FRIDAY THE 13TH 2013

0h Boy, it looks like a double 13  to me!!! 

Sue and Wayne were on the road at 7:30, but we know their trick. Wayne's Driving in his jammies And Sue is in her nightgown. LOL. 

Last night, we had dinner at the Mellow Mushroom to celebrate Nephew Jeremy's 24th birthday.  It was good food and good times. 

Nephew Jonathan, Paula (sister) and Mark

Niece Olivia, Mark, Nephew Jeremy

Mark and I had a slow start; 9:24, this morning. It's 67° and partly cloudy, The conditions for driving. 

Smokey Mountains. the oldest mountains on earth, were formed more than a billion years ago. Pangea, the supercontinent, began to thin and stretch 750 million years ago. This caused the Ocoee Basin to form and fill with sea water where Western North Carolina, Eastern Tennessee and Northern Georgia are today.  Sediment accumulated over time and became the bedrock of the Smokies.   Meanwhile, volcanoes were erupting in present day Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia and lava was flowing into the sea water basin. When Pangea began to split 540 million years ago, the new continents began to drift apart and new oceans were formed. At 470 million years, the crust plates shifted and started the continentd to move again. About 270 million years ago, present day North America and Africia collided and the result was formation of the Appalachian Mountains.   

Sue and Wayne arrived safely in Sanford, Florida where they are leaving the Prevost for water tank repair.  At 5:45 pm they left Sanford for HOME. 

Mark and Julie entered Florida at 4:15 and spotted a deer at 6 o'clock. Cool. Planned route is I/95 to I-4 to 46. ETA 7:30 pm. On 46, we saw 7 Sandhill cranes and two turkeys. 

M & J home at 7:35 pm. What an awesome trip. 

S & W home at 9:30 pm. 

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

It's a lovely 70F in Asheville, NC this morning. Paula took Mark and me to Marcy's memorial bench at the new cancer center waterfall. 

Julie and Mark at the memorial waterfall

Mark and Paula on Marcy's bench at the memorial garden

Sue and Wayne left Nashville for Florida today.

Macy's "living large"!

Sue and Wayne driving through Atlanta. 

 Mark took our Dodge for an oil change and brake check. The mechanic was impressed that it has 40% front brakes and 50% rear brakes remaining at 61,500 miles. Nice. 

Today is nephew Jeremy Woody's 24th birthday!  A family get together is planned at the Mellow Mushroom tonight. 

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

We will never forget. 

Sue and Wayne were on the road at 7:30. They are due in Nashville at noon for RV maintenance. 

Julie and Mark were late getting on the road ... 10 am having lost an hour to time zone change. 

Kudzu is devouring the landscape in the southern states! It is called "the vine that ate the South." Kudzu is spreading at the rate of 150,000 acres a year. This perennial vine, native to Southeast Asia, was introduced to the USA in 1876 at the  Philadelphia Centennial Exposition as an attractive ornamental plant for covering porches. 

Roadside face - Tennessee.  

Mark encountered the FIRST rude driver of our trip . a Tennessee jerk. 

What a GREAT TRIP this has been.  Since April 27th we've clocked more than10,500 miles thus far!

The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. I-40 with 40 miles to Asheville. 

Mercy sakes alive, it looks like we got us a convoy. 

Mark and I arrived safely at Bear Creek RV and are waiting for Jon, Jer and Paula to visit. We haven't seen them since September 2012. 

Grand Junction ... upper camp on right.

Meanwhile, at Prevost in Nashville, this is the view Sue and Wayne have. -$$$'s

K's Prevost, left bay. 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013

It's a hot start to the day in Champaign Illinois. Mark cooked eggs with chili this morning, so we are later than usual leaving. Apparently, Sue and Wayne got on the road at 7:30 AM. They spent the night in Madison Wisconsin. 

Mark and I crossed into the "Hoosier" State, Indiana at 9:15. There's plenty of corn growing, maybe a 2nd crop?  

 

There are many theories on the coining of the nickname, "The Hoosier State".  

At 12:25 we crossed into Ohio, known as the "Buckeye State".  This nickname is easy to understand. The buckeye tree is Ohio's state tree; and their state bird is the Cardinal. 

The road conditions are good in hilly terrain with pretty scenery. 

Really??? Hahaha. 

Prehistoric mammals were caught in a gooey mire!  

The Pleistocene megafauna fossils were discovered in 1807. Mammoths were drawn to the area for a salt lick around sulphur springs. It is one of the "Lewis and Clark heritage sites".

The Kentucky Horse Park is huge!  Miles of white fencing!  

Mark and I have settled into Corbin KOA, Kentucky, a nice RV park.  Tomorrow we will continue our trip to Asheville North Carolina. 

Sue and Wayne are at Duck Creek RV in Paducah Kentucky. Tomorrow they will continue their trip to Nashville Tennessee. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013

Trego, Wisconsin was a great stop considering the approaching rainstorm. However, the pet walking area was laughable. 

This campground needs gravel as it was a sandy mess with the rain. Mark had quite a time getting our rig out of there. 

We were on the road at 8 o'clock on 53S to Eau Claire with a switch to I90/94 to Madison.  The roadside trees are tinged with yellow, edging the rolling farmland. 

Mark saw a large Golden Eagle this morning! Otherwise, it's a dull misty morning. The local radio station said its 67 now and going to 97 today. Wow!

Unfortunately the skunk had been hit by a vehicle but it was breakfast for the massive eagle. 

Sue and Wayne crossed the border last night and stayed in The Chocolate Moose restaurant lot overnight. They were on the highway at 7:45. (Early for them! LOL)

6,565 people, worldwide, have read this Blog. Here's the breakdown of followers by country.

  

Hmm, I need to put more effort into this. Haha. 

At 11:25 we're passing the Wisconsin Dells area. 

The "Dells" is a beautiful area Of the Wisconsin River. It is a glacially formed gorge  that features striking sandstone formations along the river banks. 

South of Madison, Wisconsin the fields are golden with ripe crops. Quite pretty. 

Mark and Maggie on I-39S

The weather forecasters were right on, it's in the high 90's now. 

Petro Travel Center was a great stop!  There were separate pumps for RV's!  Also, There was a health clinic!

Sue and Wayne are stopping in Madison Wisconsin for the night.  Mark and I are going to Tin Cup RV off I-74 For a total of 517 miles for yesterday!

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2013

And they're off  - it's Rubberband in the stretch!!!

Robbie's riding shotgun. 

Good sunny (but chilly) morning. It's 10C or 50F. Mark and Julie started their trek home to Eustis, Florida at 7:50 a.m. The power tripped at Anicinanbe at 6:30 and woke us. Since we were up, we might. as well go. 

The Sioux Narrows bridge was built in 1938 of Douglas fir, an all wooden truss bridge. It is an Ontario Heritage Site and the longest single-span bridge in North America. 

Sue and Wayne are delayed with a battery issue and are waiting for service Monday. John Gale sent a mechanic over and changed the breaker. But, it's more complicated than that. :-/

Mark and Julie cleared Customs in 8 minutes flat. No problems and are back in the land of cheap booze and fuel. LOL

At 1:20 we paid $110 for diesel at ICO in Cotton. It was a good stop ... Mark didn't have to prepay and it was $50 less than the Canada fillup. 

Sue and Wayne have John Gale's mechanic busy at their bus replacing a burnt wire. Hope they will be traveling soon. Meanwhile, we are stopping at  Log Cabin Resort in Trego Wisconsin for the night due to rain, and it's nearly happy hour. 

Last evening's wedding social was fun. Here are a few photos. 

Bruce and Heather

Doug and Julie

Desi, Jim and Don

Helen and Donna

Helen and Rita

Wayne, Sue and Barb

Foreground - Don and Dennis

Background - Donna and Jim

Heather, MaryBeth and ?

Donna and Barb dancing

Sue and Wayne dancing a Cha cha

Big Bugaloo played excellent music and got nearly everyone up. 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2013

It's a sunny 16C (61F) this morning. Last evening's deck party was terrific!  Joanne and Doug prepared Pickerel fish and homemade fries, baked beans, wild rice, coleslaw and condiments. It was fun. 

Joanne's beautiful lake home!

Timber's getting Jim's attention. 

Dennis Wallace and Wayne. 

Monty Flom relaxing 

Today, Sue and Wayne are closing Bear's Lair and moving into their Prevost.   We will see them at the wedding social tonight. 

Julie and Mark are at Anicinanbe Park prepping for tomorrow's travel.