AND SO IT BEGINS

We arrived in Salinas, CA yesterday mid morning, got the trailer washed out, and then dropped it at Fresh Express.  I could already see two of our trailers in the dock, and that told me that we would most likely be getting a dispatch later in the day.  The Pilot was packed, so much so, that we couldn't even find a small spot to park bob tailed, so we went across the street, parked and tried to get some sleep.  We got about 4 hours when the QualComm came a calling.

We were to pick up our trailer at 7pm and deliver to Clackamas, OR at 4am on Thursday.  It didn't take too much figuring to know with what hours Craig had left, that we would not be able to deliver the load on time.  In fact, to even pick up the load on time, we would have to do the split sleeper berth option yet again, leaving our parking space and heading to Fresh Express after 8 hours off duty.  Thankfully, our trailer was out of the dock and parked so that we could just hook up and stay there after getting the paperwork, and put in another 2 hours to complete our 10 hour break.

At 9:30pm we were once again driving into the night and trying to get as far as we could.  We stopped in Corning for fuel and showers, but even the showers didn't refresh us all that much.  Our sights were set on Weed, and as the first hint of lightness began to appear, we could see that it had snowed!  And so it begins.....winter has arrived with our first snowfall of the season,  Another shock for us was that when we took the exit for the truck stop in Weed, we found the road closed and the truck stop deserted and boarded up.  Word on the street is that Pilot will be taking ownership and reopening the truck stop in about 4 months. 

The closure of that truck stop sure took away some prime truck parking real estate, and we were lucky to find a spot on a side street to park and get some sleep.  We had informed dispatch of our location and the need for a swap before we went to sleep.  Still not hearing anything back after about 6 hours, Craig called to find out that the relay team responding was still 250 miles away, but with a load of meat that we would have to deliver at 10am in Fremont, CA tomorrow morning.  Oh boy!  Yet another night of driving and trying to work around the Bay Area commute traffic.

This new load has yet another drop for us back in Vernon, CA on Friday morning.  We don't have the particulars yet on that one as to the time, but I'm planning on another late night/early morning departure to make that delivery on time as well.  I guess we are destined to be creatures of the night for a few more days!