Even with the highway nearby, I slept soundly as the traffic tapered off to a quiet lull, leaving us with a wonderfully peaceful night. Our Harvest Host spot at Heits Kennel and Grooming in Williamsburg, Iowa, was completely ours for the night.
By 7:00 AM, I was up sipping coffee as the sun began to peek over the horizon. I wandered outside to see if our host was around, but the only ones up were the chickens, busy with their morning routine. Back at the motorhome, Kasey mentioned wanting to buy some fresh eggs and leave a donation for the water we’d hooked filled up with, but with no host in sight, we waited.
Watching the chickens through the window, I figured their coop must have an automatic door since they were already out foraging. Remembering a stash of stale, crushed corn chips and crackers, I decided to go make my introduction. As I walked up, the flock scattered just a bit and that’s when I spotted four kittens among the birds, on high alert. Of course, I hadn’t brought my camera! The kittens were happily helping themselves to the corn chips. Not wanting to scare them off, I retreated to the motorhome blind to watch from afar with my coffee. Tad was right beside me, completely captivated by the little creatures darting around.
Once the chickens lost interest in the chips, I slipped back outside with my camera to snap a photo of the automatic coop door. The kittens had retreated to the safety of the barn, but as I was focusing, Kyle, the owner, pulled up in a small electric cart. I mentioned how neat the automatic door was, and he admitted it had been acting up, closing too early at night and locking a few confused chickens outside. When I asked about buying eggs, he generously offered to just give us a carton.
About then, Kasey joined us, paying $5 for the water from the night before. (Though as it turned out, our tank wasn't quite full and the sensor was already reading low again!) Kyle was warm and inquisitive, asking about our background and how we liked the site. We found out that he has 4 kids and 3 that live nearby. Kasey and I shared our genuine appreciation for the hospitality before saying our goodbyes.
We were ready to roll, knowing a long day of driving lay ahead. Though we had no idea just how much longer it would actually take.
First order of business was dumping our black and gray tanks. A polite way of saying getting rid of our waste. About an hour down the road, we pulled into a Love's to gas up and empty the tanks. We hoped to top off our fresh water, too, but every spigot turned out to be non-potable. I scouted ahead, found a Camping World a couple of hours down our route, called to confirm they had fresh water available, and routed it on the map for Kasey.
Not long after, highway traffic ground to a crawl. As we crept forward, we saw the cause: a semi had practically swallowed the right side of an SUV. The entire passenger side was torn off, wedged into the rear left of the trailer. It was a sobering, terrifying sight, and it felt like a miracle if anyone survived it.
Once the horror of the accident was behind us, I settled in with my head down for a bit. Eventually, Kasey pulled off so he could use the bathroom and I could give Tad a quick walk. Back in the rig, I glanced at the GPS and realized, to my confusion, that our distance to the destination hadn't dropped at all. Without audio prompts from Google Maps, Kasey had accidentally missed a junction—likely driven by muscle memory from old I-35 trips—and taken us south on I35 instead of west on I-80.
Realizing the mistake, we doubled back, winding along County Highway 34 through quiet small towns and rolling farm country. There are not many people out this way. It is really flat out here.
It was an unexpected detour, but a beautifully scenic one. The slower pace enabled Tad to stick his head out the window, thoroughly enjoying the rush of fresh country air and new smells. He was apparently salivating with sheer joy, too. Though there wasn't a drop of rain in the sky, I suddenly found myself on the receiving end of a fine, unexpected spray right through my open window.
By now, stopping at Camping World was out of the question, marking our third failed attempt to secure fresh water. It’s always a relief to get those utility chores out of the way so you can just relax and take photos, read, answer emails, and enjoy the passing landscape.
Eventually, we steered our way back onto I-80, righted our course, and pushed forward into the afternoon.
At the next gas stop, we took advantage of the available water to top our tanks.
By early evening, we pulled into our next Harvest Host location in Lexington, Nebraska. As a fun coincidence, driving our Forest River Lexington into Lexington felt like a little moment of RV kismet: a Lexington in Lexington!
Our stop for the night was Mac’s Creek Winery, Cidery & Brewery. Knowing they closed within an hour of our arrival, we perused the menu online beforehand and walked through the door ready to order. Haley, our host, greeted us with a warm welcome and gave us the run-down on their offerings.
Kasey went with the Chaider, a hard apple cider infused with chai tea, while I opted for the Crabby Abby cider alongside their peach almond bruschetta. We shared a plate of Creek Nachos to round it out served cheerfully by Missy. Between the delicious spread and learning about how thoughtfully the business works in harmony with the local ecosystem, it was the perfect reward after our long, eventful day on the road.
Back at the motorhome, after a long day, Kasey wasted no time getting into his jammies and settling in to listen to the world series.
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