The Latest Adventure Has Ended.....

Today is six months to the date that we left home with the RV. That's a long time.  We probably won't do that again for a while. 
It was a good trip overall despite a few hiccups now and then - fortunately all weather related and not something else.  We put over 6,500 miles on the truck.  The trip home, which was the short way, was 2,584 from Pensacola to Sparks.  So, double that and add driving around San Diego for three months and a month in Pensacola. We tired out the big blue truck almost as much as we did ourselves.

Waiting in line at the truck wash.
Notice the dirt on the blue paint.

Yesterday, our last day on the road, was uneventful - clear skies, high 60s and little wind. We got in around 1pm after stopping at a truck wash to get the accumulation of bugs and dirt off the truck and RV. They both were fairly clean when we left Pensacola after the two days of heavy rain, but by the time we got home they were so dirty it was embarrassing to be seen in them.

A few bugs, wouldn't you say?

They did a good job and the vehicles are so nice and clean and shiny now.

Ahh, a bath at last!

Once we got set up at the Sparks RV park, we loaded the back seat of the truck with stuff and drove to the house.  What a welcome sight!  We weren't sure if Maggie would remember after so long, but she hit the ground running and didn't stop for about half an hour.  In the house, around the yard, up the stairs, down the stairs, circle the dining room table, out on the deck, and repeating it all over again several times.  She was so excited to be home!  We then left her in the back yard and went back to the RV with the car and truck, loaded them both - twice. It's amazing how much "stuff" one can cram into 342 feet of living space over a period of six months.  Amazing!  And, that wasn't all of it.  We were so tired yesterday we left one more load for today.  

Roger locking the door with the RV
all secure in it's storage space.

We got up early this morning and collected the rest of our belongings filling the back seat of the truck, then we cleaned the inside of the RV and dumped and cleaned the holding tanks so we could put it away for a well deserved rest.   We went home for lunch and then I headed to the Great Clips for a haircut.  I was at about nine weeks since my last cut and getting so shaggy I was going crazy.  I took the pictures of the cut Cheri gave me in Florida and told the stylist that I wanted a razor cut like that one.  Well, she cut my hair with the scissors and then "texturized" with the razor.  Definitely not the primo cut I got in Pensacola, but a pretty good one so I felt a little more energetic this afternoon. (It's amazing how being well groomed can make one feel.)  Roger says we may just have to fly to Detroit once a month for a decent haircut!  I trimmed his the other day trying to do it the way Cheri showed me,  and, well, it's OK.  He looks better groomed anyway!

Our little 1,550 square foot house is so big!  Wow!  Roger and I have had to go looking for each other today as we are so used to being "together."  It's pretty funny as we peek around corners to see where the other one is.  A little separation anxiety on our part - Maggie doesn't have exclusive rights.  And the shower - OMG! No stopping the water to soap up to save hot water for the other person and to not put too much water in the holding tanks.  A continuous rainfall of water from a large shower head with lots of water pressure.  So luxurious!  Roger is loving the dishwasher already! I'm back to doing laundry one load at a time and without having to hunt down a bunch of quarters - I was spoiled time-wise but poorer doing laundry on the road.  And the WIFI is awesome!  We can run two devices (and more) at once.  Roger is indulging in a Netflix movie as I write this.  He's been without for so long and he does enjoy sitting in the spare room in his chair all by himself after dinner watching a movie.   

We have lots of projects on our list for the summer.  It's mostly house and yard related, but we have Christmas gifts to make and I need to get back to the genealogy research.  All this AFTER we get all of our "stuff" put away, Roger's garage turned back into a workshop, and I have a few lunches with my friends to catch up on their news.  We are thinking about a short (maybe two week) trip in September to Boise, ID to visit our grandson, Tony, who will be entering Boise State as a freshman in August.  Our plans are to once again spend the winter in Santee, but right now we are coming straight home from there! Stay tuned on that one.  

We've enjoyed sharing our trip trials, tribulations, and adventures with you all.  We hope you enjoyed reading the journal as much as we did putting it together.  Signing out now until the next trip.    

Roger, Mary Ann and Maggie

Almost Home!

It was a long drive today - about 315 miles and an hour more than we usually do.  That's mostly because there isn't much on the route north through Nevada from Las Vegas to home. Every time we drive this route it reminds us of how long the state is. In a car, doing the 70mph speed limit, it takes us eight hours for that trip, but in the RV at 60mph we can't do it all in one day. It's only a two lane road so that is added work for Roger.  It's just too much!

When we stopped for lunch today the wind was blowing pretty steadily at about 15mph (according to the TWC app), as seems to be normal for us lately.  We had to open the living room slider a bit so we could sit at the table as we couldn't eat outside. Maggie made herself comfy while we ate.  She was glad to be out of the truck and out of the wind!  She sure makes us laugh a lot!

We are in Hawthorne, NV tonight (our usual stop when we come north) and are about 130 miles from home.  We like stopping here because it makes that last day a really short one.  It's a nice clean RV park and we noticed they are working on improvements in the landscaping.  It's a good place for an overnighter.   We will get in to Sparks early afternoon after taking an hour or so at a truck wash in Fernley (about 30 miles east of Sparks) to have the RV and truck cleaned.  They are soooo dirty from that dust storm in New Mexico.  It's really embarrassing, but we've had no where since then to get them washed. The truck wash in Fernley will do RVs and is a regular stop for us on our way home. 

The plan for tomorrow is to park the RV at the Sparks Marina RV park, take the dog and some stuff to the house, pick up our storage bins and go back to the RV and start unloading all of our "stuff".  Once we've done that, we will clean the inside of the RV ( I am amazed at the amount of dust inside again) and get it ready to put away 'til the next trip!  

Despite the wind today it was a much better travel day and we are feeling good about being so close to home.  So close, in fact, that Roger found a Giants baseball game on TV and is relaxing in his recliner happy to see his team again!  

Don't know if we will have time tomorrow night but we will definitely do a final entry for this trip by Wednesday sometime.  

Yesterday Wasn't Such a Good Day

No entry for yesterday because I could not think of anything positive to say.  The constant gale force winds had me close to a meltdown, but, fortunately Roger talked me down by reminding me that even if I did come unglued it wouldn't stop the wind and it would be a total waste of my energy.  He can be so reasonable sometimes.

We woke to cold strong winds in Flagstaff which started the day off just wonderfully. I had to put my winter wear on to take Maggie out and I was not a happy camper.  Crossing northern Arizona with 20-30 mph headwinds gusting to 45-50mph kept Roger on his toes and me in a foul mood.  The road between Flagstaff and Kingman is awful.  Bumpity, bumpity, bump.  Why is that part of the road so bad?  There's road construction everywhere in this country so why not there?? We would have welcomed construction!  Maggie was even antsy and couldn't sit still.  We thought it would never end.  It was another day of finding the inside of the RV all discombobulated when we pulled in. The only thing that saved us was getting off in Kingman, AZ to go north to Las Vegas.  

We stopped for lunch at a truck stop just east of Kingman as that section of I-40 between Flagstaff and Kingman doesn't have any rest areas.  Roger parked way in the back off by ourselves so the noise and fumes from all the trucks would be less bothersome while we sat in the RV and had something to eat. Then some doofus parked his big rig right next to us and let it run, even though there probably was an acre of open space he could have parked in.  I got out with Maggie and a huge dust devil followed us around the truck stop.  Geez...... 

We had pretty much of a tail wind when we headed north to Las Vegas and the road was an improvement, so that plus lunch and Roger's words of wisdom calmed me down somewhat.  

I was disappointed when we crossed the Colorado River on the new bridge that keeps traffic away from Hoover Dam.  I had hoped to get some photos of the new bridge, the river, and the dam.  The bridge was blah and the sides were so high that I couldn't see the river or the dam.  Bummer.  

Since it was Saturday the trip through Las Vegas to reach our destination north of the city wasn't too awful traffic-wise.  We got a nice site at the RV park and pretty much collapsed after dinner.  We are feeling good that we are so close to home after so long and so far, and in a place we are comfortable as we have stayed here many times.

The wind was still howling gale force and continued to do so all night.  It woke us up a couple of times.  I woke up at about 4:30 with a migraine and still had the remnants when I got up at 7:30.  The wind was still blowing.  Roger took Maggie out and said it was just awful out there.  Oh joy, another day of fun.

After breakfast and getting cleaned up this morning I felt much better and we took off for the main part of the base and the commissary.  I wanted to stock up on a few basics that I know I can get cheaper on base but not enough that Roger complains about me overloading the RV and having to pull a lot of extra weight!  

Since Maggie demolished the door screen six nights ago, we have not left her alone.  We've figured out a way to take her with us or Roger goes out for fuel on his own.  We've been afraid that we would come home to more destruction.  Well, today we had to go out without her - there was no way to get around it.  We went to the BX, had lunch at the food court, and then went to the commissary.  We still needed to go get fuel and stop at Wal-Mart to buy chemicals for the black tank.  We were a bit worried as to what we would find at home so Rog brought me back after the groceries and he finished the errands on his own.  Lo and Behold - no damage at all.  Not even a sign that she had scratched the screen at all.  We were so relieved but still confused as to the whole thing.  It's quiet here, the RV sites are far apart and there are no dogs close by.  So, we are really shaking our heads at the whole thing.  Let's hope that when we get home she is as happy and won't stress about us going out. She's been such a good dog all day today!

At Roger's suggestion I went ahead and did the laundry today instead of waiting 'til we got home.  I got four loads done (I'd been saving it up) in an hour and a half, at home it would have taken me four times that long.  I still will have the linens, towels, and throw rugs from the RV to do, but won't be inundated for two days trying to catch up while we are getting ourselves back in order in the house.  He's such a smart guy!

I heard from everyone today, including Mike's girlfriend, all wishing me a good Mother's Day.  It was great hearing from you all!!!  Love you all, too!

The wind is due to die down after sunset tonight and the forecast is for 10-15mph headwinds between here and Hawthorne tomorrow so it will be manageable.  We certainly hope so. 

Enough is enough!  

Great Weather, Time Travel, and National Parks

What a beautiful morning today!  Cold, yes, but clear and no wind.  The sky was blue and cloudless.  A great way to start the day!  It perked us up a bit.

About 10:30 we crossed our first milestone of the day - the Continental Divide!  Forty five minutes later we crossed our other milestone when we drove into Arizona and switched to Arizona Time which instantly turned 11:15 into 10:15!  A little Time Travel???? Whatever - it was nice to gain the hour!  

Northwestern  New Mexico was beautiful this morning! The reds and greens of the "finger" mesas  were so pretty. We were at about 6,000 feet in elevation until we crossed the "Divide" when we dropped down to around 5,000 feet. We stayed at that elevation most of the day!  The landscape changed as we got closer to and then into Arizona.  The color disappeared and so did most of the vegetation.  Brown and flat with little vegetation.  The sad part of the drive was driving through so much of the Navaho and Hopi reservations and seeing all those poor little towns with derelict looking homes and businesses.  The only thing that looked prosperous were the couple of large casinos.  

About the time we were approaching the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert National Parks we were hungry according to Stomach Time. (Our stomachs didn't know what the crazy clocks said, nor did they care.  It was time to eat.)   I hadn't asked Roger to stop for the parks so I could see them - he has done so much driving -  and get my stamps for my parks "passport" book.  Being such a nice guy, he volunteered to stop if he didn't have to drive a long way out of the way.  As it turns out the park visitor center is right off I-40!  Yay!  Two more parks off the bucket list.

They had RV parking, a doggie area for Maggie, and a very nice picnic area next to the visitor's center.  I asked about using it and having Maggie with us at the tables  as most National Parks are not particularly dog friendly.  Lo and behold dogs were not only permitted in the picnic area, but they had a doggie drinking fountain!  Now, last week I was telling Roger that I was starting to crave french fries.  Next to the visitor center is a gift shop and snack bar/restaurant next door.  As I was settling in with the dog and lunch sacks he disappeared.  He surprised me and bought me an order of french fries!  They were pretty good, too! What a super guy!!  It was a very nice lunch in comparison to our regular rest stop lunches - nice ambiance and fries!  

Because the roads through the park are narrow and curvy and there's no place for the behemoth we tow to park, we opted not to drive through the park. There were a few specimens of the trees in the picnic area so we got a small sampling  of what was out there.  The visitor center had a nice display with the history of the area.  It was a nice treat, today, and I got three stamps for my book:  Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, and Historic Route 66.  

The wind came up this afternoon, but it wasn't as bad as the last few days but enough to let you know it was there.  Slight (only about 20mph) headwind, but mostly coming from the side. Then we started climbing again on our way into Flagstaff which is close to 7,000 feet.  

This KOA is more like a campground than an RV park. It's got narrow roads, small sites, and lots of trees to work around.  I've been told already we aren't ever stopping here again!   It was probably built long before large RVs.  We've got a nice site, but it wasn't easy to get to!  This KOA is probably a destination, unlike the others we've visited recently, which were stopover spots and designed for getting in and getting out easily with your RV.   There is a lot to do in this area at the base of Arizona's highest mountain.  Hiking, biking, camping, and outdoor activities. etc. (As we climbed up to Flagstaff I was reminded of the roads into Mammoth, CA)  Sedona is only 40 miles south, the Grand Canyon is about 70 miles northwest, and the Meteor Crater is 50 miles or so east of here.  The main route south (I-17) meets I-40 here and so there are a lot of people passing through.  It's cool tonight with light winds but the sound of the wind in the pines is a comforting sound - like in the Sierras.  

Tomorrow our destination is Las Vegas, NV!  Well, Nellis, AFB in North Las Vegas.  We will stay two nights as we will have just finished three full days of driving.  It's a very nice "FamCamp", as the Air Force calls their RV parks.  It is a usual stop for us on our way home and we can rest a bit for the long drive up thru Nevada.  

So, our milestones for tomorrow will include another TWOFER! Crossing the Colorado River via the new long span bridge that was constructed to eliminate the need to drive over Hoover Dam (Homeland Security has made crossing the bridge in anything but a car impossible) and entering our home state at the same time!  

From One Extreme to Another

I’m not sure where to start.  Again, today it is weather related stories.  If we didn’t laugh about it, we would cry.  Since that storm in Pensacola only the first two days of travel had no weather issues. 

After our post to the journal yesterday the wind whipped up quite a sand storm.  It’s as if Mother Nature was having a snit fit.  The wind was clocked at around 60 miles an hour and a dust cloud came off the desert and pelted us with sand twice in about two hours.  You could hear the sand hitting the back and side of the RV.  The Tailgater satellite cube went flying about 20 feet, the extra step we have ended up in the next row, and even the wheel chocks blew down the road.  It was scary watching the storm come toward us - not like a haboob like they get in Arizona - but more like a sand tornado.   Our neighbors were out on their evening walk about when it it and couldn’t see where they were going.  It was really a very uncomfortable day.

View before the storm

I’ve tried to capture some photos of it (from inside, I wasn’t about to go outside), but they do not do it justice.  

Here it Comes!!

At one point after dinner I was begging Maggie to let me have some of her doggie valium but she said she needed it more than I did for surviving the rides in the truck.  I wasn’t so much queasy from the rocking, but the constant wind had worked up some tension in my neck and was causing some anxiety.  I toughed it out, though.   The wind finally calmed down to about 10 mph about bed time - it wasn’t too bad when I took Maggie out for her last potty break.  

We had several hours of this

It is obvious that the RV is not air tight as you can see in this photo of the dust/sand on the counter tops this morning.  

The sides of the RV and the truck were all spotted this morning like they had the measles because just after the dust storm there was a spritzing of rain - just enough to make an awful mess.  

We need to find a truck wash to take them both through.  

I spent an hour once we settled in tonight running the vacuum and dusting all the surfaces.  This rag is from one counter top.

This morning it was blowing again, but nothing like yesterday.  We packed up to go knowing we would be facing 10-15mph headwinds again today.  Well, the wind was at least that fierce and there were several areas where I was white knuckling the door handle.  Not only was the poor truck bucking the head wind, it was climbing in altitude.  We had to stop for fuel on the trip - something that is difficult to do with the RV, but the truck was sucking fuel like no tomorrow.  It was a another tough day for Roger.  We had to eat lunch inside the RV today because of the wind - and cold. Maggie wouldn't even get out.  

Yes, cold.  We have reverted to winter.  At one point about 40 miles east of Albuquerque we hit a storm cell that we thought was rain, but it was sleet.  The temperature had dropped to 37 degrees and the roads were white from the ice. It only lasted about 10 minutes but it was enough to make us realize we were in some wacky weather pattern and we just needed to laugh it off as best we could.  Most of the day the temps were in the high 50s.  We are in Grants, NM tonight at an altitude of ~6,900 feet.  Roger had to wrap insulation around the water hose because tonight it is supposed to dip down to 28 degrees!  It’s also windy.  What can I say.  

We are now in the high desert of northwestern New Mexico with mountains, volcanos, and lava beds  and red earth all around us.  The Navajo and Acomo Nations live in this area and I found two small pots at the KOA gift shop made and signed by the local artists to add to our collection.  There is snow on top of one of the mountains you can see from here - I’m told it is called Mount Taylor.   It isn’t a bad looking area if you like high desert landscapes with the mesas and mountains, which we do.  

It’s another 250 miles planned for tomorrow - to Flagstaff, AZ.  We will change to Arizona Time Zone (same as Pacific right now) and cross the Continental Divide.  More milestones under the tires!!! 

Here are the two videos I tried to upload on Tuesday of me and Maggs in the wind:

(I'm not sure how to do movies on this blog but hope it works.)  

Weather Phenomena of the Day - WIND

Dirt and dust blowing across the road made
visibility bad.  This is not a fuzzy photo from
the camera!  This is what we saw and couldn't see!

This is a photo of what we drove through and the videos are of us at the RV park. (I've tried to upload them, but no go.  Will add as a PS to another entry when I have a strong signal.) They should give you a good indication of what we dealt with yesterday.  Today is the same weather condition, but we are staying put and only ventured out to refuel.  Our weather apps indicated the wind yesterday was 20-30mph with gusts to 45.  Haven’t checked what today’s are, but they feel stronger as the RV is doing some rocking and rolling.  As of 4pm TWC says sustained winds were 30 to 40 with gusts to 50 so stay off the roads. Looks like we made a wise choice by staying. 

Driving into that strong of a headwind with an occasional sidewind gust was very hard on Roger and the truck.  Both worked overtime bucking against it.  He is totally exhausted today and fighting a headache (he rarely has them) so it is a good thing we didn’t move on.  Two days of driving in this wind would have done him in.  Besides, that 38 feet of sail we have behind the truck could easily be blown off the road.  On average we drive 250 miles a day and the truck takes an average of 23 gallons at the end of the day.  Driving into the wind increased our fuel consumption so that we put 30.5 gallons into the tank this morning.  (It holds 36 gallons).  Maggie is also a bit out of sync today - not her usual self.  I’m tired and the wind noise is annoying.  I think we all will have a long nap this afternoon. 

On our trips we set milestones to reach.   These are places that signify we have achieved a certain distance in our travels.  So, on this journey home, milestone one was the Mississippi River - sort of a symbol of East/West division.  Yesterday we had a TWOFER.  We finally got out of Texas after three days of driving through it AND we crossed into Mountain Time at the same time!!  We are getting closer and closer to home.  Next milestone will be the Continental Divide where the rivers run the "correct way!" 

One Texas town we passed through yesterday - Clarendon - was awash with crosses and “Praise Jesus” signs.  As you enter the town, population about 500 - there is a huge cross made of PVC pipe.  I thought that odd, but as we drove through the town I noticed that EVERY block, on both sides of the street had a 20 foot cross made of pvc pipe on the corner.  In addition, there were probably ten signs -  all of which mentioned Jesus in some fashion.  I don’t think that’s a town I’d be comfy in.  

A thought occurred to me as we go down the road that there aren’t too many towns in the US that don’t have a Golden Dragon Chinese restaurant.  Small, medium, and large - there seems to be one in every town.  I saw signs for one this morning on the way to the gas station, so Tucumcari has not been left out.  

We must have had a dozen trucks loaded with cows pass us yesterday.  They were heading, we presume, to Dodge City and the meat packing area of the country.   There were still lots of cows out on the range, though.  Also, lots and lots of cows in feed lots waiting for their turn to become McDonald burgers.  We also saw a buffalo ranch with some small, scrawny looking bison.  I’m guessing they were being raised for meat as well.

Texas has drive through beer stores.  Not drive up - drive through.  Yep, two lanes through a warehouse with beer stacked up on either side and in the middle.  Interesting. 

The ranches in Texas range from probably 40 acres way up to thousands of acres.  The one thing they seem to all have in common are fancy entrances.  Some are low key - two uprights with a cross beam made from logs or cast iron.  The name of the ranch is always on the top along with their brand.  Others have brick entrances like you see going into subdivisions - only there is a cross beam of some sort.  They range from simple, plain ones to hugely ornate and, surely, very expensive ones.  I guess that size matters (duh, it's Texas isn"t it).  The size of your entrance lets folks know how prosperous and big your ranch is.   There are some beautifully done ones and some very clever brands.  It’s just no one has an unmarked entrance but there does seem to be some class boundaries.  

We have a pair of western kingbirds nesting in the tree next to our dining room window.  The poor things are very confused because they see the reflection of the tree in our tinted window. They keep bumping into it thinking they are heading for the real thing. 

Tucumcari, NM is one of the towns along the famous Route 66.  We saw this mural this morning that I thought was very nicely done.  

Route 66 is noted for some of the odd buildings along the way built for tourists in the heyday of travel before the interstate system. This town has a few of them along with the old style motels with the western names.  They're not in good shape and often look residential but the original quirky architecture is definitely eye catching.  

I thought this Mexican restaurant was kinda cute.  Tucumcari also has a large stucco teepee but it was all closed up and had bars on the windows and doors.  Sad.

I remember as a teenager traveling this famous route.  I probably did more than once, as my father (a Marine) was stationed in Hawthorne, NV when I was in first through third grades, but I remember only the last time when my mother, sister and our dog drove out to Carson City to meet my father.  He had retired from the Corps and had found work in Carson City, NV.  The rest of us had been dropped off in southern Illinois with my grandmother.  When it was time to join him, we packed up a 1950s Nash and headed west.  It was quite the trip back in  November of 1961.  I’m quite sure that the “gypsy in my soul” now stems from having been a child of a Marine and then a wife of a Sailor.  Until we moved to Sparks, NV in 1986, I never lived anywhere more than three years and had no hometown.  

Roger also has great memories of a trip he took with his parents, sister, and grandmother from Detroit to LA along Route 66 in the early 60s.  They were driving a 1963 Ford station wagon with one of those added "on window" air conditioners. He's got some funny stories to tell about that trip.   Although, both our sisters, who remember lots we don't, could tell lots more about these trips we're sure!  Rog wonders if his family may have stayed in one of the motels along 66 here in Tucumcari - would be fun to know.

So, now Roger and I are hooked on this traveling lifestyle and we are having fun - most of the time.  We are getting our kicks on Route 66 on this trip when we can find them - there's not much of the old route left once they paved most of it over with I-40!

    

Stuff happens

We had a nice long essay planned for tonight but the phone data signal is on the E network and the wifi is even slower.  Will write the entry offline and find somewhere tomorrow to upload it. 

We are in Tucumcari, NM tonight and will stay tomorrow as well due to predicted gale force headwinds on our route. 

Check back tomorrow afternoon. We should have something posted with a couple of short videos (hopefully).

OMG!! 104 degrees!

This was about 3pm today
just before we pulled in.

Leave it to us to find our way to the hottest area of the country. Here we are out in the middle of nowhere Texas and right now the temperature is a mild 101 degrees and going down---very slowly.  This beats our record of high temps while traveling by two degrees.  Two summers ago we had 102 in Pendleton, OR and Winnemucca, NV.  Once it's this high it's just HOT!  The inside of the RV was at 92.4 when we stopped and we have it cooled off now to about 86 or so (it's 6:30). My toes look like little pork sausages and even Maggie doesn't want to go outside.



Speaking of the Maggster - well, our theory about the neighbors at the last place setting her off turned out to be a bogus one.  We got in around 3pm today, as mentioned above, and the office was closed until 4pm.  So, about ten minutes after 4 we walked over to the office to officially check in - we were already in a site and set up.  (We just picked one and moved right in. It's not like the place is full.) We were gone maybe 15 minutes.  When we returned we found the metal screen protector in shreds.  Now, the thing is metal and sharp but we found no blood, torn toes or tears around her mouth which is surprising. The destruction looked as if she were really frantic trying to get out.  WHY?  This is exactly what happened on our summer trip on our first week out with her.  She stopped doing this about half way through that trip and until night before last she was OK.  So, what has triggered the anxiety?  We haven't a clue. Rog went out to fuel the truck after dinner and I stayed home with her this time.  She must have gone to the door and put her nose in the hole that is in the screen five times then she would walk away and be OK but watching the door, but, then I was here.
  

Rog took the metal screen off so she wouldn't hurt herself, there's a small hole in the screening material, but if she tries again there won't be any of that left!   We are thinking of setting up her pen in the living room and do a trial separation at our next stop and see what happens.  We hate the idea of getting a kennel/crate and putting her in it, but otherwise we can't go out together without worrying about her destroying something and hurting herself.  We are so close to home to resort to that but what to do? 

The drive today was fairly easy.  It took us about an hour and a half to get around Dallas/Ft. Worth and head northwest.  The traffic wasn't awful - we didn't leave until 9:30.   We found a nice rest area for lunch - trees and picnic tables.  As we were taking our lunch sacks to the table we got stopped by the attendant and told that Maggie couldn't go to the picnic area.  So, since we were parked under a nice shade tree we just got our chairs out and sat there next to the RV and ate.  Crazy.

My observations today - huge homes with high roof lines dot the whole area east and south of the metropolitan area of DFW.  In addition there must have been a dozen mega-churches.  It's amazing how large they are.  Mind boggling.  Then when we were in Fort Worth and driving past a very poor neighborhood I noticed that the little church on one of the blocks had all its windows barred. What a comparison.  

Trucks.  Everywhere.  Dealerships abound with big semi's for sale.  Quadruple those and you will get the dealerships that sell pick up trucks by the gazillion.  It was amazing.  Not too many cars on their lots but tons of pick ups.  Hmmm...Texas?

We ran out of the pretty part of Texas about noon or so.  The large ranches, grasslands, and large homes disappeared and we went through a stretch where the landscape was dotted with oil wells instead of cattle.  The land became dry and barren with only scrub trees for green.    

Cotton Gin

Where we are now is the same but the RV park office and facilities are in an old cotton gin building which is kinda cool. Apparently in years past this whole area grew cotton.  The clerk says they are in year four of a major drought.  The towns nearby are sad looking - one we went through reminded me of the movie "The Last Picture Show."  The whole downtown was boarded up.  Very sad to see. We are between the metropolises of Quanan and Goodlett, Texas - two small towns that I think are getting smaller.  

Tomorrow our destination is Tucumcari, New Mexico - about 260 miles and finally in Mountain Time!  We go northwest from here to Amarillo, TX and then get on I-40 and head west.  Temps in Tucumcari are predicted to be a nice cool 88!!!  

A Much Needed Day of Quiet and Rest

We worked hard at relaxing today!  Rog had a nap and sat outside listening to his audio book in between walks with Maggie. Tonight he's watching baseball.  I spent the afternoon closing out April's checkbook and tweaking May's budget a little more towards reality, finding a place to stay tomorrow night, and playing Words With Friends with my friends. 

Our neighbors have a smoker that they went out and stoked up at 6:30 this morning.  Then they disappeared for a while before coming back out onto their little deck they built where they spent the day talking with another couple and drinking beer while their meat smoked.  The cute little doxies were a bit yappy today and kept Maggs on her toes.   It's a good thing it was hot - the air conditioner is noisy and masks a lot of the neighbor noise!

We found the Wal-Mart and we hopefully now have enough groceries to get us home.  Mostly we needed stuff for lunches to eat on the road.  If we have to eat dinner out a few times, so be it.  We were gone about an hour and a half - had to stop at the bank and the gas station, too.  Maggie, again, was a bit anxious while we were gone and did some scratching at the door. At this rate the area she scratches will be so thick with white duct tape that the door will never come apart. I hope this latest behavior on her part is a result of the neighbors and dogs being just outside her window and she hasn't reverted to the major separation anxiety she exhibited when we first got her.  

Tomorrow we will skirt the bottom of Dallas and Fort Worth on their ring road (our neighbor warned us that the northern route we planned was pretty much all under construction) until we meet U.S route 297 which heads northwest towards Amarillo.  We will stop at a little town called Goodlett for the night about a third of the way to Amarillo.  It will be a hard day driving for Roger - about 275 miles, through metropolitan Dallas/Ft. Worth, and then a non-interstate for the rest of the way.  Best to get the hardest drive out of the way the first day after a rest day.  

Windy, clear skies, and 90 degrees today.  It's supposed to be 103 where we are going tomorrow.  Yuck.  

North by Northwest

Today we left Baton Rouge on I-10 and drove west to I-49 where we headed north.   We arrived at Barksdale AFB outside of Shreveport, LA around 3:30p and will be here tonight only.  Tomorrow we catch I-20 and head west towards Dallas and have plans to stay in a town east of Dallas called Terrell.  We will stay there two nights to give Roger a down day.  We will have been on the road for three days straight.  Even though we are only going about 250 miles a day and driving for 3-4 hours, depending on traffic, it is tiring for Roger dealing with the RV.  

There are a lot of casinos in Louisiana!  I don’t think I realized there was so much.  I knew there were casinos in Mississippi on the Gulf Coast of the Biloxi area, and some in New Orleans.  Here in Louisiana almost every town has at least one small one.  Just down the street from us tonight is a huge Harrah’s and a Horseshoe Club.  They are near the Louisiana Downs Racetrack.  

Rice paddies, pecan orchards, bayous, horse farms, some cattle ranches, logging, and oil wells are what dot the Louisiana landscape.  Lots of water everywhere in the southern part of the state, but the further north we came the farmland seem to take over from the swamps. 

Driving north on I-49 is like driving through a tunnel of trees.  Nothing to see.  Just a long straight road ahead and tall trees on the sides with an occasional opening to spot the above mentioned sights.  BORING! 

We had little to no traffic once we crossed the Mississippi until we were 4 miles from our exit!  Traffic backed up for an accident.  Figures, huh?

Our Air Force Fam Camp is one of the worst we’ve been in.  Usually the Air Force has the primo campgrounds, but this one - not so much.  We are in a site where the utility hook ups are on the wrong side of the RV!  About half of them are this way.  Evidently, you’re supposed to pull IN to what is a back-in site, unhook  from the RV and then drive across a grassy field full of little hills, valleys, and ruts to get your tow vehicle back to your site.  The really ridiculous part is when you prepare to leave, you have to back up to the RV, hook-up, and then try to drag a 13,000 pound RV back across that same grassy field to get out of the park.   We elected to go ahead and back in.  Fortunately, we have a long enough water hose and power cord, but the sewer hose just wasn’t long enough to stretch under the RV and over to the dump hole.  Bizzare.  We had planned on a two night stay, but will move on tomorrow. 

Last night Roger and I discovered that Maggie thinks the couch belongs to her and her alone.   We threw her “day” bed onto the floor so we could sit side by side to look at maps and do some Google searches for routes and RV parks for the next couple of days.  Maggie kept jumping up on our lap, giving us kisses, walking across the atlas in Roger’s lap and then traipsing across the computer.  After about three times Roger got up and moved to his chair, throwing the bed up on the couch.  Maggs hopped up, curled up in the bed and crashed for the evening.  I guess she wasn’t too happy with us taking her sleeping spot.  She’s going to have to get used to her bed being on the floor between our chairs at home because the couch at home is off limits to dogs no matter how cute they are.  

More tomorrow from Texas!

We Are Finally Heading West

Yay!!!  We are on the road home!  The sight of the compass indicator showing a W was an exciting thing this morning!  

The three of us slept like the proverbial logs last night.  It was quiet, cooler, and we were exhausted from the two previous sleepless nights.  Amazingly, I only had to get up to visit the ladies’ room once.  We were awakened this morning at 8am when the Star Spangled Banner was being played on the base PA system when the flags went up.  I’m guessing we would have slept longer had we not been on a military base.  It was cooler, less humidity, and the sun was trying to peek out from behind the clouds.  A morning to make one smile!

We got on the road about 10am after doing some research as to which roads were open between us and the interstate.  Yesterday our primary route was blocked and we anticipated having to go through town and traffic this morning.  But, the gods were smiling on us today as the road to the back gate that had partially caved in was open (one lane only - but better than no lanes), the gate was open and the Blue Angel Parkway up to the interstate was open again.  Hooray!  

The drive was an easy one along I-10 to Slidell, LA where we went NW on I-12 north over Lake Pontchartrain to Denham Springs, LA.  We are in a KOA here, just east of Baton Rouge.  We are in the same site as when we were going eastbound a month ago and Roger thinks it is the same site we have stayed in years’ past.  It’s a comfortable little park in a quiet neighborhood with a large dog run for the Maggster.   We fueled the truck after dinner and stopped on the way back for a frozen yogurt treat.  We are now settled in for the evening.

Our new route plan is to go from here, north to Barksdale, AFB outside of Shreveport, LA and hopefully stay there two nights (they don’t take reservations -first come, first served), then get on I-20 and head for Dallas/Ft. Worth area.  From there, north to Amarillo and I-40.  That’s the plan for now, subject to change at any second!  

A text from P’Cola Pam says that they made great progress today cleaning up her mom’s house “with the help of neighbors and friends.”  We are so glad to hear that.