Louisville, KY

Today's drive to our campground in Louisville took about nine hours including two stops to fill up with gas, a break for lunch, and one bathroom break. The drive across the Appalachian Mountains through West Virginia made the 10-cylinder engine really thirsty—about 60 gallons. There were rain showers most of the way, but the driving was relatively easy considering it was my first day driving this rig. I'm feeling very optimistic about the rest of our journey.

It was really tempting to stop at some of the Bourbon distilleries we passed. Jim Bean, Maker's Mark, and my favorite—Bulleit Bourbon distillery in Lawrenceburg. They owe me. That's another trip.

Once at the campground, Mom made a delicious dinner: marinated chicken breast, corn on the cob, and steamed broccoli from the garden. We expected a grill to be available to us at the campground, but that wasn't the case. Instead, we bought a grate and a bundle of wood from the campground store and used the fire pit next to our site to do all of our cooking. It took a little while to make enough coals, so Samuel entertained us with by playing his guitar. Although we were all very hungry, it was certainly worth the wait. It was SO good! Sidney and Samuel said it was "the best outdoor chicken" they'd ever had—also their first. Thanks, Mom!

Now we're all showered and tucked-in for the night. Tomorrow we make the 9.5-hour trek to Lawrence, KS. For the most part today the landscape passing by our windows didn't look all that unfamiliar, but tomorrow we should see a noticeable difference as the rolling hills of the Kentucky horse farms with their black fencing give way to the flatlands of the Mississippi River and the plains beyond.