Day 1: The Epic Journey Begins

Day 1: The Epic Journey Begins

...by having Yours Truly so frazzled that upon leaving home, I immediately took the wrong highway entrance, and got on 490 instead of the Thruway. Not a major crisis. But then discovered that 490 was actually closed, and we were stuck, and our first 20 minutes of the trip took nearly 4 times that.

Once we made it out of Rochester, it seemed like smooth sailing. At 5:30 pm, we stopped at the Pennsylvania welcome center for the world's fastest PBJ in the camper. Except we discovered that we had forgotten to pack the PB. And the J.

And our near-sacred vow to avoid fast food on the trip was obliterated by the very first meal.

After our delicious and productive fueling of Whoppers and Chicken Fries, we finally made it to the Ohio state line, heading toward our goal of Columbus. As we approached Cleveland, we realized that we wouldn't be getting there until sometime near 10:00 pm, and needed to call the campground and let them know that we would be arriving after hours. And their response was: “That's great, thanks for letting us know! Say, have you guys seen the weather report? Supposed to be a pretty good one. Anyway, you don't need to get your camper into your site as soon as you arrive. You'll probably want to just park as soon as you get here and shelter in the office. Or, actually, the bathrooms would probably be better. That's made of concrete.” Despite growing up in the midwest, I somehow always forget the Constant Fear of the Wrath of God that is daily and nightly life in the summer.

Having driven in very close proximity to tornados in the past, we decided to call it a night, and have ditched at a KOA south of Cleveland. Gave us time to set up and do Night 1 organization, have a catch, and have Kieran kindle the world's smallest campfire.

In the morning we depart for Huntsville, AL.