Hite the road around 10 or so Took Interstate 81 South for a bit, and passed a BP Petro truck stop. So I turned around at the next exit and went back. They had all sorts of trucking accessories, and I longed for my CB to be working better. I decided to replace the antenna, because the radio shack CB antenna I had seemed like a piece of crap. So I bought a new mount, which used a 3/8 threaded stud. I was able to remove the old antenna mount, but unfortunately I need a 1/2" mounting hole for proper insulation, and only have a 3/8" hole drilled. The stud fits through the hole, barey, and probably shorts through the trunk. I then bought some brush-on electric tape, which is pretty cool stuff, I've never seen it before. I painted the stud threads where the trunk would be, to try to insulate it better. I then bought an extra $100 of stuff, such as a cable, antenna, SWR meter, and attempted to put the unit together. I accidentally bought a co-phase cable, which is for dual antennas, instead of a single-phase cable. Luckily they let me return it. Tested the unit out, and barely heard squat on Channel 19. Maybe it was a lack of truckers? Anyhow, I decided I had enough CB hacking for today (about two hours worth!), and I'd deal with it later. I have a Cobra 25 LTD WX CB which I also bought on Ebay, for the curious.
Hit the road again, and took 81S to 77N, which led into West Virginia. I was looking for a place to get a cold beverage, and circled through Bluefield a bit, but didn't find squat. So, I decided to keep on trucking. I wanted to try to get to Kentucky on my way down south, and route 52 headed right there (well, right there in an indirect winding way). Heading to 52N took me through Bluefield once more. When I finally got to Rt. 52, it offered a nice scenic drive through rural and semi-rural areas off and on.
One of the first things you can notice about a place not your home is the
difference in landscapes. When me n' Rox drove down near here many years
ago, I thought about that thought, manifested in these little shrubs that
dot the grassy hills. I remembered this again as I drove through this
same area. Here's a pimply-covered hill.
I stopped for lunch in a quaint town called Northfork, in maybe the only restaurant in town. They prided themselves on their DemonBurgers, which were named after the Blue Demons local football team. Such state spirit. In the restaurant, I witnessed a real life Boomhower (ie, the guy from King of the Hill). He talked by vocalizing one big run-on sentence, jumping from idea to idea, rarely finishing the enunciation of individual words. I had to force myself not to crack up as he kept up the mumble for nearly 60 seconds, of which I caught maybe 10% of his words. Besides that, the waittresses were very friendly, and I felt very relaxed. Here's a shot of the restaurant, and surrounding wooded hillsides.
I took off after lunch, and followed 52 for over an hour. I passed many a hardware store and lumberyard, and came to the conclusion that this area, full of decorated trailer homes and small depleted houses, is full of home-improvement types, who seemingly want to build and furnish the dream house themselves. Does the lack of fine architecture indicate a difference in taste between them and me, or a misunderstanding of goals, or merely a lack of self motivation to build their dream home?
I stopped at a pricy gas station ($1.69, the highest I've seen today) to get some gas, but more importantly see if I could get a mechanic to drill out my trunk hole to the 1/2" diameter for the CB antenna mount. I realized how pricy the gas station was after I was already pumping. Bought $10, just to give them something in return for drilling out the hole, and talked to a curly-haired blond chap who told me he didn't have a large-enough drill bit. He also mentioned that I'd need a mounting plate, to give the antenna more sturdy support, as my trip metal dips and sways as the heavy antenna moves about. I noticed that as I was talking to the mechanic, I went over my $10 prepaid amount, so I stopped it at $15, and paid the cashier another $5. So much for the pumps that stop themselves when you hit your limit.
Then 52 hit Williamson, another quaint town, which seems like some leftover mining town that was bustling many decades ago. Went to the bathroom at the local pizza place, "Little Venice" I think, and offered to buy something, but they didn't have single slices of pizza, so I left. Walked around a bit, admiring the old-style. Here's a nice shot of downtown Williamson, around sunset.
Passed an interesting building which had two cat-women painted on the doorway. Also saw Homer Simpson's catch phrase pounded into metal plates scattered around the town. "DOH". Walked around a bit more, then hit the road for Kentucky (after buying a fifth of Jack Daniels, of course).
Took Rt. 119 South for awhile, and passed where there'd be a fireworks show for the night (along with MANY fireworks vendors). I contemplated watching the show, but it was already getting dark, and I had no idea where to camp, and the show wouldn't start for a few more hours, so I hit the road again. On 119, my CB surprised the hell out of me by sounding the NOAA warning. Fumbling with the knobs (the CB was off) I got a NOAA channel in crystal clear, And the antenna wasn't even on! (I had removed the antenna earlier, so as not to fatigue the metal of the trunk). Hit a gas station, where a local told me about a campgrounds about 10 miles away.
Got there on some real back roads, and it's a nice (Free? I didn't see anywhere to pay) public campgrounds near a lake. Fishpond Lake, to be exact. There's another one for the Dept. of Redundancy Department. Lots of tents were already set up, and I set up in some free space. Some of my camping neighbors were Kentucky locals, and were very friendly, offering me to cook weenies and marshmallows by their campfire. They were noticably more friendly than my camping neighbors last night at the Virginia Buena Vista campgrounds. Here's a picture of the campgrounds, showing my tent alongside my car, as taken the next morning.
It started to pour in the middle of the night, I was glad I had the rain fly on. Thunder and lightning started to strike, and it was actually comforting to know that there were other people camped out around me.
| Location | Fishpond Lake in Payne Gap, KY |
| Odometer | 129,503.3 Miles Total 749.6 Miles On Trip 336.7 Miles Today |
| Coordinates | 37° 09.957' N 82° 40.371' W |