After breakfast and a discussion, Hubby and I decided the best course of action would be to trailer the horses down to the south end of Hobey Hollow and take another look for a lost boot. Based on my GPS track from yesterday, I plotted out the section that deserved the most attention, and we headed out in the early afternoon. We found the camping area along Forest Road 1 where we had passed yesterday, and got the horses saddled up again. Hubby’s mare Clio had an abrasion on her foot, so neither one of us put boots on, but considering we knew this section was mostly dirt and only a few rocks, we decided it was worth it. As soon as we reached the area where I lost the boot, which thankfully was less than a quarter mile up the trail from that point, I dismounted and started searching along the left side of the trail, which we figured was where it had landed. We also discussed the possibility that Apollo had kicked the boot to the other side of the trail, or deeper into the underbrush, so we looked as thoroughly as we could. I asked Lola to look, too, and she seemed to understand, sniffing in the bushes as well. After a few minutes, Hubby argued we should go further up the trail, but I was convinced I had been diligent in my watchfulness yesterday, and didn’t want to go further until we had completely exhausted that area. In the midst of the discussion, Hubby looked directly down on the right side of the trail and said “Oh, there it is.” Neither one of us could believe it, it was sitting right on the side of the trail, but had turned upside down, and the bottom was covered in dirt that exactly matched the color of the stones, and looked just like a stone! Incredible! Before I picked it up, I asked Lola again to find the boot, and she went almost straight to it, but was afraid to get close enough to pick it up, as it was directly under Clio and she didn’t want to get underfoot (a smart girl!) Bodes well for next time I lose a boot on the trail! All told we only spent about 10 minutes looking before we found it, so we headed back and loaded up the trailer again. I had some internet work to do, so we drove up to the State Park Lodge and piggybacked on their wi-fi for awhile, answering email and getting some other logistics done. It took longer than I had hoped, almost an hour before we headed back to camp. No worries, the horses and dogs and Hubby all took a little nap. Got back to camp, happy that my lost boot had been found (yeah!), and determined to figure out a way to solve the problem, possibly with duct tape! Had another nice evening once we finally got back.

After a rocky night sleep, and a late breakfast, I ran out to the nearest town to go to Tractor Supply and a drug store, then stopped at the Buckeye Dairy Bar in Friendship, where I had earlier learned had a wi-fi. After ordering ice cream, I sat down to do a bunch of computer work, only to discover their wi-fi quit working, so I ended up using my own Jetpack hot spot for the duration. A couple of hours later, I finally ran out of juice in my computer, and for some reason, I couldn’t get the plug to work, it just wouldn’t charge. When I got back to camp, I tore down the computer and figured out that the plastic insert where the plug goes in had loosened up just enough for the center coax wire in the cable wouldn’t go in far enough, so I jury-rigged it with a piece of rubber washer resting in the back so it was more fixed in place. I could tell when I plugged it back in that the battery was charging because I had a blinking light, and by days end the battery was now fully charged, but for some reason, the power button wasn’t working and I couldn’t get it to turn on. I decided to wait until I was fresher tomorrow to tackle that problem, and we settled down for the evening as usual.

Up early with the alarm and was out of camp before 9:00. Made stops, as usual, for gas and at Walmart, though we also sat down for quick lunch at a DQ so I could check my email and do a few internet chores I hadn’t been able to accomplish, as there was no cell phone signal at Harrison, and not likely to be in Shawnee either. I called the Forest office several times to see what route is the best for a large rig, as my GPS is showing me what looks like windy, twisty back roads. I finally spoke to someone who gave me a route that stayed entirely on tarmac, and even though it took me all the way to the south and west of the park before heading into the horse camp, I’m glad I took it, because it made it very easy, and I discovered many of the roads my GPS was tracking were gravel and hilly. There was one narrow bridge that I was concerned my 110″ wide Open Range might not make, but we came through with no problem. The horse camp is actually on both sides of the road, with camping along a creek on the south side, and a line of hitching posts on north side. Not highline posts, but hitching posts where evidently the expectation is to tie the horse to the post and let it circle around. I set up a picket line anyway, just because our horses are more use to that. We put them on anchors for awhile, while we figured out where to park the RV. In order to get a satellite signal, there was only one choice, the corner next to the water pump (yes, that lovely 1st century AD technology rears its ugly head again, apparently the only water dispersal system Ohio invests in), which is technically not where they want people to park, but it was our only choice for satellite. With all the stops, we didn’t get fully settled in until after 6:00, not sure why, but we were tired by the end of the day. Unfortunately, I lost my cell phone signal many miles back, so it means going out for any internet or phone work I might need to do. Finally settled down for the evening, perfect temps for sleeping!

After our long ride yesterday, we were all too tired to do much activity today, though I just had to do some laundry, and I had to do it by hand because I didn’t have enough water in the RV. Pulled some water out of the barrels which I had filled up from the creek, and washed my “smalls” as Hubby would call them, and a load of jeans. Spun them out with the washing machine so they didn’t take too long to dry, but then a rainstorm moved in, and I got them down just in time. The rest of the day I mostly worked on the computer again, while Hubby did some reading, before we turned to movies for the night. I took Dish up on their offer of HBO for $10/mo for the next 6 months, so I’ve been in a constant state of recording for the last 24 hours, just in case we can’t get a campsite with a signal sometime in the next couple of weeks. Did get some much needed rest, though it seems our stamina is improving tremendously!

Spent the day working on various projects, in particular settling on dates for an upcoming Workshop, and doing a bunch of other electronic chores. The Club that was riding here this week had a weenie roast, and we joined them around the bonfire for awhile, with Hubby extolling them with a couple of Shakespeare monologues before we headed back to the RV and a good night sleep.

Before breakfast, I moved the horses down to the cable high lines provided by the park, which now puts the horses across the road from us, but they were tearing up the lawn too much behind us. The advantage is that they now are much closer to a creek, so we got out the sump pump and the portable barrels and strung a hose out, and starting filling the barrels to save us more work later. Local forest manager Justin came by, apologizing for the misunderstanding about the water and being very accommodating. After breakfast and chores, Hubby and I headed out to Steubenville proper, going to Tractor Supply for feed, munchies, and a few pieces of hardware we needed, and looking at water tanks, as we’ve decided that if we are going to spend more time in state forests and Wildlife Management Areas (most of which don’t have water), we needed to get a good 100+ tank for the pickup, though TSC didn’t have anything suitable, but it was a good start on research. Went to the Post Office, Verizon (where they couldn’t help me), had a Chinese meal and got liquor at the Kroger. Ohio used to have state operated liquor stores, but they finally privatized it, and it’s available in grocery stores, yeah! Got back to camp, where I had a nice chat with Kathy, and her little dog Peanut had a rousing round of play with Lola, both running around in circles to their hearts’ delight! Had another relaxing evening, though there is a very spotty cell phone signal here, so it looks like I’ll be running into town periodically again! When I tried to start the generator, the string broke on me, so I had to drag the second generator up for the night. Another repair tomorrow!

Having had to use RV water to water the horses last night, I was delighted to hear rain pounding on the roof at 4:00 this morning, though it kept me awake for several hours. We had all the buckets and barrels still out, and we are getting really low on horse water, so this was a great relief! It rained steadily, and more than just a drizzle, right through 9:00. By that time, all the buckets were full, and the both 75 gallon rain barrels had a hefty load of water in them. No more water shortage! Spent the entire day watching recorded TV, enjoying the sound of rain pounding intermittently on the roof, yet the horses were staying pretty dry, as they were under a really good cover of trees. A very relaxing day! Just what we needed after our long ride yesterday!