Lost Dog Trails

Short hike on the Lost Dog Trail system near Scottsdale.  Another perfect weather day in the Sonoran Desert.  Cool nights, 70 degree days, sunshine all day, every day.  Fountain Hills would be an easy place to live six months out of the year.

"Jumping Cholla".  Some lady at the trailhead the other day said these little prickly balls are heat seeking and jump off to land on people.  Great myth, but not true.

Ocotillo flower

Ocotillo versus saguaro

.

Wifi and Toilets

The perpetual tweek for the best wifi setup continues.  I sold my old router (Amped Rec10) that I used successfully all summer because once we started travelling, I found it to be finicky and rather annoying.   It worked great in Minnesota, but was only 600mW, so I wanted to go back to the 1,000mW Alpha AWUS036h.  The limitation with the Alfa booster is it's inability to act as a wifi repeater.  It's great for plugging into the USB port on a single computer to boost the wifi signal, but that's where it ends.  

So here is the new wifi system we are using.

1.  Tupavco flat panel antenna on a tripod, signal is fed into the antenna port of the Alfa.

2.  The Alfa plugs into the USB on the PC, which gives it a very strong wifi signal.

3.  The ethernet port on the PC is set up to share it's internet via ethernet out.

4.  Ethernet out to TP Link WR702N ($20 router-repeater).

5.  TP Link WR702N rebroadcasts the PC's wifi throughout the RV.

6.  Two iPhones, one iPad, and an AppleTV connect to the internet through the TP-Link.

I am using the flat panel antenna because it's almost as sensitive as the huge 24dbi parabolic I bought this summer, but it's smaller and easier to set up.  It's not as powerful as the big boss, but I think for 80% of campgrounds it will be fine.  We have a long cable for it so we can move it into position to obtain the best line of site to the access point if need be.  Trees, RV's, and other obstacles really interfere with wifi, so it's best to have line of site.

TP-Link router rebroadcasts the wifi from the PC.

1000mW wifi booster.  The panel antenna feeds into this, then into the PC.

Flat panel antenna pointing at wifi access point.

And just for extra fun, our toilet flush broke today, so I got rid of it and put in a bidet of sorts.  Cheaper than a new toilet.

Our new flush handle........high tech stuff going on here.

Weavers Needle

Hike up to Fremont Saddle near Weavers Needle in the Superstition Mountains today.  Alex hiked about a mile up the really rocky trail, then I hauled him the rest of the way.  Then he hiked about half way or more down before carrying him again.

Pretty hard to beat the weather this time of year in the desert.  Sunny every day, not much wind, highs in the upper 70's and lows in the 50's, clear blue skies, cactus, mountains, and lots of uninhabited open space.

Pinnacle Peak

Finished a long first week of work.  The first week of these travel contracts always kinda suck.  They are typically five days a week of hoop jumping, corporate rah rah, and lots of driving.  This week was surprisingly brief on the corporate rah rah, and I actually had my two clinical orientation days (even though I only oriented for about 4 hours).  The hospital is a big, busy trauma center, but is brand new, and well staffed.  Should be a good remaining twelve weeks.

Went out to the popular Pinnacle Peak hike today in the upscale Scottsdale with Mercedes, Porsches, and other fancy cars abound.  People in AZ like their shiny, expensive cars.  The trail is mellow, and perfect for Alex to hike by himself.  He did about 2.5 miles total, his longest yet, and actually moved at a descent pace.  It was nice to not have to carry him.

Running ahead.

Chocolate chip cookie break.

Cholla cactus

Pics don't do it justice moonrise over the Four Peaks.

Saguaro cactus in front of Pinnacle Peak.