May 3 - LaGrande to Declo Idaho

This was one of those days when the driving was easy... but the stopping was hard. Like yesterday, when we got close to our planned destination, Glenns Ferry Idaho, it was still early and we had plenty of poop left in the energy tank. So we pressed on. We got to talking... "you know, we're just looking for a place to overnight. Why don't we just stay at a Walmart?" and  "that makes sense, why don't you find a few alternatives along the way."

But the towns out this way are small and the Walmarts follow suite. The two we researched that permitted overnight parking turned out to be relatively small stores with small crowded busy parking lots. We also needed a level place to park as our jacks (levelers) are acting up again and I'm loosing trust in our ability to retract them in the morning. (We've been lucky with the balky things up to now and I'm just trying to keep from having a major problem before we get back to the Midwest -- I have this phobia about letting an "expert" RV tech at the local RV dealer try to figure out a system on my dime.)  And, for whatever reason, most Walmart parking lots are far from level... far more tilt than would be required to keep rain water away from the store.

So, the Walmarts were rejected by the Overnight Venue Approval Committee (OVAC)... as was a Loves truckstop. In each case we kept moving eastward until we found a veritable oasis in the desert... the Village of Trees RV Park... which we spotted as we sped by on I-86. Each of us glanced at the other, then the clock, then each other again. Yes sir, right then and there OVAC approved the idea and we had found our "somewhat more than free" home for the night.

As of this writing we'll be moving again in the morning. The way it looks now even last nights revised estimate of transit time from the Northwest to the Midwest ("20 or 25 days" - down from 30) will likely be way off the mark too. At our current pace we'd make it in less than 10 days. I'm sure we'll slow down eventually... but when remains uncertain at this time. And if you'll remember from last night's post, we have good reasons (which I will write about when I can take a breather...) for keeping the big wheels turning.

Practicing for the cannonball run....
T

p.s.: some recent photos have been uploaded to our online albums... check them out if you'd like.