New Adventure begins

[Grok]

I have to remind myself.... "it will all be okay...". We have a nice tight little camper, a place to park it in Washington, and a good job waiting for me...

Sounds quite promising!

[moonshadow]

A great adventure for you both.

I just wish I could untangle this knot in my stomach...

[crfriend]

I just wish I could untangle this knot in my stomach...

Ah, the butterflies got you! Don't worry, we all get then as we head into uncharted territory.

I had 'em real bad when I got on the train in Worcester in 2018 bound for Denver all by my lonesome (a first!), and I had 'em real bad again when I got on another train in 2021 when I went to Savannah. Of note is that I survived both, and both left me considerably richer in ways other than finances.

You'll be OK, just keep your wits about you.

[Elisabetta]

We've made it to Illinois!

[crfriend]

We've made it to Illinois!

I-77N -> I-90W and into eastern Illinois? You guys are making good time for towing a trailer!

[moonshadow]

We've made it to Illinois!

I-77N -> I-90W and into eastern Illinois? You guys are making good time for towing a trailer!

Not quite to i90 yet. We're currently about 50 miles away from Iowa on I74. We'll rode I80 across Iowa and then head north to 90.

The trailer is towing a lot easier in the flat lands...but still averaging about 9 miles per gallon though... I felt like I was driving into a headwind the whole way..

[Grok]

Regarding I80....

The I80 truck stop is the largest in the world. Recently featured in the vlog "New Zealand Girl Reacts...."

[pelmut]

[...]but still averaging about 9 miles per gallon though...

At that rate, with UK fuel prices you would have spent your life savings before you got to your destination.   :-)

Fingers crossed for you.

[denimini]

US gallons are smaller than UK ones so not quite as bad as it sounds. What is the cost of fuel in the US?

[crfriend]

What is the cost of fuel in the US?

It's hovering at about US$3.80 in New England for "regular" gasoline (87 octane) and about US$4.50 for diesel.

[Uncle Al]

Was out two days ago and saw fuel prices at $2.85 for regular and $3.35 for diesel.
These prices are in the North Central Texas area, near Dallas-Ft. Worth.

Uncle Al

[Fred in Skirts]

I just filled up the old car at $2.69 per gallon in South Carolina.

[moonshadow]

Man.... this is some remarkable country..

I've seen landscapes that pictures just don't do justice.

Everyone should do this at least once in their lifetime.

We watched the sunset over South Dakota, and rise again in Wyoming... I've never seen anything like it in my life.

We are now heading across Montana. Sitting at a truck stop having a bite. Lots of different travelers... lots of vehicles that would never be allowed on east coast highways!

[denimini]

It's hovering at about US$3.80 in New England for "regular" gasoline (87 octane) and about US$4.50 for diesel.

Thanks. In Australia it is about $2.29 per litre which equates to $8.66 a US gallon. Costs me $70 to do a normal 400km shopping trip. Octane ratings seem a bit lower over there as 91 is the lowest here for regular unleaded.

[crfriend]

Man.... this is some remarkable country..

I've seen landscapes that pictures just don't do justice.

Everyone should do this at least once in their lifetime.

Yep -- on all three counts. This is a truly remarkable country if you can put the politics and problems aside for a few minutes.

I've been on four wheels in Montana, South Dakota, Iowa, and Wyoming when I was about nine or ten and the memories still stick to me. Now, my preferred mode of transport is by rail, and from that vantage point you get things you don't from the Interstate in a car. For one, you can actually pay attention to the passing landscape and not have to focus on driving. For another, you may find yourself stopped somewhere and look up from your berth through the curtains and see astonishing things.

You're in Montana now, and you're going to realise why they call it "Big Sky Country". From the train, if you can get to the rearmost car and look out the windows in the rear door, you'll really grasp it. They could have laid the rails down with a LASER if it wasn't for the curvature of the Earth. One can stare out the back of the train at an almost LASER-like straightness and see the rails converge at the horizon; this can be the case for an hour or more. Eventually a curve comes, and then one watches the curve recede into the distance until the rails converge again. Or stopped somewhere in Montana in 2013 my late ex- and I were treated to huge fields of sunflowers lazing in the bright light of a full moon from our sleeping compartment.

In 2018, I watched the most amazing sunrise I'd ever seen in Colorado when we were stopped for some unknown reason in the middle of nowhere. The sky grew purple silhouetting the agricultural hardware (irrigation machines) which then gradually turned to pink, and finally to daylight before we were rolling again. Stuff like this sticks to one.

Wait until you hit the Cascades! Your trailer will be a very large load there indeed. (Trains go under them.)

Sitting at a truck stop having a bite. Lots of different travelers... lots of vehicles that would never be allowed on east coast highways!

Indeed, mostly "road trains" with double and triple trailers. Those are frowned upon in these here parts because of various control issues. Denimini will likely be able to tell you plenty about those.

You're making decent time, and I see you're not pushing it too hard. Excellent. This'll possibly go down as a "Trip of a Lifetime".

Drive safely!