MEMPHIS, TN – The road was calling me for sure. After cleaning up and out in Tallahassee… dealing with a frustrating time at  Camping World … I finally hit the road again for my longest trip in my RV. 

This was not only the longest trip in THIS RV, this was the longest trip I had ever driven in any RV.  No question I was a little nervous because I had already driven this route once before, when I headed up to start my new job in Green Bay. I was familiar with the drive, however it’s one thing to do it in a small SUV, it’s another thing to do it in my RV.

Even with the late start out of Tallahassee the first leg of the trip was a good one. I made it all of the way up to Jasper Alabama where I found a Cracker Barrel to stay at overnight.   This was the second time I had spent the night at a Cracker Barrel and they have spots specifically for overnight RV stays. My first time I stayed overnight at a Cracker Barrel, was back in Florida and I had a decent time there. This time, it was even better because the parking was a little more wide open.

Now because of COVID-19 and the pandemic, their store was closed until 8am the next morning. I had to hit the road early, so I didn’t get to get any food there and yes I do like the food there. So let me make sure I give a quick shoutout again to the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store in Jasper Alabama a great place to spend the night.

Starting the day in Jasper, my next stop was Memphis Tennessee, to see my Mom & Mr. Glen.  It was just a couple of hours on the road and then I pulled up and kind of surprised them because even though we had a plan to connect, there was no real set time. I got there early for sure, however I kept calling my Mom and she didn’t pick up. Later she told me she shuts off her phone and leaves it in another room to charge… we’ll have to talk about that one another time.

At the house I spent a couple of house with my Mom & Mr. Glen. Mom hooked me up with breakfast and we all just hung out for awhile. It was great to see them both and both look healthy and happy. Normally if I were in town, we’d do breakfast or some meal out, however with everything going on, we kept it inside and locked down and it was actually perfect.

Once breakfast was over and Mom packed me a Star Wars bag of food for the road, I hit hard.  First finishing up through Memphis. Going past St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital… if you can, check them out and make.a donation, they do amazing work and right before I crossed into Arkansas, I went by “The Pyramid” in Memphis, the former home of the Memphis Tigers and now a huge Bass Pro Shop. Hopefully one day I’ll get a chance to check it out.

I had a little issue, when I pulled off of the road to fill up at a Pilot gas station. As I was pulling away a guy in a car getting gas next to me noticed one of my leveling jacks being halfway down. I pulled off to the side of the gas station and checked and sure enough it was. Now I tried to just do my normal pull up with my jacks, however my system wasn’t working, so I had to take it apart, reconnect it and that seemed to do the trick and I was able to get my jacks to automatically come up.

Now if THAT wasn’t enough drama, a couple of miles down the road, my rig started to shake a lot. I wasn’t sure if I had blown a tire or maybe a jack was down and I was dragging it. I had to pull over for a hot second and check. Luckily it wasn’t my rig, it was just the road. This stretch of the road outside of Memphis, just as you get into Arkansas is rough and you feel it when you’re driving.  Once I made sure my rig was OK, I was back on the road for a hard stretch.

This was the longest part of the trip for me, just about 9 hours on the road before I stopped.  On the road, after Arkansas, the drive was pretty uneventful, which is just the way I like it. Getting through the Chicago area, always interesting and tough, however because I came through there late at night, there wasn’t a lot of traffic so that was perfect.

Ironically, when I pulled over for the night in Gurnee Illinois, I pulled into a Cracker Barrel.  Another great one that I would whole heartedly recommend. For a second straight night, I slept at place that was comfortable and THIS time in the morning… I was having breakfast for sure!

So far, some big milestones:

  • Where to Store Your RV? …DONE
  • Hop on a plane to get my RV… DONE
  • Prep it for the drive back to Wisconsin…DONE
  • Road Worthy?… DONE
  • ROAD TRIP TO MOM
  • (Insert Special Surprise!)
  • Set it up in the new home

In this episode, it’s all about the final prep before getting back on the road heading north. To get all of the information regarding the process, head over to RVJedeye.com and click on the story about my “Green Bay to Tallahassee & Back” mini-series.

Remember, new content can be found here, all over Social Media @RVJedeye and on my blog @RVJedeye.com. 

And I’m bringing you 7 new episodes every Sunday! I hope you enjoy & you leave lots of comments!

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