We pulled out of Time Out RV Park around 9:30am yesterday and left Chickasha, Oklahoma heading west on US 62. Our route took us on US62, then north on US281 and west again on OK152. These were two-lane highways through cattle ranch and oil drilling country (map). The narrow road surface was mostly smooth with a few rough sections. The hard part of driving this route was the wind. We had wind coming directly from the south. On the westbound highway, I was buffeted by strong crosswinds. This is very tiring in a high-profile vehicle.

We hit I-40 after two hours in Sayre, Oklahoma. I topped up our fuel tank at the Pilot/Flying J travel center there. Diesel fuel was $2.31/gallon with my RV Plus discount card. I was already tired but had a few hours of driving ahead of me to get to Amarillo, Texas. The wind was relentless as we headed west into Texas.

The surroundings changed as we moved along. All day we were going up and down short, rolling hills. The net result was a gain in elevation as we went uphill more than we went down. In Texas, we were no longer looking at trees in the landscape, we were on the short grass plains now. The rolling hills disappeared and we gradually climbed all the way to Amarillo which sits 3,600 feet above sea level.

Our original plan was to stay in a RV park east of town that had a Passport America rate of just $12.50/day for an unlimited stay. Further research on Google Earth and RV Park review sites changed our mind. The place was basically an open dirt lot with hook-ups. We booked a week at the Amarillo Ranch RV Park. This place looked pretty good online – I’ve found that online pictures tend to make places look better than reality (map).

When we checked in, I was pleasantly surprised to find the park is nicer than it appeared on the web. We’re in a level, gravel pull-through site. We’ll spend a week here recharging after being on the go since we left Lake George, New York. Donna has a hair appointment next week with a stylist that was recommended to her. We have some important mail sitting in South Dakota that will be forwarded here. I also have a few maintenance items to attend to. We’ll take in a few sights while we’re here and get some of the local flavor.

After a week here, we plan to head into New Mexico where we’ll explore and kick around for three weeks before we go to the annual balloon fiesta in Albuquerque.