June 7, 2020 Truck Mileage 55,212. Packed to the gills (again...bringing treasures to Zoe's new home), the stars align and we are able to get on the road to what was supposed to be an RV trip to Alaska with John's cousin Kevin and several other RV friends. With US/Canada boarder still closed, the Alaska trip is cancelled but we will pursue the front the part of the trip as originally planned.
Aligning stars meant that the (1) states along our route were open to out-of-staters, (2) covid cases were falling, (3) after another very public murder by police of an unarmed black man (George Floyd) in Minneapolis; riots, burning and looting were mainly limited to large cities which we could avoid if necessary, (4) the RV repair shop opened on June 1 so we could leave the RV there on May 25 to decontaminate for 5 days before they would work on it to patch the leaking roof and do some routine maintenance, and (5) we felt we could travel safely without infecting ourselves or the others we were meeting along the way by wearing masks, consuming bottles of sanitizer and clorox wipes, and social distancing (6 feet plus).
After years and 10's of thousands of miles on the RV crossing US numerous times, we now enjoy the stress free freedom of driving till we're tired knowing that there are many commercial retailers/restaurants who welcome RVs to overnight in their parking lots. Good thing because most campgrounds are still closed unless you have a season contract. COVID lock down around the world has caused a massive drop in demand for oil/fuel as businesses are closed and people are not driving. Found diesel as low as $1.99. Real good news is that the world wide air pollution has also dropped dramatically.
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| Chicago Sign ..... #StayHomeSavesLives |
First time that the GPS took us right through Chicago on I90. Like NYC, a good time to see the city with less smog and traffic. The world is stressed out from Covid and additionally in the US from our idiot President's antics, with some people looking for an excuse to blow off steam. Demonstrations and riots around the world supporting BLACK LIVES MATTER may hopefully bring change this time, especially in police departments which have militarized. There is serious talk about banning choke holds and de-funding Police Departments as way of getting rid of the Police Unions which protect police behavior no matter how bad.
June 8 Drive for 10 hours to try to get ahead of tropical storm Cristobal which is also heading toward Minnesota from the Gulf of Mexico. Expecting lots of rain and wind. 600 miles today is a very long day but adrenaline and some great night of sleep on the road has us up to the task. Along the way we stop to visit John's high school buddy, Melissa's husband in Red Wing, MN. So sad that she passed away unexpectedly about a year ago.
June 10 Arrive at Baker Regional Park Maple Plains MN about half hour from Aunt Joanne. We love this park!!!! Only campers are allowed, no guests, so we move what is left of the Hanley reunion to Aunt Joanne's lawn. Cousin Kevin Hanley and wife Jamie arrive at campground in their new Airstream and we have a grand time. This was supposed to be our meeting place for the Alaska trip, but not to be this year. John's sister Barbara joins us at Aunt Joanne's for lunch and we enjoy reminiscing as we social distance. The weather couldn't be better.
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| The Hanley's - John, Kevin, Barbara, Joanne |
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