Jersey City to Fort Worth .....Part TWO...

We decided to leave as early as possible , before the ''city that never sleeps'' woke up , so Hugh and me and Bobby slowly moved out of Sussex St. '' as dawn's rose fingers touched the sky'' on the 1st July 2009 . There was barely room for me to move in the passenger seat , even the footwell on my side was full of stuff .
We were both a little thoughtful as we drove out , I was concerned because we had never road-tested the combined load and trailer , my son , no doubt , thinking of the 5 years he and his wife had spent in Jersey City and their apartment (from which , he told me one time , if the light was right , the wind favourable and standing on a table it was just possible to see the'arse' of The Statue of Liberty ).
As we passed the Mail Office we half expected to find a smouldering ruin , following the previous day's battle , but all was quiet.
We headed out of Jersey City toward Pennysylvania , with the massive trucks/trailers roaring past us as we drove in the centre lane of the 3 lane highways. Sitting in the car , with rear visibility , except for the wing mirrors , I soon gave up any vague idea I had had of driving ...I would have been sitting in what for me was the passenger seat , with very limited rear visibility , with a constant stream of very heavy traffic all around , in short I was a coward.
About 100 miles out visibility for the driver was further reduced when a light shower of rain hit .Then a woman , driving a large four by four , passing us pointed animatedly towards the trailer behind....uh ,oh....a problem ...already....We pulled over into the emergency lane as quickly and safely as possible . We discovered that the steel ''fail-safe'' chain on the trailer had become loose and had been dragging for some miles , as it was pitted and scarred . Thank you ma'm, whoever you are .We contacted U-Haul who advised us that by tying up the chain to the towing bar we would NOT be interfering with the turning mechanism. Phew!......

My son got his first experience of manouvering the car and trailer in a tight space when we pulled off the highway for petrol at a small 'gas'station . Reversing to access the gas pump was a tricky job and then trying to exit the forecourt , with limited visibility , called for extreme care and caution.
We had planned our first night's stop for the Days Inn in Hagerstown about 300 miles out , then my son informed me that he had a surprise in store , we were going to go on a side- trip to visit
a famous site of a Civil War battle at Antietam . Whereas I was looking forward to seeing the site , I was worried that travelling over a battlefield , on hills and small roads , might give Hugh Hall problems....suppose we got a flat tyre , a broken connection...etc, all my anxieties were swept aside....we were going.....
A rainstorm broke just as we arrived at the site and although it was only 7pm visibility was bad , there were hills and small roads and very few other visitors there but we were given good advice and directions by the helpful staff at the reception centre. The battle took place on 17 Sept. 1862 , 23000 casualties in 12 hours , some of the earliest battlefield photos were taken there , including Abraham Lincoln and some of his generals poring over maps etc (see the Ultimate Guide to the Battle of Antietam , for more info...)
My driver and Hugh Hall performed excellently, a great experience....
We headed on into Hagerstown and the Days Inn and a well earned rest ..