Well.
We got home last night, safe and sound, and tired after a long day on the road. The car was waiting in long term parking at JFK, and started right up. I don't think I've ever been as relieved to both see my car, and to have it start.
It's hard to believe after all the planning, all the scheduling, all the packing (and unpacking), and all the driving, that the trip is actually over. It's been in the future for such a long time, and it took so much work to organize and execute. While some might call it a let-down, I don't really feel that way. Of course, there is the emptiness in the day which used to be occupied by planning - both the longer-term planning for the entire trip, and the shorter-term "what do we do tomorrow?" type.
A few key statistics (all ignoring air travel):
Days away: 30
Miles driven: 3,850
Miles driven: 3,850
Hotels: 14
Bottles of wine consumed: "several"
Bottles of wine consumed: "several"
11 unique states passed through (in order: NJ, NY, CO, WY, SD, WY, MN, WY, ID, UT, AZ, NE, CA, NY, NJ)
7 states stayed in (CO, WY, SD, MN, UT, NE, CA)
2,699 images captured, requiring 49 GB of storage
Highest high: >10,400 feet (Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, CA; Charleston Mtn, CO, maybe others)
Lowest low: -282 feet (Badwater, Death Valley, CA)
Weather experienced: Snow, rain, hail, cold, extreme heat, sun, wind
Approximate temperature range: +119F (Death Valley) to +35F (Yellowstone)
None of these capture the experience. Along the way, and more towards the end of the trip, we discussed which of the stops were most memorable, which were the most (or least) enjoyable, which we would like to return to. Not surprisingly, we agreed on many of these things and disagreed on a relative few. We both agreed that Yosemite was in many ways the "best" of the Parks, whatever that means. We both agreed that Las Vegas and the Wynn were just over the top. We both couldn't wait to exit Death Valley.
But I think, for me, the individual stops were not the point of the trip. They were just a means to an end, and that end was: to spend a month on the road. To see what it's like to be on the road, with no direction known, a complete unknown, like a rolling stone. Well not exactly, but you know what I mean. To somehow get away from our wonderful life back in New Jersey and see what it's like to do something we had never done before. A month is a long time.
And while we didn't plan it that way, we happened to spend the month leading up to our 40th Anniversary on the road, together. It's almost certainly more time than we've spent continuously together, without family and friends, or jobs and children, or the other distractions of daily living, ever. Period. We never did the travel cross country- or backpack through Europe- thing when we were young; we always had a plan, a career, a family plan, or something else that kept us near home.
So what does it all mean? Actually, I don't think it "means" anything. I think this was a journey of experience, of existentialism, of being in-the-moment. This blog, and the 2,699 images I captured throughout the month, will help us remember the details in the future. But what I hope that I remember the gestalt of the the trip - the feeling of waking up in a new bed, with a new set of experiences in front of me that day, with a degree of uncertainty as to where we will go and what it will be like, of not having any of the regular distractions of living to get in the way of enjoying the world. Of planning one day at a time, and making the most of that day. Of each day being for enjoyment, of not making a job out of accomplishing something.
Thanks for reading and looking at a few of the pictures. It made it easier for me to focus on the experience.
Highest high: >10,400 feet (Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, CA; Charleston Mtn, CO, maybe others)
Lowest low: -282 feet (Badwater, Death Valley, CA)
Weather experienced: Snow, rain, hail, cold, extreme heat, sun, wind
Approximate temperature range: +119F (Death Valley) to +35F (Yellowstone)
None of these capture the experience. Along the way, and more towards the end of the trip, we discussed which of the stops were most memorable, which were the most (or least) enjoyable, which we would like to return to. Not surprisingly, we agreed on many of these things and disagreed on a relative few. We both agreed that Yosemite was in many ways the "best" of the Parks, whatever that means. We both agreed that Las Vegas and the Wynn were just over the top. We both couldn't wait to exit Death Valley.
But I think, for me, the individual stops were not the point of the trip. They were just a means to an end, and that end was: to spend a month on the road. To see what it's like to be on the road, with no direction known, a complete unknown, like a rolling stone. Well not exactly, but you know what I mean. To somehow get away from our wonderful life back in New Jersey and see what it's like to do something we had never done before. A month is a long time.
And while we didn't plan it that way, we happened to spend the month leading up to our 40th Anniversary on the road, together. It's almost certainly more time than we've spent continuously together, without family and friends, or jobs and children, or the other distractions of daily living, ever. Period. We never did the travel cross country- or backpack through Europe- thing when we were young; we always had a plan, a career, a family plan, or something else that kept us near home.
So what does it all mean? Actually, I don't think it "means" anything. I think this was a journey of experience, of existentialism, of being in-the-moment. This blog, and the 2,699 images I captured throughout the month, will help us remember the details in the future. But what I hope that I remember the gestalt of the the trip - the feeling of waking up in a new bed, with a new set of experiences in front of me that day, with a degree of uncertainty as to where we will go and what it will be like, of not having any of the regular distractions of living to get in the way of enjoying the world. Of planning one day at a time, and making the most of that day. Of each day being for enjoyment, of not making a job out of accomplishing something.
Thanks for reading and looking at a few of the pictures. It made it easier for me to focus on the experience.
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