Adventure Location: Zapata, Texas
Adventure Date: 2-17-2021
It has been an interesting time with several educational events for our future reference.
About 0300 on Sunday morning the area from south Laredo to down the Rio Grande River to Rio Grande City lost all electric power. Zapata is right in the middle of that area. This is Wednesday night and there has not been a hint of repairs for this area. So in essence the Teams paid $160 for 1 night with electricity and 6 nights of boondocking parked in a Lakefront Lodge rv site. What a deal!
Finally tonight we have a hint of part time internet. Since the adventure started we have had two nights of 21F and two nights of low 30F. The first cold night we awoke to high winds, sleet and Sierra covered in ice. The good news is there has been good sun for the solar panels so there has not been any trouble keeping everything powered. Heating is by stove top burner and has worked very well. We learned that a heavy sleeping bag would be a lot better for the OFM than 48 pounds of blankets. We also learned to stock at least three sets of thermal underwear. Another lesson is to have a couple of pair of heavy duty WARM socks for sleeping in.
Another important item is to make certain of the exact food supply in the Castle AND how long it will last. When the power is off the grocery stores do not open and you could go hungry.
The Castle (an Arctic Fox product) has proven to be very easy living all the way down to 21F. OF course we thought having wheels would keep us out of this mess. We were wrong this time.
It has been interesting and educational but still not a good way of trying to have tooooo much fun.
I admire your wisdom in this "less than ideal" weather event. Using my camping gear makes this easily tolerable compared to my neighbors who are all freaking out. Plans to head to MISP this weekend were cancelled but that's OK. The fish kill from the freeze was devastating in the Laguna Madre. Sad
ReplyDeleteI remember a major fish kill due to cold weather in West Bay near Galveston when I was a very young fisherman (50's. It was a sad sight to see all the dead fish washed up on the shorelines.
DeleteYea! You are alive and well and posting. Yup. An interesting time in a place that doesn't usually see this sort of thing. I've been lucky in my little town..some precautions taken from my years living out in the woods. (Haven't had to drag it out yet, but I have a down sleeping bag I purchased at what I thought was great cost in 1970. It is still in good shape. Light weight and you are warm the minute you slide into it. Down to -5 the makers said. From experience, I know it's wonderful at 10. Maybe I should look up current prices. Otherwise, I would recommend purchasing one. But as an old person, there's nothing like warm feet!!!)
ReplyDeleteHappy to hear the Fox has not let you down.
The Fox has done well again but my planning could use a little improvement.
ReplyDeleteHi Barney, I’m sure this has been mentioned to you and I’ve missed it comments, but wondering if your smartphone has tethering so you can use it for internet to your PC. Most unlimited cellphone plans include this. Might want to check!
ReplyDeleteLife is a learning experience but you are luckier then most by having Solar Powers that help you to have tooooo much fun.
ReplyDeleteStay Safe and Enjoy staying warm.
It's about time.
Glad to hear from you. Glad your solar panels worked; I was concerned ice on them might be a problem. Sorry you had to pay so much for so little. Some good lessons to remember for a future "this could never happen" event.
ReplyDeleteAt least it is not totally wasted money. Ugly lessons have been learned and will not be forgotten.
DeleteThis Global Warming event and the extended power outages will result in power companies having to refit themselves for super cold future events. Guess who pays for that? End users.
ReplyDeleteIMHO