Georgia on my M...ap
Highlights of our boondocking trip from New Mexico to Georgia
We are on a long road trip from home in New Mexico to Perry Georgia for the Family RV Association (FRVA) convention. It’s a long drive and we are biting off big chunks each day. So, by the time you read this I will have worked on it for several days. We are pushing to make good time, so each day isn’t so much an adventure, as a long drive. Still, we manage to have fun when we can.
Roll out the Barrel
For the first time ever, we ate in Amarillo at a location other than Big Texan Steak Ranch. We knew our friends had stayed at Cracker Barrel in Amarillo a couple times, so I texted them to ask about their experiences. We felt confident we could make this our first stop.
Typically, we stay at a Passport America campground called A-OK. It’s not much, but it’s $17 for a full hookup site and we usually have to de-winterize.
We weren’t winterized this time, because Tony had just come home from a camping trip to City of Rocks two days before we left. So boondocking was back on the - um - menu.
We planned to eat in the trailer, sleep, then have breakfast in the restaurant. However, I was really craving a salad and we didn’t have anything like that in the trailer, so we ate both dinner and breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Those two meals combined took the idea of a “free stay” to a whole new financial level. We could have saved money going to the campground, but we wanted to be able to say we had experienced Boon-Barreling. Or Cracker-Docking. Whatever you call it.
Scavenger Hunt
We are on our way to the FRVA convention in Perry, Georgia. The organizers have a fun activity for us to engage on our way - a photo scavenger hunt. We are on the lookout for 20 items that we can see from the road. It kink of helps me stay awake during the day, looking for road kill, gas price signs, a porta-john, and other fun things. Have you ever tried to photograph roadkill at 60 miles per hour? It’s not easy! I think I deleted 20 shots just to save one or two!
Too much excitement
We are traveling with the Flated truck topper for this trip. We have our Lectric e-bikes in the bed, along with chairs, pirate costumes (for the convention) and - uh, I don’t know what else is back there, but it’s filled up. We didn’t double-check the straps when we put the topper on, and we nearly paid a dear price for that mistake.
The wind was blowing really hard, hitting the passenger side of the rig with vengeance. Not long after we left Texas and entered Oklahoma, we knew we needed to pull over, and tighten the straps. The topper was floating several inches off the top of the bed. Suddenly, Tony pulled onto the side of the road because the straps on the passenger side let loose. The whole topper blew to the driver side, and flopped against the outside of the truck bed. We were really fortunate that A, it didn’t let loose completely and B, that there was no more traffic than there was. It was bad enough with just the vehicles that were whizzing past us. Most managed to get into the left lane, but there was just enough traffic that not everyone could get over. We waited a few seconds for a clearing, then both hulk-heaved the topper up and over the bed and all the stuff in it. Tony ran back around to the passenger side, while I held it in place standing ALMOST in the driving lane. Scary!!
While Tony held on, I found the ratchet straps that I had seen in the pass-through. I was thanking my lucky stars that I had not put them in the garage before we left!
We got the passenger side strapped down tightly. There was no way we were standing in traffic to tighten the driver side, so we hopped back in the truck and headed for the nearest exit. Fortunately, that wasn’t too far. We go the driver side straps pulled tight, and got back on the road.
At the next gas stop, Tony bought a new set of ratchet straps. We really need to get inside the shell, which will require taking at least half the stuff out of there. Until then, we are keeping an eye on everything. The wind isn’t as bad and the two good straps are holding it nicely for now.
Gotta Love(’s) sleeping in a parking lot
On the second night, we skipped the Cracker Barrel and kept driving. We decided to try another new experience, a Love’s RV Stop in Webbers Falls Oklahoma.
I made the reservation online, using a link from the Love’s app. It was really easy until I remembered I don’t monitor on my phone, the email that I used to sign in. Oops. Luckily, Tony does have that email on his phone so when wee arrived, he was able to check us in. It was an easy, level, back-in space. There were five choices, and I made the mistake of choosing the one closest to the truck exit. We figured we would be in for a terrible night with trucks driving out all night long. Plus the lighting is brighter than the sun.
We closed the door between the bathroom and the bedroom, and closed our eyes. The light was bearable, I guess.
The noise that was actually the worst was the couple times a pickup driven by someone making up for a shortfall in bodily endowments screeched out of the lot and down the road. I swear I heard that thing for a mile. The truck noise really wasn’t that bad, and after a restless night in Amarillo, I was tired enough to sleep through most of the night.
In the morning, Tony got one of the ratchet straps and we used it to tie the driver side down a bit more securely. We still can’t do a complete job until we can get inside the shell. We do feel safer now. Also, we seem (hopefully) to have left the worst of the wind behind us.
The King. No, the Other King
Day three found us deciding to avoid Memphis. We have driven though a part of that city once before, and we didn’t like the idea of spending the night in a parking lot in a neighborhood we weren’t familiar with. I posted for ideas in a few Facebook groups, then decided to turn south at Little Rock Arkansas, and see how far we could get.
I checked the Harvest Host app, and found a couple options along the route. When we got close to the first one, we discussed how much longer we wanted to drive, and decided to go for the further option.
We made it all the way through Arkansas, and crossed into Mississippi. We called and asked permission to park at the BB King Museums in Indianola, Mississippi. We couldn’t make it in time to enter the museum before it closed, but we went in the next morning.
When we got parked at the museum, we both honed in on the little “juke joint” across the street. A quick look at the reviews told us it was worth checking out. We walked over and had a really great dinner in a really interesting place called the Blue Biscuit.
The BB King Museum is really lovely. I wasn’t sure what to expect in a sleepy little town, but after all, it is BB King’s sleepy little town. The museum has a wonderful compilation of King’s life. His given name is Riley, by the way. There is a lot of memorabilia. There is a theater to visit at the beginning, highlighting BB’s life. Then there is a self-guided tour. At the end, doors lead outside where bathrooms are available. But that’s not all. There is a copper statue of BB King sitting on a bench. More importantly, that bench overlooks BB King’s burial place. It’s very profound, and beautifully maintained. If you are ever anywhere near Indianola Mississippi, do yourself a favor and check it out.
Brew Docking
Having spent a good deal of the morning at the museum, we once again weren’t sure how far we would want to drive the next day. I wanted to avoid driving through Memphis, so in Little Rock Arkansas we turned southward to see what we could find. I have a Facebook friend that lives near Birmingham Alabama. We thought we might barrel-dock again, so I reached out and asked Pete if I was making a good choice. He said I was but unfortunately was unavailable to meet up with us when we got into town. Having one option, I decided to double-down and find another. Back onto the Harvest Host app, I found Siluria Brewery in Alabaster Alabama (say that 10 times fast!). Being so close to arrival time, I called and verified that they could fit us in. So we set the GPS on “beer” and headed to Alabaster.
We were one of seven RVs staying at the brewery. It’s so fun to see a group of RVers come together serendipitously. We ordered drinks - IPA for Tony and cider for me, then checked out the menu of Wasabi Juan’s food truck. We bought some sushi-style burritos (or were they burrito-style sushi?) and enjoyed some live music.
Siluria Brewery carries not one, but FOUR great IPAs, and Tony naturally had to try them all. I ordered a caramel apple cider, which was so delicious! The man in line behind me said I must try the pear cider, so I did. It was surprisingly dark in color and remarkably peary in flavor. I’m glad I listened, though two ciders is really pushing my limits! As if four IPAs didn’t push Tony’s. Good thing it was an easy walk to the trailer. Although, there is a sign at the bar that says they have a wheelbarrow to transport guests to their RVs! Hahaha that would be hilarious to see!
Power to Spare
I do want to mention that we have not had any problems with our Power Package from ABC Upfitters keeping up!
What’s that wet stuff coming from the sky?
Overnight, it started raining. In the morning, as we were waking up and getting ready for takeoff, the thunder was astoundingly loud and literally shook the trailer a couple of times!
When we were ready to go, we opened the trailer door to see that the ground was pretty flooded. I took off my shoes and did our minimal tear-down barefooted to protect my shoes. Thanks to Tony for blasting the heat on foot mode when I got in the truck!
We had a reservation at High Falls State Park for the final two nights before we pull into the fairgrounds at Perry Georgia for the FRVA 110th Convention. It’s still raining, so there probably won't me much else to say about that. Plus, I probably should have broken this into more than one post. It’s very long.
