Just do it. -Nike

After 10 days on the road, 13 different states, and more than 4000 miles, Kevin and I are headed home. This trip has been quite an adventure, and we plan to go on many more like it!

To help make our next trip a success we have decided to compile a list of tips that made this trip one to remember: (in no particular order)

1. Just do it. I'm a planner, so the thought of taking a trip like this initially made me anxious, but once we hit the road I had a blast. Everyone we met along the way said they always wanted to just pick up and go somewhere, and my advice would be to just do it. Even if it just for a weekend, hitting the road and leaving yourself open to the possibilities is exhilarating and results in more fun than sticking to a set agenda. 

2. No chain restaurants. In the spirit of adventure, we decided to avoid chain restaurants in search of unique dining experiences. There is an app from the Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives TV show that helped, and we also relied on Yelp, the Internet, and locals to find some yummy places to eat.

3. Don't make plans or reservations more than a day ahead of time. We'd often think that we would want to spend two nights somewhere but then we would change our minds and head for a new destination. Weather also often played a role in our plans. Rain prevented us from camping on a few occasions, but flexibility in our scheduling allowed us to adjust and have a great time! 

4. You can extend your budget if you are willing to camp, stay in motels, and hotels. Because we camped a few nights we were able to splurge on a pricier hotel to end our trip. Booking.com is an amazing site for making reservations. Their customer service department is outstanding and cancellations are a breeze! (PS. It is free to camp in National forests! Just be sure to observe any state fire bans!) Staying in a range of accommodations means having to pack for a range of situations, but be careful not to overpack! Road trips mean packing and unpacking just about every day, so the less you have to carry the happier you will be! 

5. Talk to people. We got great tips about things to see off of the beaten path by talking to locals. Waiters and waitresses make great food recommendations and often have inside tips on things to see while in town.

6. If you want it, ask. The worst answer you're going to get is no, but more often than not the answer is yes. The best example of this is our upgrade from an executive room with two double beds to a king suite! For free! 

7. Keep track of your spending and pay with cash whenever possible. We kept a log of every penny we spent. We found that if we had to write it down we were less likely to make frivolous purchases, and using cash made the money spending more tangible than using a credit or debit card. It also helped keep us on a budget.

8. Try to eat one meal a day on your own. We kept a cooler in the bed of our truck and usually made cereal and milk for breakfast. This saved a lot of money. We made peanut butter sandwiches for lunch and we were sure to stay stocked up on Capri suns, soda, and other beverages so that we didn't have to stop and/or pay every time we were thirsty. 

9. Write about your trip as you go. Keeping this blog helped capture the memories. It feels like we've been gone for way longer than 10 days, and by taking the time to write about it each day I made a record of our trip that I can revisit for years to come. I used the Blogger app on my iPhone for all of the posts, but a paper and pen journal would have done the trick too. 

10. Keep in mind that "not all those who wander are lost." On a few occasions some "wrong turns" resulted in memorable moments. Like our truck rib lunch! 

11. Be kind to each other. Road trips mean long stretches of time in closed quarters. Tempers can be tested and sometimes exhaustion sets in. Caffeine helps, but so does patience and making sure to acknowledge the irritation once you are feeling more like yourself. Stay calm and laugh a lot. Take turns driving every two hours or so and remember to have an old-fashioned atlas and common sense to rely on when the technology and GPS are acting up. 

Kevin and I are already talking about our next road trip. We've got about a dozen US states that we haven't visited yet. We hope to be equipped to take the dogs along next time, too! For now, we will enjoy the memories from this adventure! 

We've officially entered into our own time zone and enjoyed our last meal on the road. Coal fired pizza at Coals in Louisville, KY. We are going on a diet effective as soon as we return to reality in a few hours. :) 

Until next time....

"Start both arms to flappin', Start the feet to kickin', That's when you know you're doin' the funky chicken." -Rufus Thomas, "Funky Chicken"

When we first set out on our trip more than a week ago, we weren't sure exactly where our travels would take us. We had a few key landmarks in mind, but we also wanted to see where the road led. It was only fitting that our last stop was in one of our favorite cities-Memphis. 

Because we camped a few nights along the way we were able to splurge a little on a swanky hotel. Then a glitch with the online booking company we used meant that we had to stay at a different and pricier hotel. The online company was willing to pay for the difference between the hotels, so we were happy to  agree to the move. Then, when we were checking in I asked if there were any rooms available with a king bed instead of the two doubles we booked to save money. The woman at the front desk upgraded us to a king suite for free!!!! Needless to say the room was awesome! I enjoyed the jacuzzi bathtub. 

I've learned a lot on this trip, and I guess one of the major things I learned is to ask for what you want. The worst they can say is no, but in most cases--especially when it comes to hospitality--the answer is often yes. 

After getting settled into our room, Kevin and I hit the town for night one in Memphis. Kevin has raved about Gus's World Famous Chicken since he came here for work a few years ago, so it was priority number one. It was within walking distance to our hotel, so we were there in no time. We even saw a rainbow along the way! 

After stuffing ourselves with a ridiculous amount of fried chicken, greens, slaw, and sweet tea, we set out for Beale Street. Blues music, frozen beverages, street performers, and barbecue make this street one of a kind. 

Kevin and I played five gallon drums with a homeless man playing for tips on the corner. I do not have a future in percussion! Then we wandered into the Rum Boogie Cafe and BB Kings for some live music. The energy on Beale Street is hard to describe. 

Day two in Memphis brought us back to Gus's for round number two. We spent the heat of the afternoon watching the movie Ray in our hotel room as we enjoyed the freezing cold air conditioning as the thermometer outside climbed into the upper nineties! Once it started to cool down we ventured out to Beale Street for one more night of fun and refreshments. We danced to Tina Turner's "Proud Mary" and sipped on a Superman from Wet Willies. 

We stayed out until the bands stopped playing and then headed back to our hotel to rest up for our drive back to Columbus. 

This morning we checked out of our hotel and loaded up the truck one last time. We were headed for home, but we still had a few stops to make. 

Stop one today was the Civil Rights Museum just around the corner from our hotel. Located at the site where MLK Jr was assassinated, the museum is currently being renovated and expanded, but we were able to see many artifacts from the assassination and the Civil Rights movement. It was quite a powerful  museum, and they allow you to get up close and personal with a tragic moment in US History. 

MLK was shot on this balcony. Just outside of his room-306-at 6:01 pm on April 4, 1968:

The view from the balcony where MLK wa shot:

Inside MLK's room:

James Earl Ray shot MLK from the top right window of this building: 

The bullet that was removed from MLK:

The room that James Earl Ray shot from:

After touring the museum we decided to stop one last time at Gus's. We just realized that the only place we ate during our time in Memphis was at that place!!! When we walked in the waitress recognized us and even knew our orders.  I'm sure our cholesterol levels are out of control right now, but we had to get our fill of chicken before we left Memphis because I know nothing else will compare! 

After one last comfort food meal we hit the road for home. Except we had one more stop to make. We decided to drive through Waynesboro, TN. My relatives settled there in the 1800s, and my mom used to spend her summers playing in the creek behind my Great Grandma's house at the corner of Green River Rd and Helton. My great great aunt was married to the judge for the town, and on our way in to Waynesboro we drove on the Russ and Mae Tom (Whitby) Davidson Memorial Bridge named in their honor! I found the Senate Bill that name the bridge after them. You can view it here: (copy and paste the link)

http://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/101/Bill/SB2914.pdf

We took a few pictures, of course:

We explored an antique store in town and picked up a few things. It was neat to finally visit Waynesboro after hearing my mom talk about her time there as a child! 

After seeing Waynesboro we set out for one last destination...Columbus, Ohio. We discovered that the town of Waynesboro is near Natchez Trace which is where Meriwether Lewis died! It was a coincidence that we started our trip by exploring parts of the Lewis and Clark expedition only to accidentally end it so close to the place where Lewis spent his final hours! It felt like we had come full circle! 

As I write this we are cruising through Kentucky and plan to stop for dinner before heading into Columbus. It has been a fantastic trip!!! We look forward to more like it!!! 

"Keep your eyes on the road and your hands up on the wheel." -The Doors, "Roadhouse Blues"

On Sunday we started our journey back towards home. The day consisted mostly of driving. We drove through Kansas and made sure to make a stop in Wyatt Earp's old stomping ground. Dodge City. 

Eventually we made it to our destination--a campground in El Dorado State Park in El Dorado, Kansas. We were the only ones in the entire park, so we had our pick of the campsites and we had a great view! We set up camp as the sun was setting and grilled up some hot dogs for dinner before crawling into our sleeping bags for the night. 

We saw a rainbow during our drive on Sunday! 

The next morning we woke up bright and early (again!) so that we could journey to our final destination on our road trip. Memphis, Tennessee. We didn't originally plan for this to be part of our trip, but we decided to end an amazing trip in one of our favorite cities. Monday consisted mostly of another day of driving, but we knew the destination would be worth it in the end. We drove in Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee en route to our hotel. We pulled into the city around 5 pm and after checking in began our first night of fun on Beale Street. I'll post about our adventures here when we hit the road for home tomorrow, but here is a sneak peak...

"...it's got mountains, it's got rivers, it's got sights to give you shivers..." -Anna Kendrick, "Cups"

Last night we stayed in the town of Black Hawk, Colorado. Kevin visited the town on a previous road trip with our friend, Brad, so he knew the area. We had a fun night checking out the casinos and eating a good meal at the Lady Luck Casino even if we weren't so lucky at the Video Poker machines. We stayed at a hotel/casino called The Lodge for the night.

One of my favorite casinos was the Sasquatch Casino. I made a new friend there. 

Kevin thought the Sasquatch looked like he was in a wrestling stance so he challenged him to a match, but Bigfoot wasn't interested. 

We went to bed not sure of our plan for the next day, but when I woke up this morning Kevin had a plan mapped out for us. 

We decided to leave Black Hawk and head for the Rocky Mountain National park. The park's road snakes for 60 miles up and down the Rocky Mountains. Once again I was happy that Kevin was driving since most of the road had no guardrails and at one point we were over 12000 feet above sea level. I took a gazillion pictures, but here are a few of my favorites: 

Kevin says that he thinks it would be worse to be in the passenger seat on that road, and I might agree. My hand was gripping the door handle for most of the two hour scenic drive. Thankfully Kevin is a great driver, but I was worried about the other drivers!! During our drive to the peak the temperature dropped more than ten degrees. I can't believe how many people were biking up the side of the mountain! Crazy! It was very nerve wracking, but I'm glad we decided to take the drive! Such breathtaking views! 

From the Rocky Mountain National Park we headed into Boulder City for lunch. We stopped at a restaurant called the Hungry Toad. We had a delicious lunch, and when the waitress found out that we were on a road trip from Ohio she brought out a side dish that the waitstaff at the  restaurant loves for me to try. Fried jalapeños. Delicious! 

During lunch we decided that we wanted to camp in the Pike National Forest, so we headed to get a few groceries before hitting the road again. 

Before we headed for the park we decided to make a stop in the town of Golden, Colorado. It is the home of the Coors Brewing Plant. Kevin toured it during his previous road trip, but when we arrived there the line was soooo long that we just decided to head for the forest. 

We drove around the forest for awhile looking for the perfect spot. It was my turn to drive, and it seems like every time I am in the driver's seat it decides to rain, so of course the skies opened up and it poured. We napped in the truck for a little while waiting for the rain to let up with no success. Ultimately we decided to head for Denver for the night. A warm night in a comfy bed beats a night in a wet tent...although we would have loved to spend the night in the fresh air of the forest. 

There are signs everywhere indicating the current fire ban. It rained most of the day today, but the area has been in a drought for so long that the forest is a huge tinderbox! We saw evidence of the dangers when we drove through a section of the forest that was claimed by a fire. It was eerie to see the dead trees standing as far as the eye could see! 

I was able to book a room in a really nice hotel with a view of the Rockies for cheap because we booked so late! As I update this blog we are waiting for a pizza and salad to be delivered to our room from a local pizzeria. 

We will be starting the journey back home in a day or two. For now, we are living it up! I am in love with Colorado! The mountains. The rivers. The breathtaking views. I know we will be back!!!