The best journey always leads us home. Heading east on I-40 for the last leg of our trip around the country, we had time to reflect. We talked (yes, we are still talking!) about the bigger picture of our journey - the view through the rear view mirror, and also the view from 30,000 feet as the expression goes. I tried to capture some of our musings, below.
The familiar mountains at the border between Tennessee and North Carolina came into view. Today, we really noticed them. They are old, rounded mountains, low and gentle, and completely covered with trees - Carolina silverbell, dogwood, and magnolia. Having seen the Cascades and the Rockies, the Sierra Nevada and the Grand Teton, I know that the silhouettes of the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains will never be the same.
Summer had arrived in our absence, and it was 94° when we pulled into our driveway. The grass was thick and green. The trees were full of leaves and birds. Yes, the best journey always leads us home.
Length of Trip: 39 days, 38 nights
Total Miles: 10,256.2
Fuel cost: $1,103.62
Cost per mile: 9.29 cents/mile
Number of States visited: 23
Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and North Carolina. Not necessarily in this order.
Accommodations: 38 nights
Air B&Bs - 19 nights (4 locations)
Hotels/Motels - 14 nights
Family - 5 nights
Favorite Thing
Ron: Driving (fast)
Linda: Unable to choose a favorite (too many places moved me to tears).
Total Number of Photos Taken: 1,568 (Linda), 119 (Ron)
Most frequently asked question of each other: What day is today and where are we?
Most frequently asked question by others: Why did you drive here?
Ron's Response to Said Question: It was too far to walk.
Packing Tips: Small cooler, always stocked with breakfast and lunch foods. Large plastic bin with essentials. One roller bag per person, plus reasonable number of shoes (did not apply to Ron). Folding camping chairs. Tablecloth. Bear Spray, binoculars, and small hiking backpacks. Waterless car wash kit, California Car Duster, and RainX Windshield Cleaner. Yoga mats. Bicycle helmets. Clothing appropriate for three to five weather seasons. Yes, five seasons. We experienced all five. And finally, a USA Interstate map. I fashioned an old-school GPS out of a piece of string and some macramé beads, to the scale of the map, marking a distance of 500 miles with two beads, and placing knots between the beads at 50-mile increments. This really helped with navigation, especially when we found ourselves without cell service or internet!
Best Value: The National Parks Pass. We stopped in Nebo, NC, on the first day and purchased an Annual Senior Pass for $20. Without it, we would have paid $30 - $35 per car, per park, for admission. [I also purchased a Passport Book for $10. It was great fun to stamp my little book with the date stamp, and park stamp at all of the parks. Some Parks even had a Junior Ranger stamp, which really brightened the pages!]
Total Blog Posts: 37. This is 36. Big finale will go live tomorrow!!!
Would we make this trip again? YES!
Car Talk
Oak Ridge, Tennessee to Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Distance: 289 miles
Driving Time: 5 hours, 34 minutes
Mileage: 35.1 mpg
Average Speed: 52 mph
Trip Total: 10,256.2 miles
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