Add to favorites Examiner Bio

Cross country - the first 24 hours

 

At some point as we rolled through Alabama into Mississippi I realized that I love the RV lifestyle. I’ll probably never be a full timer  because  I’m also quite fond of our home in the Georgia Appalachians, but being part of the RV culture is wonderful. The plan is to travel the USA but maintain the conventional home as our base between travels and for when it’s time to hang up the keys. When your home has wheels under it, the definition of freedom broadens significantly. America is literally your back yard.

If you want to step out of the “Magic Bus” and walk down a secluded southern California beach and swim with the Rays, and perhaps the Whites, as in Great Whites, you can do that. Even better, you can stay as long as you care to, or until there is a serious Great White incident. Perhaps a Colorado ski resort would better suit you. With a motor-home or fifth-wheel, you can hit the slopes and stay long enough to learn how to ski without dropping a fortune on resorts and car rentals. RVers are also able to visit friends and relatives all over the country without imposing. Should a loved one fall ill, the RV can allow one to be close by until the crisis has passed.

Leigh and I came off the road in Vicksburg Mississippi Friday afternoon for a one night stay at the Ameristar RV Park. Our little dogs, Buster and Bitsey, were stressed out. Buster the  Boston Terrier was alternately whining and glaring at me and nervously blinked his big black eyes when I spoke "doggie" to him. Bitsey the Chawweena was passed out on the couch under her binkie blanket. 

This Ameristar RV Park features all of the usual stuff, like full drive-thru hookup including Wi-Fi; hot showers; pool, and a laundry. Beyond that, the Ameristar Park is a stone’s throw and a sprint from Ameristar’s plush 42,000 square-foot Riverboat Casino berthed on the legendary Mississippi River. One need only make a call and a shuttle van will pick you up at your site and whisk you off to the casino and bring you back to the park. Ameristar Casino features live entertainment, and some of the best gaming for hundreds of miles. It has the Pearl restaurant and several bars. All of that for under twenty-five bucks per night! Much lower weekly and monthly rates are available, however those who feel they have a gambling problem may want to pay for one night at the RV park and move on and not bring their RV title.

Upon arrival at the Vicksburg Ameristar RV Park I pulled in behind another motor home in front of the office. Leigh went in to register us while I waited with engine running, Soon an old, bent-over man using a walker-cane hobbled up to the motor home in front of me. I was surprised when he opened the driver-side door and somehow climbed into the big Pace Arrow rig. It took a while, but somehow the man turned around on the top step and slid into the seat back-side first after handing the walker to his wife.

The casino had to do without monetary gain from our visit. I broke even except for a dinner of salad and boiled shrimp, as did the navigator. We played slots and stayed away from the tables where the real money is lost. The main casino levels are lit with colorful neon lights inside and out and there are big-screens, sports bars and restaurants. Alas, after the long drive and three hours at the casino we were exhausted and flagged a shuttle outside.

The aforementioned old fellow and his wife were aboard the shuttle that returned us to the park from the casino. They chortled and chatted and seemed happy together despite their age and disabilities. The Ameristar shuttle bus dropped them at their rig and we watched as the weathered old man methodically disembarked the bus in the opposite manner that he entered his rig upon our arrival. He started out facing the exit, but somehow turned his body around on the bottom step and eased off the shuttle back-side first while gripping the handrails and leaning in toward the mini-bus. After a while he cleared the vehicle and his lady handed him his walker-cane. Somehow, I felt inspired by him. His advanced age and frail condition does not stop him from enjoying and making the most of life, and certainly illustrates the can-do tenacity of the RV culture.

Saturday, early afternoon, we passed through Dallas/Ft. Worth area on I-20 and then climbed into the Texas hill country where long inclines and a 30 mph headwind slowed us down a bit. The “Magic Bus” (fully loaded) and pulling my Jeep Liberty cruises at about seventy mph. In the hills and mountains we average fifty-five to sixty mph, so the miles that we traveled today felt different than those gliding across relatively flat Mississippi and the Louisiana marshes on Friday. RVs do not like tall, steep bridges either; turbulence from a thirty-mph gust when an 18-wheeler is passing can actually move the big rig a couple of feet sideways.  

Near Abilene, two deer darted out of the prairie and headed for the Magic Bus at full gallop. After a blast from the horn, they veered parallel to the bus and we blew on by them, no harm done. I took the incident as an omen and the navigator found us a quiet, inexpensive RV park in a small west Texas town for overnight. We try to keep a low profile on nights that I write or query publishers. The rural Texas neighborhood provided restful repose to an otherwise exhilarating day.

Our itinerary for this trip entails visiting many fascinating sights and events culminating in Southern California. While many people there are unable to pay their mortgages, we will fork over a pittance to stay in beautiful US Forestry Parks located near some of the most treasured national landmarks in this country. Ranking high on our “to see list” this time around are visual shrines like the Grand Canyon, several deserts, an ancient meteor crater and a host of “Old West” towns. Future stories will indulge further detail and offer many photos from our quest. I’m betting Las Vegas will be a colorful evening and Roswell, New Mexico will provide quite the celestial setting for a scary yarn.

Stay tuned to this website to follow our RV adventures. We’re just getting started.