Trap Pond State Park, DE II

Trap Pond State Park, DE
Tuesday, 27 March 2018

On the weather report this morning, I swear the guy said that a front coming through Atlanta "breaks through like Sherman."

Every place I've stayed has had some kind of alcohol policy, usually of the don't stick it in anybody's face and we won't bother you variety.  But there was one park, I think it was in North Carolina, that said alcohol was absolutely prohibited, including the possession of it.  I kept wondering if one of the rangers routinely went around to RVs insisting on being allowed to inspect the contents for alcohol possession.  Anyway, nobody did while I was there.

Canada geese on Trap Pond

There's a flock of Canada geese hanging out at the pond and making a lot of noise  I don't know if you can see them in this photo - they're on the opposite side of the pond - but I thought I'd try.  The small colorful objects in the trees are fishing lures.

The geese seemed huge to me, and the bird book says I'm right - the eastern species is the largest and the western (that I'm used to seeing) is often the smallest.

This campground has what most of them do: a lot of spaces for RVs, about 18 for tents, and cabins that can be rented.  What surprised me is that they also have 2 yurts for rent, and I've never seen anything quite like these.  I hope this one shows up in the photo.  They're perched beside Trap Pond.

cabin and yurt for rent

Can you see the dogs?

I'm much better at parking than at first.  I've learned there's no shame in getting out and looking at my progress - even several times - and that makes a huge difference in my parking success.

I am currently receiving yet another lesson in planning ahead.  Despite using the heater far more often than I had been, due to really cold temps (it got down to 27° last night), I didn't think to check the propane level until this afternoon.  Which is when I discovered that the tank was nearly empty.  Not so great with another cold night (only 37° but still) and needing my propane stove to make coffee in the morning.  One of the rangers told me a gas station about 4 miles away sold propane, and I decided it was worth the hassle of unplugging and driving down the road just to be sure we'd stay warm tonight.  Not so simple.

The place 4 miles away does sell propane but couldn't get a good seal on the propane hose.  They directed me to a station 7 miles away so off I went.  That guy tried hard but his hose just couldn't get a good enough attachment.  He directed me to another station a mile back the way I'd come.  This third place said they only sold it in bottles, so sorry, but suggested I go back to a truck stop back down toward the park.  At the truck stop, they said they didn't sell propane but they got on the internet and on the phone and found a Trucking Supply store b-a-c-k down the road I'd already been down several times.  I went to the TS store and that guy tried several times but just couldn't make a good seal.  By then it was after 5:00 and most places were closing up.  I decided to tough it out for one night and deal with the coffee situation in the morning.

I drove nearly 50 miles doing all this and wound up with a still almost empty propane tank.

During the last drive, I decided what I need is an RV dealer.  They're in the business of taking care of RVs, including their propane tanks.  The RV place that did my repair in Jacksonville is the last place I got my tank filled, which is why I thought of it.

So since this very nice state park allows me to get wi-fi, I looked up RV dealers in Delaware.  And this being a very small state, they're all pretty easy to get to.  In fact, there's one back down the road I drove up and down and up and down this afternoon.  This time I think I'll call first.

But I'm bound to find somebody in the state of Delaware who can fill up my propane tank.  If I had a separate removable tank, lots of people could have filled it up, but since mine's part of my RV, the nozzle has to be configured differently.  The last guy explained this to me.

Every single person I came in contact with was as nice and helpful as anyone could wish to meet.  I now have a very high opinion of the people of Delaware.

Addendum Wednesday morning

We are indeed cold.  I had an easier time than the critters because I could - and did - add extra clothes and a sleeping bag and a heating pad to keep warm during the night.  I tried to cover up my kids but found they'd all tossed off the covers by morning.  My previous batch of pets used to love covers but none of this crew does.  I tried.

Because I have electric power, I have use of the frig and microwave.  So for coffee this morning I used the microwave to heat up leftover coffee I'd stored in the frig, and ditto for water to make instant miso soup to go with a PBJ sandwich.  Maybe not a standard breakfast but covers several of the major food groups and is filling.  I'd peel a couple of mandarins if I were warmer.  Maybe for lunch.

My next campground is only about an hour away, so I have plenty of time to find propane and a grocery store.