2 RV's to FL, 1 to Ocala, 1 to Fort Myers

... spending the night at Ocala FL

Breakfast was a choice of three kinds of pastries and juice that tasted like water (I ended up dumping the juice) My pastry had lots of frosting/sugar on top.

We got going right as the sun was coming up, 8 AM local. We had parked right next to a trailer piled with trash bags. Today as we are walking to our RV's we realize that the trash isn't likely from the motel. It looks more like the trash that was picked up along a highway. As we headed out, I could not remember if we would be taking a left or a right to get on the freeway. I could see a sign a ways back, but the arrow part of the sign was hidden by another sign until we were almost across from it. I picked left and it was a left turn.

1st stop - a half hour down the road and I can see BB is flashing her lights at me. I 4-way back and pull off at the rest area. She has a check engine light on. We use the rest room first. Sometimes its hard to remember which door you came in when you are stopping every few hours :)

Light is still on when we get back to our RV's so BB had to wait until the office opens in IA. They say run with it but check in later. As we are leaving dispatch calls me back about my issue with the buzzer.

2nd stop is Emerson at a Loves. BB ended up passing me because of my radar and cruise. I didn't notice I had slowed down and she got tired of driving 55-60. We pulled into the car area of the station and did find a place to park but it was crowded. Quick rest room stop.

No major issues going around Atlanta today. Traffic was sometimes thick but we both know where we are going and know when to get over and how far.

3rd stop was in Byron for fuel and food. Another small station at the gas pumps. I was going to try and pull in beside BB but that would have been too tight of fit. I had looked at another station last night where we could have driven an RV between the cars at the pumps. Big difference. After we are done fueling we pull around to the truck parking and there are lots of open spots back there. Ordered at Arby's and ate outside. This location still had the chicken salad sandwich so that is what I got.

Somewhere today I was behind a travel trailer and heard when I hit something on the road. Then I saw lots of stuff on the road ... and a smoking tire on his trailer as he headed for the shoulder.

Later there was a semi jackknifed on the median in the on coming traffic. That back up was 2 miles and growing.

Before that there was a place where a van had gone over the median cables with his front tires, but got hung up on the back tires. Now a tow truck was trying to load him. Not sure how that was working.

See lots more cars with missing tires down here. Maybe they don't remove them as fast. Also saw one pickup with those huge tires that had lost a front tire, almost makes the opposite tire go off the ground.

4th stop is at a rest area near Lenox for a restroom break.

First time this trip I have to cross the scale. GA has the on road scales that are 'exit only if directed' and we got past those. Enter into FL and I get flagged off. BB does not. I have to stop on the scale so they can weigh me and then I go. No one else is getting weighed. I think whoever just wanted a better look at my RV.

Next is the fruit inspection station. Must have been shift change or something. The line got awful long before it started moving again. I just got the thumb's up and no questions.

5th stop is near Lake City FL at a rest area. Back at Bryon I had had a range of 50 miles and thought I was putting in enough fuel for 250 more miles. So my range should have been 300. It was 350 when I got done fueling so I was kicking myself for putting in too much fuel.

NOW I am loosing range as is BB. My mpg is up to 10 but the range keeps going down. When we pull out I decide to watch my range even closer, we have 70 miles to go and I should be getting 10 mpg. And my range should drop the same as miles traveled. It doesn't. I am loosing 12 miles for every 10 I drive at that rate I will have a range of less than 20 by tonight. I decide to slow down and I only loose 11 miles for every 10 I drive. But once the low fuel light comes on I start gaining again. I end up with a 30 mile range when I get to the motel. The fuel station is less than a half a mile down the street and then another mile to my drop after I fuel.

While we were at the last rest area BB calls dispatch again. Her check engine light is still on ... AND she got behind a truck and heard a crack but couldn't see it while driving. Not sure why she looked on the side, but it had hit and cracked the side window. Not her trip.

6th and final stop is at the Sleep Inn. Truck parking is on the street or in the restaurant next door. We find a place in the lot. Once we are checked in we order online from Sonny's BBQ next door. Our other choices were Taco Bell or Cracker Barrel. There were also supposed to be two Cuban places but I don't see the buildings where they are pegged online.

Not sure our plan for tomorrow. I will drop, she will call to get her RV in somewhere to get looked at. Sometime we need to pick up our car by the drop she is not going to make. Most likely we will be dropping the RV at a dealer and leaving it. It is rare that a place will look at it when we drive up.

The trip that had been in FL going to SC is gone. Now there is just a FL-FL 100 mile run. There are now three runs in SC going to MO but BB is done for this trip so if we take any it will be just one and she will likely follow in the rental car. Cheaper that way. We should be able to pick up on Thursday and drop on Friday. It is a 700 mile run. IF we do that one we should be home on Sunday AM.

Sounds like it might be snowing before we get back to MN.

Load board.

US - 140

IA - 29

MN - 5 (same 4 still to Omaha)

WI -0-

NC - 8

The run I am looking at will add about 200 miles to our trip home. There is a truck in GA that wouldn't be out of route to pickup but is 600 miles out of route to drop. We don't need to decide until Wednesday before we get to ATL.