Full disclosure: Currently writing this, and the next few posts to update on my travels in retrospect. It has been a fast-moving blur over the past month! Hopefully from now on, I’ll be able to post more often. Hope you enjoy the ride with me! ~Dragn
Jun 1: Goodbye Seattle, Bonnaroo Here I Come!
Today, I handed over the keys for the house to my landlord, kiddo and I said our goodbyes, and I immediately hit the road. Originally, I planned to camp out somewhere a couple days to decompress and catch up on sleep cause I was so exhausted and overwhelmed from the move, but there were flood warnings all across Western Washington, so I needed to head East..pronto!
Almost immediately, ran into my first issue. I just got myself an Ecowave Delta 2 for my Starlink. I forgot to plug it in to fully charge before I moved out of the house, so I plugged it into the van to charge while I drove. After about 20 minutes, I smelled something burning…like…a fire?! But…then the smell pretty quickly went away, so I figured it was coming from outside.
I stopped to stock up on groceries, and noticed my van battery light went out. And I have no house power. And I can really smell that burning smell in the back of the van. Did some investigating, found that my fuse to my lithium batteries blew, and the fuse box melted. Okay, that’s an easy fix. I have spare fuses, and just need a new box. I switched power over to my AGM, and decided this was a problem for future me. For now, I needed sleep… got to Indian John Rest Area in Cle Elum, WA and knocked out for the night.
June 2-3: Wild Horse Sculpture | Vantage, WA
Made it over to the desert side of WA! I’ve always wanted to see the Wild Horse Monument, and decided it was worth it to make the stop to check it out. No regrets…it’s incredible! It’s a 200′ long line of 15 wild horses in a gallop. Its official title is “Grandfather Cuts Loose the Ponies,” and was sculpted by David Govedare in 1989. The sculpture overlooks the Columbia River, which is also so, so beautiful. There’s a scenic overlook turnout along I-90 which gives an incredible view of both at once.
It was still early when I made it to the next big(-ish) city, so decided to buy a new fuse box. I went to hardware stores, auto stores, Harbor Freight, Lowes, Home Depot..no one had it save for as a special order. I ended up getting a circuit breaker instead. Got that installed, and my lithium working again. YaY!
As for my Ecowave, I found that it was charging at a rate of 1200w, which is crazy fast, but also, waaaay too much for my system to handle. I did try adjusting the charge rate down to the lowest setting of 200w, but that also burnt out my fuse. So no AC charging, which is fine. I am able to charge with the 9v car adapter, and I have 160w solar panels for it as well.
Stopped at Schrag Rest Area in Schrag, WA, and it really was beautiful, the wind was just crazy fierce. I didn’t know tumbleweeds was a real thing, but there they were! I even got smacked by one while taking Lincoln out for a walk! I ended up having to stay here for 2 nights because the wind gusts were upwards of 43mph, and there is NO way I was going to drive in that!
Vantage, WA – Wild Stallion Sculptures (roadsideamerica.com)
Love the view of the river!
Thank you for being my very first comment Tater! 🥹 This part of WA is where I’ve been telling you about and want to take you!!!