Camping preparations

I woke up throughout the night to the sound of thunder, the flash of lightning, and heavy rain that didn't ever last for long. Just a few more degrees to go today for the high of 93.

While it was relatively cool this morning I took my car for service and asked them to check the air filter since I had been driving through all the dust at Lassen. When I paid the bill I was told that since I have "the big one" coming up at 90k, they can let the air filter go now and replace it at the next service. It sounds like they might be replacing a lot of things at the next service - I should take a look at the owner's manual to see what the 90k service will consist of so I won't be surprised.

I ran through the car wash on the way back home, opting for the lowest price ($6) version. I don't see any different between this and a higher priced version - they both leave blobs of dried dust on the rear window and hatch door. There is also dust embedded in the rubber strips around the windows where it meets the glass, but I'm not picky enough to worry about it. Since I will be again driving on National Forest roads tomorrow it will probably get dirty and dusty in no time.

I think I have most everything ready to spend a day to three days in the forest, at least I have enough food and beverages for that length of time. I can try getting by with my propane stove, but I think I'll end up going over this evening to borrow Donald's. Mine took so long to boil water for coffee so there is probably a bad connection. I looked at Coleman stoves yesterday at Walmart and was surprised they wanted in the area of $35 for a one-burner stove. I will wait for a good sale at Campmor, REI or one of those places. Whereas meals used to be an integral part of my camping experience it no longer holds its importance to me. I just want to make excellent coffee to start the day, adding 1/2 and 1/2 of course, and then eating whatever is quickest and easiest to prepare and clean up after for the rest of the day.

I've spent a lot of time lately looking for tent-only campgrounds, but they are few and far between. Mostly everything is combination RV/tent camping, which is a shame because I think most RVers would prefer to camp among RV's, and most tent campers object to the noise from generators as well as the visual space taken up by the RVs. Having been on both sides of the fence I can certainly understand both viewpoints. It's almost impossible to find a tent-only campground, although when you find a tent loop at a campground the sites are usually squeezed in like sardines. For this reason I hope I enjoy the disbursed camping in the National Forest, although there is nothing to prevent other campers from pulling up close. I'm speaking pretty much in generalities here, and I don't want anyone getting upset, but this is pretty much how I see it. There are exceptions, always.

I'm not sure what to expect from this trip except to look and see what is available at a higher elevation within 75-100 miles. At least tomorrow's end point will be off US Freeway 50 which is about a mile from my house so it is much easier to get on the road than having to get over to I-80 or I-5. And of course I hope to escape the intense heat in the Central Valley of CA.