Blog Update - Enjoying Salt Lake and problem solving! April 24, 2014

Since the good news from my Doctor and no additional adverse symptoms since turning the propane off in my trailer, I have been on a mission to solve several issues.

1. Find and solve the propane issue.
2. Find new tires for the trailer
3. Find front spring shackles to lower the front of the truck
4. Plan a fun trip through Utah to head to Bullfrog for the summer


So - First and foremost was to resolve the propane leak? Well I bought a new combination propane/LPG - Carbon Monoxide detector - got that and installed and set about with my trusty spray bottle of soapy water to find the propane leak...to no avail. Went to the local propane store and asked their advice - was admonished by the owner who called me stupid and suggested that I had wasted my time on the dual detector since it is mounted at floor level to detect propane and the carbon monoxide side will never go off since it is typically lighter than air and needs to be at head height. So I went and bought another Carbon Monoxide detector and put it up near the bed, turned on the propane lit the pilot light and left the trailer buttoned up and sure enough in about 6 hours - the alarm sounded. The pilot light on the stove generated enough carbon monoxide to set off the alarm. So turned the pilot light off and now no issues - slept in cold weather with the trailer all buttoned up the past two nights and no issues. So the reality is I was being poisoned by Carbon Monoxide and not propane!! I am really relieved to make this discovery!

Shopped trailer tires until I am blue in the face, but have located a great place who can not only supply decent tires at a fair price but can also lower the truck. However - the rear shackles on the front leaf springs are on permanent back-order from Ford - but on a truck forum I found a supplier and ordered them and they will be here by Saturday, so hopefully can get that done early next week. Truck first then trailer tires!

In my spare time I have been working on a route South to Bullfrog which will encompass a few areas of Southern Utah I have been wanting to explore.

Not sure this will be the exact route but it is a plan.



So here is the rundown!

1. My starting point in Salt Lake City
2. Scipio - great fuel stop, I always stop here for a rest and to top off!
3. Cedar City - will probably overnight here!
4. & 5. Cedar breaks National Monument - have not been here in years!
6. Panguich Lake - will over night here after exploring Cedar breaks!
7. Town of Panguich - just explore on my way on the highway towards Bryce Canyon
8. Town of Tropic - may spend the night here!
9. Escalante - on the fabulous Route RT 12 this will be an all day trip with plenty of stops for photos
10. Boulder - on RT 12 more exploring.
11. Torrey - on the route to number 12 which is an RV Park where I will overnight
12. Thousand Lakes V Park - overnight
13. Goblin Valley State Park - will arrive here after exploring Capital Reef NP from Torrey! Will spend at least one night in Goblin Valley
14. Bullfrog - after leaving Goblin may stop along the way to Bullfrog depending on the sites to see! Pretty desolate road!


Need to arrive at Bullfrog around the 10th or 11th of May to start work on the 13th!

Should be a great adventure with a ton of pictures. I drove route 12 once before it is known as Utah's Journey through Time Scenic Byway and is an exhilarating drive through some amazing scenery! I have been wanting to do this trip ever since I got the RV.

Stay Tuned for further details!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Easter Sunday 2014 - 4-20-2014 A Day with Friends!

Finally feeling better and thankfully got an invite from some dear friends in Salt Lake for a wonderful Easter Brunch! So off Steve and I went to enjoy the day with friends.

I arrived in Salt Lake last Friday and was feeling great....got parked in the "NO CAMPING" area of my good friends driveway and settled in. All was well, however on Sunday the weather turned cold and I closed the windows on the trailer and fired up the heat...well back to the propane issue again, seems there is still a leak, took me a couple days and a trip to the Doctor on Tuesday...I was prepared to go to the emergency room had a bag packed and everything, figured I was hours away from another stroke...Doc assured me that was not the issue so went back to Steve's and after some serious thinking decided to rule out the propane and turn the propane tank off and sure enough woke up the next day and felt fine, went for my annual sonogram required by the USCG for my license on Friday and passed with flying colors - so now my project before leaving Salt Lake is to find the leak, get new tires for the trailer and maybe get the front of the truck lowered to match the back.

I am very relieved that I was not experiencing another health issue!!

When I pulled in to Salt Lake and my good friends house the first thing I noticed is a sign firmly planted on his garage door which says NO CAMPING!!! After a short gun fight, I got the trailer parked and unhitched!!

Note the yellow sign affixed to the garage door!



Today we went to my good friends daughters house for a first communion party for their grand daughter and I managed to grab a shot of Mom and her new baby boy!!



Then before loading up the pictures - decided a walk with my macro lens in the back yard was in order!

Spring has SPRUNG!!













No real final plans for my trip South to my new job but working on it and will be in Salt Lake for another week or so to get the tires on the trailer, fix the propane leak and a few other errands and visit a few more friends!

The trip South is planned to be an adventure with stops in Capital Reef NP, Cedar Breaks NP, Goblin Valley and Bryce Canyon NP and points in between...so stay tuned for the adventure!

Thanks everyone for the emails and concerns over my health!!!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Blog Update - Traveling 4-8-2014 and 4-9-2014

Well, I finally left 29 Palms RV Resort mid-morning on Tuesday and headed North across the Mojave Desert towards Las Vegas and ultimately one of my favorite places - Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada!

The truck ran fine and pulled the trailer with ease, not quite as easily as I thought it might, but way better than the old truck - mileage was over 9 almost 10 but it was real hilly country and once on the highway I suspect it got quite a bit better, will know more tomorrow as I will be on all interstate highway.

The drive from 29 Palms to Amboy and then on to I-15 is about as boring as can be...it is nothing but desert and nothing, guess that's why they call it the Mojave National Preserve. There is literally about 2 small settlements and no services on rough 2 lane road for several hundred miles.

I did manage a couple shots along the way - in Amboy where I ran on Rt 66 for a few miles!







Valley of Fire was as expected, it is always beautiful and the sky was a perfect blue with some nice clouds to good for picture taking...my goal was to get a good shot of the truck and trailer to use on the blog at the bottom with some nice red rocks in the background, of course I shot some other pictures as well.

These were taken in the campground! Wildflowers are starting to bloom in spite of the drought!





A wonderful Beaver Tail Cactus with numerous blossoms!



I went to bed early last night - internet was sporadic and no TV, so decided to get some rest and have a nice breakfast and take a nice walk in the morning with my coffee. Then I broke camp and took a very leisurely drive through the park stopping at numerous places to walk and explore and take some more pictures...

More Wildflowers!





Then a few shots of the truck and trailer in the Red Rock!







Stay tuned I am now in Mesquite Nevada and will work my way towards Salt Lake City tomorrow, understand there is highway construction between here and Utah, so will be a slow go...not sure where I will stop tomorrow, but traveling through some beautiful country so will take some pics and pull over and sleep when I get tired!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Finally - Getting Ready to Travel!!

I have a very busy few days ahead of me...finally got the rear of the truck lowered and did a hitch-up to make sure everything would work alright - hitched just fine and have plenty of clearance on the truck bed...or at least as much as I need for most travel!

So now comes the planning to leave part! I have altered my trip plans to Salt Lake for a number of reasons, one is finances and the other was some suspected health issues, which seem to be gone now. For a few days I was feeling very bad in the mornings, could not figure it out, but got very concerned - was dizzy, confused and had a very hard time concentrating...I had fear I was leading to another stroke...however when I would spend time out away from the trailer in the fresh air or up at the clubhouse withing about 30 minutes I felt great again...couldn't figure it out?? Then while heating some dinner up the other evening I ran out of propane...my propane usage had gone up considerably. But used the microwave to heat dinner and went to bed. The next morning when for the past several days I had been feeling very bad, however this morning I felt great again...Googled the symptoms for breathing propane and quickly realized I had a propane leak someplace and the reason I was feeling so bad, I was poisoning myself!!

So went down and filled the propane tank and got a small spray bottle of soapy water and traced the propane lines and found two cracked fittings. The fittings were on a line that I ran to attach my outside BBQ Grill. So I disconnected that line, put a plug in and end of leak. I also discovered that my propane leak detector in the RV was not working, tore that apart and found a broken wire...fixed that and have not had any issues at all the past few days since Monday when I made the repairs.

So here is the truck hitched up to the trailer with the lift removed.



Now to get the trailer ready to travel - this is the longest I have ever remained in one place and the trailer is a mess. When it is not moving, things get taken out to use and not put away properly, so it will take a day or so to get everything stowed away properly for the trip. Plus laundry to do and some other maintenance items - like getting things that were in the old truck put away properly in the new truck. It is amazing how much stuff moves around in the trailer when underway.

So today is a laundry day and a few other projects. Right now my plan is to leave on Monday the 7th and drive from here to Fire Valley State Park in Nevada, I love that place, spend a night there and maybe two. One of the reasons I am not leaving before Monday is that park fills almost every weekend, so will miss the crowds by arriving on Monday. Then drive from there to Zions National Park and spend a night or two there. Then from there head straight up to my good friend Steve's house in Salt Lake City and prepare for my Doctors appointment on the 21st...then get ready to head down to Lake Powell for my summer job. More details on that trip when it happens.

Here is my route starting Monday!



In many ways I am anxious to get on the road again, seems as though it has been too long. However, I have had a fantastic winter with great weather a great location and met some wonderful people. Have been invited back to work again doing the same thing next winter and right now that is the plan...so I will be back here in November!

Stay tuned for updates on the road!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Blog Update - Friday was One of those days!!!

Sometimes mans best plans just go to shit...Friday was one of those days for me.

It starts a week or so ago after getting the hitch installed in the new truck and realizing that the truck sits a little too high to provide the clearance for the overhang on the 5th wheel...so it meant taking the 4 inch lift out of the truck...went to a local mechanic and negotiated a price and he gave me a list of parts to get...

Basically needed 4 large U-Bolts for the back axle and two stock shackles for the front springs.

Well the parts arrived on Tuesday and I arranged to have the job completed Friday - so up early and over to the mechanic - they remove the 4 inch extended shackle on the passenger side front spring and quickly realize the part I ordered did not fit...shit - so punt - put it back together and decide to lower the rear anyway which is the most important to clear the 5th wheel...well we take out the two u-bolts on the drivers side and the 4 inch lift block and quickly realize the u-bolts I had as replacements were the same size as the ones we removed,too long with the lift removed...but the whole friggin thing back together and I drive 40 miles Round trip to NAPA and order the correct U-Bolts - nobody lists the shackles I need for the front to the plan is lower the back to travel and do the front later...parts in Tuesday - mechanic again on Wednesday and hopefully I hit the road after that....

Here is the truck showing the 4 inch lift!



While at the mechanics he has two roadrunners he feeds and one showed up!!







With the delay I may stay a few more days through next weekend and head pretty much straight to Salt Lake City...still plan to stop at Fire Valley if I am feeling well, been a little under the weather lately....major wind storm here today and dust storm so bad I had to close the door on the trailer - sand so fine it blows right through the screen door and I have an inch of fine sand dust on everything...PITA!!!

Stay Tuned!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

A story of Friendship! And making plans for my departure!

As I sit in Twentynine Palms CA making plans to leave and head to my good friend Steve Carters house in Salt Lake City for my annual USCG Required doctor's appointment I was reminded of how special Steve and his friendship is when he sent me a link to a YouTube video he created. I have known Steve since 1989 and he has remained a special friend all these years, I am fortunate to have been able to renew that friendship when I started my traveling ways a few years ago.

Steve and I met when I moved from Florida to Salt lake City in 1989, I went to work for a large printing company there, K/P Graphics and Steve was working there at the time, being interested in photography, fishing and music gave us an immediate friendship, little did I know that over 25 years later after neither one of us has worked together for many of those years, our friendship would be stronger than ever before...along with my other good, good friend in Salt Lake City, Lynn Hewitt!

So, after about 16 years apart, I had moved back to Florida in 1994 which was the last time I had seen Steve. I was returning from Alaska via ferry, train, bus and airplane....and needed a stop for a couple days in Salt Lake...I emailed Steve and asked if he could pick me up at 4:00 am at the bus station in Salt Lake City and put me up for a couple nights before my flight to Ohio on my way back to Florida. Yes, you read it right - hadn't seen him in 16 years and asked him to pick my ass up at 4:00 am, you see I had taken a greyhound bus from Kalispell Montana overnight to Salt Lake....well the bus was right on time and so was Steve, that's when you know what a true friend is....

A couple years later I am driving from Florida to Tacoma Washington to pick up my RV and Salt Lake was just a stop along the way, to see Steve and rest before the last leg of my journey. I rested a few days and then went on to Tacoma to pick up my new home.

A month or so later, I was back in Salt Lake dragging my house behind me and Steve officially designated me "The Gypsy"! His driveway has become an unofficial campground on my way North and South every year and this year will be no different.

A couple years ago, I was planning my departure in the RV from Kalispell Montana to Salt Lake and was trying to coordinate the arrival with Steve, he said I am heading to some "Therapy", well I immediately got worried, he is an old fart and I figured he had succumbed to some strange sickness, well I was right, he was needing some fishing therapy...Steve suggested I stop by Dillon and meet him and spend a few days in therapy myself...



So began the first year of our fishing Therapy! I spent a couple days and we fished and was happy that Steve shared his love affair with me....this past year we made a point of scheduling my trip South to coincide with his bi-annual retreat to the Beaverhead...and we fished and drank and shared more memories....

Steve and I only disagree on one thing and that is our choice of computers - he is an "Apple" guy and I am a PC Guy, but our love for graphic design and photography is shared. Steve is a wonderful designer and loves to create "slide show" videos...and they are wonderful and usually involve Montana, from the trains of the old west to fishing.

Before I departed Steve's this past fall, he said, can you give me the original photos you took of me fishing, I said sure, no problem and this is the end result of passing along those photo's.



They say your only meet 5 true life long friends in your life...I am happy to count Steve as one of those 5....his hospitality and travel advice is second to none - he is always a welcome sight. I think that our closeness is because we can fish for 4 or 5 hours and not say more than 3 or 4 words and just enjoy the magic of the outdoors and the silence of the atmosphere and the pleasure of hearing a trout rise without a word needed, we just smile at each other and know that we have been fortunate to have witnessed nature in all of it's glory. Then of course the evening comes and we can share the stories of the day and amaze each other with how much the fish has grown since we carefully released it back in the Beaverhead!

I plan on leaving Twentynine Palms around the 7th or 8th of April and take a leisurely trip from here to Salt Lake enjoying some of the scenery between here and there. I need to be there before the 21st of April for my Dr's appointment.

See you in a few weeks Steve, get the driveway ready!!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

March 16th, 2014 - Making Plans to leave 29 Palms

This past Thursday I got the 5th wheel hitch installed in the new truck, Friday I attempted to hitch it up and sadly the bed rails on the truck do not have enough clearance for the trailer to not hit when towing and turning...so it looks like I will be having the 4 inch lift removed from the truck - ordered the parts yesterday and they should be here mid-week and then I will have it done and hopefully ready to travel.

Had a wonderful St Patricks Day dinner in the clubhouse last night, great dinner and live music! Always a fun time.

So today I started selecting my route to leave and be in Salt Lake City by April 19th or so for a doctors appointment on Monday the 21st. I am planning an exploratory trip of about 8 or 9 days. Time to see some sites and take some pictures. Plan to hit Tecopa Hot Springs, Shoshone CA and part of Death Valley then head for one of my favorite places - Valley of Fire State park in Nevada then a quick stop in Mesquite and another in Zions before the drive up 15 to Salt Lake.



Have some plans also for the trip from Salt Lake to Lake Powell, plan to explore Capital Reef NP and probably hit Goblin Valley and a few other locations before arriving in Lake Powell at Bullfrog. Plan to dry camp a night or two in Goblin and also a night or two in Capital Reef...then take an easy trip and maybe stop along the way to Bullfrog!



This is where I will be this summer!









In the meantime - took a drive through Joshua Tree to get the hitch installed and stopped for a few pics.











Stay tuned as I finish things up here in Twentynine Palms and head for my next adventure!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Summer 2014!! It is gonna be a HOT Summer!!

Well all my paperwork is submitted and accepted for a summer job on Lake Powell...I am excited about spending the summer in the hot desert on a beautiful Lake, always been one of my favorite spots and have wanted to spend more time there, so it looks like I am scheduled to be there about May 15th and leave around the end of September!

I decided a change of scenery was in order for this year...My favorite State to explore is Utah and Montana, so I applied for positions in both of those locations and this opportunity was the first to confirm, besides my bucket list needs some shortening as the years are passing by quickly...nearly 10 years in Alaska and I am aching for some warmer weather and looking at bikinis instead of old fisherman in rubber rain gear!! Plus I will have the opportunity to explore more of Southern Utah!

As with any seasonal job, I will have a number of responsibilities..primarily I will be working the rental houseboat docks and instructing people on their safe operation and moving the boats from the marina to their first location, then return to the marina by small boat or get picked up by other marina staff. I will also spend a fair amount of time on the premium boat which pretty much gets handled by the staff, I am sure I will find out more details when I get there, but I am looking forward to spending some time on this boat - see the video below!


Enjoy a quick look at the boat and some of the scenery I will be exploring! If you really want to enjoy the video hit the full screen squares in the lower right corner of he video screen the ESC to get back here!





I have not finalized my travel plans for leaving Southern California...I have confirmed here that I will be leaving the end of March and plan to explore and travel my way back to Salt Lake City for my annual USCG Doctors appointment then leave time for a leisurely trip from Salt Lake to the job at Lake Powell, there are some areas along the way I want to spend some time in and explore...

Stay tuned for final travel plans and further adventures!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!

Blog Update - Making the truck Mine!

Well, I have had the new truck a little over a week now and it is starting to come together and I am making it mine. I added the bed cover last week and this week a couple other items came in that do more to personalize my truck.

Yesterday my window shades arrived and I installed them, also my stickers arrived and my new GPS Mounts. BTW - If you are having problems with your GPS suction cup mount not holding on to the glass as well as it should, then I can highly recommend replacing the original suction cup mount with one from this company...they make holders for virtually every GPS and the suction cup is much larger and stronger and is actuated by a screw down system that is virtually impossible to break loose!

The company name is: Ram Mounts and their website is HERE

They are a little pricey but very well built and 10 times stronger than any original.

So this first photo is for Ms. Patricia Millhoff...I had a similar sticker on the old truck and she bitched about it for two weeks before she arrived for vacation in the fall of 2012 when we toured Utah...said she didn't want one on her side of the truck, well tough, it was there anyway and now there are two new ones on this truck!



I also got mirror extensions which will be nice when towing!



The window deflectors are something I wanted for the old truck and never got...



Here is the GPS Mount for my handheld!



And the one for my standard car GPS!



I have enough electronics in the truck to hopefully never get lost. I use the handheld as a trip log, since I can download to my computer the route I traveled and better calculate my distance traveled and mileage. And of course it is a back-up in case the other one gets lost!

Several people have asked about the fact it is a stick shift and so far I love it, except with all the power without the trailer it is like driving an old muscle car, which is kind of fun, but I have to be careful, it is fast!



Friday I have a photo trip planned up a nearby canyon in the Park which is supposed to be a great photo spot, we shall see!

Stay Tuned!



Capt. Jim - "The Gypsy"

Traveling and photographing the Southwest and Alaska!