A Grand Tour of The Entire Midwest, But Mostly Wisconsin (UPDATE 11/12--BONUS Texas TR NOW COMPLETE)

Day 4: Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, Georgia. Still undecided on doing World of Coca-Cola or CNN Studios tours.

Lurker here piping in to say that World of Coke is awesome and I highly recommend. I've been 3 (or 4?) times since I moved here in 2002 and enjoyed it every time. I mean, come on, a tasting room ten times the size of Cool Club? How could you not? :rotfl:

As for the CNN Studios tour, I've never done it so I can't give an opinion.

As for places to eat, we really don't go downtown too much but if we do, we eat at Ted's Montana Grill or the Hard Rock so nothing really unique there.
 
I saw that Star Wars Land is opening in 2019. While I love Star Wars, I hate crowds. And I think this announcement means 2019 is going to be insane at WDW. I have learned the value of patience as I’ve aged, and do not feel the need to be the first to get the latest gadgets, see the new movies, or ride the new rides. I’m happy to wait out the crowds and head back for my taste of Star Wars land in a couple of years.

I agree with you and was thinking the same thing, but James' graduation trip should be in 2018 but he wants to delay it until 2019 in order to catch Star Wars Land. Because he realizes, who knows when he'll get back if he doesn't plan ahead and arrange for the trip to happen in 2019. And he's right about that. Plus, it's either purposely delay the trip, or fail his senior year. Tough choice.

Favorite TV Series

I just finished watching the whole "Curb Your Enthusiasm" series through many HBO free preview weekends, spanning a couple of years. It's pretty good. Pretty. Pretty. Pretty good.

Day 6: Hot Springs National Park, followed by Crater of Diamonds State Park

You occasionally hear of someone finding a big diamond there. I think there was one found just a couple of months ago.
 
Hey Mark,

Finally have a few open minutes to fill with stuff I wanna do (like read TRs) rather than with stuff I have to do (like go to work and come home, eat, lather, rinse, repeat).

I know that feeling! Wish we could all spend more time doing the things we want to do rather than the things we have to do.

I had read your post about Sarah and have been praying for her and you 2 as you make decisions. No, every surgery has risks and should be done with an informed, sound decision. Sounds like you've got a good team on your side and I absolutely agree, solid direction, either way, is better than, "let's wait and see, we're not sure".

We had 2 years of wait and see. We're all very happy to move on from that. From everything we can see, we believe surgery is the right decision. We'll put on a good face, but I'm sure we'll be nervous wrecks, too.

Thanks for the update and keep us posted as you journey through this. We'll be here for you standing in the gap. :)

Thank you so much! We will need all the prayer we can get.:goodvibes

I see you simultaneously posted when I did. So.... this PTR is for THIS summer??

When?

Yes, the Deep South is this summer. As in within the next couple of months before school starts. I don't like to post the actual dates publicly but can fill you in offline.

So, a trip to the PNW! Nice! :)

Just a couple more years!

No, I'd not suggest you do both. Honestly, if you do Yosemite you could also hit the Sequoias and the Redwoods and SF on the way up, but Glacier may be equally scenic. Tough call.

(Passports for the whole fam will be spendy.)

I was picturing flying into Seattle or Portland, so I think that makes Glacier slightly more realistic. I know I'd like to see Glacier, Mt. Rainier, Cascades, Olympic, and the Columbia River Gorge. The question then is if I can stretch it to include Crater Lake and Redwoods. That might be pushing it, but we're known for doing that at this point.

I always thought that if we can get a year with a very late spring break (like this past April), that might be a good time to see SF and Yosemite and avoid some crowds. The only question there is if the road to Glacier Point would be open, which is a crapshoot. I'd hate to go to Yosemite and not be able to see that.

Oh wow! You want to know when I hit 40 inches tall? When I was seven. Seriously. I just checked. (Yes, my growth was unusual enough for me to keep records as an adult) I was paying adult prices at Six Flags while still not being able to ride quite a few of the rides. Go figure, right AFTER I hit the height to be able to ride all the rides is when they changed it to height based instead of age based. (Looking at when I hit 48 inches (age 11) it was probably only one year where I was paying the higher price, but still.)

But you're not bitter, right?:rolleyes1

I'm actually impressed that the arch was number 2!

I think it would rank lower if I was ranking them in terms of the desire for repeat visits--like I said in the TR, the Arch felt like more of a one-and-done visit. But I was really fascinated by the structure and the tram!

AMEN to that one. I have a love-hate relationship with I-70... I love to hate it. And avoid it whenever I can. Even if it's supposed to be the best route downtown, I avoid it, based purely on the principle of the matter.

So...boring...I'm sure it's a lot more crowded downtown.

Oh my goodness. 'Unbroken" was a wonderful book. An extremely hard read at times, but just... wow. Mind blowing.

Yeah, the story was amazing, and the writing was incredible. Such a great read.

And "A Higher Call" (after Googling it) looks like one I would love too. I'll have to put that on my list.

If you liked Unbroken, I think you'd enjoy that one as well.

Really? Ready Player One, 7?

Hey, there were many more books that didn't make the list at all!
 
2017: Road trip through the deep south. This will get us five more states we need: Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. I’ll go into more detail in the Poor Man’s PTR below.

That sounds like a lot of driving!

2018: The 50-State Tour goes on hiatus for Drew’s first Walt Disney World Extravaganza. Our reasoning for doing this in 2018 is as follows:

No explanation required!

2019: Pacific Northwest. This will get us to Oregon and Washington (and hopefully we’ll get to see @Steppesister !). My struggle in looking ahead at this trip is trying to figure out if I should go for Glacier National Park or Yosemite. I think it’s probably biting off more than we can chew to do both in the same trip.

I think both of those parks would be too much, Washington and Oregon are both big states and there's a lot to see there as well.

2020: Just after Sarah graduates high school, we’ll be ready to take on Alaska. As long as I have the funding figured out by then.

Good luck on that one! From what people have told me, a cruise usually ends up being one of the most economical ways to travel and see Alaska. Just for jollies I priced flights to Juneau and they're almost double the price of a ticket to Vancouver (from your neck of the woods) and triple the price of flights to Seattle. The ferries are darned expensive as well! I didn't even bother to price hotels anywhere, but in 2018 Carnival Cruises start at just under $900pp for an inside cabin. Not sure what your budget is, but I'd start saving for Alaska now!

Day 11: Kennedy Space Center, followed by [REDACTED – TOP SECRET]

Day 12: [REDACTED – TOP SECRET]

Hmmm.... :scratchin' where could you be headed? Gatorland? The Crayola Experience? Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition?

Places to eat? Things we shouldn’t miss?

It's probably already on your list, but you need to go to Cafe du Monde so that your kids can coat themselves in powdered sugar again!

Any other place there that I would recommend would make you go :crazy2:
 
My thoughts exactly. I might seriously look at 2018 as well. It's been almost three years since my last trip so I'm due another.

Yeah, you're probably going through withdrawal by now, just like my kids! I remember the crowds when Harry Potter first opened, and I think Star Wars will be every bit the equal of that event. If not bigger.

Funding. That's always the hard part.

::yes:: It always is.

It's bad enough missing out on things but breaking the news to your kids is even worse.

Yes. I really hated breaking Dave's heart. There was nothing I could do.

Me too. And I'm really not much of a comic book fan, but I must admit to actually owning Avengers and Civil War on bluray.

I do too! I was never a huge comic book guy, either. But the movies are fun, and I'm amazed at how for the most part they can make the individual movies good while still connecting them all to a larger universe. It's a high degree of difficulty, as other attempts to replicate it are demonstrating.

Meh...most of me

That's about all I can hope for.

Top secret? It must be Cocoa Beach! What else of any interest could possibly be about an hour drive west of Kennedy Space Center?

:rolleyes1 :rotfl2:

What a great question! I should study the map a little more and see if there is anything of interest nearby!:idea:

Of course. I mean it's Disney - no reason needed.

That seems to be the general consensus.

i think the only thing that has saved you is the trip to DL.

We've had little tastes of Disney here and there. Aulani, DL, and Hilton Head. So I don't feel too sorry for them. But yes, it feels like time to go back.

I like the way you think - here I thought I was being cheap waiting - I just have patience. :rotfl2: I only switched from a flip/slide phone to an iphone (used) a couple years ago because the price was right (read free).

And here I thought Julie and I were the last people in America to get smart phones! We were in the same boat--we had a crappy pay-as-you-go flip phone up until 2 years ago or so.

How fun - hiking, shooting, and it sounds like the cost for lodging is in the right range.

It will definitely be a more economically responsible portion of the trip!

Could it be a little mini trip to WDW just for a taste?

:rolleyes1 We're saving the theme parks for 2018 and Drew's first "official" trip to WDW. There's nothing else to do beside the theme parks, right?

Ouch - Always a hard pill to swallow putting those miles on your own car in such a short period of time

Yeah...it'll be painful. But we didn't buy the van to have it sit in the driveway.

I'm gonna go with yes - just because you are opening yourself up by asking this group. :P

Hope you guys have a great time. Can't wait to read about it.

I deserved that.

Thanks! Hopefully we won't destroy ourselves trying!

I live in Nebraska and if I never have to drive out to western Nebraska again I will be happy. I hate that drive and I hate driving through Iowa just as much.

I still remember Iowa as four hours of corn. Which is why I avoided it this time around. But yeah, Nebraska was just as brutal.
 
Finally got caught up on your trip report. Great report as always. Sorry to hear Sarah may have to have surgery. I will keep her in my prayers. I was reading your plans for this year, it would probably be a bit out of the way (but would get you into Missouri - couldn't tell if that was checked off from the map) but we went to Memphis BBQ Co. when we were in Memphis a few years ago. It was food coma worthy. One of the Diners, Drive Ins & Dives restaurants https://www.memphisbbqco.com/ I have a funny feeling that redacted day may involve the Orlando area ;-)
 
You have the best adventures.. Would love to hear about Texas.

I really need to get those photos uploaded.

As for Sarah, all the prayers and good wishes for her surgery. I know she is in good hands.

Thanks, Pat! I really appreciate it.
When ? We are pretty close and really close to FT. Mill if it works out. :idea:

I sent the dates to Marv...sounds a little tricky, but I would love for it to work out! I can PM you further if you'd like.

Well, yeah. So why did you feel the need to keep justifying it?

It was more to explain why we're thinking 2018.

The most important milestone!

::yes::

I can't wait to see the new Star Wars land, but I can't disagree with your logic. Having seen the zoo that Pandora was despite so many saying they didn't care for that addition, I can only imagine how crazy Star Wars will be.

I think Star Wars land will be amazing. But I remember the crowds when they opened Harry Potter in Universal, and I think this will easily equal that. No thanks, I'll wait!

Awesome! I love the PNW. Beautiful scenery.

Can't wait to get out there!

Good luck. We're all counting on you.

+1:thumbsup2

Because what is going to beat a missile?

Nothing. As shown in the list. Best attraction of the trip.

Nothing else on the list even comes close to competing with this.

I don't know what was worse, that experience, or the time my plane landed at the wrong airport and I had to spend the night there.

Well, who doesn't like shooting stuff?

:confused3

Wow! Big day! I love going to the Smoky Mountains. Do you know what you are going to try to do/see there?

I know we'll try and get an early start to beat crowds. We'll take the main road from NC and stop at Clingmans Dome. Then take the road towards Cades Cove and maybe stop to hike to a waterfall. I'm not sure if we'll actually go around Cades Cove or turn and head for Chattanooga.

I've been around Oklahoma. You're giving it its due.

:rotfl: These Great Plains states just really struggle to compete.

What on Earth could possibly be top secret in Central Florida??? :scratchin

No idea! I mean, certainly not Disney World. There's nothing to do there besides the four theme parks.

Of course you are! But we already knew that.

I set it up, you spike the ball.

Well, this might be a little out of your way depending on where you end up going in the Smoky Mountains, and it isn't your usual hole in the wall Diners, Drive Ins and Dives type establishment... but if you happen to make it to Pigeon Forge, there is a Paula Deen's Family Kitchen that serves lunch family style. It isn't cheap, but in comparison to what you pay at other places in the area and for the quality of food you get, the lunch is very reasonably priced, IMO. I ate probably 2 or 3 fried chickens there if you add all the pieces up. That stuff was like crack.

Thanks! I'm most likely avoiding Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge due to the crowds they get over the summer.

That being said, I am a sucker for some good fried chicken...:scratchin
 


Lurker here piping in to say that World of Coke is awesome and I highly recommend. I've been 3 (or 4?) times since I moved here in 2002 and enjoyed it every time. I mean, come on, a tasting room ten times the size of Cool Club? How could you not? :rotfl:

Thanks for the recommendation! So here's the thing with World of Coke. I'm kind of angry at Coke right now. I faithfully entered in those stupid My Coke Rewards codes for a long time, building up the points slowly, figuring whenever we got to the south I would cash them in and get us all free admission to the World of Coca-Cola. That was one of the few rewards I ever thought I'd go for. So of course, when the year finally comes that we're visiting Atlanta, they unceremoniously dump the program and cancel all of my points with no notification. So instead of free admission, I have to foot the bill. I'm kinda peeved over that move.

As for the CNN Studios tour, I've never done it so I can't give an opinion.

I'm not sure how Drew would do on that one. He's a handful right now.

As for places to eat, we really don't go downtown too much but if we do, we eat at Ted's Montana Grill or the Hard Rock so nothing really unique there.

I have a friend who says we have to go to the Varsity for the experience at least once.

I agree with you and was thinking the same thing, but James' graduation trip should be in 2018 but he wants to delay it until 2019 in order to catch Star Wars Land. Because he realizes, who knows when he'll get back if he doesn't plan ahead and arrange for the trip to happen in 2019. And he's right about that. Plus, it's either purposely delay the trip, or fail his senior year. Tough choice.

I certainly can understand the appeal of Star Wars Land and why he (and we) would want to see it! Maybe it's do-able if you can plan ahead and make sure you get your Fastpasses and ADR's lined up. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

I just finished watching the whole "Curb Your Enthusiasm" series through many HBO free preview weekends, spanning a couple of years. It's pretty good. Pretty. Pretty. Pretty good.

Haven't seen a single episode, but I've heard it's hilarious. I'll have to wait for the next HBO free preview!

You occasionally hear of someone finding a big diamond there. I think there was one found just a couple of months ago.

Yeah, I read that as well! You never know. But I hope he's not crushed if he finds nothing. And we make them leave because we're hungry for dinner.
 
Thanks for the recommendation! So here's the thing with World of Coke. I'm kind of angry at Coke right now. I faithfully entered in those stupid My Coke Rewards codes for a long time, building up the points slowly, figuring whenever we got to the south I would cash them in and get us all free admission to the World of Coca-Cola. That was one of the few rewards I ever thought I'd go for. So of course, when the year finally comes that we're visiting Atlanta, they unceremoniously dump the program and cancel all of my points with no notification. So instead of free admission, I have to foot the bill. I'm kinda peeved over that move.

That sucks, I didn't realize they had dropped the program. DH used to collect the points but quit a long time ago. There are combo tickets with the aquarium but I haven't researched those in a while.

I'm not sure how Drew would do on that one. He's a handful right now.

Agreed, not sure that one would be good for a young child.

I have a friend who says we have to go to the Varsity for the experience at least once.

Probably a must do in Atlanta but come with lowered expectations and a lot of antacids. :rotfl:We're talking grease with a side of hamburger and fries.
 
That sounds like a lot of driving!

It IS a lot of driving! We might set a new record with this one. Hope everyone can handle it!

No explanation required!

Well, that was easy.

I think both of those parks would be too much, Washington and Oregon are both big states and there's a lot to see there as well.

Yeah, I think I agree. They're just too far apart to make it worthwhile. I'm still thinking San Fran/Yosemite could work as a separate trip if I got a mid-April spring break.

Good luck on that one! From what people have told me, a cruise usually ends up being one of the most economical ways to travel and see Alaska. Just for jollies I priced flights to Juneau and they're almost double the price of a ticket to Vancouver (from your neck of the woods) and triple the price of flights to Seattle. The ferries are darned expensive as well! I didn't even bother to price hotels anywhere, but in 2018 Carnival Cruises start at just under $900pp for an inside cabin. Not sure what your budget is, but I'd start saving for Alaska now!

Well...that was depressing. The problem with the cruise is that we have 6 people, and that makes it harder to get one room. Paying for two rooms on a cruise would not be feasible. I haven't researched it heavily, though. We'd most likely look at flying to Anchorage so we could see Denali and Kenai Fjords.

Hmmm.... :scratchin' where could you be headed? Gatorland? The Crayola Experience? Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition?

:rotfl::rotfl2::lmao:

The commentary on this has been great. Thanks, everyone, for bringing your A games.

It's probably already on your list, but you need to go to Cafe du Monde so that your kids can coat themselves in powdered sugar again!

It's on the list! :thumbsup2

Any other place there that I would recommend would make you go :crazy2:

:rotfl2::rotfl2: We really understand each other too well at this point.

I'm looking forward to thoroughly disappointing everyone with my New Orleans dining choices. New Orleans is a food mecca...as long as you like seafood.

Finally got caught up on your trip report. Great report as always. Sorry to hear Sarah may have to have surgery. I will keep her in my prayers. I was reading your plans for this year, it would probably be a bit out of the way (but would get you into Missouri - couldn't tell if that was checked off from the map) but we went to Memphis BBQ Co. when we were in Memphis a few years ago. It was food coma worthy. One of the Diners, Drive Ins & Dives restaurants https://www.memphisbbqco.com/ I have a funny feeling that redacted day may involve the Orlando area ;-)

Thanks for the prayers! We will need them!

We must have watched the same episode, because Memphis BBQ Co. is on the agenda! It looked really good on TV. Glad to hear that it lives up to the billing.

That sucks, I didn't realize they had dropped the program. DH used to collect the points but quit a long time ago. There are combo tickets with the aquarium but I haven't researched those in a while.

I really wasted my time saving the points. So frustrating. Anyway, what is there besides the tasting room? Would a 3-year-old do ok?

Agreed, not sure that one would be good for a young child.

We just took Drew to Washington D.C. and went into the Smithsonian museums. He was all over the place. Tough to contain right now. That wasn't our favorite D.C. visit.

Probably a must do in Atlanta but come with lowered expectations and a lot of antacids. :rotfl:We're talking grease with a side of hamburger and fries.

Grease! You've seen what I eat. That's like my middle name!:rotfl2:
 
Thanks for the prayers! We will need them!

We must have watched the same episode, because Memphis BBQ Co. is on the agenda! It looked really good on TV. Glad to hear that it lives up to the billing.

Get the pulled pork nachos. So yummy! We actually left there with sauce and BBQ rub and have since ordered it online. It is a pretty non-descript place in a strip mall type shopping center so we were skeptical but it was worth the drive. Then again I'm originally from NY and we're not exactly known for our BBQ.
 
Anyway, what is there besides the tasting room? Would a 3-year-old do ok?

There's lots to do besides the tasting room. There's a 4d movie like the ones at Disney, you can meet the Coke Bear, there's a walk through of a bottling plant where it's fun to watch the bottles being filled. There's a room where you can sit and watch old coke commercials. The museum area and the pop culture gallery might be a little boring for him but none of the areas are huge. Then of course there is the massive, and I mean massive, store at the end. It really only takes about a day to get through both WOC and the aquarium. We did WOC with the earliest entry time (rope drop!), had lunch at Johnny Rockets which is right in the area and then did the aquarium in the afternoon.

Grease! You've seen what I eat. That's like my middle name!

True! I actually love the Varsity but it doesn't always love me back. But my husband won't eat there, he says it's one step below McDonald's. :rotfl:
 
:rotfl2::rotfl2: We really understand each other too well at this point.

I just thought of a place in NOLA that I really wanted to get to, but never made it, but it's a place that would most likely fit your Homer criteria. It's called Mother's and they're known for down home cookin'. You can get a po'boy made from anything you like. Their Katrina story is quite admirable. You probably already know about it since we watch a lot of the same food shows on the Travel Channel.
 
Get the pulled pork nachos. So yummy! We actually left there with sauce and BBQ rub and have since ordered it online. It is a pretty non-descript place in a strip mall type shopping center so we were skeptical but it was worth the drive. Then again I'm originally from NY and we're not exactly known for our BBQ.

Sounds good! I think I remember seeing some kind if fried cheese fritters that sounded amazing, too.

There's lots to do besides the tasting room. There's a 4d movie like the ones at Disney, you can meet the Coke Bear, there's a walk through of a bottling plant where it's fun to watch the bottles being filled. There's a room where you can sit and watch old coke commercials. The museum area and the pop culture gallery might be a little boring for him but none of the areas are huge. Then of course there is the massive, and I mean massive, store at the end. It really only takes about a day to get through both WOC and the aquarium. We did WOC with the earliest entry time (rope drop!), had lunch at Johnny Rockets which is right in the area and then did the aquarium in the afternoon.

Sounds like the kids would probably enjoy it. I just need to work through my issues! :rotfl2:

True! I actually love the Varsity but it doesn't always love me back. But my husband won't eat there, he says it's one step below McDonald's. :rotfl:

Well...that's not exactly a ringing endorsement! But then again, I see fried pie on the menu...

I just thought of a place in NOLA that I really wanted to get to, but never made it, but it's a place that would most likely fit your Homer criteria. It's called Mother's and they're known for down home cookin'. You can get a po'boy made from anything you like. Their Katrina story is quite admirable. You probably already know about it since we watch a lot of the same food shows on the Travel Channel.

Thanks! I'll check it out. I don't remember seeing that one before.
 
Thanks for the recommendation! So here's the thing with World of Coke. I'm kind of angry at Coke right now. I faithfully entered in those stupid My Coke Rewards codes for a long time, building up the points slowly, figuring whenever we got to the south I would cash them in and get us all free admission to the World of Coca-Cola. That was one of the few rewards I ever thought I'd go for. So of course, when the year finally comes that we're visiting Atlanta, they unceremoniously dump the program and cancel all of my points with no notification. So instead of free admission, I have to foot the bill. I'm kinda peeved over that move.


Argh - I saw when the changed the website changes were a coming so I cashed in. I guess good thing I did however I cannot think of what I cashed in for. :crazy2:

I have a friend who says we have to go to the Varsity for the experience at least once.

Been there -Burgers and fries Similar to five guys maybe?

Probably a must do in Atlanta but come with lowered expectations and a lot of antacids. :rotfl:We're talking grease with a side of hamburger and fries.

Yup but Burgers and fries YUM

It's called Mother's and they're known for down home cookin

Been there and ate that. If I remember breakfast was good but we also went for dinner and I struggled. Down home cooking included some tings I don't eat. Like you Mark I am a bit picky on some of the down home things. It was crowded and I don't remember it being bad just not memorable.
 
I know that feeling! Wish we could all spend more time doing the things we want to do rather than the things we have to do.

How was it that Vanellope put it? Ah yes, "Doody calls".

We had 2 years of wait and see. We're all very happy to move on from that. From everything we can see, we believe surgery is the right decision. We'll put on a good face, but I'm sure we'll be nervous wrecks, too.

And you have every reason to be. Well, not nervous wrecks, but a healthy concern is normal. And we'll be right here standing beside you! That'll be a time to lean on your support systems and that's OK!!!

Thank you so much! We will need all the prayer we can get.:goodvibes

My honor and pleasure!

Yes, the Deep South is this summer. As in within the next couple of months before school starts. I don't like to post the actual dates publicly but can fill you in offline.

Good! Sounds like an amazing trip; I myself would love to spend a bit more time down there seeing the bayous and NOLA. Enjoy!

Just a couple more years!

Looking forward to it. Maybe our deck will be done by then. :rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2:

I was picturing flying into Seattle or Portland, so I think that makes Glacier slightly more realistic. I know I'd like to see Glacier, Mt. Rainier, Cascades, Olympic, and the Columbia River Gorge. The question then is if I can stretch it to include Crater Lake and Redwoods. That might be pushing it, but we're known for doing that at this point.

I know PDX might be a teensy bit more $$, maybe, but it's WAY easier to navigate and travel in and out of than SeaTac. Like by A LOT! Hey, I even know a really great motel you could stay in nearby that has pizza delivery. ;)

All kidding aside, your list formidable, but doable and all are very gorgeous places. Timberline Lodge might be one you should add? Crater Lake, although nice, is out in the freaking middle of nowhere. A long haul from the others. Have you thought about going east at all to say Baker City to see the Oregon Trail Museum?

I always thought that if we can get a year with a very late spring break (like this past April), that might be a good time to see SF and Yosemite and avoid some crowds. The only question there is if the road to Glacier Point would be open, which is a crapshoot. I'd hate to go to Yosemite and not be able to see that.

Yeah, major crapshoot. Glacier Point is a must do, but I'd also add, since you're right there!, the Ahwahnee Hotel that the Wilderness Lodge was modeled after (along with Timberline Lodge by us).
 
Argh - I saw when the changed the website changes were a coming so I cashed in. I guess good thing I did however I cannot think of what I cashed in for. :crazy2:

I had always received emails in the past when my points were about to expire. But this had no advance warning. I just looked one day and it was gone. Now admission to World of Coca-Cola will be about $100. :headache:

Been there -Burgers and fries Similar to five guys maybe?

Probably. I see they also have chili dogs and fried pie, so it can't be all bad, right? I know it's an Atlanta institution, even if it's not a gourmet meal.

Yup but Burgers and fries YUM

What she said!

Been there and ate that. If I remember breakfast was good but we also went for dinner and I struggled. Down home cooking included some tings I don't eat. Like you Mark I am a bit picky on some of the down home things. It was crowded and I don't remember it being bad just not memorable.

Hmm. Crowded and unmemorable makes me less hopeful. I have a feeling every place is going to be crowded, though.

How was it that Vanellope put it? Ah yes, "Doody calls".

Why did the hero flush the toilet?

And you have every reason to be. Well, not nervous wrecks, but a healthy concern is normal. And we'll be right here standing beside you! That'll be a time to lean on your support systems and that's OK!!!

We'll be much better once the doctor comes out of the OR and says everything went well. Until that time, we're parents. We worry about our kids. It's what we do.

My honor and pleasure!

:goodvibes

We all take our turn in the meat grinder. Speaking of which, it looks like you're getting your turn now. I hope your SIL is ok!

Good! Sounds like an amazing trip; I myself would love to spend a bit more time down there seeing the bayous and NOLA. Enjoy!

I have to admit that NOLA is going to get short-changed on this trip. We are only going to be there for a very short time, not nearly enough to really say we explored it. As we've often discovered on these trips, you just can't do everything.
Looking forward to it. Maybe our deck will be done by then. :rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2:

:rotfl:

I know PDX might be a teensy bit more $$, maybe, but it's WAY easier to navigate and travel in and out of than SeaTac. Like by A LOT! Hey, I even know a really great motel you could stay in nearby that has pizza delivery. ;)

:lmao::rotfl2::rotfl:

Good to know! About the ease of travel, I mean. What did you think I meant?

It will probably come down to economics for us, but I'll be researching airfare heavily when the time comes.

All kidding aside, your list formidable, but doable and all are very gorgeous places. Timberline Lodge might be one you should add? Crater Lake, although nice, is out in the freaking middle of nowhere. A long haul from the others. Have you thought about going east at all to say Baker City to see the Oregon Trail Museum?

Timberline Lodge is near Mt. Hood, right? I think I have heard of it before but will need to look into it. And yes--Crater Lake is in the middle of nowhere. Tough to get to, but like I tell my kids--if you want to see something special, you have to do the work to get there. We'll have to see how it plays out.

I didn't know about the Oregon Trail Museum in Baker City--this is why I need locals feeding me good intelligence!:thumbsup2

Yeah, major crapshoot. Glacier Point is a must do, but I'd also add, since you're right there!, the Ahwahnee Hotel that the Wilderness Lodge was modeled after (along with Timberline Lodge by us).

Whenever I've looked at the Ahwahnee (or whatever they call it now), the prices have made me :eek: :faint:. But if there was ever a place to splurge...
 
Chapter 23: The Final Countdown
...this is the U.S.S. Nimitz...Where the Hell Are We?...


(Now there’s an odd film. Or where you thinking of the odd song?)

2018: The 50-State Tour goes on hiatus for Drew’s first Walt Disney World Extravaganza. Our reasoning for doing this in 2018 is as follows:

1. It’s Disney. Isn’t that reason enough?
Yes…
Yes it is.

(it’s generally all the justification I’ve needed)


3. Drew is now over 40 inches tall (yes, he’s big for a 3-year-old), so he hits the magic number for most of the rides.
Big young’en for 3.
That will certainly make dealing with the attractions more equitable.


4. My brother and sister-in-law want to take their kids for the first time, and asked for us to go with them to provide expert assistance.
Hummmm…
This could be very interesting.


5. I saw that Star Wars Land is opening in 2019. While I love Star Wars, I hate crowds. And I think this announcement means 2019 is going to be insane at WDW. I have learned the value of patience as I’ve aged, and do not feel the need to be the first to get the latest gadgets, see the new movies, or ride the new rides. I’m happy to wait out the crowds and head back for my taste of Star Wars land in a couple of years.
Ding, Ding, Ding!!!
Hate crowds as well (especially insane ones)

We’ve been enough to know what we enjoy and we know we’ll be back.
As such, hitting every single “experience” ain’t a priority.
Case in point (and proof that I may actually be as nuts as even I claim to be)…
We were down there this past May, but purposely ignored the Avatar opening.
In fact, we actually left WDW the very day of the grand opening.
Like I said, I’ll be back and by then it’ll be far more manageable.


2019: Pacific Northwest. This will get us to Oregon and Washington (and hopefully we’ll get to see @Steppesister !). My struggle in looking ahead at this trip is trying to figure out if I should go for Glacier National Park or Yosemite. I think it’s probably biting off more than we can chew to do both in the same trip.
That should be interesting as well.
I’m thinking that you go for Glacier and try to get back to California on a later trip
But of course, it ain’t my trip to plan.

I’ve got family in WA that I need to go out and see so I’ll probably be headed up there some time in the near. I wonder if I could talk them into a bit of a road trip.
Hummmmmm…


2020: Just after Sarah graduates high school, we’ll be ready to take on Alaska. As long as I have the funding figured out by then.
“Money, money, money, money, money… We can’t keep doing this Bob!”

Actually, yes we can. I don’t know how, but you’ll figure it out.
I heard someone mention a cruise as a good way of actually seeing AK, and I’ve been pondering that same thing. There’s another thing I wonder if I could talk my WA relatives into.


Best Attractions We Visited

1. Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, South Dakota
I suspect some members of your family may have ranked these is slightly different orders, but…
how can you go wrong with hidden fortresses, government secrets (even old now unclassified ones), and potential explosions.


Top 5 Meals
1. Kansas City BBQ Extravaganza, Kansas City, Kansas
That would be difficult to top


Worst Drives
Most interstates qualify, but they are generally the most direct routes, so…

Best Drive
Needles/Iron Mountain Highways, Black Hills, South Dakota
Yep…
That one went on the list after the first few sentences of that part of the chapter.


Best DISMeets
Are there bad DisMeets?

Wait…
Don’t answer that.


Things I Never Need To Experience Again
5. I-94 through North Dakota
4. I-80 through Nebraska
Did I ever tell you our “interstate radio” story?
Not all that much to it and I think I’ve written that up somewhere but I can’t remember who the poor unfortunate sole was that I inflicted that one on.


1. 9 hours of flight delays, followed by a cancellation, followed by our bags disappearing for 2 days, followed by getting up at 1:30 a.m. for the new flight, followed by discovering all of our clothes are soaked in our luggage.
Nothing else even comes close to that debacle as something not to be doing over.


A Poor Man’s Pre-Trip Report for the Deep South, 2017
As a poor man…
I approve of this


Have I lost you yet?
I was abandoned long ago and I’ve yet to even be found.


Day 1: Driving all day to my uncle’s place in Virginia. Crash there.
No time for Luray or the Udvar-Hazy, I take it.


Day 2: Hiking/shooting stuff, as my uncle likes to do. Then drive to Cherokee, North Carolina.
Well that’ll make up for some of that long drive.

Cherokee huh?
Hitting the casino?

There’s a pretty good outdoor play up there and the museum of the Cherokee, but alas, neither one is free.

Oddly there’s an outside possibly that we’d be up very near Cherokee moving the boy back into school ‘round then but I ain’t certain that’ll happen.


Day 3: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, followed by Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Day 4: Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, Georgia. Still undecided on doing World of Coca-Cola or CNN Studios tours.
The Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History (home of “The General”)
is between Chatt and Hot-lanta…

just sayin’.

We did WOC on a trip into ATL a couple years ago (free tickets or I might have skipped it).
It is interesting; lots and lots of memorabilia, and of course the famous tasting room. It might be good for the kids. Now, if you do go there, don’t be standing in line to see “The Vault” (at least not a long one of any duration). All you’ll see is a “vault” door and at some point after enduring what’s basically a long commercial, they open the door to reveal… nothing.

And, add another vote for The Varsity. Just for the experience if nothing else.
What'll ya’ Have! What'll ya’ Have! What'll ya’ Have!

(oh, and somebody should order an “FO” while you’re there.)


Day 5: MLK National Historic Site in the morning. Then driving west to Arkansas, with a stop for BBQ in Memphis.
I was going to suggest the MLK site over the WOC, but you got it covered.

Traveling via I-20, I-22 & I-40 I take it; long drive there. The “Q” in Memphis should be worth the price of admission but it’s too bad you can’t detour up to Huntsville for the Rocket Center. I also suspect that the corner of US61 & US49 and/or the Blues Museum is just too far off the path but you could stop by the “Elvis” shack in Tupelo. :rolleyes:
No really, you “could”, I just don’t necessarily expect that you would.


Day 6: Hot Springs National Park, followed by Crater of Diamonds State Park and a quick hop across the border to cross off Oklahoma. Sorry, Oklahoma. Spending the night in Shreveport, Louisiana.
Happy Gem hunting

Heading into Hugo, OK to see the Circus & Showman’s Cemetery and then grabbing a bite at Angie's Circus City Diner? ;)

Of course there’s also the World’s Highest Hill up in Poteau, OK
You may not get to clime Everest, but you can drive up all 1999 feet of Cavanal Hill :rolleyes1:


Day 7: Vicksburg battlefield (Mississippi), then New Orleans (hopefully visit N.O. Jazz National Historic Site).
Both of these should be excellent.
The kids may not all agree right now, but they should remember them well.


Day 8: Thought about more New Orleans here (WWII Museum), but instead we’re managing long drives over the next two days. Stopping near Pensacola, Florida for Gulf Islands National Seashore, finishing the night in Tallahassee, Florida.
Only one day in NoLa and missing the W2M?

Understandable but unfortunate.
I say leave one day earlier and work that in.
(Unrealistic, I know, but someone had to say it out loud at least once)

Make sure to really enjoy the stop at the shore then.

Day 9: Driving all day to W. Palm Beach, Florida.
That’s going to be a bit of a slog
I-10 & I-95 or I-75 & The Pike?
Any plans to break that up a bit?


Day 10: Everglades National Park and Biscayne Bay National Park, returning to W. Palm Beach.
Have you notified C.J.?
He knows where all the bodies are hid… errr… I mean a great deal about the area.
(and most certainly where to find the best bars)

And while a drop in visit to the Pirate’s Shark Hunting Vessel is likely imposable it would be ridiculously cool.


Day 11: Kennedy Space Center,
An entire morning of shear unparalleled awesomeness!

followed by [REDACTED – TOP SECRET]

Day 12: [REDACTED – TOP SECRET]
Top Secret?
Well there there’s only one possible explanation…

Rope drop at The Holy Land Experience followed up with a bit of relaxation at Machine Gun America, a nice early dinner at the “European Gourmet McDonald's” and then the astounding wonders of the Tupperware World HQ Museum.

Well done sir!
Well done indeed.


Day 13: Driving all day to Fort Mill, SC. Possible DIS meet(s) happening.
After all that central Fla excitement, you’re going to drive 8ish hours to my home town?
What a monumental let down.
For shame!

Stopping at one of the GA sea isles on the way for a bit of NPS-PBJ per chance?


Day 14: Heading home.
You need to either leave the hotel no later than 7am (6:30 would be better) or just wait until after 9ish. You do not want to deal with I-77 & I-85 in Charlotte on a work day morning.

Just no…

But while you’re here, I’d like to make at least one more pitch for a stop at the NC Transportation Museum (and I’m not even being the littlest bit snide here). It’s just off I-85 in Spencer and most certainly on your way (and most certainly an awesome collection of rolling stock and artifacts)


Day 15: Crash.
And you’re going to need that long spate of unconsciousness after all that driving.


So there you have it! I think this may actually set a new road trip record for mileage for us. Unfortunately, that mileage will be piled onto our own van this time.
Is you eldest up to the point being able to do any of the driving yet
(or is that just too terrifying to even contemplate)?


Let me know what you think!
Brilliant!


Are we nuts?
That’s long since been an accepted fact.
This trip changes nothing.


Any suggestions? Things we should do differently? Places to eat? Things we shouldn’t miss?
Already done way too much of that in this post (and in other venues).
You may now officially ignore all of my ramblings.
(It’s the only logical choice.)


Coming Up Next: I’ll do a quick TR of our Texas vacation over spring break, if I ever get the photos uploaded.
And I’ll be here to ruin it for everyone else
(it just may take me a while to respond as you’ve undoubtedly noticed).
 
...this is the U.S.S. Nimitz...Where the Hell Are We?...


(Now there’s an odd film. Or where you thinking of the odd song?)

The movie, in this case. Been a while since I saw it, but I really liked it. It was a neat concept. Also, it had F-14 Tomcats vs. Japanese Zeroes, which will never not be hilarious.

Yes…
Yes it is.

(it’s generally all the justification I’ve needed)

Seems unanimous, then.

Big young’en for 3.
That will certainly make dealing with the attractions more equitable.

He's got the size. We'll try and get another year of maturity under his belt so hopefully he won't be afraid of the rides.

Hummmm…
This could be very interesting.

We are cautiously optimistic.

Ding, Ding, Ding!!!
Hate crowds as well (especially insane ones)

We’ve been enough to know what we enjoy and we know we’ll be back.
As such, hitting every single “experience” ain’t a priority.
Case in point (and proof that I may actually be as nuts as even I claim to be)…
We were down there this past May, but purposely ignored the Avatar opening.
In fact, we actually left WDW the very day of the grand opening.
Like I said, I’ll be back and by then it’ll be far more manageable.

I don't blame you at all. From what I read, the crowds were just insane. Nothing could possibly be worth those lines. It'll be there when you get back. And I think Star Wars will be ten times as big as Avatar.

That should be interesting as well.
I’m thinking that you go for Glacier and try to get back to California on a later trip
But of course, it ain’t my trip to plan.

I’ve got family in WA that I need to go out and see so I’ll probably be headed up there some time in the near. I wonder if I could talk them into a bit of a road trip.
Hummmmmm…

Yeah, we're definitely leaning towards Glacier. From what I read, if current climates continue, they expect all the glaciers to be gone by 2030. So that argues for getting out there to see them. I think SF/Yosemite would be a good April spring break trip, as long as the road to Glacier Point is open (no guarantee there).

“Money, money, money, money, money… We can’t keep doing this Bob!”

Actually, yes we can. I don’t know how, but you’ll figure it out.
I heard someone mention a cruise as a good way of actually seeing AK, and I’ve been pondering that same thing. There’s another thing I wonder if I could talk my WA relatives into.

I would love a cruise, but being a family of 6, we would have a hard time being able to fit in one room. I haven't researched cruises heavily, though. The other option is to fly to Anchorage and drive around. For funding, it just so happens that my grandmother bought savings bonds for her grandkids a couple of decades ago. She gave them to us to help us with costs for college, or family needs, or whatever. And I happen never to have cashed mine out. They also happen to fully mature in 2020. So I'm keeping that ace in my pocket for Alaska.

I suspect some members of your family may have ranked these is slightly different orders, but…
how can you go wrong with hidden fortresses, government secrets (even old now unclassified ones), and potential explosions.

The family was actually fairly unanimous. If this wasn't #1, it was high on everyone's list.

That would be difficult to top

::yes::

Most interstates qualify, but they are generally the most direct routes, so…

I like the interstates in that they help us cover a lot of ground quickly. It was more a factor of the terrain we had to cover in the great plains.

Yep…
That one went on the list after the first few sentences of that part of the chapter.

::yes::

Are there bad DisMeets?

Wait…
Don’t answer that.

:rolleyes1

Did I ever tell you our “interstate radio” story?
Not all that much to it and I think I’ve written that up somewhere but I can’t remember who the poor unfortunate sole was that I inflicted that one on.

No, I don't recall that one. Hit me.

Nothing else even comes close to that debacle as something not to be doing over.

That was just incredibly painful. Hope I never have to live through that again.

As a poor man…
I approve of this

:thumbsup2

I was abandoned long ago and I’ve yet to even be found.

Lost, lost, lost...I've lost my marbles.

No time for Luray or the Udvar-Hazy, I take it.

Probably not on the first day. We'll have to see if we make good time around D.C., which is never guaranteed. Both of those places are sites we've visited before, so I don't feel like I HAVE to get there. But they're also great places to visit. I'm thinking about possibly stopping at Udvar-Hazy on the way back home.

Well that’ll make up for some of that long drive.

Cherokee huh?
Hitting the casino?

There’s a pretty good outdoor play up there and the museum of the Cherokee, but alas, neither one is free.

Oddly there’s an outside possibly that we’d be up very near Cherokee moving the boy back into school ‘round then but I ain’t certain that’ll happen.

I think our time there will be minimal--getting there in the evening, spending the night, and then heading out early morning. I was just trying to get as close to the Smokies as possible in order to get a jump on crowds in the morning.

The Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History (home of “The General”)
is between Chatt and Hot-lanta…

just sayin’.

Oh, I know. That's one of my favorite Civil War stories, and it's a tragically under-publicized story too. But in polling the family, the aquarium had more sway. Maybe I need to go back and ask about that vs. Coca-Cola propaganda.

We did WOC on a trip into ATL a couple years ago (free tickets or I might have skipped it).
It is interesting; lots and lots of memorabilia, and of course the famous tasting room. It might be good for the kids. Now, if you do go there, don’t be standing in line to see “The Vault” (at least not a long one of any duration). All you’ll see is a “vault” door and at some point after enduring what’s basically a long commercial, they open the door to reveal… nothing.

And, add another vote for The Varsity. Just for the experience if nothing else.
What'll ya’ Have! What'll ya’ Have! What'll ya’ Have!

(oh, and somebody should order an “FO” while you’re there.)

I wish I had been able to get the free tickets. Then it would have been a no-brainer. Instead, looking at the cost of admission for a big Coca-Cola commercial, it's making me pause. I'm sure it's fun. But still.

I was going to suggest the MLK site over the WOC, but you got it covered.

Traveling via I-20, I-22 & I-40 I take it; long drive there. The “Q” in Memphis should be worth the price of admission but it’s too bad you can’t detour up to Huntsville for the Rocket Center. I also suspect that the corner of US61 & US49 and/or the Blues Museum is just too far off the path but you could stop by the “Elvis” shack in Tupelo. :rolleyes:
No really, you “could”, I just don’t necessarily expect that you would.

Huntsville was a tough cut from the agenda. A couple of factors contributed to the decision to skip it:
1) We found that the overall driving plan made more sense if we went from Chattanooga to Atlanta rather than trying to double back to Atlanta later on, and
2) We added the Kennedy Space Center to the agenda. This meant we would have two high-dollar admission attractions covering very similar material. That didn't make much sense. My wife and daughter have never seen Kennedy, so I felt like that was the must-do of thw two sites. So I made the call to save the money on Huntsville. It hurt, though.

I do plan on stopping at a park in Birmingham for our PB&J, and then the Natchez Trace visitor center along the way near Tupelo.:thumbsup2

Happy Gem hunting

Heading into Hugo, OK to see the Circus & Showman’s Cemetery and then grabbing a bite at Angie's Circus City Diner? ;)

Of course there’s also the World’s Highest Hill up in Poteau, OK
You may not get to clime Everest, but you can drive up all 1999 feet of Cavanal Hill :rolleyes1:

All of these things sound wonderful and amazing, but Oklahoma is going to get the short end of the stick. That's going to be a sneaky-long driving day as it is. We'll probably barely get across the border, just like Iowa. Also, I hate clowns.:rotfl:

Both of these should be excellent.
The kids may not all agree right now, but they should remember them well.

Hope so! Again, a lot of driving involved so we'll need an early start and we'll be moving quickly. I may not do the battlefield driving tour (the kids complain that "they're just fields") but I know I want to see the USS Cairo.

Only one day in NoLa and missing the W2M?

Understandable but unfortunate.
I say leave one day earlier and work that in.
(Unrealistic, I know, but someone had to say it out loud at least once)

Make sure to really enjoy the stop at the shore then.

Yeah, that hurts as well. I know the museum will be excellent. New Orleans is definitely getting short-changed with this itinerary.

The problem is that Drew is now a very energetic 3.5 years old. He's more mobile and definitely not content to stay in one place. We took him to D.C. a couple of weeks ago to the Smithsonian museums as a trial run, and it didn't go well. He was bad in crowds, hard to corral, and didn't have the slightest interest in giving us time to see the displays. So based on that, Julie and I both thought the WWII museum probably was not going to work. He definitely would have a tough time sitting through the movie, no matter how excellent it really is.

That’s going to be a bit of a slog
I-10 & I-95 or I-75 & The Pike?
Any plans to break that up a bit?

Probably the latter. Right now, I'm looking to break it up by scouting out the Dark Side--lunch at Citywalk.

Have you notified C.J.?
He knows where all the bodies are hid… errr… I mean a great deal about the area.
(and most certainly where to find the best bars)

And while a drop in visit to the Pirate’s Shark Hunting Vessel is likely imposable it would be ridiculously cool.

Why, yes, I have notified @cj9200 . Still hoping to be able to meet up and at least say hi. Right now, I think he's working on a list of the best places to feed us to alligators.

An entire morning of shear unparalleled awesomeness!

:woohoo:

Top Secret?
Well there there’s only one possible explanation…

Rope drop at The Holy Land Experience followed up with a bit of relaxation at Machine Gun America, a nice early dinner at the “European Gourmet McDonald's” and then the astounding wonders of the Tupperware World HQ Museum.

Well done sir!
Well done indeed.

Dang it, he guessed it...

After all that central Fla excitement, you’re going to drive 8ish hours to my home town?
What a monumental let down.
For shame!

Stopping at one of the GA sea isles on the way for a bit of NPS-PBJ per chance?

Definitely possible! There's a lot less detail shown on those last two days because I haven't totally figured them out yet.

And I'm looking forward to dinner, for sure!

You need to either leave the hotel no later than 7am (6:30 would be better) or just wait until after 9ish. You do not want to deal with I-77 & I-85 in Charlotte on a work day morning.

Just no…

But while you’re here, I’d like to make at least one more pitch for a stop at the NC Transportation Museum (and I’m not even being the littlest bit snide here). It’s just off I-85 in Spencer and most certainly on your way (and most certainly an awesome collection of rolling stock and artifacts)

Good point on Charlotte there. I think that argues for adding one more night to the trip and breaking up the drive back home.

And you may have sold me on that Transportation museum. That's the kind of museum I think Drew would absolutely love. I can probably stop there and then maybe Petersburg battlefield, spend the night near Richmond, and then hit Udvar-Hazy on the last day as we go home.

And you’re going to need that long spate of unconsciousness after all that driving.

:faint: This poor minivan.

Is you eldest up to the point being able to do any of the driving yet
(or is that just too terrifying to even contemplate)?

Not yet--she's still 15. She's terrified of driving, herself.

Brilliant!

I knew it!

That’s long since been an accepted fact.
This trip changes nothing.

On second thought...

Already done way too much of that in this post (and in other venues).
You may now officially ignore all of my ramblings.
(It’s the only logical choice.)

Huh? What'd you say?

And I’ll be here to ruin it for everyone else
(it just may take me a while to respond as you’ve undoubtedly noticed).

Always look forward to hearing from you. It takes me a while to post updates, as you've probably noticed too.
 
Bonus Chapter 1: It’s Like A Whole Other Country.


Guess what?


This time the process of flying out of BWI was so routine, and so devoid of drama, I’m going to skip writing about it other than to say we’re thankful that we didn’t have any issues.


In the ongoing 50-state quest, we’d made the decision to visit Texas and New Mexico over spring break this year. This was partly driven by economics—Southwest Airlines had given us flight credits after our fiasco the previous summer, so we’d wanted to make sure we used them before they expired. And it was partly driven by a desire to avoid being in Texas in the dog days of summer. Because it makes so much more sense for us to spend those days in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama instead.


We left on the evening of Thursday, April 13—the day before Good Friday. We landed at Love Field in Dallas, Texas, had no trouble collecting our bags, and went to pick up our rental. The only issue there was that there were three parking spaces designated for minivans, and parked in those spaces were…um, not minivans. It took some mad scrambling, but we finally found one and got to the hotel for the evening.


On Friday morning, we greeted Dallas by immediately leaving. Well, almost immediately. We had a long drive ahead of us, and our first order of business was to pick up our peanut butter and jelly supplies. In researching convenient places to stop for groceries, I found a very interesting spot.


First, some background, in case you are not a big National Football League fan. As a lifelong Philadelphia Eagles fan, Dallas is considered enemy territory. The Dallas Cowboys compete in the same division as the Eagles, so our teams face off twice a year and have done so for decades. This has allowed a deep-seated rivalry to form.


There is nothing in this world Eagles fans hate more than the Dallas Cowboys. It’s bad enough that they are divisional rivals, but on top of that, there’s an arrogance to everything the Cowboys do that is extremely irritating. It started back in the 1970’s, when the Cowboys were having a great run of success under their legendary head coach, Tom Landry. Under Landry, the Cowboys were perennial contenders and won two Super Bowl championships. Somewhere along the way, they decided to market themselves as “America’s Team”, as though they were just so amazing and successful that the whole nation just couldn’t help but fall in love with them.


Gag me with a spoon.


I don’t know if it has to do with the “everything’s bigger in Texas” mentality, but there’s a constant image pushed by the team that the Cowboys have the best stadium, the prettiest cheerleaders, and that there’s just something about putting the star on that helmet that makes a football player stand up a little straighter. Naturally, all this is hogwash. Everybody knows that’s actually a Satanic pentagram on the helmet.


It doesn’t help that it’s been an uneven rivalry. The Cowboys have beaten the Eagles 65 times in the regular season while the Eagles have won 51 over Dallas. The Cowboys have 5 Super Bowl rings and their fans love to point out that the Eagles have zero. While this is technically true, the Eagles did win 3 NFL championships prior to the Super Bowl era.


Obviously, the Eagles’ relative lack of success makes for a rather grumpy disposition towards our rival, but I think what really makes the hatred come to a boil are Dallas Cowboys fans themselves. And I don’t mean the ones who come by it honestly, such as those who live in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth metro area.


I mean the scores of Cowboys fans who live in and around the Philadelphia area. This is part of that whole “America’s Team” thing. Basically, what it amounts to is that this particular breed of Cowboys fan is what we call a “front-runner”. This is someone who sees a team having success on TV, and decides they want to be a fan of the team that is winning. So they give their allegiance to whatever team happens to be winning at the moment. Where most logical people like to cheer for the team that represents the actual city they live in (or near), this particular breed only cares about being associated with winners. It’s amazing how many Cowboys fans I run into who also happen to love the New York Yankees. I would wager that 99% of them have never even set foot in Texas.


The success of the Cowboys in the 1970’s and the 1990’s ended up breeding legions of these front-runner Cowboys fans. They’re particularly irritating in that they all seem to disappear when the Cowboys are struggling and then come out of the woodwork when they’re having success. And they love to give Eagles fans grief over our team’s futility. “We have 5 rings!” is a common rallying cry, even though most of these folks were in diapers the last time Dallas won a championship. The problem is, I wasn’t even born the last time the Eagles won anything. And we poor, downtrodden loyal fans get sick of hearing about it. It’s bad enough to continually cheer for a loser, but at least the one thing you can’t accuse us of is disloyalty. We have to raise our kids as Eagles fans from birth, because no one would choose this life of pain and suffering for themselves.


So, that’s a lot of build-up just to say that we did a drive-by of AT&T Stadium, or as we like to call it, “Jerry World” after egocentric owner Jerry Jones. That place is just massive.


-ny0MaJRBvRAmiP8FK4xzMfLPNB_iM3y3s_2OPxWZrj_bXNxxHLeLv51kTVqrpMTT2prPD2WMpEWiKXjaN7i3-Hjvox640UiM4Ay2_xpJhISgJ-jfhGPJEm3l6Jl0g8_ndGePpifSTvjmX5UZx9iD0qx31dLcEr7tLHrvlkfUuEk11gQqSN1wypWZeRGDNGEg3jpgWHuXQ6C1ed5AchHlWDB3mTPXymwcOCzP4dN1lDEbhwOu7J_sZDp8vgpjd1vsO11TMpxJouGXYImqVBmrVpMxjT3l4BJBemxSul5N2Fuyb5x3zIdMzEXmr6L5Du4DPYtXDealrmJ_YLNzIEOQoYAu3f1Y3A6Rvihj7P0UNrzHMkXESbEAp2oWVTP-kvhzhwQGF0dVN90YdQGcYCPV-LcxvH7vETmcx0lN5mikUDJMbzh1DPiBH1FknWb8m9Yua2QI87EqIqtyh6V22zi9wiJirxPeBtfFIIdQ1UvBdo1rGABbYdz4ngKK3juwiLw0GgzZ-odcIfqLYt42ROXAwTzjIZAs5AYaG-AU7PNKN7TJOvGCq07JmIQX02clQJICRdWQx-PbDSB3dAOyBPLgeDsFpIIqTqBRsuU_cVmwFv9QqW3kG3gFf7-=w1139-h854-no



Having successfully infiltrated enemy territory, I radioed headquarters for my orders. Would I be able to bring the whole place down? Cover it with carefully-worded graffiti? Give the place a…um…baptism?


Unfortunately, I was told to stand down. When I asked why, they gave me a lot of legal mumbo-jumbo, saying our plans were “against the law” or “frowned upon in decent society”. So I farted in its general direction. If I ever come back, I will insult them for a second time.


Anyway, we finally picked up our supplies. It was a very convenient store. In fact, the placement of this particular store gave me no end of amusement. Over a billion dollars were spent attempting to create a stadium that would be seen as the crown jewel of the National Football League, and directly across the street…


t3XqzBE9bmhGGQ95vpQcmGrXhHBhz3SVDJ-Q0uq9eL_v1iFowz5G6PxClh2p06Ud1QxVUqndw0adcHCjbOfmUOsfE99UQuWCwF8oe4Lwwhghd5k2fkfIQs6efYpfIg7XeXXccwx_8XtoySSv6duXNBuUMcriHxsWCe_TecmLLWUyf9NO92bXu9qOnWIGPCPoseChuDpHp9ZSyIc2zf1GWyzmw1H_lF6PekFn7Iv1ZILyHRRFPYw_11_UkekpST4RekK2QJJ1ani_P3DjUBEeR5jDKlXTu-ahr5Ee9Jw-dIYiMJCsruZur3YUd7NtzvWf9fUO0Ex-vCyj6X4k3brB5ZDJRIKgl-KlacDj2h_C0ZCTYa5T_PENVhk3gyqjkMgFnz9RLWq5quIUnFQHQwg-p2HS1WEFog9lAcdqiQ8f4fX611MIAcwuVBYoi_7Suuc8vPxPHNB4BHHJVvk5kqnySaES-PYAxlewdBWk3x-3FMRU9wcJwGPea1gOnagaYPgJDB8FeDixMj1eU2i7u48NtAUkP-PKsIu5gOd4nIy_pxfEIaHNkZleq0MkbVO3f1dMfY3HdLj0h9z_iziX-1mYjDXW6pxAclvI22kTp-pn5NP42KFB-OX2q9MY=w1139-h854-no



Perfect.


With supplies in hand, we left Dallas and headed west. I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but Texas is big. It would take us the entire day to complete our drive to Carlsbad, New Mexico. Nothing like starting out a vacation with mindless hours on the road.


We usually think of Texas as cowboy/desert country, but the eastern half of the state is surprisingly green. Lots of low-lying trees everywhere you look. If you’re familiar with “Texas hill country”, this was where we’d started. The bonus of being there in April was that wildflowers were still blooming, although we’d missed the peak season for them.


Although we’d just picked up food, we broke up our drive by stopping for lunch at a Whataburger. The justification for this was:

a) We’d be having plenty of PB&J the rest of the week, and

b) We’d never been to a Whataburger before.


WrEB4Cn42IjzsubtKA9OmO5_HcMQ-r5IYs9PKelyKve5A2V51j2ypnQpvfzKABtw2K6DfDs7IEq9JEuihK6qB_1kYShp38Lw_Uls8v-WaZWvQNYgpBH-CJY7DYKQFg7TMCShJjKEBxr1gTBSggVlAmKG7DSiWp9WqIi--EuhdOXhWD2iEo2MNlI_zlaz-9alX3IzT28BgItiRuBZZ89XvyGD9KJwSgLO7i91LZ3j1avLu_S2FLxFbCjF7Qrh0PxXuOmqretwlwwolzQSk2XI0o32KCuaJczw8IUJkllNfapVxdj48bANylPbgn7lkbLuuFQ_iASAiriNfPDXl8Nsc9IfDQFqw7KTXlEeknQyJaIey7JiGKMJ16_mxuAw_mlTp4iAxzjwtNAciLaApbRnAqkI_4QP0_sGVPD6qjBVg5RQ-jZ4QT28smVaOxI8TBbeim2Shd5GhmR31dwMA9WNhFhGoDlYEhITkGQwI1AIfkDpQ-HgxJJmvxHnOAIqU4XCcmnGwRqNIzfJkyXqNGo2D0srmqnfTfwexIGAI5KFUB2oWEF651IPRuCDINB1MdhgJVF7wo3yEA13bFhMrZ1JUMaMIzotdR0fNNRtZHefKaN3SUSetcaMyRKb=w1226-h818-no



So we tried the place out. The verdict, all around:


Meh.


Eventually we left Texas Hill Country and then the interstate behind and moved into the desert area we’d expected to see. It made for a very visually stimulating drive.


q3u-sCMAeOFUaILtNUb-Fec2LssIJl7bL5n0tkw6YQhZM_0COhaKv3qqUdd9q6u7hH0fEqU9BW5-AuC35DWvW4W2Pi7oBBYR__h1gJO6QpXPxB1bclX5d0-DAbSnMVsr9K_x4slmH38stQg53jipaYbVFh0Jc1oC1RxG0zywwt9SkdDdR9YUh9jfOVOvg4mglrRn5V9ObROnlQZ0wxU3LZfA9ruluav1_pApMKR0EmijhfuSeq10y2UKYIR88BG5Pzd14Hrzd1tbR93Ukr7KN9AXSQAxHNMeDwPuBSIFbe7nB0YusfRrPE6SrGpOL9nosUKDL5T8kvsBW30gXF1SRtjqEYIZOYOLGvXtF-2D6WaU7CRfVI300mghK6VVZgblC35X8SAg5MIVIYGsVCi8nv7WQtM2UXW-X-ZgelDlj4cwhVlqFRaDU_cg-AJDkqS5KYvmD_3y1iEIlYrsS9LrPodF44tD-vMUiwLsk31Vkstv565uPsDgnPUV0FIDL-IgEjoNAzzo-uslnKosnZ-MA53yTaBo2nMt9WjZfuUY_nMLMQYdtCCseBA37iGZRFkcmRfosQU_TwpCEgofKaDapkKU-pP0vUkIK03xMPFCY6xcC2aFJLBpW4cp=w1226-h818-no



Every so often, this view would be interrupted by oil derricks.


Texas was the 41st state for my kids and Julie, and late that afternoon they added state number 42.


sVkrCKcsTtH_tzYcpQsKf5B5wf6j08ATMkOwytui6W7nc2aOv00A0UGOBV0ci9umjZ3OF8tspO77SOZtEc3gbjlaqZOTrkvcfxf-y-L0THkf_0gSX5TIfw4k8pscdaQyzigZDFGuYbmqTYDJVzOpNXnDIqZJNCSRB4dXz6BB3sz6um3B7cnxHibzWJex6Z93Z_8BjarV5m4wbX6VSFj42m8AdspUhTOYCnvLL5x-Jb8RZ3A8mIqodlEJmNB9nbIOxKxUV4EgFFIzXozGQaiUzemA_UW4QeHmoAEXouf8qffk1FDmitfQFdq406pmCTxjxLrVjdIIg6TFdgbI8aZ8ooxAW5N4E5aFCM8EmIZV1qOBJrnsAtrB4GKI8WA9VP6OLBxeReHcn88EsDMFR6HhkVsrd9aX9YFnYidLON4vM3i4fIYBvWK5eQLkOQdEjT3kYuUzrw0OuyRYTWNU7bpdLB4eUkxIq8itIvWbY0rnySDOQ_hRlwqkjxuTo7jvfrCPJ4qgjc97PbLQpOqFAhVj9tfrlmyuI7yhH30YImpxdD2duSoYK-jcQ10oS3YREoyt4Ef9b30jmnrVpHtqNXqYdHjvAhUDlnHv9I19mVfsux9NBtY6o43sU0fL=w1226-h818-no



Hooray, now we can go home!


Oh, you wanted to see more? Fine. We pressed on, just to satisfy all of you.


We arrived in the town of Carlsbad and checked into our hotel. It was there that we met up with our celebrity guests on this particular trip: my mom and dad, who would be joining us for most of the week. West Texas (more specifically, Big Bend National Park) is one of their favorite getaway destinations, and they go back every few years during the spring. They were eager to show us around to see the sights. We’ll see why it’s one of their favorite places in a few chapters.


We all went to dinner at the Red Chimney Barbecue, trying to start this trip off right.


GUEeg4Ynl8YiydbYnJYsM0XH7RYf3p4Xca3vYpE79S7rFh9Ka0kYUYHBcr-LMkKlbXdohOomKc93O0skuT-R4iW9-kXxQ2oge-Hoi5ubmA2rjknZqcHxTAt7q_0kcEfBGNQiP_VSjdnNX9Wqjv4Sfifb3xzYwFj7KEHeKCZjPqdrs3SRdmblzIs_bVM4uaWax8e4HAuxOgnSboLCbuu9spJbTdZ0eHjCNtzVZDmB8EEIMi3Gy9u7XwVKr_dOtUBLXmjWXsSRG3uKfZoa7OXkzW3sJA-T2sBUAhQBBcBRx2_SwWhq9ld6SGjDR5dBi6DcPuZ4im6XlBnD3geqbrX4Xh2EuwXYvspn34Z_UxhNJAdHuMZOoTlBLO8yRFczTEBZ6D2TNMSVlS9XyrlDeBX2ogsUOD94Ylb-50jhAsSaFoebDzQm8hLWRQJLmcKP2wzsZCn315OjwkgIbh4HrvCh3IViL6W4Lk-tv-uARIP3xAAFGRksC8J3IRmWSePHke_IwJ-eUPnIUXf4u0kPS1XnXm-rdEGybqEEf7KA6H0x1fyWisDhr0hXRV_W8N20ZCQxQVIxEtC3rQC3Jl7xyGYZuP54OGIlxsSASBIFslX3JVHKagjfKGi78wQU=w1226-h818-no



A close look at the décor may reveal why this place appealed to us.


BJ_WRuOXYk61OA-0STfcKHKcS2MaEAu2msAlyvstuGY5eJ05I9qxnTadUVy6KB38YyQQUAHM7yJjfearBz8Fs9rHzAVaUNRIAVREzxcHRKYQiMie654mYiImOEbI3Kt2dHE_CWz0zfRop8ukJ2Ov21ym0csmHRuD-o8kJPirHGLcSDKaTl3fnha_er8vfIUKLbMniKgmCRyspnryEqYGxRXwh1-S9CofpF0grKi8j2nEdRZLIq6om1t7JPGU671lBTprd1al0eHE3XZVwEa9NeKYLP_whMrRPNziE3czN2vUGum2wCB9xKKlGnN6N450WXNmn4YymIZb7UFjUWbGSdOouOZwiMSf14BiVoGLUueuGFoLwsbXGYR553_lNxZRyMz5nox_YwObDs9xeTmLmQf0_NPzfat_bko7CDBuU-EJef_jQIw62Xd0YqYUPkILijyUXtHLYdoLL_Aa1O6nNboLG353C4ZKUrUDR-wOg9Ou75BlnX_-HYKSH-wdqjykUEcA9DOeLAM8SMUDHRI9OT0-XlW84ay0VK1J5_nUTieByt8yf3dBE-pcwrRVeDUciniMQ7mmmai8nNyQLeYU79szo97s8hfGWK8YyEWXtyUFbMQ9K92rpDSJ=w570-h854-no



ltvRylqC6-jBvYbgFzd3psf5ZTo87uPffqz8iTgFxCy236epeU7_1PfgaxN_Iu6vYZYpMK8y85Lszi-onM5SbT1qSDABIX7AROj-QMeUwQ-_2vFp2S0JXUrbZjScOPE2I3jbcqXYmExCPO0h-N-2zTx31-D27-d2LXSrkUhNUlcfyc1Nus_43aW3sA9XT6_B-UUgGcI0zhckpp3hIEZQzOguwZnf6_NE9zEfGfJKcPjr3ghfzOkB66hljMSfsBFCRO4cTyIOU6F65r6u0u5ywFh-M-GsofRwwzkCh0xGPepM_0sZg4cAmTqE8wp7F3Bun6Ea1vZYjGj3jtgUo1pya_d9z6Gge8VDdj1Dek1Mx_U4TegQmSknFKe88_KTHR1pT3XA2Pi0k3zVV6-YJpyCTmj555qkdZbC-mEqlqD4I6TikIjkl15z0FRJgdFnWRkemxLS8pQNXOkpkfUQCveIDYmiLv_evzIX3Tebr5RmWurSy2baRcsGIFSQK0rU7ByZws7nvg_n8lXNky1iD-RIxNji1jOSQvh-vSRwPB0YYS-DUVfHmKaHCHGRYAC_y0vxSDq5cgt5_3cwkY_ayJZlUNJeBpMLA2c5kSD4wvIsVwANbRQitqSmMOND=w1226-h818-no



I mean, any time you can make a guitar out of a bed pan, you just gotta do it.


rv5Ro_BgznIrq7CPAhGOkZv8Cg1nb7LOzEHSLcONiMQFg2Ozz3qgCsDjVLhHLtDc3iB5012EClKqBZIG7r9bpJWZ5ggEX8icW3jnRAfENmYEYEj9h-JxObC3_Wn4xQedyfJPp5klzpjp6mXP3l7my35eduk8p2_gdQH5MJZFkSpSh00wCfw99Z8MHMqqn82of_pZxFbLeuwfLLvVsoLMh_zf_2Lhv4p8AzZsgqhVf0HoqH9spZr4yHTltZLPB3apfOUDdMqw8j1rys5md7z8RjfvdfzERUTbOlKeZrnnc1CfxPaObBF3RLhmsoTY7UwxKih-je2irOdcEoZ4MSvR8-5o-hDb8OdN2woUyaXgjSZUv--xPfiClnB-zn2PTm2aqIkE7LZgGEgQyVq6vZ-WlxVv8HbUB70N1CEdEytLlOFL-xF49FFNPzCh1rBkeHXR-SgM7ku0i7nQhEdPY1JrujcwcEALNGasm1-7xaAjbn7ZSWgYu3hWRS7xQV4Vkr5LnwkYvuLlGBYNFZrjI2GAwiNvzwkw6e3UpBsApHyuvYELS9Dnsv5wVmi3XNHmD9qYtbBDO2a8wN-ohBBTEUPe7zruubM8-R17kWNfqD1jJgaXkqkeVOpyzUe8=w1226-h818-no



I went with the pulled pork, and was very happy with my choice. Best BBQ ever? No. Worthy of a stop? Absolutely.


AXGXh8OK9eu3dTZBlgWtXZ9yhNwOadJpFPKlz4jYcVZdEXnPvJ4wLWs34P77TNP75-gi_lf_f-BS1RB4ecf8pdk8geYDg4z0sEwub01L0AbCCgmz_UtFkf30bzT0xr6w8ukm5BV3C5n8L3tQHzlWScqw82m8G9fvMl1cLg6XcnPT8Ua_e5TDo1QQ8yhnuI2H7RuE0FgJ_lhxsrkt9NJY6NQ7Se4qW1KeCkBRPZtdn8IyH8lplS2_YDnYrQrZETHEordpMcWzx6-_kTMn0fs7Vt91Pz15bFW0lKqqzkfrC_JvxLWqaifVdcp0UHW0m4eOxiWy0SgKmM2vF0AZlQeMOSohbzGSRvNFxK6MxGFqfvbdYZV8bYG-yGNit7Ra2XNaj0W3knRqmrZj-a4LMLAR9jsFMidfTwgNM6C3XypM69lPUHuJLDJ0ExrhZxWvY-tU1q8jRRfFIFQkqkR_CY0pqJ5PbBnQghZdiwAB_TQHOKUQfeJGE_m1H6_lARz69z7zPQB3Ty2vKiIiBD62fNuhYHzu36fYKUyprFkl1ofbZa5GaHBZEM2GozXKjQ--VGDTgU-PnvG-6SM0BXag8_FbYss3-8MJp3k_9AxsGr2QIoUXdJWfbN7cwRzc=w1226-h818-no



Welcome to New Mexico.


Coming Up Next: A Cave of Wonders!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top