Leaving bright and early Saturday morning from Toronto (11ish) we hit the highway in search of the Detroit border. With a detour via Radio Shack and the Columbia Outlet Store (minimal damage to our visa cards to report) we cleared customs and were on US soil by mid-afternoon. Despite missing the I96, circling, and finding it closed/under construction (MS Streets & Trips – how could you let us down??) we made it to South Bend, Michigan, close to Chicago, for our first night. Good lord, almighty, the only thing a girl and boy don’t need after cutting free of the big city is to hit the only campground in sight and find it alcohol free. What cruelty is this? So we sufficed with our usual drinks, vodka/tonics and rum/cokes, being discrete and leaving the magnum of wine in the trunk, and went to bed.

Back on the road, again bright and early (yes, 11ish), we zoomed across Indiana and Nebraska (thank you to both states for there increased speed limits over Canadian ones – I never knew a Cavalier could cruise so comfortably in the 130-140 range).

A trip isn’t a trip without some adventure and adventure was found on the I-80 through Nebraska, just east of Ogilalah – small town, but when tornado warnings are flying through the airwaves you quickly figure out exactly where you are in relation to the storm. Apparently, we were heading straight for it and the radio reports of broken windows and flying tree limbs were less than comforting. Compounded with the darkened sky and beginnings of rain fall we just knew it was time to get out the video camera (with some passing thoughts of possibly exiting the highway and seeking shelter from the storm). Fortunately, the storm, with its reportedly softball sized hail stones, blew south over the I-80 a good 10 or 12 minutes before we were due to cross paths. Needless to say, our preliminary plan of staying just south of Ogilalah was abandoned and we plowed on through to the Colorful State of Colorado.

If ever you’re in eastern Colorado and are looking for somewhere to camp, avoid the Yogi Bear campground (just east of Sterling/Hwy 75) at all costs. It sucks. You are better off staying in your car. There’s a pool but forget setting up your tent on grass, there isn’t any, forget building a campfire, it’s against the rules and don’t worry about privacy, there isn’t any of that available either lucky for us we had a laptop and movies on file . . . we poured our usual drinks and watched The Hulk (not the best movie, but good enough to take us from the hell we were camping in and tide us over until bedtime). You may, or may not, be wondering about the laptop . . . . welcome to the new generation of camping (and the 90’s . . . oops, new millennium ;-). I was against it at first (the whole lap-top idea) but a good idea is a good idea, thank you Adrian ? and so long, Yogi, we won’t be back.