Saturday, January 15, 2011

Drove into Seattle to deliver.  Got to the place at 6:30 am local time.  The guard at the gate said that they were closed until Monday.  So I backed out and drove back to the TA truck stop for the weekend.  78 mile round trip for nothing.  Oh well!!

34 miles outside of Seattle and can't get a thing on over-the-air TV.  Thank goodness for Direct TV !!!!

Friday, January 14, 2011

Left Spokane early and arrived to deliver in Bridgeport first thing in the morning.  When I got there found out that where I was delivering the pipe was up a road that was solid packed snow which was solid ice.  Had to go up an 8% grade and around a curve.  There was a drop off right at the edge of the road.  There was no sand or salt down on the road and it was so slick that you would think a Zamboni had gone over it.  They were waiting for me at the top to unload.  So off I went.  I made it about half way up and in the middle of the curve when the spinning wheels finally could pull no more.  Tried to back down but all the truck did was slide.  So there I was stuck in the middle of the road, in a curve, on a hill, and blocking the whole road.  I put on one set of tire chains thinking that I only had a little way further to go so one set should do the trick.  Well that didn't work and the chains spun too.  So I got out another set and put them on.  I almost slipped and fell on the ice several times while putting on the chains.  I'd take a step and slide, take another step and slide.  Now had 4 wheels chained.  That worked.  Made it up to the top and they unloaded the pipe.  Now it was time to turn around and go back down. I drove ahead to an intersection and turned around there.  Then started back down.  That was no problem.  Took some photos so you could see the road.  Here they are:

This is the view from the top, where I unloaded the pipe, looking down. The Chief Joseph Dam is the concrete thing in the background. For more info on the dam click here:   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Joseph_Dam

Now I'm starting down the 8% grade.

In this photo you can see where I got stuck on the way up.  The two tracks are from when I only had one pair of chains on and spun them.  The other side of the guard rail goes straight down to the water.

Here is a photo I got off the internet.  I added text so you could see it better.

Once I got down I took off the chains and went to a convenience store and waited for my next load. 

My next load was a load of fertilizer from Tonasket,WA.  Drove up there and got loaded up.  I was about 15 miles from the Canadian border.  That load is going to Seattle, WA to a shipping company.  From there they are loading it on a ship bound for Anchorage, Alaska.  They told me when I left that I had a delivery appointment for 7am in Seattle.  So off I went. 

Stopped for the night at the TA truck stop at exit 34 on I-90 in Seattle.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Got up at 3am local time so I could get on the road and deliver today.  That idea didn't work because as soon as I looked out the window and saw the freezing rain I knew I wasn't going anywhere.  Turned on the TV to get the local weather and also looked on the Internet at the Montana DOT web site to see the road travel conditions.  Their web site is excellent and is constantly updated with current weather and road advisories.  http://www.visitmt.com/whatsnew/roadsandweather/  Also looked at the weather radar.  All the info I was getting was not good.  I'll drive in anything except freezing rain.  I decided to go back to bed.  

Woke up a few hours later and checked all the places I checked before and I went inside the truck stop and asked them if they had heard how the roads are.  MDOT faxes them the current road advisories so they had the same info I had.  I went back to the truck and back to bed.

At about 11:30 local time I still was not getting much better reports.  Went in the truck stop and there were 3 DOT snow plow trucks there taking a break.  I asked them how the roads were?  They said they were wet but not bad.  That gave me a bit of hope.  Went back to the truck and looked at the Montana DOT web site again.  Everything ahead was still not good.  Chains were still required for Lookout Pass.  Lookout Pass is right at the  Montana / Idaho state line.  I decided that I was tired of waiting so I left and got on the road.

Here are a few photos of the view.

As I got closer to Lookout Pass the weather got worse.  Rain, then rain/snow mix, then snow.  Passed a small avalanche site that had been cleaned up .  Was about 100 to 200 feet long and about 6 to 12 feet deep.  As I got to Lookout Pass I pulled into the chain up area with the other trucks I found out that the chain up law had just been lifted.  GREAT! Perfect timing!!  So I got back out on the road.
Here I am passing a snow plow:

Here is a view just after I topped Lookout Pass and starting back down the other side. 

Drove into Spokane, Washington to the Petro truck stop for the night.  I deliver about 100 miles from here tomorrow morning.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Left Casper, Wyoming early this morning.  The interstate was really icy.  It was cold again, -17 degrees.  After a while the roads got better.  Got pulled in at the Butte, Montana weigh station for a Level III inspection.  No problems at all and the DOT cop loved my computer log book.  So do I  !!  

Didn't hit any weather until about 40 miles before I was stopping for the night.  Then it started to snow, and snow it did!!  The road covered up really fast!

Stopped for the night in Missoula, Montana at a truck stop.  The weather forecast is not good.  Supposed to get 3 to 4 inches of snow then change over to freezing rain.  I'm not moving if there is freezing rain tomorrow.  Too many mountains to go over.  So we will see what happens.

January 11, 2011

Got started around 5am EST  (4am local).  The weather forecasters were right!  It was -15 degrees this morning!!!  The interstate was very icy when I started but it got better as the day went on.  Not as windy as I had expected though.  It was real windy for a short time just north of Cheyenne, Wyoming but that didn't last too long either.  Stopped for the night at the Flying J truck stop in Casper, Wyoming.

Had dinner at a restaurant next to the truck stop.  Had to photograph this.  You don't see this too often in Florida!!   Snow covered gators!!

Monday, January 10, 2011

I'm sitting here in York, NE at the Petro truck stop enjoying the snow.  Snowed all night and all morning.  We got about 8 inches so far.  It is still snowing a little bit. 

Have enjoyed watching the snow plows this afternoon. 

The weather forecast is for it to stop snowing sometime today then get real windy and very cold.  It is only 19 degrees now!  I guess this is not real cold yet.  Oh goodie!!

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Got on the road at about 3:30 am EST.  When I got to Kansas City I got a bit sleepy so I stopped and took a nap.  After about 2 hours I woke up and got back on the road.  As I went passed Arrowhead Stadium the traffic to get in was already bumper to bumper.  The Kansas City Chiefs are playing their playoff game there at 1 pm EST.  They are playing the Baltimore Ravens.

Didn't start snowing until I got to the Lincoln, Nebraska area.  The plows were out doing their thing. The roads really were not bad at all. 

Here is one on those idiots that drive real slow and turn on their 4 way flashers in the snow (they do it in the fog too) .  If they are that scared to be out there then they need to just get off the road, period!  They are more of a hazard than the snow is.  Also passed another snow plow.

Stopped to do a reset in York, Nebraska at the Petro truck stop. Will be here until Tuesday morning.  Right now there is only a couple inches of snow on the ground here. Forcast is for 4 to 8 inches, so we will see.