Friday started out like any travel day.  We wanted to get on the road fairly early.  I had the car on the dolly and ready to go on Thursday while all the wild wind was happening.  So I was doing my regular pre-trip routine of checking air pressure in the tires on the Motorhome and dolly.  When I checked the right outside rear tire the valve stuck open.  OH Crap!!  I fiddled with it to try to get it to seal but it was no good.  My mind went back to our trip last September when we had the same thing happen while we were staying at a winery overnight.  $$$$$ signs flashed before my eyes as I remembered that situation.  But there was no stopping the escape of air.  I remembered the tech guy at that time had removed the core and got a new one in before we lost all air and then all he had to do was fill the tire with air and we were good to go.  Ok,  I can do that.  I had bought some valve cores at a Walmart earlier just in case.  I removed the core and the air came gushing out.  I tried as I might to put that new core in but I wasn’t successful.  There was just too much air coming out.  So I waited until the pressure in the tire dropped enough and then got the new core in.  Needless to say there wasn’t much air left in the tire.  Now here’s a dilemma; tire fixed, still flat.  The thing is I drive a diesel pusher with a built in air compressor for the air brakes and air bags.  I just have to get that air in the tire.  Fortunately I had bought 2 lengths of air hose at Walmart and Harbour Freight in the past couple of months.  And on the from the coach is a schrader valve tied to the coach air system.  When I was at the Arizona Market Place a few weeks ago I found a fitting that would lock my air hose to the schrader valve.  Time to give it a try.  I had to add a couple fittings to the air hoses and then got it hooked up to the coach.  Kim helped me stretch the hose (the 2 hoses were 25′ each but were of the coiled variety and barely reached 25′ combined back to the tire) and voila it worked.  Within just a few minutes the tire was full again.  Yayyyy.  I have to tell you, I was a little stressed.  Back in September I had to call a Mobile Truck Tire Service to come and it cost around $500 CDN for the call.  This time the parts cost me about $30 and I was good.  If you own a Diesel Pusher you need to check into how this could work for you.  Some coaches are already equipped to do this and others need to have a connection installed but if you avoid one service call you’re way ahead of the game.

So we continued to get ready to get on the road and made a stop in Yuma at a tire service store.  I had them install a new valve stem on this tire.  This was the same tire that I had the problem with in September.   They got me in right away and I was on the road in about an hour.  They cleaned and remounted the tire with new balance beads and valve stem and the cost was about $72 US.  I was happier.

We got a late start but we did manage to drive to Benson, Arizona that day and stopped at the Walmart overnight.  This was a good overnight but we did hear a few sirens.  There were signs posted for no overnight parking but according to my Allstays App it wasn’t enforced and we had no problems.

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On Saturday we got on the road fairly early and headed further east.  Coming across New Mexico we were driving into a strong headwind with off and on rain and the temperature had dropped significantly.  I stopped in Deming, New Mexico for fuel at the Flying J and it was cold.  The wind was blowing and the rain was falling and the temp was 5C.  I was out there pumping diesel in shorts and a tee shirt.  The locals must have thought I was crazy.  And did I mention it was cold?  As we continued on the road we noticed snow in the fields beside the road.  It wasn’t a lot but wes enough to cover the ground.  Not exactly what you would expect in southern New Mexico.  We drove to El Paso, Texas that day and stopped at the Walmart overnight.  This is a nice Walmart but it was a Saturday night and it must have been drag night because the cars were racing up and down the street until quite late.  There was also a Fire Hall nearby too because we heard a lot of sirens during the night too.  We stayed here on the way west and then it was actually a nice quiet stay.

Sunday on the road again.  Was a nice morning for a drive.  Our intention was to stop in Big Springs to go to an Air Force Museum there but we discovered that it is closed on Sundays so we continued on.  We drove from there to Sweetwater, Texas.  We stopped at a… can you guess?  A Walmart.  This was a nice parking area and we had stopped here also on the way west.  We had a good spot and there were a few RV’s around us.  As it became dusk a fellow in a Diesel Pickup pulling a trailer of fabricated steel pulled in amoung us and parked.  No problem you might think, but this guy slept in his truck over night and left it running alllll nighttttt.  It was not a good night’s sleep for me.  If I got 4 hours that would be stretching it.  I thought a few times about getting up and moving but didn’t.  

When we got up Monday morning we went to the gas station in the Walmart lot to get fuel.  When we pulled in on Sunday we were getting near empty.  The price on diesel was really cheap.  The only problems was the pumps weren’t working properly.  I spent about 20 minutes getting 14 gallons.  Well that was enough to get me on the road and I knew there was a Flying J up the road about 30 miles.  So on we went.  When we arrived at the Flying J we noticed that our friends George and Sue were still there (they had spent the night in their parking area).  While I fueled up Kim strolled over to their RV to surprise them.  They actually were quite surprised.  After fueling I pulled the Motorhome over beside theirs and we chatted for a bit.  We ended up going into Denny’s together for coffee and chatting before we parted ways and headed off in separate directions.  We’ve spent the last few days lagging behind George and Sue on the road east but we finally caught up at the Flying J.  Very nice to see them again. 

So we continue on east with a destination of my cousin Wes Wilson’s place.  He and his neighbour friend Steve arranged for us to park at the local Fire Station overnight.  It seems Steve has connections.  He’s actually a volunteer firefighter at that station.  We certainly appreciated his hospitality and that of the Fire Department.  We got the car unhooked, so to speak, and headed over to Wes’s house for the afternoon and evening.  We had a great time as usual visiting with Wes.  He had invited Steve to join us but he had a Firefighters meeting to attend to that night.  So early in the evening Kim, Wes and I are sitting on Wes’s front porch having our “tea”.  Steve pulls in the driveway.  Meeting was adjourned early.  It seems the Fire Chief’s cows had got out and were wandering the roads.  He was looking for volunteers to help him round them up.  Actually that’s not really a problem. folks down here are always willing to help their neighbours. Steve though, decided to come over for a vist instead.  Steve is a great guy and we were happy to have him join us.  There were lots of stories and lots of laughter too. The night was getting late so Kim and I said good bye to Wes and headed back to the motorhome.

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Tuesday morning arrived and we got the car on the dolly and headed off.  Our destination was either Shreveport, Louisiana, or if we were up for it, we would drive a little further to Alexandria, Louisiana.  We made it to Alexandria and pulled in a Walmart for the night.  Nice big Walmart and very large parking lot.  We picked a nice spot far from the store and parked.  We had a few other Rv’s join during the afternoon and evening and it was a pleasant stay.  I slept very well. 

Wednesday our travels brought us to Pass Christian, Mississippi.  On the way through the more eastern part of I-10 you travel about 19 miles on a raised causeway over the bayou. A really nice ride and the views are beautiful.

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We’re staying at Wolf River RV Resort for the next 7 days.  It’s a nice clean campground.  Nothing fancy, but the sites are level and the hookups are good.  We’re about 20 minutes to Biloxi and a little over a hour to New Orleans.  It was easy access from I-10 and a few miles away so there isn’t much noise around.  This is an AOR (Adventure Outdoor Resorts) campground, so because of our membership at Rock Glen Resort in Arkona, Ontario our cost is $9 US per night.  Pretty cheap camping.  The weather here for the next week is going to be 20C + each day and lots of sun. We’re going to use these next few days to relax and spend time at the beach.  The beaches along the gulf coast are very nice.  They are very wide and its nice white sand.  We also plan on taking a trip into New Orleans at some point.

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And now you’re caught up again. We’ll soon be making our way back north to Ontario. Not yet though; we’re holding off as long as possible. Hope you enjoyed the post and I’ll update you again soon.