1) To see my parents! For the first time all year, and maybe the only, with holiday travel being so unpredictable this year. We also figured driving instead of flying was a safer way to see them.
2) Art's birthday was July 25th! Covid birthdays, amiright? We wanted to find a way to celebrate that felt special, but still safe, so we picked Yellowstone (first time for both of us!)
3) This was our "first honeymoon", of sorts, after getting married on July 3rd. Again, not the honeymoon we planned (we're still supposed to be officially honeymooning in Mexico City next year, fingers crossed!) but still a small, safe way to celebrate!
4) I have lived in Nashville for eleven years (! this year!) & have always wanted to drive across the country to California, but never had the time, reason, or means to. With time on our hands, flexibility with work, & these reasons listed - it all felt like a good time!
Oh, to be fair, 5) this may be Piper's only trip to California/my home ever, as we don't plan on flying with her, so that was kinda fun!
Read on for the breakdown of our trip!
Day 1: Nashville, TN to Kansas City, KS (8 hours 21 min)
Our first stop to kick off our excursion was Kansas City, KS, where my sister is currently living with her boyfriend. We love Kansas City and of course wanted more time to spend there (watch out: this is a recurring theme) but this was basically an overnight pitstop. We were able to squeeze in a giant Gate's BBQ sandwich, a few snuggles, and a long walk with a surprise dog park for Piper before hitting the road again.Day 2: Kansas City, KS to Loveland, CO [via Nebraska] (10 hours 2 min)
Next stop - Colorado, for a night at Thompson River Dairy (owned & operated by my friend Rachel & her husband Ray, how cool is that?) We opted to drive through Nebraska, because, new state, but also about halfway through, Art mentioned stopping to see a friend. I was like "...who?" Turns out, a friend he used to work with moved to Hastings, Nebraska, to open a brewery that Art had always wanted to visit! So, we did! It was a lovely stop and just cool to reconnect with a friend, but it was a looong day that put us in CO very late for minimal time with Rachel ( :[ sorry Rachel. I still feel bad about this!)
Day 3: Loveland, CO to West Yellowstone, MT (9 hours 12 min)
After Piper met lots of cows on our tour of the farm (thanks Ray!) we were off to Yellowstone! We drove through the entire state of Wyoming, which was a totally new region of the country for me. We dawdled a bit, stopping in Laramie and Jackson Hole, before arriving really late on Art's birthday night. Yellowstone is massive and were there for 2.5 days, with a dog that had to be crated, SO - we had to take a deep breath and make the most of the time we did have. Oh, not to mention, during a pandemic! With that in mind, we mostly skipped the main attractions & opted for "backcountry" hiking, where we were completely alone - except for a few bison. Day 3 - 5: Yellowstone
This was a really wonderful few days. Apart from the incredibly scenic hikes, both evenings we ordered take-out and drove back into the park for sunset dinners sitting in our trunk or at a picnic table (genius - why does everybody not do this?) Our second night we drove further into the park for sunset/dinner at Lake Yellowstone which was SO beautiful. We saw TWO bears, a bunch of bison (one on the road as we drove out at night - very scary), stunning hot springs, wildflower meadows, dizzying stars, and I can't wait to go back! Day 9: Santa Clara, CA to Barstow, CA (6 hours)
I believe I speak for the entire party when I say that by this leg of the trip, we were pretty tired; after days of getting up as early as we could muster, driving all day/maximizing where we were, and getting in late or staying up late, and then doing it all again. But this wasn't like, a spa trip. That was kinda the point. Anyway we stopped at a couple road-side produce stands on our way through the Central Valley which is such a California GEM! Day 10: Barstow, CA to Albuquerque, NM (10 hours)
Let's see here - this half of the trip feels a little less exciting because we were pretty much just driving back across the country. We were in ABQ for a very short time and the city is also completely shut down for COVID. So, good on you, ABQ! We did have some Christmas chilis! Oh, we stopped in Needles ^ in the desert, where it was literally so hot Piper could not walk on the street. Day 12: Oklahoma City, OK to Nashville, TN (10 hours 2 min)
Day 1: Nashville, TN to Kansas City, KS (8 hours 21 min)
Our first stop to kick off our excursion was Kansas City, KS, where my sister is currently living with her boyfriend. We love Kansas City and of course wanted more time to spend there (watch out: this is a recurring theme) but this was basically an overnight pitstop. We were able to squeeze in a giant Gate's BBQ sandwich, a few snuggles, and a long walk with a surprise dog park for Piper before hitting the road again.Day 2: Kansas City, KS to Loveland, CO [via Nebraska] (10 hours 2 min)
Next stop - Colorado, for a night at Thompson River Dairy (owned & operated by my friend Rachel & her husband Ray, how cool is that?) We opted to drive through Nebraska, because, new state, but also about halfway through, Art mentioned stopping to see a friend. I was like "...who?" Turns out, a friend he used to work with moved to Hastings, Nebraska, to open a brewery that Art had always wanted to visit! So, we did! It was a lovely stop and just cool to reconnect with a friend, but it was a looong day that put us in CO very late for minimal time with Rachel ( :[ sorry Rachel. I still feel bad about this!) Day 3: Loveland, CO to West Yellowstone, MT (9 hours 12 min)
After Piper met lots of cows on our tour of the farm (thanks Ray!) we were off to Yellowstone! We drove through the entire state of Wyoming, which was a totally new region of the country for me. We dawdled a bit, stopping in Laramie and Jackson Hole, before arriving really late on Art's birthday night. Yellowstone is massive and were there for 2.5 days, with a dog that had to be crated, SO - we had to take a deep breath and make the most of the time we did have. Oh, not to mention, during a pandemic! With that in mind, we mostly skipped the main attractions & opted for "backcountry" hiking, where we were completely alone - except for a few bison. Day 3 - 5: Yellowstone
This was a really wonderful few days. Apart from the incredibly scenic hikes, both evenings we ordered take-out and drove back into the park for sunset dinners sitting in our trunk or at a picnic table (genius - why does everybody not do this?) Our second night we drove further into the park for sunset/dinner at Lake Yellowstone which was SO beautiful. We saw TWO bears, a bunch of bison (one on the road as we drove out at night - very scary), stunning hot springs, wildflower meadows, dizzying stars, and I can't wait to go back! Day 5: West Yellowstone, MT to Salt Lake City, UT (4 hours 41 min)
Shortest drive of the trip! We were wiped from maximizing in Yellowstone but still walked to Temple Square, I had to see it! On our way out the next morning, we went by East High School, where they shot High School Musical. Haha. Just a tiny 12 hour trip to SLC.
Day 6: Salt Lake City, UT to Santa Clara, CA (11 hours 23 min)
The long haul...home. Can you believe this epic picture of Piper at the salt flats in Utah? We kept joking - the SUMMER this dog has had! So many great pictures for her Instagram...but all she wanted to do was hang at home with her friends. I should take a second for a shout-out to our road warrior pup. She really does so well in the car!
Day 6 - 9: Bay Area
Just a couple cozy days at home with lots of family time, Mom's home cooking, a coastal hike, and most notably, even my DAD who is "not a dog person" loving Piper so much!! So that was special. I can't even remember what else we did, nothing? I loaded up the car with my last few boxes of "memory stuff" from home to FINALLY sort through. What better time than now, right?
Day 6: Salt Lake City, UT to Santa Clara, CA (11 hours 23 min)
The long haul...home. Can you believe this epic picture of Piper at the salt flats in Utah? We kept joking - the SUMMER this dog has had! So many great pictures for her Instagram...but all she wanted to do was hang at home with her friends. I should take a second for a shout-out to our road warrior pup. She really does so well in the car! Day 6 - 9: Bay Area
Just a couple cozy days at home with lots of family time, Mom's home cooking, a coastal hike, and most notably, even my DAD who is "not a dog person" loving Piper so much!! So that was special. I can't even remember what else we did, nothing? I loaded up the car with my last few boxes of "memory stuff" from home to FINALLY sort through. What better time than now, right? Day 9: Santa Clara, CA to Barstow, CA (6 hours)
I believe I speak for the entire party when I say that by this leg of the trip, we were pretty tired; after days of getting up as early as we could muster, driving all day/maximizing where we were, and getting in late or staying up late, and then doing it all again. But this wasn't like, a spa trip. That was kinda the point. Anyway we stopped at a couple road-side produce stands on our way through the Central Valley which is such a California GEM! Day 10: Barstow, CA to Albuquerque, NM (10 hours)
Let's see here - this half of the trip feels a little less exciting because we were pretty much just driving back across the country. We were in ABQ for a very short time and the city is also completely shut down for COVID. So, good on you, ABQ! We did have some Christmas chilis! Oh, we stopped in Needles ^ in the desert, where it was literally so hot Piper could not walk on the street. Day 11: Albuquerque, NM to Oklahoma City, OK (7 hours 54 min)
The most exciting part of this leg was a stop in Amarillo, TX, to finally try Whataburger! What can I say - we wanted to try the local fare everywhere, and perhaps in the fast food category most of all. We picnicked in the park (yum!) and caught sight of Cadillac Ranch on the way into town.
Day 12: Oklahoma City, OK to Nashville, TN (10 hours 2 min)
I was intrigued to visit OKC - a good sized city in another part of the country I had never ventured into. Unfortunately, of course, we got in late and had to leave the next morning, but here we spent a bit more to stay in a historic hotel in downtown (The Skirvin - beautiful). We enjoyed walking around the Bricktown neighborhood (all those muraled tunnels!) and picked up some Oklahoma style Mexican food at Barios in Midtown on the way out the next day!
In total, we crossed 19 states on our trip (this map doesn't accurately show the driving route, but it is fun to interact with!) Many of these were new states for me, always exciting! I have a blog post brewing in my mind about my "visit all the states" challenge, including the why I even care and how I'm doing on the list! But really there is so much to see in this big-ass country, that I delighted in pit-stopping in the random places we may never see again (Winnemucca, NV! Hastings, NE! Amarillo, TX!...) about as much as our overnight stays in the "big ticket" cities (Oklahoma City, OK, West Yellowstone, MT, Salt Lake City, UT...) I basically need one big round up of New England and an Alaskan cruise and I'll hit 50 :)
What state(s) are at the top of your list? Done any road-tripping in 2020?
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