Log 2014111901

This is a picture of me in my "Virginia is for Lovers" tuff guy shirt.  I secured my smartphone to my goose neck windshield mount and told the folks on Facebook that I was taking a "selfie with no hands."  What you can see somewhat in the back is my 2008 Chevy HHR LS with the back seats removed.  Taking them out was very simple, it only involves removing four nuts.  Since the car hauls "The Cramper," or my improvised pop-out camper, regardless of whether it's assembled or collapsed in transport mode, I removed the back seats for extra luggage capacity.

For those of you who navigated here from a search engine, The Cramper employs a 20ft tarp that I place over the outer shell in the back.  With bungee cords and 45° like folds going downward folds towards the back seat doors, I'm able secure it to the holes in my rear rims and the bars in my after market roof rack.  The roof bars have unused holes that pertain to different width roofs that the product can mount to.  I looped some paracord through outermost available holes so I'd have something to hook a bungee cord to that wouldn't slide across the bar in high winds, which is unlike looping the bungee cord around the pole and hooking it to itself.

Each side uses three bungees and then another 3 in the back.  I use two short red bungee cords and secure them to my trailer hitch.  Then I use a long yellow one with a red plastic end to secure the tarp from side to side under The Cramper's expansion floor.  It's a bungee cord where one end passes through a circular opening in the red plastic on the other end, then fits into a narrow channel along it, grips the cord and secures it in it's hold.  Most tarps looping holes will buckle and tear under the stress.  They need to be repaired from time to time and you can find replacements at a home improvement store, maybe even a hardware store (I haven't tried to find this there yet).

Log 2013110801

Ever since I unloaded the expansion floor and folded up the trailer, it seems that my 2008 Chevy HHR sits higher. I must say that I don't understand it because my car should fit 5 grown adults. Regardless, if this is true then the new rear struts are good, but need to be upgraded. I thought I felt that the back end is riding higher, but all I know, it's just my imagination.
Like I mentioned before, I folded the trailer and placed it into storage today. When I got the tool bins down, they might have been 300lbs a piece? And the gear bin wasn't too much lighter than the tools.  Between that, the trailer's dry weight, the 5500 BTU airconditioner and miscellaneous car repair equipment, it's possible that I was over my towing capasity. But, it's hard to tell without using an industrial scale. And if I had one, I think it'd be pretty close.
The trailer, gear, expansion floor & twin size memory foam mattress are in the 10' x 10' storage unit.  The next thing to do with it is see if my belongings will compact to one side so I could free up my uncle's office that I'm using for storage? To be honest, I'm not really sure it will work? There might be insufficent space in the new unit?
Right now, my bicycle is in the new storage unit until I cut enough plywood to block the windows on my parents shed. And my master portable gasoline tank was emptied out into the car today.  As of now, it's empty, but I still have about a gallon of 40:1 mix that I doubt I'll get rid of.  In my chainsaw class that I had at Buckeye Trail Fest 2013, I was informed that 40:1 mixed fuel isn't much good beyond 90 days after it was mixed.
Right now, I still have pain in my back from sleeping awkwardly in The Cramper.  But its getting better by the day with stretching.  Last night, I put a rice filled cold compress on it before I slept for about 42 minutes.  The cold disapated too quickly. I'm really looking forward to working out at the gym again.

Log 2013073001

This is The Cramper's 40th day down trail.  So far, the stove burners are working well, but I went through a green canister of propane in this time. At first, I wasn't sticking to just one, so, it could be as much as 1.25 canisters. The cooler has lost 4 of its 12 hinge screws.  If I don't fix it soon, it will completely fall apart.
I have gatorade that is sealed in a zip loc bag.  It handled the rains and I just had some today. The  mosquitos continue to be terrible here in Punderson.  Other than that, I hiked around Stump Lake.  The maintenance crew pulled up in a Gator and asked how I liked the trail.  Personally, I have mixed feelings about the trails being cut to 60".  As a distance hiker, that's what we call a "boulevard."  And boulevards are undesireable. 

Log 2013072301

This evening, I was putting up The Cramper.  The assembly did not go as well today as it has in the past. I'm still investigating why that was. Meanwhile, I found all the mosquitos I've been missing.   They're here in Punderson's electric campground.  So, I got out both citranella candles.  Usually I only use one and it does the job.  Yeah, neither one of them worked today and I am bit up.
I wasn't sure if I had any bug spray?  So, I rode my bike to 3 gas stations and none of them had any.  The nearest place that would was Wal-Mart in Middlefield.  I didn't bring my helmet and my left side rear illumination ran out of batteries.  The trip would have been on Kinsman Rd/ OH-87 and the traffic was a little agressive tonight. So I went back to camp and found my only remaining bug spray canister in my Camelbak back pack.  It's really low on fluid and I might be making a run to that Wal-Mart on bike tomorrow.