Friday was pump-out day. When I scheduled our pump-out with La Pine Septic, I was told they would be at our site between 8am and 9am. Then, on Thursday I had a call from the woman that I talked to at La Pine – she said she had the schedule wrong and they wouldn’t be here until noon or 1pm. Later, I had a voice message from the driver telling me he would be at the park at 8am and had several stops scheduled – he would here sometime in the morning. At that point, I had no idea when to expect him.

I wanted to be there when he arrived so I could watch the process. I wanted to know for sure that my tanks were completely drained without any issues. The truck pulled up at our site around 10am. The connector on the end of his pump-out hose was too bulky to fit directly on our drain. I used our sewer hose on the drain and he attached his hose to the other end of it.

The system uses a motor-driven pump to pull the waste water out and dump it into a large tank on the truck. It works pretty quickly but still took a few minutes as we had nearly full tanks after 11 days without dumping. Our gray water tank holds 100 gallons and our black water capacity is about 90 gallons. We should be good for the rest of our stay – I’ll hit the dump station when we leave here on the 18th.

Later I rode the Spyder to town to pick up a couple of things and I also wanted to check out some possible boondocking spots in the Deschutes National Forest for our friends, Jeff and Deb Spencer (RollingRecess). It was a cold day – the temperature never rose much above 60 degrees. The ride on the Spyder had me chilled. I checked out a few areas and found a couple of possibilities. I didn’t find all of the areas they asked about – the forest service roads are poorly marked.

When I got home I was chilled to the bone. I should have dressed with more layers for the ride. I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to get warm and read a book. I didn’t feel warm until I took a hot shower.

For dinner, Donna made a spicy shrimp dish with garlic oil served over squid ink pasta with a tomato and onion salad on the side. Squid ink pasta uses squid ink instead of salt for the pasta and has a unique flavor and a rich, dark color.

Spicy shrimp over squid ink pasta

Yesterday was another cool day – slightly warmer than Friday but we didn’t see 70 degrees. We made plans for a potluck dinner with TJ, Julie, Lance, Boni, Mike and Michele and their kids. We found out that Julie and Donna’s friend Chelsea and her husband Preston were coming to the park with their kids for the night, so they were invited as well.

I rode the Spyder to the Cash & Carry store in Bend. Julie said it was a good place to find meat. Before I left, Donna found a liner for my motorcycle jacket and I put it on under the jacket. Much better – I didn’t freeze this time. I found a three-pack of baby back ribs at Cash & Carry – about nine pounds total. The ribs were cut a little shorter than I usually find which was good because I could fit three racks on the Traeger.

When I prepare baby back ribs, I always start by removing the tough, thin membrane on the bone side of the ribs. To do this, I use a regular table knife – a sharp knife isn’t good – it will cut through the membrane. You want to separate it from the bone – I usually start somewhere near the middle – by sliding the knife between the bone and the membrane. Once it’s separated, I use a paper towel to grip it and pull it off of the ribs.

Membrane on the bone side of a rack of ribs

The last time I made baby back ribs, I used Pappy’s Choice Seasoning for a dry rub. I thought it was flavorful but a little too salty. This time I mixed two parts of Pappy’s Choice with one part of Sweet Rub O’Mine in a shaker and dry rubbed the ribs with it. This was a good combination – nice flavor without the saltiness. After leaving the seasoned ribs in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, I fired up the Traeger. I smoked/grilled the ribs for about three hours and then tented them under foil for about 20 minutes. They came out great.

Three racks of baby backs ready for the potluck

Tables were set up loaded with food at Mike and Michelle’s site. The feast was on!

Potluck dinner with friends

We ate and talked for hours – it was after 9pm by the time Donna and I came home. Another day well lived.