First Road Trip Report and Photo Essay

Thank you for reading my first road trip report. No fishing, so I hope it’s worth your time!

Last Wednesday I flew Frontier from Orlando to Hartford. My ticket was $59. My carry on was $40. And they got me there on time.

Maxx and the dogs in his empty apartment.

Son Maxx picked me up at Bradley International. We spent some time on finishing emptying the apartment, and then packed the car. Thursday morning we put Bruce (the cat) in his carrier, put him, Carlo, and Betty (the dogs) in the back seat, tied the Old Town to the roof, and hit the road. Our destination is San Francisco. Maxx is changing jobs.

Carlo

Betty

It’s winter in the northeast. The temperature is cold, the roads are crowded, and we just drove the first and second day, making Harrisonburg, Virginia the first day, and Dickson, Tennessee the second. Snow dusted the ground a good portion of the way. Even here in Tennessee the temperature is in the 20s as I write this.

Carlo and Betty in the very full car.

Poor Bruce has to ride in the cat carrier.

We need to eat dinner each night. I typed into the search box “best restaurant harrisonburg va”. The first place on the list was Boboko, an Indonesian eatery. Neither Maxx nor I knew anything about Indonesian food, but that’s where we ate. It was great. I would eat there all the time if I lived near there.

Good to see Isaac, Tina, and Booker get some recognition by the state of Tennessee.

We did the same thing in Dickson. We ended up at Back Alley Barbecue, an independent. Two sassy women working there, great food, back home ambiance, we hit two in a row. I’m kind of looking forward to tomorrow night. Our goal is Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Taking a break in Arkansas.

Saturday- we drove fairly uneventfully across Arkansas, crossing the state line into Oklahoma late in the afternoon. Maxx drove, I should say. He’s done all the driving. I sightsee and nod out, as I see fit. Except for being cooped up in the car all day it’s pretty relaxing.

We had a little rain today.

We stopped in Sallisaw, stayed at pet-friendly and relatively inexpensive Motel 6. Every night so far, actually. We found an independent Mexican restaurant, El Toro. It was good, clean, authentic feeling, friendly, another good choice.

Middle America- I love the openness.

Today we drove to Amarillo. Not to put too fine a point on it, but it’s a dump. Sorry, Amarillo.

At Cadillac Ranch.

We visited the Cadillac Ranch. It was fun. We got cans of paint and sprayed randomly. I took some pictures. I realized on the way to dinner Cadillac Ranch would be super entertaining if we spray-painted the cars of the other visitors. I don’t need or want any police encounters, though.

The Cadilacs have seen better days.

Maxx and the pups.

A bit of a rainbow at the ranch.

Restaurant choices here were limited on a Sunday evening. We were not thrilled with our choice, but it wasn’t bad. It just felt very chain-y. We both prefer those mom-and-pop places.

And that’s my first road trip report and photo essay. Thanks for reading it!

Life is great and I love my work!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go Fishing! Or drive across the country!

John Kumiski, author of Fishing Florida by Paddle- An Angler’s Guide
Purchase Fishing Florida by Paddle- An Angler’s Guide at http://www.spottedtail.com/fishing-florida-by-paddle/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2020. All rights are reserved.