Motoring over mountains

Preparing for our road trip, north to Alaska, just took on a higher pitch. Our goal is to be underway this weekend, probably Saturday (6/14/2008). I suspected a battery problem early this spring. I denied it and it seemed to be resolved. Although Volta’s battery tech is nearly a couple hundreds years old, I have yet to master the care and feeding of all the batteries required of modern life. Our central DC source is tonight being stroked back to life in a dingy industrial building in Oxnard. Hope it works.

This is the point where I think that getting on the big planeis a far better idea than our grand plan to drive roundtrip, Santa Barbara to Alaska. Even so, sometime, in the middle of next week, I'll be happy motoring along relatively traffic-free roads bent toward Alaska. I’ll see waterfowl by the thousands, bears by the dozen, eagles in coveys like quail and moose standing shoulder to shoulder in every swamp from the Canadian border to the Kenai Pennisula. So goes the fantasy!

Our road out to public byways is relatively free this year, negating my usual need to cut my way through the brush for the trailer! Thank you Wildlands Residents Association!

Our coach has aged and required more muscle in the cleaning technique to bring its white shiny coat to a luster that will repel the rain expected in the north of the great dry. Fuel-saving (one hopes) truck tires were researched, located and installed. To replace my defective digital air gage, a very long, shiny, cylindrical metal analog air gage was purchased. I am nearly ready.

I calculated the ever-changing cost of diesel against the enormous number of miles and mountains between here and Homer, Alaska. We may be staying if a truce between commodities speculators and drivers world wide is not secured. I’ll send our new address if that’s the case.