The Rig is Fixed, Heading South

 

We took our rig in on Monday and it was fixed, as promised by Friday. The Heartland Customer service people explained all they had done to make the necessary welds and basically said they had rebuilt the front end to 2013 standards!

They had also fixed numerous other problems and it still seems like we keep finding things they fixed! So our hats are off to the outstanding job done by the Heartland Customer Service Center. Thanks to John H, Eric and the others techs responsible for the job well done, (oh and lest I forget thanks to David H for setting it all up)! Heartland treated us as a company should and stood behind their product, even though our warranty had expired.

So we reloaded the rig, resupplied the larder and refrigerator, and hooked up for a Sunday drive. The plan was to push it for three hundred and fifty miles, clear south to Cave City, Kentucky. Now we had already visited Mammoth Cave so other then enjoying the sights of beautiful state of Kentucky, we continued south to Tennessee. Crossing the state line we entered Louisville, where our gps took us on a strange loop of about five extra miles. It even took us back to the original starting exit/entrance.

Nashville, greeted us with heavy fog warnings, but we were able to drive through them and could actually see a little bit of the city. Turning west on Interstate Forty, a Natchez Trace Parkway sign quickly caused us to change our route as we decided to drive down the parkway.

Renita got behind the wheel and drove along the trace. The speed limit on it is fifty miles per hour, but with no trucks and little traffic she drove slower so I could enjoy the view. Notice I said I could enjoy the view as she had to really concentrate to keep the wheels on the narrow road, (It reminded us a lot of some of the interior Alaskan roads and Cassier Highway, both narrow roads with no shoulders).

The falls colors were not yet in their peak, but it really didn’t matter as it was a pleasant day driving the Natchez Trace, (If you ever get a chance follow the spring flowers north along the Trace). Turning off the parkway I took the wheel and drove the rest of the way to the Pickwick Dam Campground. There we found a beautiful, large campground, with long and level sites, spaced among towering Southern Pines.

To top it all off, it’s a Tennessee Valley Authority campground and it only costs eleven dollars a night with my senior pass, (first time I have been able to use it for camping). The campground is located on the Tennessee River and is just below the Shiloh National Park, which we plan on visiting tomorrow. Clear skies.