Completing Projects in Preparation For Going South and Cold Surprise.

Our Location today is McGregor, Ontario, Canada. 

After having a productive day yesterday and a small nightcap in celebration when it came time to go to bed last night the furthest thing on my mind was another restless night. As soon as I’d lay staring at the ceiling for a half hour I became desperate for some quality sleep. Using a flashlight that was nearly dead I found the bottle of Night-All sleep aid in the medicine cabinet. Going back to bed I only remember turning over once to see sunlight leaking around the window shade and the clock that said it was nearly 8:00 in the morning. Minutes later the blinds were up and breakfast was being made. As soon as the Water Kettle clicked Kathy was up and on her way to the kitchen. 

With that cold North Wind it's nicer to stay inside.

Being the outside temperature was at a cool 43 F (6 C) I took the time to do my morning reading before going out at 9:30. The first thing I needed to do was bring the trash to the Park Trash and Recycle Area. Along the way I ran into our friend Rob from Sun Parlour Trailer who was there to move an old travel trailer that had been at this location for the last twenty years. We only spoke briefly because the cold north wind was chilling us to the bone. As I walked further I noticed Rick one of Rob’s employees busy winterizing other units in the park. 

Back at the trailer I found Kathy making phone calls in order to get things wrapped up before next week. I proceeded to find my coveralls along with a heavy sweater in an attempt to avoid freezing while working outside.  

Using the picnic table as a workbench to assemble the
Bicycle Carrier. The little red box is a DC Welding Machine.

My first intention was to trouble shoot the problem with the controls to the Inverters that we’d recently installed in the basement but with the strong cold wind I thought that working on something else that would not cause heat loss in the trailer might be a better option. That’s when I realized that today would be perfect for building the Bicycle Carrier for the rear of the trailer. I’d drilled all the holes the other day so it was time to put it together. 

Chicken Noodle Soup, Chicken Sandwich, Hot Chocolate
and Home Made Chunky Apple Sauce for lunch.

I’d gotten the arm-supports fabricated and cleaned then clamped to the wheel troughs by 12:30 when Kathy called me for lunch. Kathy had completed a few of the things she needed but was still researching other variables. Normally she gives family members an Itinerary of our travels including a time-line. This trip will be different in the sense that she can give them our locations but the time-line will change according to how the weather affects our travels and how long we’ll remain at each location. 

Kathy cleaning our lunch dishes.

I would spend the remainder of the afternoon assembling the Bicycle Carrier as well as the Mounting Brackets that will fasten it to the rear bumper. Kathy came out just after 5:30 to ask when I wanted supper. With only a bit to finish the welding I suggested another hour. I surprised myself by finishing much quicker. 

About to weld the arm supports to the wheel troughs.
finished product will be a Bicycle Carrier.

Then came a surprise we weren’t expecting. When Kathy went to turn on the stove to cook supper there was no propane. I switched the control valve over but still nothing. After closing up shop I went in just on time to hear the weather guesser saying we were going to get frost tonight. 

Doing a little grinding on the grass.
Less marks on the table and cement.

It didn’t take long to get the tanks out of their tray and put in the back of the truck. Since we didn’t know where we could get these tanks filled this late in the evening we headed for Windsor. Many places we saw that had signs for propane were the Twenty-Pound exchange only. Remembering the Pioneer station on Walker Road used to have a Propane Pump we headed there. Since they recently rebuilt the station they removed their Propane Pump.  

The Pioneer station on Jefferson had a Propane Pump the last time we were there but when we arrived the place was also closed for reconstruction so again no Propane. Driving just a bit further to the east end Canadian Tire store on Tecumseh Road they have a Propane Pump. First you have to go inside and pay for it at any of the Cashiers who give you a card for each tank you need filled. You then go outside and ring a bell for a mechanic in the service department to come out to fill your tanks. He takes the cards that show you already paid for the service. Mitchel drew the short straw. 

It was now past 8:00 and we hadn’t had supper so a quick stop at Wendy’s netted us our meal off the Value Menu. We were so tired and hungry that that little bit really filled us up. 

Back Home Kathy found a flashlight so that I could see what I was doing in the dark. Even after installing the now full Propane Tanks the furnace wouldn’t come on and it was getting colder in the trailer. I reverted to turning on our Electric Fireplace to take some of the chill out of the air. We tried increasing the temperature on the Thermostat but it still wouldn’t turn on. We finally shut the system down for a couple of minutes and when we turned it back on we had heat. The trailer is really toasty warm now. 

Even with the cooler temperatures there is still plenty of things we need to get ready before we hit the road next week. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy! 

It’s about time.

Krackers 

A fine line by Mark Twain 

Never put off till tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.