a roadtrip...

[dan]

so how long d'ya reckon would have to be set aside for something like this?

(original)

and do you have any suggestions of better ways of going about it? taking canada in as well would be quite nice.

also, i found a map with capitals on it, so just joined the dots. capitals i guess might not be the most interesting places to visit - got any better suggestions of places to go?

 

[Jeslek]

Thats insane. I'm taking a road trip this August for three weeks. Just me and a friend. We plan on driving to Detroit, Chicago, and then spending two or three days there at the Museum of Information and Technology. Then we want to go south.

We have a list of locations that we _want_ to visit, for example Huntsville, AL, which is where NASA's HQ is. And a lot of other sights. What we don't have planned is a route. We plan on driving and driving, just following the general direction.

A general outline would be Toronto - Chicago, then south towards the Gulf, then east towards Florida, then up the coat into New England, crossing back into Canada, and making it through Montreal and Ottawa (for bungee jumping).

Your outline seems a little excessive... You're missing Hollywood, Orlando, and a bunch of other neat stuff. =) Time? Weeks... Months.

 

[unclehobart]

Whats your intent? Just to touch all 48 states as quick as possible or do a little chumming about with the touristy ho-ha? How much time would you be setting aside for such a venture?

 

[dan]

definate ho-ha one, something in the 6 month range i guess...

/very/ early thinking-about stage, just something we were chatting about in the pub the other day - probably wouldn't happen for another 1.5 years or so at least (when i finish uni)

 

[unclehobart]

1. add New York City
2. Change Columbia, SC to Charleston
3. change the run from Tallahassee to Austin to be more of a straight run through Moblie, Al and Biloxi, MS. The coast is 10 times better than the interior.
4. Las Vegas instead of Carson City. Carson City is the ass end of space.
(more later, time for dinner)

 

[Q]

disney world

 

[Gonz]

talk about the long way to Phoenix.

Figure on 4 days coast to coast-gas & quick meal only & hotels at night. Can be run quicker or slowed way down. I'd say 30 days or more for that unless you're just moving all the time.

 

[dan]

right, i've added in the stuff unclehobart said and LA too (esp cos there's a nice airport there that flies to the UK) - the picture should have changed. (and i've been to NYC once, but my travelling pal hasn't)

where's disney world? my brief googling didn't tell me....

heh, and yeah it is a bit the long way round

the cities on the first one were a starting point - y'know, get some structure in there to make something worth thinking about.

so six months would definately be long enough then, long enough to hang out in various places for a bit?

we were kinda thinking that we could buy a camper van of some description over there and sleep in that (being cheap-ass broke ex-students )... do you think that would be feasible?

and i wasn't thinking of just going to cities... someone mentioned turning up in some little town somewhere and going into a bar where a creaky old dude propping up the bar would relate the tale of the last foriegners in town, back in 1962

 

[Q]

where's disney world? my brief googling didn't tell me....

Orlando, Florida....about 4 hours south of Tallahassee. You could spend a whole week in Orlando and not see everything. Disney, Universal Studios, Sea World....

 

[dan]

okay, i've added orlando in - saw miami there too, and that sounded good, so put that in as well

 

[unclehobart]

1. erase Sacramento, add San Francisco
2. erase Jefferson City, unless you plan on bunking with Puter, add St Louis
3. I would modify the route northeastward to hug the lake as you go from Milwaukee/Green Bay up and over the upper penninsula of Michigan until you hit reach the Mackinac Bridge. From that point you can venture into The Ontario heartland or strike south across Michigan along I-75 until you reach Detroit. From there you could pick up your route eastward or have a second chance for the Toronto area. This would require you to move the Indianapolis point unto the second line between Frankfort and Springfield... but I would also add a little leg up to Chicago at that point .. after all.. it our third largest city.
4. Add Savannah, GA as a stop to catch a few of the tours of the old city center. Its already along the route from Charleston to Miami.
5. Baton Rouge?... perhaps as a city that you pass through on your way to better pastures. You can't do Louisiana without the French Quarter of New Orleans.

 

[Professur]

From MontPelier, dogleg up to Montreal, then dive back down to Albany. While around Albany, hop over to Cooperstown. It's about half an hour at worst, and it's got the Baseball Hall of Fame. If you're gonna be that close, you might as well go.

That might be a good annex to your trip. Hit all the Hall of Fames.

 

[Jeslek]

Dan, go RVing. Rent a RV and drive all over. If that is too expensive, just drive and camp out. If absolute need be you can get a motel, but we plan on camping out all the time.

 

[tommyj27]

bike that route

 

[PT]

2. erase Jefferson City, unless you plan on bunking with Puter, add St Louis

Hey now, Jefferson City has a Capitol. Oh yeah, that is all it has too.

 

[Jon]

Dan, go RVing. Rent a RV and drive all over.

he's got to acquire his licence first

 

[Q]

But then he'll want to be driving that RV on the wrong side of the road

 

[Jon]

 

[Gato_Solo]

1. add New York City
2. Change Columbia, SC to Charleston
3. change the run from Tallahassee to Austin to be more of a straight run through Moblie, Al and Biloxi, MS. The coast is 10 times better than the interior.
4. Las Vegas instead of Carson City. Carson City is the ass end of space.
(more later, time for dinner)

Also, I'd cut Lansing, MI out ot the loop. The whole state of Michigan is pretty much dull outside of Detroit. That way, you can pretty much stay on the major interstates.

Just as a side note...It takes an average of 3 days to cross the US from coast to coast, with stops only for food, fuel, and sleep. If you're going the route you've planned, you'd better double the time...triple if you decide to go off the beaten path for some 'local flavor'. Bring along plenty of currency...especially if you come to Charleston, SC. I'll be waiting for you at the end of I-26 in a beige 1988 Audi 90 Quattro. Just hand the money outside the passenger-side window, and nobody gets hurt. Another thing to think of is this...I-26 has no connection to any other major highway once you enter Charleston, so plan for at least 3 other interstates being the same way.

 

[Q]

Gato, we do NOT rob tourists by encouraging them to bring money and come to our area over the internet. It's hard enough getting them here with all these terror alerts...... now you're practically carjacking them