THE DRIVE TO DALLAS

Heading west on I-20 was a battle with very strong wind with excess of 40 mph gusts (according to Dallas weatherman last evening).  The wind was blowing out of the south which meant I had a constant cross wind for the journey.  I had to lock my elbows straight to keep the RV under control. 

At least Dallas metroplex traffic was kind to us just when we needed it.  The loop around Dallas on I-635 was without incident as the traffic was fairly heavy at 1 p.m. but there were no stoppages.   Driving an RV on a 10-lane interstate highway was a nerve-racking experience as cars & trucks entering the highway were truly Dallas crazy drivers.

Our campground leaves a lot to be desired, like green grass, but we are spending our time and Wendy & Scott's home about 20 miles closer to town.  Amelia (granddaughter) has dance class on Saturday and John (grandson) has his first T-ball practice.  I'm glad we are not driving for a few days since my arms and back are sore from the battle with the wind.     

CAJUN COUNTRY

On Tuesday we headed to Cajun Country to visit Carla, Ann's college roommate, and her husband Dave .  

The trip into Baton Rouge on I-10 took us across the Mississippi River on a high suspension bridge.  Driving that bridge taught us just how easily a tall RV could be pushed to the side by wind, and Paul had to fight with the steering wheel just to keep the RV from drifting into another lane. Once past Baton Rouge we bounced along I-10 --evidence so far in our trip that Louisiana gets the Worst Roads in America award.

OH NO - ANOTHER MAINTENANCE BILL TO PAY!  In Biloxi, we noticed a small water drip coming from our plumbing bay.  We know that small leaks can easily become flooding leaks, so we stopped in Lafayette for some in-trip maintenance.  We disconnected the dinghy so Ann could drive the 18 miles south to get a head start on her visit with Carla. Fortunately, the folks at Stevens RV had me back on the road in about an hour.  The replacement part cost less than $10, the labor charge approaching triple digits. 

Carla was an English major and became head librarian in the town of New Iberia, Louisiana.  She now loves retirement life and has become a published author.  Look for her first book (published under her pen name Lynn Shurr) , entitled "Goals for a Sinner", on Amazon.com.

Carla and her husband Dave gave us a lesson on the layout of the city. New Iberia is known as The Queen City of the Bayou Teche.  The bayou runs right through the city, with a series of 4 draw bridges connecting both sides of the bayou.  Boaters need to call ahead to get a draw bridge raised as the bridges are unattended.  During sugar cane season in the fall, the bridges are in the up position quite often, causing traffic jams at the bridges, as the water provides a means for shipping harvested sugar cane to market.   Carla drove us through town, showing us beautiful old Southern mansions.

We had a wonderful visit culminating in a great Cajun seafood feast at one of New Iberia's finest seafood restaurants.

Our journey from Cajun country to east Texas was a boring 6 hour drive along "future I-49 corridor", now the WORST road we have traveled on so far, up to Lafayette and then further north on I-49.  Very few things to see along this route.  Going around Shreveport we were on the Terry Bradshaw Passway, named in honor of Shreveport's four-time super bowl winning QB with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Today we will head west on I-20 to the Dallas Metroplex area to spend a long weekend with our daughter Wendy, husband Scott, and our 2 oldest grandchildren (Amelia 6 1/2 and John 4) before continuing our journey on Monday morning. 

OLD FLORIDA AND BILOXI

On Monday morning we explored River Bend Campground, on the Yellow River. The scenery was picturesque, with huge cypress trees along the river bank, making us feel as if we are in the middle of the Deep South.

Other than the mosquitoes we encountered while breaking camp, this was a great campground with a lot of tall pine trees giving much shade. Why can’t we find this type of campground closer to Gainesville?

We admired the Blue Angels fighter jet as we passed the rest area just before crossing into Pensacola, the home base of the Navy’s Blue Angel precision flying team. Our journey took us across Alabama and under Mobile Bay, home to the battleship Alabama. As we drove into Biloxi, there was a 20 foot high white lighthouse built between the 4 lanes of the highway. Why? We don’t have a clue why it was not by the water.

Our campground in Biloxi was located across the street from the beach along the Gulf of Mexico. As we took a walk to the beach, we walked across a concrete slab that was the only remains of a former hotel/motel and parking lot that was obliterated by Hurricane Katrina. It is evident that all the damage from Katrina has not been rebuilt.

When in Biloxi – you have to go gambling. Paul needed a bit of time in one of the local casinos to see if he could finally bring back a jackpot that would pay for our trip. He headed to the Hard Rock Casino – how could you miss the red guitar!?! The Casino even gives you free drinks as long as you are playing; very expensive drinks if you are losing at the tables - but the people watching is priceless.

Tuesday we are heading west to New Iberia, Louisiana to visit one of Ann’s college roommates. Ann hasn’t seen Carla in over 30 years. It will be interesting to get together after several years of emails and letters.

THE BIG DAY ARRIVES

Finally, the big day for our journey to Wyoming has arrived. Sunday began with a threat of rain as we loaded the food for the trip and closed up the house for the summer. We drove both the RV and the Honda Fit (henceforth referred as the dinghy) to a shopping center about a mile from our house to connect the dinghy and RV for the journey. Installing a “brake buddy” that applies the brake pedal to the dinghy when the driver applies the brakes in the RV, is a technical challenge that we think we have mastered. At 10:55 a.m. we pulled out of the parking and headed towards I-75 as small raindrops began to pelt the windshield.





Our journey north on I-75 past Lake City and then west on I-10 was without sunglasses as we were in cloud cover and rain through Tallahassee. Once we passed the Florida capital the sun began to shine as we pulled into the Quincy Flying J for the first gas stop with the dingy attached. Flying J truck stops are nice in that they have a separate lane for RV’s pulling a dinghy or a trailer which allows a nice wide turn around the station and then back to the highway. Another great feature is the pumps for RV’s don’t shut off at $75 like other pumps. At 8 miles to the gallon, the RV seems to suck gas.

We pulled in to River Bend Campground in Holt, Florida which is about 12 miles west of Crestview around 4:30 CDT. After hooking up the RV (connecting shore power and water lines) we drove back to Crestview to meet Mike Parks and his wife Gene for dinner. Mike is a 3-sport contest official in west Florida and is one of the leaders in his officials’ organization. Mike’s bigger claim is he worked in the E ring (highest security area) of the Pentagon when he was in the Air Force. Mike met Gene in Washington, D.C. while they were both in the Air Force, and they both have stories to tell about military lifestyle and travel.

FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR OUR RV

Yesterday afternoon Ann and I hooked the car to the RV in the Oaks Mall parking lot. It had been two weeks since the tow bar and car attachments had been installed in Orlando. We were able to complete the process without any glitches. Maybe I'm getting mechanical in my older years?

This morning I drove the RV down to Wesley Chapel to get the RV detailed. The campground we get this done in has nice big shady sites. Tomorrow morning I will drive across I-4 to Kissimmee. The Dish Network installer had difficulties a few weeks ago so it necessitated a return trip. The Kingdome satellite dish we had mounted on the roof of the RV is a very new style which incorporates an antenna for local channels as well as the channels from Dish Network. The appointment is at noon and I hope to be on my way back to Ocala by dinner time.