was pretty sure that I didn't belong.  I rolled down the window and greeted him with a smile.  "Wild Burro Trail," I said.  He looked crestfallen and then motioned us through.  "You two have a good day," he managed.  

The Wild Burro Trailhead is technically on land owned by the Town of Marana Parks and Recreation Department.  The only way to get there is through the property of the Ritz.  We hiked Wild Burro once before, but yesterday we had a more ambitious hike in mind.  Wild Burro is an easy 3 mile trail that mostly follows a flat wash.  We chose the moderate Wild Burro Spur and Alamo Springs Loop, which is about a 6 mile hike, scrambling up and down the Tortolita Mountains.

We started out on the Wild Burro Trail but quickly joined Alamo Springs which gradually ascended to the tallest peaks in the area.  It was a hot day, and we quickly were down to shorts and short-sleeves.  

This is an area frequented by mountain lions, bobcats, javelina, and snakes.  However, the only wildlife we saw that day were plants and birds.

The rocky trail consists mostly of 600 million years or older granite.  Nothing like rock aging to make one feel inconsequential.  

There was no password required to leave the Ritz property.  We did not stop at the bar for a $13 IPA.

Visitor Season Continues

Julia's brother and sister are with us this week.  They've been doing all of the tourist things. Tombstone today, the Desert Museum tomorrow.  

Tonight, they were enjoying the neighborhood pool and hot tub when I got a call from Julia as to what to do about a rattlesnake.  I told them to just leave it alone.  I ran over there to make sure that no one was doing anything foolish, and the snake was moving at a slow slither, eventually through the fence and back into the desert. 

I guess winter must be over here.  Time to wear my headlamp when taking the dog out again at night.

Hugh Norris Trail to Wasson Peak

We made it to the Hugh Norris Trailhead about 7:15 a.m.   The sun was hidden on the other side of the Tucson mountains, but there was enough light to get going. Alltrails suggests that this trail is 9.2 miles with a 2404' elevation gain; however, we made it a little harder than it needed to be 

This trail was recommended to us by a couple that we met while completing the Finger Rock Trail on Mount Lemmon.  It was an excellent recommendation. This trail starts by climbing up well-maintained switchbacks and then along a ridge that climbs and climbs and climbs.

 

For the first hour, we were in the pleasant shade while still being able to see the sunrise off in the distance.  As we climbed higher, conditions became quite windy.  Also, we eventually began seeing wildflowers.  

 

We kept seeing higher and higher peaks as we climbed.  Usually the trail wound around the peaks, but we were left to wonder what might actually be the final peak.  There were a lot of false summits.  Eventually, we made it to the top. There were no higher peaks.

On the way down, I inadvertently got off on our trail toward a different trailhead.  Julia was not a happy hiker.  I tried to tell her that it was an opportunity to explore the Sendero Esperanza Trail (which we were accidentally on), but she was not amused.  We had to backtrack (all uphill) and wound up hiking 11.3 miles with an elevation gain of 2818 feet.  Her mood mostly recovered by the time we reached the car.  A late lunch at our favorite Greek restaurant and a pint of IPA brought her mood back.

Visitor Season

Visitor Season has commenced.  My mother spent a week here in Oro Valley during mid-January.  For 86-years-old, she is doing amazing.  We took her to the Sonoran Desert Museum, Tohono Chul, Whitewater Draw, and Bisbee.  We also fed her more Sonoran Mexican food than she has probably had in her lifetime.  Except for one day of rain on the way back to the airport, we had great weather for her visit.  And no, my Mom is not slamming margaritas, but Julia thought it was quite funny to place a large margarita in front of my non-drinking mother.  Well, it was kinda funny.

We have a couple of weeks without visitors, and then Julia's brother and sister arrive separately in the next wave.  We've been busy during the lull, but I'll save that for another blog post.