We stayed in a small RV park in Deerfield, KS last night. They don't get much business. There are few RVs on the road in these parts. It was a full service park and very inexpensive. The drawback to the place were the plants that made up most of the ground cover. They had nasty stickers like sand spurs on them. Poor old Buddy couldn't even walk on it.
I visited with the owner for a while this morning. Dale is a real character. He loved talking about his family and grand kids as I do also. He sure is proud of all of them. He has lived in these parts all his life. He owns all kinds of property from a mobile home park, RV park, motel and a small farm. He asked all kinds of questions about us too. He likes to dig into things. I revealed I had been a state trooper years ago. Did I ever strike a nerve with that.
He has had a couple bad experiences with troopers. Mostly equipment violations of one sort or another. He thought they should be a little more understanding hahahaha. Then his son got a speeding ticket for speeding through a construction zone on a Sunday morning. I guess he was late for church. I think if Dale had known the night before I was a former trooper, he would have charged me double just to get some of his losses back. He really was a great guy to talk to though. He finally forgave me for my police experience with a big grin.
We planned to stop in Dodge City to see the Boot Hill Museum. This is where Matt Dillon was sheriff, remember? When we stopped we took a few photos of a train. We then started for the museum. Something drew my attention to my left front tire. I walked over and looked. Wire was showing on a small area on the inside edge.
I visually check my tires every morning before starting out. This area must have been on the ground when I looked under there today because I didn't see it. We were very near a blowout which could have been very serious. Each day we pray for safe travels. We ask the Lord to watch over us and keep us safe. We had been held up for about an hour in construction and were considering not stopping at the museum. As we drove by it, I decided at the last minute to turn around. I am so glad I did. We would have had a very bad day had we not.
I have felt a small vibration for sometime since Alaska. We talked about how it felt like I lost a wheel weight and a tire was slightly out of balance. I looked to see if I could see where one was missing but found nothing unusual. I had been watching my tires more closely because of this and I am at a loss how I missed this before it got so bad. My tires don't have that many miles on them so something like this shouldn't have happened. After this, I plan to have the entire suspension gone over when I get home. Those rough roads in the north country may have done some more unseen damage.
I got on the computer and located a truck tire store nearby. They had what we needed in stock. They had it mounted and I was on my way in less than an hour. I will keep an eye on them from here on home in case there is something damaged in the suspension that caused the wear. That little vibration is gone though. So maybe it was a wheel weight.
It is hot here. We are talking over 100 degrees hot. Our air conditioner wasn't keeping up with it so I stopped and got some gas to recharge it. It helped some but it was so hot it was still uncomfortable. I fired up the generator and ran the house air too but it couldn't even keep the motor home portion cool. These things aren't insulated so there is no barrier to the heat. It is like a large rolling dutch oven.
I have some gauges to check the compressor pressure to be certain I have it charge properly. I will check it again in the morning to see how it reads. When it is so hot it even throws off the gauge from what I have read. When it is cool I should get a better reading. Maybe I can adjust it some and get more cold air out of it.
We have planned the leisurely scenic trip back but if the heat continues to be an issue we may just hit the interstate and fly home. I hate interstates. I drive all the back roads. You don't see a vehicle in these parts for a long time. You have the road to yourself. The scenery isn't much. Everything is dried up and burnt. Streams are bone dry. Folks say it has been especially hot and dry this summer.
We are camped in a municipal campground in the little town of Cherokee, Oklahoma. Most of the people staying here are working in the oil fields. There is a new oil boom in the Midwest. I guess oil that was too difficult or to little to bother with years ago is not a hot item with oil prices as high as they are. I spent a few minutes chatting with some of the oil workers here in the park. They said there is lots of work in the oil field. They seem to enjoy what they do.
Since we plugged into the power here in the campground, the air conditioner has been running continuously. We even opened the cabinets to let the heat out into the room so they would cool down. I went to get some salve out of a drawer in my bedroom. When I unscrewed the cap it poured out like water. It is Vaseline based. I have never seen the motor home as hot as it is now. We have curtains that separate the cab area from the living area. It helps keep the cab cooler when we are traveling. On a hot night like this it is keeping more of the cool air in the living area. Right now at 10:30 PM with the air running, the cab area is still 98 degrees. It is much cooler this side of the curtain though.
Well that is about it for today. We are very thankful for the Lord's protection. The tire was costly but not nearly as costly as a blowout would have been. For those who wonder.....my inflation was spot on. I do check it weekly also. Good night.
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