Laughlin and Bullhead Cities

We have been quiet for the past week and it's time for an update. The reason for the quiet is that we have been working on the fifth wheel, preparing it for our trip to the wilds of Wyoming. What that means is that we are adding more battery storage i.e. a bank of batteries.

There are lots of ways to do this. One is to add 2 deep cycle 12 volt batteries, in parellel. Another is to add two or four golf cart batteries. The golf cart batteries are 6 volt and so if you add them you need to hook them up in series, so you get 12 volts. We decided to go the golf cart battery route as the golf cart batteries are supposed to last longer than regular deep cycle batteries,(I have talked and seen two rigs set up with the golf cart batteries and the owners are vocal in their endorsement of this method).

So the first step was to go to the Sams Club in Bullhead City. The trip was 70 miles, north and then west through Needles, California. Finally North from there to Laughlin, Nevada, before crossing the Colorado River into Bullhead City. We were not impressed as the towns seem to be built simply for irrigation, agriculture, and the casinos,(I keep thinking about what will happen when Wyoming starts to use its 2 million acre feet of water from the Colorado River. How will Arizona keep going when it dries up..).

Anyway, we got there and went to the Sams Club, bought the batteries and headed home, after eating a lunch at Chilis. On the way back we drove on the Arizina side till Needles and then on interstate 40 and Arizona 95. As we drove I kept thinking about the desert and how tough it must have been to survive. The Mojave is the most desolate of the four deserts we have been in, buts that's for another blog.

So we are home now and working on the battery bank. We installed a switch last night and today the batteries get hooked up. The switch allows us to choose which of the batery banks to use, so we will have backup power. Keep your fingers crossed! Clear skies.