Why we should have avoided a Buc-ee’s stop

En route from Eutaw, Alabama, to Nashville, we encountered the first Buc-ee’s of our 2025 travel season. Since we needed fuel and a potty break, we decided to stop. That turned out not to be such a good idea. Here’s why we should have avoided the Buc-ee’s stop.

Darkening clouds

We pulled off the freeway and onto the Buc-ee’s property in Athens, Alabama. Seeing the first set of fuel pumps open, we took advantage of it, dodging our plan to go to the less-popular end of the line. This would allow us an easy out when we were ready to leave. 

After about 10 minutes of quenching our thirsty Gulliver on our first Buc-ee’s visit with Tagalong, we walked to the store to use the restrooms. Thanks to Buc-ee’s’ abundance of facilities, neither of us had to wait. Impressively, we got in and out of the restrooms, grabbed some snacks, paid, and were out of the store in about seven minutes. ​

Dark, mean-looking clouds greeted us as we emerged. Not liking to drive our RV in rain, we knew we needed to hurry and get on the road. As we re-entered the freeway, the clouds burst. We had waited too long. 

Bob maneuvered our rig to the shoulder of the on-ramp so that we could determine a game plan. The weather radar showed brightly colored red, yellow, and green cells plaguing the area for up to five hours. We couldn’t park on the on-ramp that long, so we decided to move on. 

Weathering the storms

The clouds grew darker, the rain came down faster and heavier, and visibility decreased greatly. We slowed to a seeming crawl, our wiper blades moving furiously to try to stay ahead of the deluge. 

I kept checking the weather radar to glean our chances at escaping the worst of the storms on our way up Interstate 65. It looked like we might make it. But then it didn’t. We pulled off an exit and sat on the off-ramp shoulder this time while Bob revisited the radar. He seemed to think the worst of the weather might be behind us. So we pressed on.

Dark, dripping clouds gave way to lighter-colored, dry clouds. After a little while, the sun peeked out. It appeared we truly had made it past the worst and would steer clear of rain the rest of the way to Nashville. And we did.

Learning lessons

I should have examined the weather radar while Bob was fueling, as soon as I first noticed the dark clouds. I thought they wouldn’t affect us in the direction we were headed. I didn’t realize thunderstorm cells surrounded our route. If we hadn’t stopped or had left after discovering that, there’s a good chance we could have avoided the storms.

When we reached our destination, we found a sopping door mat and carpeting inside our rig. I used a towel to absorb as much of the excess moisture as possible and put the mat outside to dry in the sun. 

We learned an important lesson about checking the weather radar anytime we see dark clouds before embarking on a drive, especially when towing. We also discovered it is possible to get in and out of Buc-ee’s quickly. And we found that sometimes it’s best to keep going to stay ahead of weather. 

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