Ready to Rally!

      On Tuesday morning we set out from Spring Valley Campground in Cambridge, Ohio.  We had stayed here a few years previously and found the roads had deteriorated, with some significant potholes inside the campground.  The inconsiderate campers who had occupied the site beside ours had left a really nasty mess in their fire ring.  And we were somewhat concerned that our MiFi was acting up suddenly with an unfamiliar user listed under "devices."

      Our destination was Fort Wayne, Indiana, with a stop for fuel in Bellefontaine Ohio.  Although Valerie already knew who had been voted off the show, she enjoyed watching the dances she had DVR'd on Monday evening's Dancing with the Stars.  George grew tired, so Valerie took the driver's seat at a rest area.  

      Little did she know that things were about to get stressful.  First, the divided highway divided into two lanes westbound with concrete barriers on either side.  She focused on centering in her lane and was certainly glad to have that stretch of highway behind her.  Soon came metro Columbus with many lane changes and a turn-off onto Highway 33 North.  

      An unexpected rest area was a welcome sight!  George again took the wheel and had planned a stop at Murphy Oil in Bellefontaine.  Although he had checked his resources, there were numerous right and left turns around the main thoroughfare in town and the service station was a couple of miles beyond that.  With our discount we paid $3.72/gallon for diesel, substantially less than what we'd seen since we left Pennsylvania.  

      As we left the service station, George noticed that GPS was telling us it was 396 miles to Fort Wayne.  That surely couldn't be right, since it showed a distance of 93 miles on the first screen.  We finally managed to reconfigure the settings so that it did not attempt to take us all the way back to the interstate.

      Once we turned off of Highway 33, it was a little tricky navigating all the turns and twists in Highway 117 North through Lima, Ohio, but we managed to arrive safely at Walmart in Fort Wayne for the evening.  Parking was not real level, but we made it work.

      Wednesday morning we grabbed coffee and breakfast at the nearby McDonalds and Valerie picked up a few items we needed from the Walmart store.  Our plan was to have the coach washed at the Blue Beacon in Fort Wayne, as we often use our motor home for a driving demonstration at the Boot Camp before the Escapees' Escapade.  We didn't plan on sitting in line behind six or seven rigs, but once we entered the line there was no backing out.  The manager told George the "guys had to take a break."  Seems like they could have continued washing and staggered breaks to keep the line moving, but we spent an unexpected two hours there.

      We arrived at Elkhart County Fairgrounds in Goshen, Indiana, where a Holiday Rambler Rally is in full swing.  Numerous RVs appear to waiting until their reserved time to enter the campground at the local Walmart store in Goshen.

      The staff has us parked in a large lot temporarily with water and electric until we can move to our more permanent site inside the RV Park, probably tomorrow.  The spring blossoms are beautiful along the highways, and Valerie has decided that Ohio and Indiana have their share of beautiful old barns also.

      It was especially enjoyable to spend time with friends and Boot Camp staff! Once we get moved, our days and evenings will be especially busy.  The enthusiasm of new RVers makes it all worthwhile.  We have arrived!  Bring it on!