48stateroadtrip.com

This was yesterday.

Drove out of Big Sur. Relieved to get cell reception. Relieved at gas prices below $3.70. Turned left onto 17-Mile Drive, which is mostly like a lightly-trafficked tour through beachside golf courses and houses. Continued for 17 miles. Exited. Went to the Carmel mission (that has a fancier name than that). Saw Junipero Serra’s grave. Exited. Drove through the maze of Carmel streets. Found Hwy. 1, went north. Stopped in Monterey. Parked in a garage. Walked to waterfront. It’s like a small-scale San Francisco (IMHO). Ate lunch. Walked to Cannery Row. No canneries in operation. Walked back to car. Pried bike out of back of cab. Re-attached front wheel. Tightened trip computer magnet. Changed into bike shorts. Rode up and down bike path from Pacific Grove to Seaside and back. Re-deposited bike in back of truck. Changed out of bike shorts. Went back to waterfront to verify. Still there. Returned to car. Packed an overnight bag. Drove up Hwy. 1 to the 101. Dropped in on friends in Sunnyvale. Ate dinner (very Italian, very awesome). Observed baby. Took walk toward downtown Sunnyvale. Returned. Showered (very nice). Went to bed.

One last look at Big Sur coastline. It was a foggy send-off, so I missed the lighthouse and the bridges. Next time.

There was some golf course right next to this spot, but it seemed only moderately famous.

The mission in Carmel(-by-the-Sea). Would probably be good to take the second pic again on a blue-sky day. And a day when I wasn’t so antsy to get going that I didn’t play with the composition. Ah well: regret is sweet.

Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey, boasting the highest concentration of free clam chowder samples of any location in the lower 48.

Next up: SF and praying my car doesn’t get broken into…!

bkd

[Note: Video *should* work now (7/16 @ 8:46 AM).]

Yes, this is how I live. (Although I’m staying tonight with V&T in Sunnyvale in much, much nicer — and roomier! — digs.) Also, yes, I went with the ultimate low-maintenance haircut to start the trip.

I have more photos to post, but the USB cable is out in the car and I don’t want to have to put pants on.

bkd

(BTW, lmk if the video doesn’t work — thx.)

It’s a pretty waterfall and, I think, probably the most photographed thing in the whole of Big Sur. Here are a couple of my attempts:

There were others. I’ll spare you. It’s the same basic waterfall each time…

Was gonna post some other photos, but this internet connection’s a little iffy and I don’t like waiting for it, therefore signing off:

bkd

Haven’t been to the “good half” of Big Sur yet. Tomorrow. Tomorrow. The bad half is pretty cool, though.

Highway 1 and the shoreline just south of Jade Cove.

Trail heading down toward the beach, also around Jade Cove.

Because (I hear) some people consider seals photo-worthy. They just lay there, occasionally throwing sand on themselves. And if any of them were dead, I’m not sure how anyone would have known. Such indolence may cost them dearly when the killer whales come.

A big day like this deserves an evening encounter with the Jet-Boil. Maybe it’s time to break out the pouched chicken.

bkd

Ten Things About My Day at Hearst Castle:

• Definitely worth going to once — a great monument to wealth and questionable taste.
• $24 seems steep for a 75-minute tour (not including the 15-minutes-each-way bus ride from the visitors center).
• Especially given that, if you touch a tree, the assistant tour guide yells at you.
• The main house is actually a cathedral. If you ask the guide why William Randolph Hearst would want to live in a cathedral, she’ll tell you it’s because he had traveled Europe extensively and wanted “the ranch” to seem like a Mediterranean village. Yeah, but living in a cathedral?! Seems either misguided or sacrilegious. I mean, I’ve traveled a bit in Europe myself, but I don’t want to live in a cathedral. Maybe that’s why I’m not rich.
• And aside from the cathedral in the middle, I’m not sure how this is in any way similar to a Mediterranean village.
• Feels like the “Golden Age of Hollywood” in real-life form. Sunset Boulevard seems like it took some hints from here.
• I don’t actually know anything about architecture, just that it seems odd to have old choir seats that had been ripped out of a Gothic cathedral lining the walls of your dining room. Doesn’t the Gothic cathedral still need those?
• If I ever have a pool at my house, it should be like one of these (neither of which belonged in a Mediterranean village).
• The ceilings were all very, very fancy.
• And the tri-tip sandwich was pretty good.

Some photos:

Ah, cathedral-sweet-home. Nice flowers, though.

Plus, if you can get bored, you can play hitch-hiker’s chess on the bottom of it.

The view.

End of post.

Day One!

Weird day, mostly because, in fact, I was not only starting the trip but also moving out of my apartment — and trying to move out while avoiding seeing my landlord on the way. Successful on that front, but a little hectic. Haven’t done anything interesting yet, but here are photos anyway:

Initial odometer reading. For posterity.

How L.A. tells you it doesn’t want you to leave.

A mound of rocks by San Luis Obispo (at 70 mph)

And now I just gotta hope the sun comes up tomorrow, otherwise I’ll wish I did more than move and drive today.

bkd

It’s on the standard “Itinerary” page, though — click on the link up above, or else just click right here (there’s also a full-detail PDF available there).

The big (BIG) news is that I’m no longer bothering to visit actual people at the schools I was planning on visiting — I’ve been advised against doing that (thanks, Mark!) and these omissions add a little more breathing room into the trip. I also ended up adding essentially two full days (two and a half maybe even) for the Georgia Coast, including a full day in Savannah. Everyone says good things about Savannah and my landlord promises me I’ll be attacked by alligators if I linger on the coast long enough, so, really, what choice do I have?

Also took out the last night of camping at Lake Mead — maybe I’ll want to camp one more night and maybe I won’t, but I didn’t want the Georgia thing to wind up making me add two to the trip’s day tally. We’re now up to 124, which just happens to be the sum of the eight consecutive primes from 5 to 29.

Less than seven days till drive-off!

bkd

Got sick of studying for the GMAT today (they should just accept my 14-year-old scores), so tried to design a logo. Here’s what I came up with (please let me know what you think):

Then here’s a slight variation:

And this is the other thing I came up with:

So I dunno. I like the first one, with the one significant problem being that it looks like it was designed by a TV station for an election 61 years ago. Maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Added @ 21:40:

A couple more possibilities:

No, I don’t know how I would use a logo if I had one. Probably just get it tattooed on my neck.

bkd

This is only a test.

I figure there are a number of you out there who would like my 121-day road trip to be more meaningful to you, but currently don’t have enough at stake for it to feel that way. So I’m providing odds and you can bet.

Number of Bears I Will Have Seen
0 –> 2 to 1
1 –> 4 to 1
2 –> 7 to 1
3 –> 15 to 1
4 or More –> 3 to 1

Mileage At Which Point I First Utter “Man, This Was a Stupid Idea” (or similar)
Over/Under –> 4,812

Will I Have a Mechanical Breakdown?
Yes/No –> 2 to 3

Number of Comments Received About My California License Plate
Over/Under –> 29

Number of National Parks Actually Visited
Over/Under –> 21 (23 are currently in the itinerary in some way or other)

Number of Times Pulled Over
0 –> 2 to 1
1 –> 3 to 1
2 –> 5 to 1
3 –> 10 to 1
4 or more –> 21 to 4

First Infraction for Which Pulled Over
Speeding –> Even
No Front License Plate –> 3 to 1
Weaving –> 9 to 1
Failure to Stop –> 20 to 1
Field –> 9 to 1

Will I Actually Use My Inflatable Kayak?
Yes/No –> 5 to 3

Will I Actually Use My Bike?
Yes/No –> 7 to 5

Will I Actually Fish?
Yes/No –> 5 to 1

Number of Posts to This Blog  That I’ll Write During the Trip
Over-Under –> 70

Number of Actual Days I’ll Be on the Trip
Over-Under –> 122

State That, Immediately After the Trip, I’ll Say Was My Favorite
Washington –> 5 to 1
Oregon –> 7 to 1
Montana –> 9 to 1
California –> 10 to 1
Minnesota –> 20 to 1
New Hampshire –> 20 to 1
North Carolina –> 25 to 1
Virginia –> 25 to 1
Tennessee –> 30 to 1
Michigan –> 40 to 1
Vermont –> 40 to 1
Maine –> 40 to 1
South Carolina –> 50 to 1
South Dakota –> 50 to 1
Wyoming –> 60 to 1
West Virginia –> 60 to 1
North Dakota –> 60 to 1
New York –> 100 to 1
Mississippi –> 100 to 1
Kentucky –> 100 to 1
Illinois –> 100 to 1
Georgia –> 150 to 1
Texas –> 150 to 1
Utah –> 150 to 1
Field (other 24 states) –> 12 to 1

Site That, Immediately After the Trip, I’ll Say Was My Favorite
Glacier National Park –> 14 to 1
Olympic National Park –> 20 to 1
Boundary Waters –> 20 to 1
Oregon Coast –> 20 to 1
Yosemite National Park –> 20 to 1
USAF Museum –> 25 to 1
Charleston –> 25 to 1
White Mountains (New Hampshire) –> 25 to 1
Natchez Trace –> 50 to 1
Mt. Baker Area –> 50 to 1
Great Smoky Mountains National Park –> 50 to 1
Field –> Even
(This one’s dodgy — the state one is probably better.)

Number of “Click-It or Ticket” Signs I See
Over-Under –> 187

Will I See a Car on Fire?
Yes/No –> Even

Actual Number of Gallons of Gas Put into Tank
Over-Under –> 1,345

Actual Number of Miles Driven
Over-Under –> 21,844

Actual Number of Miles Hiked (Doesn’t Include Walking Around in Cities)
Over-Under –> 480

Should be enough to get things started. Am open to suggestions on other possible wager subjects. Enjoy.

bkd