STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 21685: Migrating Toward Menasha

November 25, 2006 on 9:42 pm | In On The Road |

Thanksgiving:
Today will be a short day. I only have 5.25 hours available. I left Sayre at 0900. I drove to the TA truckstop in Harborcreek, PA. With nothing but time on my hands, I took a long break here for my Thanksgiving feast. About 1330 I went in to eat. They served it buffet style. I was pleased to find real carved turkey instead of that “processed turkey-like substance” that buffets often try to pass off as turkey. In addition, they had roast beef, ham, and stuffed chicken breasts. They had potatoes au gratin, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and steamed red potatoes, and of course stuffing and cranberry sauce. They also had the normal variety of vegetables, salads, etc including something I had never tried before; creamed green beans. They were OK, but I prefer creamed peas, or my delicious sour cream green beans. They had pumpkin pie and apple pie for desert. Drat, no mincemeat, but the apple was pretty good. I don’t eat pumpkin.  I ate for a solid hour. About 1530, I left (before the tryptophan stupor set in) and drove to the Middle Ridge Service Plaza on the Ohio Turnpike where I ran out of hours. It was like a ‘ghost town’. Not that I cared, but the only restaurant open was Burger King

Friday, Nov 24th:
I arose with the sun, or what would have been sun if it weren’t foggy. Although it doesn’t look like it, this, and it’s companion Plaza (Vermillion Valley) directly across the turnpike, are the best Service Plazas on any Turnpike. They provide free showers for truckers and have both a smoking and non-smoking TV lounge.

I took advantage of the shower and had breakfast at the Panera Sandwich Shop before leaving. I drove directly to the consignee in Livonia, MI. It was a live unload, so I spotted my trailer, and settled in. It took about an hour to be unloaded. During my wait, I recieved and accepted a load which picked up in Napoleon, OH and delivered in Tomah, WI. Before I left, I snapped these pictures of a few geese taking a break on their trek south.

About noon, I drove to the shipper Napoleon. I stopped en route for fuel and lunch at the TA truckstop in Monroe, MI. I arrived in Napoleon at 1600, and did the drop/hook pick up. I then drove to Gary, IN where my 14-hour clock ran out.

Saturday:
I left Gary at 0800 and drove to the consignee in Tomah. This was a drop/hook delivery, so it went quickly, but I had to wait an hour for a PrePlan. It picked up in Green Bay, WI and delivered in Laredo, TX, but I was scheduled to T-Call it at our terminal in Edwardsville, KS and pick up a load there going to Las Vegas (another “stacked” PrePlan). At 1600, I left Tomah and drove to Green Bay. I did the drop/hook pick up and then drove to our terminal in Menasha, WI for fuel. After I fueled, I decided to just stay here for the night.