Our previous cross country travelogue installment ended in Russellville, Arkansas so that is where we will begin today.
Friday morning we were up early and pulled out of the Flying J in Russellville at 5:55 AM. I had parked in a pull through space next to the back entrance so it was easy to slip out.
It was incredibly windy all day long. Windy enough that we considered getting off the road and driving at night. The deciding factor is that I am not able to drive all night. I put both hands on the wheel and toughed it out.
That morning, we drove 250 in 3 hours and 40 minutes and stopped for a break at 9:35 AM. Not bad at all for a morning drive. I walked around the parking lot, while KJo went in to see about getting something to eat.
While walking I noticed a little coolant on the ground about mid bus. The bus has coolant hoses that go to about the middle of the bus for the bus heating system and then onto the front for dash heat. I opened the bus heat bay and it was leaking somewhere there. I could not pinpoint it, but the leak was obvious.
The bus has valves by the engine that shut off those hoses so I shut off the coolant flow to the front of the bus. Fortunately, we are not going to need bus heat for a while.
I already suspected I had a leak somewhere because the engine coolant was a smidgen low when I checked it the evening before. I could not see a leak from the engine or radiator and the oil did not have any coolant. Glad I found it before it became a big problem.
During that morning break stop, we ate a bite for a late breakfast, rested a few minutes and then hit the road at 11:10.
The wind was even worse after our break so having fun while driving was not possible. The traffic in OKC was perfect and we breezed right through on I-40. It was kind of heavy for about 20 miles west of town, but it was not slow.
Soon we were getting close to Texas and it was time to begin looking for a place to stop for the night. Our options were mighty thin between the Texas state line and Amarillo, so we jumped off at Sayre, Oklahoma at another Flying J.
They have wide open parking for RV's in the front at Sayre Flying J. Overall it is a great place to park.
We went into Denny's for breakfast that evening and it was great. KJo ordered a breakfast skillet and I ordered an omelet. Both were excellent. We waited quite a while for the food, but that is par for the course at Denny's.
Saturday morning we hit the road with Amarillo in mind for our break. It was only 125 miles and we were hankering for a steak from The Big Texan. The wind Saturday morning was probably the strongest I have ever encountered in the BoggsMobile. Wow!
By the time we finished the 125 miles and pulled into the gravel lot behind The Big Texan, I was drained. I felt like I had driven 500 miles. Wow Again!
We pulled in right behind three busloads of people and the parking lot was already pretty much full. We rested about 90 minutes to give the restaurant time to process 150 bus people and it worked out pretty good.
By the time we had eaten, we decided we were finished driving for the day. The wind was still blowing something fierce and I was overdone!
I figured The Big Texan would probably clear their parking lot at closing time and it was too dusty to stay overnight anyway. I cranked the BoggsMobile and pulled across the interstate to the TA Truck Stop. They had plenty of room and I planned to fill up with diesel there when we left.
That wraps up our Russellville, Arkansas to Amarillo, Texas leg of our travelogue. Thank you for reading.
Davy
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