12 Days Across America

Nothing like a spontaneous road-trip cross country. (This post needs a sound track. Cue “Life is a Highway, I want to ride it”) This is my fifth trip cross-country in two years, all in this beautiful Toyota 4Runner. I can’t say enough good things about this sweet ride.

I made a command decision on Tuesday afternoon to depart early Wednesday and drive from Virginia Beach to Malibu. The plan was basic – drive approximately 2,500 miles and arrive in California by Sunday. Like all big tasks, broken in smaller pieces, it doesn’t seem so big; drive about 500 miles a day for 5 consecutive days. The way it actually unfolded wasn’t far from that with variations to spend a little time at certain places along the way. America is such a beautiful country full of interesting, good people that I freely welcome an opportunity to explore more of it.

First night—Nashville, Tennessee (Cue “Tennessee Whiskey” with Chris Stapleton & Justin Timberlake)

(This photo was actually taken a couple years ago because I didn’t get a good shot this time.)

Leaving Nashville early the next morning, I headed for Memphis which is on the Mississippi River. Halfway across the river, Tennessee ends and Arkansas begins. I rolled right through Arkansas passing countless billboards for barbecue restaurants.  Not the easiest place for a pescatarian to find lunch.

Second night—Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Cue “God Bless America”). The Murrah Federal Building Memorial is so touching. A description of the memorial indicates that the wall at the entrance is engraved with the time “9:01” because that was the last moment of peace before the explosion on April 19, 1995 that took 168 innocent lives including 19 children under six. The wall at the far end is engraved with “9:03” because that’s when the healing began.

The field of empty chairs, each one with a name for a victim, small chairs for the children, always brings me to tears. It’s hard to understand the senseless violence.

Driving through Oklahoma offers a panorama of fields, cattle, and windmills. (Cue Dixie Chicks “Wide Open Spaces, room to make a big mistake.”) This landscape continues through Texas. Driving through the Lone Star State there are acres and acres of cattle and holding pens. Again, Texas is no place for a vegetarian. The landscape begins to look dry and more like desert near the New Mexico border.

I always feel a special connection to the Southwest. Rather than feeling road-weary, when I reach New Mexico I’m inevitably energized and eager to make the most of whatever time I have.

Next stop Albuquerque, one of my favorite cities! I took a mandatory break for a couple hours including lunch at the Church Street Cafe (oldest restaurant in Albuquerque), a photo op at the iconic gazebo in the center of Old Town,

and a stroll past the beautiful San Felipe de Niri Parish.

Third night—Gallup, New Mexico (Cue “Peaceful Easy Feeling” by the Eagles) This is a quiet, little, border town near the entrance to the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest State Park in Arizona.

I don’t exactly understand why fallen trees in the park didn’t decay like most but rather absorbed natural elements forming colorful rocks. They’re from the Late Triassic Period about 225 million years ago. The result is quite beautiful. 

I stopped for a couple hours in Flagstaff, a small, college town with Route 66 and a railway running through the middle. Lunch was pretty much the same as in Albuquerque and so very delicious both days — chips, salsa, guacamole, enchiladas, sopapillas filled with honey, and a margarita … yummmmm! 

Arizona is such an amazing state. It’s difficult to pass highway exits for places like the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and Phoenix but I really can’t pass Winslow without stopping to stand on the corner. (Cue “Take It Easy” by the Eagles)

Fourth night—Just over the border in Needles, California (Cue: “Small Town” by John Mellencamp). This small town has lower than average per capita income and higher than average unemployment but it also has people with a strong sense of family who take great joy in their piece of the Colorado River that runs through town.

It’s a relatively short drive from here to Los Angeles, famous West Coast city, full of talent, creativity, celebrities, money, diversity, smog, and traffic. I love Los Angeles for a lot of reasons but it seems to be a little crazier and more expensive every time I go there. This trip, I stayed only for lunch then headed north about 30 miles to Malibu with my two California sons.

Nights 5 – 8 — We checked in to our Airbnb in the Malibu hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean, home for the next 4 nights, and sat back to enjoy some of the best things in life–family, nature, and free time. 

Our first destination the next morning was Pepperdine University that will be home to my son, Daniel, for the next 18 months. No wonder it’s consistently voted the most beautiful campus in America. The sprawling grounds overlook the ocean and in no way resemble a typical college campus.

Evenings were spent making & eating dinner, playing games, and roasting marshmallows for s’mores. 

The second day we checked out surf shops and beaches.

There seem to be countless cool beaches up and down the coast. There are also a lot of great cafes with really fresh seafood.

Our Airbnb, temporary home was a converted barn with every imaginable luxury including tennis courts and a hot tub.

The last day we hiked in Malibu Creek Canyon Park. One trail leads to the former site of the television show M*A*S*H*. We climbed around on some of the abandoned props and walked through the familiar mess tent with picnic tables. 

Another trail leads to a cistern and dam.

It was hot with high altitude which made for a challenging ascent. As always, I was the weak link but I was in excellent company and I definitely enjoyed the hike.

This could have been the end of a wonderful trip cross-country but wait, it doesn’t end here because the spontaneous road trip to Cali bumps into a previously planned long weekend. Early Thursday morning I flew direct from LAX to DCA (Washington’s Reagan National Airport) and was met by my daughter, Kristina.

Nights 9 and 10 — We met up with our friends and attended the Eagles/James Taylor concert at Nationals Stadium.  (Cue Hotel California) Of course, the Eagles are not the same without our beloved Glen Frye but they are still terrific. Deacon Frye (Glen’s son), Vince Gill and Stuart Smith are new additions. 

Friday we toured the National Archives and the National Portrait Gallery. We tried again to get tickets to the African-American Museum but were unsuccessful. Most all the museums are free but a couple of the newer ones are so popular they require a reservation. Throw in excellent restaurants and top it off with a full moon as viewed from the rooftop bar of the Watergate. All in all, it was a delightful two-day stay in our nation’s capitol.

Night 11 – Rehoboth

(Cue The Eagles, “Put me on a highway, show me a sign, and Take It To The Limit One More Time”) From DC I drove to Baltimore to drop my daughter off at the airport then continued through Maryland, over the Bay Bridge, into Delaware and eastward to Rehoboth. The result was a complete change of pace. Rehoboth is a fun beach town with a 60’s vibe and plenty of seasonal traffic. We bicycled down to Dewey Beach stopping at outdoor venues with live music and views of the water. No question, there’s a lot of money here. Former vice-president Joe Biden, Oprah, and baseball player Cal Ripken, Jr. all have homes in the area. Sunday morning we rode about 12 miles north on the Breakwater Trail to Lewes which was my favorite town of the several we visited. It’s quaint and, while still touristy, somehow classier than the others that were filled with music, drinking, boaters, and sunbathers. 

Leaving Rehoboth, the drive down the Eastern Shore from Delaware to Virginia is flat and easy. The last 23 miles of the drive is the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.  A beautiful sunset welcomed me back home. 

Looking back on it now, the trip went like this:

Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, (I may have crossed into Nevada for a few miles), California, Washington D.C., Maryland, Delaware, and back to Virginia

“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

“The everyday kindness of the back roads more than makes up for the acts of greed in the headlines.” Charles Kuralt