OTR - Glenwood, IA to Ogallala, NE ~

 We were up at 0-Dark thirty early Monday morning!  Butch's first words were "It's snowing."  He went out to pre-trip Big Red & warm the tractor up, as I made my tea for the road.

Down our street, 2:30 a.m. 

Once in the truck, there was a message from dispatch asking why we hadn't left yesterday?  Well...  We sure would have, but the dispatch message we'd received on Sat., told us to leave this morning!  We were scheduled to arrive at the Tractor Supply Distribution Center in Waverly, NE by 4 a.m.  Only fifty miles away, with the weather Butch allowed some extra time.  This was the same place he'd dropped the trailer from Joplin on his way home.

3:58 a.m., Arrival at the security gate~

Butch was asked for his identification at the gate.  He parked off to the side & went off the clock.  He was told to go to the office for his paperwork.  There he was given the number of the already loaded trailer we were to pick up.  Butch (still off-the-clock) began creeping (3-miles per hour) to hunt for the trailer.  The big spotlight on the driver's side was very helpful.

4:29 a.m. Success!  

Butch was quick in getting the trailer loaded onto Big Red!  He checked everything twice & we were ready to roll!  Our destination was Buena Vista, CO.  I was excited - it had been years - I won't say how many - since I'd been there.  I remembered it as a stunning beautiful drive over winding mountain roads with sheer drop-offs.

Nika snoozing~

Nika had not been thrilled to have her night's sleep disrupted!  She also wasn't happy to be lifted up into the tractor!  But she'd watched as we'd spent the last two-days loading the sleeper & didn't want us to leave without her!  Once inside, she looked around, happy to see her traveling bed up on ours.  I put her in & she went to sleep.  Good girl!  

The roads were snowy & bridges icy in spots.  Scheduling drive time around pickup & delivery dates & times is a huge challenge.  Trying to figure out where you'll be when your daily clock runs out takes some experience. We'd traveled 335-miles from home by the time we arrived in Ogallala, NE.  Butch wanted to take the trailer through a certified scale before we continued on.  He explained he wanted to know in advance of a weigh station, that the load was within legal limits.  Ours was fine!

6:58 a.m. Onto the scale as the sun rose over the horizon~

Butch's 8-hour drive time for the period was over!  We'd be spending our ten-hour rest time here.  Parking was limited, but Butch backed us into one of the last spaces between two refrigerator trucks. We'd only had a cookie & banana, so decided on trying truck stop food for our lunch.

Once back at the truck, we took Nika out for a walk.  There was a field of corn stubble nearby, with about 2" of frozen snow.  She enjoyed sniffing her way along the rows.  When we returned, if Butch was to get any sleep, it was time for bed.  Nika was totally confused as to why we were going to bed?  I wanted to be on Butch's schedule too. No point in going, if I couldn't be awake to enjoy my husbands company.  With the noise from the refrigerated trailers, sleep was almost impossible, but we did our best.  Butch was due to go back on the clock by 10 p.m.  

We were up before 9 p.m. & visited the bathroom at the truck stop to wash up for the nights drive. I must have looked as rough as I felt.  The lady at the cash register gave me a nice smile & said; "Have a good drive honey."  :-)  Butch did his pre-trip, while Nika & I again went for a walk.

10:05 p.m. On our way again~

Big Red was ready, Butch was at the wheel!  Nika & I got in & we were on our way again!  By now, it seemed like a new day to me.  Our first drive had gone from the darkness of early morning, right through into the bright mid-day sunshine.  Then, we'd gone to bed to sleep during daylight hours.  Now, we were starting our next drive, again in the dark!  So strange to think it was still Monday...

Next - Buena Vista~