2021 - 2022 Trip To The Southwest, Day 26

 Monday, November 15, 2021 - Rio Grande Village Campground, Big Bend National Park, Big Bend, TX, Day 2 

Welcome to Big Bend

I slept in until almost 9:00. The furnace thermostat was set for 59°F and it came on around 5:00AM. It didn't run all that much - my batteries were still at 94% before breakfast. It did get down to 45°F outside by 6:30AM.

I went for my usual walk before breakfast, taking my notebook and recording information for about 1/3 the sites. I'm sure many are grateful for the many shaded sites, particularly in the summer (although the sun is pretty powerful even now in November) but with the solar panels on the roof, I prefer unshaded sites. I could dig out the portable solar panel, but is is buried deep in the truck bed & the rooftop panels are, of course, there.

I used up 6 amp hours making coffee & microwaving a Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich. Lots of sun, so there should be no problem making up what I used.

For a "Full" campground, there are a large number of empty sites. I suspect they label it full because there are no first come sites - all sites are reserved only through Recreation.gov. Since there is no phone service one can't call from the campground to make a reservation. I'm not sure if there is a 2 day forward limit on reservations at the web site like many federal campgrounds, but the place is pretty empty. Another reason might be because the sites are so inexpensive ($16.00, $8.00 with a pass) that people make reservations, change their plans, and don't bother to cancel the site. There are stickers on most of the site posts that have the reservation info so that is the case for many sites.

I reassembled the power tongue jack switch with the parts I found in the back of the truck & on the ground in front of the trailer, reconnected the wires, and it works! There is no plastic left to house the switch, so it is gaffer's taped to the remains. Hope it will do until I can find a replacement. I'd like a different power jack - the switches are proprietary, and obviously, in a vulnerable location.

I spent the rest of the day sitting outside reading. I didn't feel like a hike - maybe tomorrow.

Since I'm going to try to post this & yesterday's pages this afternoon, I have to announce what will be for dinner - a turkey sandwich and a salad.

Until The Next Internet Connection -