# Camp life



## NorthernRedneck

Our second weekend of the season at camp. Just sitting here by the fire looking at the boat hooked up to the truck in preparations for some fishing in the morning.


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## NorthernRedneck




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## EastTexFrank

Ah!!!  I envy you.

We've got a couple of road trips planned but no camping until August.  I wish we could use our RV more.  I really enjoy it but my wife and I have different requirements when it comes to camping and she is always busy with volunteer work which I've greatly cut back on.


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## Umberto

I look forward to a walleye report.

I'm thinking a camping trip to the "North Island" is needed.


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## muleman RIP

Always was fun to get away and enjoy a long weekend. Bet you had the heat on last night.


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## NorthernRedneck

Heat was off last night. Last weekend though we burned through a full tank of propane keeping warm. A week ago It was snowing. Today. Its 27 celsius. What a difference. Kinda nice being drunk by 2pm. Was helping a fellow camper build a shed and took a few too many beer breaks. Lol.


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## Snowtrac Nome

if the weather gets better we may go take the boat out egg hunting this weekend but right now winds at 30 to 40 knots make it no fun.


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## NorthernRedneck

Today's project at camp.....first off is to work off a hangover. Followed by helping fix an Argo. The drive chain apparently popped off the sprocket. We'll get her fixed.


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## Umberto

Any walleyes?


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## NorthernRedneck

Nope.  Beginning to think our lake has no fish.  I'm told there are walleye, pike, bass, and lake trout.  I haven't found them yet.  The lake is very rocky with very deep holes and shallow spots.  My depth finder shows going from 6ft of water down to 120 ft back up to around 30ft in a matter of 100ft or so.  Going to try a different strategy next time I go out.  Thinking worms and jigs might work better than minnows.  Can't hurt to try.

I was going to try another lake a few miles down the road from camp this morning but temps quickly shot up to over 30 celsius so I decided to pack up early and come back for a nice bike ride this afternoon.


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## NorthernRedneck

Productive day today out at camp.  Got a storage shed built big enough to store two of the atv's.  Also built an addition to the deck.  Our deck at camp is now 10x8.  Been building it in 5x8 sections and joining them together in order to facilitate easier moving if we even decide to change to another campsite.  Not bad for a hangover day after last night's gathering around the campfire.  We're back home now since our daughter has her first communion tomorrow morning.


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## NorthernRedneck

Rough life out at camp.


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## NorthernRedneck

I never imagined how nice it would be to be able to come out to camp again. We decided to come out last night for the night. I soo needed this. Back to normal in a sense. Im still hobbling around with a cane but still nice to be out here. For mobility I have my quad to use to get around the camp ground. Every one was happy and surprised to see me. Was nice just sitting around the fire with friends. I never imagined how emotional it would be. I actually shed a tear realizing I may never have been able to do this again. I've learned to appreciate every little thing in life since I almost lost it all.


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## NorthernRedneck

Well this just sucks but have to take care of the health stuff first before we can think about an RV trip.  We had originally planned on hauling the camper out to Manitoba in later August to visit family etc.  We were looking forward to it and were planning a whole trip out of it and had campsites booked for the whole trip.  We just had to cancel the whole trip due to upcoming medical appointments and other stuff.  Plus, I'm in no shape to be messing around with a camper every day leveling it etc.  Oh well, next year.


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## ki0ho

Hang in there NR....it gets better........ben there done that.....


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## NorthernRedneck

In lieu of hauling out to Manitoba for ten days my wife changed her vacation time and since I'm on a semi permanent vacation right now we decided that since we normally have 4 children and are busy with them, we managed to swing a whole week with no kids. We will instead head to camp for a few days and relax.


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## Jim_S RIP

NorthernRedneck said:


> In lieu of hauling out to Manitoba for ten days my wife changed her vacation time and since I'm on a semi permanent vacation right now we decided that since we normally have 4 children and are busy with them, we managed to swing a whole week with no kids. We will instead head to camp for a few days and relax.



That sounds great!

Be sure to get some exercise everyday but don't overdo it.  Take a good book and find a shady place to relax.  

We expect regular reports but don't spend the week sitting in the tent surfing the net!


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## NorthernRedneck

We learned a valuable lesson on Friday. When leaving camp make sure there is enough propane in the tanks to keep the refrigerator running if the power goes out. 

What happened was there was just a bit of propane left in the tank it was feeding off. I forgot to switch the valve over to the full tank when we left two weeks ago. The refrigerator runs on ac normally but if the power goes out it automatically switches to propane to keep running. I guess what happened was the power went out for a bit. It switched to propane and when that ran out it went into a default mode and shut down.  I got it running again but we lost everything in the freezer and most things in the refrigerator. 

Sausage and hamburger don't last long in 30 degree heat apparently.


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## NorthernRedneck

Looks like my theory was correct. Had a leak in one of the propane lines which caused a full tank to run dry over night while we were back in town. I located and blocked the line. Have the propane drawing off the other tank now. The refrigerator is working fine as well.


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## Melensdad

Glad you found the leaking line, better than a bad tank!

We had a camping trailer years ago.

Threads like this make me think fondly on those days.  Not sure I'd want another trailer.  But a small camper van might be interesting.


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## NorthernRedneck

This is really the first problem I've had with the camper. I am very careful with the maintenance on it though. Not sure if I'd enjoy it as much if we didn't have a seasonal site. It's nice to just grab some groceries and clothes and head out here. Everything is set up when we get here. Just unpack and we're relaxing. Plus. It's like a little community out here. A bunch of us get together and sit around a huge fire pit every night. This afternoon we all went to a nice beach a few miles away and let all the kids swim as we sat around taking in the sun and chatting. We all pitch in to help each other as well. Just before my accident I helped one guy build a shed. The next day we were tearing apart old pallets and using the wood to build a guest cottage on someone else's site.


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## Galvatron

Good to see you back camping Brian i am sure old routine will help the recovery....did you take the arm chair


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## NorthernRedneck

It is very nice to be out here socializing with friends again. I'm still moving at a snail's pace with a cane and for the most part I'm sitting on my butt doing nothing. Muscle spasms in my back limit what I can do.


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## NorthernRedneck

This summer's camp life was cut a little  short due to my accident. We have a big weekend planned for this weekend. Four days. The campground is doing  Halloween this weekend for the kids. We're also planning a boat trip out to a sand bar to spend the afternoon swimming. We should have 3  boats full and around 15 people


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## NorthernRedneck

Our neighbors at camp gave us a nice fire pit. So we donated  ours to some of our friends who just moved in a month ago. Kids enjoyed roasting hot dogs for supper.


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## NorthernRedneck

Our oldest boy has decided that he now wants to sleep in the tent in order to prep himself for scouts this fall. I'm also in the market for an older truck camper. I figure the two older boys can sleep in  there. I can also use it for a hunting/fishing camp.


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## NorthernRedneck

One of life's little treats. Mmmmm roasted mushrooms over the fire. Cook  them till juice comes out then sprinkle a little salt. Yummy


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## NorthernRedneck

It was a good day at camp. We took all the kids to the beach to swim. Followed by a a nice time around the fire with friends.


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## NorthernRedneck

Woke up to the sound of thunder in the distance.  We only ended up with a bit of rain this morning then the skies parted and the sun came out.  HOT and HUMID was the agenda for today.  Most everyone was recouping from last night.  Today is Halloween at camp for the kids.  They'll be going around in their costumes after supper.  Fun times.  I imagine there will be another social gathering around the big fire tonight.


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## NorthernRedneck




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## NorthernRedneck

Last weekend at camp for the season. Had a potluck supper with friends last night. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			
		
		
	


	







Today I got a simple wood shed built out of 8 old pallets. I'll be ready to load it in the spring with enough wood for the summer.


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## NorthernRedneck

Tis the season. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Nick crew of about 15 of us sitting around the fire at camp. 

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## NorthernRedneck

NorthernRedneck said:


> Well this just sucks but have to take care of the health stuff first before we can think about an RV trip.  We had originally planned on hauling the camper out to Manitoba in later August to visit family etc.  We were looking forward to it and were planning a whole trip out of it and had campsites booked for the whole trip.  We just had to cancel the whole trip due to upcoming medical appointments and other stuff.  Plus, I'm in no shape to be messing around with a camper every day leveling it etc.  Oh well, next year.


IT'S NEXT YEAR! !!!!  

Our trip plans were put on hold. But if all goes according to plan we will be doing the planned rv trip leaving here august 20th and heading west. My back still can't handle long drives so the plan is leaving here and driving 4hrs to the town where my wife grew up. The next day it's on to Winnipeg another 4hrs where we will stay a few days. Then continuing on to visit some of my relatives for a day only a couple hours away. Followed by backtracking southeast to morden manitoba for a few days for the annual corn and apple festival. Supposed to be a fun time. We'll see. Next is crossing south and going state side working our way back to Hibbing MN for labor day weekend to watch some great dirt track racing. 3 days of back to back racing. Usually around 250 cars from all over the northern states and Canada come to this.   From there we head back north for a 4 hr drive home. 

So I've worked it out that I don't have to drive more than 4 hours any given day with a couple of nice 3-4 day stops in between. 

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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> IT'S NEXT YEAR! !!!!
> 
> Our trip plans were put on hold. But if all goes according to plan we will be doing the planned rv trip leaving here august 20th and heading west. My back still can't handle long drives so the plan is leaving here and driving 4hrs to the town where my wife grew up. The next day it's on to Winnipeg another 4hrs where we will stay a few days. Then continuing on to visit some of my relatives for a day only a couple hours away. Followed by backtracking southeast to morden manitoba for a few days for the annual corn and apple festival. Supposed to be a fun time. We'll see. Next is crossing south and going state side working our way back to Hibbing MN for labor day weekend to watch some great dirt track racing. 3 days of back to back racing. Usually around 250 cars from all over the northern states and Canada come to this.   From there we head back north for a 4 hr drive home.
> 
> So I've worked it out that I don't have to drive more than 4 hours any given day with a couple of nice 3-4 day stops in between.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk



Man, that's how RVing is supposed to be.  Me???  I have a 300 mile limit on trips and when I stop, I may be there for 3 or 4 days, maybe a week.  The idea is to go slow and enjoy the experience.  Life is too short to get in a dangfire rush.


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## NorthernRedneck

Oh. I agree. I grew up traveling in my parents motor home every summer. It was great but dad, being a truck driver, liked to pile on the miles. A family joke was always. ....there goes lunch.....there goes supper. Mom always wanted to pull over and have a proper meal. Dad was just wanting to drive. Being in a motor home we would often fall asleep at night while he drove. We never knew where we'd wake up. Quite often it was a roadside pull off or Walmart parking lot. 

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## NorthernRedneck

Seeing as it's Canada day weekend we had a bunch of random games planned for the kids. Of course we all picked up prizes for the little rug rats. Today was a trip to the beach. I gave a few kids rides on the tube behind the boat. 








Tonight is another round of good times by the fire

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## OhioTC18 RIP

Great pictures Brian!!


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## NorthernRedneck

It's been nice at camp. Average daytime temperature of 26c. Took the kids out tubing












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## NorthernRedneck

Just a little fire with friends and a few drinks. Home now after 9 days at camp. We had nice weather aside from 1 day of rain. I managed to get the privacy fence built, wood shed painted, and a fresh coat of paint on the boat trailer. 

I also had some issues with the golf cart dying out without warning. It'd be running then start missing and die completely. I changed the plug. Cleaned the carb. Charged the battery. But it still ran with a miss. So I spent some time adjusting the throttle linkages. This seemed to help. Then yesterday it died on me again. This time I had to go get the atv and haul it back to our site.  I started looking at the wiring and found an in line fuse. When I checked the fuse it came out in two pieces. I replaced it at it runs fine now. My theory is that the fuse wasn't blown but rather separated and barely making contact. Now that it's running good I plan on giving it a paint job. 






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## NorthernRedneck

Nothing too exciting to report. We went to checkout the nearby ghost town Saturday afternoon followed by more fun by the fire. 








We all got a chuckle when one of the ladies showed us a bathing suit that came in the mail. It was supposed to be an adult xl. Looked more like a kids small. One of the guys tried pulling a galvatron and put it on. Didn't work out so well. Lmao





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## NorthernRedneck

Always have little projects out at camp to keep me busy. Today's project was simple enough and something I've been wanting to do for years but never got around to it. 

Anyone with a camper will agree that there's never enough counter space. I looked to remedy that by getting an extension shelf from an rv place. Only problem is that they wanted  $125 for a shelf and the brackets. I consulted my go to supplier (ebay) and ordered a set of brackets for $7. I then took an old wooden TV tray, removed the bottom supports, cut off 4"on one side, then installed the brackets. On the inside of the cabinet I added a piece of half inch plywood I had leftover from another project. This is just for added support as the cabinet is paper thin for weight reduction. 











I'll have to bring out a piece of sandpaper  to smooth the cut edge. Overall looks good. 

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## Doc

Good work.


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## NorthernRedneck

We started a tradition last summer. For the august long weekend we hold a golf cart parade. It's fun for the kids. I didn't enter this year. Some decent effort went into the carts. 
















Now it's beer o'clock. She who must be obeyed is inside prepping supper. We have friends coming over for a steak supper. Then back over to another friends for the usual fire where friends and marshmallows get toasted. 
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## NorthernRedneck

So we were sitting around the campfire again last night and she who must be obeyed turns to me and says "why don't we start looking at campers to replace ours".  Well. Less than 12 hrs later we have the perfect one picked out for our family. We talked about new vs used and I was always a big advocate for getting something used as the new ones lose value as soon as you haul them off the lot. But with 4 kids we want something that will fit every criteria that we have set out for what we need. Here's what we settled on.....
http://www.keystonerv.com/passport/models/3320bhwe/model-mobile
It has sleeping for 10. Separate rooms for both us and the kids. A nice size kitchen. Outdoor kitchen and shower. Pretty much everything we need. Also, it's designed to be towable by a regular half ton. And it's 2 feet longer than our current camper. 

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## NorthernRedneck

Hard to believe camp season is drawing to a close. I went hunting this morning then built a new home for the atvs. 






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## NorthernRedneck

It got downright chilly last night. We all rebuilt the main fire pit with larger rocks yesterday. It looks great and the larger rocks reflect more heat. Of course I was more or less supervisor on this job since I can't lift anything more than 15lbs. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Temps are sitting at -3celcius right now. We got our first frost. Hard to believe last week I wore shorts out here. 

The boat is covered up with a tarp for winter. The patio furniture is put away. Today's plan is to do a little bird hunting then help prepare the thanksgiving feast. We plan on about 40 people for a huge potluck supper including turkey and all the trimmings. 

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## NorthernRedneck

Thanksgiving at camp. Went hunting this morning. Now time to eat. 












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## NorthernRedneck

The camper is now put to bed for the winter. All the food taken out. Water systems drained. The atvs are also put away in their new home. The boat is covered.  We had a great season this year. In years past we were lucky to be able to get out there by mid may and be done by mid September. This year we were out by mid April till now, thanksgiving. 

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## bczoom

Why did you put the ATV's away?  I use mine just as much in the winter.


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## NorthernRedneck

I kept them at home 3 years ago and basically they just sat there all winter taking up space in the garage. Atvs don't go so well in 4ft of snow. 

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## bczoom

NorthernRedneck said:


> Atvs don't go so well in 4ft of snow.


You just need better tires.


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## NorthernRedneck

Lol. Yep. But even if I could get the thing running good in the deep snow my body won't allow it anymore. 

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## MrLiberty

I always enjoyed camping when I was younger and in my heyday.  I loved deer camp too.  Now that I'm older and the bones creak, moan and groan when I get up I don't think I could do it anymore.  

Thank you for this thread as I get to live vicariously through you NR.


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## NorthernRedneck

I totally understand the bones creaking and moaning. I sure feel it today. 

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## NorthernRedneck

Not directly related to camping but as this was found only 30 or so miles from camp it raises curiosity. For years experts have denied the existance of mountain lions/cougars in this area as there have been only a few unconfirmed random sightings of cougars in all of ontario. I guess this is proof that they are here. 

https://www.tbnewswatch.com/local-news/cougar-carcass-found-in-region-571938


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> Not directly related to camping but as this was found only 30 or so miles from camp it raises curiosity. For years experts have denied the existance of mountain lions/cougars in this area as there have been only a few unconfirmed random sightings of cougars in all of ontario. I guess this is proof that they are here.
> 
> https://www.tbnewswatch.com/local-news/cougar-carcass-found-in-region-571938



I wonder why they say that they're not likely to be a resident species in Ontario?

We have them here in East Texas too.  I've seen the back half of one as it disappeared, I've heard the snarl of one (probably the same one), once in 20 years.  Other people have caught a glimpse of one and people report having seen tracks but generally, you're pretty lucky if you catch sight one.  We've plenty of prey.  White tail deer have reached plague proportions in some places and it's not helped by immigrants feeding the things.  My understanding is that they can pretty much live anywhere but the fact that they are so seldom seen is because they're shy around people ... unless they're really hungry.


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## NorthernRedneck

That would make sense. We do have a growing deer population here in Ontario. We also have a growing population of timberwolves here and I'm curious as to the difference between a wolf track and a mountain lion track. That might explain why they dismiss sightings if they believe the tracks to be wolf instead of mountain lion.  Both are of similar size.


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## NorthernRedneck

I was out at camp march 26th(first picture) trying to get the boat and truck camper home. After service I went out again and the snow was almost all gone. So I finally got the camper and boat home. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










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## NorthernRedneck

First fire of the season. The lovely missus stayed in town with the two oldest boys to go to a christian country concert while I headed to camp for the night to dewinterize the camper with our foster daughter. Only a couple others out this weekend. We took the atv for a short ride as well as the old golf cart. Now enjoying a nice quiet fire.


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## NorthernRedneck

Here's the plan for tonight.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> Here's the plan for tonight.



It doesn't get much better than that.   

I started hill walking, hiking, camping in my late teens and I still love it.  These days I prefer my camping in a RV rather than a tent but I still love getting out there.  More power to you my friend.  Enjoy it!!!


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## NorthernRedneck

I grew up camping in tents. Always slept in the tent when we were on an rv trip while everyone else slept in the motorhome. 

We do have plans this summer to haul the camper out of here for a bit. With 5 kids it's way more economical to travel this way.


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## NorthernRedneck

This coming weekend is our long weekend and also the opening of walleye season.  That also means I'm loading up the truck camper, hooking up the boat, taking the two older boys and heading 3.5 hours back to our annual fish camp we've been doing every year for as long as I can remember. Our American friend from Michigan is also coming up as he has done for 50+ years in a row. Lots of history and memories there.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> This coming weekend is our long weekend and also the opening of walleye season.  That also means I'm loading up the truck camper, hooking up the boat, taking the two older boys and heading 3.5 hours back to our annual fish camp we've been doing every year for as long as I can remember. Our American friend from Michigan is also coming up as he has done for 50+ years in a row. Lots of history and memories there.



I like family traditions.  Unfortunately our family traditions are dying off, as we who uphold them, die off.  Sad ... but a fact of life.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yep. I remember as a kid there were 25+ americans that would come up for may long weekend. Over the years it dwindled down to just one. Some have passed away. Some moved away.


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## MrLiberty

I loved camping when I was young.  I would still like to do it but the body won't let me anymore.  Damn arthritis is just to bad.


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## NorthernRedneck

MrLiberty said:


> I loved camping when I was young.  I would still like to do it but the body won't let me anymore.  Damn arthritis is just to bad.


If I had to set up and take down every weekend I wouldn't be able to camp either. Our setup is like having a permanent cottage but with the option to haul it out if we want to


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## NorthernRedneck

It's only Monday and I'm beat. Installed a new seat in the old boat. started going through the truck camper to see what we need which is basically everything. That's what I like about our big camper. It's already setup and ready to go including most groceries. For this weekend we need basically a duplicate of everything including gas food water clothes etc. Lots of work.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> It's only Monday and I'm beat. Installed a new seat in the old boat. started going through the truck camper to see what we need which is basically everything. That's what I like about our big camper. It's already setup and ready to go including most groceries. For this weekend we need basically a duplicate of everything including gas food water clothes etc. Lots of work.



For me, trying to remember everything that's already in the RV is a challenge.  

Before we leave I know that we have to load food, water and clothes.  Everything and anything else I trust that it's in one of the storage bins.  I need to clean those out and re-organize them.  For example, we have 6 camp chairs in there and there are only the two of us.


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## NorthernRedneck

We have you beat. Lmao. We have a total of 22 lawn chairs for 7 of us. Because our camper is set up seasonally, we have a set of camp clothes for each of us in the camper already. We keep a stock of non perishable food in the camper and just bring out the perishables and cleaned camp clothes every weekend.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> We have you beat. Lmao. We have a total of 22 lawn chairs for 7 of us. Because our camper is set up seasonally, we have a set of camp clothes for each of us in the camper already. We keep a stock of non perishable food in the camper and just bring out the perishables and cleaned camp clothes every weekend.



I've got 6 chairs for 2 people.  You've got 22 chairs for 7 people.  That's about the same ratio ... only mine take up a helluva lot less space.


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## NorthernRedneck

This weekend was our annual fish camp. I've been going to the same area my whole life every may long weekend. My grampa used to take my dad. Now I'm taking my boy. Only our oldest son came with me. We were joined by his older brother(who, btw, I raised as my own for 10 years), my dad, and our American friend. He's been coming up for 56 years straight and is now 74 years old but doesn't look over 60. The fishing was the best I've seen. We limited out in 20 minutes each day.


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## NorthernRedneck

On sunday we went out fishing even though it was colder and windy. Once we had caught our limit 3 times over we pulled up on shore for a fire. I've stopped there many times over the years for a fire.


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## NorthernRedneck

My son Evan got to spend the weekend with his older brother Logan. On Saturday morning they each came our of their tents wearing the same basic thing without knowing what the other was wearing.


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## NorthernRedneck

This morning we were all packed up and ready to head home.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back to our seasonal site this weekend. We arrived by 7pm last night. By 10pm I was on beer #6. By midnight...well, the reports are still coming in. Today so far I made breakfast came out lit a fire and found a nice spot in the sun on a lounger. Tonight will be a repeat of last night.


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## NorthernRedneck

My buddy and I went down to the dock to cast a line. I snagged onto a smaller northern pike.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back in town now. Guess we'll have to make arrangements to bring the camper to town for warranty sooner rather than later. It rained friday night for 15 minutes and in that time the living room slide leaked a lot. Looking at it the following morning shows there appears to be a tight seal all the way around. But looking at the roof the water appears to be pooling near the end of the slide where it is leaking.


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## NorthernRedneck

Got the slide leaking problem fixed. Survived a tornado warning with only a few drops of rain. Not far from us they got golf ball sized hail. Turned into a nice day over all.  Me and the lovely missus. [emoji3]


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## luvs

looks similar to a phish show~


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## NorthernRedneck

Day 1 of 10 days out at camp. We do this every summer. First week of july we spend out at camp. At the end of our stint here, we haul the camper home for the first road trip of the summer. It's only going to be a 3 hr drive to our destination for a family reunion.


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## NorthernRedneck

Relaxing by the fire.


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## NorthernRedneck

Today is Canada day. Everywhere else people are planning and doing stuff. Out here we are doing activities for the kids, having a big potluck dinner, and doing fireworks that rivals most smaller displays.


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## NorthernRedneck

Went out fishing for an hour with a buddy on his pontoon boat. Didn't catch a thing. But nice to get out on the water. Our camp is just to the left of the fishing rod.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yesterday was fairly quiet and laid back for Canada day. It's Canada's 150th birthday. It was also a friend's daughters birthday yesterday at camp so they made her a cake. 

Another friend at camp works for a steak house in town. He brought out 20 racks of ribs already smoked and seasoned.   We were supposed to have fireworks last night but a thunderstorm rolled through about the time they were supposed to light them off. The plan b is to set them off tonight instead.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yesterday was a quiet relaxing day at camp. Since we got rained out on july 1, we did fireworks last night. The resort next to our camp also did fireworks. It was quite the display. In total about 40 minutes worth of fireworks that rivals the city's display.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yesterday was a quiet relaxing day at camp. Since we got rained out on july 1, we did fireworks last night. The resort next to our camp also did fireworks. It was quite the display. In total about 40 minutes worth of fireworks that rivals the city's display.



I could live with that.  Pretty.


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## NorthernRedneck

Been a quiet relaxing week at camp. Hardly anyone else out here. Today is Friday and everyone is out. Seems as though we had breakfast, went swimming, and now it's supper time. We've been getting good use out of the kayaks this week. I even had the boat in the water a couple times for fishing and tubing.


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## pirate_girl

Oh that water is gorgeous!


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## NorthernRedneck

pirate_girl said:


> Oh that water is gorgeous!


It is. That is just the small bay our camp is located on. We have to take a 15 minute boat ride to access the 17 miles of the main lake. Aside from a couple of campgrounds and 10-15 private camps at the south end the rest of the lake is uninhabited.


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## pirate_girl

Looks a lot like Old Mission peninsula, in Michigan.
I mean the way the water is clear with pebbles etc.


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## NorthernRedneck

We hit the road yesterday for what was supposed to be a 3 hour drive around 11am. We stopped for lunch and to fill propane an hour into the drive. 

That's when the first setback happened. I discovered that one of the hitch pins was missing from the scooter lift. Only thing that held it on was an anti rattle clamp. I found one at a Canadian tire down the road.

I didn't bother to fill up as I had 3/4 tank of gas thinking that the next town has gas an hour away. We got there and both gas stations were closed in the middle of the afternoon on a Thursday. 

Ok. On to the next town with a small service station. We get there and discover they no longer have a gas pump. Now I'm between a quarter and empty and still have 30 kms to go. We get going and I set the cruise on 75km in a 90 zone so as to save fuel. Not enough. We ran out with 10 km to go. Called caa and waited an hour for gas delivery on the side of the road. Ended up getting here at 5pm and all set up.


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## GlacierSean

[ame="http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yfSLuEj99d0"]Gilligan's Island Theme Song - YouTube[/ame]


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## Doc

Why in the world would gas stations be closed on a thursday afternoon.   Very strange.   Horrible luck.  Thank goodness for caa.


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## Melensdad

Doc said:


> *Why in the world would gas stations be closed on a thursday afternoon.   Very strange. * Horrible luck.  Thank goodness for caa.



Ditto very bizarre.  I'm on the edge of rural/suburban area and its odd to ever see a gas station closed.  Not sure what time they actually close at night but its well after I go to sleep.  And as an early riser I've been past them before 6am and they are open at that time.

Yup, terrible luck.


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## NorthernRedneck

Ah well. I suppose worst things could happen. Good day today. We took the kiddies into town to do some light shopping. I took a drive to the next town over to pick up my long lost son for a visit with the family and to celebrate his 18th birthday. We had a HUGE bbq with everyone on my dads side of the family. First time in years everyone has been together.


----------



## Melensdad

Looks like a great time!


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## NorthernRedneck

It was nice. Only family members who didn't make it were a couple of cousins. Today we lay to rest my grandmother and uncle.


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## Melensdad

NorthernRedneck said:


> It was nice. Only family members who didn't make it were a couple of cousins. Today we lay to rest my grandmother and uncle.



Great that so many were able to show up.  We had our family picnic last weekend.  I missed it.  Honestly regret not going.  I was "busy" with other things and now that I look back I realized those things were just excuses.  I should have made the time.

Keep those memories of your family going by continuing to have these wonderful gatherings


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## NorthernRedneck

Back home. Overall the maiden voyage went well with the yukon. I have a couple of modifications to make to the hitch setup before heading out for 3 weeks in August. 

So far this month we have spent june 30th-july 9th in the camper then again July 13-17th.  We'll be back at our seasonal site for a few weeks this friday then haul it home again August long weekend.


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## NorthernRedneck

So the thought occurred to me that some may wonder how someone with mobility problems can go on any kind of vacation with a camper. In short, here's how it's done. 

First, I can't walk far. It depends on the day, the weather, and many other factors on how far I can walk or drive. So it helps to have a troop full of kids to do the heavy lifting such as carrying levelling blocks etc. My camper has a power tongue lift. So if you're strong enough to push a button you can hook up and unhook. My camper has manual levelling jacks. So, to solve that I put on a matching drill bit onto my cordless dewalt impact drill. Voila! Power jacks. 

Now, as I said I struggle to walk more than 100ft most days. So rather than restricting myself I have a Bruno chariot scooter lift to go on the back of the vehicle or trailer. I now have the ability to bring my mobility scooter along on rv trips.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

So part of the joys of camping is having a proper hitch setup for towing. Last summer when we did our trip out to Manitoba then down into the states, I had a 750lb tongue capacity hitch and bars. It did alright but was maxed out as the camper tongue weight is somewhere over 700lbs. 

This spring, I decided to upgrade to a 1000lb hitch and bars. The hitch was more than adequate last weekend hauling in the hills going to geraldton. However, some adjustments were necessary. First, even at its lowest hole on the shank, the hitch was still a bit too high when hooked up. This made it a$$ heavy on the trailer which reduced tongue weight on the yukon making it unstable at anything over 100km with no wind or 85km with a side wind. 

I had ordered a friction sway control this spring but didn't have time to install it. As well, the shank on the hitch had 6 holes. I was already on the bottom. So I picked up a new shank with 8 holes. Now the hitch sits about 2" lower. This should increase tongue weight and improve stability. I also installed the friction sway control bar. How it works is a small secondary ball is mounted to both the trailer frame and hitch head. The friction sway control bar mounts to both balls and is held on by two lock clips. I don't have the bars installed in the picture but you get the idea.


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## NorthernRedneck

I can fully understand how robin Williams felt in the movie RV. I brought the camper out to camp today. More on that later. 

So I hooked the water up and went about my business. About 10 minutes later sewage started pouring out of the ceiling vent cap outside. Apparently I hooked up the water to the sewage tank cleaning system. Well, it started coming out the sewage vent pipe on the roof. I quickly went inside the bathroom to find sewage about to over flow the toilet. Instinctively I tried flushing the toilet. The whole bathroom was now covered in raw sewage. 

I cleaned up the mess. Emptied the sewage tank. Hooked up the water to the right valve. And stood outside in the rain for a bit to shower off. Yes. Today was a shitty day.


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## OhioTC18 RIP

Oh that stinks..........


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## NorthernRedneck

You got that right. I just washed the camper yesterday. Now there's shit on the roof and running down the outside wall.


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## NorthernRedneck

Nice quiet weekend at camp. Went to the beach this afternoon with friends. Tried out the new kayak. It goes well in the water. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



















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## NorthernRedneck

Went out hunting this morning with 2 of the kids and my lovely wife. First time she held/fired a gun. Started her off with the .22. Then a shot with the 12 gauge for comparison. We only got one bird but it's more about the adventure. We can go right from camp with the atvs. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	
















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## NorthernRedneck

How quickly time flies and things change. We were wearing shorts last weekend at camp. Now, it's long pants and sweaters as temps are only a couple degrees above freezing. We are nearing the end of the season here. Next weekend is our thanksgiving. We'll be celebrating with friends out here with a huge potluck turkey dinner. The following day we close up camp for the year. I still plan on a few adventures though with the side by side until snow flies. Today is my wife's birthday. We are celebrating it at camp and will be taking the side by side and atv out in the bush to chase down some birds.


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## NorthernRedneck

Today has been an up and down day at camp. First I was up at 4am in pain. After Pampering my lovely wife for her birthday with breakfast in bed, we had plans to go hunting with both the moto and the Polaris. Went to move the Polaris and one wheel wasn't spinning. Broken axle. Lovely. So I took our oldest son out hunting alone instead. Get back from hunting and found out a buddy of mine was on his Harley and tboned a car. He's in intensive care. Just happened.  No idea on his condition.


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## NorthernRedneck

It's been a great weekend at camp so far. I went out hunting for birds twice yesterday. Capped it off with a few drinks around the fire. This is thanksgiving weekend so we are out one extra night tonight. This evening we are having a HUGE potluck thanksgiving dinner with our camp family. Estimates are around 40 adults and kids. 

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## NorthernRedneck

Thanksgiving dinner at camp was a huge success. One of the turkeys was even cooked in an antique wood fired oven. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










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## NorthernRedneck

And......that brings us to the end of another camp season. We've been working our butts off packing groceries stripping beds etc all morning and loading up both vehicles to come home. I will still have to go out next week sometime to change a back axle on the Polaris sportsman 700 and cover the boat, remove batteries etc. Hot water and water system is drained and winterized with rv antifreeze. We are aiming for mid April depending on the weather before getting back out there. 

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## NorthernRedneck

One final picture of camp from this year. All closed up for the next 6 months. I headed out this morning after the kids were gone. It took me two hours to change the axle on the atv. Then built a ridgepole for the boat and tarped it. Next was the "honey do" list that my lovely wife provided. All batteries removed and brought home to live in the heated garage. I'm beat. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







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## NorthernRedneck

Ok. So one more picture of camp this year. Only 3 weeks ago I was out there closing up for the winter. Now in spots there's a foot of snow. I brought the side by side out to store for the winter. No need to have it taking up room in the driveway. Same with the flatdeck trailer. Funny how camp is only an hour away and has that much snow. In the city I can still rake the lawn if I wanted.


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## NorthernRedneck

I took a drive out to check on things and bring in the side by side yesterday. The snow is mostly gone so it'll be a couple more weeks before we can start camping. I have to bring the cfmoto in for a quick warranty job (side panel had a scratch from factory so they're going to replace it. Then I'll bring it back out and bring in the boat.


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## NorthernRedneck

Next week I will bring the side by side back out then haul in the camper to get a couple warranty items dealt with. One awning arm needs replacing and an interior moulding is coming off. 

When I get the camper back out there, the next thing to come into town is the boat.


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## NorthernRedneck

Went to camp today to bring back the camper and set it up for the summer. Hauled the boat into town. This weekend my lovely wife is taking our 3 foster children out while I head off for a boys weekend with the two oldest boys and my dad for our annual fishing trip. Our friend from Michigan is also coming up.


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## NorthernRedneck

So I loaded up the truck camper and headed out with my son for some family time at our annual fishing camp last weekend. I've been going to the same place every year all my life. My grampa took my dad there all his life every year. My dad took us. We take our kids. It's just an old clay pit leftover from when that section of road was built a long time ago. We launch the boat off the side of the road. No fancy launch. Basically roughing it. It's an annual tradition. 

The fishing was excellent. Great memories. 
Our friend from Michigan came up again for his 58th year in a row.


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## pirate_girl

Oh! That fish looks good!
Looks like lots of fun.


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## NorthernRedneck

It is. We look forward to it every year. 

At our seasonal site this weekend. Nothing exciting to report.


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## NorthernRedneck

Camp is starting to seem like a make work project. Always something to do.  Few weeks ago we started talking about building a fence to discourage the dogs from barking and give a little privacy. So I had never built a fence before but took some measurements last week while my wife dug holes for posts. This morning I put Evan to work with me. And 3 hours later we had a fence built. No plans. Just winged it. I had calculated 60 fence boards and was bang on. The only leftover wood was in the last picture. I still want to install solar lights on the posts.


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## OhioTC18 RIP

Looks good Brian


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## NorthernRedneck

As a bit of a reward for his hard work, I took Evan out for a good long ride in the side by side. Since he's 14 and will be learning how to drive in a couple years, I let him have a turn at the wheel. He rode around a pit first then drove the 10 miles back to camp. The side by side has signal lights. High low beam. Horn. Everything a car has. So I taught him how to signal, do mirror checks. Look both ways etc before pulling out


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## Jim_S RIP

OhioTC18 said:


> Looks good Brian



Yes it does. 

Amazing amount of left over stuff. Would all fit in a grocery sack!


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. It already went in the fire pit. Once the shed is built and the old one tore down, we'll be pretty much done aside from the small stuff. Time to crawl into a beer or three.


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## NorthernRedneck

Thanks. I serves the purpose. It was windy earlier and the fence provided great shelter. We were able to have a fire for the kids and cook hot dogs and smokies on the fire despite strong winds. 





OhioTC18 said:


> Looks good Brian


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## NorthernRedneck

At camp for a week. We(she) built a shed today. Took the kids swimming. Went for a ride in the side by side.


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## NorthernRedneck

It's ruff being at camp. Wake up when we want. Make a nice gourmet breakfast of scrambled eggs and veggies. Sit outside by the fire playing guitar while the puppies listen. I'll take this over a crowded beach any day. A little cloudy and around 22 Celsius. Couldn't ask for a nicer morning.


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## NorthernRedneck

The rain finally stopped around 9:30 last night. We had our annual fireworks display at 11. Pretty good show for a campground. The city had to cancel theirs as it was still raining.

Happy birthday Canada!


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## pirate_girl

Our fireworks are tomorrow night.
Thing is, they are at a little park now close to the highway and not in town like they used to be.. at Pontiac Park over where the two rivers meet.
Progress?
I think not.
Dumb decision imo.


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## NorthernRedneck

What was a busy weekend at camp has turned quiet this afternoon as everyone else returns to work tomorrow. We're here all week however. Today was shed moving day. First our neighbors were moving theirs. While we had a crew together we moved our old metal shed.


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## NorthernRedneck

Since it's a gorgeous day after the rain yesterday, we loaded up and headed to the docks to go swimming and kayaking.


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## NorthernRedneck

I really wish you yankees would quit sending us this crap weather. The rain is almost done but it knocked out the power. I was planning on building a rack for the kayaks this afternoon but the power tools are pretty much useless now. Thinking of investing in a generator for out here. 

The city is on their own power grid and I can count on two fingers how often it's gone out in 5 years. Out here, we're on the provincial hydro grid under Ontario hydro. Every time someone farts close to the hydro line 500 miles away, the power goes out.


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## NorthernRedneck

Nice day today at camp. I was feeling better so I got to work building a canoe/kayak rack to fit 6 canoes. It's even designed to fit on the flat deck trailer.


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## NorthernRedneck

It was a beautiful afternoon so we loaded up the kids and headed to the beach 10 miles down a bush road. It's beautiful and sandy. You can walk out 100 feet and not be over your waist.

No pictures of me as I'm basically the spectator/camera guy. Lol I did get out on the kayak for a bit.  That's my beautiful wife and my son in the kayaks.


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## NorthernRedneck

Nice morning. Not a peep outside other than the sound of the morning birds singing. Nice breakfast of loaded scrambled eggs and coffee. It's one of our favorites. Chopped onion green pepper sweet pepper mushrooms summer sausage and eggs. Spiced with pepper and cajun seasoning. Just before it's finished cooking load it with shredded cheese.


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## NorthernRedneck

I can't even last a week without ending up at the hospital. Last night while at camp we noticed the incision line from my surgery turning red and oozing puss. Here we go again. I called the surgeon this morning and he got me in right away. So I'm in town on a gorgeous day dealing with medical stuff again rather than relaxing at camp. Oh well. Better deal with a small infection now than a big one later.


----------



## OhioTC18 RIP

Damn Brian that sucks


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## NorthernRedneck

I know. It never ends. I just laugh at it now. Hope you're feeling better.


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## Jim_S RIP

I told you you needed a fence around the pool. :th_lmao:


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## NorthernRedneck

jim slagle said:


> I told you you needed a fence around the pool. :th_lmao:


Hahaha


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## NorthernRedneck

Despite being a hurting unit, I managed to rebuild the fire pit this morning before the heat hits full force. I still have another layer of stones to bring out from home. It'll look great once we get the sod layed down. But that's for next weekend.


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## NorthernRedneck

What better way to spend the afternoon during a heat wave.


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## OhioTC18 RIP

Looks refreshing


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## NorthernRedneck

Back at camp for the weekend. It's a hot one.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yesterday morning I dug out the remaining stones from the fire pit at home to bring out. The pit is now complete. Next is sod. We're also planning an outdoor kitchen area. Our camper has an outdoor kitchen at the back but it's basically a small sink, counter and refrigerator.  We're planning an  extension to the deck with a covered roof and some cupboard space. The barbecue will also be included. Oh, and I'm hoping to pick up a propane 3 burner stove with oven.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yah. It sucks being at camp. Not a breath of wind nor cloud in the sky. Already heating up to about 26 Celsius at 10am. Sitting out by the fire enjoying a morning cup of coffee while playing guitar. Birds chirping in the background.


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## NorthernRedneck

The heat finally caught up with me this evening. I stood up in the camper, took 3 steps to the bathroom and fell face first on our bed just beyond the bathroom. Thankfully my wife was there and wet a towel and grabbed an ice pack from the freezer and cooled me down


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I picked up a load of treated lumber for camp. We had built a 16x16 deck last fall. Now, we have decided to build a 10x10' outdoor kitchen. We already picked up an old propane oven. It'll also hold the bbq so ventilation is important. It's going to basically have 2 walls and a clear corrugated roof.


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## Melensdad

NorthernRedneck said:


> I picked up a load of treated lumber for camp. We had built a 16x16 deck last fall. Now, we have decided to build a 10x10' outdoor kitchen. We already picked up an old propane oven. It'll also hold the bbq so ventilation is important. It's going to basically have 2 walls and a clear corrugated roof.



Outdoor kitchens are awesome! 

Good luck with the project and enjoy it while you use it!


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## NorthernRedneck

We just figured that on a hot day we can both be outside and not heat up the camper.


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## NorthernRedneck

So after driving 6hrs yesterday, I finally got to camp yesterday. After supper, the plan was to start laying out the wood and plan for building a deck extension for the outdoor kitchen. One thing led to another and 3 hrs later, I had the deck built. I still have to screw down the deck boards today. 

Next will be walls and a roof. But I still have to plan that out. It'll all be treated wood and will last for years.


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## NorthernRedneck

Got the deck finished today. The propane stove is hooked up and frying meat for tacos. Kids are down at the lake swimming while I fry hamburger for tacos.


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## NorthernRedneck

So I came out to camp yesterday with 3 of the kids. I got started on the walls of the outdoor kitchen. This is where I stopped last night.


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## NorthernRedneck

This morning was a toss up between doing sfa and starting on the roof. The roof won. I like to keep busy. So I did a lot of figuring and measuring along with some cutting and drilling. Here's the progress so far.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

The kitchen is done as far as I can go today. (Out of screws)  The roof will be clear corrugated plastic panels to allow light in.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Got the kitchen finished. We decided that we're building a half wall with support post just to make it more sturdy. Then I got the idea to turn the half wall into a bar. So more work to be done on Thursday when I go back to town for supplies.


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## pirate_girl

Somebody likes Arizona tea.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

pirate_girl said:


> Somebody likes Arizona tea.
> [emoji2]


That'd be the kids.


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## Jim_S RIP

NorthernRedneck said:


> That'd be the kids.



The Brava for the big kids is in the fridge.


----------



## Bamby

I admired your fire pit and copied a photo and sent it to the neighbors. They've talked of one and yours looks both good and easily constructed.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yes. It was very easy. Actually, we had the bricks in the backyard at home when we bought the house. It was only used a couple times so why not move it to camp. The bonus is that the rim I was using for a pit fit perfectly in the brick circle. It was simple to make. 

Next project is laying down sod for the lawn. It's all coming together. A bonus with the kitchen is the wall the stove and fridge is against is facing north. When the north wind comes in off the lake like today, it's blocked off and we are able to sit outside comfortably.


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## NorthernRedneck

jim slagle said:


> The Brava for the big kids is in the fridge.


Lmao. Misread that the first time. The brava is off limits. All mine. Very similar to coors light but $10 a case cheaper.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I got back at 4pm and by 5:30 had this built.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I'm happy. The kitchen survived a severe thunderstorm last night without a drop of water getting in.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Got some lighting installed in the kitchen.


----------



## pirate_girl

NorthernRedneck said:


> Got some lighting installed in the kitchen.



Say! That is nice!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Thanks. I'm also planning to replace that table in the kitchen with a 60 inch wide cabinet with countertop. It all came together nicely. It makes camp so much more relaxing. We've been doing all our cooking there now instead of inside the camper. It's even enjoyable doing the dishes outside with the birds chirping and the breeze flowing. 

But what about water? A kitchen has to have hot and cold water. Well, the outdoor kitchen on the camper has a small sink with both. I just fill a couple tubs for a wash station. It all came together nicely.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

So we made a last minute decision to go to camp last night and spend the night. Our camper has a room at the back with bunks on one side and a slide out on the other with a single bunk up top that folds up out of the way. On the floor is a couple of j-cubes that open up into beds. We're keeping one of those and installing a set of dinette benches and table I picked up this week out of a camper. Someone had removed them to install a table and chairs. 

We spent the night and enjoyed one of the last campfires for this season. Next week I will be at a scout camp with most of our kids. Then it's Thanksgiving. We will be closing up for the season then.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Well, we had originally planned to make this weekend our last at camp but with the cold snap it was time to head out to winterize the camper and bring in the food. All done for another season. Yes, that white stuff is snow.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

While I was at camp it was very windy. We were actually under a severe weather warning last night for the wind. Just after I got there, a spruce tree came down on the hydro lines about 100 ft away from the camper. The line ran from a pole to the hydro shack that houses all the breakers. The tree fell with enough force to pull on the lines and basically rip the wall off the hydro shack.


----------



## pirate_girl

Yikes!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Of course I let the camp owner know right away. Looks like by the time repairs are made, there'll be snow on the ground. So it's a good thing I went out today to close up.


----------



## Jim_S RIP

NorthernRedneck said:


> Of course I let the camp owner know right away. Looks like by the time repairs are made, there'll be snow on the ground. So it's a good thing I went out today to close up.



You get the Brava packed up or did you just drink what was left?  :th_lmao:


----------



## NorthernRedneck

jim slagle said:


> You get the Brava packed up or did you just drink what was left?  :th_lmao:


Hahaha.  There actually wasn't much left in the fridge.  But it made it home.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I took a trip out to camp today to check on things and shovel off the roof of the kitchen. 

It was alright going in though the road hadn't been plowed since January. I had it in 4x4 for the last mile going in. As I suspected, the kitchen had a good amount of snow on the roof but that got taken care of. 

Here's where the fun begins. Lol. Both plowed out turnaround areas were covered in drifting snow. It took a little back and forth runs to pack down enough space to turn around. I just got going again and the 4x4 kicked out. Seems there's a safety built in to disable the 4x4 so you don't cause damage. It took some messing with the 4x4 on and off and into 4low to get it working again. What it did was cut the engine down to 1/4 power and disable the 4x4 entirely. I let it sit for a few minutes with the engine off then restarted in 4 low to get going. Once it did, I didn't stop until I was back out to the plowed road. The 4x4 seems ok now. I'm guessing either a frozen vacuum line or iced up front hub. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	













Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

A friend of ours was out this week checking on his camp next to ours. The snow is melting. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

On a cool note, I may have to pick one of these up. 

https://youtu.be/LpXAV7UrDdw

Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I took a drive out to camp hoping to get my flatdeck trailer for this weekend. As you can see there's still lots of snow. I couldn't get the trailer out as the snow was 3ft of solid ice from the melt/freeze over the past few weeks. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







Canadian eh!!!


----------



## pirate_girl

Snow.
Yuk.
I think we've seen the last of it down here.


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## NorthernRedneck

I know. It has melted but we're still a month away from being able to spend the night out there. 

Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

We've been out at our annual fish camp this weekend. I head home tomorrow. Fishing was great yesterday. We're heading out again in a bit to catch a few more. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			
		
		
	


	



















Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

We finally were able to sneak away for the weekend at camp. It's a nice break. 

Some people will say "But you live in the woods, why would you still go to camp?"  That's home. There's always something to do there. Always some project going on. Here, it's an escape. We can just focus on us and being a family enjoying family activities.

We were up at the main fire pit with our friends while the kids had their own campfire going. Our 15 year old son built the fire by himself.  At least it proves he learned one thing in scouts. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Some people will call us crazy for having 6 kids and going camping nearly every weekend in the summer. We make it work. 

Our oldest son is 15 now. He was kicking and screaming about coming to camp. But I reminded him of everything that there is to do out there. On the way out yesterday, he asked if we were going to launch the boat. Then he says he wants to go kayaking and canoeing. And swimming. The next question was whether or not we would fix the 4 wheeler. The back brakes lost pressure last year. He's excited and secretly likes camp but as a typical teenager feels the need to complain about it. 

Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Here's today's project at camp. I covered the wood shed with fence boards. Looks better. Like putting lipstick on a pig. It's still a pig but prettier. 

The sky is hazy with smoke from 2 bigger forest fires that have evacuated northern reserves. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

It appears that our camper has become the hangout for a lot of the camp kids in our section. All the adults tend to flock to our friends site up the hill behind us. We're there every night as well. Good deal. The kids are all at one site and the adults can have adult fun at the other site. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Quiet night around the fire last night. It was windy yesterday which kept the bugs down. As soon as the wind died down though the mosquitoes came out in swarms. By 10:50 everyone called it a night as we were eaten alive. 

No agenda for today other than prepping the camper to be hauled out tomorrow. 

Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I finally got around to installing the battery in my grampas old quad. It's a 1989 yamaha breeze 125. Still in great shape from the year and runs excellent. It's an automatic which is good for the kids. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Went out fishing for an hour or so then hauled the boat out of the water. Working on the camper to haul it out tomorrow. We didn't haul it anywhere last year. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Got the camper home for a bit of TLC before the trip. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Canadian eh!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

The camper made it's way back to camp on Thursday after a cleaning and a wax job. We spent the weekend here. Nothing exiting. Just the usual relaxing 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




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## NorthernRedneck

Last weekend was a clean up at camp. I hauled a trailer load of garbage to town. 7 treated pallets I had for a project that didn't get done. A few broken lawn chairs. Some miscellaneous things that were just garbage. 

It rained on Sunday for 5 hours. When it stopped, the skies were quite colorful. It was a friend's 63 birthday. The funniest thing happened. His wife came out of the camper with two bags in her hands. One was his present. The other was a bag of garbage to throw on the fire. She put a bag on the fire to burn. While we were doing the cake, something exploded and scared the crap out of everyone. It wasn't until she went to give him the present that we discovered it actually went on the fire. It was gone. A new expensive watch. Some pants. A shirt. The card. And something else that had a battery. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










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## NorthernRedneck

I came to camp yesterday by myself to get in some hunting this morning and to treat the deck. 

Only one bird today but I cleared a mile of trail that had trees down. I also filled the side by side with as much wood as I could carry. It's now split and stored in the wood shed. 

I pressure washed the deck last night and waited until this afternoon to spray it with tompsons water seal.

I got my old poulan  chainsaw running good this week and put it to the test. Not the best chainsaw out there but it does the trick. I have a bigger one at home. 





















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## NorthernRedneck

Nice fall campfire with friends. I love the fall. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




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## NorthernRedneck

We opened up camp this week. Last night was the first night we were allowed to go due to covid 19 restrictions. Our fire ban was also lifted. We went out fishing this morning. Crocodile dundee couldn't catch a fish here with a stick of dynamite. We still had fun.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back at camp alone. Last night I installed some tie downs on the dock slip. This morning I launched the boat and ran it over to the dock to tie off.


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## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> Crocodile dundee couldn't catch a fish here with a stick of dynamite.



I love that expression.  It pretty much sums up my fishing expertise but like you, I still love to do it.


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## NorthernRedneck

Fire ban is in effect for this area as it's very dry. My buddy picked up this old woodstove from the 1940s and brought it out. So of course we had to light it.


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## NorthernRedneck

Just me and the oldest boy headed to camp. No fishing. No quadding. Just a work weekend rebuilding the roof on the outdoor kitchen. 

On our way out we had a close encounter with a Canadian swamp donkey. (Aka moose)


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## NorthernRedneck

We started by removing the old plastic panels as they were all cracked and sun baked after only 2 years. The original thought was that they would let in the light and it would feel more open. 

In reality, picture what happens when you hold a magnifying glass under the sunlight. It gets HOT under it.


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## NorthernRedneck

I extended the rafters out a foot. It still needs the end cap and additional bracing to stiffen it up.


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## NorthernRedneck

Tomorrow's tasks include installing the cross strapping (a step I skipped the first time), then installing the new roof panels. I went with metal this time.


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## NorthernRedneck

To fill the gap between the wall and roof, I have some lattice I removed from the deck at home so that will be repurposed to fill it in and still allow bbq smoke to escape the kitchen.


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## NorthernRedneck

I started off this morning by finishing off the end of the roof. Then I installed the stringers.


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## NorthernRedneck

All the roof panels are now installed. I also cut some extra braces for the corner posts. It's very solid.


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## Doc

Good work Brian.  Looks nice and sturdy.


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## NorthernRedneck

Thanks. It works well for us. Good setup for a family of 8 to be able to enjoy camp.


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## m1west

You been camping there for a number of  years, I'm sure there are bears around there, have you had any interaction or have they just stayed away?


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## NorthernRedneck

We haven't had any issue with bears though I'm sure they are around.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> We haven't had any issue with bears though I'm sure they are around.



The reason I asked is I have a lot of bear sign at my place on the mountain,tracks,scat and something moved some very large rocks and tried to get into my septic. I haven't seen anything while around there yet, but been cautious to cook outdoors. Also my cabin neighbor sent me a picture of one from his trail cam that looked to be about 300# that was taken in late winter/early spring.


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## NorthernRedneck

We've never had a problem there. Not to say that it won't happen. We have more bear scat in the woods at home. But I haven't seen any signs in the yard.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> We've never had a problem there. Not to say that it won't happen. We have more bear scat in the woods at home. But I haven't seen any signs in the yard.



Im thinking that seeing signs but not seeing the bears is a good thing, meaning they are not acclimated to people and are scared. In reading the ones that loose there fear due to someone feeding them or getting into garbage for a meal is the one to worry about. Also young male bears that are starving may become predatory.  I carry bear spray and a .45 colt just in case and pray I never have to use either one.


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## NorthernRedneck

You jinxed me. Lol. I'm at our annual fish camp out in the woods 3.5 hrs from home. We took a drive yesterday and spotted these two only 2 miles from camp.


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## NorthernRedneck

With the whole covid lockdown I wasn't sure if we would be able to go to our annual fish camp this year. Crown land camping opened up Tuesday. Wednesday morning we headed out to geraldton and got set up in the same pit where I've been going since I was 2. Dad used to go with his dad when he was a teen and has been going ever since.


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## NorthernRedneck

The fishing has been excellent. Every single cast brought in a fish. All perfect eating size. Must have thrown back about 30 fish last night. We've had 2 feeds so far. One pan fried. One deep fried. Nothing better than a fresh catch of walleye from the lake to the plate in 2 hours.


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## NorthernRedneck

I took the two oldest boys out to camp this weekend. We finished off the roof on the kitchen so it now extends under the awning so in a rainstorm, we can get to the kitchen without getting wet. 

On Saturday, we launched the boat and went for a cruise around the lake. I taught the oldest boy to drive the boat. It's now docked at my slip at camp for the summer. The boys went out kayaking with a few friends. 

Another task we completed was installing a new quartz countertop I picked up for a deal last week. Much better than the folding plastic table we were using prior. Should be durable and weatherproof.


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## NorthernRedneck

The new countertop.


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## NorthernRedneck

We're at camp for a week. It's a hot one today  so we gathered up the 4 younger kids and headed to the beach for a couple hours. Now relaxing on the deck with a cold beer and music playing. Temperature is a balmy 32 celcius in the shade. Our youngest son (Andrew) wanted to learn to kayak so I taught him. He's doing great!  Wants to go again some time.


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## NorthernRedneck

I was home for a couple days now back at camp for a couple nights. Tis the life when you have a teenager without a full license who works. 

Anyways, we wanted to close in the fenced area to provide more shade and privacy and also stop the dogs from barking. 

After picking up the materials in town, I came out last night and got to work bright and early  today.


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## NorthernRedneck

I was back at camp late Friday night. Saturday was a scorcher. A friend of ours had a double pull behind tube stored away and no boat to pull it so we combined resources and gave everyone a fun afternoon on the water.


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## NorthernRedneck

This past weekend was another work weekend at camp. I got to work building a fence skirting along the camper and a gate from the camper to the outdoor kitchen. Today I went back to finish off a small section of fence and another gate on the opposite side of the kitchen going to the shed. This is all to keep the dogs inside a fully fenced yard. It's all coming together. I still have more work to do before it's all done. 

Our oldest son prefers to sleep in a tent so we have an area behind the kitchen that fits it perfectly. When he's done camping with us because he's too old etc, that area will be a good place for a small garden.


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## NorthernRedneck

Today's project at camp. We've been talking about building an outdoor shower for a couple years. It's not fully complete yet but I did get the shower faucet and hose hooked up temporarily to try it out. It's 4x8 and will eventually have a metal roof installed (tomorrow hopefully) along with a rod and curtain inside which will create a 4x4 change area and a 4x4 shower area. A bench and hooks will also be installed. 

For water, it hooks up to the built in outdoor shower on the back of the camper. It'll be completely private with a locking door.


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## Doc

that looks great.


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## NorthernRedneck

Thanks. It's a labor of love. The shower is the camper is fine and plenty big enough being a corner shower. We wanted something a touch bigger though where the kids can easily get cleaned up when they get dirty at camp.


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## NorthernRedneck

So I was up and at it by 8am installing the metal roof on the shower house. I then got to work building a small bench out of leftover pieces of wood. Still a few pieces of fence boards for the interior and install the plumbing and hooks.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> So I was up and at it by 8am installing the metal roof on the shower house. I then got to work building a small bench out of leftover pieces of wood. Still a few pieces of fence boards for the interior and install the plumbing and hooks.



You have been at it longer than me, it never really ends does it? It looks like everything has been holding up pretty good over the winters to.


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## NorthernRedneck

Nope. Never ends. Lol always something to do out there. After this project is done I'm finishing off a section of fence and laying down some crushed rock around the fire pit. Then taking down the tarp garage this fall.  She who must be obeyed has hinted at a screened in gazebo in it's place. I'll have to think about that one. Lol. All this construction is cutting into my boating and drinking time. Lol


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Nope. Never ends. Lol always something to do out there. After this project is done I'm finishing off a section of fence and laying down some crushed rock around the fire pit. Then taking down the tarp garage this fall.  She who must be obeyed has hinted at a screened in gazebo in it's place. I'll have to think about that one. Lol. All this construction is cutting into my boating and drinking time. Lol



I have found that if you don't obey, you will spend an equal amount of time listening to it.Then have to do it anyway. On the cabin redo if it isn't one of the wife ideas its one of mine extending the construction time. I was done in my head with the cabin and the power container. Now after looking at you're outdoor things I'm getting ideas that will last for years.


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. You're welcome. 

We started out with basically a gravel pit 7 years ago. Our site didn't even exist and was a hole at the bottom of the hill only weeks before we moved in. So we saw it as a blank canvas. The sweet part of it is that I have it set up in a way that I can have the camper out of there ready to travel in the time it takes to pull in the slides and hook up to the truck. Most people out there have their campers blocked in and inaccessible.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Lmao. You're welcome.
> 
> We started out with basically a gravel pit 7 years ago. Our site didn't even exist and was a hole at the bottom of the hill only weeks before we moved in. So we saw it as a blank canvas. The sweet part of it is that I have it set up in a way that I can have the camper out of there ready to travel in the time it takes to pull in the slides and hook up to the truck. Most people out there have their campers blocked in and inaccessible.




So when does the gazebo get started? Ill be waiting


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## NorthernRedneck

Shhhhh. She'll hear you. Lmao[emoji1787][emoji1787][emoji1787]


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## NorthernRedneck

I'm on a mission this morning. Went to 3 different lumber places and not one treated 2x4 8' to be found. I did score 40 5' fence boards for another camp project as well as the last 3 6' fence boards I needed to complete the shower. 

I also got a rod and shower curtain, a shower mat and a shower caddie as well as some hooks for towels etc.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back at camp for the day finishing up the shower. Got hangers hung for the towels etc. I picked up a rubber mat for the shower area and a caddie to hold soap and such. I also installed a rod and curtain. I had planned to finish the permanent plumbing but forgot a couple things. Next time. Lol

I also removed a few corner boards that were overlapping and cut them to size with the table saw.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Back at camp for the day finishing up the shower. Got hangers hung for the towels etc. I picked up a rubber mat for the shower area and a caddie to hold soap and such. I also installed a rod and curtain. I had planned to finish the permanent plumbing but forgot a couple things. Next time. Lol
> 
> I also removed a few corner boards that were overlapping and cut them to size with the table saw.



Keep up the good work, amazing what you can get done a couple hours here and there.


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## NorthernRedneck

Thanks.

 Aside from finishing the shower, I rebuilt a section of fence. We had installed privacy screens to block the camper beside us a few years ago. Since then we expanded with a deck kitchen fence and shower all with fence boards so to match, I removed the old screen and built a new fence in it's place. 

The camp owner spread some ground asphalt yesterday so I leveled it out and spread it even.


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## NorthernRedneck

Finished off the fence today. Went for a swim in the lake. Now enjoying a few beer in the hot afternoon sun.


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## bearJ

Your set up just getting comfy! Way to go


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## NorthernRedneck

Thanks. It is very comfy. It's taken 7 years of hard work bit by bit we've built it up to what we have now. 

We started with a blank slate. Basically just a gravel pit with hydro and water. 

Speaking of water, I have the water hooked up properly now for the shower. So here's how it goes:

On the back of the camper there's a set of taps. Hot and cold with a quick connect fitting for a curly hose that came with the camper. It has a regular garden hose fitting on one end. At that point, I put a water hose splitter with 2 shut off valves. One side is open with nothing on it and the other side connects to the main hose going to the back of the shower. So I can set the water with the empty valve open and the one going to the shower shut. Once the temperature is set, i shut the valve for the open side and open the one to the shower. 

Now we have water going to the shower set at the right temperature. Because the tanks on the camper aren't that big, we don't want to waste it while we get ready to shower. So I have the hose from the camper to the shower going to a single tap.  We can go in, get ready, then turn on the tap and have instant water set to the right temperature for a nice relaxing shower. 

I still have to work out a couple kinks in the system but it works great. My wife loves it. 

The shower in the camper is a decent size but gets filled with laundry and stuff. So it's a pain to empty.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back at camp yesterday until Sunday. Not many people here so I hung out with the kids.  After they were in bed, I sat around the fire pit  by myself listening to music and watching the stars.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Back at camp yesterday until Sunday. Not many people here so I hung out with the kids.  After they were in bed, I sat around the fire pit  by myself listening to music and watching the stars.


.           


Coming right along. Its about time for the gazebo. When do you have to close up shop for the winter there?


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## NorthernRedneck

Technically we can use it 4 seasons. No close. The water gets shut off about mid October before freezing. We aim for Thanksgiving the second weekend of October. Open up as soon as the snow is gone. End of April early may.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Technically we can use it 4 seasons. No close. The water gets shut off about mid October before freezing. We aim for Thanksgiving the second weekend of October. Open up as soon as the snow is gone. End of April early may.



I get closing up in October, and getting back in May. Thats about the same for me on the mountain. But Thanksgiving in October. Thats just wrong, what the hell did you guys do with Halloween ??:th_lmao::th_lmao:


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## Jim_S RIP

m1west said:


> I get closing up in October, and getting back in May. Thats about the same for me on the mountain. But Thanksgiving in October. Thats just wrong, what the hell did you guys do with Halloween ??:th_lmao::th_lmao:




They’ve been doing Thanksgiving the wrong month for a long time :th_lmao:


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## NorthernRedneck

Home from a long but relaxing weekend at camp that was spent walking a fine line between being hung over and working on the next drunk. Lol. We didnspemd the afternoon down at the boat launch towing the kids around on the tube.


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## NorthernRedneck

So we discovered an old unused gravel pit down an overgrown bush road off the highway not far from camp. The only material left is a rather large pile of crushed rock. A few of us from camp have been hauling some in to pretty up our sites. That was today's task. Next week I'll bring out some weed killer.


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## NorthernRedneck

So apparently there's always something to do at camp. The refrigerator at camp has seen better days. The freezer works great but the fridge doesn't keep the mountains blue on a can of coors light. They're cool but not cold. 

I tested several different configurations for the power. It keeps running constantly but barely cools. The little bar fridge works great for keeping the beer cold but there's no room.  We have an extra refrigerator in the basement that we wanted to bring to camp. 

We started looking for another one without any luck to avoid having to empty the spare one at home to bring out. Tomorrow I have to drive four hours to bring my son to visit with his bio mother who he sees only twice a year. Well, camp is on the way there and I planned on being there tomorrow night. To avoid the hassle of driving home to grab the trailer with the refrigerator already loaded, I'm bringing it with me. 

No sooner did we decide that did we find a good used refrigerator in the town four hours away where I'm already going tomorrow. Now I'm driving there, dropping off my son, loading up another refrigerator and coming back to camp which is a 20 minute drive down a secondary highway. 

Wrong!  I had plans for tomorrow sorted with an 8 hour round trip arranged. I was going to find the ad for the refrigerator and came across an ad for a functional propane full sized oven. Ours is ancient and the oven died. To get to it will actually shorten the driving distance by 30 miles but will only save me 10 minutes overall as it brings me down a third grade back road. So now I will be showing up at camp with a trailer full of appliances. When I get there tomorrow evening, I will be swapping the fridge and stove out in the outdoor kitchen.


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## NorthernRedneck

And here I thought the work was done at camp. After driving 8 hrs yesterday and picking up appliances along the way, the boss wanted to start swapping appliances as  soon as I arrived at camp. 3 hrs later, the kitchen is setup. A different layout than I originally planned but the appliances are bigger. It works though. More of a regular kitchen setup. The stove works great and the beer is cold again.


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## Jim_S RIP

> the beer is cold again.



Mission accomplished! 

Everything else is secondary!  :th_lmao:


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. Yep. Priorities. Cold beer is a must at camp. 

We spent the afternoon pulling about 25 kids on the tubes. We tried both tubes today. The two seater sit in and the 2 person round one. (Which gives a wild scary ride).  Everyone had a great time again. Made pancakes for breakfast in the outdoor kitchen. Had a nice morning fire.


----------



## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Lmao. Yep. Priorities. Cold beer is a must at camp.
> 
> We spent the afternoon pulling about 25 kids on the tubes. We tried both tubes today. The two seater sit in and the 2 person round one. (Which gives a wild scary ride).  Everyone had a great time again. Made pancakes for breakfast in the outdoor kitchen. Had a nice morning fire.



Thats good family stuff that those kids will remember there whole lives.


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## NorthernRedneck

Yep. That's the plan. I usually provide the daytime entertainment at the lake. In the evening, friends of ours provide the "adult" entertainment. One big family. Party every night. Lmao


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yep. That's the plan. I usually provide the daytime entertainment at the lake. In the evening, friends of ours provide the "adult" entertainment. One big family. Party every night. Lmao



My kids are in there 30's there not that much fun anymore, I'm the only kid left


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## NorthernRedneck

We spent the weekend at camp again. I friends of ours down the road from home hauled their camper out and set up on one of the few remaining sites left for the weekend. They must have enjoyed themselves as they paid in advance for all of next season and are shopping for a newer fifth wheel rv and a side by side. Of course to tow it they'll be needing a new 3/4 ton truck. 

I came home yesterday with 3 of the kids as my son had to work while the war department stayed for an extra night with the remaining kids. 

We had extreme winds which knocked out the hydro at camp so I had to drive back to set up the generator. While there, I pulled the boat out and hauled it home as it's time to shift from boating season to hunting season that starts next week. I figure the boat probably won't be used much so might as well haul it home and start cleaning it up for it's winter storage.


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## NorthernRedneck

We're at camp again. It's a colder rainy fall day so the war department (wife) and I are trying out the new used oven in the outdoor kitchen. First out is a couple loaves of fresh banana bread.


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## NorthernRedneck

Last night was much nicer weather wise. Here's the fire and a few of the guys hanging out having a drink or 3 or 10 or.....


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## NorthernRedneck

We came home Sunday from camp. I did a turn and burn and came back out on Monday to get some things done without having a bunch of kids and dogs running around. 

First task was to cut up some 3" king size memory foam mattress pads I had squirelled away in the garage for the kids bunks. The camper came with only 3" mattress pads for them. They should be comfortable now.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

The next "big job" was to remove the main gate and rebuild it as it was dragging on the deck when it closed. 

I removed it in one piece, layed it down, removed each fence board, and reinstalled them a couple inches lower so that when I reinstalled it, I could just line up the fence boards with the rest of the fence and the gate frame would be 2" higher and not drag/catch. Worked perfectly.


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## Jim_S RIP

NorthernRedneck said:


> The next "big job" was to remove the main gate and rebuild it as it was dragging on the deck when it closed.
> 
> I removed it in one piece, layed it down, removed each fence board, and reinstalled them a couple inches lower so that when I reinstalled it, I could just line up the fence boards with the rest of the fence and the gate frame would be 2" higher and not drag/catch. Worked perfectly.



Brian, you ever thought of visiting Texas?  Bring your hammer with you. :th_lmao:


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## NorthernRedneck

Jim_S said:


> Brian, you ever thought of visiting Texas?  Bring your hammer with you. :th_lmao:


Lmao. I always have something on the go. Little projects to keep me busy.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Lmao. I always have something on the go. Little projects to keep me busy.



Im still not seeing any gazebo?? what was you're wife email again.


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. There won't be a gazebo. In place of the tarp garage, we're planning an additional storage shed for the tubes, air compressor, gas cans etc. 

Yesterday at camp was all hunting. I went out alone with the side by side for a few hours. Half the time was spent doing chainsaw work opening up a couple of bird roads that were grown in and had deadfall.


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## NorthernRedneck

I got back to camp at noon then turned around and headed back out with a buddy. We were going down an old logging road about 20 miles from camp when we spotted a narrow trail cut out through the bush and decided to follow it. 

It was barely wide enough for the machine but we made it through about a mile where it came to a small lake where there were 5 boats that had been there for years.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> I got back to camp at noon then turned around and headed back out with a buddy. We were going down an old logging road about 20 miles from camp when we spotted a narrow trail cut out through the bush and decided to follow it.
> 
> It was barely wide enough for the machine but we made it through about a mile where it came to a small lake where there were 5 boats that had been there for years.



Yea thats lost lake, not on the map. Its where old boats go to die.


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## NorthernRedneck

We continued on our way back out to the road and back to the main logging road which was being used by logging trucks hauling wood out. 

A few miles down, we came across another side road that was well maintained and used. After following it for about 10 miles, it came to a fast moving river where there was a water crossing in about 2 feet of fast water with rocks on the bottom. Of course we crossed it as the road continued on though it was much more grown in but passable. Another 10 miles down the trail we joined up with another old logging road that was more maintained. We went left to see where it went. After driving another 10 or so miles, it came to an old abandoned gold mine where there was a dilapidated old building that looked to be a storage garage for the core samples. There were about 200 empty pails littering the ground along with stacks of old core samples. 

A bit further down the road was an old trappers cabin that appeared to have been abandoned in the 90s. It was still fully stocked with furniture and bedding but appeared to have been trashed by a bear at some point. I didn't get a picture of it. 

The leaves are turning color making it quite enjoyable to be out in the woods.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> We continued on our way back out to the road and back to the main logging road which was being used by logging trucks hauling wood out.
> 
> A few miles down, we came across another side road that was well maintained and used. After following it for about 10 miles, it came to a fast moving river where there was a water crossing in about 2 feet of fast water with rocks on the bottom. Of course we crossed it as the road continued on though it was much more grown in but passable. Another 10 miles down the trail we joined up with another old logging road that was more maintained. We went left to see where it went. After driving another 10 or so miles, it came to an old abandoned gold mine where there was a dilapidated old building that looked to be a storage garage for the core samples. There were about 200 empty pails littering the ground along with stacks of old core samples.
> 
> A bit further down the road was an old trappers cabin that appeared to have been abandoned in the 90s. It was still fully stocked with furniture and bedding but appeared to have been trashed by a bear at some point. I didn't get a picture of it.
> 
> The leaves are turning color making it quite enjoyable to be out in the woods.



looks like a fun day of exploring. You covered a lot of ground.


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## NorthernRedneck

It was a great day. I love just getting out and exploring.


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## NorthernRedneck

I was back at the old mine site this morning. It's about 30 miles by trail and old logging roads to get there. 

We had to cross a creek on the way.


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## NorthernRedneck

Here's a few pictures of the cabin outside and in.


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## NorthernRedneck

A few from inside the mine shed and around the leftover rock tailings.


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## NorthernRedneck

Back at camp for the night. Got a limit of birds in 2 hrs again. Enjoying a nice evening fire. Back to town early in the morning.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Back at camp for the night. Got a limit of birds in 2 hrs again. Enjoying a nice evening fire. Back to town early in the morning.



At the rate you are taking them , are there any left ?


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. There's plenty out there. I went out to the back of my property the other day with one of the quads and came across 4 of them. Hunting is getting better as the leaves are falling and they don't have anywhere to hide. We probably saw 15 yesterday.


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## NorthernRedneck

Time to close down camp for another season. We had lots of fun and laughs. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










I talk to myself to get an expert opinion.


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## NorthernRedneck

Friends of ours had to get work done on their camper over the winter so this morning a buddy and I tackled hauling it to town. 

We had to cut a portion of their deck off to get it out then discovered 2 flat tires on the trailer. The other 2 only had 12 lbs of air. We managed to air up 3 of them but had to swap out the spare. All this in the pouring rain at only +4 celcius. We got er done though and hauled it to the rv repair shop. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	










I talk to myself to get an expert opinion.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Time to close down camp for another season. We had lots of fun and laughs.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I talk to myself to get an expert opinion.



Kind of a lonely feeling when you close up shop, even if its only until spring.


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## NorthernRedneck

I know. I had planned on keeping it going another couple weeks but the forecast wasn't  looking good. Oh well. Finish up hunting season then wait for snow to get through the winter snowmobiling. 

I talk to myself to get an expert opinion.


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## NorthernRedneck

Took a drive to camp with a buddy to store is side by side for the winter. What a difference 2 weeks makes.  I also sized up another construction project I've got floating around in my head for next summer. Where the old tarp garage was, I'll be building a smaller storage shed for things like the tubes for the boat, a generator, air compressor etc. It'll be similar to the shower house. 






I talk to myself to get an expert opinion.


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## NorthernRedneck

Almost that time of year. The snow is quickly melting. I took a drive out to check on things and open up the slides. Looks like everything survived the winter just fine.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Almost that time of year. The snow is quickly melting. I took a drive out to check on things and open up the slides. Looks like everything survived the winter just fine.
> 
> View attachment 136054


Is the snow melted yet


----------



## Colt Gomez

Any recent camp life update? How was the weather so far?


----------



## FrancSevin

It appears we won't have a lake camp this year. We let out reserved spot go.

With all the work planned for the Hippie Ridge mini ranch, I doubt we will even have time for sailing. 
I did rent two slips for the summer but my son's 27' cruiser is still on the hard. He and his girlfriend are not working out  so such plans are on hold.

I will break away and get the sail boat operational. But not until late June.  The best sailing is in the fall so by then it will happen.
The Grand kids aren't interested in the camp life so I'll not waste a moment setting it up. Their dad is too occupied with his problems.   So, his boat will likely stay on the hard.   Again this year. 

A waste but  I need to get a Bunkhouse built.  Therefore, my time will be devoted to that effort.

The dream of sailing and fly fishing will, once again, wait another year.


----------



## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> It appears we won't have a lake camp this year. We let out reserved spot go.
> 
> With all the work planned for the Hippie Ridge mini ranch, I doubt we will even have time for sailing.
> I did rent two slips for the summer but my son's 27' cruiser is still on the hard. He and his girlfriend are not working out  so such plans are on hold.
> 
> I will break away and get the sail boat operational. But not until late June.  The best sailing is in the fall so by then it will happen.
> The Grand kids aren't interested in the camp life so I'll not waste a moment setting it up. Their dad is too occupied with his problems.   So, his boat will likely stay on the hard.   Again this year.
> 
> A waste but  I need to get a Bunkhouse built.  Therefore, my time will be devoted to that effort.
> 
> The dream of sailing and fly fishing will, once again, wait another year.


Yep, sometimes we get setbacks like the fire at the work cabin, last year. I spent what would have been the cabin interior finishing time, cleaning up debris, cutting trees, hauling off my burned up mini truck and partly replacing the whole water system. This year I have about 1000' of PVC to run from the spring to the storage tank, then I'm back to where I was last spring. This year I worked nearly everyday for the passed 3 months and plan to go there this weekend for the first time this year. My son is interested and likes to go there when he has time, my daughter and step son seem un interested. I have had it since 2018 and those 2 have yet to visit. When I got it I had visions of the whole family spending summers there. Its yet to materialize, Maybe when its finished and less like camping out they will show up? Maybe not? I have a couple years left on it to finish up if no more setbacks happen. There is about a 5 month window there where there is no snow on the ground and it goes by quickly. I'm 63 and would like to have it finished by retirement at 67, sounds doable but we will see. Its just work and yours and mine will get finished at some point.


----------



## FrancSevin

m1west said:


> Yep, sometimes we get setbacks like the fire at the work cabin, last year. I spent what would have been the cabin interior finishing time, cleaning up debris, cutting trees, hauling off my burned up mini truck and partly replacing the whole water system. This year I have about 1000' of PVC to run from the spring to the storage tank, then I'm back to where I was last spring. This year I worked nearly everyday for the passed 3 months and plan to go there this weekend for the first time this year. My son is interested and likes to go there when he has time, my daughter and step son seem un interested. I have had it since 2018 and those 2 have yet to visit. When I got it I had visions of the whole family spending summers there. Its yet to materialize, Maybe when its finished and less like camping out they will show up? Maybe not? I have a couple years left on it to finish up if no more setbacks happen. There is about a 5 month window there where there is no snow on the ground and it goes by quickly. I'm 63 and would like to have it finished by retirement at 67, sounds doable but we will see. Its just work and yours and mine will get finished at some point.


I remember your efforts last year. I read every post with appreciation, interest, and frankly some awe at your industry.  After the disaster of the fire, I think most everyone felt deep empathy for your loss.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Not much to report on camp life. Lol. I've been going out alone once a week for the night to get work done as with our current provincial covid restrictions in place, we can only go for less than 24 hrs and have to stay on our own site.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

m1west said:


> Is the snow melted yet


Our snow has been gone for a month.


----------



## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> I remember your efforts last year. I read every post with appreciation, interest, and frankly some awe at your industry.  After the disaster of the fire, I think most everyone felt deep empathy for your loss.


Im headed there Thursday thru Sunday , so I can get in 2 days of work laying the new 1-1/2" pvc, 1000' or so. 99% just lays on the ground with about 30' I will have to dig under the road, as the spring is on the other side. Looks like I will be hauling the pipe up there with me. I called the pipe supply in Susanville where the cabin is $2.15 a foot. Home Depot down here is just over a dollar a foot but limit to 10 pieces. The ACE hardware in town has 20,000 feet at $1.08 per foot. I don't understand how it can be double price 250 miles away but it is. I think I can get what ever pipe laid that I can haul up there. Its 50 pieces and not sure all that will fit comfortably on the truck rack or not. hauling water last year got old very fast. Pictures and report upon my return. PS thanks for the words.


----------



## FrancSevin

m1west said:


> Im headed there Thursday thru Sunday , so I can get in 2 days of work laying the new 1-1/2" pvc, 1000' or so. 99% just lays on the ground with about 30' I will have to dig under the road, as the spring is on the other side. Looks like I will be hauling the pipe up there with me. I called the pipe supply in Susanville where the cabin is $2.15 a foot. Home Depot down here is just over a dollar a foot but limit to 10 pieces. The ACE hardware in town has 20,000 feet at $1.08 per foot. I don't understand how it can be double price 250 miles away but it is. I think I can get what ever pipe laid that I can haul up there. Its 50 pieces and not sure all that will fit comfortably on the truck rack or not. hauling water last year got old very fast. Pictures and report upon my return. PS thanks for the words.


You're lucky your spring is above your place.  Mine is 220 feet down. And about 250  yards away from the house site. That's how deep plus a few feet I'll have to drill for a well. Ten grand minimum here to do that.

I have thought about forming a spring pool and using a pump  with pipe laid on the ground.  

That advantage with the spring above you is in winter you can just let it flow. It won't freeze.


----------



## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> You're lucky your spring is above your place.  Mine is 220 feet down. And about 250  yards away from the house site. That's how deep plus a few feet I'll have to drill for a well. Ten grand minimum here to do that.
> 
> I have thought about forming a spring pool and using a pump  with pipe laid on the ground.
> 
> That advantage with the spring above you is in winter you can just let it flow. It won't freeze.


My cabin neighbor taps into my spring, there is plenty of water. He lets his run all year and it doesn't freeze. The 600 gallon water tank and the under ground piping to the cabin is a different story. I was there in December, the tank had about 2" of ice on top but the rest was ok. I buried the tank 1/2 way in the ground in hopes that it would keep it from freezing and it worked. The under ground piping from the tank to the cabin froze. It is buried 6" in the ground, obviously not enough. At some point I may bury it deeper, its always something. For yours, like you said, you could form a pool and pump it to an elevated storage tank then gravity to your house.


----------



## FrancSevin

m1west said:


> My cabin neighbor taps into my spring, there is plenty of water. He lets his run all year and it doesn't freeze. The 600 gallon water tank and the under ground piping to the cabin is a different story. I was there in December, the tank had about 2" of ice on top but the rest was ok. I buried the tank 1/2 way in the ground in hopes that it would keep it from freezing and it worked. The under ground piping from the tank to the cabin froze. It is buried 6" in the ground, obviously not enough. At some point I may bury it deeper, its always something. For yours, like you said, you could form a pool and pump it to an elevated storage tank then gravity to your house.


I will be putting a 360 Gal tank in the attic of an  8'X12' shed/bathhouse which is on the highest point of our property.  Using 12 Volt RV pressure pumps to go to the bunk house.  We have solar and wind systems for 12volt power supplies. 

I'll likely just haul in water for a while.   If we move there to live, a well would be most appropriate.


----------



## m1west

So today I picked up 1000' of 1-1/2" PVC to replace the burned up spring line at the cabin. I was pleasantly surprised it fit on the rack nicely. Most of it lays on the ground following the

 road with about 30' that goes under the road. I hope to get it installed over the weekend. I am going there tomorrow and returning Saturday. If I don't get it all done there shouldn't be much for the next trip.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Somehow I got voluntold to help a buddy this Friday at camp with a real $hitty job. He bought a used 5th wheel last fall with 2 bathrooms. Apparently the front black holding tank is plugged solid. We tried fishing a toilet snake through the drain pipe to unclog it last weekend without any luck. So we're going back on Friday with more tools and see what we can figure out.


----------



## m1west

Hi all, I installed the 1000' of 1-1/2" PVC I took with me and bought another 300' in town of which I used 200' of it to complete a run from the water tank down the road a quarter of a mile. I still have to trench the road and run it about 200' up the hill to the spring. I will be to finish easily on the next trip, then I don't have to haul water to fill the tank while trying to work on other things like last year. On a good note, I am really enjoying the solar system. Its just like home, electric hot water heater, microwave no problem. This area was hit especially hard in the fire.


----------



## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Not much to report on camp life. Lol. I've been going out alone once a week for the night to get work done as with our current provincial covid restrictions in place, we can only go for less than 24 hrs and have to stay on our own site.


I just read this again and this time it sunk in. So you are out in the woods and still being controlled. What is the reasoning that you can only stay less than 24 hours? Amazing. I'm sorry.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

m1west said:


> I just read this again and this time it sunk in. So you are out in the woods and still being controlled. What is the reasoning that you can only stay less than 24 hours? Amazing. I'm sorry.



Yes. The governments logic sucks. They think that if they open it up, half of Toronto will flock north and overwhelm the hospitals up here. Even though we're 15 hrs away. So until june 14th, crown land camping (camping out in the woods and not in organized parks) is banned. And seasonal campers can only go out for less then 24 hrs to check on their site and do maintenance. We're not allowed to be on anyone else's site. But last week they opened up golf tennis and pickleball (whatever that is) to groups of less then 5 people. But I can't go to camp and visit my friends outside on their site in groups of less than 5. Makes allot of sense to me. And up until a few days ago, we had only 17 covid cases for a population base of roughly 150000 people spread out over 700 square kilometers. It's pure bs.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

NorthernRedneck said:


> Somehow I got voluntold to help a buddy this Friday at camp with a real $hitty job. He bought a used 5th wheel last fall with 2 bathrooms. Apparently the front black holding tank is plugged solid. We tried fishing a toilet snake through the drain pipe to unclog it last weekend without any luck. So we're going back on Friday with more tools and see what we can figure out.



We found the problem with his sewage. He's got a 38ft 5th wheel camper with a forward and rear bathroom. The forward one has a 3" sewage pipe coming down into a 45 degree elbow then another 45 down into the holding tank. The previous owner had plugged it solid full of toilet paper. We tried snaking it from both ends and also fed a hose in from the bottom to break it up. 

We ended up cutting out the 2 45 elbows and broke up the plug. Of course it all spewed out into his pass through compartment. We just cut a 4" hole in the floor of the pass through and put a bucket underneath to catch it then used a scraper to get most of it and finished up with a garden hose. He was able to rejoin the pipe with a couple fernco couplings.


----------



## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> We found the problem with his sewage. He's got a 38ft 5th wheel camper with a forward and rear bathroom. The forward one has a 3" sewage pipe coming down into a 45 degree elbow then another 45 down into the holding tank. The previous owner had plugged it solid full of toilet paper. We tried snaking it from both ends and also fed a hose in from the bottom to break it up.
> 
> We ended up cutting out the 2 45 elbows and broke up the plug. Of course it all spewed out into his pass through compartment. We just cut a 4" hole in the floor of the pass through and put a bucket underneath to catch it then used a scraper to get most of it and finished up with a garden hose. He was able to rejoin the pipe with a couple fernco couplings.
> 
> View attachment 137758








That sure was a shitty job ( pun intended ) you're buddy owes you big for the help on that.


----------



## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yes. The governments logic sucks. They think that if they open it up, half of Toronto will flock north and overwhelm the hospitals up here. Even though we're 15 hrs away. So until june 14th, crown land camping (camping out in the woods and not in organized parks) is banned. And seasonal campers can only go out for less then 24 hrs to check on their site and do maintenance. We're not allowed to be on anyone else's site. But last week they opened up golf tennis and pickleball (whatever that is) to groups of less then 5 people. But I can't go to camp and visit my friends outside on their site in groups of less than 5. Makes allot of sense to me. And up until a few days ago, we had only 17 covid cases for a population base of roughly 150000 people spread out over 700 square kilometers. It's pure bs.


We are suppose to open completely here with no restrictions in the middle of June also. Most everyone in the small town I live in, quit playing that game a while ago.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Same here. We're all supposed to live like prisoners but in reality, we were still out at camp and hanging out with each other but keeping a distance.


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## FrancSevin

m1west said:


> Hi all, I installed the 1000' of 1-1/2" PVC I took with me and bought another 300' in town of which I used 200' of it to complete a run from the water tank down the road a quarter of a mile. I still have to trench the road and run it about 200' up the hill to the spring. I will be to finish easily on the next trip, then I don't have to haul water to fill the tank while trying to work on other things like last year. On a good note, I am really enjoying the solar system. Its just like home, electric hot water heater, microwave no problem. This area was hit especially hard in the fire.View attachment 137702


You did all that and I'm still dicking around with 60 feet of  PVC electrical conduit  under my park model home in Springfield MO.

I finally got it done and set for a copper gas line but I have to have licensed  plumbers fish the copper tubing, do the flares and hook up to LPG.  But then no more bottles of LPG to haul.

I'm doing this come Friday of this week.


----------



## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> You did all that and I'm still dicking around with 60 feet of  PVC electrical conduit  under my park model home in Springfield MO.
> 
> I finally got it done and set for a copper gas line but I have to have licensed  plumbers fish the copper tubing, do the flares and hook up to LPG.  But then no more bottles of LPG to haul.
> 
> I'm doing this come Friday of this week.


Those little things like hauling water or propane does eat into your enjoyment/work time. Im done with generators after the solar, dealing with that used to eat up a couple hours a day plus the fuel. Im being paid back now. Hauling the water after the fire ate up a couple hours at least 1 day of the trip. Im still hauling the propane, and like you plan to add a large tank and pipe it in. When everything is done, I just want to go there without hauling 1/2 my house with me.


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## NorthernRedneck

We just spent our first full weekend at camp with the whole family minus the two oldest boys who stayed home as they both work. It was nice. But HOT!  I had the boat out fishing for a few hours yesterday morning. Great times!


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## FrancSevin

m1west said:


> Those little things like hauling water or propane does eat into your enjoyment/work time. Im done with generators after the solar, dealing with that used to eat up a couple hours a day plus the fuel. Im being paid back now. Hauling the water after the fire ate up a couple hours at least 1 day of the trip. Im still hauling the propane, and like you plan to add a large tank and pipe it in. When everything is done, I just want to go there without hauling 1/2 my house with me.


My issue with the Springfield house is bottle LPG might run out i a cold snap.  I'm 250 miles away.

The Hippie Ridge Camp situation is different.  There we are currently 100% electric.

I do have some solar power and a small windmill that can fill a big storage battery for short spells.  At the moment these work, but are not automatic in the system.   I also have diesel generator power at 5400 AMPS.  A 600 gallon tank serves us for months.

By the end of this year, my plan is full solar/wind power.  Electric off the pole is the backup.

High on  the south west flank of a mountain side  ( at least what we call Mountains in MO)  it gets plenty of good wind. And awesome sunlight.

We also have 60 or so acres of white oak, Hickory and ash for the fireplace.  Thereby reaching to both ends of technology. One  is wood fired iron skillet and the other extreme of solar powered microwave.

Working on this for 10 years now.  This year is comes together.


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## Pontoon Princess

happy camper, no leaks...


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## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> My issue with the Springfield house is bottle LPG might run out i a cold snap.  I'm 250 miles away.
> 
> The Hippie Ridge Camp situation is different.  There we are currently 100% electric.
> 
> I do have some solar power and a small windmill that can fill a big storage battery for short spells.  At the moment these work, but are not automatic in the system.   I also have diesel generator power at 5400 AMPS.  A 600 gallon tank serves us for months.
> 
> By the end of this year, my plan is full solar/wind power.  Electric off the pole is the backup.
> 
> High on  the south west flank of a mountain side  ( at least what we call Mountains in MO)  it gets plenty of good wind. And awesome sunlight.
> 
> We also have 60 or so acres of white oak, Hickory and ash for the fireplace.  Thereby reaching to both ends of technology. One  is wood fired iron skillet and the other extreme of solar powered microwave.
> 
> Working on this for 10 years now.  This year is comes together.


I have found the key to the off grid solar system is the batteries. I used lithium batteries from a Nissan Leif. 21kw. and 2400 watts of solar panel, Midnight controller and a power jack 10,000 watt inverter with 60k surge. So far its just like home. When I add the electric fridge. I may add another battery pack, but likely un necessary if I add timers to the hot water tank and fridge to minimize night time drain. I did research on wind generators and decided not to.
1- you have to divert the load when not charging, you can't simply turn it off like solar, so it requires more specialized parts and expertise.
2- in high winds the diversion load and brake may not hold and it will self destruct.
3- efficient ones that work ( not from eBay or Home Depot ) are large and expensive.
4- they make a lot of noise.
5- it takes more wind than they advertise to make them work.
6- mounting them is a lot more work than solar.
7- they have moving parts that will ware out.
I feel like that you can add solar and batteries into infinity to get what you need easily. Where I am now, I think the batteries would hold for a week of using lights, water pressure pump etc. if I didn't use the hot water tank. The real test is staying there in the winter on an extended stay.
The issue I have now is water in the winter months. When I installed the new water tank last year I buried it 1/2 way in the dirt to keep it from freezing and it worked, but the underground pipe from the tank to the cabin froze. Going deeper is going to be tough. There are a lot of rocks everywhere. I thought about a bypass at the end under the cabin that just lets the water run all winter, piped outside and down the hill. Then when I leave drain the water from the walls and hot water tank. I grew up in Michigan, you would think I could figure it out. Just like you if I keep at it, someday it will be done.


----------



## FrancSevin

I do have an overload  bypass on the wind system.  And it is rather quiet.

Were I to be living there, I might use it only for backup power if solar failed.

Solar panels are good for about 25 years.  At my age, that works just fine for me.  However, the big deep charge batteries (I have lead)have a life span of 10 to 15 years.  They are about 50% cheaper. So at twice the cost I'm not sure the Nissan makes any difference.  I also have a huge 12volt forklift Battery.  I plan to put the windmill on that one.    We shall see how that works out.

Water, for now, is brought in.  I plan to put a 230 gallon Pickup tank in the attic space of the "Super Out House"
which is built on virtually the highest point of my property.  Beneath the tank will be an 8' X 12' cabin space.  It is fully constructed now and we use it as a utility storage shed.  However, a 7 foot B 8 foot space will house a full bath tub, water toilet, under lighted sink and an over/under laundry.

I have 12 volt pumps for loading the tank from the truck bed and running the system.  However the bathroom will run on just the gravity from the tank.  Water heater will be wood fired and/or direct solar from a 4/12 pitch roof that faces south.

That 5' X 8' balance will house the in coming off the pole electric, a main breaker panel, storage batteries and solar control.  The wood stove , tool shop and some storage finish off it's purpose.

The bunkhouse is 20 feet away and down about 4 feet.    It will also have 12 "off the batteries" pump. Gravity will work there as well  running just the kitchenette sink. For now no bathroom in the Bunkhouse.

That's the plan anyways.


----------



## m1west

My advice and experience is that lead acid batteries suck. The Lithium batteries I have 21kwh  cost me about $7,000.00. What I learned from research is that its all about the cycles not age. A lithium battery like the one in your phone and my solar system, if you completely charge them and then discharge them 100 % you get around 6000 of those cycles in the life of the battery. If you charge them to 75-80 % and don't run the down passed 30% you 10x the battery life = 60,000 cycles. My inverter is 24V which a fully charged 24V battery is 30 volts. I built a 36 volt battery pack that would be 100% charged at around 38- 40 volts. They would last 16 years before needing replacement if you charged them and discharged them everyday.   60,000 cycles is what I expect is 164 years before needing replacement . They are nothing like lead acid. They don't sulfate, run dry on water because there isn't any, freeze, get hot or discharge while not in use. I was there in December and when I left I took a picture of the charge controller at 29.2 volts, when I returned they were at 28.9 volts . They lost .3 volts in the winter over 6 months, in any case they will out last me. I have a wood cook stove for winter heat and cooking. in the summer its the BBQ and a hot plate. When done I plan to include a flush mount gas stove top in the counter next to the sink, and a small direct vent propane heater for winter nights. a 300 gallon tank should last all year. Im still looking at a 2-3 more years to finish the place up,  if no more setbacks happen. How may watts is your wind generator? I included a mount on the solar container to put a wind generator if I ever felt I needed one. There is plenty of wind there and sometimes too much. The company I bought my solar charger equipment steered me away from the wind generator, mainly because I'm not there all the time to monitor it and felt the solar system I installed would be adequate. Post some pictures when you can, sounds interesting.


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## m1west

The whole system


----------



## FrancSevin

Good advice, thanks.

I am sorta tied to lead acid as I have this huge one at 12 volts virtually new. 

It was free in a old Clark powered pallet jack.  Came with a charger.  It will be the initial main power backup as it will power the place for at least three days.  I will likely keep it on the windmill .  

Right now solar is limited, and isolated,  to certain systems

Solar will go more modern.  Since I do not yet have the battery pack for the solar system, when I go that way big I will heed your advice.


thanks!

Now, I was thinking about you constant water flow and wondering it it would power a small water generator for you.  Since you are dumping the water as it is, why not use it for a PTO to run a generator?

Put down stream from your tank inlet it would only use the excess flow.


----------



## m1west

FrancSevin said:


> Good advice, thanks.
> 
> I am sorta tied to lead acid as I have this huge one at 12 volts virtually new.
> 
> It was free in a old Clark powered pallet jack.  Came with a charger.  It will be the initial main power backup as it will power the place for at least three days.  I will likely keep it on the windmill .
> 
> Right now solar is limited, and isolated,  to certain systems
> 
> Solar will go more modern.  Since I do not yet have the battery pack for the solar system, when I go that way big I will heed your advice.
> 
> 
> thanks!
> 
> Now, I was thinking about you constant water flow and wondering it it would power a small water generator for you.  Since you are dumping the water as it is, why not use it for a PTO to run a generator?
> 
> Put down stream from your tank inlet it would only use the excess flow.


The paddle wheel generator is a good one, I've seen it done. Problem for me is its a spring not a creek. I have a spring box and it comes out around 5 gallons per minute, not enough. My cabin neighbor also taps into my spring, he ran a little 1/2" , maybe a gallon a minute line to his water 600 gallon water tank. Said after the tank is full he has no water issues. He is actually a lot closer to my spring than I am. Yep I already have them is a lot cheaper than buying the batteries.


----------



## FrancSevin

I have a nice creek that could use the paddle style except that when we get a gully washer it would be destroyed.

At the moment I don't live there.  It is a camp.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

So we decided to add on to the kitchen at camp. My wife stayed home this weekend with 4 of the kids. I brought out the two younger girls for the weekend. They pretty much roam the park with their friends just being kids all day. It was windy and misting most of the day. I picked up some lumber (talk about ridiculous prices) and brought it out.

Our site faces south west so we get direct sunlight all day. The sun is nice but it was beating down on the outdoor fridge all day long making the fridge overwork to stay cold.

So the theory is that by building a wall around it to enclose it maybe it won't work as hard.

So I got to work building. First, I moved a support post over.





Then I added another one in the middle of the kitchen. This will be a support for the wall.





Next, I added a couple 2x4s and some fence boards.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

The back of the fridge got the same treatment. 






Next, I closed off a smaller opening between a post and the bar opening. Afterwards I put up a few screws for bbq utensils and put everything in place and called it done.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Here's the shower house I built last year behind the kitchen.


----------



## m1west

looking good, couple more years it will be a cabin.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Lol. I don't think we're gonna close it in entirely. So far the fridge is holding temperature much better now that it's not in direct sunlight.


----------



## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> Lol. I don't think we're gonna close it in entirely. So far the fridge is holding temperature much better now that it's not in direct sunlight.


What does your refrigerator run on? 110v, 12v or propane?


----------



## m1west

Made it back from the work cabin, I am officially about where I was last year at this time before the fire. I got the water going from the spring to the new tank. We now have water.
First picture is after beating on the road with a Moll for about 45 minutes, It was very hard compressed road base for the first 4" where the Moll just kind of bounced off making sparks.
The second picture was when I got through the road base then got down to 10" where I met a large rock too big to remove.
Got the pipe buried in a total of about 6 hours , steady at it.
The video is the water filling the tank, I'm getting about 3-4 gallons per minute
In all I laid 1300 feet of pipe trenched under the road, hooked up the spring and water tank over 2 trips totaling about 40 hours of work.
I was surprised to see a lot of the burned trees that I thought were done for sure, are starting to green up.


----------



## m1west




----------



## m1west

Couldn't get the video to load, ill try it later, Next project is a new galvanized steel 24 gauge standing rib roof, Just priced it out. 3K, should last 40-60 years. My kids shouldn't have to replace it. I figure a couple trips to tear the old off and install the new.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

First I'll back up to last fall. We had purchased an older pop up truck camper for me to use for remote fishing and hunting trips. This spring, my parents decided to pick up a used fifth wheel for the same purpose. It's a 23.5ft. 1990. So a little older but very solid and in good shape. They decided to buy another one with a slide out and sold us the first one they bought. So I sold the truck camper. 






I had been working on getting it ready to do random trips. We still have our main camper set up on a seasonal site but didn't want to have to haul it out just for a weekend. On Monday this week, I had planned on hitting the road to head out to the bush fishing 3hrs away with the fifth wheel and boat. Then I came across another fifth wheel that has a better layout for us and will have room for my wife and I and 4 kids to sleep in. We went to look at it and struck a deal. So now we'll be selling the first fifth wheel and picking up the newer one this weekend. 

It's a 2001 rockwood 25.5ft.


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## NorthernRedneck

Here's the older 1990 inside. 





And a couple of the newer one inside.


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## FrancSevin

Nice.


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## NorthernRedneck

We're at camp. Thursday, I drove the hour drive to get here with what was originally planned as a day trip to bring out the side by side and my son's quad. I drove back home for supper then a buddy from camp messaged me that he was out there a night early. So I decided to drive back to camp for the night and return home Friday. I arrived home around 2:40 and by 5, we had the kids packed and were headed back to camp for the weekend. 

This morning I was cooking a big breakfast and a buddy showed up asking me to go out fishing. A half hour later we hit the water. 2 hrs later, we had caught 7 bass, 1 walleye and 2 northern pike.


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## NorthernRedneck

We came home from camp this morning. I jumped in the truck and headed out to pick up the new to us fifth wheel. It tows nice having a dry weight of 5000lbs roughly.


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## NorthernRedneck

So I made a very unpleasant discovery yesterday. The guy I bought it from was obviously a rookie and thought it was fine to use the toilet like an outhouse without water. Well my friends, let me tell you a story. Lol

What happens when you go no 2 in an rv toilet without water?  Well, the poop piles up solid to the hole. And once that hole is plugged, where does it go?  Rv toilets are often plastic and have a double layer with all of the plumbing parts tucked in between the layers. So when the tank was blocked, everything began backing up solid (literally) in between the layers. I had to remove the toilet and take it outside with a garden hose trying to loosen weeks of dried poop. It's clean now but I seriously considered a can of gas and incinerating the thing.


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## m1west

Didn't you just get elected to help a buddy do a similar task? Watch out things go in threes.


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## NorthernRedneck

m1west said:


> Didn't you just get elected to help a buddy do a similar task? Watch out things go in threes.


Lmao. Yes. I only had to remove the toilet to get mine unclogged. But gross nonetheless. 

I rewired the back of the rv from a 4 pin to a 7 pin receiver to accommodate the boat trailer as it has the surge brakes. Then I figured there's no time like the present to give it a test run to see how it handles as it's very windy today. When I tried it behind the older fifth wheel, the boat trailer was swaying a little too much for my liking at highway speeds. I put a taller rise hitch on to couple the boat to the camper and it seemed to handle fine without any sway.


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## NorthernRedneck

I headed out Monday after getting home from camp on Sunday to the annual fish camp. It was quiet as only my friend and I were there. The fishing was alright but not as good as when we normally go in may. The water level was down almost 3 feet making it difficult to get out from the shore as weeds were growing in thick.

Normally when we're there in may, the fish have gone up river to spawn and are in the process of coming back down the river system into the lakes making for excellent fishing. Being over a month later, the fish have already gone back down into the lake making them harder to find. We still did alright though.


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## NorthernRedneck

We're doing another turn n burn. Headed back to camp today for another 3 nights. It's supposed to be in the low 30s all weekend. If any fishing happens it'll be in the morning.


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## m1west

NorthernRedneck said:


> We're doing another turn n burn. Headed back to camp today for another 3 nights. It's supposed to be in the low 30s all weekend. If any fishing happens it'll be in the morning.


So far you have shot and ate all the birds in Canada and he can fish too. Good thing there are seasons or they couldn't replenish fast enough with you in the woods.


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## NorthernRedneck

Lmao. They don't call me northern redneck for nothing.


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## NorthernRedneck

I had previously shared the outdoor shower we built last summer. It was originally plumbed through the outdoor shower built onto the camper. 

The system worked alright but was dependent on nobody else using the water in the camper as it would reduce pressure and temperature. 

We got to looking into propane fired hot water on demand units and settled on an onsen unit. It's a simple system. There's a water line going in to the unit and a line going out to the shower. And a propane line. Simply turn the water on. Turn on the propane. And flip a switch then enjoy instant hot water. I gave the new heater a maiden run this morning and after 20 minutes, hot water was still coming out at the correct temperature. Excellent unit for offgrid living. The unit was on Amazon for around $200.


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## NorthernRedneck

We were at our seasonal site last weekend and arrived home Sunday only to pack up Monday and head out Tuesday morning for a 2.5 hr drive west to meet up with my wife's parents for 3 nights at a provincial park. We didn't get fully serviced sites as there were none available for the dates we wanted so we're off grid for 3 nights. My wife hauled the boat so we could go fishing a few times. Tomorrow, we leave to return home. Then we'll take care of a few things at home and head back out to our seasonal site for the long weekend.


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## FrancSevin

NorthernRedneck said:


> I had previously shared the outdoor shower we built last summer. It was originally plumbed through the outdoor shower built onto the camper.
> 
> The system worked alright but was dependent on nobody else using the water in the camper as it would reduce pressure and temperature.
> 
> We got to looking into propane fired hot water on demand units and settled on an onsen unit. It's a simple system. There's a water line going in to the unit and a line going out to the shower. And a propane line. Simply turn the water on. Turn on the propane. And flip a switch then enjoy instant hot water. I gave the new heater a maiden run this morning and after 20 minutes, hot water was still coming out at the correct temperature. Excellent unit for offgrid living. The unit was on Amazon for around $200.
> 
> 
> View attachment 138966View attachment 138967


So this uses LPG but requires no electricity at all?
Not even for on off control?
How does that work

this would be perfect for our Ozark project.  thanks Brian.


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## NorthernRedneck

FrancSevin said:


> So this uses LPG but requires no electricity at all?
> Not even for on off control?
> How does that work
> 
> this would be perfect for our Ozark project.  thanks Brian.



It uses 2 d cell batteries to power the unit. So as long as you have a water supply and propane hooked up, you have hot water for your shower.


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## NorthernRedneck

On Wednesday afternoon we took the boat out and anchored in 10 ft of water then everyone had fun diving into the water and swimming.


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## pirate_girl

NorthernRedneck said:


> We're at camp. Thursday, I drove the hour drive to get here with what was originally planned as a day trip to bring out the side by side and my son's quad. I drove back home for supper then a buddy from camp messaged me that he was out there a night early. So I decided to drive back to camp for the night and return home Friday. I arrived home around 2:40 and by 5, we had the kids packed and were headed back to camp for the weekend.
> 
> This morning I was cooking a big breakfast and a buddy showed up asking me to go out fishing. A half hour later we hit the water. 2 hrs later, we had caught 7 bass, 1 walleye and 2 northern pike.
> 
> View attachment 138059


Brian, you're looking thinner.
Or is it just me?


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## NorthernRedneck

pirate_girl said:


> Brian, you're looking thinner.
> Or is it just me?



Lol. It's not you. Following my accident I was on a medication that did nothing for the pain but as a side effect caused rapid weight gain. I was always around the 220 lbs mark and had ballooned to 265 without changing the diet. I got off that medication a couple years ago and onto the medical marijuana. The pain has been better and I'm now down to 208 lbs.


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## NorthernRedneck

Every summer I take my son out to see his mother for 2 weeks as she lives two provinces away. She was originally supposed to meet me a 4 hour drive away to get him. It just happened to coincide with my brother dirt track racing in the next community over. So rather than drive 4 hours to do the exchange, then turn around and drive four hours back in the same day, I decided to take the fifth wheel and drive 6 hrs one way and stay overnight at a campground, watch the races, do the exchange, and come back. Two of the younger kids also wanted to come along. 

So we spent the weekend at the seasonal site doing the usual stuff. Sunday morning I had everything planned that I would get up early drive home with the kids, hook up to the fifth wheel to get on the road by 8:30am. We arrived home and went to hook up and discovered a flat tire on the camper. The spare was an option until I discovered that it was a 13" and the ones on the trailer are 14".  So I headed to the city to pick up a new tire and install it once I got back. 

On to the camper issues. So we ended up on the road a little later than expected. While driving I got to thinking about the tire. I removed the flat and left it at home but not before airing it up to discover that the belting let go on the last trip and it was nearing exploding on the highway and damaging the camper so good thing it let go at home. And if one of the tires was experiencing belt separation from age, the other three are not far behind. So I better get them replaced. So I called a tire shop along the way and made arrangements to get there at a certain time and have them swap out the three remaining tires. I pulled in at 1pm today and by 1:30 we were back on the road. They had two guys on it right away changing the tires nascar style. That's jacking up the camper mounting and unmounting 3 tires on the old rims and mounting them back onto the camper. Quick service.


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## NorthernRedneck

We previously had a 10x10 tarp garage sitting there for storage but last year I had to take it down as the tarp was baked after only 4 years. So I needed a place to store the tubes gas cans etc that wasn't necessarily fully weather proof and with the cost of lumber, pallets made for a cheaper alternative. I came back out to camp on Wednesday to finish building the shed I started last week. 






On Thursday after I finished the shed, I started work on the kitchen to bring in proper electrical and lighting. We previously had strings of Christmas lights and solar lights to light the kitchen at night. For power, I had an extension cord with a power bar hung over the side. 

I used regular household wiring coming in through the wall to a regular exterior plug then going to a light switch to control a ceiling light fixture I repurposed from my son's room when we installed a ceiling fan last winter. The refrigerator was originally plugged into a heavy duty ac extension cord into the power bar. So now it's going directly to the plug in and the second plug in feeds a power bar which takes care of the stereo and any other electronic devices that need to be plugged in. On the back side of the wall, the electrical cord just goes to a 3 prong plug into an extension cord. It all works. There is a main breaker to shut power off or trip if things get overloaded.


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## m1west

Went to the work cabin Thursday to check it out and clean pine needles away again. There is a very big fire raging up there right now ( Dixie fire ) that would have gotten us for sure, if not for the fire last year ( sheep fire ) It burned right up to the burn scar from last year 4-5 days ago and stopped advancing towards us. Its trying to go around both north and south right now but shouldn't threaten us. Last night it rained for a couple hours with lightning and wet my place down pretty good. It had been hot and it cooled it down some. Went to sleep around 8pm and woke up this morning at 3am. it was very smokey so we decided to head home and not have to breath it for another day. We packed up and left around 4:30 am and got home around 10am. A lot of refugees were in Susanville and a lot of sad faces. That whole area is getting ready to take a big hit, and not only from the fires, the State prison there which nearly 50% of the revenues come from closes next year.


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## NorthernRedneck

We have a slew of forest fires about 40 miles southwest of camp so it's been smokey. We came back out to camp Wednesday with the plan of just relaxing all weekend. Well, I went back home to drive our son to work as it was raining yesterday. While in the city, I picked up some wood for another project.

We didn't have a place to store propane tanks and the generator so I got to work building a storage shed today.  A bonus is that it's the perfect height for a work bench/fish cleaning station. I have a small plastic table to use on it as a cleaning board. 




Then, as I didn't have enough projects on the go, she who must be obeyed discovered a small opening under the counter in the camper that was covered by a thin piece of paneling so I tore the panel out carefully and built a shelf to hold pizza pans, baking sheets, plastic wrap, and aluminum foil. That took 3 hrs of measuring and cutting support pieces to mount the shelf as only one side had finished paneling.


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## NorthernRedneck

Another little project done today at camp. We wanted something to cover the sink in the camper and couldn't find one that fit so I picked up a slab of pine and cut it to shape, gave it a good sanding, and two coats of oil stain. It looks alright.


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## NorthernRedneck

It's been very dry up here this summer. We've been under a fire ban since June. The powers that be lifted the ban 2 days ago. Nice to be able to have a fire again.


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## NorthernRedneck

I've been negligent on updating this thread as of late due to my dad's passing in September. We did get out a couple more times before closing up on Thanksgiving. 

Someone else in our park experienced a bad situation the other day when the propane tank on their camper exploded. I haven't been able to get out yet to check on things but I was told it took out 3 campers and damaged a neighboring permanent cottage. 

This is why, at the end of the season, I disconnect my tanks, remove the battery, and unplug the camper. No propane accidentally fed into the camper. No source of ignition. No electricity going to the unit. Stuff can still happen but it's due diligence.


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## NorthernRedneck

I took a drive out to camp to inspect the damage. Here's what's left of a 27' camper and an enclosed cargo trailer 





This was a permanent cabin not part of our campground.


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## FrancSevin

NorthernRedneck said:


> I took a drive out to camp to inspect the damage. Here's what's left of a 27' camper and an enclosed cargo trailer
> 
> View attachment 141148
> 
> This was a permanent cabin not part of our campground.
> 
> View attachment 141149View attachment 141150


Wow!

Most people do not realize how fast an RV camper will be consumed by fire.

Negligence is inexcusable.

We were once in a park that allowed RV campers to be within 3 feet of each  other.

When they set one next to us, despite our objections and the local fire codes,  we moved to another park.


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## NorthernRedneck

I'd love to know what happened. Was it a propane explosion as we suspected or something else. We were told a propane tank stored in the shed behind the camper exploded. There was a two story camp next to it that is nothing but posts now. We have 3 tanks out there.


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