1 tree truck heading to Effingham IN (delivered)

... spending the night in Walcott IA

Breakfast - Egg, bacon and yogurt ... and OJ. The apple juice was really water.

When I check out, I tell the desk clerk that the towels and the garbage were not empty from our room before we got there ... he just looks at me and nods ... ???

We got going at 8 AM local. A little over an hour to the airport to pick up our rental car. I knew how I wanted to go but neither of our mapping software would suggest that route. But on my computer I can force a route and it showed that all roads were open and it was actually less miles than some of the other routes.

We had looked at the maps and the aerial photos so we thought we were good.

Opps ... there is now a hotel where the road used to be. I didn't see that until after I had passed the other way in.

1st stop - at the Cinncinnati airport hotel. I drove around the back of their building and was able to get BB within a block of then entrance to Hertz. But to get out, I had to go past the front of the airport, on the lower level. Luckily I did not see any height signs and did not have any issues. I had seen a height sign for one level so I knew they were posted if needed.

Hopefully we remember this for next time. We need a list of issues.

From there I am solo. We just came this route on the way down to avoid the Louisville tolls. And I am dropping at a truck stop so no issues.

2nd stop is for fuel at the Pilot in Shelbyville. At some point I had thought of fueling this AM in Jefferesonville before we got on the freeway but forgot. I don't like fueling in IN, they want some sort of fuel permit number. For whatever reason, I couldn't pay at the pump so I had to go inside. No issues inside so not sure what the issue had been.

I am supposed to leave these trucks with about 1/8 of a tank of fuel ... or enough to get to the gas station. Seeing I am dropping it at a station, I could come in on fumes but I won't. So I do the math between my range and my mpg and put in 20 gallons. Then I text BB so she knows what time table we are on.

As soon as I pull out of the station, BB calls. I am driving so I don't pick up. She doesn't call back so nothing serious.

Nothing major on the highways today ...

3rd stop was my drop at the Petro in Effingham. I am supposed to park next to the other company trucks but there are not any. I call my contact and leave a message, luckily he calls back in a few minutes. The crews are working today because of rain earlier in the week. I am at the correct place. And I get his name so I can put on the paperwork who it was that gave me the OK to do a blind drop.

BB pulls in within a minute of when I get there. We get our things moved from the truck to the car and we are ready to go.

There is a Culvers across the freeway but I have decided I want a Freddy's. It's too late to eat so I just want a malt :) The closest Freddy's is about a half hour down the road.

4th stop is Freddy's in Mottoon for a malt.

IF we could have gotten a rental car in Effingham, we could have gotten home in 24 hours. Now we have a two day rental in a $175 a day car. We will still make out OK but it always pays better with a one day rental.

5th stop is near Dahinda at the rest area

6th stop is a few miles down the road at Knoxville at Charlies Philly's. BB couldn't wait those extra miles and I haven't eaten since breakfast and don't like eating too late. BB does not get anything. She had something from Freddy's but didn't care for it, now she isn't hungry. I got their chicken instead of beef and it was different. Good, fresh, but different.

Then next stop was going to be in Davenport for fuel at Flying J. But BB checked their fuel prices and fuel was the same in Walcott so we decided not to stop in Davenport. Then as we were passing Davenport, too late I saw that Loves had their fuel for less than Flying J. We've never seen that before so we hadn't even checked.

7th and final stop was the Pilot in Walcott for fuel and then the Comfort Inn for the night.

When BB first looked at the range on this car it was about 200 miles and full. When she picked me up 250 miles later it was 146 miles. Now another 250 miles later it still had a range of 90 miles, but had fallen to 1/4 of a tank.

Load board

US - 412

IA - 114

MN - 11

WI - 8

Plans tend to change but ...

As of now, we do not plan on working Sunday or Monday. Then the rest of the week we will work for one of the companies doing local work where it pays to follow with our own car. Most of the IA trips don't pay for us because we have 3-5 hours of dead heading before we start getting paid. We will do the math and see what works. It would help if there was something coming back making it a two legged trip.

We still do not know if we will head out over Memorial Weekend or when we will go back out depending on how the rental cars play out.