Belated details of my Cross Country Cruise
Maria, Mark and Gidget went Cross Country 06 June 2007 through 27 June 2007 Finally got around to putting together some details from our trip. So, without further adieu… First I apologize for not posting my absence from the forum. Second between the planning and work it did get very hectic but what fun we had during the trip. We logged close to 10,000 miles and at the end felt that we would do it again. Home in New Hampshire to Chicago, Illinois, to walk “N. Michigan Avenue”. (The Magnificent Mile) The architecture is a must see. For those history buffs, Marshall Fields can’t be missed and for the Oprah fans we saw the studio but the show was off air for the summer.
Chicago, Illinois to Keystone, SD, to see “Mount Rushmore”. Along the way we saw the location of the house of “Laura Ingles Wyler” (Little House On The Prarie) and the setting of “Dancing With Wolves”
Keystone, SD to Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, to see “Old Faithful”
Yellowstone, Wyoming to Fruita, Colorado, to visit the “National Monument Park”
Fruita, Colorado to Las Vegas, Nevada, we went to see not to gamble, so we drove the strip in the daylight and view it from our room at night, Four Seasons, top floor, corner suite, what a view! This was the only hotel on the strip that allows small pets. We went to the “Hoover Dam” what an impressive chunk of concrete. We stepped out for a quick peek and pictures to hot to stand outside for long. AC was nice!
Las Vegas, Nevada to Death Valley, California - We drove through the valley at night and it was very eerie and very hot! Glad that we did drive at night even though we would have seen more during the day it would have been much hotter.
Death Valley, California to Porterville, California, to see the Giant Sequoias in the “Sequoia National Forest”. The sheer size both around and in height was impressive!
Sequoia National Forest to Redwoods, California, to see old grove redwoods and Roosevelt Elk and to see the avenue of the Giants.
Redwoods, California to Mendocino, California, we stopped in a quaint little Seacoast shopping village. What a view of the coast! The ocean breeze was invigorating!
Mendocino, California through the California wine country to San Francisco – we arrived fairly late and at this point we were tired. We had been there before and opted to just drive through and call it a night.
San Francisco to Big Sur - rocky cliffs right down to the ocean. Elephant seals and sea lions just laying there on the beach soaking up the sun and when it got to hot they would go in the water and cool off and their way of applying sunscreen is to flap sand on themselves.
Big Sur to Monterey, California – the Cannery Row is an all day adventure and one can get lost in all the little shops and wine tasting. Had a great time there.
Monterey, to Carmel, California – Carmel is a must see and is considered the most friendly place in the world when it comes to pets. Pets are welcomed on the beach and at the Inns and what a treat it was to see them sitting at the outdoor restaurants. We liked it so much that we’re still trying to figure out a way to live there.
Carmel to Santa Barbara, California – visited more wineries. One of the wineries was “Firestone” for those “Bachelor” fans “Andrew Firestone” was one of the bachelors. The show promoted the wineries so much so that it was a big reason for us stopping and tasting and buying their wine. The Firestones also own Curtis wineries, which happens to be the mother’s maiden name.
Santa Barbara is also known as the Mediterranean of America and we couldn’t agree more! We had been there before and each of the times felt that it’s not long enough. The ocean, the pier, the parks, the list goes on, it is just too much to cover on a short Holiday! I’m dreaming of that gold mine or is it the pie in the sky fund to live there.
We stopped and talked with people that moved to Santa Barbara before the housing market was out of reach and they claim that it was the best move of their lives. One person told us that when she vacationed there with her parents her father said “where can I go in February get a tan and still be cool” and the answer was Santa Barbara and she is very grateful.
Santa Barbara to San Diego, California - the Pacific Coast Highway 1, for those of us who love the ocean this is the most scenic route to take. Unfortunate for us once we got to San Diego there wasn’t a hotel room available for the night, because all flights in and out of San Diego had been canceled due to a computer glitch in one of the major airlines.
We did get to see the Elation docked at San Diego Seaport. It was a fun day of sightseeing. Very depressing to leave this area, as this is one of my very favorite places to live.
San Diego to Santa Monica, California - we stayed at Loews and walked around the pier and the Third Street Promenade. It felt good to be able to stretch and smell the ocean, can never get enough of the ocean breeze. I attribute it to being born by the ocean and there is nothing more invigorating than waking up to the smell of ocean air.
Santa Monica to Grand Canyon, Arizona, leaving Santa Monica was sad, but the road was calling us to our next stop. The Grand Canyon is a must see for anyone who wonders how it is possible to see such wonders all in one big drop!
Grand Canyon to Sedona, Arizona - much too rushed, but we did get to see the amazing work of a church that was carved into the side of the mountain and is actually opened for service. Very hot dry air, which wasn’t uncomfortable.
Sedona to Santa Fe, New Mexico, from what we saw of New Mexico we understood why the folks that we spoke with would want to make this their home after living all over the United States and abroad. It is a very down to earth no frills friendly place. We were there for one night and it was hot in the sun, the night was comfortable.
Santa Fe to Tulsa, Oklahoma, didn’t see much of anything. It was raining but we did come to the conclusion that it was the most expensive place to drive through. There is a toll at every major road and to enter or leave the area you must pay the toll.
Tulsa to Graceland, 3734 Elvis Presley Blvd, Memphis, Tennessee. This being the 30th year the place was packed. We didn’t tour the mansion because they don’t allow small dogs even in a bag and it was much to hot to leave her in the car and we wanted to either tour together or not at all so we opted to just go to the other spots where Elvis’s first car and first and last plane are located.
Memphis to Nashville, Tennessee – too much to see and time was a ticking. Saw “The Grand Ole Opry” and the area around it and off we went to our next stop and decided that we needed much more time than we had to see this area.
Nashville to New Hampshire – “HOME”! Three weeks went by so fast! I did logon from the hotels and was much to tired most of the time to do anything but read. But you were in my thoughts and even though this is not cruise related we did see a cruise ship, yachts, sailboats, fishing boats and beaches :)
Maria, Mark and Gidget went Cross Country 06 June 2007 through 27 June 2007 Finally got around to putting together some details from our trip. So, without further adieu… First I apologize for not posting my absence from the forum. Second between the planning and work it did get very hectic but what fun we had during the trip. We logged close to 10,000 miles and at the end felt that we would do it again. Home in New Hampshire to Chicago, Illinois, to walk “N. Michigan Avenue”. (The Magnificent Mile) The architecture is a must see. For those history buffs, Marshall Fields can’t be missed and for the Oprah fans we saw the studio but the show was off air for the summer.
Chicago, Illinois to Keystone, SD, to see “Mount Rushmore”. Along the way we saw the location of the house of “Laura Ingles Wyler” (Little House On The Prarie) and the setting of “Dancing With Wolves”
Keystone, SD to Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, to see “Old Faithful”
Yellowstone, Wyoming to Fruita, Colorado, to visit the “National Monument Park”
Fruita, Colorado to Las Vegas, Nevada, we went to see not to gamble, so we drove the strip in the daylight and view it from our room at night, Four Seasons, top floor, corner suite, what a view! This was the only hotel on the strip that allows small pets. We went to the “Hoover Dam” what an impressive chunk of concrete. We stepped out for a quick peek and pictures to hot to stand outside for long. AC was nice!
Las Vegas, Nevada to Death Valley, California - We drove through the valley at night and it was very eerie and very hot! Glad that we did drive at night even though we would have seen more during the day it would have been much hotter.
Death Valley, California to Porterville, California, to see the Giant Sequoias in the “Sequoia National Forest”. The sheer size both around and in height was impressive!
Sequoia National Forest to Redwoods, California, to see old grove redwoods and Roosevelt Elk and to see the avenue of the Giants.
Redwoods, California to Mendocino, California, we stopped in a quaint little Seacoast shopping village. What a view of the coast! The ocean breeze was invigorating!
Mendocino, California through the California wine country to San Francisco – we arrived fairly late and at this point we were tired. We had been there before and opted to just drive through and call it a night.
San Francisco to Big Sur - rocky cliffs right down to the ocean. Elephant seals and sea lions just laying there on the beach soaking up the sun and when it got to hot they would go in the water and cool off and their way of applying sunscreen is to flap sand on themselves.
Big Sur to Monterey, California – the Cannery Row is an all day adventure and one can get lost in all the little shops and wine tasting. Had a great time there.
Monterey, to Carmel, California – Carmel is a must see and is considered the most friendly place in the world when it comes to pets. Pets are welcomed on the beach and at the Inns and what a treat it was to see them sitting at the outdoor restaurants. We liked it so much that we’re still trying to figure out a way to live there.
Carmel to Santa Barbara, California – visited more wineries. One of the wineries was “Firestone” for those “Bachelor” fans “Andrew Firestone” was one of the bachelors. The show promoted the wineries so much so that it was a big reason for us stopping and tasting and buying their wine. The Firestones also own Curtis wineries, which happens to be the mother’s maiden name.
Santa Barbara is also known as the Mediterranean of America and we couldn’t agree more! We had been there before and each of the times felt that it’s not long enough. The ocean, the pier, the parks, the list goes on, it is just too much to cover on a short Holiday! I’m dreaming of that gold mine or is it the pie in the sky fund to live there.
We stopped and talked with people that moved to Santa Barbara before the housing market was out of reach and they claim that it was the best move of their lives. One person told us that when she vacationed there with her parents her father said “where can I go in February get a tan and still be cool” and the answer was Santa Barbara and she is very grateful.
Santa Barbara to San Diego, California - the Pacific Coast Highway 1, for those of us who love the ocean this is the most scenic route to take. Unfortunate for us once we got to San Diego there wasn’t a hotel room available for the night, because all flights in and out of San Diego had been canceled due to a computer glitch in one of the major airlines.
We did get to see the Elation docked at San Diego Seaport. It was a fun day of sightseeing. Very depressing to leave this area, as this is one of my very favorite places to live.
San Diego to Santa Monica, California - we stayed at Loews and walked around the pier and the Third Street Promenade. It felt good to be able to stretch and smell the ocean, can never get enough of the ocean breeze. I attribute it to being born by the ocean and there is nothing more invigorating than waking up to the smell of ocean air.
Santa Monica to Grand Canyon, Arizona, leaving Santa Monica was sad, but the road was calling us to our next stop. The Grand Canyon is a must see for anyone who wonders how it is possible to see such wonders all in one big drop!
Grand Canyon to Sedona, Arizona - much too rushed, but we did get to see the amazing work of a church that was carved into the side of the mountain and is actually opened for service. Very hot dry air, which wasn’t uncomfortable.
Sedona to Santa Fe, New Mexico, from what we saw of New Mexico we understood why the folks that we spoke with would want to make this their home after living all over the United States and abroad. It is a very down to earth no frills friendly place. We were there for one night and it was hot in the sun, the night was comfortable.
Santa Fe to Tulsa, Oklahoma, didn’t see much of anything. It was raining but we did come to the conclusion that it was the most expensive place to drive through. There is a toll at every major road and to enter or leave the area you must pay the toll.
Tulsa to Graceland, 3734 Elvis Presley Blvd, Memphis, Tennessee. This being the 30th year the place was packed. We didn’t tour the mansion because they don’t allow small dogs even in a bag and it was much to hot to leave her in the car and we wanted to either tour together or not at all so we opted to just go to the other spots where Elvis’s first car and first and last plane are located.
Memphis to Nashville, Tennessee – too much to see and time was a ticking. Saw “The Grand Ole Opry” and the area around it and off we went to our next stop and decided that we needed much more time than we had to see this area.
Nashville to New Hampshire – “HOME”! Three weeks went by so fast! I did logon from the hotels and was much to tired most of the time to do anything but read. But you were in my thoughts and even though this is not cruise related we did see a cruise ship, yachts, sailboats, fishing boats and beaches :)