We got up at 6 am and got the last of our packing and cleaning done, in pretty much exactly an hour (we are such a well-oiled machine when it comes to such things), and left the lovely casita behind, heading for I-25 at 7 am in the morning. We drove the entire 900 miles back with a couple of breaks for gas, for rest area bathrooms / picnic tables, and for lunch with two former Hastings friends, who after many years in Indiana had moved to Colorado Springs this March. Since we were going to hit Colorado Springs around lunchtime, they graciously agreed to meet us at a local chain restaurant near the Interstate (Modern Market–sort of an upscale Panera). We had a brief (45-minute) catching up on things over lunch, and then we were back on the road. Our picnic dinner came near North Platte, and at 10 pm, with 30 more miles left of our second tank of gas, we were home! The trip was totally uneventful (for our “unusual car seen on the freeway” collection, we saw a Citroen 2CV, which I have never seen in the US, and two big semis that said ‘Cirque de Soleil’ on them (wardrobe and chairs). Mark was a hero for driving every single mile (I offered to take over, but he said he was fine driving all the way), and wasn’t even THAT fried when we got home. I had taken several naps and was fine. Sad to be done with our adventures, but happy to be back home in Lincoln.