The driving conditions were excellent. While there was some wind, nothing like the last two days. We did have a few snow flurries, but nothing that really affected us.
Leaving Topeka, you go on a toll road for about 35 miles. Cost us $3. Not sure what there is a toll road there at all, because it ended about 30 miles or so west of Kansas City. Since we hit KC at nine in the morning on a Sunday, there was no traffic and we zipped right through. KC is a hub where many freeways come together so navigating the roads to stay on I-70 East was a bit of a challenge.
We ate lunch at a rest stop just before turning onto I-64 and starting to head somewhat SE. We skirted St. Louis and headed down the Mississippi River for about 179 miles on I-55, then cut over to Tennessee.
During our travels, Carol keeps busy on her phone. Either she is looking up pertinent details about things we are seeing as we go, or she is getting route weather, checking accommodations, etc. Not only does it keep her busy, but it is really valuable to know what we are seeing and what the conditions are ahead.
For example, how many of you have heard of the "Orphan Trains?" We came across that on a sign somewhere or other. Carol knew what is was and looked it up online to get even more details. If you are curious, you can go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orphan_Train and look it up from there.
As we were going down I-55, Carol was researching where we would stay in Jackson, TN, All the places had either bad reviews or mentioned security issues. After she relayed info on about 8-10 places, we both came to the same conclusion: Forget Jackson, let's just press on to Red Bay and get there. This would also allow us to go on the factory tour, do some laundry, and verify that our unit is on schedule for the build. The build actually begins early tomorrow, but the chassis will spend the day in the welding shop and they don't allow us folks in there for safety reasons.
So we arrived in Red Bay about 7:05. It took us another 5 minutes to get the lay of the land and figure out the hotel. It was too dark to get any pictures, so those will have to wait until tomorrow. Hope to get some video too!
All together today, we drove 673 miles in about 12 hours and 15 minutes. Our total drive from our garage was 2,473 miles. We added about 50 to that number when we had to divert two days ago to Fort Collins, CO. But overall, we made good time, especially when you consider the 2.5 days of severe weather we went through. I ended up driving the whole route, primarily because of the weather. Our Waze app was invaluable in locating the various law enforcement officers along the route. Also, when going through some of the towns on the state highways, you go through city streets with several turns. Waze had those identified well ahead of the turn, even a detour on I-45 was included in the instructions.
We are at the Hotel Red Bay staying in their one and only suite. The other rooms don't have all the amenities like the microwave and refrigerator. Took us about a half hour to get the car mostly unloaded. The room is decorated in the old French charm. I took two pics of the room for your viewing pleasure:
Above is a picture of the bed. We have dual AC/heater units and we have a remote control that we can put on the nightstand. We both like to have the room somewhat cool to sleep in, then warm it up when we get up. So now we can warm it up before we get out of bed!
This picture is of the sofa and table in the room. There is also a day bed off to the right that you can see. Tomorrow I may make a quick video of the room before we mess it up too much.
Anyway, I'm tired - not sure why though? I mean I was sitting down most of the day! Tomorrow we journey into the land of Tiffin!
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