We left Encinitas Monday afternoon, April 9, and drove
to Needles where we spent the night at the Needles KOA. The wind was
blowing about 500 mph but fortunately it was a tail wind so we were able
to increase our gas mileage. The photo on the left is the only
interesting thing I saw between Encinitas and Needles.
This is a photo from Flagstaff where we stopped for
lunch on day 2. The wind picked up a little, maybe to 600 mph, which
made getting out of the van hazardous but was still helping with the gas
mileage.
Later we drove through Petrified Forest National Park
where if the logs weren't petrified, they would have blown away in the
wind. We risked our lives for short periods out of the van to take these
photos.
This series will give you an idea of how much fun it is
to drive on I-40 in Arizona and New Mexico. With a great tailwind, semi
drivers can reach near supersonic speeds and take great pleasure in
tumbling small vehicles off the highway and into the tumble weeds.
On the second evening, we stayed at Bluewater Lake State
Park in western New Mexico. The wind was still blasting despite the
appearances. We weren't sure if these horses were wild or what but we
had to stop and let them cross the street on our way out the next
morning.
We swung by Old Town Albuquerque that morning to buy a
paper.
On the evening of Wednesday, April 11, we stopped a one
of the more amazing campgrounds, or I should say "RV Resorts" we've ever
seen. It's not quite finished yet and when it is finished, I hope they
add some landscaping. It looks sort of like a landing strip - totally
flat with five miles if paved roads and RV pads. I'm glad we have
four-wheel drive so we can access places like this. Did I mention the
wind was dying down a little?
The next day, forcing our way east against a fierce
headwind, we took this scenic shot of the Oklahoma City Skyline.
But all was not lost for we spied a billboard
advertising a winery not too far off the highway so we went to check it
out. It turned out to be down a dirt road about five miles but the wines
were decent and they had a couple nice bocce ball courts out front. We
would have stopped for a picnic lunch and some bocce ball but, as usual,
it was way too windy
We camped at Lake Eufaula State Park, somewhere in
Oklahoma off I-40. The next day we finally got off the interstate and
headed up through the Ozarks to Fayetteville, home of the University of
Arkansas Razorbacks. We visited the stadium and toured their football
museum, then went to the gift store, "Hog Heaven" and bought some
souvenirs, including a Razorback ball cap that I'll probably wear for
the rest of the trip.
Later that day, after I misread the map, we ended up
having to take a ferry across Bull Shoals Lake in northern Arkansas or
else back track 40 or 50 miles. It was still very windy and pouring rain
at the time, so we spent the ferry ride plotting how we would swim to
shore when it sank. You can see Pedro, the cactus man, leading the way
through the storm. It calmed down a little later and we found a nice
Army Corps campground on the north shore of the lake, a couple miles
south of the Missouri border.
St. Louis
After 2,000 mile of hard traveling, we arrived at
Lorri's parent's house just outside of St. Louis. We spent the weekend
re-organizing, playing some "500", eating, watching the Cardinals, and
generally having a good time. The weather turned a little better. In
fact, Sunday was a beautiful spring day.
Louisville
I've always wanted to see the Louisville Slugger bat
factory and finally, on our third pass by the City, we stopped and
toured the museum and factory. Now that I have an idea of how a tree
(maple or ash!) becomes a bat, I feel my education is nearly complete.
Well, not really, I'm still pretty ignorant, but absorbing this
important information was a major milestone.
The row of bats are the ones used by the St. Louis
Cardinals during their victorious World Series appearance last year.
There is also a really big bat in front of the building. If King Kong
had that bat on top of the Empire State Building, I think a few more
bi-planes would have ended up in the East River, or Wall Street or
somewhere.
Monday night, April 16th, we stayed at the Kentucky
Horse Park, just north of Lexington. We didn't see any horses, at least
not in the park, but we did see plenty of horses, blue grass and miles
of white fences, big barns and stately manor houses. Kentucky is a very
picturesque state. Perhaps I'll take some pictures next time through.
West Virginia
As usual, we didn't spend a whole lot of time in West
Virginia. We should have this time because it was the first time we
passed thorough when it wasn't raining. Also as usual, I tried to take a
photo of the State Capitol through the Van window going 70 mph on I-64.
Douthat State Park, Western Virginia (not West Virginia)
We were the only people camped in this area and for the
first time on the trip, our last night, the weather was suitable for a
camp fire.
There is the fire and there are the falls.
Wine Stop!!!
The gals at the visitor center just inside the Virginia
State line recommended this winery and we weren't disappointed. We
tasted very good moderately priced wines and bought a case.
The End: We got to the Burg around 4PM on Wednesday,
April 18, eight days and over 3,000 miles after leaving San Diego. The
end of the journey was duly celebrated with my brother Bob (aka Uncle
Hobble). |
