I left Napa on Friday, and drove 315 miles to a really nice park in Bakersfield, OH. I had not gotten much sleep the night before over undone warranty issues, so I was really tired when I arrived. Temps were in lower 90s, and it took about an hour to get comfortable inside the RV.
The next stop would logically have been Needles, CA, but temps there were expected to be at least 105, so I decided to push a little further to Kingman, which was 91 when I arrived. I did have to drive through temps starting in the low 90s and then up to 106 as I drove through Needles. Hardly stopped along the way at all, other than once briefly to get gas and a couple of times to use my inside facilities. Just too, too hot to do much of anything. Even with the cab AC blowing directly on me, it was even warm in the cab. My legs and feet were roasted by the engine compartment. Wish I could get more insulation on it next to my leg on the accelerator pedal.
After a very long 340 miles drive, I made it to Kingman, AZ, where it is 3,000 feet higher in altitude and therefore 10-15 degrees cooler, so 91 felt good, after the 106 I had driven through. 340 miles may not sound like much, but it goes slowly when you are only hitting 60 MPH, and you are mostly riding in the truck lane. It is also tiring because you have to fight the vehicle so much to drive it. Stressful, at least for me, because I do not want to scrape anything, like that big semi I could almost reach out and touch or the gas pumps that are always trying to reach out and snag something as I pull in for gas.
Tomorrow, I drive through Williams, AZ, and then head up to Grand Canyon. It will be a LOT cooler up there, with high in the upper 70s or lower 80s, and lows in the 40s--nice!!!!
AC is finally cooling me off. Instead of cooking, however, I tried to get a Quiznos sub but they were closed, so i went with a chicken pot pie in the microwave. Did NOT want to turn on stove or oven. So, now I have taken my "dribble" shower and am eating my dessert of cheesecake, which watching TV from my recliner! Talk about living the good life!!!
If you have one of those covers you put inside the windshield on a car or truck, maybe you could lay that over the engine hump while you drive. I'm sure you felt stressed driving because of the heat and the problems that weren't resolved at the dealer but it sounds like you ended the day relaxing.
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