Ever since a funny set of circumstances left me with a copy of the book Road Trip USA, i've been attracted to the thought of seeing America from the Highway.

The stunning coastlines of the Jersey Shores, the fertile fields of Pennsylvania Dutch country, the thick forests and tiny mountain towns on the old frontier, the Ozarks, the crests of the Appalachians (one day I will hike the trail from Springer Mountain to Katahdin, ohh yes), the Natchez trace, the deep dark Mississippi, the kitsch of Memphis, ohh my, how the list goes on!

Now wonder so few American's leave the country, they don't need to - everything is right at their doorstep!

I'm not particularly interested in big cities - although Chicago and Boston both seem to interest me; Chicago for the architecture, and Boston for Crane, Pool, & Schmidt - i'm far more drawn to the history of the USA, the countryside, the sheer vastness it exudes to a foreigner.

Perhaps the vastness is not really so great, perhaps the roads are just very long and very boring - but without trying, i'll never know!

So, today I booked just under 3 weeks off work for the end of September. I'm flying to New York, where i'm renting a car. The plan - which is really just a guide to get me going, not an itinerary - is to drive west from NY through Dutch Country, meeting US-50 on the West Virginia/Ohio border, and then follow the US-50 all the way through to St Louis.

I've arranged with a friend to meet in St Louis, and he's booked a week of work, so we're going to explore the south central states together - from St Louis (where Ryan lives) the plan currently involves a brief overload of kitsch at Branson, MO; then down through the Ozarks and along the Mississippi until we get to Jackson, MS, then follow the Natchez Trace up to Nashville, TN before heading back to St Louis.

That said, we've got 9 days from when we leave St Louis until we need to be back there as Ryan needs to work. So we'll probably not do the whole loop, and up up skipping some chunks in order to get back on time.

Once back, i'm heading off on my own to Chicago for a day or two, then following Lake Michigan east until I hit Niagara, then (time permitting) up to New Hampshire, before following the coast down through Boston to get back to JFK in time for my flight home.

Total mileage, according to Google maps is around 4100 miles. Over 21 days, that's around 200 miles per day - probably around 4 hours - the equivalent of driving Oxford to Plymouth each day, or in total a trip from Oxford to Athens and back.

In comparison, last summer from Oxford to Greece and back, I did a total of 4000 miles in 50 hours over 3 days. So at least I know I can do it :-)

I'm strangely excited about travelling alone. Normally, I travel with friends; i've been told the Americans are very friendly and strike up conversations easily - unlike the British, who look at you like you've just mugged them if you say even hello! these days. I've got a lot of pre-conceptions of Americans (I meet a fair few with work), so it will be interesting to see what the American equivalent of a Devon bumpkin is :-)

America, here I come - Just after a quick game of wif waf!

ps: if anyone fancies joining me for a few days (or lives en-route), let me know!

Labels: america, holiday, road trip