Monday, November 14, 2011

WINDY TRIP FROM GOREVILLE ILLINOIS TO HAZEN ARKANSAS

IMG_2999
THIS BRIDGE OVER THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER MARKS THE STATE LINE BETWEEN ILLINOIS AND MISSOURI
First thing I heard upon waking this morning was rain on the rig’s roof…not good!! Second thing I heard was wind in the tree tops and that was not good either. Third thing I heard was a happy little dog waking up in the chair beside my bed. Now, that was good:))
IMG_1242
LITTLE MOTORMOUSE PLAYING IN A PILE OF LEAVES THIS MORNING AT FERNE CLYFFE
We have moved to Central Time now so instead of waking up at 4:15 I was wide awake at 3:15.  Yep, knew right then and there it was going to be another long day.  But not a long boring day like at home.  Can’t even begin to tell you how great it is to be back in my element and on the move again.  Halleluiah Brother:))    
IMG_3008
IMG_3007 IMG_3005
BREAKFAST AT OUR HOUSE THIS MORNING
Couldn’t believe how warm it was first thing this morning with the temps later in the day reaching 80F.  The rain ended long before we had the wheels rolling at 7:45 but the heavy cloud cover stuck around.  Still big wind gusts but knew we should be OK all the way down I-57 to the bridge over the Mississippi because of the sheltering forests.  We crossed that bridge at 8:35 into Missouri’s flat farmland heading in a westerly direction.    As expected this brought us broad side on to the southerly cross wind again which beat us up pretty good for about 30 miles before reaching I-55.  We were able to swing our nose back into the wind again heading south all the way to the west side of Memphis.
IMG_3000
LOOKING SOUTHWARD DOWN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER WHILE CROSSING THE BRIDGE TO MISSOURI
Upon nearing Memphis we swung off the I-55 ramp at 11:30 landing ourselves on I-40 heading west.  As mentioned before, this is always a pivotal point in our trip and switches us from our north/south part of the trip to our east/west part of the trip.  We now have the great American Southwest in our crosshairs.  Quite often in the past when I referred to the Southwest I was in the habit of mentioning only New Mexico, Arizona and California.  I should have been including the great State of Texas all along and from here on in I will do just that. 
IMG_1244
THIS IS THE RAMP FROM I-55 TO I-40 WHICH HEADS US STRAIGHT FOR THE SOUTHWEST
The winds began to back off around noon and I actually kicked on the dash Air.  We had a mixture of sun and clouds as we approached Hazen Arkansas about 40 miles east of Little Rock around 2 p.m.  There is a little RV Park called T-Ricks right off I-40 that we have used maybe half a dozen times over the years.  The Park has fallen on hard times but we like it because there are usually not too many people there.  T-Rick’s is also a CITGO fuel stop so we decided to call it a day, gas up the rig and stay for the night.  I had my first huge black tank disaster late this afternoon but I am not going to even mention that!!!
IMG_1246
PIT STOP AT AN ARKANSAS REST AREA WEST OF MEMPHIS
New bloggers Rick and Kathy Rousseau from IT'S ABOUT TIME have just joined us on our Blog Followers list and we welcome them aboard for this years adventures in the Southwest.
And, a big shout out to fellow RV’ers back home in that there Seaforth town.  Ron and Gloria Riley will soon be on the road for Arizona’s Superstition Mountain in their 34’ Carriage Fifth Wheel.  Happy trails guys and don’t forget to drive the Apache Trail when you are there.  If you type Superstition Mountain or Apache Trail into our blog sites search bar you can see our pics and blogs from our time spent in that area. 
Now, to answer the comment question regarding our route. Yes, swinging west on I-70 and heading on down through St. Louis and Oklahoma to Arizona is technically shorter, but is it. First, I have an aversion to large cities and we’ve driven through St. Louis a couple times before and that was enough of that!! No need to reach Arizona through Albuquerque NM or the traffic chaos of Phoenix either because it is southern Arizona we are now heading for. By running south on ‘big city free’ I-57 and I-55 we hook up with I-40 west of Memphis to Little Rock Arkansas and I-30 to Texarkana. By then we are already further south and in line with Southern New Mexico and Arizona. We detour north around Dallas through Gainesville Texas and pick up a quiet two lane road leading to Jacksboro where we pick up highway 380 all the way to Tularosa New Mexico. I like 380 with it’s tired little dusty western towns along the way, people free rest areas, lite traffic, a couple of free county parks and easy access over the mountains through the Apache Pass.
And, I have a correction to Saturday’s post. I mentioned it was a router we were having problems with not getting on-line but in actual fact it was our Verizon modem. Not the modems fault but ours. Having not used it since last March we forgot to charge it and then failed to remember about the ‘on/off switch. Yikes, these aging memories of ours!! All is well now and our internet access is working fine. Lots of TV channels accessible by antennae on this side of the country too.
Tuesday morning we will mix it up with the Little Rock traffic, but we generally get through there without any trouble anyway.  There is a Cracker Barrel in Texarkana we have frequented in the past so I have a feeling we just might re-frequent it again in the morning.  Texarkana sits on the State Line between Arkansas and Texas and it is here where the landscape begins changing. 
IMG_1239
NO ROOM ON MY BED TONIGHT SO LOOKS LIKE I WILL BE THE ONE SLEEPING ON THE FLOOR:((
GROANER’S CORNER:((       Two highway patrolmen stop a driver for speeding on the state highway in Waxahachie, Texas. As they are writing up the ticket, one trooper turns to the other and asks, "How do you spell Waxahachie?"
The other one replies, "I don't know."
"What are we going to do?" the first one asks. "If we spell it wrong, the judge will dismiss the charge."
"Well," says his partner, "why don't we just let him go and stop him again when he gets to Waco?"

---------------------------------------------------------------Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
-Until one has loved an Animal, their  soul remains un-awakened.
BAYFIELD BUNCH PHOTO ALBUMS https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295
The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of
right  now...AL.

    

21 comments:

  1. Black tank disaster? Come on, now you gotta tell.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hmmmm.... not to sure about the big black tank disaster... kind of reminds me on one last year that maybe I forgot to blog about... good you see you making good headway!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Black tank disaster - doesn't ever happen to us. Don't we wish. Glad you're out of the wind for the rest of your journey.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Cannot believe you are traveling down our old stomping grounds! Lived in the Little Rock area many years, have eaten at the same Cracker Barrel in Texarkana many times & lived in NM 12 yrs when hubby was on active duty with the AF...WOW, small world. Be safe & enjoy!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Inquiring minds want to know...about the black tank disaster LOL!! Ask Russ about the sewer hook-up that was halfway across the campground (only a slight exaggeration) and how he rigged up the sewer hose!

    Hope you are away from the worst of the wind. Sure looks like Pheebs took to the traveling life just fine.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sure hope that sleeping on the floor was o.k. for your back and driving the next day. Good support down there on the floor, usually! Happy Trails.

    ReplyDelete
  7. you know darn well you can't mention something and then totally avoid blogging about it!!..enquiring minds want to know!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Black tank problems everyone has a story about those.
    Glad to hear your safe and out of the wind. Just hate driving like a drunk, using a 12 to 14 foot wide lanes.
    We may be new Blog Followers, but we been following you for years, and your still making us jealous that we're not following in your shadows. Maybe next year!
    It's about time.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Those two dogs are sure spoiled!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Safe travels you two!! We are leaving Tucson this morning and will be home in Congress by happy hour... We're clearin the way for ya!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sounds like it is going well for you so far ~ should have shared the black tank issue!
    Have fun & Travel safe
    Donna

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wave to my family for me, I'm right behind you except I'll be arriving in Arkansas via plane tomorrow to see my family for a few days.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Black tank disaster? Fess up:)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Since you've had a black tank disaster, maybe a more pertinent question would be, "How's your shower working?" :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. AHHH, come on Al. You have to tell the black tank disaster story. It always make those of us that have had such an adventure in the past feels so much better.

    As another blogger is fond of saying "Life without adventure is simply an experience".

    ReplyDelete
  16. We came across that bridge last year! Kelly looks relaxed with her coffee and the dogs!Do tell about black tank disaster Al come on!!!!Nice tempetures already better then in Bayfield 8 right now with a high of 11 !! No snow here yet!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Mississippi Bridge back in 2000 a car had went over the edge into the river and another one dangling over the edge .Both lanes closed .
    You have a bunch of very content passengers on board with you. Safe travels. Lady Di is a very busy gal ????

    ReplyDelete
  18. I don't think they are going to let you out of telling the story Al! But look on the bright side we can all learn what not to do and gain from your experience.........

    ReplyDelete
  19. Howdy Kelly, Al & bunch,
    We're keeping the wind down out here in West Texas for you; only 10-20 mph
    and NO RAIN OR SNOW!!! If you swing off 380 at Throckmorton and get US283
    to COLEMAN,TEXAS then Texas 153 West
    10 miles to the RunningStar Ranch
    you'll get a BIG TEXAS WELCOME AND
    HOWDY, with plenty of room for the pups to play!!! You can stay as long as you want!!! Hot coffee, toast &
    peanutbutter & venizon chili!!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Hey there...we WERE right on your tail. Stayed at Rend Lake last night and we were going to go to Grenada MS today...But..the forcast for Memphis and our route were for possible tornados and severe storms...so, we are here one more night..The beauty of an RV..no schedules...Be safe!

    ReplyDelete
  21. ok ok ok ya just gotta tell the black tank story...we're all on the edge of our seats :)....hope you get less wind tomorrow!!!

    ReplyDelete