Epic Road Trip...

[Canon Shooter]

I love to travel. It's in my blood. I've had a valid passport for as long as I can remember. I spent 20 years in the Navy and traveled all over the world.

I can't not travel.

In 2018, my brother and I took our Mom to Ireland. In April of 2019 I did a solo photo excursion to Italy, and in May of 2019 I took my daughter to Scotland for her birthday (we go wherever in the world she wants to go every year). Last year, my daughter's birthday trip was going to be to Belgium, but Covid happened. This year, we were going to go but, sadly, there are just too many international travel restrictions for it to be feasible.

So, I decided I'm going to change things up. I'm going to embark on two epic road trips this year. I'm going to drive the four longest roads in America.

The first leg will actually be the third longest road, from Boston to Seattle. I'll drive from Florida to Boston, spend a couple of days with an old Navy buddy and his family before heading west on I-90. While I'll be able to visit friends and family along the way, the main goal will be to stop and explore and photograph the small towns along the way that just scream "old time Americana".

After various stops along the way, I'll visit my daughter and her fiance in Seattle for a couple of days. My daughter will then join me for the drive south to Newport, OR for the cross-country drive along US-20, which is the longest road in America. US-20 actually has its own website: Historic US-20

There are literally dozens of small towns along the way, and we'll stop and photograph as many of them as we can:

While my daughter's also a photographer, her forte is video, so she'll be bringing her video gear as well as her drone. She wants to document the whole "longest road" thing. We'll drive to Boston, and then my daughter will decide if she just wants to fly back to Seattle or head down to Florida with me for a visit.

I'm figuring the entire trip to take about five weeks. With side trips here and there, the total distance will be well over 10,000 miles so, instead of driving my car, I'll be renting a Ford Explorer. It's not as good on gas mileage as the car, but it ain't bad, plus it's roomier and will hold a lot of gear/suitcases/crap I buy along the way. Plus, you can't put a price on peace of mind. If I break down in my car, I'm on the hook for repairs (that happened to me in 2013 in Montana). If I break down in the Explorer, I just call Avis.

I'll endeavor to knock out the second and fourth longest roads in either late summer or early fall...

 

[Rambunctious]

I drove the Lincoln Hwy from CA to Chicago once....loneliest road in America.....just my dog and me.....miles and miles between anything even resembling a town...after the first day I said to myself this might have been a mistake...lol

 

[Foreigner Looking In.]

Why not take the pan American highway to the tip of Chile.
Would probably be the same distance but a lot more diverse and interesting.

 

[Foreigner Looking In.]

Actually, skip that. I forgot about the China virus.

 

[jbrownson0831]

I love to travel. It's in my blood. I've had a valid passport for as long as I can remember. I spent 20 years in the Navy and traveled all over the world.

I can't not travel.

In 2018, my brother and I took our Mom to Ireland. In April of 2019 I did a solo photo excursion to Italy, and in May of 2019 I took my daughter to Scotland for her birthday (we go wherever in the world she wants to go every year). Last year, my daughter's birthday trip was going to be to Belgium, but Covid happened. This year, we were going to go but, sadly, there are just too many international travel restrictions for it to be feasible.

So, I decided I'm going to change things up. I'm going to embark on two epic road trips this year. I'm going to drive the four longest roads in America.

The first leg will actually be the third longest road, from Boston to Seattle. I'll drive from Florida to Boston, spend a couple of days with an old Navy buddy and his family before heading west on I-90. While I'll be able to visit friends and family along the way, the main goal will be to stop and explore and photograph the small towns along the way that just scream "old time Americana".

After various stops along the way, I'll visit my daughter and her fiance in Seattle for a couple of days. My daughter will then join me for the drive south to Newport, OR for the cross-country drive along US-20, which is the longest road in America. US-20 actually has its own website: Historic US-20

There are literally dozens of small towns along the way, and we'll stop and photograph as many of them as we can:

View attachment 453041View attachment 453042

While my daughter's also a photographer, her forte is video, so she'll be bringing her video gear as well as her drone. She wants to document the whole "longest road" thing. We'll drive to Boston, and then my daughter will decide if she just wants to fly back to Seattle or head down to Florida with me for a visit.

I'm figuring the entire trip to take about five weeks. With side trips here and there, the total distance will be well over 10,000 miles so, instead of driving my car, I'll be renting a Ford Explorer, instead. It's not as good on gas mileage as the car, but it ain't bad, plus it's roomier and will hold a lot of gear/suitcases/crap I buy along the way. Plus, you can't put a price on peace of mind. If I break down in my car, I'm on the hook for repairs (that happened to me in 2013 in Montana). If I break down in the Explorer, I just call Avis.

I'll endeavor to knock out the second and fourth longest roads in either late summer or early fall...

Awesome. 25 years in the Navy myself and got to see much of Europe and love to travel myself.....just not much lately.

 

[boedicca]

Route 66!

 

[Canon Shooter]

Why not take the pan American highway to the tip of Chile.
Would probably be the same distance but a lot more diverse and interesting.

Honestly, man, there's so much to see right here at home, plus I won't have to worry about getting waylayed by Mexican Federales taking my shit...