No Assumptions Saturday

Was I bragging about amenities yesterday?

Yea. Well, here's the thing.

There's a single point of failure in our setup, and we know this.

It's the 12-volt battery.

It runs all the obvious things in this camper, like the lights and fridge. It also runs the things you don't think about. Every lighted wall switch. The tiny green indicator lights on every USB outlet. Every display panel. Including the one that tells you how much juice the battery has. 

And I may have charged a laptop, and a phone. And left some outdoor lights on. 

Shrug emoji.

All of those things continuously draw power when you're not connected to 20/30/50 amp.

So don't assume you can wake up amidst all your amenities and have power if you've been drawing on a battery all night that isn't being recharged by solar or some other source.

You will wake up to a dead battery that powers nothing.

Can't run the pump to pull water so you can brush your teeth.

Can't flush the toilets.

Cool.

Oh, but we have a generator.

Nope.

Needs the 12-volt battery to start.

No, let me clarify.

Needs a fully powered 12-volt battery to start.

No worries. Let's just start the truck and run it for a few minutes, and then we'll start the generator.

Wrong again.

The generator still needs more battery power.

So.

That's fun.

TL;DR: we're fine.

We waited until the sun charged the battery enough to pull in the slides, used the power bank to make coffee, and got on our way.

No assumptions.

The host is having... a Jeep party??

(A host that, by the way, turned out to be fantastic.)

We chose Ridenour Acres, a family-run corn maze, pumpkin patch, and farm for our second night.

It's technically off-season for the fall activities, so we assumed we might be the only people on site.

Nope.

There was a Jeep festival and trail ride happening, with around 150 Jeeps and side-by-sides, live music, food trucks, and a cocktail truck.

We showed up at what was probably the worst possible time, when all the Jeeps were arriving and getting parked.

And the designated overnight camping spot was a no-go.

Instead, we ended up parking in the the owner's driveway.

Which turned out to be pretty ideal.

We got a 20-amp hookup we weren't expecting, and suddenly all of our devices—and the 12-volt battery—were getting recharged.

Sometimes the thing that doesn't go according to plan is the better plan.

Later that evening, Jake, the owner, pulled up in a buggy and gave us a tour of the property and the trails, that includes a small lake with some gorgeous views.

The land itself is a family farm, passed down through the generations, and Jake has found some pretty interesting ways to use it in addition to traditional farming.

They host events, like today's festival, and lease the trails to an LLC. Jake also specializes in GPS technology, which he uses on his tractors to cut some pretty intricate designs each year for the corn maze.

This year's design is a dinosaur.

We walked the maze with cocktails served in plastic bags with a straw.

Don't assume.

It was surprisingly convenient for walking the maze while snapping pictures and trying to read the map.

A black cat with a torn ear followed us for most of the way.

We later learned his name is Rick.

And he's everywhere.

I'm not an animal person, but I think he was good karma.

Word of the Day: Blip

Like a spot of weather on the radar.

We ran into a few of those on the way to Indiana.

The camper got kinda washed.

It's so dirty.

Already.

Jason also coined the phrase "blip music."

The music that is playing when you're in the blip.

Obviously.

Use it.

Use it often.