1 tanker, heading to Winnemucca NV (delivered)

... spending the night at Idaho Falls ID

I missed taking a screen shot of the weather map that had us re-route our trip. The forecast was for snow yet today before we get to SLC. Then we would be following it, with the worst from Rawlins WY to Laramie WY and still snow all the way to MN. So we re-rerouted.

Breakfast at the Model T. It is the inhouse restaurant at this Quality Inn and it is free. But because of Covid, there is limited seating so it is 'to-go,' which is what we prefer. I call down, and they say it will be ready in 7 minutes. When we get there, they are pouring our juice, the rest is ready, they just needed to bag it.

The free breakfast includes, a large juice, two fresh eggs, 4 slices of (really good) thick bacon and toast.

We were ready to head out at 7:30 AM. BB stops at Flying J for fuel and I head the two miles to the drop. I've looked at the street view so I know what I am looking for. Two people come out and look the truck over and ...

... and THEN they ask when I got into town and said, "You should have called, we were here and could have signed for it." And we could have been six hours closer to home right now. Not sure if that would have gotten us ahead of the storm and gotten us stuck in the middle of it.

They sign clear and we are heading home.

It would have been nice if BB had taken an RV and we could have delivered on Saturday and kept heading west BUT

1) I wanted to check on things at the farm one more time

2) (because of above) we wouldn't have gotten to the RV lot in time

3) It was the holiday weekend and that brings related issues

4) We don't know if the west coast bus company is open these two weeks so we still would be deadheading home from further away.

As soon as I am driving, BB starts checking the weather. But ... the states haven't updated their road conditions since over 24 hours ago.

Our 1st stop is Elko at the usual spot. Just east of there are the NV inspection stations. Today there were three cops on the east bound side and one on the west bound side. I have never seen both directions open before.

By now the states have updated their road sites and we have been watching the weather closer. Based on right now, 10 AM CST, it shows we would hit snow before SLC and have snow all the way home on I-80.

It is 25 miles shorter to head up to I-90 and we shouldn't hit snow until St Cloud, about 90 miles from our house. Weather can always change but we decided to head north.

Somewhere before we leave the freeway, there is a spot where the salt is thick on the road, from one shoulder to the other. Not like it was broadcast by hand, but raked on so it was level.

So at Wells NV we exit the freeway and are on a two lane road for the next two hours. We are not a mile from the freeway and four truckstops and there is a female taking a leak on the side of the road. The male with her is looking away, but we get the full view, no attempt to hide anything.

I have been on this road a few times. It is a good road with a fair amount of traffic, but it is a steep grade and the shoulder is about a foot wide and then the drop. And if there is a guard rail, it is a foot from the solid white line.

2nd stop is in Twin Falls just before we get back on the freeway at Chic-Fil-A. Long line at the drive thru, but inside they move people quickly. Two registers open, but one is dealing with a family of eight and they are at the register when we walk in, when we order and when we get our food.

We can remember some of the places we have stopped on this route, but not all and not always what were are driving when we were here.

We head east on I-84 to Pocatello and then north on I-15.

3rd and final stops are in Idaho Falls. 1st we stop at the Loves for fuel and then three miles down the road we stop for the night at the Sleep Inn. We aren't hungry yet, it is only about 4 PM.

But when we check in, we find out that this location has both food in the evening and for breakfast. Tonight will be broccoli cheese and wild rice soups, plus bread and cookies. We are in for the night.

From Wells to just south of Idaho Falls there was not any snow, but here we can see where the plows have plowed around cars so it was recent.

We got off the road early tonight because on I-15 the next town is over two hours away and by then it would be after dark. And at the time we are thinking we will be hitting snow by St Cloud so we don't want to catch up to the storm any sooner.

Now that we are in the motel and watching the weather closer it looks like the snow will hit ND but a day before we get there and by the time we get home the storm should have moved off to Chicago. Not sure how that relates to I-80 if we had stayed on that route.

Didn't mention this a couple of days ago, but as we were heading through WY I had 1st noticed a crow on the freeway fence. Then a second crow feeding on a carcass. It was a while later when I began to wonder how the dear carcass got there. The post the crow was sitting on and the fence in that area are 10 feet high.

Load board

US - 301

IA - 114

MN - 5

WI - 7

The load board for IA is still around 100 instead of -0-. The two Reno RV's are still there from two weeks ago. Not sure if they will still be there when we are ready to go. Not sure when that will be. Yet.

The long RV runs are heading to 7 to OR, 8 to WA, 9 to FL and 8 to ID.

With the start of the new year, we are looking at how to change things so we don't keep running I-80 once or twice a month. One thought is to look at the loadboard and take two of the RV's that have been sitting on there the longest that are going the same direction and see if we can make them pay. Right now there are 5 RV's that have been sitting on the loadboard since 12/4. That is over three weeks.

If the roads are good, we should make it to Glendive MT or Dickenson ND by tomorrow night and then still home on Wednesday night as planned.