One Week

Thursday 12. THE BIG DAY. We were up at six had our breakfast and began getting things ready for Ed & Rhoda’s coming.
Ed & Rhoda arrived at 10:05. We had everything ready by nine. It did not take long to pack it in. We did not have too much stuff and there was still more room. We were on the road by 11. Hallelujah!
We went out US 30 and down US 15 until near Farmersville. On 15 North West of Washington, D.C. we stopped and ate a good soup that Rhoda had ready. Near Farmersville, Virginia we stopped at a nice little restaurant for supper.
Then it was back roads to Ed & Rhoda’s daughter Sharon & Marvin Fisher and their soon to be seven children. They are a delightful caring family. They home school and live on a large farm. Marvin has a dry-walling business in addition to his cattle raising.
We were in bed by 10. It was our first night sleeping in the motor home. It was a miserable night. I don’t know if we can adjust to this bed or not. By morning it became quite cold and I pulled down another blanket.

Friday 13TH.
The Fishers made us a huge breakfast. We said our warm goodbyes and were on the road by 8:30.
Our travels were uneventful. The little electronic GPS road guide showing us and telling us each turn is quite interesting. We had lunch of Rhoda’s sandwiches, etc. at a rest stop. This evening we are in a nice KOA campground near Anderson, S.C.
I was terribly tired this evening and wondered if I will be good for the trip. But after a little walk together around the camp I feel better.
I drove this afternoon for the first time. It drives nice. I was really tired by stopping time.
Ed and I sat side by side at the camp site working on our computers, downloading our email and scads of it there were. Miriam and Rhoda took photos of us. The wireless worked great.
The others all went to the showers and I am next. We might play a couple rounds of Rummikub. It is nice and warm tonight after a cold start this morning. We slept great last night trading back to our normal sides. It IS going to work.

Saturday 14. We were up at seven and on the road by nine. I read all day while riding backwards. I am really caught up in the book Don & Kathleen Ranck gave us about the Christiana Riot. This is the most interesting book I’ve read so far on the UR.
We stopped at a Cracker Barrel for lunch. Later this afternoon we got into heavy rains the remnant of some bad storms further north. It was only raining a bit when we pulled into the Mobile, Ala camp ground at six Central Time. Rhoda made dinner and we walked later and then sat outside and chatted. It was a beautiful warm southern evening.. I pulled down a lot of email. Bed 9:30.

Sunday 15. Another good night’s sleep. By morning it was quite cool and I needed to shut our window. We were up at seven and had our breakfast. We have been singing “Amazing Grace” before breakfast remembering Jesus setting John Newton free from slavery and a lot of other things. But this morning we returned to “I Owe The Morning A Morning Song.”
This morning we went to the Community Fellowship – Mennonite. We shook the Mennonite Tree and made several connections. We seriously missed Forest Hills.
After having lunch in the camper in the church parking lot, Ed & Rhoda drove us around Mobile where they spent the first year of their married life in Voluntary Service. A very interesting several hours was in the Mobile Museum where there is a special display about Slavery in America. Just a great way to begin this Underground Railroad tour.

Monday 16. We were up at six, had our breakfast, devotions and had them on the road by about 7:30. We kept following them and stopping and waiting for them every hour or so. When we stopped at a little Methodist Church about noon they caught up with us and had a little snack and on they went. Miriam lay down and slept for 1.5 hours and I fell asleep for about 10 minutes while reading at the table. I finished the book about the Christiana Riot. It is the most interesting book I’ve read but not the widest coverage of the UR.
About two we pulled into a nice little grassy spot by a cemetery to wait for them. The arrived about three and decided to hang it up for the day having gone 70 miles, more than they intended. They were tired from this first day. We sat out on chairs on the lawn and again after supper. Ed said he was hungry for spaghetti so that is what Miriam made with some help from Rhoda. Ed napped for an hour. He was tired.
While eating we called Bertha Hurst at Landis Homes who lives down the block from us to thank her for a bag of groceries and snacks that she donated to the trip which include the spaghetti. Yesterday we had a soup she gave. Bertha said, “You made my day.”
After it got too cool on the lawn we went inside and played several games of Golf with cards and then a game of scrabble. By the end I was so tired I felt I could not go anymore and we all sacked out. About 9:30.

Tuesday 17 We were up about six again as usual. Miriam made eggs and toast along with our grapefruit. In addition Ed had a large bowl of granola. He needs the energy and packs it away and stays nice and slim. Our meditation from Zecheriah today spoke of traveling, which seemed important for today and each of our days.
They were on the road by 7:30. We pulled out about half an hour later. The roads are excellent today but US 84 is quite busy and the shoulders are not that large. We went quite a distance on ahead to Jackson, AL passing them to grocery shop. This was a larger town and had a Wal*Mart where we got all we needed.
We wound up at Tombigbee State Park about Three. Since it was so nice they decided to knock off early and also because the group of 18 bikers are here. This is the first time we were with all of them. We will be seeing them off and on from here through Owen, Sound. It was neat chatting with them and learning about their experiences past and present. Ed and Rhoda are the only ones on a tandem and the only ones with a motor home following them. Ed & Rhoda are with the same Adventure Cyling but not part of this group of 18.
We are right along an enormous waterway with tugboats pushing 6 or more barges up and down the river. They go at least to Birmingham and perhaps further. It was a beautiful day and they did about 50 miles.

Wednesday 18th. At 4:30 a.m. we heard a few raindrops on the RV roof which soon ended. We slept in late this morning – 15 minutes. It was a southern breakfast of grits & eggs and Ed’s usual granola.
This morning we learned from the other group that they will meet at Linden for the night at an old school. They encouraged our joining them. Some State Representatives and other politicos will be there and share about the community and hopefully about the UR in this community. Also the media is to be there so I need to dig out my tails and black bow tie – Hmpf! These folks also plan to have a dinner for us. So cook Miriam may have a night off. They had hoped to ride further than this 40 miles but the events seemed valuable and the 18 seem eager for us to join them.
By the time the bikers hit the road it was showering gently.
I was amazed to find a wireless network here in the boonies where we had no Verizon service. Ed had service.