Uh? How is that so? Well, allow me to explain.
It has been about two weeks since my last blog update. In each of those two weeks, I had two car deliveries, which has upped my yearly total to 31!
Yes it was a busy two weeks Back to the desert, down to south Florida, crossing the Mississippi river and riding Greyhound. Yes, sometimes riding the bus is necessary.
A map of the four drives:
(A note for new readers. Point A indicates the starting point, Point B is the destination point. Point B in north GA was destination for two of the four drives)
The whirlwind began on 24 July, when I needed to be in downtown Pooler GA. From my home area , just northeast of Atlanta, the cheapest, most effective way to get to Pooler is riding a Greyhound. It is a little more than a four hour trip, non stop. The original plan was to ride the bus into Savannah, then Uber to Pooler, then hole up for the night, since I would be getting into town too late to pick up the vehicle from the company. My point of contact for the company volunteered to stay late at work and this allowed me to pick up the vehicle and start the delivering part of my journey. Also, part of the original plan was to deliver the vehicle to Tampa FL, but that was changed and I brought the jeep back up to Calhoun GA (north GA).
I managed to get in a couple of hours off driving on the evening of the 24th, stopping for the night in Metter GA. A small town just off I-16 in the southeast part of the state. The following day, I finished off my drive to Calhoun.
I was back home for about 40 hours (long enough to mow the lawn and clean the pool) and I was back on the road.
July 27th, I caught an early morning flight to Salt Lake City UT (SLC). It was not a direct flight as I had a connection in Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW). A delay in DFW of about an hour (great weather, not sure why the delay) sort of hampered my driving plans but fortunately not by much. I reached the vehicle I was picking up around 2pm SLC time (mountain time) and by 2:20pm was on the road to Scottsdale AZ (suburb of Phoenix). Just ahead of rush hour!
I managed to get in about four and half hours of driving time (total trip was estimated at just over ten hours) and I made my first stop of the trip, Kanab UT. It was a beautiful drive going down I-15S out of SLC and taking country road 89. This route takes you through multiple national parks which offer stunning views. Kanab was rated one of the top towns to visit by Tripadvisor.com. I opted to stay at the Days Inn & Suites. Nothing fancy but fit the bill for what I needed. They offer a breakfast grab and go, which I passed on. Kanab is also known as “Little Hollywood”. Below is a photograph I took of my hotel, the morning I left.
By early afternoon on the 28th I arrived in the metro Phoenix area. The drive from Kanab to Phoenix is equally stunning, especially when passing through Page AZ. Still using country road 89, all the way into Flagstaff AZ, I jumped on to I-17S into the Phoenix/Scottsdale area.
My brief overnight stay in the metro Phoenix area included an opportunity to visit my brother and his wife and some of her family. That helped make for a great trip.
The following morning, 29th, I delivered the vehicle (pictured below) and returned back home to Atlanta. The returned trip home took a lot longer than hoped as mechanical issues caused delays not only out of Phoenix, but again in DFW. Needless to say, it was a long day.
Because of my late return on the 29th, this time, I had about a 30 hour stay at home before I was back on the road on July 31st.
Finally, after three changes to this proposed trip, I began this journey in the morning of the 31st. The “original plan” (here we go again) was to complete this trip in one day. A small adventure based on mileage, it ended up being an overnighter, with a dramatic change after vehicle delivery.
The trip: Pembroke Park FL to Sarasota FL. Nothing complicated at all. Have actually completed very similar treks in the past.
I flew into Fort Lauderdale and Ubered to the vehicle location. Again,no problems and super smooth. From Pembroke Park, just jumped on I-95N and then cut across south Florida on I-75, aka “Alligator Alley”. Head north on I-75N outside of Naples FL and head on up to Sarasoata.
This is where plans changed some.
I already had another trip planned following the Florida trip, but there was to be a stay at home before I were to head out again. This was all changed on the fly and I ended up going straight to Houston for the next trip following delivery
Anyway, I ended up staying overnight in Sarasota on the 31st. Found a nice, but slightly outdated La Quinta. The hotel didn’t have the best of reviews but I took a chance and found it to be more than adequate, comfy and they offered a pretty good breakfast. The outdoor pool was nice. The hostess at the front desk even let me check in much earlier than the posted times.
The following morning, August 1st, I delivered the vehicle and headed to the Sarasota airport.
At the Sarasota airport, following my brief pass through security, I decided to reach out to my point of contact in Houston, letting him know I was going to be coming into town that afternoon and picking up the vehicle. Well we hit a snag. He explained to me that he was out of town and would not be able to have the vehicle for me until the following morning. Uugh. It looked like I would be stuck in Houston overnight, with no vehicle.
The entire flight to Houston, I was trying to figure out my best plan of action. After running multiple scenarios, I decided I would find a hotel that had an airport shuttle service and showed a restaurant within a walking distance. The following morning I would Uber to the vehicle and begin a very long day of driving. The trip was from Houston to North GA! 800 plus miles. I did hold on to a faint hope that somehow this would all clear up and I would be able to get the vehicle upon arrival into town.
Finally in Houston, I turned my phone back out of airplane mode and hoped to see an email or text with positive news. NOPE. Well time to put my “stuck overnight” plan into action. I reserved a hotel with shuttle service and a nearby place to eat. Since I was in no hurry, I decided to hang out at the airport for a bit and get a bite to eat. While in line to order some grub, my phone rang. I recognized the number as my Houston point of contact’s number. YAY!!!! Great News!! He arranged to have the vehicle brought from his house to the company office and I was able to pick it up immediately!! I canceled my hotel and called for an Uber as fast as I could.
I ended up getting on the road back to north GA about an hour later than I had planned but at least I was on the road back.
I knocked off about 325 miles, coming across I-10E, before stopping for the night at a nice clean MICROTEL INN in the town of Ponchatoula LA. It was late so I didn’t do any real exploring of the town. Apparently it had a nice outdoor pool as it was being used by a couple of families. They offered breakfast but I didn’t take advantage of it as I got up early and hit the road as I had a fairly long day of driving ahead of me.
The next morning, 2nd of August, I headed out early. Couple of hours into the drive, I crossed the Mighty Mississippi for only the second time this year. About six hours later, I pulled into Calhoun GA (aka north GA). As I have mentioned before, plenty of hotel options in Calhoun but I stayed at my usual spot, the SUPER 8. For dinner, I found my way to my favorite Mexican restaurant in town, El Nopal. On the 3rd, I delivered the vehicle and headed back to the Atlanta airport, picked up my own vehicle and returned home, ending a whirlwind four trips over eleven days!
I have a couple more trips booked in the near future. Going back to the Rockies!!!!
I hope you enjoyed and don’t forget, I AM FOR HIRE!!!! lol