On the Road Again

It is New Year's eve, Sunday, December 31, 1979.  We departed Commerce, GA a little late at 8:35 a.m. and with a slight drizzle of rain.  For breakfast Gary and I had a southern favorite of red-eye gravy and we'll probably look for a stop-off every 10 miles all the way to Jackson, Mississippi.  Snapped a photo of a Jimmy Carter Blvd exit sign in Georgia.

Pyewacket, our cat, has become a very good traveler.  She hasn't meowed at all this morning after letting her out of the carrier.  Guess she decided she couldn't change the events so going with the flow.  Even after being let out of the carrier she will often sleep inside as she must find comfort in her den.  

Drove by the Atlanta Falcons Training Center at 9:20 a.m. with temp of 45 degrees F.  A little later as we entered Heflin, Alabama into the Central Time Zone so it is 10:30 a.m. (11:30 EST).  I thought Georgetown, DE was a small town but when a young man pumped our gas (remember those days??) in a very thick southern drawl he said, "it won't tek ya'll long to geet thru this hare itty-bitty town".  And right he was.

We're not on the east coast any longer, that's for sure.  Now it has become interesting to see the difference in climate and terrain from one state to another.  Georgia was rocky, hilly, and even mountainous with clay soil.  Alabama started out being mountainous but near the Mississippi border it is hilly, has fewer trees and the soil seems more sandy.  Of  course that is my observation traveling the highway looking at a distance.

We either keep missing the rain or this area's climate is very humid for the highway, road side and shoulders are wet.  Could be we're following the rain and have been lucky with our travel time and conditions as we are ahead of schedule.  Got to the Mississippi state line at 2:20 p.m.

Just had the scare of my life!  When we were coming off a detour into Mississippi we had to make a left curve.  Evidentially the rain, and possibly Gary going too fast, the angle with pulling a second vehicle, plus momentum of the Scout damn near pushed us of the road.  Guess the trucker term would be 'jackknife'.   So far that's the only incident in our trip.

Seems our luck of decent weather has run out.  Just 15 miles from Meridian, MS we have caught up with the rain which was only visible as dampness and puddles previously.   

Now it's my turn to drive at 3:10 p.m.  I was nervous as the Scout is quite a load to pull and already had the experience of the near jackknife.  Only drove for 1 hour 10 minutes but it was a break for Gary.  Still on the road we passed Jackson, MS so destination now is Vicksburg, MS.

Dark clouds hover over us as we drive through thunder storms just outside Jackson.  Yesterday we went through 4 states (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia).  Today we travelled through the rest of Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi.  Tomorrow we will be going into Louisiana and Texas.

The storm is bad now.  At 4:10 p.m. we have made one-third of our trip.  We've come this far in three days and the normal travel time across the states is 6 days.  While I was driving we hit the 1,000 mile mark on the mileage gauge.

To be continued as the adventure isn't quite over.   

Saundra

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