Lonely Roads

12/3-12/15
A week and a half of one load after another trying to get home. Left Ohio on the 3rd and took a load to Draper Utah. From Utah to Seattle Washington. From Washington to Idaho Falls Idaho. From Idaho back to Utah, and finally home to California.
Snow and Ice on and off but pretty lucky as I seemed to be either ahead or just behind the storms. Stopped one night at Wendover NV and the snow started about 30 minutes after I stopped. Woke up to 8" of snow the next morning, but the snow had stopped and the roads were pretty well cleared.
Alot of lonely roads because of the weather, but made for some pretty good pictures

Merry Christmas
and
Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

Running down South

Left home on the 10th and went to Temple Texas for the 13th. Traveled I-8 in Arizona (Picture of Saguaro Cactus)and I-10 and US 190 to Temple Texas. Still think I-10 between Fort Stockton and San Antonio in Texas,has to be the loneliest Interstate in the country (Picture). Nice sunset though(Picture). On US 190 I came across a fancy Courthouse in Brady Texas (Picture) Like most small towns, all the highways meet at the courthouse and go around it in a circle. Drove from Temple TX on to Owensboro KY with my second load, but mostly nothing to take pictures of or it was too foggy to get any good pictures.

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

The Great Western Circle

Only on the road for 10 days, then back for a weeks vacation. Went from Fresno, south to Los Angeles, north to Oregon, east to Utah then Colorado, south again to Texas, then back to California. Parked at a truck stop at Weed California, where I had Mt Shasta as a backdrop (See picture).
Traveled US 97 along Klamath Lake Oregon (Picture) Heading east I took I-84 out of Oregon, which follows the Columbia River for quite a way. Note the insanity of today's world (Picture)with the pinwheels on the side of one of the most powerful rivers in the United States. All the water power going to waste instead of turning generators for electricity, and useless Government subsidized pinwheels being installed above the river.
From Oregon to Texas, I stayed only 12-24 hours for 4 days ahead of a large winter storm which dumped a couple of feet of snow across Wyoming and Colorado.
From Texas to California along I-10, ain't much to see but cactus and hills (Picture)

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

On the Trail of Lewis and Clark

Delivered a load in Hermiston Oregon along the Columbia river. Drove to Lewiston Idaho for a load of paper then onto Missoula Montana, all the time driving on the old US 12 which follows along different rivers and was the trail that Lewis and Clark followed. From Missoula to Bismark Montana along I-90, also the route of Louis and Clark where they turned south on the Missouri River. I just kept on going west to North Dakota. (Picture along the Oregon side of the Columbia river with Washington on the other side)
(Picture along the Clearwater river in Idaho)(Picture of "Rush Hour" in North Dakota on I-94)

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

Los Angeles Fires

Been one of those weeks. From Home to Southern California,onto Saint Louis Missouri and Indianapolis Indiana. Headed from Indy to Oklahoma to keep Wal-Mart in stock. While in the Southern California area last Saturday,I got to see the big fire. Picture from the I-605 looking at the fire to the North. On I-15,to the East of the fire I got 2 pictures of the fire looking West toward the sun. On top of Castaic Pass on I-15,almost 40 miles from the fires, the fire department had just put out a fire caused by falling embers. The last 2 pictures were taken from a truck stop at Barstow California, almost 100 miles from the fires. The wind was blowing all the smoke toward Barstow and it was pretty dark at 5pm because of the smoke

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

Working My Tail Off

From Georgia north to Chicago, back to Georgia, north to Iowa and home to California. Weather changing and darn near cold in Iowa overnight in the 30's. Passed alot of present day Hippies going to Nevada for "The Burning Man" festival, one had an old motor home painted yellow like a school bus. Picture of a fancy County Line Marker in Florida. Dated 1930, so figure it had something to do with a land boom back then. Another picture of Airstream Trailers planted in the ground outside of Tampa FL.(Probably a take off on 1960's Cadillacs planted outside of Amarillo Texas) Last photo of the National Corvette Museum in Bolling Green KY.

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

Water,Water,Everywhere

Picked up in Compton California Saturday,and headed to Lakeland Florida and Atlanta Georgia. Running I-10 from California to I-75 in Florida. Ain't much scenery till I get East of San Antonio Texas,unless one likes desert. It really gets boring to me. East of San Antonio,everything turns green all the way to Florida, with water everywhere, from Houston TX Eastward. Swamps in Louisana,Marshes in Mississippi, Mobile Alabama Bay,and river after river through Florida. Fueled in Beaumont Texas Yesterday,and just my luck a tornado went through a few hours later (Always wanted to see one and haven't yet)Pouring rain on and off the past 2 days and my truck leaks like a sieve on the passenger side dash. Poured 30 minutes and I collected a quart of water in a bucket I have on the dash (Pictures of the Battleship USS Alabama in Mobile Bay and of the bay at Pasagoula Mississippi)

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

Two Weeks Without the Internet

Running my tail off going every which way but home. Finally home a week late, but no problem as I will just take a little more time off before I go back out. From Kansas to Houston TX. From Houston to Knoxville TN, then onto Russellville AR. From AR to NW Ohio then Kansas City, MO. Finally up to Omaha NE then home to CA. In Huntsville TX (home of the Executions) I got a photo of a large statue of Sam Houston. Other Pics
Sunrise on the 18 mile causeway across a Louisiana Swamp, A fancy County Courthouse in Ohio. In Kansas City, I delivered into the Caves (Old Pillar mines, where they made roads and walls among the pillars for storage (pretty bad pictures because of the darkness))Finally the end of thunderstorm along the Great Salt Lake on I-80

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman

What A Week

Been one of those weeks,where I just have time to drive, eat and sleep. Ran my self out of hours in 6 days so get a government mandated day off today in Arkansas. Been from California to Houston TX,up to Louisville KY, down to Rome GA and now in AR and headed to Kansas. Alot of thunderstorms on and off this week,and a lot of it inside the truck in that the truck leaks bad I have 2 bowels to catch the rain water leaking on the dash when parked and the bed catches the water when I'm moving (life's a bitch sleeping on a wet bed and pillow)Not may pictures this week. Large Limo at a truck stop,thunderstorms in TX, and a hugh thunder cloud in Arkansas

North to I-80 and Home

Spent the week going from Tennessee up to Wichita KS (on I-40,Muskogee Turnpike and I-35) to Kansas City Missouri (on I-35) and on to California (on I-29, IA/NE 2, and I-80)
In Oklahoma near Muskogee, I saw through the trees what appeared to be a conning tower from an old WWII submarine with the #310. Looked it up on the internet, and turned out to be the USS Batfish, which was bought by the State of Oklahoma and towed up the Arkansas River to Muskogee and made a museum. Didn't get any picture, but put it on my list of things to see later as my father served on a submarine in WWII.
Pictures are of a sunset on I-80 in Nebraska. Elk Mountain in Wyoming between Laramie and Rawlins (a lot of Elk live around here and it's constantly bad driving for ice and snow in the winter). Two pictures along the Great Salt Lake

Keep on Truckin
The Iceman