The trip I completed recently can’t be called the ‘Great American Roadtrip’ – I ‘dead-headed’ . . . just driving on freeways until I need to sleep, then getting up and doing it some more . . . BUT I was still able to see some of America’s beauty. The true ‘Great American Roadtrip’ would take side roads and not try to cross the entire span of the US in 3.5 days (that’s an average of about 1,000 miles a day.) Maybe someday I will drive a portion of Route 66, or drive from New Orleans to Charleston. But in the meantime, I did enjoy this short adventure and saw a few new stretches of interstate (and States – never driven in Utah before.)
Some highlights:
1) bug covered windshield in the Midwest (seriously bug covered!)
2) arrived in Davenport, IA late to a spectacular lightening show and left the following morning, sun up, to a lightening show
3) Wyoming sunsets and stars
4) River crossings (Wheeling, West Virginia; Missouri River @ Omaha; Terra Haute. (I crossed the Mississippi this time after dark)
5) Nebraska Hippos (cattle were SO hot during this heat wave that at every pond the cattle were in as far as they could get – only tops of backs and noses were showing!)
6) The various ‘Country Legends’ radio stations (fantastic break from the top 40 country available in the DC metro area)
7) Really ‘interesting’ cheapo motels (too many stories at this point to share – yet another fascinating look at Americans . . .)
8) Waking up at the base of a snow covered Mt. Shasta
9) Humidity, heat, mountains, and flat, dry desert
10) Nevada exits to isolated cattle guards, but no roads (great place to let the dogs off leash and play fetch)
CA and OR ‘wild rivers coast’ = We have arrived!
a middling life 