Haz-Chem On The Mackinac Bridge.

3890 kilometres - 5 days.

____ This trip started with a pre-loaded trailer out of the Steinbach yard; but only after I had spent the previous day phoning the office every hour to see if there was any work. They like the drivers to phone them regularly through-out the day in case some work comes up. But for a driver, it is a whole wasted day as they never know if they are going to be leaving in next couple of hours. You cant start doing something if you don't know if you will have time to finish it.

____ Away early and down through the border at Roseau, heading for a night-out at Mauston, Wisconsin. Second night at Upper Sandusky, fifty kilometres from the delivery at Shelby, Ohio. A switch for an empty trailer at a distribution centre before heading north into Michigan for a load of hazardous chemicals from a factory near the town of Midland. Back to Steinbach with a designated route across the Upper Peninsula and crossing of the Mackinac Bridge,

____ The suspension bridge crosses where the water of Lake Michigan flows into Lake Huron and has restrictions for trucks carrying hazardous loads. You must phone for an escort vehicle to come and accompany the truck whilst on the bridge; a bit like the Dartford tunnel under the River Thames in England. The is no charge for the bridge authority pick-up truck to follow you over; but there is a $25 toll for five-axle trucks. After the crossing, I was just about out of time for the 14 hour day so stopped the night at a truckstop in St. Ignace. Black Perch and chips for a Friday night supper was different.

____ The last leg of the trip cut out the crossing of a busy Chicago and it was US Highway 2 across to the Interstate 29 and a border crossing, back into Canada, at Emerson. En route, a night at Bemidji, Minnesota, where a Menards Superstore had been built behind the truckstop since my last visit. Menards' sores have everything for builders and home improvement with a huge hardware and tool section. So that was Saturday night's entertainment taken care of. Back home by noon on Sunday, Monday off and as I am writing this, it looks like today is going to be another day of phoning the office every hour.