On April 21st I said goodbye to Cathy and drove the loaded Toyota Tacoma out of Linton Indiana. The day was rainy and that made me extra sad for leaving Cathy. I have asked her several times to go west and work with me, but it just was not her cup of tea. She knows I need to get away and do something and she knows I love the mountains. So she has no issues with me being gone for three months, unless it is when she has to mow the yard. Then she wishes I was home.
The first stop I always make is to get a good breakfast at Chick-Filet' in Terre Haute. Then I know I won't be stopping again until just into Iowa. The rain was still coming down intermittently but nothing that was causing me problems. I use Rain X on my windshield before I leave and that helps me to not even use the wipers when the rains come. The route I took led me through some sections of Illinois that were hit by the tornado recently. So I got to see more damage than just Sullivan Indiana.
I made it safely through Illinois with no issues and into Iowa. I stopped at the Worlds Biggest Truck Stop, just over the Iowa border and filled up with gas. I calculated that I would not need anymore gas until I reached my motel in Onawa Iowa. I reached the end of Iowa and shortly before entering Nebraska I turned north on I-29 and headed to Onawa. I got checked in at my motel and then had dinner and went to bed. Driving all day was very tiring, but I know that the driving days will be shorter the rest of the way.
After Onawa I set out for Mitchell South Dakota and to see the Corn Palace. Not only because they always make a great picture on the building with corn, but because they have very clean restrooms.
Once through Mitchell I headed toward Wall Drug to say hello to a few of my friends from back when I worked there. I was able to catch Dean and talked for a while and also get my free doughnut and water for being a veteran. After Wall I headed to Rapid City for the night. A strange thing happened in Rapid City. I got checked into the hotel and filled up the truck. I then decided to get a nice meal at the local Outback Steakhouse. It was about 4 in the afternoon and there was not too many in the restaurant. I was ushered into a booth in the bar area. I looked around and there was a couple at the bar eating and drinking and maybe one other person at the far end of the bar. I ordered my food and when it came I prayed over the meal. Thanking God for watching over my travels and watching over Cathy at home. The steak arrived and I took my time eating. When I was done, I was the only person in the bar area. The waiter came over and I requested the bill. He said the couple at the bar took care of my tab. I then reached for my wallet to give him a tip and he stopped me and said they took care of him also. I was shocked to say the least. The guy just said to pay it forward one day, which I shall.
After Rapid City I headed for Bozeman Montana, where I will spend the night before heading to West Yellowstone and checking in with HR. The travel through South Dakota was OK except for the wind. My gas mileage went for 25 MPG to 15 MPG. The days were sunny but the wind stayed fierce until I turned north into Wyoming and Montana.
I made it to Bozeman with no issues and checked into the Super 8 motel. I doubt if I ever will stay there again, as it was getting very run down and the room was substandard for the price I had to pay. The next day I headed south to West Yellowstone. I made it around 8AM and checked in with HR. They gave me my badge and uniform and after signing a few papers I was told to go to the store and get settled in. After getting settled into the dorm I was told I had to go back to HR at noon until three for liqueur training. I drove back down and completed the rather boring training. I took the test and have yet to hear any results.
I want to touch a little on the snow situation. I never had any issues with the snow while driving. In fact I really never saw snow until I reached Wyoming. The mountains were covered with snow and looked very pretty. The trip from Bozeman to West Yellowstone was the first time I had real contact with snow around the highway. I would imagine it was two to three feet of snow on either side of the highway as I drove to West Yellowstone. There we even elk out in it at one section of the road. West Yellowstone and Yellowstone were packed with snow. The bulldozers were doing double duty trying to get the snow off the roads and place it somewhere. There were mounds of snow fifteen feet tall and they were running out of places to put it. The same thing inside of Yellowstone. The parking lots were reduced in size and the mounds of snow were all over the place.
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