Nov 2021 to Jan 2022, Mojave Desert Bicycle Tour

Sun, 30 Oct 2021

Flight from Kyiv arrived yesterday afternoon, took Greyhound bus to Reno, checked into Motel 6, which is now $399/week. Chores for next week will be: get Janssen 1-dose vaccine for Covid-19; change tires, tubes and rim strips on bicycle; repair/make gear; replenish consumables.

Fri, 12 Nov 2021

Motel has been consistently noisy, but I nevertheless sleep well. Typically fall asleep around 20:00, wake up at 04:00. Excellent sleep schedule. Put computer and other items into storage and prepared sandwiches for tomorrow.

Kyiv imposed severe restrictions on unvaccinated persons as of Nov 1, so looks like I escaped just in time. Thinking more and more that it makes little sense to invest $100K in Ukraine to get permanent residency, versus keeping same amount in stocks and using earnings to either buy temporary residency or accommodate permanent tourist status (higher apartment rent because temporary, extra travel and hotel costs). $100K invested in real estate in Ukraine would probably generate higher return than stocks (assuming no problems, which is big assumption), but converts me from milk cow to meat cow: former produces value while alive, so incentive to keep alive, latter requires slaughter to realize value. Not that I worry too much about being killed by someone with eyes on my real estate, though that is conceivable. Rather it's the idea that, having thrown down a lump sum to buy an apartment, I no longer produce a stream of income for a landlord, thus no landlord incentivized to concern him or herself with my well-being. If the apartment has problems, no landlord incentivized to fix the problem or else lose their tenant. Instead, it's my problem to fix. Anyway, permanent tourist status probably suits my personality best: always on the move, no place to call home, eventual death in my sleep in a hotel room, or perhaps death outdoors after drinking a liter of vodka then falling asleep in the snow.

Sat, 13 Nov 2021 (58 miles, 6:06 hours)

Starting odometer 23092. Left motel at 06:30. Carrying 18L water, 8 loaves (24oz bread, 6oz cheese), 4lbs peanuts, 7 * 100g dark chocolate, less what I ate for breakfast. Arrived at campsite along Fort Churchill Road at 15:52. Little wind and mild temperatures so that I rode shirtless most of day. Feels great to finally be back in motion after 16 months sedentary due to covid lockdown. Legs very tired towards end of day. Need to rebuild cycling muscles.

Bought another 10000mAh power pack at Walgreens in Carson City, since phone seems to be running down battery faster than in past.

!!! Missing rear tarp pole. Maybe left at motel, maybe inadvertently put into storage. Initially replaced with piece of tree branch, then realized bicycle handlebars are perfect length, so no urgent need for replacement. Rear tarp pole has always been source of trouble: easy to lose, easy to break. Probably should use aluminium from old hiking stick, cut to 20" to match sleep pad width, versus 23" currently. Store inside dual cordura end caps connected by tie cord, to protect backpack. Use same cover system for disassembled hiking stick when carrying inside backpack as flight/bus baggage. Maybe tie cover system to tarp stuff sack, and thus eliminate risk of losing it and rear tarp pole.

Sun, 14 Nov 2021 (37 miles, 4:39 hours)

Frost on tarp in morning but water bottles not frozen. Left camp at 09:00. Shirtless all day. Some muddy spots in road from rain last week. Camped along Julian Lane.

One tire pressure gauge appears defective. Carrying much too much water. Forgot to download Locus maps, but able to do so when mobile connection available at highway crossing. All in all, preparation for this trip very slipshod. Out of practice due to long hiatus in Kyiv. Body also feels weak compared to previous years. Maybe just age finally catching up with me.

carson river

hills south of carson river

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 (37 miles, 4:45 hours)

Overcast and much cooler than previous days, but no wind. Wore pullover much of day. Definitely carrying too much water and food. Added more water at Schurz police station, then did pullups and ate lunch in adjacent park. No ATT mobile service.

bicycle as substitute rear tarp pole

calf in sagebrush

camped in sagebrush

Tue, 16 Nov 2021 (33 miles, 4:04 hours)

Sky clear and warm again, rode shirtless all day. Some wind from northwest, tailwind for me.

gabbs valley

Wed, 17 Nov 2021 (30 miles, 4:13 hours)

Bladders frozen, so at or below freezing in morning. Clear sky and warmed up quickly as sun rose, so rode shirtless again. Wind from southeast in afternoon. Camp at 5900' altitude, so should be cold tonight. Stored bottles and bladder under rack pack, near my head. Still don't understand why I packed so much food and water. Maybe memories of times when I had to hibernate during snow storms on Reno to Tonopah stretch.

camped in wash along poleline road

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 (35 miles, 4:06 hours)

Overcast and cool all day, so rode with pullover and occasionally insulated hat and mittens. Headwind until late afternoon, then calm. Camped about 12 miles from Tonopah, so able to pick up mobile signal.

Fri, 19 Nov 2021 (17 miles, 2:17 hours)

Salvaged length of PVC pipe from city dump on way into town, bought mini hacksaw and sheet of sandpaper for $8 from hardware store, cut and sanded pipe smooth to make replacement rear tarp pole. Heavier than previous pole, but not enough to matter when bicycle touring.

No ATT voice calls in Tonopah, at least for prepaid users, but LTE data available, so able to call motels using Skype. While waiting for motel check-in time, bought and repacked food, did pullups in park near high school, ate lunch, cleaned and lubed chain.

$57 incl tax for room at Economy Inn. Much closer to food stores than Clown Motel, which had no vacancies, or Tonopah Motel, which didn't answer phone and appears to be undergoing renovation. Reluctant to try nicer motels because possible difficulties getting bicycle inside.

Still some power in second Anker 10KmAh power pack when I arrived at motel, so probably no need for additional power pack bought in Carson City. But extra weight is no problem with bicycle.

Sat, 20 Nov 2021 (58 miles, 4:34 hours)

After eating breakfast, left town with 7 loaves (24 oz bread, 6 oz cheese), 4.5 lbs peanuts, 5 x 100g dark chocolate, 14L water. About 9 days to Bullhead City, but stores in Goldfield, Beatty, Amargosa Valley, Shoshone, Baker, so no need for so much food. However, limited selection in these stores, so better to carry plenty of basics then supplement with canned and fresh vegetables.

Flat rear tire between Tonopah and Goldfield. Found thorn and removed without dismounting tire, added sealant to both rear and front tubes (half bottle each), inflated tubes, but rear had slow leak despite sealant. Dismounted tire and found hole in tube. Rubber glue in flat repair kit partially dried out, so did bad job applying patch. Another gear failure: need 4 tubes of rubber cement, not 2, and they need to be replaced annually so glue is not dried out. Anyway, patch worked. About two hours total screwing with tires.

Sun, 21 Nov 2021 (64 miles, 4:41 hours)

Continued north tailwind, so made good time into Beatty, and then beyond. Shoulder excellent or good all the way from Tonopah to Valley View Road (south of Beatty). Legs finally starting to feel strong.

In Beatty, local bicycle enthusiast named Kevin gave me tube of rubber cement to replace dried up tube I used yesterday. He has done quite a bit of bicycle touring himself throughout the USA, mostly on paved roads. In his 50's, works construction labor off and on between traveling.

camp along valley view road

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 (52 miles, 4:02 hours)

Bought fresh orange and can of tomato sauce at Amargosa Valley store. Camped in bed of Amargosa River, about 6 miles north of Shoshone.

eagle mountain

Tue, 23 Nov 2021 (61 miles, 5:16 hours)

Rode shirtless all day. Stopped briefly for snack at Shoshone store. Tailwind until about 25 miles from Baker, then headwind. Camped about 4 miles north of Baker, with good ATT LTE connection.

Wed, 24 Nov 2021 (23 miles, 3:03 hours)

Bought food at store in Baker. Did pullups, picked up water, charged electronics at town park. Camped about 3 miles before dirt road exit from Kelbaker road.

Thu, 25 Nov 2021 (15 miles, 3:25 hours)

Thanksgiving day. Strong wind from north all last night, northeast headwind this morning, making for very difficult riding. Camped near Beale mountain, using sand stakes to ensure tarp not blown away by wind.

Fri, 26 Nov 2021 (32 miles, 4:24 hours)

Detestable wind quieted down at night, resumed in morning, finally mostly disappeared about noon.

camp amid creosote, sagebrush, joshua trees

Sat, 27 Nov 2021 (20 miles, 2:50 hours)

Warm with not too much wind. Able to pick up weak ATT connection from highway 95.

Sun, 28 Nov 2021 (31 miles, 3:31 hours)

North wind, side wind for most of day. Bought another patch kit, with good size tube of rubber cement, at Big 5 Sporting Goods store. $109 incl tax for 2 nights at Days Inn in Bullhead City, special rate through booking.com. Desert Rancho quoted $80/night and Days Inn standard rate is similar.

laughlin and bullhead city in distance

Mon, 29 Nov 2021 (zero day)

Bought another patch kit at Lowe's Hardware, so now amply supplied with both rubber cement and patches.

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 (25 miles, 4:33 hours)

Horrible north wind, sidewind for me. If not for very wide shoulder, I would have been repeatedly blown into traffic lanes.

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 (33 miles, 4:20 hours)

view north from homer mtn

Thu, 02 Dec 2021 (33 miles, 4:48 hours)

Windless and warm. Road sandier than last time through in 2019, so much pushing or riding off road.

Fri, 03 Dec 2021 (32 miles, 3:49 hours)

Pushing or riding off road until last mile before Cadiz road, which was solid. Midland road restored from washed out condition of several years ago, but many sandy spots, so more pushing.

Sat, 04 Dec 2021 (18 miles, 2:01 hours)

Sun, 05 Dec 2021 (20 miles, 1:41 hours)

Screen cracked on phone. Surprised this is first time this has happened, given how I use the phone outdoors.

Emerald Inn quoted higher price than what booking.com was offering. When I pointed this out, manager agreed to reduce to booking.com rate but wanted $150 deposit, then said "You can go somewhere else" when I hesitated at the deposit. Replied thank you and left. Glad I didn't book in advance. According to booking.com reviews which I later read, motel allowed locals as guests during covid lockdowns and these locals trashed some rooms. Motel now under new management. Maybe manager didn't like my looks, because printed sign on desk said $50 deposit, as did booking.com. This used to be my regular motel in Blythe, now lost.

Everything passes: keep my mind and body strong, my wealth (=source of income) secure, otherwise be prepared for constant change in the world around me. Constant travel increases rate of change drastically, but also makes traveler accustomed to change, so a good way to pass the last years of life.

$58 incl tax at Motel6 along East Hobsonway (there is another Motel6 south of I-10). Neighbors noisy, but okay room.

Mon, 06 Dec 2021 (10 miles, 1:09 hours)

Ordered new smartphone and case, to be delivered to motel. Camped north of Blythe.

Tue, 07 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Bladder in pannier leaked because cap not screwed on properly. Managed to dry everything out despite cloudy sky. Light rain in afternoon. Decided to take well-deserved zero day, maybe even mostly zero month from now until I start back to Reno. Just alternate between motel and camping a few miles outside town.

cloudy day, desert north of blythe

Wed, 08 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Moved a half-mile and took another zero day.

Thu, 09 Dec 2021 (13 miles, 1:43 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6. Rained in afternoon, so maybe good day to be inside, though I miss sound of rain in tarp.

Picked up smartphone and set up. ATT temporarily cut off data access because of my swapping SIM back and forth between phones during set up process. Re-enabled after phone call to customer service, with no delay waiting for operator. So at least that company is not experiencing labor shortages.

Fri, 10 Dec 2021 (10 miles, 1:12 hours)

Ovetcast and cool, wore pullover most of day. Camped north of Blythe.

Sat, 11 Dec 2021 (19 miles, 1:58 hours)

Rode north on Midland road, returned and camped same place as yesterday.

Sun, 12 Dec 2021 (11 miles, 1:13 hours)

Similar to yesterday, but shorter ride.

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 (11 miles, 1:01 hours)

$130 incl tax for 2 nights at Motel6. Wind and rain forecast for tomorrow. Sore on upper left back, hopefully not skin cancer from riding shirtless. Put chlorine-dioxide tablet in bladders/bottles, first time this trip.

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 (10 miles, 1:26 hours)

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 (11 miles, 1:16 hours)

desert wash, north of blythe

Fri, 17 Dec 2021 (6 miles, 0:57 hours)

Sat, 18 Dec 2021 (16 miles, 1:28 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6.

Sun, 19 Dec 2021 (11 miles, 1:27 hours)

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Walked around several hours.

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Wed, 22 Dec 2021 (12 miles, 1:04 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6. Downstairs handicapped room, because rest of motel full with Christmas travelers.

Thu, 23 Dec 2021 (21 miles, 2:23 hours)

Camped south of Blythe instead of north, because strong south wind next few days and some shelter available north of hill along Bradshaw trail. Cloudy sky but temperature warm. Wind not so annoying when warm like this. No ATT mobile service.

Fri, 24 Dec 2021 (1 miles, 0:15 hours)

Intermittent rain last night, continuing this morning, mostly clear sky by noon. Warm, wind strong in afternoon, then quiet at night. Camped near yesterday's site, but more secluded, better wind protection.

desert south of blythe

Sat, 25 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Wind stopped yesterday evening and zero wind today, contrary to weather forecast. Walked around a bit. Because tarp sheltered from sun by tree and steep side of wash, didn't bother to strike it.

desert south of blythe

Sun, 26 Dec 2021 (23 miles, 2:02 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6.

Mon, 27 Dec 2021 (21 miles, 2:30 hours)

South wind forecast, so returned to shattered site south of Blythe.

Tue, 28 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Walked around. Very windy day. Storm previously dumped huge amounts of snow in northern California. Remnants of storm passing over south part of state.

camped in desert wash

Wed, 29 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Not much wind.

Thu, 30 Dec 2021 (22 miles, 2:12 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6.

Fri, 31 Dec 2021 (zero day)

Not in mood to leave motel in morning, so stayed over another night at same price.

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 (21 miles, 2:11 hours)

Headache, stuffy nose, sneezing in evening. Maybe covid omicron variant.

Reading Schopenhauer. Solitude best, life I'm leading now. Gets easier with age until it becomes natural state. Reached that stage long ago. But now I have this very complicated permanent travel lifestyle, dependent on hard-to-replace equipment, air transport, open borders. Alternative would be to settle down somewhere. Nowhere in USA attracts me as permanent place of residence. Outside USA requires residence permit, and something in me resists commitment implied by such permits. Similar resistance to signing apartment lease or buying real-estate, despite obvious advantages of permanent place to store possessions and call home.

Sun, 02 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Headache and stuffy nose gone in morning.

south of blythe

Mon, 03 Jan 2022 (zero day)

camped in wash

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 (22 miles, 2:28 hours)

$65 incl tax at Motel6.

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 (21 miles, 2:04 hours)

Signed up for covid booster next week.

Thu, 06 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Rodent chewed through straps of one pannier last night. Left one closure strap untouched, which should be enough to get by with. Lucky that animal didn't decide to chew on bicycle cables or other gear. Mistake to camp at same location so many nights in succession, especially campsite next to big tree. Site chosen because shady, but same shade attractive to animals. Other mistakes: didn't place panniers and bladders closer to tarp; ignored noises during night. Temporarily replaced lifting strap (needed to open latches) with piece of cord. Moved to campsite several hundred meters away, open desert. Henceforth, new campsite each day, so rodents don't become habituated to my presence and lose their natural fear.

damaged pannier

Fri, 07 Jan 2022 (zero)

Essentially unlimited good campsites in area, since no one else bicycle camping around here like me, so no reason not to move each day. Saw some rodents running during day, but they should be naturally afraid for first night of my presence.

camp with gear arranged near head

Sat, 08 Jan 2022 (22 miles, 2:19 hours)

$68 incl tax at Motel6 (price increase since last visit).

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 (21 miles, 2:05 hours)

Mon, 10 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Biting and foul-smelling desert ants everywhere I tried sitting today. Finally escaped them by moving several hundred meters to open area beside thorn tree.

view from top of mountain

Wed, 12 Jan 2022 (23 miles, 2:18 hours)

Got second dose of Janssen covid-19 vaccine at public mass vaccination event, thus now fully vaccinated, with online QR code proof (QR not provided with original Nevada vaccination, but they added my Nevada information to California system today), so should have no problems getting into Spain.

$72 incl tax at Motel6 (price increase since last visit). Added chlorine-dioxide tablet to each bottle and each of two bladders currently in use (two other bladders plus spare bladder in panniers).

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 (21 miles, 2:01 hours)

Some tingling in fingertips in afternoon, possible side effect of vaccine.

Fri, 14 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Tore sock on pedal while moving bicycle. Huge supply of spare socks in storage, fortunately.

Sat, 15 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Sun, 16 Jan 2022 (22 miles, 2:14 hours)

$93 incl tax at Motel6 (price increase since last visit). Will carry 6 days food and 23L water on trip to Barstow (about 192 miles, 22 hours). Warm temps, so water might be insufficient, but can buy more at Ludlow and Newberry Springs. 192 miles total to Barstow.

Mon, 17 Jan 2022 (30 miles, 3:14 hours)

Sunny, warm, mostly windless. Camped along Midland-Rice road.

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 (35 miles, 4:34 hours)

Warm and mostly windless again. Road shirtless. Camped along Cadiz Road, just past Milligan mine.

stopped for lunch along cadiz road

Wed, 19 Jan 2022 (22 miles, 3:53 hours)

Lots of pushing through sand. Crossed paths with older Swiss woman. Started in Las Vegas, rode through Death Valley, then Kelbaker Road through Mojave Preserve (visitor's center at Kelso closed, water faucet working), currently heading towards Quartzite, eventually plans to reach Phoenix, where she has friends and wants to go hiking in mountains. Riding cheap bicycle bought in Vegas. Carrying backpack and another bag strapped to rear rack. Didn't mention any gear problems. No need for fancy equipment like mine to enjoy desert, though of course fancy gear is nice to have. Camped along Cadiz Road. Wind picked up during night, from north, and blew tarp loose. Collapsed tarp and weighed it down with boots to keep from blowing away. Wind moderated towards morning.

Thu, 20 Jan 2022 (35 miles, 4:13 hours)

Wind resumed from north in afternoon. Camped about 15 miles before Ludlow, using sand stakes in case of strong wind during night, though in fact wind disappeared just after sundown. Nearby railroad horribly noisy.

Fri, 21 Jan 2022 (24 miles, 3:40 hours)

Wind again strong from north in morning, headwind. Camped about 8 miles past Ludlow, using sand stakes again. Campsite about half-mile mile south of highway and more than that from railroad, so quiet other than wind. One sand stake pulled out during gust of wind. Luckily, no damage to gear and stake remained fixed after I pounded it deeper into sand.

Sat, 22 Jan 2022 (17 miles, 1:43 hours)

Front wheel spun 3 miles from wind during night, so odometer off by 3 miles henceforth. Camped behind bushes in dry lake half mile from highway along Gasco Road. about 8 miles from Newberry Springs. Too many houses around and too close to highway, but at least sheltered from that tiresome wind. Next time, assuming no wind, find campsite along dirt road near Hector Road, about 13 miles from Newberry.

campsite in dry lake

Sun, 23 Jan 2022 (32 miles, 2:55 hours)

Wind finally gone. Out of food, so bought sandwich at Newberry Springs. $57 at Motel 6, in Barstow, West Main Street location. Horrible room, out of way location, no free wifi. Should have stayed at Yucca Ave location. Will proceed to Ridgecrest tomorrow and spend extra day camping. Forecast says no more wind all week, so camping should be enjoyable. Submitted online reservation requests for bus from Ridgecrest/Inyokern to Reno.

Mon, 24 Jan 2022 (18 miles, 2:28 hours)

Loaded bladders with 20+ liters water and bought 5 days food at store, to allow going slow to Ridgecrest. Camped along Fossil Bed Road.

Tue, 25 Jan 2022 (25 miles, 3:00 hours)

Strong wind again, from north, so side wind. Camped about 6 miles east of highway 395.

Wed, 26 Jan 2022 (20 miles, 2:08 hours)

Woke up with sharp headache, maybe from food poisoning, because felt better after bowel movement. Camped along 395.

Thu, 27 Jan 2022 (13 miles, 1:34 hours)

campsite along trona road

Fri, 28 Jan 2022 (18 miles, 2:15 hours)

Camped along Randsburg Road, near Ridgecrest.

Sat, 29 Jan 2022 (10 miles, 1:04 hours)

Bought SRAM PC-850 chain at T J Frisbee's bicycle ship in Ridgecrest. Bought shop towels at hardware store. Cleaned bicycle in park, then replaced chain. New chain noisy because chainwheel and sprocket somewhat worn. While packing up, noticed flat rear tire. Dismounted and found thorn on inside of tire, evidently picked up in park. Found leak in tube and applied patch. Rear tire flat again when I arrived at motel. Dismounted and found another thorn on inside of tire but unable to find leak in tube even after putting under water in sink. Filled tube with Stan's sealant. Tire didn't seat properly first inflation, so deflated, pushed and pulled with tire tool, then it finally seated properly. No further tire problems. Perhaps blessing in disguise to get flats occasionally, so I keep in practice fixing them.

$118 including tax for 2 nights at A Night's Inn in Ridgecrest.

Sun, 30 Jan 2022 (zero day)

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 (11 miles, 1:04 hours)

$25 CREST bus from Inyokern to Bishop. $79 including tax at Motel6. Final odometer 24570, so total distance 1475 (after subtracting 3 error miles from 22 Jan).

Attempted to get one my credit cards replaced in advance, since it will expire this June, when I plan to be outside the USA. Can't be done. Then ATT informed me that current phone (phone I broke in December) will not work starting tomorrow. More and more evidence that my travel lifestyle very fragile. Dependent on open borders, proof of recent vaccination, airlines, banks, mobile network, internet, electronics, credit/debit and identification cards that can be lost or stolen, etc. Partial residency in Ukraine just further complicates things. At least now, most problems can be resolved by getting back to USA. Whereas now that I have that bank account and storage locker in Ukraine, I have to migrate between USA and Ukraine every few years, unless everything works perfectly with banks, automatic payments, etc.

Maybe technology will improve such that eventually all I will need is to remember my passphrase for my password database (copies of which can be stored on open cloud servers, since database is encrypted), and everything else can be easily replaced or accessed by internet. At the other extreme, maybe modern technology will collapse, and there goes all my wealth and I am reduced to the level of a penniless refugee who can't speak or understand the local language very well.

Tue, 01 Feb 2022

$47 CREST bus to Reno. Sparks Motel 6 now $451/week ($64/night). Four disturbances in office while waiting to check in. Young man wanted to pay with cash, but didn't have exact change. Registration desk clerk (woman) didn't have 2 cents in cash drawer and said she couldn't keep extra 2 cents. Probably they don't want customers without credit cards, since these are more likely to be troublemakers. (Similarly, Walmart does not accept cash at self-pay checkout, using flimsy "national coin shortage" excuse. More likely, they want to be able to track customers, partly for marketing reasons but mainly because if customer suspected of theft, they can go back and carefully review videos of previous self-checkouts by that same customer.) Older man asked when he would be served and woman replied never. Then he started cursing and said he would return later with someone else. Evidently, he was known troublemaker. Clerk commented aloud that they needed a big dog and gun in office. Young woman with tattoos all over neck commented that it was peculiar that woman couldn't just keep 2 cents change from young man earlier. Clerk gave a snappy reply, which I didn't catch, then tossed would-be guest's driver's license through opening in glass counter partition. Discussion between two women became heated, with young women eventually calling clerk "dog bitch". Clerk ordered young woman off property, then called police when she refused. After young woman left office, her boyfriend, also with tattoos all over face and neck and with pants falling down, entered and apologized and tried to rent room. Clerk said okay but that young woman was not allowed in property and he would be in trouble if he let young woman stay with him. However, he didn't have driver's license or other identification, so not allowed to rent. Then my turn. I asked about rooms available, in hopes of getting rooms I knew were more quiet. Computer system showed nothing available, because housekeepers hadn't yet updated status. Clerk explained they usually had 6 housekeepers but several had quit or been fired and currently just 2 working, which was why so many empty rooms not yet cleaned. Finally got my room, next door to the one that was noisy in November of last year. Smoke smell, but otherwise clean. Room turned out to be not too noisy at might, so evidently problem in November was quality of guests in motel (walking around outdoors talking loudly all night long), rather than location of room. Motel evidently trying to improve quality of guests now that covid-19 emergency over, because during pause in disturbances, clerk commented aloud to everyone waiting in office, and with manager present (both of then new employees) that they are not putting up with any bullshit anymore. In particular, no tolerance for guests who are staying over but fail to pay for next night before 11AM. To repeat, I'm paying $451/week for this, and that is after senior (60+) and advance reservation discounts.

Wed, 01 Feb 2022

Using desktop computer, able to add Piraeus USD account as SWIFT transfer recipient at BankOfAmerica. Used Chrome browser on smartphone with Desktop option enabled to initiate transfer of $100 plus $45 fee by BankOfAmerica. Piraeus fee was $0.90 so net amount received in USD account was $99.10. Need to determine cost of large transfer, like $100K, in case I decide to buy permanent residency. As things stand, using debit cards to get UAH cash from ATMs continues to be cheapest option. Either pay in cash or deposit into Piraeus account if I want to pay by debit card.

Successfully tested Vodafone roaming in USA. Works, using T-Mobile network, with no cost for incoming SMS texts (₴15 for outgoing SMS, which I accidentally sent as reply to incoming test SMS). This means I can receive two factor authentication (2FA) SMS messages from Piraeus and other Ukrainian banks which can only send to Ukraine phone number, even when outside Ukraine. Thus I can initiate bank transfers from those Ukrainian banks while outside Ukraine, such as to pay for storage locker. But to do that, I need to keep Vodafone account active. So next test was to add to Vodafone balance, using Piraeus debit card, logged in to Vodafone website using PUK1 code. Next step is second Ukrainian bank, such as OTP, then be sure to keep $2000 in each bank, so always plenty of money to pay storage locker. But what if Vodafone SIM lost or damaged? Need to switch Ukraine bank phone numbers to VOIP.

Opened second Schwab bank account, to allow 2 debit cards, in case primary care damaged or lost. Also opened Fidelity cash management account with debit card. Investigated Citibank as alternative to BankOfAmerica for SWIFT transfers ($35 fee versus $45). However, online application system said need to visit branch in person to enable international transfers, and no branches in Reno. Branches do exist in Sacramento and San Francisco. Decided to hold off on Citibank until next year, to give be time to mentally digest all these bank changes. Probably don't need SWIFT unless I want to buy permanent residency in Ukraine.

Ordered new powerpacks, cables, and speaker, all with USB-C input instead of older micro USB-B. New gear weighs more than old gear, about 200g total extra weight. But needed to upgrade to USB-C, plus lithium batteries in older powerpacks won't last forever, and new powerpacks more convenient shape.

Wed, 01 Feb 2022

ATT no longer offering per-minute plans, so henceforth will need to switch to $30/month plan when outside USA, or about $210/year for service I don't use. ATT cancels accounts after 60 days of non-payment, so letting account balance go to zero not an option. Need to test if able to receive ATT 2FA SMS messages while roaming outside USA. If so, ATT becomes backup to Google Voice for 2FA.

Reserved another week at Motel6. Rate increase to $459 ($66/night).

Mon, 07 Feb 2022

Credit card company that I called last week about updating expiration date called back today to say they can indeed make that change. Of course, I then had to call back because I missed their call, then fool around on hold waiting for representative, etc. So 30 minutes to accomplish what should take 5 minutes via online self-service.

REI no longer stocks 125ml Nalgene HDPE bottles, so ordered 40 from industrial plastics supply company. Evidently, can't rely on anything not eventually being discontinued. Decided to order lifetime supply of hiking staffs and water bladders before these also disappear.

Dumped various unneeded possessions at thrift store, so more room in storage locker for lifetime supplies of gear in packing list. Not much else in storage locker: bicycle and accessories (tools, spare parts), sewing gear (sewing machines, tools, bulk fabric, notions), important documents (birth certificate, etc), winter coat and ice cleats (transfer these to Kyiv eventually).

Tue, 08 Feb 2022

Should be finished with chores by end of week, and yet I'm working slowly. So 2-3 weeks plenty enough time in Reno in future, assuming I place some orders in advance. Motel is quiet and comfortable, but desert was better. Reserved another week. Rate decrease to $438 ($63/night). Bought bus tickets: Reno to San Francisco for $23, Madrid to Granada for $27.

Fri, 11 Feb 2022

Decided to use same PIN for all debit cards. Discovered how easy it is to reset PIN, using information about myself that hackers could easily obtain. Fortunately, all debit cards can be locked using online banking interface, so will be unusable even with PIN. For banks with vanilla ATM cards, which cannot be locked, keep limited amount of money in account.

Mon, 14 Feb 2022

Transposed 2 digits while calling card activation number for new Schwab account and gave away lots of personal information to person who answered. Person sounded suspicious, so very stupid of me to give out so much information before hanging up, but also very stupid of Schwab and other banks to use telephone system for card activation, versus using website. Immediately after hanging up, called fraud support number and they will send new card, with new card number. More hassles activating new Axos card because I pushed wrong button in their phone menu. Thinking of maybe setting up Citibank account on my way to Spain, since I will have afternoon free in San Francisco. Might need to SWIFT transfer money to Ukraine at some point and BankOfAmerica not very helpful. Banking will evidently be my big activity this winter in Reno. But then banking important to my lifestyle, arguably more important than everything else except health and identification (driver's license, passport).

Tue, 15 Feb 2022

Continued process of simplifying and securing financial affairs. Incident yesterday might be blessing in disguise, because only a matter of time before information I gave away becomes public knowledge anyway, given how sophisticated fraudsters are becoming. Earlier this month, I activated credit freeze at all credit reporting agencies, so difficult to open credit cards in my name, something I wanted to do in Ukraine, but was unable to accomplish because websites won't work properly with smartphones.

Tue, 22 Feb 2022

6 more days in motel for $380 ($63/night including tax, with senior and advance reservation discounts).

Wed, 23 Feb 2022

Finally received spare Schwab debit card, so now I have 2 in case one goes bad while in Europe. Still no word from Axos about request to increase ATM withdrawal limit (from $310 to $610). Still not received Fidelity card with correct name. Still no word from Vanguard about incorrect information on 1099. Turbotax still not finished preparing form 1119 (foreign tax credit), scheduled to be ready March 3.

Sewed up new backpack, slightly more capacity and with simpler and better shoulder pad design. Need to field test before making spares.

Thu, 24 Feb 2022

Russia invaded Ukraine yesterday. Presumably planning to replace government with one more to their liking. Hopefully, situation will calm down by June so that I can spend summer in Kyiv again. Otherwise, maybe tour some of the Balkan countries or Georgia.

Statistics

1475 miles total, 168 hours pedaling/pushing, average of 8.8 miles/hour.

60 nights camping, 20 nights in motels. Total motel expense of $1296 including tax, for average of $65/night.

Total 60 nights camping for 2021.

Comments

Average of 24 miles per day, not counting zero days, so much less than previous trips. Becoming wiser with age: goal is to spend time outdoors, not rack up mileage.

See Nomad page for bicycle comments.