Jeff, Putz and I ran into that kind of hard rain two years ago, not long after you and your wife headed back home from Mackinaw City. I have also come across names that appeared like towns on Rand McNally's map, but instead were only the names of exits or towns without gas. The first such place was along I-80 in Nevada. When we stopped and found no town or gas, what we did find was a large water tank with instructions that read "Use Sparingly. This Water Was Trucked 20 Miles To This Point." A further explanation stated that more settlers died on this spot than any other during the days of the wagon train. The other time I encountered a town with no gas it was one of the small towns along US 95 northwest of Las Vegas. It is a good thing I had another 30 miles worth of gas so that I could make it to the next town further north on US 95.

Fred