i have no internet at this camp so this mesage might not go out until Sunday or Monday.
It has been raining since i pulled into this camp last night after 7. It was quite dark and so I took the first open campsite i found, concerned that there might not be others and if i looped around looking for another, someone else might drive up behind me and take that first open one. So much for generosity in a camp on a cold, rainy, dark night. Sometimes, the rules of the jungle apply in campgrounds too.
I surveyed the site as best i could in the dark to make certain i was not setting up the tent in a pool of water, but it was difficult considering the 20 x 20 site had about eight different slopes on it. As it turns out, when i stepped - make that crawled - outside the tent this morning, the only pool of water was right outside ny door. So much for my surveying skills. I spent well over an hour digging canals around the tent, with some success, but i know when i am defeated. I then drove to the office and got a new site for th next three nights. That was not an easy decision since now i had to move everything from one site to the other without anything getting wet, a task that took more than four hours. But we did it, and nothing got wet, even Donner, who happily stayed in the Defender the whole time this time, probably because he could see me.
I was quite exhausted last night, which made matters worse, having only gotten four hours a sleep the night before on that stressful ferry ride and then that 150-mile drive. So i was not surprised that i got 11 solid hours of sleep last night, a record for me. Sleeping inside a tent induces more sleep, and a quite restful sleep at that.
As luck would have jt, when i drove my gear from one campsite to the other, i noticed that i now have directional signal lights. How lucky i feel. That's today. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Very problematic lights. So much for hi-tech. I think they rush these new hi-tech items out the door to beat the competition without thoroughly testing them. Sound familiar these days?
I decided to stay put in the camp today and i am glad i did. Just as i finished setting up the tent in the new site at 4, the rain started to come down in torrents. I quickly fed Donner his dinner, had a cold can of vegetable soup for myself, and sought refuge in the tent where i have remained and will continue to remain until morning. There are few sounds more relaxing than the pitter patter on the tent after the struggle it takes to set it all up, as long as you hear that pitter patter from inside the tent.
This four day layover in Seattle due to thr ferry delay has thrown a monkey wrench in my planning, something i am getting used to on the trip. While i was originally supposed go be arriving home in DC today, before the delay i estimated Nov 20. Now it looks like it will be on or after Thanksgiving, although some might say that i already celebrated one Thanksgiving in Canada, and they would be right. But it really was not my idea of celebrating Thanksgiving, sitting in a cold park eating soup and salad while Donner dined on cottage cheese. It was pleasant, but not my way of celebrating that holiday.
On Monday i will drive back to Lamorna Garage in Seattle for the half dozen things i need them to work on. Since well over 60 percent of the miles I put on the Defender took place on these road trips, i should expect that statistically over 60 percent of the problems should show up on them. But what makes that rule problematic is that i took the road trips over 16 months while i have had the Defender for 276 months, 3 percent of the time.
More tomorrow.
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