It’s a new year!  2018 saw my completion of the Pacific Crest Trail, and that was a huge bucket list item that I’m very proud of.

Bad news: My left knee never really healed, so my Long Distance backpacking days are over.  Day hiking is still on the list, so I will be doing lots of hikes and possibly short backpacking trips. I may even finally learn how to fish! (Some may laugh, but I never had the patience to learn before)

For 2019 I’ve decided to visit Alaska!  I own a 24 foot Travel Trailer (TT) and will be towing that puppy up there spending 2-3 months messing around.

I’ve started planning, and am beginning to realize just how BIG Alaska is.  And so far away!  It’s a month travel (2 weeks each way) which leaves Two months to fit everything in.  Yeah, not gonna happen.  So I’m in the process of preparing a “Highlight” list of attractions and Parks to visit.

One of the tidbits I picked up is that distances are so great that people pull over and camp on the side of the road whenever they feel like it.  Most of the state is wilderness with a few roads punched though.  In addition, all of the national parks are Dry Camping with no hookup. However, my trailer is not set up for lots of those days.  Dry Camping is where you live off your Propane, Fresh Water storage, and batteries.

My biggest limit are my Batteries.  I upgraded the batteries to two 6 volt 224va golf cart  batteries in series. These are huge; weighing 65lbs each.  My built-in charger is barely able to keep them topped off.  So my next project is to add Solar to the TT.

Solar is a big-ticket item to add with a zillion different options and configurations.  It’s common for big installations for Motorhomes to cost $5-$8 grand.  For my batteries I can go up to a 400 watt system, and I think I can do that for around $700 installing it myself.

Adding a medium-sized Pure Sine inverter will round out the project.  This way I can Dry Camp for days without running my generator.  (Boy, the dirty looks I get for running that beast…  😦 )

I’ll be posting my progress with my planning and the solar project in the coming months.

I’m excited!