Well I made it to Dallas from Atlanta, Texas at the north eastern end of the state.
The 200 mile drive took me a mere 7 hours, including an hour for lunch in Wills Point.  Texas is not as flat as everyone always says.  It might seem flat, but when you are hauling five tons+ every little incline turns into work and slows me down to 40 mph.  I continue to stay away from the interstates, though I felt I was cheating a little taking highway 80, which used to be the Dallas connection before I-20 came along.

Deadwood - 108 Happy people and one old grouch

Anyway, I thought I was moving along quite well until I reached the outskirts of Dallas.  My recollection from 18 years ago was that Dallas freeway driving was hell and it still is.  Therefore, I stayed away from the faster I-635 and followed a local street to my campground.  Big mistake.  Not only did it take much longer, but the road condition of Forest Lane was so bad that all my cabinets and closets were rearranged.  That had not happened before, not even after driving on a dirt road.

My campground was 30 minutes north of downtown Dallas and it was not the regular RV campground, but more of a RV parking lot.  Most people at this campground were working people living in their RVs full time.  Not too much shade either and that was something I could have really used.  Outside temperatures reached the mid 90s and the thermostat inside my camper was stuck at 99 F (37 C), it is limited to two digits.

RV parking lot

On a high note, I met friends for dinner who I hadn’t seen since my brief work stint in Dallas back in the early 1990s.  Thanks Jimmy and Teresa for a fun evening.  Next time I’ll bring my wallet!

The temperatures did not improve the next day.  I don’t recall having dripped this much in a long time.  My travel good fortune continues.  Lynn, my former manager of Dallas days, generously invited me to stay with her.  First, I figured I’ll be OK, but after another day and night without AC I gladly accepted the invitation.  Thank you Lynn, you saved me from heat exhaustion!  I haven’t left the house much ever since.  Thanks to Lynn, I have met some photographers who not only gave me some travel tips for Texas, but also hooked me up with some other people to visit.  Looks like I’ll be spending some time in Texas.  Did you know that this is a really big state? 🙂