We're back!!! The weather started changing before we left Gulf View, becoming colder especially at night. We decided to park our trailers so we would get sun most of the day to warm up our small homes and also get the most out of our solar panel. We parked so that our front doors faced the field, away from the road. Since we were beside a bush, it was quite private and gave us a huge backyard for the dogs to play. The dogs really had a good time at this location! They had gotten used to playing together at the dog park and couldn't wait to "attack" each other and run together. Sadie got really playful even picking up sticks and running with them in hopes of getting chased. You've got to understand that Sadie doesn't play with toys normally so this was very new for her. Ally loves Sadie very much and every time she was let outside she would immediately go to Michelle's trailer to see if Sadie was coming out. Just like kids!
Staying warm was a big concern. Since we have no electricity, running the furnace depletes our battery very quickly (like within an hour) so that was not an option unless we plugged into the truck and let the truck idle which Glen did periodically to prevent the trailer from getting too cold. We had nights where the night temperature would be around four degrees Celsius. It even dipped below zero one night. We are very comfortable in bed under the duvet with Cheeka and MeMe acting as hot water bottles but sadly Ally doesn't sleep in bed with us and has to be crated at night. We worried that she would get cold. Someone had once told me to turn on the oven with the door ajar making sure to crack open a window for fresh air. We tried that and it did make quite a difference and kept us cozy enough without running the furnace and doesn't seem to use as much propane as the furnace. During the day, with the sun beating on the side of the trailer and streaming through the windows, the trailer was quite comfortable. We did sit outside anyways wearing several layers of clothing so we could chat and have the dogs out. Makes me appreciate the people who decide to winter in Canada in their RVs. If we ever did we would make quite a few modifications to keep the heat in and the cold out but, although our unit has the "Arctic Package", it is not meant to live in during the winter. If we had had a generator it would have helped but we still couldn't have run it all night long. Having a better battery (ours doesn't keep a charge very well anymore) would also help since our solar panel charges it full during the day. I would still go with solar power any day. The best would be to have two batteries. I think our 100 W panel could charge two batteries easily. How cold was it?
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| Michelle "enjoying" the outdoors |
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| You do what you have to do to keep warm |
The highlight of our stay was to finally see wild boars! Unfortunately, we only caught the hind end by the time we got a camera out but to see them with little piglets trotting alongside the adults made our day! Also seeing a flock of Pelicans fly overhead in perfect formation (which we didn't catch on camera) and then coming back to entertain us with their flying patterns several times was worth the cold!
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| We thought these were Wood Storks until we saw the pictures. |
We were also treated to beautiful sunsets which we could see right from our big picture window in the living room. Wow!
The place was fairly busy with horseback riders during the weekend and of course the hunters.
We enjoyed our stay in spite of the cold. The dogs loved it and we felt sad leaving as we knew they wouldn't have that kind of freedom for a while.
We go back to Peace River for one week once we leave here. I don't think I'll blog about it unless something extraordinary happens as we've been there many times now.
Remember to follow your dreams and not be afraid of leaving your comfort zone. You might be surprised to find a new you!
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| Kestrel |
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| Northern Mockingbird |
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| Are they sheep? |
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| No. Sandhill Cranes! |
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| The beautiful cows that reside at Hickory Hammock |
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| Beautiful Ally |
