LA, AR, MS, AL TN, and GA, almost home! - Trip Home

No pictures, just a quick check-in. We stayed in Greenwood, MS and Russellville, AL before stopping last night just outside Chattanooga, TN (we are actually in GA). The weather has gotten quite cold for us, nights are dropping into the upper 20's and lows 30's. Today the high in Jamestown is forecast for 48...nope, not going there. LOL! We extended a night and will make the last leg on our trip home tomorrow when it's due to be in the upper 50's. Much better for us, even with electric gear.

Our conversations are filled with thoughts of our cruise and move to Ecuador. Much to do before then but will try to drop a post here once in a while. Oh, for those that wonder - Miss Sadie is loving her new home and her kids to watch over. In return, they love her and take her camping with them whenever they go. They also gave her a Halloween costume. LOL!

Thanks to everyone who has bought and read "Barely a Spark". I hope to have the print copy available in a couple more weeks as well as making it available on Smashwords. The reviews have all been positive and I appreciate each and every one! If you have read and enjoyed it, please consider leaving a review on Amazon and PLEASE tell your friends. The best marketing is word of mouth!

Stu's Tuesday Travels - he's home!

Starting the morning off right....

>>Haaaah! Breakfast: blueberry pancakes w/agave syrup, coffee and some OJ on the Trace. — at Jeff Busby Park.

Hmmm. A little weight moved from the trailer to the front seat. How the hell did that happen? Hmmm?

 Two hours later, packed up and hitting the road....

>HTFO I'm DTFR

Another two hours...

>Visitor center. Rest and a snack. Those damn beanie weenies needed to stay in ole Miss. — at Natchez Trace Parkway.

Lunchtime routing decision made....

>Looked at the map, analyzed the weather, checked my horoscope and called the psychic hotline. Aw screw it, I'm riding to Lynchburg to take a tour of JDs whiskey thingie. — feeling excited. Saltillo, MS

Then, his arrival in Tennessee.

>I'm back! Fayetteville, TN

Oh, and see that white cooler? Say goodbye to it...[snicker]

9:00PM - he's HOME!

Stu's Monday Travels - a tribute to the lost Hot Shots (wildfire fighters)

First, our hearts and thoughts go out to the town of Prescott, AZ and the family and friends of the 19 lost wildfire fighters.

Starting out in AR he headed towards Mississippi, avoiding the severe wet weather as much as possible.

First stop of the day...

>Lunch then a few miles more and across the Mississippi — at Kelley's Restaurant., Wynne AR

He had to tease us....

>Peach cobbler with soft ice cream. Something's just can't be passed up! — eating ice cream.

Then hit the road...

>My tank and the MC tanks are filled so HTFO cause I'm DTFR.

Stopped to camp for the night on the Natchez Trace near Eupora, MS

>Come join me for some beanie/weenies and beer. Latitude:33.41807 Longitude:-89.26736
Camped on the Natchez Trace in Mississippi. 

Free campsite, first come, first served. Says it's him and one other camper. Weather is good, mosquitoes are bad. Toilets, no shower he's using the water he's carrying with him.

Tomorrow he'll ride the Trace a bit and based upon weather predictions at his lunch stop, he'll determine his final route home.


Oh, and he announced that he hasn't shaved - chin or head - the entire trip. Sent me his best hairy beast shot...good thing it's dark! Can't really see very well...LOL!

Where did the warm weather go?

We left the Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale a little later than we had hoped but at least the sun was shining. For whatever reason the day ended up being long...might have been the late lunch stop at a truck stop mixed with the constant rest areas "I gotta go" stops and topped off with the longest one at Cabela's in Baton Rouge. LOL!

We had hoped that the Cabela's there might have overnight spots with hookups but they didn't, we didn't want to backtrack to the KOA on I-12 (we had already done that bypassing New Orleans on I-12 and backtracking on I-10 to Cabela's) so we passed over the Mississippi and stopped at the Cajun Country Campground. It was dark, the office was closed and the park looked full (lots of workers, but looked okay). We finally found a spot, a long level pull-through. Plugged in the power and snuggled in for the night.

The weather has been going below freezing for the last three nights and that means no asphalt parking for us. Worse, the forecast calls for the same up to and possibly through the weekend...even as we continue west. We planned to spend several nights in Marathon and visit Big Bend National Park. Think we will be passing on that, only staying long enough for our mail to arrive. Looking forward to getting to southern AZ and hoping the temps there will finally warm up!

We're cutting our days shorter, only trying to do 200 or so miles and going to try to get parked well before dark.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna & Stu

In Texas...FINALLY!

Yup, we made it to TX yesterday....I missed a night blogging mainly because we were cold, tired, in a crappy park with poor power that kept going off. On Saturday we left Alabama, crossed Mississippi and landed in Monre, LA for the night. We made it to the Harley dealer there by 4:00...but they closed at 3:00. Figures....LOL!

There was a Sam's Club but with lows forecast in the upper 20's we thought we'd grab a campground and there was a Coast to Coast park, Shiloh RV & Travel Resort on the same street as Harley & Sam's. So we grabbed a spot for the night....$10. Well, we should have read the reviews at rvparkreviews.com first. Sigh....

The roads were terrible, lots of mud (too close a reminder to our night at South of the Border), a power pedestal sitting in a pool of water with no breaker and covered by a little piece of carpet. We shoulda known....off & on all night the power flickered. Since we use a power surge protector, that meant 5 or so minutes before everything came back up...each time. We were on antenna so that helped (we barely fit in the spot with a foot or two overhang on either end so trying the move forward/back to get the dish to find a signal wasn't an option). Stu sent a note to Coast to Coast and entered a poor review at rvparkreviews.com. One more park OFF our list...

Note - the water cartridge was already there.

We had to use Linx levelers to keep the connection out of the water - it was 6" deep!

Don't you just love the nicely graveled road? That's what their website showed...

We headed out early, finished getting through LA and crossed into TX. An uneventful day of driving, we arrived at the Rainbows End Escapees Park in Livingston, TX around 4:00. This was allowed plenty of time to get setup and attend the 6:30 ice cream social! By the time we walked back the temperature was 35...we were really glad to be in a park with good, clean power. When we woke up this morning it was 27. Good thing Stu unhooked the water last night.

Oh, at the ice cream social we met up with Hank & Patti Landry. I had met them a couple of times before but have to admit to being REALLY bad at remembering people...so everyone who has met me is FOREWARNED! LOL! Great folks, we chatted about traveling and hope to see them again in the Mission area.

We will be picking up a month's worth of mail this afternoon, not sure when we will be leaving but could be on Wednesday. We have an issue with our gas heat (either the regulator or the thermostat...again) and looks like the KZ dealer that can work on the rig is kind of on our way.

As we've said before...we'll hit Mission eventually!

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna & Stu