Cross Country trip day 1

Got a late start, really late!

Made it to Tucson, AZ.

Haven’t really slept well for the past two nights, so I thought this was a good stopping point.

A short time after I crossed the AZ border things looked a lot greener. Guess it was the Colorado river helping to green things up a bit. Some of the desert wildflowers were blooming alongside the roadway and at sunset it was really pretty.

Mind you, I didn’t think to take a picture, Ooops!

I’m here in a nice hotel, well nice may be an overstatement. Clean would be a better descriptor. A “nice” hotel would be The Four Seasons.

Hey, a guy has to have standards!

My car loves long runs like this. I’m getting around 30 mpg plus or minus. The car hasn’t liked the tank of gas I got in Blythe. I’d have been better off buying in Redlands. I’d have easily made it to Phoenix and the prices are better.

The first part of the trip I was getting 30 mpg, After the fill up in Blythe it’s down to 28.

I’ll fill up tomorrow morning and see what happens. I’m guessing I’ll get between 26 (rated) and 29. Not bad for a “Gas Guzzler”

I’m a hell of a lot more efficient than the motorhomes and toy haulers.

Why am I taking this trip? Family issues.

I had to leave my dive gear behind because the weather is such a mess.

I’m kinda bummed about that. I was hoping to play with the manatees in Crystal River and maybe get in some diving off of Anna Maria Island. It was a favorite swimming / snorkeling spot as a kid and I always wished I could stay under water longer.

I just couldn’t fit everything for an extended stay, cold weather gear either for my stay in FL or when I return to CA, and my diving stuff.

Note to self, Need to find a smaller more compact dive bag.

The bag I have would have worked if it were two inches shorter.  The way it had to fit in the trunk dictated where so much else went that, in the end I couldn’t make it work.

Maybe another trip when the weather isn’t running quite the gamut it is now.

88˚ F through California and Arizona. 1/2 of Texas will be in the 80s and 90s, then I can look forward to frost advisories and potential ice in Georgia and Florida?

Say WHAT?

So I packed the essentials,

Foul weather rain gear,  Down Jacket, snow boots, Ice AX, sled, sled dogs, shorts & flip flops. No, not really, But that’s what it seemed like.

Humm. I think I’ve watched “The Day After Tomorrow” once too often.

Time to sleep

I snapped a couple of photos at 80 MPH. Hey if folks can text while driving I can snap a couple of photos. But they haven’t showed up on my computer yet. I’ll add them when they’re accessible.

Believe me there were a lot of folks texting and driving today.


By the way, and this is really cool.

I’m using my iPhone hotspot with a T-Mobile LTE connection to create and post this entry. You know what’s scary? This LTE connection is darn near as fast as my DSL modem at home.

OK I’m impressed!