Traveling Interstate 5

by Dave Burns on September 8, 2012

I have a love-hate relationship with interstates. On the positive, they generally make for quick and efficient traveling. However, the user experience sucks. Kelly has it about right when she says that interstates look the same in every state.

Boring.

In the world of interstates, consistency of franchise seems to be the objective. Keep it simple, make it easy, and keep people moving quickly along on their way. It really doesn’t matter if you are seeking gas stations, truck stops, fast food, or some other ‘chain’ retailer, you’ll find them all sprinkled across the interstates.

Our trip this week contained a lot of interstate miles along I-5. Anyone traveling north or south through California, Oregon, and Washington will surely be familiar with I-5.

As boring as the interstate drive was, I-5 did have practical considerations. Today, along with gas, fresh water and (Kelly’s) beef jerky, I took advantage of an RV truck wash. Both the Airstream and truck needed a bath.

The 30-minute wait queue was longer than I would have preferred, but was worth the wait. I must say that our truck and trailer combo was freshly washed and looking much better. This picture was the only one I could secure before the guy below (politely) informed me that there are no cameras allowed.

Perhaps he was grumpy that I did not accept his offer to upgrade the wash to include liquid wax and rain protectant.

Bathtime

Before long we were back on the road and once again underwhelmed with I-5. Kelly must have noticed I was getting tired (I do all the driving) and before I knew it, she found a cheap overnight option with full hook-ups at the Woodland County Fairgrounds just outside Davis, CA. This place is definitely no gem, but at just $20, the price is right. Temperatures remain in the 90’s and we appreciate the 30-Amp power and it’s ability to run our air conditioning.

As Kelly called ahead to secure a spot, she was told that prison inmates would be in the nearby campsites. It didn’t immediately occur to me that the abundance of California wildfires require extra support to help with containment efforts. Inmates to the rescue.

We arrived in time to witness a shift change. Following a long day on the job, everyone seemed to be anxious to grab some dinner, including these guys below.

I was not aware that serving jail-time qualifies one for fire-line duty. One of the firefighters told us that these inmates mainly help with backbreaking manual efforts like digging ditches and hauling gear. It’s crazy hot around here and I imagine these inmates must be hot as hell in their sweet orange jumpsuits. At least they are out of their jail cells.

Non-violent prisoners walk to the mess hall

Unlike mine, I doubt their dinner included a cold beer.

Speaking of dinner, we had barbecue at a place called Ludy’s Man Street BBQ, which was decent, but not great. It’s never a good thing when the decor of a restaurant is more interesting than the food itself. In this case, the decor being a confusing hybrid of southern country motif intermixed with way too much random kitsch. Envision the ornamentation of TGIFriday gone crazy. Yes, TGIFriday gone crazy.

The outdoor patio at Ludy’s Main Street BBQ

As for our part, Kelly and I were a bit under-dressed … no fancy cowboy boots or 20 gallon hats to don. Our flip-flop sandals didn’t quite cut it tonight. We’re such tourists.

However, I think I might have redeemed myself (only slightly) with my theme inspired cowboy boot beer mug. Never-mind that I was drinking surfer-dude Longboard Lager. If only they had a surfboard mug.