as was the case last summer, this tentative schedule probably will change considerably as we work our way south. death valley may be out (mom says it'll be 120 degrees, there will be no on around, the car will break down, we'll run out of water, and then we'll die. that would force liv to miss her sophomore orientation. not good).
phoenix may also be out, depending on how long it takes us to see and experience all of the cool stuff in utah and northern arizona. but a dip in jack and jackie's pool would sure be nice.
that said, here's the tentative schedule:
Friday, June 26: woodinville to the potholes in eastern washington(183 miles)
Saturday, June 27: the potholes to ogden, utah (667 miles)
Sunday, June 28: ogden to moab, utah (268 miles) (canyonlands, arches, etc?)
Monday, June 29: moab to flagstaff, arizona (243 miles) (4 corners, arches, canyon de chelle?)
Tuesday, June 30: flagstaff loop back to flagstaff via the grand canyon (218 miles) (the meteor crater?) (or continue on to sedona, another 30 miles? or maybe on to montezuma's castle and well?)
Wednesday, July 1: flagstaff to phoenix via sedona (168 miles)
Thursday, July 2: phoenix to las vegas (328 miles) (hoover dam, meteor crater, lake havasu city and london bridge(!)
Friday, July 3: las vegas to santa barbara, california, via death valley (438 miles)
Saturday, July 4: what to do? where to be?
Sunday, July 5: santa barbara to monterrey (249 miles)
Monday, July 6: monterrey to mendocino (283 miles) (or san francisco?)
Tuesday, July 7: mendocino to gold beach, oregon (281 miles)
Wednesday, July 8: gold beach to cannon beach (286 miles)
Thursday, July 9: cannon beach to woodinville (221 miles)
and then it's time to start planning the next trip...
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
on the road again...
olivia and scott will hit the road again in late june.
destination: canyonlands, arches, the grand canyon, the four corners, sedona, montezuma's castle and montezuma's well, phoenix, london bridge at lake havasu city, the forum shops on the las vegas strip (olivia only), death valley, south and west to the coast near santa barbara and then north along the pacific, ending with a coldplay concert at the gorge in eastern washington. and i'm sure there will be at least a few side trips along the way.
one added element to this year's drive will be olivia's learner's permit, which will put her behind the wheel on occasion. she has completed driver's ed and is really pretty good behind the wheel.
you're all welcome to join us, either on the road or online.
since last summer's trip from cape flattery to key west and back, parts of our lives have changed. scott is now a writer with world vision (check it out at www.worldvision.org), which works to bring life-improving changes and hope to folks who are poverty-stricken and oppressed around the world. olivia has less than a month left as a ninth-grader. in the fall, she'll be a sophomore at woodinville high school.
more later. see you on the road...
destination: canyonlands, arches, the grand canyon, the four corners, sedona, montezuma's castle and montezuma's well, phoenix, london bridge at lake havasu city, the forum shops on the las vegas strip (olivia only), death valley, south and west to the coast near santa barbara and then north along the pacific, ending with a coldplay concert at the gorge in eastern washington. and i'm sure there will be at least a few side trips along the way.
one added element to this year's drive will be olivia's learner's permit, which will put her behind the wheel on occasion. she has completed driver's ed and is really pretty good behind the wheel.
you're all welcome to join us, either on the road or online.
since last summer's trip from cape flattery to key west and back, parts of our lives have changed. scott is now a writer with world vision (check it out at www.worldvision.org), which works to bring life-improving changes and hope to folks who are poverty-stricken and oppressed around the world. olivia has less than a month left as a ninth-grader. in the fall, she'll be a sophomore at woodinville high school.
more later. see you on the road...
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
by the numbers
9,702: miles traveled during the trip. the first few miles in montana went the fastest, because i had gradually increased the speed to 100 before i saw a 75 mph speed limit sign. who knew montana had reinstituted a speed limit. the fastest farm roads were in texas, where you could go 70, so long as you kept an eye out for farm machinery.
$1,647.96: amount spent on gas. the price varied around the nation, with a number of places in the $3.85-$3.99 per-gallon range and others over $4. washington state is among those with the highest prices.
$3,648.76: amount spent on lodging. this varied as well, from $80 per night in some places to, well, considerably more in key west and d.c. i found that location determined price as much or more than the quality of the room. for example, the uninhabitable room at the howard johnson's in pensacola was $120, while the nice room just a few blocks away was $90.
$1,647.96: amount spent on gas. the price varied around the nation, with a number of places in the $3.85-$3.99 per-gallon range and others over $4. washington state is among those with the highest prices.
$3,648.76: amount spent on lodging. this varied as well, from $80 per night in some places to, well, considerably more in key west and d.c. i found that location determined price as much or more than the quality of the room. for example, the uninhabitable room at the howard johnson's in pensacola was $120, while the nice room just a few blocks away was $90.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
road rage
of all the states i traveled through -- washington, oregon, idaho, utah, arizona, new mexico, colorado, wyoming, texas, arkansas, tennessee, alabama, florida, georgia, south carolina, north carolina, virginia, west virginia, pennsylvania, ohio, missouri, kansas, nebraska and montana, as well as the d. of c., washington state by far has the poorest highway system, particularly from the standpoint of maintenance. it also has, by far, the worst drivers. in other states, i'd see the occasional driver who forced everyone else to adjust to him or her, but in washington they're everywhere. and there seem to be more now than when i left a month ago...
a wow moment
while olivia and i were at the fairly new museum of the american indian in washington, d.c., and looking at the displays, she spotted what looked remarkably like a sculpture i have at home. after looking at it for a while, we were both certain it was the same. i wrote down the artist's name, amos wallace, and took a look at mine when i got home. same artist. same sculpture. now the question is, does the museum have the original or do i? either way, it was pretty cool to see something displayed that prominently in the museum that i also have at home...
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
day 29
the potholes in eastern washington to home in woodinville, washington; 209 miles.
i guess that's it. end of the road. home again.
the last leg was nice, crossing the columbia river at vantage, seeing mount rainier come into view -- big and snowy -- as i reached the ryegrass summit west of vantage. as i approached the cascades, the cloud bank spilling across the mountains was thick and swollen with moisture. looked ominous. looked good. looked like i was back home.
when i left just about a month ago, it was cloudy; fittingly, it was again when i returned home. i'm told there was sun while i was gone.
now it's time to be normal for a while.
in the next few days, i'll probably put together some observations and post them.
thanks to everyone who joined me on the road, either from their homes or in person at various points. it was a good ride. we'll have to do it again some time. good night, everyone...
tomorrow:
i guess that's it. end of the road. home again.
the last leg was nice, crossing the columbia river at vantage, seeing mount rainier come into view -- big and snowy -- as i reached the ryegrass summit west of vantage. as i approached the cascades, the cloud bank spilling across the mountains was thick and swollen with moisture. looked ominous. looked good. looked like i was back home.
when i left just about a month ago, it was cloudy; fittingly, it was again when i returned home. i'm told there was sun while i was gone.
now it's time to be normal for a while.
in the next few days, i'll probably put together some observations and post them.
thanks to everyone who joined me on the road, either from their homes or in person at various points. it was a good ride. we'll have to do it again some time. good night, everyone...
tomorrow:
Monday, July 21, 2008
day 28
billings, montana, to the potholes in eastern washington via idaho; 672 miles.
yes, i'll drive this far for mom's home cooking. and her washer and dryer. feels good to be back in washington, though the stretch between spokane and moses lake isn't much to write about. crossed the continental divide just east of butte, montana, at 6,393 feet. that's almost three times as the eastern continental divide back in maryland or west virginia. also saw my first skull tree today somewhere in montana. someone had taken bleached skulls of critters and nailed them to a tree in their front yard. i wonder why more people around the country don't do that. didn't stray far from the interstate today, once to find decent coffee in livingston, montana, which led me to a park with a really nice statue of sacajawea and her kid on a horse. also drove through anaconda, montana, to see all of its dead trees. decades of mining and smelting had killed most of the trees in the area. there are still some dead ones visible, but i think they maybe cut down and burned most of the bad ones. the key to the day was arriving at mom's, where i had spent the first night of the trip, so now i've closed the loop. good night, mom; good night, linda and george; good night, olivia.
tomorrow: the potholes to woodinville to wrap up this trip and start planning the next one.
yes, i'll drive this far for mom's home cooking. and her washer and dryer. feels good to be back in washington, though the stretch between spokane and moses lake isn't much to write about. crossed the continental divide just east of butte, montana, at 6,393 feet. that's almost three times as the eastern continental divide back in maryland or west virginia. also saw my first skull tree today somewhere in montana. someone had taken bleached skulls of critters and nailed them to a tree in their front yard. i wonder why more people around the country don't do that. didn't stray far from the interstate today, once to find decent coffee in livingston, montana, which led me to a park with a really nice statue of sacajawea and her kid on a horse. also drove through anaconda, montana, to see all of its dead trees. decades of mining and smelting had killed most of the trees in the area. there are still some dead ones visible, but i think they maybe cut down and burned most of the bad ones. the key to the day was arriving at mom's, where i had spent the first night of the trip, so now i've closed the loop. good night, mom; good night, linda and george; good night, olivia.
tomorrow: the potholes to woodinville to wrap up this trip and start planning the next one.
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