From home, I had to get to the start of my adventure up the PCH with Kelsey and that meant driving from D.C. to San Diego. Not a huge deal. There’s always something new to explore along the way and this time I was going to focus on a section of the deep southwest I’ve usually just driven past.
Along the way I did a little bike riding and President hunting.
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My daughters have both been seriously bitten by the travel bug. Given an opportunity to travel, they’ll take it. Kelsey is at the stage in life where she’s considering where to apply for college next year and during Spring Break is a convenient time to visit schools. Oh boy, and did she visit schools!
I didn’t catch up to them till I met them in San Francisco where I began my role as chauffeur. Prior to flying out to the West Coast Kelsey had already visited the University of Virginia in Charlottesville for the Engineering School Open House. Her odyssey had already begun.
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A green desert? Yes. This part of the Sonoran desert has two rainy seasons and the result is a predictable green. And as my visit came after recent rains at the dawn of Spring, the desert was an especially radiant shade of green. Miniature flowers were in bloom across the desert floor, cacti of different types were baring blossoms, and a floral scent was in the air. In general, Organ Pipes Cactus National Monument was showing at its best!
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Two months ago I tried to visit Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument but flooding from a recent snow storm had damaged the access bridge. It was closed. This time the park was open but the bridge remained out of commission so to visit you had to hike three miles. That is, you had to hike three miles if you didn’t travel with your own folding bike!
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As a photographer, I’ve found no better cave than Carlsbad Caverns to visit and shoot. Its huge expanse of beautifully lit formations sets the stage. However, what really sets it apart is the freedom the National Park Service gives you to roam at your own pace, to set-up tripods and to take pictures. I’ve now visited four times and I most certainly plan to return. A gallery of pictures is forthcoming … but not today, I’ve got a road trip to continue!
A snow storm hit New Mexico when last I visited. This of course didn’t affect Carlsbad Caverns which lies 750 feet underground but it sure affected the National Solar Observatory at 9,500 feet in elevation! Sunspot, as its known, is an observatory dedicated to studying the sun with its many telescopes. At this elevation, at this latitude, with this weather it’s an ideal spot to study the sun. Here are some of the telescopes to be seen.
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Who could they be? The answer may become apparent when I tell you I drove through Arkansas and Texas. Can you guess? Last hints: they’re four people and three were related. OK, now you must know!
The Clinton childhood home is in Hope, a town which appears to have benefited greatly from its affiliation the President. Redevelopment was everywhere when I visited. Obviously, he was both Governor and President.
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A few weeks ago I rode my new foldable bike along riverside paths in Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis, Little Rock, Albuquerque, and Sacramento. For midwinter I enjoyed amazing weather. My memories of these rides are of having a fantastic time (except Knoxville) in beautiful settings and, as I started across the country again, I found myself yearning for a repeat.
So why not?
In Memphis I took the picture above. Yes, again the weather stayed near-perfect as I also rode in Nashville and Little Rock. While Memphis was almost an identical experience my other rides were fairly different. Little Rock was done in the bright of day rather than at dusk which provided a different perspective on the city. Nashville was a different route along a riverside park across the Trinity River. All were fantastic rides.
With experiences so good you can expect to see my red bike in the future!
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I’m about to head out again and my return may be along Canada’s Yellowhead Highway. This reminded me of another trip I took across Canada along the world’s longest national road, the Trans-Canada Highway. This amazingly long road runs from Victoria, BC in the west to St. John’s, NL for a total distance of 4,860 miles. Funny trivia? Each end has a marker which identifies itself as “Mile 0” … neither wanted to be the end of the TCH! See below:
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My path started with scouring New Mexico and ended with meandering San Francisco. Red rocks of Utah and the Great Basin of Nevada lie in between. My theme was just to get to MacWorld but there were so many delicious small trips along the way that I had to tie them together here.
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Averaging almost 800 miles per day, I had only the one goal of getting home. Five weeks is a long time to be away from family; I was homecoming-ready.
While not the most direct path, the route I drove was likely to avoid bad weather during the heart of winter. Very unlike me, I stayed on Interstate Highway System the whole time. It’s wildly difficult for me to fight the temptations of visiting attractions but I had a goal which helped. I wanted to learn how quickly I could cross the country by car. I now know: four days. The most direct path would have been six hours shorter so DC-to-SF can be done comfortably by a single driver in 3 1/2 days.
“Comfortably”?
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