month long trip

[irish]

I am enjoying your trip, Joe. Good that you are able to do it. I think when you get home you will sleep for a month and we won't hear a thing from you. Buuut, we will know what you are up to.

Glad that you are posting a little here and there about the highlights of the trip. Keep it up and thanks. Irish

[angeldancer]

Fabulous trip.  Glad I got a chance to catch up on reading about it.

Angeldancer

[Joe S.]

We are home! Today is a day of rest and catchup. The 8 to 12 hour drive days did not allow recovery time. Few hotels that we stopped in had exercise equipment. There was a lot of road construction that slowed our progress. It would have been nice to pullover and sleep for a few hours a couple of times per day. Jan usually was able to drive when I could not.

Bailey was a great traveler. Jan took her for walks at every stop. Quick stops and sharp turns moved our load and put her in peril. Her safe place was under the console between our seats. She would turn the GPS off and unplug our cell phones. She would post her pillow, and pad under my feet from time to time. Dog toys would also appear. We had her bed, food, and water in the back.

If you can, step out of your comfort zone and take a trip with a friend.

We saw cathedral grove, bc; Jan had a spa day with our daughter. We got stuck in traffic going from seattle to Tacoma for several hours. Our GPS took us on a grand tour. I had fun talking with my aunt and cousin. We spent the night in Ellensberg, drove to Butte and spent a night before we drove to Bismarck for our last night on the road.

If you do take a trip, bring some one with you. Plan for shorter drives, like 300 miles per day. Most hotels have breakfast from 6 to 9 in the morning. Take lots of breaks. Bring freash water and snacks with you.

[Carebear]

Welcome home, Joe.  Thanks for inspiring me to take my own road trip.

[irish]

Joe, I am so glad that you, Jan and the dog got home safely. I am also glad that you got to make this trip to see part of America and to get you out of the house!!! It was a good summer for it---at least it sure wasn't that hot around here.

Enjoyed the narrative of the journey and especially enjoyed hearing how your dog made herself at home and enjoyed the trip. She was so lucky that you took her with you. Rest up now!!!Irish

[Carolina]

Dear Joe,

We live in NC, and we're going to a class reunion in Kansas.  I started thinking we should just keep driving and go all the way West to CA, and back.

And then I did the map planning, and I saw day after day of 12 hour drives on the trip home.  Those Western states are huge.  I know, I grew up in Kansas, and lived in Texas for 4 years.....you can drive all day and still be in Kansas...what a drag.

So we're flying to SF, renting a car, doing family and touring, then flying to Portland, doing the same thing, with a drive to Seattle and Vancouver since they're very close, then back to Portland and home.

I applaud you and your wife and Bailey for making such a long trek.

I knew I just could not do it.  I wanted to, but 30 years ago would have been the time to do it and we never had enough TIME to do it then.

Too soon old, too late smart, and wanting to travel long distances!

Hugs,  Elaine

[Joe S.]

Caroline, some of our members live in the Seattle area. Ask them what time of day is not rush hour. It took us 4 hours to get from Seattle to Tacoma. The traffic was very heavy.

[Carolina]

Thanks, Joe, for the tip.

It looks fast on the map.  Who knew there was 'traffic' in Washington........I guess it's everywhere!

Hugs,  Elaine

[aussie mum]

I'm glad you had a great trip Joe