The Ten Legged Tortoise

Don’t worry . . . toxic waste didn’t spill into the marine biology exhibit at Sea World mutating the turtles. It’s just what I think of myself, cruising the highways of the southwest in my motorhome, towing my Jeep behind. See, there are 10 wheels (legs) on the ground and, well tortoises are those amazing creatures that have the freedom to move about their environment bringing their shelter with them. So we’ve got nearly 700 miles under the treads since we left the Grand Canyon State. By far the hardest leg of our journey was the first one. Leigh and I (but not Kaia thankfully) became sick over the weekend; time I had planned on using to get ready for the trip. Our tasks were reduced to taking care of the baby and sleeping. Monday morning I awoke determined to leave. Still groggy and aching, we managed to pack all of the essentials and tidy up the house before climbing the hill towards Flagstaff. As a coincidence, Monday’s weather was scheduled for record highs, and I didn’t realize until we were in Albuquerque that the combination of 113º heat and running the onboard AC all morning had cooked one of the electrical connections allowing the RV to draw power at campsites. Luckily the generator took care of our power needs. Once we made camp and the baby went down after a generous helping of Mom’s Wonderful Milk, all was peaceful.

Tuesday I awoke early and almost felt whole again, whereas Leigh seemed to be feeling worse. Today’s itinerary was one of the easiest on this leg of our journey, with a short 4 ½ hour trip to Amarillo, Texas. I called ahead to a service center with my problem and they scheduled me for a spot that afternoon. We forged on eastward, enjoying a generous tailwind and the company of a few Swift Semi’s. I went to high school with the Swift owners' kids and the company is based out of Phoenix, so it didn’t make me feel so far from home when I’d tail one of their rigs. We made good time to Amarillo and pulled the whole flying circus into the Custom RV shop. JP introduced himself to all the mechanics and shop employees where we left him while the rest of us (two leggers) unhitched the Jeep and had a hot Cracker Barrel dinner. An hour and only 60 bucks later and my minor electrical problem was good as new. We made camp before sunset and had some time to call the family members waiting our arrival and checking our progress. I’ve even managed to find a few moments to jot down some info in my blog!

So now you can tell all your friends that you’ve seen a ten legged tortoise!

Learn all about Real Tortoises. Take one look at the photo gallery and tell me you too don't love turtles!

Learn all about the State Nicknames