Hey Darlin'!
What a perfect day for a ride! After chores, breakfast and finishing a book, I saddled up Flash for our longest ride here. The weather was perfect, mid-70's, overcast but no rain, nice and quiet on the trails, fabulous! I planned a long near perimeter ride, out to the farthest west trails, then along the north and eastern borders. Flash was so brilliant, again! We did a nice walk for about the first hour, then his need for speed kicked in, and we continued intermittently between galloping, cantering and gaiting, with just the occasional walk. Man, I LOVE THIS HORSE! Every time I stopped just to give him a break, he wasn't interested. He hardly fussed at all, except on rare occasions when I made him turn off the trail he knew led home, but that only lasted a couple of steps before he dived back into his speedy pace. We did the 15.3 miles in 3:41, averaging over 4 mph, but most of the last half of the ride was better than 6 mph. No signs of lameness, either, for which I'm very grateful! Trimmed his front hooves before we left and his back hooves when we got back, just trying to stay on top of that. I did Apollo's all around yesterday. Rinsed him off, put him away, took Lola for a walk and settled down for the evening, giving both Flash and Lola an extra meal. Flash, because of all the calories he burned today, and Lola because she just seems to be getting thin. I need to get her checked for worms first chance I have, though her heartworm tabs should be doing most of that job. Settled down for a few episodes of House (I'm into the last season now), a quick veggie and shrimp dinner, off to shower and bed soon! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Babe!
Got to sleep in a little later today, and lazed around reading until about 9:00 when I finally got up. Did a few chores in the morning, taking out the garbage and filling up the water tank in the trunk, plus transferring it to the camper, before I saddled up Apollo. It was really quiet here today, not a single other camper this morning, so I decided it was a good time to take Apollo and Lola along for a short ride. Feels like old home week whenever it's just the three of us! Makes me miss you and Clio, though I felt you in spirit today. Turned out to be almost exactly three miles, which was just perfect! Everyone did great, didn't run into any other riders except a couple saddling up in the day parking area, and we didn't even stop to say hello, since some folks don't like dogs around, not that Lola would be a threat to anyone! I think Apollo is getting stronger, he seemed to stumble a lot less, despite all the roots out here, and he did very well, even without bute this morning! Yay! After we got back to camp, I did a few more little chores, tightening the door latch, fixing the dog door (again!), until it was time to run some errands. I had pick up some Glucosamine for the horses, then return something to Lowe's, then a quick stop at Meijer hoping for the right grapefruit juice, which they had a slot for but were out of, but they had a sale on the other grapefruit juice, so I stocked up on that. Then down to the same folks for hay, because the horses have been really tucking into the hay I bought earlier, so I didn't have enough to last into next week, so I picked up another five bales. Back home, settled down for the evening, still surprised that only one other horse camper and a regular camper have arrived at camp! Thought it would be busier this weekend. Settled down for my usual evening routine, ready for bed! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie!
What a busy day today! My camping neighbor Linda came knocking on my door at 7:30 to ask me for help finding her missing horse, a gorgeous leopard Appaloosa named River, so I jumped into clothes, then my truck and immediately started checking along the road. It wasn't long before I found distinct tracks that went from the camp all the way up to 13 Mile Rd, about four miles from camp, where I lost his tracks on the tarmac road. It looked like he went left, so I drove up a couple of miles with no sign of him, then the other way for a short bit, still no sign. Headed back to camp to regroup (Linda had been calling all hands on deck), but Janet W. had heard about the tracks leading to 13th and had picked up the search from there, and ended up finding more tracks up a nearby dirt road (after an apparent diversion into a field), and finally found him about another mile and a half away. We drove over, then ponied him back to camp, with Janet holding the lead and Linda driving Janet's car. It took about an hour, so we got back to camp around noon. River was none the worse for wear, and soon settled down to hay and water. Meanwhile, I got back to my site, and since my plan had been to take a nice long ride with Flash today, I got him saddled up and headed out. I had to shorten my plan a bit, but we ended up going up to Trails 24 and 25, which are in the far north quadrant, and one of my favorite rides, all rows and rows of mature pines, plus some incredible old growth oaks. Flash was his usual brilliant self (man, I love this horse!), with lots of lovely gaiting, and a great gallop down Trail 10 back to camp, just in time to get him put away and settled down before my friends Chris and Melvin arrived, soon followed by their granddaughter Alayna and her two year old son Austyn, who I am meeting for the first time. We had a nice visit, it was great to see them and get caught up! Settled down for the evening, finishing off some popcorn I had made, plus a bit of watermelon, and I expect to lose a little weight tomorrow, considering the math of how much energy I expended vs. how many calories I took in! Managed to watch a House, but am more than ready for shower and bed tonight! I did jump my generator this evening, but it overheated and shut off after only about 10 or 15 minutes, so I had to run the borrowed generator for half an hour to charge my batteries. Very frustrating! Still waiting to hear back from the two resources in Indiana that I contacted, so tomorrow I'm going to have to make some more calls to get an appointment on the books. Meanwhile, I'm done for the day! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hi Darlin',
Took a short ride on Apollo today, starting out with Linda and Sherry, saw a deer in the woods that didn't run, so their horses jumped at it (not Flash, of course!) but they wanted to take the lake loop, and that would have been too much for Apollo, so I headed east and took a little loop across the road. Ran into the woman who was kind enough to jump start my truck the other day, they had just finished a ride when I was passing through, chatted with them for a few minutes. Apollo did fine, even though there were a few hills, though nothing too serious, and seemed to enjoy himself. Relaxed most of the rest of the day. Managed to start my generator this morning, it even had enough charge to not have to jump it. Just ran it long enough to cook my bacon, though later in the day I started it again (this time with my new jumper, which took me a few minutes to figure out), then ran it for a full hour. Even though it seemed to be very hot, it never shut off, which surprised me. It would be too much to ask for this to have resolved itself, wouldn't it? Anyway, watched some House episodes, settled down for the evening, looking forward to a good night sleep. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Babe!
A decent night sleep, was just about to saddle up Flash at 9:50 for a 10:00 start when Rob called to say they would be another half an hour. No worries! Did some more chores, and they arrived, the first thing we did was unload the generator that they have generously offered to me to use until things get sorted with my generator. As soon as he cranked it up, I immediately confirmed my load of laundry, still in the wash from yesterday, started up on its cycle. By the time they saddled their horses and I saddled Flash, the laundry was done, and I managed to get it on the line before we hit the trail. So grateful!! We headed out toward the beaver dam lake area, with Rob having a few issues with his horse Velvet. This is only his 8th ride ever, and he's on a horse that trips and stumbles a lot, and by the end of the ride, we had pretty much confirmed this horse has some serious hock or stifle issues in his rear legs. Flash was very patient today, actually walking for nearly four miles before he just had to bust out, so once we hit Trail 17, which is a long, wide dirt road, we took off at a blazing hand gallop. I rode him out for a good long ways, then turned him around and rode him back again, about five or six times, just because he loves to run! About the fourth or fifth time, I ran into my Shore to Shore buddy Sam, who was there with friend Luanne, and we chatted for a few minutes, until Rob and Lori caught up. I had Sam look at Velvet as well, and she agreed with our diagnosis. We got back to camp, checked Velvet for any more girth gall (none!) so her saddle placement was better. They left shortly afterward, so I took the opportunity to run into town, I had to pick up some MSM at Tractor Supply, and a package containing my new jump starter at Alayna's, and was back in camp in no time. A bit later, Sam and Luanne came by, and we ate and chatted for awhile, getting caught up. Just as they were leaving, Linda and her friend came by, she wanted to see what I had devised as the best stopover for her for an upcoming trip to TN she's making, so we chatted some more. I've done more chatting today than I can remember doing in one day in a LONG time! A lovely day, though, the ride, and Flash, were spectacular, gorgeous weather, so glad I have a backup generator, so life is good! While that generator was running, I cranked up mine to see if it would, and it did, right away! So I don't think the starter or solenoid is the problem, but whatever it is, I'm hoping I can get it fixed when I'm down in Indianapolis. I decided to go to Ft. Custer instead of Silver Creek, because they have electric there (and a dump), so I won't have to worry about power, and will be able to do a good clean-out of my black water tank before I leave. I made that reservation, and now I'm just about ready to call it a night. Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hi Sweetie,
Had a tough time getting to sleep last night, after the evening ran so long, and ended up sleeping later than normal. After chores and breakfast, I started the generator, and it only ran for about 10 minutes before stopping, darn it! Waited until it cooled off, started it again, this time leaving the compartment door open (even though the manual tells you not to, but it always conks out quicker when I close it), and it ran long enough to finish one load of laundry and get about ten minutes into the next one before conking out again. I hung up the first load, then waited for it to cool off enough to start it again, but was never able to. It would crank and crank but not start. I called Cummins, but never got any additional advice (other than to bring it in and leave it until they could get to it in about three weeks!), so that was no help. I did some work on the computer, put in my request for reimbursement for the road service charges I paid when my wheel fell off, and made a few other phone calls, took Lola and then Apollo for a walk, then realized my Starlink wasn't working, and the reason was that I was powering it from my truck, as well as using my truck to charge some other stuff, and I overdid it and killed the battery. Grrr! I tried to jump the truck, but my battery jumper's battery has started to expand, just like the first one of these that I had, and it's not safe to use when that happens, so I ended up getting a jump from one of Linda's friends who happen to be coming by. So now I have no generator, and my truck is on life support, though I did run it for nearly two hours, I hope that's enough for me to be able to start it! I reached out to Rob and Lori, my new friends from earlier in the week, as they had offered to bring me a generator to borrow, and they have been kind enough to agree to bring it out tomorrow for me to use this week, or until I solve the problem, whichever comes first. Frankly, I don't know what else it could be, based on the information I have been able to glean from the internet, but now I'm thinking of getting to Joyce's early so I can have it looked at down there. There are more Cummins mechanics there, so hopefully I can figure something out. Lately, it's always been something! Oh, well! Joined Linda and her friend at the campfire again tonight, though I didn't stay quite as long, will be off to shower and fresh air-dried sheets soon! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
Slept well, almost got a full eight hours in, read a bit before getting up, then did my chores and ran the generator for quite awhile, and it never shut off, yay! After breakfast and a walk with Lola, I drove down and filled up the water tank, and while I was waiting, I got into a conversation with a woman named Linda, whom I had met on the trail previously, riding a standout leopard appaloosa. She and her camping buddy ended up buying a couple of books, which was a nice outcome, though unexpected, as I haven't really plugged the book much lately. Got back to my site, filled my camper tank as the clouds moved in, and it wasn't long before it started raining. I love a rainy Sunday! Ended up making a batch of popcorn and watching TV during the afternoon, though the rain was mostly light, and I only got a couple of inches in the rain barrel, so not much help! After dinner and evening chores, Linda texted and invited me down to her campfire, and we sat and chatted until 10:00, much later than I expected, but still barely after it got dark. I hate daylight savings! Did my Spanish lesson (up to 1520 days straight!), and it won't be long before shower and bed, just waiting for the water to heat up. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Babe,
Woke up to cloudy skies with just a touch of rain, not enough to accumulate in the rain barrel, unfortunately. Had a relaxing morning, then went down to fill up the truck tank and distribute water to the trailer. I felt like I needed to recover from all my physical activity yesterday, so I relaxed most of the day, reading, then late in the afternoon, starting to watch some TV. Unfortunately, my generator has been gradually getting worse and worse, starting with a boost, but cutting off more and more. The last week it's been cutting off in about a half hour, but today it was about ten minutes, less progressively shorter and shorter. Naturally, I started doing some analysis and research, confirming that it wasn't the air filter, the oil level, or the air intake. I have concluded, at this point anyway, that the problem is with the spark arrestor, which is part of the exhaust system. I checked the exhaust pipe and it was clear, but the spark arrestor requires the removal of a square headed bolt (naturally, a very atypical bolt requiring an atypical tool). Once it's is removed, you're supposed to run the generator for five minutes with a full load, which is supposed to clear out any soot that has accumulated. Considering how much I've been using my generator this summer, it doesn't surprise me soot might have accumulated. I tried to remove the bolt, but a regular socket doesn't work, and it's so rusted up anyway that it's super stuck. I'm still searching online for a simple solution, but half inch square sockets (either 4 point or 8 point) seem to be hard to find. I've still got a few other things to try, but it was getting late, so I sprayed it with PB Blaster, hoping that soaking it overnight might help. Meanwhile, my batteries are just about dead, not even sure they'll last long enough to run the water pump for a shower, but I'm dirty from crawling under the trailer, so I'm hoping for the best! Not the way I like to finish my evening, with problems staring at me, but c'est la vie! Can't have every day be perfect! Anyway, I'm going to give the shower a try, hope I don't burn out the water pump from low voltage in the process! Good night, sweetie! Love you!