Day 36, Monday, October 19, 2009 - 432 miles

On the road again.
We woke to the second straight day of frost, an anomaly for central Kentucky in mid October. We made our final preparations for departure in the dark as we wanted to get an early start. After breakfast with Mom and Pru, we headed into Versailles to the hospital for Laurel to get a routine blood test. While she was getting that done, I was trying to decide on the routes to use to get to Davidson, NC, our next stop. I had a preliminary plan taken from maps that I did before we left that was 432 miles. I asked Gretchen for the shortest route. It saved very few miles and had us going on secondary roads. I then asked for the quickest route, and she suggested I64 east to I77 south. It added another 40 miles. I decided to go with my original plan to start, and that was to go I64 east to the Mountain Parkway followed by US23 south to get through the eastern Kentucky hills. When I got to Prestonsberg, I asked Gretchen again for the fastest route. She had us follow my original plan for awhile and then use US58 Alternate to get to I81 and then to I77. It added just a few miles, but seemed like a good compromise.
The drive was magnificent. The sun was bright and the sky clear. The higher up we got (we peaked at over 2800' in Virginia), the more color in the trees. We noted with interest the infestation of kudzu, an invasive vine introduced in the southeastern US from the far east. We saw a number in infestations where it had taken over hillsides, killing the native vegetation. It climbs everything including utility poles and guy wires and billboards, not to mention derelict vehicles and buildings. We saw one area that was probably sprayed as it looked dead. It definitely is a problem here.
There was a fantastic view as we descended from the highlands. I bet we could see 50 miles to the east and south. Unfortunately, we could not get photos as there was no place to stop.
Anyway, we made it as far as Statesville, NC. We will get to Bill and Carols tomorrow morning after we make a visit to a local Costco (we have been going through withdrawal and need a fix).