relo to Colorado and a wayward Amazon shipment
slow relo
I’ll start a lazy relo to boondocking spots near-ish to La Veta, CO. There are some weather and other logistical concerns. The tentative timeline is:
- Wednesday - come down into Taos late afternoon after temps start to come down. Refill gas and water. Hit up the Walmart1 provisions. Stealth overnight.
- Thursday - head out toward CO. Stop after an hour or two somewhere for an overnight.
- Friday - continue to La Veta when I get confirmation the Amazon package is in the locker. If it comes early I’ll move the schedule up with gratitude; I really don’t like showing up in a boondocking spot on Fri/Sat/Sun. If the spots are full on Friday I’ll find somewhere sub-optimal until the weekenders clear out on Sunday.
After that maybe near Colorado Springs, since there are Planet Fitness gyms there.
logistical challenges
heat
I really don’t tolerate heat well. It’s 9200ft on this mountain and 9400ft on the target mountain but lower (obviously) between them. Luckily it looks like it will be generally >7000ft along the way.
amazon locker pickup
I ordered a package 4 days ago and shipping has been delayed – won’t be in Taos until Friday. The old order will not be picked up in Taos and will be automatically returned/refunded. Hey, I tried to cancel it to save Amazon some money but they weren’t playing ball.
So I refilled the cart and noticed that, all these days later, it would ship to either Taos or La Veta on the same day, Friday. Amazon shipping has lost it’s mind.2
Since I had to reorder to get the package sent to CO I added a couple things I’ve been putting off for a while.
Android BT tracking
I’ve wanted to get a few trackers but Android tracking really wasn’t very good. doG forgive me, but I actually considered getting the oldest compatible iPhone (6?) just to run AirTags. I wouldn’t care if the screen was cracked or whatever because it wouldn’t be my carry phone. Luckily I did not have to hit rock bottom that way and use iProducts like a filthy animal
And my budget was tight enough that tracking was way down on my someday list. Here’s what I decided on:
- 4-pack of Mili LiTag trackers. The LiTag line was originally Apple only and was intended to fit AirTag accessories. Then they released the Google Find Hub3 (nee Find My Device). It meets three of my most important criteria: waterproof, replaceable battery, and the aforementioned AirTag form factor. The plan is one for my keychain, one for my wallet, one for the dog and one for the van.
- a dog collar tag holder for the Muffindog
- a pair of plain silicone tag keyfobs. One for my keychain and one to hide in the cab of the van with a clear “view” (RF-wise) of the windows.
Reloading
The van is rarely perfectly level, which is a problem for precise weighing of tiny masses. I originally thought about building a little board with adjustable feet then decided on leveling shims. This will help with the scales and also my first powder thrower below.
- rubber leveling shims
- bubble level to help with shim placement. I have a ruler-style level but it requires moving it into perpendicular positions to verify level.
- Lee “Perfect” powder measure. I only use ball powders (literally tiny balls) and those meter easily through simple throwers like this.
Misc
- more fuses in case I step on my own nards again
- some 45°C Normally-Open thermal switches. I am running a tiny fan on my Pi4 and want it to only turn on when the PI case is warm.