ANY WAY! Here's a link to the story they did:
http://www.cbs42.com/content/
Enjoy!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
And we made the local news!
CBS 42 in Birmingham, Alabama was kind enough to come and interview us about our trip. Yeah, I know....slow news day! LOL
ANY WAY! Here's a link to the story they did:
http://www.cbs42.com/content/
Enjoy!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
ANY WAY! Here's a link to the story they did:
http://www.cbs42.com/content/
Enjoy!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Saturday, July 24, 2010
And the lessons learned
With this trip I learned:
I can do things I didn't think I could! Film a tornado, climb a waterfall walkway, walk a swinging bridge, taste foods I wasn't sure about, get out of the truck more than once to take photos of bears, and spend three days trying to fix an RV fridge and finding it can't be fixed and you get a new one.
When you have troubles, you may get a visit from an angel or you may get new friends.
When opening the pantry door after moving, don't stand directly in front of it in your bare feet. Things tend to settle during traveling.
Other thing learned about feet: If you're going to wear beach Crocs without socks, please add sunscreen to your feet. You'll get an interesting tan if you don't!
You can get along with our spouse 24/7 for weeks at a time.
There are days when you can't get along with yourself!
Take the picture anyway. You'll always regret the ones you didn't take!
The original National Park-to-Park Highway tour was similar to ours:
They had vehicle breakdowns...so did we.
They got tired of friend chicken dinners....so did we.
They by-passed Zion Canyon because of no road in yet...we by-passed as we'd seen it before.
Many of the group left at Mesa Verde, CO...so did we. We didn't want to cross Wolf Creek Pass at over 13,000'.
They began running into winter weather...so did we, but at the beginning of the trip.
They didn't not see all of the parks while there...neither did we! Sometimes it was due to snow.
Not all the parks had good roads. Ours didn't either....many of the parks were down to one lane roads as they did road construction.
Would we take this trip again? I don't think so. Many of the parks are difficult to reach and are one way in and out. Many take a drive of over any hour just to reach the park from the campground.
Would I visit any of the parks again? Absolutely! Ask me my favorite place and it will always be Grand Teton National Park. Ask me my not favorite park: Lassen Volcanic.
Park that surprised me? Mt. Saint Helens. We were here a couple of years ago and never saw the mountain because of bad weather. There was also a lot of snow at that time. This time, we saw it in all it's glory. It's still difficult to realize how big it is and how much damage it caused 30 years ago.
Funniest moment of the trip: I was reading my Kindle, and David told me to turn off my book and come eat lunch.
Scariest moment of the trip: Riding between two tornadoes.
We're already considering our options for a trip next year. We're thinking of staying in one spot for a month or so and see more of one city/area. If you could do this, where would you go and why? Comment here or email me at car2nqueen@gmail.com
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
I can do things I didn't think I could! Film a tornado, climb a waterfall walkway, walk a swinging bridge, taste foods I wasn't sure about, get out of the truck more than once to take photos of bears, and spend three days trying to fix an RV fridge and finding it can't be fixed and you get a new one.
When you have troubles, you may get a visit from an angel or you may get new friends.
When opening the pantry door after moving, don't stand directly in front of it in your bare feet. Things tend to settle during traveling.
Other thing learned about feet: If you're going to wear beach Crocs without socks, please add sunscreen to your feet. You'll get an interesting tan if you don't!
You can get along with our spouse 24/7 for weeks at a time.
There are days when you can't get along with yourself!
Take the picture anyway. You'll always regret the ones you didn't take!
The original National Park-to-Park Highway tour was similar to ours:
They had vehicle breakdowns...so did we.
They got tired of friend chicken dinners....so did we.
They by-passed Zion Canyon because of no road in yet...we by-passed as we'd seen it before.
Many of the group left at Mesa Verde, CO...so did we. We didn't want to cross Wolf Creek Pass at over 13,000'.
They began running into winter weather...so did we, but at the beginning of the trip.
They didn't not see all of the parks while there...neither did we! Sometimes it was due to snow.
Not all the parks had good roads. Ours didn't either....many of the parks were down to one lane roads as they did road construction.
Would we take this trip again? I don't think so. Many of the parks are difficult to reach and are one way in and out. Many take a drive of over any hour just to reach the park from the campground.
Would I visit any of the parks again? Absolutely! Ask me my favorite place and it will always be Grand Teton National Park. Ask me my not favorite park: Lassen Volcanic.
Park that surprised me? Mt. Saint Helens. We were here a couple of years ago and never saw the mountain because of bad weather. There was also a lot of snow at that time. This time, we saw it in all it's glory. It's still difficult to realize how big it is and how much damage it caused 30 years ago.
Funniest moment of the trip: I was reading my Kindle, and David told me to turn off my book and come eat lunch.
Scariest moment of the trip: Riding between two tornadoes.
We're already considering our options for a trip next year. We're thinking of staying in one spot for a month or so and see more of one city/area. If you could do this, where would you go and why? Comment here or email me at car2nqueen@gmail.com
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
The trip by the numbers
53 days on the road.
9,774.5 miles driven. Of that, I drove the last 100 or so. David has calluses on his hands.
111 - Hottest temp on trip - Laughlin, NV
45 stops for fuel.
26 - coldest temp on trip - Crater Lake, OR
15 States Traveled in: AL, MS, TN, AR, OK, TX, NM, CO, WY, MT, ID, WA, OR, CA, NV
13 National Parks - Rocky Mountain, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Saint Helens, Lessen Volcanic, Yosemite, Sequoia, King's Canyon, Mesa Verde.
8 GB of photos taken
4 National Monuments - Sunset Crater, Wupatki Ruins, Petroglyph, and Canyon of the Ancients.
2 tornadoes seen
1 snowstorm driven in
1 flat tire
1 water pump
1 fan clutch
1 terrific Alabama State Trooper - Shane Fleming!
1 terrific next door neighbor - Paul Givens!
Too many new friends to mention. Grateful for family and friends that met us along the way.
9,774.5 miles driven. Of that, I drove the last 100 or so. David has calluses on his hands.
111 - Hottest temp on trip - Laughlin, NV
45 stops for fuel.
26 - coldest temp on trip - Crater Lake, OR
15 States Traveled in: AL, MS, TN, AR, OK, TX, NM, CO, WY, MT, ID, WA, OR, CA, NV
13 National Parks - Rocky Mountain, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Saint Helens, Lessen Volcanic, Yosemite, Sequoia, King's Canyon, Mesa Verde.
8 GB of photos taken
4 National Monuments - Sunset Crater, Wupatki Ruins, Petroglyph, and Canyon of the Ancients.
2 tornadoes seen
1 snowstorm driven in
1 flat tire
1 water pump
1 fan clutch
1 terrific Alabama State Trooper - Shane Fleming!
1 terrific next door neighbor - Paul Givens!
Too many new friends to mention. Grateful for family and friends that met us along the way.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Day 53 - Home Again! Eventually....
When we started the trip, I tried to take a picture of the beautiful Pentacostal Church in Little Rock. Only problem was, I didn't have the card in the camera. Here we go!
Beautiful buildings!
Next we pass Camping World - our home for the first three days of the trip!
Goodbye, Camping World!
We pass miles of rice fields and crop dusters. We pass miles of other crops. We pass miles and miles of miles. Soon we see signs for West Memphis, Arkansas. The state line is just across the bridge! On to Tennessee!
Fortunately, we bypass a lot of Memphis, but we do travel near the airport and all the freight terminals. The road here (Highway 78) is really beat up by trucks and other vehicles. Quite a ride!
Soon we on to Mississippi!
It's about lunch time, so we get off near at WalMart and have lunch in the RV. Chrissy takes a little break, too.
Home is calling!
Notice the road signs? 78 and 4? They'll be real important in about three miles!
We're excited! It's about 4 more hours until home!!!! What's that? Flap, flap, flap, flap, KAPOW! We pull off quickly at Exit 3 - Bexar, AL. The right front tire on the trailer has blown out!
Yep, it's flat and not fixable. Fortunately, an 18 wheeler pulled in behind us. But he wasn't there to help us. A State Trooper is behind him and his lights are on.
I call AAA and have the worst time of my life. I tell her where we are located. She tells me there is no Highway 78 in Alabama and I must be on 278. I tell her no, I'm in Alabama, on the ramp for Exit 3 in Alabama. She keeps telling me there is no Highway 78 in Alabama! I ask her to look at the same AAA Atlas I have, find Birmingham, go NW to Memphis. She finally decides I'm on 78. She asks for the nearest town to me - Bexar. She tells me it's not in Alabama. Again, I tell her it is! She says no...I say yes. She says see finally sees it. A wrecker will be there in 2 hours to help us change the tire. Right....
It's over 90 degrees and sunny and hot on the side of the road. The trooper and the driver walk up to check on us. The driver goes on at our urging and the trooper helps David change the tire. It took our 3 ton hydraulic jack and his 2 ton floor jack, but they got it changed.
MANY THANKS TO TROOPER SHANE FLEMING FOR A JOB WELL DONE! He was so helpful. When we did get home, I called Montgomery to commend him for his service! Thanks again!
I get a call from AAA telling me the driver is on the way. She'd send a wrecker from Jasper (exit 57) to where we were at Exit 3. The tire was changed by the time he arrived. I signed his paperwork. Wasn't his fault!
Now to get home....The brake lines on the trailer were damaged when the tire came apart. Our next door neighbor, Paul Givens, has a bigger truck than ours. He has a one ton diesel. Ours is a 3/4 ton gas model. Paul left work to come and pick up the trailer for us so it was a little safer to get it home. He and David hooked it up and left. Chrissy and I settled in for driving a HUGE truck home by ourselves. Those of you who know me know I don't drive fast. I set the cruise on 70 so I couldn't drive any faster and I was very careful about passing vehicles. I don't drive the truck because it is twice as long as my 4 cylinder car and goes way faster. I actually ended up passing three 18 wheelers. At one point I looked down at the odometer and it read "9,666.6."
Paul and David called to check on me and told me not to get off 78 at the Birmingham exit. Where had I just gotten off? You got it! I came through Birmingham traffic and didn't have any boo-boos! The final mileage for the trip was 9,774.5 miles!
We all get to where we park our RV about the same time. We were tired and hot and cranky, so we decided to take just what we needed for the night and we'd unload it all tomorrow. Good plan to me!
HOME! The yard looks great! The house looks better! And bedtime is fast approaching! We'd all been talking about how much we missed our pillowtop mattress. Even Chrissy! I don't believe anyone of us moved during the night! That bed felt soooo great! Home again!
It may be the end of the trip, but there are a couple more posts to come, so stay tuned!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Beautiful buildings!
Next we pass Camping World - our home for the first three days of the trip!
Goodbye, Camping World!
We pass miles of rice fields and crop dusters. We pass miles of other crops. We pass miles and miles of miles. Soon we see signs for West Memphis, Arkansas. The state line is just across the bridge! On to Tennessee!
Soon we on to Mississippi!
It's about lunch time, so we get off near at WalMart and have lunch in the RV. Chrissy takes a little break, too.
Home is calling!
We're excited! It's about 4 more hours until home!!!! What's that? Flap, flap, flap, flap, KAPOW! We pull off quickly at Exit 3 - Bexar, AL. The right front tire on the trailer has blown out!
I call AAA and have the worst time of my life. I tell her where we are located. She tells me there is no Highway 78 in Alabama and I must be on 278. I tell her no, I'm in Alabama, on the ramp for Exit 3 in Alabama. She keeps telling me there is no Highway 78 in Alabama! I ask her to look at the same AAA Atlas I have, find Birmingham, go NW to Memphis. She finally decides I'm on 78. She asks for the nearest town to me - Bexar. She tells me it's not in Alabama. Again, I tell her it is! She says no...I say yes. She says see finally sees it. A wrecker will be there in 2 hours to help us change the tire. Right....
It's over 90 degrees and sunny and hot on the side of the road. The trooper and the driver walk up to check on us. The driver goes on at our urging and the trooper helps David change the tire. It took our 3 ton hydraulic jack and his 2 ton floor jack, but they got it changed.
MANY THANKS TO TROOPER SHANE FLEMING FOR A JOB WELL DONE! He was so helpful. When we did get home, I called Montgomery to commend him for his service! Thanks again!
I get a call from AAA telling me the driver is on the way. She'd send a wrecker from Jasper (exit 57) to where we were at Exit 3. The tire was changed by the time he arrived. I signed his paperwork. Wasn't his fault!
Now to get home....The brake lines on the trailer were damaged when the tire came apart. Our next door neighbor, Paul Givens, has a bigger truck than ours. He has a one ton diesel. Ours is a 3/4 ton gas model. Paul left work to come and pick up the trailer for us so it was a little safer to get it home. He and David hooked it up and left. Chrissy and I settled in for driving a HUGE truck home by ourselves. Those of you who know me know I don't drive fast. I set the cruise on 70 so I couldn't drive any faster and I was very careful about passing vehicles. I don't drive the truck because it is twice as long as my 4 cylinder car and goes way faster. I actually ended up passing three 18 wheelers. At one point I looked down at the odometer and it read "9,666.6."
Paul and David called to check on me and told me not to get off 78 at the Birmingham exit. Where had I just gotten off? You got it! I came through Birmingham traffic and didn't have any boo-boos! The final mileage for the trip was 9,774.5 miles!
We all get to where we park our RV about the same time. We were tired and hot and cranky, so we decided to take just what we needed for the night and we'd unload it all tomorrow. Good plan to me!
HOME! The yard looks great! The house looks better! And bedtime is fast approaching! We'd all been talking about how much we missed our pillowtop mattress. Even Chrissy! I don't believe anyone of us moved during the night! That bed felt soooo great! Home again!
It may be the end of the trip, but there are a couple more posts to come, so stay tuned!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Day 52 - Haven't we been here before?
We got fuel before leaving and headed back to the dreaded I-40 East. It's really bouncy! You never know how many drawers you'll find open or what shifted when you get back in after being on this road!
Stopped in a little Oklahoma town to mail the last of the million postcards! Needed stamps, too. All taken care of!
Back in Arkansas! Just sorry we don't have a week to spend in Mountain View this year. I love that place!
There isn't much to look at on I-40, so it's kind of boring. Reading the Kindle passes some of the time. But then, the road gets bouncy and I can't focus on the page, so reading is out.
We are staying the night at a KOA in North Little Rock. We really don't even see the city of Little Rock. The highway bypasses the town. You take another interstate road into Little Rock. Since we're going home tomorrow, we decide not to go anywhere. We just get to the KOA and get a spot where we don't have to unhook for the night. HOME IS GETTING CLOSER!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Stopped in a little Oklahoma town to mail the last of the million postcards! Needed stamps, too. All taken care of!
There isn't much to look at on I-40, so it's kind of boring. Reading the Kindle passes some of the time. But then, the road gets bouncy and I can't focus on the page, so reading is out.
We are staying the night at a KOA in North Little Rock. We really don't even see the city of Little Rock. The highway bypasses the town. You take another interstate road into Little Rock. Since we're going home tomorrow, we decide not to go anywhere. We just get to the KOA and get a spot where we don't have to unhook for the night. HOME IS GETTING CLOSER!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Day 51 - OOOOOOOOAKKKKKKKLAHOMA!
We pulled out early from Amarillo as it was going to be a LONG day on I-40. About 10 miles down the road, I asked David why he was headed to Albuquerque. He didn't answer. He just got off the interstate, got on a feeder road and got back on I-40East. Good move!
Pretty uneventful drive into OKLAHOMA!
They have some of the nicest rest areas in the country!
Back to I-40 and it's looking nasty ahead. We're scheduled to spend the night in Oklahoma City, but it looks really threatening so we keep driving. Weather wasn't a problem for us at all. We didn't have another campground picked out, so we looked at billboards that normally advertise them. None seen. But wait! There's one in Shawnee, OK that says RV Hookups. It's at a casino.
We've stayed at casino campgrounds before and it's usually pleasant and inexpensive. Security is good and the food isn't bad, either. We called the casino to see if they had space and we were transferred to the gift shop. I asked the lady on the phone if they had space. She told me she didn't have a window to look out so she couldn't tell us, but told us to come on anyway. Odd....
We got to the casino about 4:30 p.m and found a spot and David went in to find out how to pay or get setup. You have to go to the gift shop to get a card for your vehicle and the RV spot is free....up to three days! Just water and electricity, but it was secure and had a grassy area behind to walk Chrissy. OH, if you want to stay beyond three days, you must spend $25 a day on the slot machines. Crazy!
We met a wonderful couple when we pulled in - Gary and his wife, Francoise. She's from Holland. They've been on the road for some time and were working their way to Kentucky to work for Amazon.com. We enjoyed seeing their pictures and talking to them. They were leaving the next day for a few days in Arkansas. We're hoping to meet them again in Tennessee. Really enjoyed meeting them!
We turned on the TV to watch the news after getting setup and the main story was the flooding in Oklahoma City! Seems parts of the city got 5-6" of rain and it caused flooding. Sadly, a 13 year old child was washed away in the flood waters and drowned. His friend was saved, but they couldn't save him. He was found the next day. So sad!
Dinner in the casino was okay. It was men's night so David got $5.00 of his meal and I got a coupon for $2.50 off mine. It was basic buffet and not worth the $30 it would have been without the discounts.
Back to the RV and some TV before bed. On to North Little Rock tomorrow!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Pretty uneventful drive into OKLAHOMA!
They have some of the nicest rest areas in the country!
Back to I-40 and it's looking nasty ahead. We're scheduled to spend the night in Oklahoma City, but it looks really threatening so we keep driving. Weather wasn't a problem for us at all. We didn't have another campground picked out, so we looked at billboards that normally advertise them. None seen. But wait! There's one in Shawnee, OK that says RV Hookups. It's at a casino.
We've stayed at casino campgrounds before and it's usually pleasant and inexpensive. Security is good and the food isn't bad, either. We called the casino to see if they had space and we were transferred to the gift shop. I asked the lady on the phone if they had space. She told me she didn't have a window to look out so she couldn't tell us, but told us to come on anyway. Odd....
We got to the casino about 4:30 p.m and found a spot and David went in to find out how to pay or get setup. You have to go to the gift shop to get a card for your vehicle and the RV spot is free....up to three days! Just water and electricity, but it was secure and had a grassy area behind to walk Chrissy. OH, if you want to stay beyond three days, you must spend $25 a day on the slot machines. Crazy!
We met a wonderful couple when we pulled in - Gary and his wife, Francoise. She's from Holland. They've been on the road for some time and were working their way to Kentucky to work for Amazon.com. We enjoyed seeing their pictures and talking to them. They were leaving the next day for a few days in Arkansas. We're hoping to meet them again in Tennessee. Really enjoyed meeting them!
We turned on the TV to watch the news after getting setup and the main story was the flooding in Oklahoma City! Seems parts of the city got 5-6" of rain and it caused flooding. Sadly, a 13 year old child was washed away in the flood waters and drowned. His friend was saved, but they couldn't save him. He was found the next day. So sad!
Dinner in the casino was okay. It was men's night so David got $5.00 of his meal and I got a coupon for $2.50 off mine. It was basic buffet and not worth the $30 it would have been without the discounts.
Back to the RV and some TV before bed. On to North Little Rock tomorrow!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Day 50 - Everything IS bigger in Texas!
It's another day on the worst road in America! I-40! We're traveling from Tucumcari to Amarillo, TX. I think we have more planned for today than we'll get to!
We saw this patriotic cow:
TEXAS! Somehow I expected a larger sign...
Oh wait! Here's one and it's where we are having dinner tonight!
Yes, if you can eat the 72 ounce steak and all the trimmings in one hour, it's free! You have to keep it down long enough to get outside! LOL If not, you owe about $100 for your steak dinner.
We want to go visit Palo Duro Canyon, but it's late in the day and it's not close enough to get there and back before our dinner at 6:00 p.m.
We check in at the campground and head out. We want to visit the Cadillac Ranch!
Read here for more info: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220
We saw lots of people stopped here when we passed by earlier, so we head back here. We wondered about this sign at the gate on I-40. Only gate I've ever seen on any interstate!
It soon became clear that we should have brought our own cans of spray paint. Everyone was busy painting these cars!
It's just a row of old Cadillacs buried in the dirt alongside I-40! So strange, but what about our trips are ever normal? LOL
My wonderful husband arranged to have us picked up from the campground by limo! We were greeted by the sound of MOOING! Here's the limo and our driver, Randy:
We go inside and of course they need you to wander in the gift shop and visit the games and the bar. I headed for the gift shop and then almost ran outside. This was in the back of the gift shop. Yes, it's real and alive!
Ewwwwwww!
Here's what you get for dinner if you want the "free" one:
I have enough trouble finishing a small steak, much less that monster! Here's the area where they cook the steaks and where the ones going for the free meal sit:
The six chairs are arranged on a stage right in front of the grill. Each chair has a timer above it showing 60 minutes. No takers on this night.
If you have a horse with you, make sure you check them into the Happy Tracks Horse Motel! We saw this sign on the way back to the campground!
This poor, tired Princess greeted us upon our return. The expression on her face was "We are not amused!"
We watched a little TV and headed to bed for our drive to Oklahoma City tomorrow. We did hear from Donna and she will not be able to join us since we changed our schedule. We'll miss seeing you, Donna!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
We saw this patriotic cow:
Oh wait! Here's one and it's where we are having dinner tonight!
Yes, if you can eat the 72 ounce steak and all the trimmings in one hour, it's free! You have to keep it down long enough to get outside! LOL If not, you owe about $100 for your steak dinner.
We want to go visit Palo Duro Canyon, but it's late in the day and it's not close enough to get there and back before our dinner at 6:00 p.m.
We check in at the campground and head out. We want to visit the Cadillac Ranch!
Read here for more info: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220
We saw lots of people stopped here when we passed by earlier, so we head back here. We wondered about this sign at the gate on I-40. Only gate I've ever seen on any interstate!
It soon became clear that we should have brought our own cans of spray paint. Everyone was busy painting these cars!
My wonderful husband arranged to have us picked up from the campground by limo! We were greeted by the sound of MOOING! Here's the limo and our driver, Randy:
Here's what you get for dinner if you want the "free" one:
The six chairs are arranged on a stage right in front of the grill. Each chair has a timer above it showing 60 minutes. No takers on this night.
If you have a horse with you, make sure you check them into the Happy Tracks Horse Motel! We saw this sign on the way back to the campground!
We watched a little TV and headed to bed for our drive to Oklahoma City tomorrow. We did hear from Donna and she will not be able to join us since we changed our schedule. We'll miss seeing you, Donna!
See ya down the road!
Jenny :)
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