We got off to a late start on our first day - not unusual for us. This time we were actually on track until a neighbour came in for a visit and a look at our trailer. Oh well, meeting the people is what RVing is all about!
For our first day we planned to go back on the route we traveled often before - north to I-10 and across the Panhandle. This time we stopped at the Blackwater River State Park. It was a lovely place to spend time at the end of a long day of driving.
We arrived just after the ranger at the gate went on a one hour dinner break. Oh well! We sat in the truck at the gate saving our place in any line that might occur so we would get a spot for the night. As we sat there a local drove by us and called out as she passed. “Thanks for coming. Spend lots, we need it!” I laughed and said we had been here two months and we had tried!
Once we had registered we pulled in to a lovely wooded campsite. Each space was large and made private by a good buffer of trees around it. Our allotment had a pair of cardinals providing music and entertainment. I don’t think they were really happy about our occupation of their home. Our coming and going obviously disturbed them. The male was not impressed by the other cardinal in the large side mirror on the truck. We left them on their own and went for a walk down the boardwalk to the river. It has a lovely wide sandy beach where small children were playing in and out of the water. The water was a deep tea brown. It sure felt good after such a long hot drive. I happily kicked off my thongs and went wading.
We had some leftover Chinese food for dinner and I wanted to try the recipe Evelyn gave us when we visited Merritt Island. Abe had stocked us up with wonderful fresh vegetables so we had fresh Japanese eggplant and jalapeno pepper. I was able to put the stirfry together very quickly to fill out the menu.
3 Japanese or Chinese eggplant chopped into chunks.
1 medium onion, also in chunks
3 large cloves of garlic chopped
1 jalapeno pepper chopped coarsely
4 green onions chopped in medium lengths
2 teaspoon Soya sauce
2 tablespoons Oyster sauce
Heat oil
Sauté garlic lightly.
Add onion and sauté lightly. Add eggplant and pepper.
Add soya sauce.
When just about done add oyster sauce and green onion.
Heat and serve.
It was very good!
A quiet night and then on to Mississippi.
Day 2:
We got up early - the sun was just rising! The usual morning activities; make the bed, pack up the bedroom, clean up the people, breakfast, clean up the kitchen, sweep the floor and bring in the slide out. We were on the road by 7:30 AM and it was hot already!
The GPS reassured us of our position and we found our way out of the park. As we drove toward the highway, Dan pointed out sections of the old brick road that crossed the Panhandle. This was the old Florida Highway Number 1 built as a nine foot wide brick road in 1921. Soon we were out of that rural area of days gone by, back on I-10 heading west to Mobile.
My plan was to head northwest from there to Hattiesburg and then west to Natchez so we could see a portion of the Natchez Trace Parkway. I missed the turn while playing with the computer map! No problem. We continued west to Gulfport and turned north to Hattiesburg. This road was much bouncier. Somehow, working our way through the bypass of Hattiesburg we turned south again by mistake. It was 8 miles south before we could turn again and make our way back. By the time we got to the west turn to Natchez, we had had enough of the bouncing. We decided to scrap Natchez, Vicksburg and the Civil War history and go straight north through Jackson so we could stay on the Interstate highways.
We pulled off the highway to have lunch in the Dry Creek Water Park. We found the park and there was no one there. We know why. The lake is a mess. The washrooms unkept. Toilets and urinals no longer flush. There did not appear to be any staff present. Nothing about it was as pleasant as the D’Lo Water park we stopped at on the way down.
Opening the trailer we saw the result of the rough roads. The mattress was nearly off of the bed. The drawers had bounced out of the bedside tables and the contents were strewn on the floor. The television had been well packed in its original packing but had bounced along the floor and was laying at the opposite end of the bed. I replaced everything and carefully packed the TV tightly into a corner. At this point, was I saving the new television or a box of trash? It was too hot to enjoy the stop. We ate quickly and carried on.
We drove straight through Jackson and stopped at the Movietown RV resort in Canton, Mississippi. Nothing “Movie” about it but it is a nice clean park pleasantly situated in the midst of farmland. I felt a bit down at missing the Natchez Trace Parkway and Vicksburg yet again. We have been this way four times now and have yet to explore this area. Oh well, one day I will make it a major stop on our trip, unhook and tour the area as we did in Tucson.
A spectacular sunset and a good night’s sleep would cheer us up again!
Day 3:
Once more we got up at dawn. Dan was bright eyed but I was a bit slow to surface. Once the morning preparations were done we were on our way. We headed north to Memphis cutting through that corner of Tennessee into Arkansas.
Sometime after noon, we stopped at a rest stop. Dan went right to sleep while I quietly got lunch prepared. It was 94 (34.4 C) inside when I went into the trailer and the thermometer outside quickly rose to 114 (45.6 C) outside in the sun and there was no shade! You can imagine what inside felt like in no time at all. No problem taking butter out of the fridge - it was ready to spread in seconds!!!
We had a flat, or rather shredded, tire on I-40 just before we left Arkansas. It was a hot wait for road service but I must say our insurance company in Canada really delivered! I called a 1-800 number. The young woman took my information, location and cell number. She went and arranged a provider then called me back with an update. Two employees of the "OZARKO Tire Service" arrived as promised, replaced the tire efficiently and we were on our way. The young woman called again to be sure we were safe, that we were back on the road and to let me know where to send the bill.
We ended the day in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. I had a wonderful time in the pool at the KOA RV park. It was wonderful to cool off and to visit with fellow campers. I put a good dinner on the table with a chilled glass of wine as a special treat. After this day, we deserved it!
Day 4;
We left Sallisaw after checking all the tires! Today is a straight run through Oklahoma to Amarillo, Texas.
We stopped at a Texas rest stop for lunch. Once more it was too hot to linger.
We were making more fuel stops than usual. With a stiff head wind, our fuel mileage was dropping steadily, 9 miles/gallon, then 8, then 7!!!!
We arrived at Amarillo much earlier than usual. It was fortunate because the park was very busy and was turning people away by the end of the day.
We had a quiet time. We decided on a light dinner as we were too hot and tired to prepare anything time consuming. The evening was cooler than we have had for a while. We went for a walk.
The sky was spectacular as the sun set. A huge cloud formation got our attention. We continued to watch it as the sun set. Then it broke up, surprisingly quickly, as the evening cooled.
There was a water park on the corner with one long drop designed like a skateboard park. Fall over the edge and then fly up the other side! Up and down, up and down until the energy is dissipated.
A sliver of the moon shone in the darkened sky.
Tomorrow, Colorado Springs!
Day 5;
We did not get on the road until 8:00 AM this morning. Now we are turning north on secondary roads. Here in the panhandle, the countryside is flat and sparse. There are cattle and oil rigs. In Walmart, older men still dress in straight legged jeans over cowboy boots, doffing their Stetson hats as they pass their neighbours.
We were surprised to see pronghorn antelope running across the land. Another unusual sight was a dead cow, swollen in the heat, feet in the air. I would not want to be the clean up crew for that one!
We crossed into Colorado and turned west again. We stopped for lunch at a State Park and actually enjoyed the visit. The day is still hot and sunny but not unreasonable. Yucca were in full bloom at the information center.
Now we were on the last lap. We reached I-25 and turned north to Colorado Springs. The GPS directed us right to Bear and Trish’s front door. We have moved in for a good visit!
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