This is what I came up with. My laptop which is with me when I travel anyway and Windows Media Center. A Avertv Hybrid Volar Max TV Tuner Kit for Windows ($45) from Amazon. An Antennacraft antenna from Radio Shack ($40).

I stopped mostly in rest areas and many of these were near cities. Connect the tuner to the pc via usb. Connect the tuner to the antenna via coax. Turn on Windows Media Center and scan for channels – that easy. I put the antenna in the side window next to the computer. Most of the times I had a least 4 HD channels and I got to watch a great world series!

I headed south from Nevada into Arizona to see my son and grand-kids. He has a good level spot for the bus and it is always fun to visit. The border patrol is very busy in that part of the county. Check points have multiple cameras pointing at you; border patrol agents drive slowly along roads looking for tracks. It seems to be a real combination of high and low tech.

Rest areas in New Mexico and Texas are great. In New Mexico you can stay up to 24 hours and have your own covered table. The major rest areas in Texas have wireless and large areas for walking. The further east you go the rest areas are harder to find. In Mississippi, we looked for one the GPS said was there for about 45 minutes finally driving on and stopping at a Cracker Barrel for the night. I asked if we could stay – we could. The next morning I had the worse biscuits, gravy and grits I have ever had. I am sure not all the Cracker Barrel’s are like that.

Hello! Loved the warning signs for snakes and later (Utah) for scorpions. Especially in the dark! A good set of ear-plugs is a necessity in some of the rest areas as the trucks are going in and out all night long. We saw an abandoned dog at a Texas rest area. Presley and I left him food and water and called the authorities. A worker there said he had been there for some time and was real skittish. The dog stayed in one area, looking east. Very sad. I hope the person who left him dies a long, slow, very painful death.

I don’t normally listen to NPR but craving news I tried to tune-in. It seems the entire time I traveled through the South it was pledge time. I would get about 5 minutes of news and 55 minutes of “make your pledge.” Every other station was having bible time so I listened to every song on my Zune 2 or 3 times. Thank goodness I have a lot of songs!

I visited friends in Jackson Beach, Florida; spent the weekend with Debbie in Orlando; stopped to see cousins in Louisiana and went to a class reunion at NMMI. Plus saw grand-kids in Arizona and Colorado. Covered lots of miles and had a blast!

It is a beautiful place with lots to see. There are full hook-ups at one of the campgrounds but the other camp ground is great also as you can walk up and use the showers anytime. Finding the internet or cell phone coverage is a problem without moving around but it can be done.

The Sportsmobile crowd, including me, and a couple of guests had a great time. There were a lot of dogs, at least 2 cats and all got along fine! The campfire bs session’s complete with tequilla were mucha diversión.

I started the trip on my birthday so I put my birthday cards out. Presley and I used this stop as a test of sorts before heading out across the country.

http://parks.nv.gov/vf.htm and http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=7921

We will stay with relatives twice, friends three times (2 of those at the Valley of Fire), spend 9 nights in rest areas, 1 night at a military facility (Camp Shelby), 3 nights in hotels and 1 night in a commercial campground. I will see two children and 7 grandkids along the way along with the famed jack-a-lope and the 300 year old alligator (or was that a cat fish?)

I still have to pack clothes but laundry along the way will be needed. Food – hmmm, 20 days of Twinkies might be just a few too many. But think of all the DQ’s along the way with Peanut Buster Parfaits! That reminds me . . . pack the AED.

I have a great new app for my phone that lets me publish to the blog without internet. That will help keep everything up to date.

My friend, Jim Butler, gave the keynote address. He reminded all of us how and why the SOA was formed. It certainly has changed over the years and I am not totally sure I am good with that.

Jim, Larry and I (friends since B Company, 1st Special Forces in Okinawa, 1968) along with one of Jim’s daughters, Lindsay and some strap hangers closed the bar and at 2am. Presley and I found the bus and headed out for the first rest stop about an hour away. When we got up that morning there was just one truck there with us and the rest stop was totally under construction! They said they were working at the other end and decided to just let us snooze away. Thanks for that!

Took the 5 home and kept the speed right at 60. I cannot believe the cars travelling at 70 or 90 right on the bumper of the car in front. Even saw one of those tiny smart cars. The tiny wheels looked like they were revolving about a million times a minute.

Presley was tired! He is not a party animal. He slept the entire way home. I wish I could have.

We averaged 19 mpg on the way home. I think  that it is uphill from Bakersfield to here but we’ll get a chance to do better next month when we do . . . “The big loop.”

Thank goodness we have a large diesel tank. Diesel was $4.89 per gallon in Lee Vining – a true rip-off. I had decided to keep 60 mph (on the GPS) the whole trip to check for mileage. When we finally filled up at Tonopah, through the mountains we had averaged over 18 mpg which I didn’t think was too bad.

We stopped in the Inyo National Forest for an hour or so. I did some target practice and Presley chased squirrels who were very upset and told him so.

Dropping in down into Nevada I was looking for somewhere to camp. With BLM land on both sides of us (the TomTom shows BLM and National Forest) I decided to pull off into the desert at the next flat place. We went a couple of hundred feet from the road and stopped. I was tired. Presley had spent the entire day sitting up in the passenger seat or (mostly) looking out the window at the scenery. He had even gone for a swim in the Junction Creek while on Hwy 108 so he was beat also.

If you can make it, post here http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6159.

A series of beaches separated by rocky bluffs, Sonoma Coast has 16 miles of some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world. The weather here is often a chilly combination of wind and fog. During the summer months, the morning fog usually burns off to create pleasant, sunny afternoons. Even during the summer, however, visitors are wise to dress for the possibility of wet, cold and windy north coast weather.

We dropped in for one night after checking some of the beautiful coastline. The campfire was needed both for warmth and to cook our hobo stew packets. Presley had a great time sniffing around and there were lots of other dogs to check out. The next morning we stopped in Bodega Bay for some souvenirs and some scallops and were home by 1pm.

But what I would like to see is an app to show me where all the Safeway fuel stops are ($.10 discount is good!) and where the VA clinics are (just in case the old blood pressure starts to go up.). I’ve got the Starbucks one, Gas Buddy, Rest Stops (although it is hopelessly out of date).

While I am thinking about it, I’d like an app that scrolled the words to songs as they play either on the smart phone or the zune so I could sing along karaoke style. Can you get a ticket for that?

We will meet October 7-9 at Arch Rock Campground in the Valley of Fire near Las Vegas, Nevada. I will arrive on Thursday, October 6 and reserve a camp site (by placing chairs at the site) for anyone who lets me know in advance they will be there. If we overflow Arch Rock campground I can also reserve sites at Atlatal Campground which is a short walk away.

Valley of Fire is gorgeous and has showers and flushing toilets (even has hookups) in Atlatal Campground and vault toilets (no showers) in Arch Rock Campground (where I prefer to go and there would be plenty of room for everyone). The two campgrounds are a short (10-15 minute) hike from each other or you could drive to the showers from Arch Rock Campground. Camping is $20 per night with no hook-up or $30 per night for electricity (at Atlatal only). V of F is 45 miles (an hour) from Vegas but is not too far if anyone wants to go see the sights in Vegas during the day or night. Valley of Fire is away from the city lights and the night sky is filled with billions of stars.

Hope to see you there!