Across America in 13 Days

This article has been submitted by a GrownUps member. GrownUps accepts no liability for its content and the views and information contained within are not necessarily those of the GrownUps website.

Just before signing off on a three week trip to America in May I received an email asking if we would like to relocate an RV from Boston to San Francisco. Seeing we were flying home out of Boston and we are two adventurous 70 yr olds we decided to take up the challenge - 8 days for $1 per day and we purchased 5 extra days @ US$60 per day.

Our trip took us through the Amish area of Lancaster in Pennsylvania down to Washington where we happened to be for their great celebrations on Memorial Day. Apart from seeing all the famous buildings, i.e. White House, Capitol Hill, Pentagon, Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials, it was wonderful to be part of their celebrations and watch USA patriotism in full force. I even got to shake Sarah Palin's hand - not sure if that was a highlight or not!

Heading west across to Ohio we explored another Amish and Mennonite area around Millersburg. Never have we parked outside a supermarket in the early evening and seen families coming to do their weekly shop driving their horse and buggy. We even saw one young Amish lady hurtling along the road and almost running a red light, to much tooting from irate car drivers.

It certainly was interesting just driving down country lanes and seeing these folk going about their every day lives as one would have lived a couple of hundred years ago.

It was a short drive through Indiana then we skirted Chicago, Illinois, and headed across the prairies into Iowa. Far from being boring, we thought this area was quite beautiful in an understated kind of way. Acre upon acre of green fields, neat farm houses and the highway ahead ending in a straight line in front of us as far as the eye could see.

We stayed in the beautiful town of Sioux Falls, just over the border in South Dakota before we crossed over the Missourie River and headed further west to explore the unusual beauty of the Badlands National Park. The next day I was able to tick off another landmark on my bucket list - the awe-inspiring carvings of the four Presidents into side of Mt Rushmore in the Black Hills of Dakota.

Travelling further west we drove through the beef state of Wyoming - huge ranches but we never saw one homestead - probably a couple of miles in from the front gate. A delightful surprise was driving over the Bighorn Mountains where it had snowed a few days earlier. Very picturesque driving over the snow-covered pass with brilliant blue sky above, to the little town of Cody.

From Cody we made our way into the Eastern entrance to Yellowstone National Park which was also decked out in the best snow-covered finery one could imagine. Having visited Yellowstone previously in the Fall it certainly was a bonus to see the park in the Spring, silhouetted against a brilliant blue sky. Hundreds of visitors there to see the famous geyser, Old Faithful still putting on a great show.

A drive South through The Grand Titon National Park eventually saw us in Salt Lake City where we spent a few hours taking in the wealth in Real Estate owned by the Mormon Church. Very hospitable church volunteers were on hand to escort you wherever you wished to go. Beautiful gardens wherever we went.

Heading West we drove over the salt flats of Utah, passing Bonneville Race Track where Bert Monroe, "The World's Fastest Indian" broke the world speed record for his class of motor bike.

Upon crossing Nevada we eventually arrived in Reno. The city promotes itself as "The Greatest Little City in the World". It is a mini Las Vegas with numerous casinos.

Heading South we passed the very beautiful Lake Tahoe with the township displaying grand hotels and the surrounding areas accommodating numerous mountain log cabins and summer homes. Some homes still had snow up to their roof (early June) so their owners will be hoping for a quick thaw so that they can enjoy their home in the summer.

Our last full day was spent visiting Yosemite National Park - this stunning valley flanked on either side by towering granite cliffs.

Finally we arrived in San Francisco having used up 4,348 miles of our 4,350 allocation. Our trusty GPS had guided us safely 99% of the time along roads ranging from multi-change clover leaf motorway exits to remote country roads. We only managed to drive on the wrong side of the road twice - both times coming out of a gas station.

To anyone contemplating doing an RV trip in USA, all Walmart car parks across the country can be used for overnight stops free of charge. Very useful also for stocking up on fresh supplies.

If you have your own lap-top, all major McDonalds restaurants offer free Wifi which we found very convenient.

print