From Sea to Shining Sea (Part 3)
Part 2 has us leaving Chicago heading toward South Dakota...
After departing Chicago we drove across Illinois into northeastern Iowa and then up the Mississippi River into Wisconsin, where we stayed the night. From there, we drove across Minnesota and into South Dakota and then (after another one night layover) into the Badlands National Park. The Badlands are an eerie region of South Dakota where the plains give way to some stunning and colorful topology. We just drove through the road that winds through the northern half of the park, stopping at the many viewpoints and overlooks to take in the scenery.
From the Badlands we continued west. The Badland scenery quickly gives way to mountain scenery. About an hours drive from the Badlands is the Mt. Rushmore National Monument, where four United States Presidents heads are carved into the side of a granite mountain. The carving process started in 1927 and was last worked on in 1941. The lengthy duration was due to gaps in funding. When first visiting Mt. Rushmore it is surprising how small the monument looks. I'm sure it's quite large up close, but it is viewed from several hundred feet below and several hundred feet back. Pictures of the monument usually are tight on the Presidents' faces, but in person the faces are framed by the rest of the mountain and the full sky, making them appear much smaller and less grandiose. After Mt. Rushmore, we drove down through the Nebraska panhandle and across to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where we stayed for the night.
From Cheyenne, we drove south into Colorado and through the Rocky Mountain National Park. The park provides some breathtaking scenery of the Rocky Mountains; its Trail Ridge Road winds up mountain sides and, at its high point, reaches 12,183 feet, making it the world's highest continually paved road. We entered the park at Estes Park and soaked in the views along Trail Ridge Road. We then took mountain highways back to Denver rather than returning to the Interstate. I have a lot of relatives in Denver so we stayed there for three days with relatives, visiting family and exploring the surrounding area. On one day we went to Boulder and hiked the Flatirons. Another day we went to downtown Denver for some sightseeing and microbrewery tours.
Following our stay in Denver, we took a couple of days to drive up through the Rocky Mountains into western Wyoming and then up to the Grand Tetons National Park and Yellowstone National Park. The Grand Tetons are a scenic mountain range that abruptly rise from a valley floor. The vast and stretching valley floor has an elevation of around 7,000 feet (if I'm remembering correctly) along with many lakes. And then, out of nowhere, ka-blamo, here comes a mountain range with peaks exceeding 13,000 feet. The park includes a bevy of trails and back country to explore, but we just drove through the park on our way up to Yellowstone.
Yellowstone National Park is the nation's oldest national park. It covers a large swath of northwestern Wyoming and is best known for the Old Faithful geyser. Much of the parkland is on top of geologically interesting land, which is the cause for the multitude of geysers (Old Faithful is just one of more than 300 geysers in the park). In addition to geysers, there are more than 10,000 other hydrothermal features. This was my first time to Yellowstone and the features were, to put it mildly, odd. There were areas where there would be a hole in the ground about the size of a basketball rim with steam and a high pitch hissing noise emanating from the hole. Or there would be a circular area with what looked like muddy water and it would be bubbling. Or pools of water that were amazing colors of blue, yellow, and orange. And most memorable, the stench of sulfur in the air. While Yellowstone does attract millions of visitors each year, and therefore is crowded and congested, it definitely is worth checking out just to experience some of these natural oddities.
After Yellowstone we spent another couple of days driving to Glacier National Park in northwestern Montana. While Yellowstone held a certain amount of wonder due to its geological features, Glacier's attraction was its stunning scenery and natural beauty. While the park is well-known for its spectacular hiking (and Grizzly bear population!), we were unable to enjoy the hiking because (as in most National Parks) dogs are not allowed on the trails. However, Glacier is very car-accessible as there's the Going to the Sun road that bisects the park and crosses through many awe-inspiring cols affording numerous views. My wife and I agreed that Glacier National Park was the most beautiful place we had ever been to in our lives. Ranging from seven to eight thousand feet, it's not nearly as high as the Rocky Mountain National Park, and it will never be as special to us as the High Sierras here in California, but from a purely aesthetic standpoint, Glacier's vistas are unparalleled.
After Glacier National Park, we drove across Idaho and into Washington. From there, we cut across the state toward Mount Rainier National Park. Mt. Rainier is Washington's highest peak at 14,410 feet, and is home to several glaciers. We entered the park from the west entrance and camped in the White River campground. Due to the weather being cloudy and very cool, we were comfortable leaving Sam in the car and were able to get in some light hiking. We drove up to the Sunrise Day Lodge Visitor Center (altitude 9,000 ft.) and did a 1.5 mile trail along Sourdough Ridge. The atmosphere was ethereal. Many of the surrounding mountains were shrouded in wispy clouds (as were we, on our jaunt). There was a chilling breeze, occasional drizzle, and patches of snow on the trail. Best of all, the scenery was fantastic. Mt. Rainier's peaks were hiding behind clouds most of the time, but every now and then would peak out from underneath its cover. The subalpine meadows were a radiant, neon green, sharply contrasting with the black mountains in the background. And the ridge trail we hiked was on a precipice overlooking an idyllic valley far below.
Following our stay in Mt. Rainier, we drove up to Seattle. I have been up in the Seattle area many times, including living in Redmond for a summer back in 1999 when interning for Microsoft, so I was able to show my wife around town. I showed her the Microsoft campus and where I lived. We ate a Kidd Valley, which was like my second home when I lived in Redmond that summer. We stayed the night in downtown Seattle and did the typical tourist gamut: Pike Street Market, Pioneer Square, and so on. We also went to the flagship REI store in downtown Seattle, which has three stories of shopping and an indoor rock climbing wall! REI is my wife's favorite store, so this was like Mecca for her.
After Seattle we drove through the Olympic National Park, which receives so much rainfall each year that it is classified as a rain forest. The flora was interesting: large, old growth trees dominated the skyline. But instead of dirt and shrubs and grasses on the forest floor, which is what I am accustomed to seeing since we primarily visit alpine environments, there were a bounty of ferns and moss, giving it an almost jungle-like feeling. Olympic National Park also includes five beaches on the Pacific Ocean, which boast scores of driftwood and monumental rock formations.
After Olympic National Park, we continued down the Washington coast and then along the Columbia River to Portland, Oregon. My wife had been to Portland a number of times. A a good friend of hers had lived there for many years, so we had the scoop on some local attractions to hit up. One of the tastiest ones was Voodoo Doughnut, where they fresh bake some very interesting donuts. We also hit up the main store of every bibliophile's dream, Powell's Used & New Books, and picked up some reading material for the remainder of our trip. We stayed in a hotel in downtown Portland and spent a few days exploring the eclectic neighborhoods. One driver had a bumper sticker that seemed to sum up the city pretty succinctly. It read: "Keep Portland Weird."
From Portland we drove back west to the coast and then south, following the twists and turns of Highway 101. Eventually we turned back inland and drove to Oregon's sole National Park: Crater Lake National Park. Crater Lake was formed when Mt. Mazama collapsed more than 7,700 years ago. Over the millennia the gaping crater left by the collapsed mountain filled with water from rains. It is, today, over 1,900 feet deep and the deepest lake in the United States; there are no streams or rivers coming into or out of the lake, making it totally self-contained. There is a road around the immense lake, which we took, stopping at many of the overlooks.
Following Crater Lake we drove southwest, reentering California. By this point it had been more than two months since we had left our home state. Entering California we drove through the Redwood National Forest, home of some of the world's oldest and largest trees. We continued south on Highway 101, and then along Highway 1, which hugs the scenic California coast. We made our way down to San Francisco and stayed a night downtown. Both my wife and I had been to San Francisco many times, so we didn't do many touristy things. We visited our favorite eatery there (the House of Nanking) and walked to Chinatown, then to Fisherman's Wharf, up Nob Hill, and then to Union Square. A lot of up and down! The weather was chilly, reminding me of that Mark Twain quote: "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." After our one-night sojourn in San Francisco, we took the Interstate back to San Diego!
Overall, we had a blast on this trip. We were able to see a lot of the country and visit sites that we might otherwise have never seen. Such a long trip can be tiring, but we did a good job keeping our energy and spirits up throughout the trip, although near the end we were more than ready to get back home, back to our comfy bed, and out of the car. (We live in a very walkable community and work from home; consequently, we only drive a few times a week. So being in a car non-stop for more than two months was, to put it mildly, a break from the ordinary.) We both agreed that New York City was our favorite stop on the trip. Yes, it was hot; and the city was a bit dirtier than other metropolitan areas we visited; it lacked the history of Seoul, the sculptures found throughout Chicago, and the scenery of San Francisco and Seattle. But what it did have was a level of energy and hustle and bustle that was unmatched. With its diversity it felt like a truly international city, much more so than London or Paris or Los Angeles. I don't know if I would want to live there permanently, but I imagine it would be a worthwhile experience to live there for a year or two, live through all four seasons, see the sites, soak in the culture.
I'll close with some statistics. Both being the nerdy engineering types, my wife and I enjoy metrics and statistics and forecasts and empirical data about as much as most Americans enjoy television. Needless to say, we recorded many details along our trip. Here are some of interest:
- Trip Duration: 71 days
- Total Mileage: 14,071
- Total Gallons: 555.6
- Average Cost/Gallon: $3.096
- Average Spent on Gas/Day: $24.13
- Average Fuel Efficiency: 25.33 mpg
- Cheapest Gas: $2.69 per gallon; June 18, Jonesboro, Arkansas
- Most Expensive Gas: $3.57 per gallon; May 24, Williams, Arizona
- Average Spent on Food/Day: $33.02
- Average Spent on Lodging/Day: $86.58
- Roadkill Count: 1 (a bird in northeastern Iowa)
I leave you with an extreme closeup of Sam.
