1 bus to La Crosse WI

... spending the night at Story City IA

Cold. Last night the heat in the room was either on or off. It was not shutting off based on the thermostat. It would run up to 80 degrees before we realized and would shut it off. So we shut it off for the night and had the window open. Sometime during the night BB got up to close the window. Then in the AM the heater worked fine.

Breakfast. Hot food. I use a napkin on the common surfaces and take eggs and sausage, plus yogurt and juice.

At 7:30 we pull out. Original plan was to fuel in Emporia but that would be about 650 miles. I don't like to push it past 600 so that helped decide which way we go. We go up KS-61 to Hutchinson.

1st stop is an hour down the road at the Loves in Hutchinson. Fuel is cheaper here than it would have been in Emporia by one whole cent per gallon. As long as we are stopped and the place isn't busy, I put in DEF also. But, now Loves won't take my credit card at the pump. I think it is based on prior purchases and now that I am using the company card for fuel I don't use the personal card enough. So I use the company card and get dinged $1.25 for a $10 purchase. Because I don't want inside to pre-pay. So now I am down to only Pilot / Flying J that will start the pump with my personal card.

Across the street from the Loves is a motel. It was likely built as a Holiday Inn with a restaurant inside. I know it was something before it was a Quality Inn, but it went from a Quality Inn to a Motel 6 to now a Rodeway Inn very quickly. Restaurant is still there. All other motels are in town, this is the only one by the main road.

2nd stop is another hour and a half down the road for a rest break at the Flying J in Emporia. Lots of passing lanes but we haven't been on freeway since about this time yesterday.

Was able to go through KC almost at the posted.

3rd stop was at the Pilot / Taco Bell in Kearney. After we were done eating, I called the shipper about a warning light that has been on. No one called me back so I kept calling all known numbers for almost an hour. Then someone picked up on the first ring. 'No problem. Keep going.'

Taco's, hard shell. I leave a trail of food where I walk outside while I eat. Which is why we can't eat in the bus.

4th stop is the rest area near Osceolla IA.

KS, MO, IA scales were all closed today. That should be it for this trip.

Waiting the hour I thought would get us to the motel after dark, it didn't. And I still don't understand why. We left at almost the same time yesterday, drove about the same amount of miles. But today we took an extra one hour break.

And I thought it was going to be close on my DOT hours. Instead I came in with 30 minutes to spare. Again, not sure how.

5th and final stop is Story City at the Comfort Inn. If I had come up short, we could have stayed in Ankeny or Ames. But going past here the next motel is an hour away. I came up short. Sooo we should not have shut down so early back in San Diego. It all comes back to haunt.

It snowed yesterday or last night here so big piles of snow. This place no longer has real truck parking. The shopping center next door does not allow us to park there anymore. So now truck parking is, back the semi off the street to the far corner of the car lot. Today the lot was still mostly empty so I was able to turn the bus around in the lot, pointing out.

In warm weather with no snow, we walk to the food. Today we had delivery. Pizza and a salad. We said we each wanted a garden salad but they assured us that one was enough to share. It was, and we didn't finish it. We didn't finish all the pizza either. We'll either finish it for breakfast or forget it in the fridge.

For tomorrow, we now have about five hours drive time, plus allowing a three hour wait at the wash. That still leaves two hours for other things before close at the drop. I will need to fuel at least once. I am going to have to guess as to how much fuel I need to put in before the drop. Friday I got 6 mpg, Saturday it was 10, Sunday it was 7 mpg.

I am going to guess 7 mpg. The wind has died down but is often a weak tail wind.

Weather - This AM and later into the day the road was still completely closed in WY. Now it is back to just being closed to high profile vehicles. So far so good on the route we chose.

Load board.

US - 395

IA - 166

MN - 2

WI - 7

Once I drop tomorrow, I will call the dentist and see if I can get in. Getting my drivers license renewed now would also be a plus, but that may have to wait.

If we get home tomorrow night, we will have been on the road for 18 days. We plan on taking at least one day off.