We had no particular reason to pick Roebuck, SC, for my work week other than it was on the shortest route between Biloxi and Alexandria. And it was in South Carolina, which added another state to our map. It is about 15 miles from Spartanburg which is larger and better known. We will likely get to Spartanburg sometime this week, but I haven’t researched what, if anything, it has to offer. Mostly I am going to work and Jett is going to try to get acclimated to the chill. The forecast highs this week: in the 50’s.
We are missing Fort Myers already.
QTN Hop 2, Day 1: Biloxi, MS, to Auburn, AL
289 miles via I-110 (in Biloxi), I-10, I-65 and I-85.
QTN Hop 2, Day 1
The hardest portion of this trip was getting out of the Cajun RV Park in Biloxi. The exit onto Beach Blvd is one way, the wrong way, so we had to find a way to make the dreaded U-turn. I originally planned to go “around the block” – up a half mile to Pass Road, the other east/west road in Biloxi, but found that the roads to get there were narrow and the turns were tight. They also crossed those railroad tracks in a very uneven crossing that had the potential to bottom out the RV. So instead I opted to travel two miles east and turn around in a shopping center parking lot.
Once we got turned around and onto I-110, it was pretty clear sailing. The weather was nice – warmer than I expected, near 70 – and the roads were busy but fairly flat. We cruised along to our refueling stop in Hope Hull, AL, just south of Montgomery. And encountered a horde of college students returning from spring break.
The rig at rest, still hitched up
When I first walked into the mini-mart to hand over my credit card (the usual process when filling up at a truck pump – there is no “pay at the pump” option), I had to stand in a line 12 people deep, all of them at least 40 years younger than me. I passed the time by admiring the tans on the lithe young bodies.
The time passed quickly.
The stop for the night was the Eagle Landing RV Park in Auburn, AL (which added another state to our map – number 25). We didn’t even unhitch – just put out the slides, hooked up the water, electric and sewer. Then Jett sent me down to the street to see if there were any food joints within walking distance. No restaurants, but a Dollar General was directly opposite. I went over there – more because it advertised “discount tobacco” than with any real hope that it would have food. But it turned out to offer a lot of groceries, including dairy, deli meats and frozen foods. So I bought some hamburger, Klondike bars and Hostess cupcakes (please, no comments from dieticians). We ate, I walked the dogs (dodging the berry bushes that were buzzing with bees) and fell asleep in the bunkhouse.
Eagle Landing
The Dollar General
Another exciting day in the RV.
QTN Hop 2, Day 2: Auburn, AL, to Roebuck, SC
295 miles via I-85, SC 290 and US 221.
QTN Hop 2, Day 2
The hard parts of this trip were (1) getting ready to travel in a driving rain, (2) dealing with heavy traffic around Atlanta, (3) finding our way out of the refueling stop and (4) finding the RV park. The rain just required wearing a poncho and keeping the speed down to under 55 once on the road (hydroplaning when hauling 7 tons is not fun). The heavy traffic just required a bit of extra caution (and a little cursing). Finding our way out of the refueling stop – difficult because the exit was one-way the wrong way – was accomplished by, at Jett’s suggestion, following an 18-wheeler. Finding the RV park required discarding the map (because it was taking me down a scary-looking road) and trusting (gulp!) the GPS. It got us there.
But the scariest part of all may have been the entrance to the RV park. The road was very narrow – narrower than the entrance to the park in NJ – filled with potholes and ended in a steep, curved climb to the office. We also passed some dwellings that had us thinking “Deliverance”. Then we found that the office had closed at 4pm, 30 minutes before. But a single phone call got someone to show up to check us in and I was relieved to see that the office was clean and modern. I convinced Jett that it would be ok.
I hope I was right.
26 states and counting.