During the first week of June, we took the camper to Salt Fork State Park for a few days. There is something odd about the park, and it had nothing to do with the Summer Sasquatch trail run held that weekend. Apparently marketing Bigfoot sightings is a priority at Salt Fork State Park.
The Wolf Pup is 9 years old, and the door hinges are messed up.
Campers and RV’s are a challenge because they use hardware and techniques that are not used elsewhere. Getting the right hinges took some effort. It uses a double hinge that attaches to the door and the screen door. Amazon had some generic hinges that may have worked, but brand names are more reliable.
We returned to East Harbor State Park. It wasn’t as good as last year. 2023
The big draw was the sand bars and deserted beaches. This year, I brought three RC cars. The MAXX, Rustler and TRX-4 Land Rover. Lake Erie was higher, and there wasn’t many areas to use them. We thought the lake might get tides, but it wasn’t that.
Looking at Lake Erie water levels, it appears that the water level maxes out in the summer. Last year, we went a month later. Lake Erie water levels are usually down about 10 inches by the third week in October. That doesn’t sound like much, but on a beach with a gradual grade, it makes all the difference.
The weather was perfect, but it was only a weekend trip. I did notice that East Harbor has really good water pressure, so I had a better shower than I get at home. That’s something.
I added two taller jack stands to my load out, and those worked great to turn the camper ramp into an elevated deck. I really like it. Sparky does too. He is reluctant to jump from the ramp deck, but will if there is a compelling reason. Another dog or small animal is enough reason.
The new jump seats and foot stools are really comfortable.
The trip was short, comfortable and unremarkable.
While camping, Pete reminded me of the fire tower, or “Swedish torch”, we had at East Harbor last year. He sent me the video, so I’ll put it here at half-speed.
Spent the weekend at Punderson State Park campground. It was a short trip, with most of the party going to a graduation party, so not much use of the park facilities.
Sparky had to be put in the camper a few times, and watch the fun from the window. He doesn’t like the term, “over-stimulated” because it makes him sound like a spaz. Sparky can be enthusiastic when he sees other dogs. Also, a female dog in our party was kind of rapey, so they’d mix it up. Sparky is never a threat or vicious, but the barking and leash-pulling doesn’t reflect well on either of us.
There were many tent campers in RV spaces. Since tents aren’t pitched on the asphalt for an RV, the occupants feel that any grass is fair game. When I arrived, there was a tent pitched two feet from my camper.
I don’t know what the protocol is or should be, but maybe pitch the tent behind where the RV would be. The tent campers probably arrived mid-week, so the park seemed like their domain. One tent was pitched 10 feet from the door to the restroom.
My neighbors asked if I wanted them to move their tent. It was a pretty elaborate tent, so asking was a nice gesture, but I’m not going to press my land rights. Someone else may have. I did leave my air conditioning on all the time and hope my water pump was irritating to them. That’s passive-aggressive, and I’m not proud of that, but there we are.
One consolation is that it was wicked hot.
A friend’s daughter was graduating from Ohio State, so we decided to make it a camping outing.
The campground at Alum Creek State Park is laid out very well for RV’s. The pads are level, pretty deep and have enough trees between sites that it feels private. The sites had electricity only, but the shower house was nearby and nice enough.
That’s about the best I can say about Alum Creek State Park. Oh, and it’s 15 minutes from IKEA. There was a dog park that was big enough and had a beach access dog park for water dogs.
Alum Creek State Park has water-based fun. There are several boat ramps, so fishing and boating are the big attractions. It’s a state park, so there are hiking trails. I didn’t notice any bike trails.
Red River Valley Campground
Even with WiFi at Madison Campground, once Sparky was settled, there wasn’t much to do, so I went to bed around 9:30. Even though it was 38o F at night, the electric heater kept it warm enough. I woke up around 3:30 am, and didn’t think I’d go back to sleep. On this mission, driving and sleeping were the only productive activities, so I decided to leave for Fargo.
Google says the first leg of the trip is 502 miles and should take less than 8 hours. I’m skeptical.
Prison Salad
After agreeing to go to Fargo to get my nephew Horus, Extraction Part 1, there was much that could go wrong.
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