I spent Labor day weekend down in KY. It was too hot to do too much. There were a few noteworthy things though. The first is that I never realized that they engraved "replace tire" into the tire. It actually has two levels, the first is replacement tire manager which wears down into replace tire. Not sure why. If the person isn't checking that it is beyond the wear bars, they aren't going to see this. Still amusing though.
As is the way, I encountered a ton of road work. Some of it made no sense. KY for example is reskinning I64. Literally just a skin, this is not even an inch thick. I can't imagine what purpose a layer that thin serves other than making sure that they repave it again soon since there is no chance a layer that thin holds up to the truck traffic that rolls down it.
Since I took the CR-V, I actually got decent sleep on the way up and down, though it was cut short on the way down. I got woken up at 5AM by some doofus setting off his car alarm. You get to see some pretty sunrises though, and the fog lifting out of the hills. The I99 corridor (and northern I79) is quite pretty.
The gas mileage on this trip was not that great; I have come to expect better from the CR-V. That said, I brought it in before the next trip, and they replaced the entire exhaust. It still rumbles and is noisier than it should be, but is definitely better than it was. The car feels like it has more power too, so I wonder if the sensors in the exhaust were doing something bad, though I would have expected them to trip the check engine light if it was bad enough to change how the car was driving.
I don't know if Aunt Boo reads my blog, but her blueberries are delicious. This was a (slightly oversized) smoothie.
One upside of being away, my pets don't realize I am home.
I also got a notice that they recalled my hot tub. Apparently if you run it when the water is low, the pump can light itself on fire. While it probably should have a safety in it, it is built like almost every submerged thing in the last several decades it uses the water it pumps to cool itself. Fortunately for me, I picked up a spare pump (free on Craigslist), so I can turn one in for the recall, get the refund on the hot tub, and still have the tub fully functional as long as I don't run it like a moron. So that is nice. Now if I could only finish the back deck so I can set up the darn thing...
No picture yet since it hasn't arrived at the time of this posting (currently out for delivery), but the new power center is supposed to arrive today. Just in time for the trip. It is a Bluetti AC300. It is expandable to run an entire off-grid structure, if one is willing to pony up the dough anyways. I left my Anker down in KY as a UPS for my sisters, and after melting down a second car charger I was leery of using it in a car camper anyways. This is even bigger than the Jackery though, so it should run my fridge and freezer for a little under a week with no charging at all, I should get over a week if I chain it to the Jackery. All the accessories for it won't arrive in time, but the main unit should.
I leave for the trip probably tomorrow morning at this point. I was originally intending to leave after work today, but I don't think that is going to happen. I haven't actually finished packing yet. The food stuff is packed and ready, I got all that ready last weekend, and I got the backpack stuff all pulled out (laptop, camera, electronics, etc) and they are all charged up, but not packed. The clothes stuff is all pulled out but none of it is actually packed yet; I just did my laundry last night. So I will probably finish up the packing tonight and leave in the morning. I was hoping to have some time in Michigan for the Ford and Ann Arbor museums but might not now. We shall see. The first actual reservation is the ferry on Saturday morning, so if I do all the driving on Thursday (tomorrow) I might be able to visit something on Friday after work (if they are open late enough). Here is the trip itinerary:
17-Thursday- (W) - Drive towards Michigan.
18-Friday (W) - Finish drive. Do stuff in Michigan.
19-Saturday - Drive to Muskegon MI to ferry. Take Ferry to Manitowoc. Visit Wisconsin Maritime Museum then visit Simon’s Specialty cheese shop.
20-Sunday - Drive to Duluth. Visit Jurustic Park on the way.
21-Monday (W) - Visit a lighthouse (Wisconsin point Lighthouse), Aerial Bridge, North Shore scenic drive up to Grand Marais.
22-Tuesday - Breakwater trail. Drive to Voyageurs. Visit International Wolf Center on the way, and maybe Tettugouch.
23-Wednesday - Voyageurs - Scenic drive to Ash river visitor center? Ash river tour? Beaver Pond overlook? Visit Kabetogama Lake Visitor Center. Maybe Hike Blind Ash Trail?
24-Thursday - Voyageurs - Kettle Falls boat tour. Old hotel and damn.
25-Friday - Voyageurs - International Falls, rainy lake visitor center. Life on the lake boat tour, abandoned mines. See if I can get to the Ellsworth Rock Garden not by boat.
26-Saturday - Drive to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Stop at Grand Portage National Monument on the way.
27-Sunday - Theodore Roosevelt National Park - South Unit Visitor Center, scenic loop drive, Buck hill.
28-Monday (W) - Badlands Dinosaur Museum? Hell Creek Fossils? Petrified forest? Painted Canyon Overlook?
29-Tuesday - Theodore Roosevelt National Park. North Unit Visitor Center. Northern Scenic Loop, cannonball concretions, Sperati point.
30-Wednesday - Enchanted Highway. Drive to SD. 1880 town. Delta-09 Minuteman missile silo.
01-Thursday - Scenic ghost town, Sylvan lake state park. Some time available for scenic drives, but not complete them.
02-Friday - Four Mile Old West Town Museum, Jewel Cave (if I can get tickets), Meeker Ranch, Scenic drives in the black hills and Custer park.
03-Saturday - Wind Cave. Black hills cleanup. Drive to Oglalla.
04-Sunday - Oglalla National Grasslands, Toadstool Geological Park.
05-Monday - Fort Robinson State Park, Fur Trader Museum. Valentine Nebraska falls (Fort Niobrara, Smith falls, Big Cedar Falls).
06-Tuesday - Drive back to Wisconsin. Visit Mar’s Cheese Castle if time.
07-Wednesday - Mar’s Cheese Castle. Drive to Mathieson State Park and explore park.
08-Thursday - Mathieson State Park. Drive to Indiana Dunes.
09-Friday - Explore the dunes. Begin drive home.
10-Saturday - Drive home.
11-Sunday - Spare day.
17-Thursday- (W) - Drive towards Michigan.
18-Friday (W) - Finish drive. Do stuff in Michigan.
19-Saturday - Drive to Muskegon MI to ferry. Take Ferry to Manitowoc. Visit Wisconsin Maritime Museum then visit Simon’s Specialty cheese shop.
20-Sunday - Drive to Duluth. Visit Jurustic Park on the way.
21-Monday (W) - Visit a lighthouse (Wisconsin point Lighthouse), Aerial Bridge, North Shore scenic drive up to Grand Marais.
22-Tuesday - Breakwater trail. Drive to Voyageurs. Visit International Wolf Center on the way, and maybe Tettugouch.
23-Wednesday - Voyageurs - Scenic drive to Ash river visitor center? Ash river tour? Beaver Pond overlook? Visit Kabetogama Lake Visitor Center. Maybe Hike Blind Ash Trail?
24-Thursday - Voyageurs - Kettle Falls boat tour. Old hotel and damn.
25-Friday - Voyageurs - International Falls, rainy lake visitor center. Life on the lake boat tour, abandoned mines. See if I can get to the Ellsworth Rock Garden not by boat.
26-Saturday - Drive to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Stop at Grand Portage National Monument on the way.
27-Sunday - Theodore Roosevelt National Park - South Unit Visitor Center, scenic loop drive, Buck hill.
28-Monday (W) - Badlands Dinosaur Museum? Hell Creek Fossils? Petrified forest? Painted Canyon Overlook?
29-Tuesday - Theodore Roosevelt National Park. North Unit Visitor Center. Northern Scenic Loop, cannonball concretions, Sperati point.
30-Wednesday - Enchanted Highway. Drive to SD. 1880 town. Delta-09 Minuteman missile silo.
01-Thursday - Scenic ghost town, Sylvan lake state park. Some time available for scenic drives, but not complete them.
02-Friday - Four Mile Old West Town Museum, Jewel Cave (if I can get tickets), Meeker Ranch, Scenic drives in the black hills and Custer park.
03-Saturday - Wind Cave. Black hills cleanup. Drive to Oglalla.
04-Sunday - Oglalla National Grasslands, Toadstool Geological Park.
05-Monday - Fort Robinson State Park, Fur Trader Museum. Valentine Nebraska falls (Fort Niobrara, Smith falls, Big Cedar Falls).
06-Tuesday - Drive back to Wisconsin. Visit Mar’s Cheese Castle if time.
07-Wednesday - Mar’s Cheese Castle. Drive to Mathieson State Park and explore park.
08-Thursday - Mathieson State Park. Drive to Indiana Dunes.
09-Friday - Explore the dunes. Begin drive home.
10-Saturday - Drive home.
11-Sunday - Spare day.
As you can see, it will be a while before my next post, probably almost a month. I will miss most of fall, it will be in the final stages when I get back. Since I am taking a northern tour though, I will get to see a lot of it on the trip itself. Here in NH, the early ones are changing. 
