OTR - Ogallala, NE to Buena Vista, CO

 I watched my second sunrise OTR, as we were crossing the second half of the great state of Nebraska!  Some snow still on the ground, but not as much as I would have expected.  It was perfect traveling weather.  Only stopping for necessary breaks, we were making good time.  Butch was scheduled to reach the Tractor Supply in Buena Vista Tuesday morning at 4 a.m.  He would have another 330-miles to accomplish this in his eight-hour drive time. (Big Red's top speed is set at 65-mph. for safety.)

It was dark again by the time we were traveling through Denver.  Thankfully, we'd missed the heaviest traffic.  The transitions between highway & the many overpasses though - were Awful!  With a 40,000 load, the bumps were incredible!  Our floating seats were bottoming out!  So hard & so many of them, all we could do was hope the Tractor Supply people had packaged our load in bubble wrap!  

Soon, we passed Morrison & began the climb up the mountain on Hwy 285.  The higher we climbed; the more snow was on the ground.  It was pitch black, the road was dry most of the time, but treacherous in spots to say the least.  Butch was driving a 80+ foot long tractor/trailer, bigger than some houses!  I was sad not to be able to see the scenery, but glad I couldn't see the drop-offs!  :-)

Tractor Supply, Buena Vista, CO

We pulled into the dark Tractor Supply right on time!  No one was around.   Butch checked with dispatch to find the crew would arrive an hour later, at 5 a.m.  I went to lay on the bed, motion sick from the twisty roads & exhausted from the lack of sleep.  Butch went out to do a reconnaissance of the area.  The parking area behind the building was very small & tight.  The loading dock, if you can call it that, was a moveable one & was stuck in the snow. 

Nika's preferred spot - when the roads were smooth~

When the crew arrived, Butch was asked if he could back into the dock hard enough to break it lose.  He drove forward, then put Big Red into reverse & WHAM!  The trailer bumper slammed into the dock.  This maneuver had to be repeated several times.  Each time, I got sicker & sicker.  Soon, it was free & Butch had expertly put the rear of the trailer where it needed to be for the offload. 

8:03 a.m. Parked for our ten-hour break~

A while later, we were moving forward & then we stopped!  I asked if we were stopped for a "while?  The answer was; "Yes!  For the next several hours!"  Butch had found a nice spot behind the small Love's.  It was bitter cold with a wind, but when I looked out - WOW was the only word I could think of!  

Revived!

In the days before soaring fuel costs, a driver could find a place to park the trailer & take the semi bobtailing around to site see.  No longer.  Once you're parked, that's where you stay, until dispatched to the next destination.

Butch & Big Red~

We were both actually hungry & had time to fix a meal & take some walks!  Butch pulled out his George Foreman grill & cooked us some wonderful Waubonsie Beef Pineapple Brauts!  Yum!

Nika takes me for a walk!

After lunch & our walk, it was time for bed, again in daylight.  It was nice & quiet, the quietest "sleep time" we'd had so far.

5:30 p.m. Butch & Nika, the OTR Buhund!

Soon, it was 5 p.m. & time for us to hit the road.  At least on the trip out, there would be enough daylight for us to enjoy the views.

6:08 p.m. Heading back toward Denver~

Our dispatch would take us to Sterling to drop the empty trailer we had & pick up another load, going to Joliet, IL.  This would bring us right back across Nebraska & through Omaha & Council Bluffs.  I made the decision to go home.  It was only Tuesday evening & I felt like I'd been out for days.

Arriving in Sterling on time, the train was blocking the only entrance to the dirt lot that held the trailers.  Butch finally found the correct trailer, with paperwork attached.  He backed up to it, to find it had been left jacked so high in the air there was no way to pick it up.  He had to manually lower a trailer with a 40,000 lb. load of pinto beans.  Once connected, we again had to wait for the train & drove out of the lot.  Now, the new GPS decided to lose its mind.  When we'd circumnavigated several blocks to arrive back where we'd started, we figured this out.  Just as we pulled over to see what was up, the dash lights went dark.  Butch shut down the engine, waited, started it again, still no lights.  

We could see the lot, so drove back in.  Butch got out, checked the pigtail to the trailer, added a seal to tighten it all up & tried the engine again.  This time - success!  We had dash lights!  I pulled out my phone & Google Maps.  Following those directions, we were soon back on Interstate 76 heading east.  Neither of us wanted to stay in Sterling for our rest break.  I remembered the nice rest area at Julesburg.  We pulled in there, with minutes left on Butch's drive clock.

Next - return to Council Bluffs~