We left Asheville NC on April 11th and are continuing our northbound journey experiencing a very strong wind storm, some of the steepest roads yet, a small dangerous road hazard, and a crazy winter storm in Bardstown. Wow, the traveling journey can provide many surprises! Although sometimes, I look forward to the boring!
We have driven about 370 miles since leaving Asheville with a two night stay at a small state park in Kentucky. The state park was Levi Jackson Wilderness Road in London KY. A nice wooded park with a few good pull through, level sites.
Mountain Pass
The drive on I-40 west of Asheville to Knoxville certainly has some challenges for the larger rigs like we drive. There are cautions for trucks due to the steep hills and tight corners. But the mountain scenery was incredible. Very scenic. This was the section of road that I had been researching, not knowing what exactly to expect. Of the rig or the driver.
The truck actually handled the camper very well again. I can maintain speed going uphill much easier than I thought. The twin turbos were only loaded at about half the gauge capacity, so some power still in reserve.
The downhills were also fine. I cannot use the cruise control in the mountains because it tries to slow us down too much. I do use the engine compression brake on downhills plus in tow/haul mode a small brake pressure will result in a downshift that will hold the truck back. I barely had to use the brakes to slow down.
So, this was my practice to be ready to handle the mountains out west this next year. Piece of cake for the truck. For me, still learning.
High Winds
On the other hand, the second leg of this trip from London Kentucky to Bardstown KY had some very high winds. It was Friday the 13th, go figure. The gusts were so strong that walking across a parking lot was a challenge. We had about 165 miles to drive up I-75 to Lexington, then on the Bluegrass Parkway over to Bardstown.
So, we could have stayed in London another day to let the winds die down some. The weather was predicting 22 mph with 55 mph gusts. We drove in something similar out of Myrtle Beach and it was not what I would call dangerous, just tiring. So we decided to go for it.
The wind was out of the southwest and we were traveling north on I-75. On this section we did get buffeted around a bit. The tail wind provided decent mpg up to 11.5. About 1.0 better than normal. Once we made it to Lexington and headed west, it got rough. The truck did well once again. Just many constant small corrections as the gusts would hit the 40 foot camper from the side.
Railroad Tracks
Another road hazard was on the small road into the Levi Jackson park. Right in front of us was an elevated railroad track. Ack!! The track was built up about three feet with a steep ramp up. Now I might have cleared. But not wanting to make the camper into a large teeter-totter, I pulled off into the tire company’s large parking lot right at this crazy railroad track. The Lord was looking out for us.
I went inside the tire company and one of the guys said to drive around to the back of the park for the easy way in. Whew! It worked out just fine.
Weather
We have had some crazy weather this year for sure! Yesterday in Bardstown, the high was 34 degrees and there were snow flurries all day long. No accumulation though as the ground is too warm.
Maybe we came north too soon. We have been debating that. Spring weather is very unpredictable to say the least.
Bardstown, KY
This is a gem of a small town. Lots of history and well preserved buildings. And of course many bourbon distilleries.
From wiki: Bardstown is in Nelson County, Kentucky. The population was recorded as 11,700 by the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nelson County. It is named for the pioneering Bard brothers. David Bard obtained a 1,000 acres from a land grant in 1785 in what was then Jefferson County, Virginia, from Governor Patrick Henry. William Bard surveyed and platted the town. It was originally chartered as Baird’s Town in 1788, and has also been known as Beardstown, and Beards Town.
I thought it was interesting that Kentucky used to be part of the Virginia territory. Also, that Kentucky used to be called Caintuck back in the exploration days.
Bardstown Dinner Train
After we got set up in our campsite at 5pm after moving from a site with faulty power, we got busy researching what to do in town. On weekends, they run a dinner train with a lunch version on Saturday, so we signed up for the lunch run! Link here for more history.
This was pricey at $70 each, but it has been high on my list to ride on one of these old classic dining cars. The railroad has been here since 1860 and the dinner train since 1987. The depot also dates back to 1860 and has been nicely updated to wait for boarding. They also have a full bar as does the train.
The train runs about 30 miles into the Kentucky countryside, then the engines unhook, switch to a siding, then re-attach to the other end of the train for the trip back.
I’ll have more on our Bardstown distillery tours in the next update. Thanks for riding along with us. Take care and God Bless.
It is very pretty in that area. My parents were both from Kentucky so I get a since of “going home” when we head that way.
Yes, it is some beautiful country. The grass is all very green and the trees are just beginning to leaf out.
I think you are getting plenty of experience for your journey west next year. Sort of baptism by fire experience? Glad to see you finally got your pecan pie! Looks very tasry and the added bourbon is a nice touch. Miss you both and glad to see your adventures continue to excite. Luv Lorna
Hi Lorna, sorry for the delay in my response. Yes, the driving experience is definitely coming along, so about ready to head west next year. I had to have the pecan pie!
Looks like yet another great place to visit. It must take a great amount of time to find all the great locations.
Yes, some of the planning does take time, but in most all locations there are things to see and do.