The Drive (Sturgis or Bust!)

So, it's crunch time.

We've started looking at routes, and have decided to take the most direct route there is. We could've taken I-10 out to Dallas and then made a right, but we've opted to head north on I-75 off I-10. We'll take that through Atlanta and Chattanooga and up into Nashville.

From Nashville we'll hop onto I-57 and stay on that until St. Louis. There we'll hop onto I-70 into Kansas City, which is where we'll pick up I-29. We'll follow that through Sioux City, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska. When we hit Sioux Falls, South Dakota we'll head west on I-90 and follow that until we hit Rapid City, South Dakota.

Despite it being somewhat late in the game as far as planning goes, we were able to get a campsite, with full RV hook-ups, at the Lake Park Campground in Rapid City. Our other option was a primitive site at the Buffalo Chip and, to be honest, there's going to be a lot going on there. But "a lot going on" also equates to "a lot" of noise at all hours.

Lake Park is roughly 30 miles from downtown Sturgis, but they offer wi-wfi, a shower house and a laundry. There are shuttles which run from all of the area campgrounds into Sturgis and, while they don't originate rides in Sturgis, I can take an Uber from Rapid City into Sturgis. I also have the option of toolin' around in the camper, because it's not so big that it can't be used for day trips.

Ah, yes, the camper. 

 It's a Mercedes-Benz "Sprinter" type camper, although I'm not certain of the exact model. Seeing as it's Greg's, he'll get the king size bed in the back. I'll figure something out, as the captain's chairs behind the driver's seat and the passenger seat don't fold out into a bed. They do, however, swivel, so I'm sure I'll be able to make due.

And, if worse comes to worse, we'll be packing a huge tent that I can always crash in, as well. The reality of it all is that I've fallen asleep in my desk chair so often that I'm not really concerned with where I end up sleeping on this trip.

Greg and I plan on leaving around 1:00pm on Tuesday. That way, hopefully, we'll avoid the rush hour nightmare that is weekday Atlanta traffic. We'll take turns driving; probably five hours at a shot, so that we can drive straight through.

Our total drive time, assuming we make gas and sanity stops along the way, should take us right around 32 hours. That'll put us rolling into Rapid City Wednesday evening. Otherwise, we'll stop along the way to decompress and and roll into town during the day on Thursday.

Either way it's gonna' be a fun trip!