@Edent
AFAIU you run it as companion, right?
To overcome the loneliness (we have all been there), flash this one as "repeater", let it send some adverts once in a while and "Share -> Upload to Internet Map" with roughly your coordinates, and then wait.
(You might need a 2nd board as "companion" to do that admin stuff, the cheapest naked board is enough).
There *are* others like you, who *will* then see and try to close the gap to your repeater, just like you.
Maybe some social media noise in your area helps.
In the meantime, look up your area in https://map.meshcore.dev and drive around, to check reachability. Maybe you know friends and family in-between where you could set up another (yay, 
) repeater.
Good luck.
It's pioneering work.
There are not many such opportunities today.