2016 Trip to the Maritimes. Final Leg. Journey back home.

Time to turn this big boy toward home.
Our plans were to stop in Decatur, Indiana for some scheduled warranty work at the Fleetwood factory and then our plans are to hit Kansas City, Missouri for some ribs.  Need to watch out for tornados in Missouri and Kansas. 

This will be the first time we have visited these two states.....had to abort other planned visits due to tornados.  So if we can visit them, we will only have one more state in the lower 48 to visit; North Dakota.


 

It is odd to be without our other two rigs and buddies of 2 months.  No need to talk about stops, routes, etc. We are all by ourselves again...very quiet.

Lots of rain in Pennsylvania and other states,  thunderstorms really.  Every state from Massachusetts to Indiana had rain and lots of it.  Green grass and lots of rivers.  Wish California could get some of this. Walt was kept busy washing the rig and truck.

We made it to Decatur on time for our scheduled repairs. We have some roof leaks and all this rain is helping us to know if their work is complete. 

Got our closest experience yet with tornados in Decatur.  The probability for a tornado was only 1 on a scale of 5. 

However, we still drove to the storm cellar in town to locate the quickest route and got Smoke's travel carrier out and ready. 

Boy was that good planning. 

In the afternoon suddenly all "hell" broke loose.  The tornado and the NOAA alerts on the phones went off and the local TV station showed a series of tornados headed our way.  For the next two hours we watched as they traveled just north and south of us.  By the way, both apps are free and you should have them on your phones if you travel in the Midwest.

We were in Decatur. Red boxes are two tornados north and south of us

What a relief.  This area of Indiana had more tornados that day then they usually have in a year.  Great to have such fun!!!

So with that fun behind us, we are now headed to check out St. Louis, Kansas City and Oklahoma City on our way to catch Interstate 40 toward Lake Havasu.

Hot, Rain, Hot, Rain!!!   Oh, and Humid.  How do they live here???  At least no tornados!!

We went to the St. Louis arch and rode the little thingy up to the top. It is like riding in a coffin.  Quite a good view from the top though.


Pod for 5!!!

Walt in the pod...is that a halo?



St Louis Arch is the tallest monument in USA
 

This is the Cardinal's Stadium from top of arch

We also took the Budweiser tour.  The tour includes a tour of the horse stables where you can see them grooming the big guys.  Of course, beer tasting too.  The brewing room is fantastic.  It was built in 1891 and has large chandlers that hang down in the foyer for several stories.

Budweiser Brew House

Headed on to Kansas City and had to have the ribs at Joe's KC Bar b Que.  Yummy!!!

We also went to the World War One museum in Kansas City.  We didn't know that much about this war and found this museum very informative.  Go there if you get a chance.

Oklahoma City was uneventful weather wise.  We were parked a couple yards down from this ominous object.

Know what it is???  Looks more like a crypt than a shelter.

Note the sign, no animals allowed.  We planned on putting Smoke under our raincoat and look really fat.

Oops, our leak is back.  Change of plans.  Now headed up to the service center in Oregon to get it checked and fixed while on warranty for 90 days.  Whats another 1200 miles???  It could be just some residual water that was trapped in the roof before the repairs, but why take a chance?   Good excuse to see my sister in Salem, Oregon!

Oh well, going to miss a stop in Havasu and a boat ride!!!

Texas, New Mexico and Nevada uneventful and we got every thing fixed in Oregon Visit with my sister a bonus. 

Home on September 18th.  Three and 1/2 months, 10650 miles.  1163 gallons of diesel.  Averaged 8.1 mpg.  Not bad for a house on wheels!!

22 states (3 new ones) and 5 Provinces this trip
Where to Next?

Great trip.  Home is nice too. Weather is REALLY NICE!!!