(no subject)

[rosiedoes]

Americans, or people who have travelled to America: your input, please.

Julie, (possibly) Matte and I are considering a roadtrip across America. The current idea is to start at San Francisco, head down to LA, then visit the Grand Canyon before heading - via and undecided route - to New York, via Chicago.

The question is, does anyone have any place they think we should visit between the Grand Canyon and Chicago?

We're going to hire a car (convertible=super tempting) and it will probably be in Spring, around Easter to maximise the number of days off from work we can get.

Any suggestions?

Comments

[shinko.livejournal.com]

I spent a good five years in Kansas, but I can't think of anything that a group of British roadtrippers might find interesting. When you hit New York, you should siddle your way up the map a little and drop by. :D

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

It's looking like it'd be in 2011, at the moment, when Matte expects to be studying in Chicago, so you should come down and spend some time with us in New York.

[shinko.livejournal.com]

Well, if I can find a way to wiggle around my senior thesis and graduation- I will definitely try to get down to the city. <3.

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

I miscalculated - 2012, the spring after she gets there. You'll be done then, right?

[shinko.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I graduate in 2011. I should be able to get to the city without any issues the year after. :)

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Hurrah!

[likethepaint.livejournal.com]

IN IN IN! SO SO IN! You'd have to run me over with several ten tonne trucks to stop me now!

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Hahahahaha. Awesome.

[anjak-j.livejournal.com]

Route 66?

Especially since you are going to Chicago...

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Yeah, we'd be doing part of Route 66, but there aren't many cities along it that we'd like to see.

[anjak-j.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I don't think I'd want to drive the whole way across on it either, but it'd definitely be cool to put in the road trip.

Gambling totally aside, Las Vegas is supposed to be interesting. I'd probably go down as far as the border too, to somewhere like El Paso.

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Hmm... I don't know about heading down to the border. I kind of want to go to Pine Ridge.

[anjak-j.livejournal.com]

I expected Pine Ridge would be a given, which is why I didn't suggest it...

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

It all depends on what other cities we want to visit... if it's too far off the track I'll just go there another time.

[anjak-j.livejournal.com]

The best thing for you guys to do is buy a good road map and a guide book, list places you definitely want to visit and then see what is actually viable to drive in the time you have. What you don't want to be doing is spending most of the trip racing to get to the next place.

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Google maps has this awesome function for that, now - you can plot a route with as many stop offs as you want, and it will give you directions, drive time and mileage.

[anjak-j.livejournal.com]

Ah, cool. I've never really used G-maps as a route planner before, but I was aware that some other places that offer this limit the amount of stop offs...

Happy planning. =)

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Thanks, hon. I've only tried about ten, so far - but that's a pretty reasonable start and there's probably more.

[vinylsigns.livejournal.com]

I suggested it already on Matte's eljay, but the St. Louis arch is something to see ^__^

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

I saw it from across the river when I drove down to Sauget on the SWG tour, with Julie, but we'd have no problem with seeing it again, I'm sure! Just being able to say we crossed the Mississippi would be cool.

[vinagrette.livejournal.com]

I don't know if it is a statement about America or a statement about myself but I can not think of a single really interesting place to go. Somebody already said St. Louis and that's about as close as I can come. You could potentially go up through Colorado and see some of the Rocky Mountains but I can't come up with much else. I haven't really visited the Plaines States. Apparently there is some whale sculpture in Oklahoma people like D:

It sounds like an awesome trip, tho!

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Hahahaha. Man... but thanks for the ideas. Who knows, in the four years between now and doing it they might blow the world up anyway.

[vinagrette.livejournal.com]

Hahahaha - omg how true that is :(

[sassygirl.livejournal.com]

My next trip I want to plan has some time planned in Oklaholma, specifically Tulsa. I wish I could drive though, it'd make life so much easier!

[untelling.livejournal.com]

Just remember that in March/April, it's still rather cool in the Northern U.S. You may want to pack lots of warm things, especially if you're thinking of getting a convertible. I'm in Tennessee, and we're quite a bit further south than what you've mentioned, and it's still cool in March and April. Could still even be snowy still in some of the extreme northern states above the I-40 line.

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Hehe - thanks, hon. We'd be looking at April/May, so a tiny bit later in the year, but we'll definitely keep it in mind.

[untelling.livejournal.com]

I envy you. :P Roadtripping in another country - another continent, even. I'll probably never leave the US, though I want to visit Australia or NZ someday. I hope you have a great time!

There's nothing here in Tennessee except Memphis - and all the associated blues, Nashville and the country music scene, Chattanooga, and the Smoky Mountains, which are near where I'm at. It's rather boring. A lovely place to live, but not much going on here, I'm afraid.

I plan on visiting Chicago someday. Also NY. I don't know when yet, as I'm so far in debt it's pitiful, but I should be in a much better situation two years from now, so maybe then.

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

I definitely recommend Chicago - although you'll never want to leave.

I love the place to death.

[sassygirl.livejournal.com]

This trip sounds great, San Francisco's lovely and there's not a lot in L.A but it's still fun to visit! Wow, this route of yours suonds amazing, I was thinking of doing the same thing, starting in L.A heading across to NYC but I was thinking of doing it by train, by amtrak, (they have some great routes on their site) but I think it'd take FOREVER to get anywhere heh...

[rosiedoes.livejournal.com]

Haha. Yeah. I'm going to need to learn to drive so Julie and Matte don't need to do it all...

[riotingofspring.livejournal.com]

there's plenty to do in l.a.! haha, sorry if i sounded like a brat, but i'm from los angeles...

[sassygirl.livejournal.com]

I know, I've been to L.A, but I don't drive so I had to wait on friends to take me around. Plus my friends didn't like it as much, I personally loved it there :) Hoping to go back again soon! What places do you recommend to visit? Is the Griffith Observatory open again now?

[riotingofspring.livejournal.com]

san francisco will probably be cold still... l.a. will barely be warming up. but if you're used to rain and cold, you'll be fine. i'd say travel through TX, then straight up to chicago... but i know the west and southwest... not so much the midwest and south... or the east. i know i know. lame-o.