Log 2013100601

The flood stage at Grand Rapids is 15 feet. At the moment, I think its around 10' as the water there still below the marker.  But because of a nearby dam, the Maumee is 4' lower and the terrain is higher in the village.  It's the opposite where I'm camped, which is on the other side of said dam. The caRv and trailer are on standby to evacuate Thurston.
At the moment, WeatherBug reports that the rain will stop here in the morning and that the Maumee's headwaters in Indiana are mostly clear tonight. So the rain should be collecting in one river, instead of three now.
Several days ago, the site along the Miami & Erie Canal at the Six Mile Creek Trailhead was found to be an unsuitable campsite for The Cramper because the area is legally impassable to all but night fishermen during night hours at this time.
I installed the 12' x 16' canvas tarp this evening when I had a break in the weather just long enough to do it. And I had reason to believe that its not that long.  But I measured its approximate length using my arm span, which I mistakenly thought was 39", but I come to find that number only covers one arm, not the other, nor my 22" torso, either. 
It's a heavy duty tarp at 10 mil thickness that is water, mildew and tear resistant from Home Depot, SKU 333 610 and it's made in China.  The product comes with a flammability warning regarding the product coming in contact with an open flame. I think it is made by the same manufacturer as my previous smaller tarp.  If so, I was very pleased with that unit. 
Applying it to The Cramper was similar. Only this time, it has to be wrapped over the bike rack forks and cover part of the top rack and luggage bag.  It also needs to be folded diffrently on the sides to expose the doors.  The tarp needs to be weatherproofed at some point.  It may need to happen sooner, but I think I could do that back in "port." That's a word I use to describe were I can have access to a garage and power tools to do some of The Cramper's heavy retrofitting.   These things also tend to be a part of other projects that could take several days and keep me off of the trail in the process. 

Log 2013090501

There's a couple sources of light polution, but so it seems like all the stars are clustered over my head.  Like someone put it there as chandelier. The big dipper is directly north across the Maumee River just above the horizon.
I established Basecamp Foxtrot today at Mary Jane Thurston State Park.  I think this is my second time here. And amenity wise, it's more like my least favorite campground so far. There are porta potties and one outdoor shower. I guess I can consier myself lucky to have electric at all.  But it has a great view of the Maumee.
I set the tent up, but I'm really not liking how the poles have no side clips and the bow when I try to put the rain cover on.  I have plastic steaks at the moment and they're not doing a good job at keeping the tent walls straight. And even when the poles are through their sleeves, the top tie must be secure before they  stabilize.
I drove to the unincorporated community of Junction in Paulding County to an intersection known as Defiance Section - Buckeye Trail, pt. 1 and started using my smartphone to plot waypoints for opportunities to park my car and trailer. 
So this is upcoming on my addenda for the next 9 days... First is to fix my GPS Records and organize them for upload.  The Defiance Section has just recently been rerouted.  So, I have adjust its point numbers and hand draw the trail on my paper map.  Second is finish 20 miles of the near by North Country Trail on its way to Michigan.  Once I get that done, when I sweep the BT, which the portions remaining are NCT concurrent, I'll get my BT Circuit Hike and North Country Ohio patch.  Right now, the plan is for that to happen in Mt. Orab of Brown County.
The third is to maintain 40 miles of the Defiance Section. I'm not sure if I'll get all of it done, but I'm authorized to perform mantenance in Defiance and Henry Counties on said section.  Now, I've been advised to stay out of Lucas County.  Apparently Toledo Metroparks doesn't let Buckeye maintain the trail through its jurisdiction without supervision from one of their employees.
The Defiance runs almost entirely off-road on the heel and towpath of the Miami & Erie Canal.  They are not within the jurisdiction of the Miami & Erie State Trail (MEST).  Who actually owns these... I don't know.