Our trip to Alabama, took us through all of Louisiana and most of Mississippi before we called it a night. It was truly a long day's journey into night and the first time that we needed headlights to navigate our way through the dark, desolate and winding roads. My wish to stay along the Mississippi went unfulfilled and remains on my bucket list.
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| The Mighty Mississippi |
We had gotten on the road at 9:30 AM and didn't shut Allie down until 8:30 PM the first night. We covered 514 long miles knowing we had an overnight at a Walmart on tap. Once we hit Fulton, MS, we called it a day.
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| We were so blessed with great weather. |
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| Beautiful roads and views of Alabama |
I've made many observations during our long journey. For one, cotton is my favorite crop, because it looks like snow-covered fields amidst green rolling hills of grass. Secondly, there are a lot of people out there who like old rusted memorabilia, or who hoard, or who are just plain junk collectors and the last - and sad observation, is that the wounds caused by the Civil War have yet to heal for many, even with the passing of so much time. The display of Confederate flags had me feeling conflicted - I wavered between anger, pity and respect. At times, the division between north and south is palpable and sad. Perhaps it bothered me because I am a firm and staunch US Flag fan, even if I am not a fan of our government, per se. Our flag is hoisted over victories and devestations as a symbol of strength and determination and is draped over our fallen heros as a blanket of gratitude.
The sun rose quickly in Fulton and we found ourselves with just a short 45-minute drive to Tiffin Motors in Red Bay, AL - the manufacturer of our RV. The visit there was quite an experience, to say the least. I've never toured a plant so huge or been in the presence of so many Tiffin RVs. The parking lot on Tiffin property was chock-full of large Phaetons, Allegro Buses, Allegro REDs and Open Roads, just like ours, all awaiting repairs.
Due to that full lot, we were directed to one of the local RV "campgrounds" to wait until we were called for service. I'm being very generous with the term campground - bare minimum was all you got - water, sewer and electric. Rigs were parked so close together that you needed to be careful when extending your awning. Down past the last rig in a row of about 15, began the "RV Graveyard." See photos, because the sight was beyond words.
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| Not sure what happened to that Airstream. |
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| Sorry, but we missed the photo-op of the toilets and refrigerators. |
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| The mess wasn't limited to RVs. There were cars, trucks and boats. |
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A rare moment, being at a loss for words.
~~~~ REPAIR DAY ~~~~ |
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| 6:55 AM - far right - waiting for the bay door to open. |
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| Allie being checked out |
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| The immense building that fits over 30 motor homes |
Once our repairs were NOT done, due to Tiffin no longer honoring extended warranties, we made a beeline for the State line where another long ride led us to a Walmart in Albany, Georgia. It turned out to be a less than desirable location, perhaps due to it being a Friday night. The sounds from loud shoppers and mufflers made sleep elusive , yet morning came quickly, and surprisingly quietly. Lucy was already in her basket, seeming to know that we would be getting back on the road, and just wanting to get it over with fast.
Life, as we know it, seems to find us dealing with something that is not working and today was no exception. My insulin pump decided to sound an endless alarm, forcing me to remove its battery. A call to customer service ascertained that the motor, once again. had quit working. As upset as I could have been, the timing was actually good since we are so close to our Florida address. In the meantime, it's a time-consuming drag of testing and covering high glucose readings with injections.
After 4,460 miles of driving, stopping, going, sightseeing, grand-children hugging, blogging, socializing, fun-seeking, rock collecting, eating and awe-inspiring sights, the long "2nd Great Big Adventure" has officially come to an end.
Deep thought for the day: Although this journey has ended, our possibilities are endless...stay tuned.
Our trip to Alabama, took us through all of Louisiana and most of Mississippi before we called it a night. It was truly a long day's journey into night and the first time that we needed headlights to navigate our way through the dark, desolate and winding roads. My wish to stay along the Mississippi went unfulfilled and remains on my bucket list.
Just getting around to reading this blog. Cannot believe the furnace goes unrepaired. Did you know beforehand that it would NOT be covered? Would the installation of a new replacement been prohibitive? Chances are very good that you won't have to rely on it (unless you were here in the north with low temps reaching the high 20's. On my balcony, the coldest it got was 36. Snow flurries in Fishkill and I'm told, snow in VT. Anyway, it's all over and now to settle in and relax. On to the next blog.
ReplyDeleteHi guys, really enjoying your site! Do you by any chance remember the name and location of the campground mentioned in this post, with the rv graveyard? I would very, very much like to find it and photograph it.
ReplyDeleteHi Tim. Wow, an actual person who commented on my blog other than my friend, Charlie.
DeleteThat “graveyard”I referred to was located in Red Bay, AL. It was around the block from the Tiffin Manufacturing Plant. We we there in June of this year, and it has since been cleared out. There are still a few oldies, but nothing close to what we originally saw,
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