On the Road Again

I tried to read the original On the Road, a few years back, but found it tedious.  Perhaps I’ve aged out of it; perhaps I should have read it when I blitzed through Ayn Rand, Herman Hesse, and Tom Robbins, none of which interest me at all these days.  Blue Highways, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance are still eminently enjoyable.

First night out of Columbia, Tobey and I spent in  Jackson, Mississippi.  Yes, it broke my 500 mile limit by 100 miles, but there’s that driving into the sunset thing.  Moreover, when I reached 500 miles, I wasn’t tired, so……..

I’d called from the 500 mile mark and made a reservation forLaFleur's Bluff State Park,  an odd little place that must have once been out in the country, but is now more or less tucked into a suburb of  Jackson.  Think Sesquicentennial State Park in Columbia.  In the ‘60s, Mother and Daddy would pack a picnic, turn off the water, stop the mail….not really, but back in the day, it was a trek from our house.  Today, it’s on a crowded four lane thoroughfare.

LaFleur, like Sesqui, sits on a small lake, and my spot was lakeside. 

Dawn

 Of course, dawn was around 7:30....

Dawn

 And being right next to the lake was a treat.  “Big blue” (aka great blue heron) was out fishing and flying and making guttural big blue noises.  Two large white birds, at least as big blue, flew around.  Unlike big blue, their necks were long and curvy as they flew.  Not sure of identification, though I’m leaning toward swans.

I met a very nice couple from Winnipeg, and we exchanged itineraries, looked at maps, and raved about the joys of retirement.  Mother had made me several egg salad sandwiches, two of which I’d had for breakfast, so I finished them off, accompanied by potato chips and a glass of wine.  Devine!!! 

I didn’t unhook, so next morning, Tobey and I jumped in the car and headed out.  Here’s the advantage of the extra 100 miles:  Skipping through Dallas on a Sunday!  Had I not done that 100 miles, I would have ended up camping between Dallas and Fort Worth….and dealing with harried Monday morning commuters.  An uneventful drive brought us to Abilene, where we bedded down in a KOA.  But before I tell you about that, I must say something about the west Texas oil patch:  it’s bustling.

It's fake, but so many genuine rigs 

are pumping

 Tanker trucks, semis, trucks bloated with strange looking machinery, big trucks, little trucks,  pickup trucks going in tandem stuffed with sturdy four wheelers , pickup trucks driven by men looking like what I imagine a roustabout to look like:  grizzled, smoking, matted hair under a gimme cap.   West Texas is pumping oil, building pipelines, open for business.  The land itself is tired and sad, litter everywhere.

 As some of ya’ll know, I can talk to a stump (or I can be glacially off-putting….but that’s not part of this story).  I chatted with the clerk at the KOA, who turned out to be the manager of three months.  He’d been doing the KOA circuit.  Do you know there’s a KOA circuit?  Folks may work in the winter in Florida, then move up to Minnesota for the summer.  This young man had been at Mt. Rushmore (very overrated as far as I’m concerned), and heard about this managerial job in Abilene.  We talked about the adjustment and chitchatted as he checked me in.  I was paying for a back in site (they’re cheaper), and told him I was terrible at backing in, so pick one that would make it easiest for me.  I told him that other campers would come out to watch, and get their day’s entertainment by watching my pitiful attempts to back in.  I always manage, but it requires numerous tries, and the camper is never straight.  Sweet young man that he is, he gave me  a pull through site, while only charging for a back in.  Then he laughed and said his manager would probably say something about it to him the next day.  Of course, he is the manager.  

Unlike Lafleur's Bluff, this site was a tad more urban, though I'd much rather stay in my cozy camper than in the Motel 6.  At least in my camper, I know the status of my bedding!!

After two six hundred mile days (600 + 600 = 1200), I didn’t have far to go (comparatively) to reach my destination, so I treated myself to a leisurely breakfast at IHOP, and then hit the road once again.