green with “Harley envy”
Ahh, that makes sense! Wow, I bet you spent a lot of time at gas stations. 
Even the natives have their favorite “I got stuck for a month one night in Rock Springs” stories. It’s really too bad the interstate goes through the dustiest, windiest, most inhospitably boring part of the state. Northern Wyoming, with its huge basin full of nothing but sage brush, antelope and wild horses is an acquired taste. Still, an argument can be made that its weirdly compelling. But…the 40 mile stretch of highway between Cody and Yellowstone is IMHO the most beautiful drive in the U.S., except for maybe 101 down the Oregon coast.
This message was brought to you by koeeoaddi, former Wyoming resident. Retired.
Observations from the “coast-to-coast coaster” tour (from the Giant Dipper on the Pacific in Santa Cruz CA to the Cyclone on the Atlantic in NYC) and a couple of observations from other trips:[ul]
[li]You can drive really fast in Nevada. If there were a police car anywhere, you would see it miles in advance.[/li][li]Driving through the flats of Nevada does not induce brain death the way southwest Kansas or SW Texas does (see item above).[/li][li]Wisconsin is a beautiful state. Red barns, black and white cows.[/li][li]You lead a pretty dull life if you don’t see a billboard in SD that says you can get free coffee at Wall’s for some reason (vet, honeymooner, etc). Turns out the coffee only costs 5 cents anyway, and it’s not worth it.[/li][li]There’s more corn growing in Iowa than can possibly be consumed by every living thing in the universe.[/li][li]Driving through Chicago is a bitch, even on a Sunday night.[/li][li]Pennsylvania seemed to be one loooong stretch of experimental pavement tests.[/li][li]The capitol building in Columbus OH lacks a dome (very obvious that it was supposed to have one) because some governor embezzeled the money (at least that’s what we were told). [/li][li]The cities of Ohio that we passed through seemed to be economically depressed urban wastelands.[/li][li]In New Mexico, people kept giving us stuff. We got a bunch of cool stuff at the Welcome Center. We even got a free apple pie at McDonald’s because we had to wait like 2 minutes.[/li][li]Ahhh, the automobile, the road, the U.S.A. It doesn’t get any better.[/li][/ul]
[ul]
[li]If you’re in SD, see Mt. Rushmore before seeing the Crazy Horse monument. Crazy Horse makes Mt.Rushmore look kind of pathetic. And it’s a bit pricey to see Crazy Horse, but see him anyway.[/li][li]If you arrive at an amusement park with less than an hour till closing, most will let you in free, but those greedy bastids at Six Flags will always charge you full price.[/li][/ul]
L.A. - Bellingham, WA. and back again.
Oregon drivers are the most polite and well-behaved drivers in the country. They are aware of their surroundings, and move over before you get up to them as you speed by.
Washington State drivers, on the other hand, are a bunch of fuck-wits.
Both states are beautiful. Green.
I second the rec for the Crazy Horse monument. Mt. Rushmore is a ripoff and a joke.
Always stop to see “The World’s Biggest Ball of Yarn” Trust me on this. You won’t be disappointed.
In New Mexico you can go quite a ways without seeing any sign of human life (or animal life, except for ravens.) You will soon arrive at a small town and think that now you can refill your tank and get something to eat, only to find that all the homes and businesses are boarded up and their doors are swinging in the breeze. The town has been abandoned for 15-20 years. After a few hours of this the state will seem to have a weird Twilight Zone quality to it. (My sister reported similar problems in West Virginia.)
When traveling through northern KY and passing the town of Florence, look for a sign that says Florence Mall. Next to it there should be a water tower that says Florence, Y’all.
You used to be able to see, from I-75, a barn in Ohio that had a picture of Ben Franklin painted on it. I don’ t know if it’s still there. Can anyone fill me in on that?
Black Hills:
Drive down Iron Mountain Road or Needles Highway south of Keystone. They’re wondrous. They also lead you to Custer state park and the wildlife loop.
Second Crazy Horse. I’ve been there four times in about 10-12 years.
Stick to fast food restaraunts in the Black Hills, if you can find them. At least you have some idea of what you’re getting. In the “family” places, you’ll pay $7 for a cardboard hamburger on a cheap bleached white bun covered with fake cheese. :rolleyes: Either that or shell out the big bucks for places like Jakes or the State Game Lodge.
SD has some of the best rest stops in the nation.
Drive to Rushmore from the back side. As you come around the curve to the back of the mountain, you see a large…penis.:eek: There is a column of rock about 50-70’ high that looks like a large phallus. My wife let out an audible gasp as we rounded the curve.
Some of the best things aren’t on the map. Lake Lakota is very cool (on Iron Mountain road).
Others;
The town of Colony in the extreme NE Wyoming is just a couple of (and I mean 2) dilapidated houses and about 5 trailers. It’s not off the road as shown, but on the highway. Their claim to fame is the local mines for that stuff thats in cat litter. (I went there because it seemed very…conspiratorial sci-fi-ish that the map showed a town called “Colony” to be several miles off the main road and not readily accessible from any other place in WY.)
I thought there was as much corn in central Illinois as in Iowa. Of course, that was 10-15 years ago.
The mountains of West Virginia are indeed beautiful. Unless you’re driving down those winding highways at midnight in the rain with some crazy assed trucker tailgating you. :eek:
I had some real ‘Deliverance’ moments on the back roads of SC. Had to laugh at one stop when it seemed like everybody and their brothers of all races were at the gas station, all excited, because the beer shipment had just come in. :rolleyes:
You can really fly on Hwy 20 in eastern Oregon. OTOH, drive the coastal mountains and you’ll be stuck behind some wahoo driving an RV at 15mph and ignoring the turn-outs. :mad:
The best time to hit the touristy areas of the northern states is mid-May, before Memorial day when all the tourists arrive.
The people of Louisville, KY seemed to have thicker, more impenetrable accents than anywhere in the South. (At least, that was my impression in 1987)
I had to make a trip down to Dayton, OH from the border crossing at Sault St. Marie. Certainly not a cross-country trip, but I have some interesting observations.
Firstly, Detroit is the most awful run down, grimey looking city I’ve ever been to. Cement constructions everywhere and mile after mile of dark, intimidating factories.
And then Ohio. We drove down some interstate, I don’t know what (I wasn’t driving and I"m not from the US). But it was the most boring scenery ever. There were a few small communities here and there, but none had “Welcome” signs and you couldn’t tell when you actually left one town, or entered another. As lainaf pointed out, all the towns seemed very economically depressed. There was a very eerie feeling about it all.
I drove from Charlotte to Phoenix a few months ago and pretty much hated it (growing up with flying benefits made me hate road-trips from a very early age.)
But what I’m interested in is this:
I thought the whole point of satellite radio was that there were no commercials. Isn’t that why you pay a monthly fee?