Carol & Warner's Trip Around The USA: Thursday May 5, 2011

Note our loyal followers: We will not be near easily accessible wireless connections for awhile so I can't guarantee regular blog posts. I will be creating them but may not be able to post them immediately.

Thursday, May 5, 2011.

We bid Memphis goodbye and our giant motel room ( 40’ x 12’) just down the street from the high school and got back on I-40 for Clinton, Oklahoma. We crossed the border into Arkansas and were sailing along enjoying the scenery and the result of the 100 year flood when we encountered a detour at Brinkley, Arkansas. Arrrrggghhh!

We got off and were directed to Route 17 along with every trailer truck in the state of Arkansas. All went well until we came to a right or left turn! Some turned right and some turned left. We followed a trailer truck left and soon came upon a long line of trailer trucks attempting to turn around on a two lane road. Think about that!!

We did a quick “u” turn and went back the other way following Route 17 – this was the correct choice. We passed though Cotton Plant Arkansas – a truly depressed and nearly abandoned town. Ultimately we came another intersection requiring a right or left turn. Arrrrggghh again! Traffic was stopped dead! The road before us was clogged with stopped trucks as far as the eye could see. We sat patiently and eventually the line began to move. We joined in and sped along until we stopped again and waited and then sped along and stopped so on and so on past raging rivers and flooded fields, houses and trailers under water and a well-sand bagged church.

We came at last, after at least 2 hours, to a four lane highway that led to Little Rock Arkansas- the very place we were headed when the detour interfered. This little jaunt added 3 hours to our trip!

The ride to the Arkansas border was uneventful and quite pleasant. We crossed the Oklahoma border stopping for gas at Ed’s Truck Stop in Salisaw, Ok. Ed is an opportunist!! We paid $3.99 a gallon for gas assuming that would be the norm in Oklahoma. Wrong!! During the entire trip thus far we have not paid more than $3.79 per gallon gas! Stay away from Ed.

The day turned out to be the longest yet – 11 hours - but we learned a lot:

Oklahoma has the worst roads in the country,

Cotton Plant, Arkansas is truly depressed.

Stay away from Ed.

We got through Arkansas and Tennessee before the Mississippi crested.

This a rich and varied country to drive through and we are both having a wonderful time.

We reached Clinton, OK just at dark - weary and hungry.