Over the last few weeks I have been periodically busy and not in almost equal measure. They have let me work days for the last few weeks and it makes a difference in how much free time there is during the daylight. It’s been fantastic! I forget how busy the pad can get on days. Somedays it’s moving thousands of feet of pipe around. Other days it’s installing Christmas trees on well heads. Somedays it’s having wireline trucks on location. Either way any day we have simulation operations going on it’s a good idea to watch your step!
On my down time between thunderstorms there has been enough time to do some exploring of North Dakota. One day that involved going to the North unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Beautiful views. Really is one of the pretties’ parts of the state. The farther you get from the river the uglier the state gets.
The down time activity I’m most proud of is the experiment I ran by testing out some new camping gear for our next bike adventure.
Experiment Report:
The Experiment: Conduct a test run of new camping equipment in preparation for biking trips.
Desired Result: To spend a night in new to me tent walking distance from the rig without being discovered.
Execution: About 45 minutes before sunset I left the rig as if going for my normal evening walk with my backpack filed with my tent, sleeping pad, and sleeping bag. I went down the road and then wandered off in to the field well out of sight of the road and rig and all manmade things. Found a lovely flat spot on a little ridge with a view. A perfect spot. The new tent set up quite easily as the sun was setting. The new pad inflated with no holes and fit in the tent. The new sleeping bag fit as well.
Observations: In no particular order. Crickets are nocturnal and never shut up. The moon is almost completely full. There is a pack of coyotes in the area approximately 5-6 of them and they don’t like it when the rig blows its horn. An empty backpack works well as a pillow. The tent seams small at first but after crawling inside its comfortable. Don’t pick a spot while wearing headphones.
Results: My spot was well picked for sight and cover but was too close to the rig. I could hear the rig and the forklift working thru the night. When the rig blew its horn the coyotes answered. I slept great for 2 hours and then woke up and tossed for a few hours before sleeping again. After the rig horn woke me for a second time at 2 in the morning I decided to call the experiment early and packed it all up in less time than it took to set up. I headed home to my bed.
Conclusion: The new equipment worked well and will serve quite perfectly. In that regard the experiment worked well even if it was incomplete. Equipment 5 out of 5, stealth 5 out of 5, location 3 out of 5, sleep 4 out of 8.
