Aug 2017 KENTUCKY Henderson 1 - The Sun is My God

It gives me warmth. It feeds me. It allows life to continue in all flora and fauna. I love it.

So when we heard about the total eclipse that was "peaking" nearby, we were all excited. We had planned to watch it at home in the "89% coverage" zone, but friends Ron and Dixie asked us to join them on a quick road trip to Kentucky to view it in the 100% total eclipse area. Our destination was in the band just southeast of St. Louis.

Ron arranged the details. That was a wonderful break for me as I usually do all the planning for twosome or group trips in our family. He did a fabulous job. We booked our hotel at the Sleep Inn in Henderson, KY. He suggested picnic lunches and chose dinner spots for our evening meals.

We got a pick up from Ron and Dix at 9a on Sunday morning. It was sunny and 64 degrees at departure. We each had a bag and plenty of food. Guys hopped in the front seats and gals in the back. They have a newer Prius, so there was plenty of room to stretch legs and spread out our traveling gear.

They don't have a GPS, so Ron had planned a route to our destination with paper maps and Internet search info. Our journey was 420 miles with 6 hours and 39 minutes of travel time. The route was pretty direct. I-94 to I-69 to Henderson.

Pretty smooth sailing except just south of Indianapolis due to I-69 extension construction. Mostly low, flat fields of corn and soybeans everywhere you looked. Lots of folks of every persuasion on the road. Here's one bunch of colorful guys and gals.

We spied this "eclipse or bust" car on the road and a pix of it ended up in the Great Photos section of the Washington Post.

We stopped for lunch at 1:30pm. Dix Google-mapped to find a spot with picnic tables. We searched several parks, but not quite what we were looking for. So we stopped along the road under a HUGE shade tree, near a small creek, and just ate out of the trunk.

Outside of the giant redwoods in California, this is one the biggest trees we have come across. It would take at least three grown men with arms outstretched to surround it. Some of the lower limbs were bigger than normal-sized tree trunks. This photo does not do it justice. Later Dixie and I tried to identify it (although we had not grabbed a leave, darn!) and think it was a northern catalpa.

The temp was 90 degrees and humid. Little sweat bees were enjoyed our fine food spread as much as we did. Luckily we did not get any in the car to bother us there.

Filled the tank at Loogootee, Indiana, at $2.35 a gallon. Cheaper than Michigan. The lowest we saw on this trip was $2.09.

This eclipse event was supposed to produce the "biggest traffic jam in America" because so many people were traveling to the "total" zone. We really didn't have a problem except in some construction areas. Along the way we saw people on the roadside selling "eclipse" glasses. Ron and Dixie had already picked up a four-pack for us. 

Last stop of the day was our hotel in Henderson, Kentucky. Glad we made our hotel reservations last October, because nothing but "No Vacancy" signs along the road. Got to the Sleep Inn at 3:43pm. Temp was 97 degrees. The room was big, clean, and comfortable. We refreshed and met in R&D's room for a round of cocktails and chatter.

At 6pm we ambled to the Tokyo Sushi and Hibachi Restaurant next door to the hotel.

"Q" or Bill Q was the owner, we think, and our waiter. He had the best sense of humor ever and kept us laughing throughout the whole meal. His two young boys napped on a nearby sofa. His gorgeous wife was behind the sushi bar in full Geisha dress and hairdo with "chopsticks" holding it up. She looked authentic Japanese with a more slender face, but Bill said the whole family was from China.

Ron ordered a small veggie rice. For $5, he got enough to feed three people. Dixie and I ordered veggie tempura and Mike ordered veggie tempura with shrimp. It was served with a wonderful mushroom soup, small side salad, and a large variety of veggies. Yum!

We had made fast friends with Bill by the end of the meal. He must have liked us, too, as he brought four clean sake glasses to our table and a big bottle of Japanese plum wine. He poured each a cup of the wine. It was so tasty we asked him to bring the bottle back, so we could photo the label.

He returned with that bottle and yet another bottle that he said was the good stuff. He poured a round of that and it was! This was all after we had paid our bill, so no expectation that we should pay for these extra treats. What a nice gesture. Yes, southern hospitality is wonderful, even if it is coming from a non-native.

By 9pm we were ready to settle in for the evening. We were tired from the drive and excited for the next and special day to begin.