2001-06-24 -Footville - I arrived on time, on schedule and under cost. Or something like that. I spent the night at a truck stop - Flying J again - which just happens to have some of the better gasoline prices I have seen. Other than the small horse trailer next to me in which the inhabitant was somewhat unhappy about being that closely confined and was quite vocal about it, it was a pleasant night.
The drive wasn't bad from there to Rootville except for patches of fog when crossing the Mississippi River just north of Davenport, Iowa. Traffic was light, partially because it was very early and that it was Sunday morning. That was quite acceptable to me, my nerves were somewhat frazzled by this time anyway.
The Interstate left something to be desired as it was rough until I reached Interstate 39 northbound and I didn't mind the toll road that much as something had to pay for the highway and I rather not pay increased gasoline prices. Gas prices in that area were some of the cheapest I have seen, between 1.12 to 1.22 which is much better than what I saw further west.
The directions my daughter gave were quite good but sparse. I didn't realize just how far Rootville was from Janesville and I had growing concerns that I had driven past but she was correct. I arrived only to find they were not home and would not arrive until lunch time; they had taken me at my word that I would not be there until later in the day. My grandson was there so there wasn't any problem.
That night we went to a Korean restaurant in Madison. It was all right but the prices were very high and the portions very small. It was a pleasant change of pace however.
2001-07-25 - We did very little other than talk most of the day; I did take Tiny over for lubrication and oil change due to the valve job and was more than a little miffed by the manager at Jiffy Lub and his attitude toward RVs. We found another place that did it and while that was being done TJ and I walked around the area window shopping. Afterwards it was to the library for reference material on the Janes Family which did relate back to my family in the 17th Century in New York State.
That evening there was the traditional fireworks display which I thought was early but I guess they did not want competition from other towns nearby.
2001-07-26 - We drove back to Madison for a volksmarch around one of the lakes; it was warm but still a pleasant hike on paved trails and roads. The hike went through the park and I enjoyed the bear collection. I was not happy with the polar bear set, one of the bears was showing distinct captivity problems characterized by the repetitive shaking of the head and the rhythmic shifting of weight from side to side.
2001-07-27 - The day was spent doing nothing much more than reading and taking it easy. We did take a walk around the village of Rootville - there isn't much there - and looked at the historical society building which wasn't open so I couldn't look up anything for a friend of mine who was raised in the area. I did find on the net that Evansville, some fifteen miles away, had a better library but that it was closed for the day.
It felt great just doing nothing but talking. I did load into Tiny a footlocker that my daughter had been dragging around for years that had things of mine from my high school era. There were pictures in there that I couldn't even remember who the people were. I will sort them out when I get home.
2001-07-28 - I left very early in the morning, about 0530, headed for home. I lost two hours because I missed the turn off Interstate 90 to Interstate 39 and was headed for downtown Chicago during the rush hour. However, in the big scheme of things it didn't make that much difference.
There was construction pretty much from the Illinois border to Pennsylvania with some really nasty areas around Columbus Ohio where the lanes were narrowed down to 7 feet wide and no fun competing with tractor-trailers. There was an accident going the other direction that slowed the traffic on my side as well but I kept on trucking until I reached just west of New Stanton in Pennsylvania where I packed it in for the night. Thank you Walmart for having s store there that was visible from the Interstate; I spent the night there.
2001-07-29 - I was out on the road before daybreak, made it to the Pennsylvania Turnpike and headed east before it was night. There was a tractor trailer broken down on the on-ramp at the turnpike but I figured out a way around that.
I got off the turnpike at Breezewood and as I approached Hagerstown it was apparent that I would arrive in the D.C. area during the peak of the rush hours so ducked south on Interstate 81 headed for Winchester and Sky Meadows State Park. I stopped at the park just to tell them I was back and would be back as a volunteer in a few weeks. From there it was only an hour to get home. Mimi was at work so I had plenty of time to unload most of the stuff from Tiny before she arrived. I will confess that it was great to be home.