Wednesday, August 10, day 2, Wells State Park, odometer 4594.
ETM
The problems at the Mongaup State Park in NY were that we arrived just as usable daylight disappeared. Setting up new two-man tent was easy until I got to the last step and I was so tired could not figure out how to engage the pole for the vestibule. So I left it on done and roll back the rain fly onto the tent. That was a big mistake. The good news about arriving in the dark is that I used my parking lights on my new LED headlights and I created an the same aura of usuable daylight as 30 minutes before dark so I no longer have to use my headlamp. So my planning is paying off already.
The next problem was that the camp attendant did not tell me that I was camping next to the pump house for the camp. Starting at 3 o'clock a.m. every five minutes the machinery would turn on and and 10 seconds later would end with a big loud clang, like the one you hear when the trash collectors throw the metal cans down to the concrete pavement. I got virtually no sleep whatsoever after 3 o'clock. I was already tired from only six hours of sleep before I left, and I got less than four hours of sleep at Mongaup. Staying in bed until 8 o'clock proved disastrous because heavy rains then set in and the tent inside was flooded with 1/2 inch of water because of the missing rain tarp. Fortunately all my things were elevated off the ground by the mattress and Donner's bed so Little else got wet. What took the biggest hit was my wallet and I had to set out to dry out several hundred dollars worth of cash.
The next problem started on the road, when I discovered that my steering wheel starts to vibrate pretty hard at 65. As I progressed on the day that was reduced to 60 miles an hour. Later I started hearing a flopping sound with every turn of the wheel. This means either that I need new tires, I need to get the wheels aligned or balanced, or that one or more the tires does not have sufficient air in them. While this will not prove fatal to the trip, it is going to delay it somewhere along the line.
The next problem was that my fairly new Nikon camera does not seem to take charge. Somehow I brought along the wrong charging cable for it. This is the problem today with these road trips when you have to take along recharging cables for 12 or 13 different devices. I think I might have taken wrong charging cable for this camera. Fortunately, I have my Casio camera, and the iPad camera also. And there is always the inevitable Walmart along the hiway a every 100 miles of so.
We arrived well State Park at an early 5 PM, and got a great campsite number 20 overlooking the water. Not only is it a great park, but it is five minutes off both 84 and 90, both of which I have to take to get to Acadia.
Donner us slowly adjusting to the trip. When I first took him into the tent at Mongaup State Park, he was startled because he did not know where he was. I'm sure he felt just like Jonah felt when he found himself suddenly inside the belly of the whale. He stayed in the same position all night and did not move once. So far, in the Defender, in the tent, and at the campsites, he is turning out to be a marvelous travel companion. Absolutely marvelous. The joy I feel from rescuing him is magnified every day.
On these trips the indispensable chores for the day are to make sure the Donner gets long morning and evening walks and walks at interesting sites along the road. Everything is brand-new to him. Remember, this dog never saw the country, never heard some of the sounds that his hearing now, never sensed the smells he experiences on every walk, and soon he will see some animals that he has never seen before. I just wish I could tap into mind to find out what is going on in his mind.
Before the trip I bought a foldable brown mesh raised dog bed for Donner because his blue one did not fit into the vehicle just right. But as I was packing, it occurred to me that he liked his blue one so much, and it would remind him of home, I tossed his new brown one back in the apartment and found a place to store his blue on. I am thrilled I did that. My guess is that 90 percent of the photos on this Trip will have Donner in them, and 90 percent of them, his blue bed.
It is his security blanket, and God only knows that this dog, I mean formerly poor dog needs one.
I'm going to cut this short so I can get on the road to Acadia National Park in Maine, 338 miles distant. What I will probably do if the vehicle is still acting up, is camp at Acadia tonight and go to Bangor Maine tomorrow and figure out a solution to the wheel problem before I hit Canada and the wide-open roads. I do not want to have a vehicle problem once we get on the other side of the St. Lawrence.
Photos below include, bottom to top
...Our pulling out of home yesterday
...our camp 20 at Wells State
...Donner resting after dinner
...Donner just plain resting
ETM
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