Road trip - MN to Santa Cruz Ca - Please read!!

[michael grace]

My son and I are planning a road trip from central Minnesota to

Santa Cruz CA starting about August 5 and will have to return by

about Sept 1st. He just got his drivers permit so is eager to drive.

I look at this as a great opportunity for both of us to see the

country and especially for him to expand his horizons. Aaron is not

a typical teen. He is focused, mature, patient and very articulate,

displaying attributes far beyond his 15 years. So I want this trip

to be more than sight seeing instead focused on fostering an

understanding of the development of the US and an appreciation for

what makes the USA such a great country. I am leaning towards a trip

on roads less traveled and sights that are off the mainstream even

at the risk that we run out of time and have to make a fast trip

back, �quality is in the details�. I post here because I know there

are many members of this forum can point me to these places. Me - I

am along to document with cameras from P&S, digital SLR and 4X5. Any

and all contributions are welcome and appreciated

[tim obrien]

Is Minnesota before or after South Dakota?

 

Well anyways, go see the Corn Palace in Mitchell South Dakota. The rest of the trip will fall into place.

 

BTW - Keep saying "Not yet, not yet", till you hit the western reaches of Salt Lake City. Then let him drive. Ther's nothing for him to hit for hundreds of miles.

 

I suggest... planning the trip around something important like the Lewis and Clark Expedition Trail. Do the reading, do the road, do the photographing of whatever comes your way. Born to Shoot Wild....

 

 

Have a great trip,

 

tim (almost in Santa Cruz)

[sam_crater]

I'd think about Montana and Glacier National Park. The Going-to-the-Sun over the devide in the park road sticks in my memory as particularly stunning and the whole state is pretty magnificent (and a little less populated than my part of the rockies here in Colorado.)

[sam_crater]

Er, that should be "The Going-to-the-Sun Road over the devide in the park" for those that had trouble parsing the previous post.

[tim obrien]

Nah, forego the "Going to the Sun Road", wait till you get to the condensed version, Yosemite.

 

In either case, you are bringing an 8x10 aren't you? Oh wait, I see, 4x5)... Bring lots of film.

 

tim (outside (way outside) Yosemite))

[del_gray]

I've had the opportunity to travel across the country like this several times. In my experience themost rewarding way to do it was to drive the interstates after all, but then spend more time in a few destinations. If this is a first trip, driving the interstate will be just as new and eye-opening as the back roads, but you will also have the chance to REALLY see a few places by spending 5-6 days there. When you are stopped there, THAT is the time to take back roads, meet people, see sights, not feel constrained by schedules and pressures..., and then after a few days you pick up and drive 500 miles the next day to the next place and do it again. For experiencing people and culture, you can stop almost anywhere you wish and find stimulating slices of Americana. Because of this, I'd recommend stopping at places with phenomenal natural beauty. It's hard NOT to pick Glacier, Yellowstone, and Yosemite on your particular journey. Having said that, however, National Parks create their own culture and economy in the cities around them that is dependent on the Park itself, and therefore become somewhat artificial in a sense. I'd still go to National Parks, but find some exceptional State Parks or other lesser known gems as well. I lived in Chicago and MN for a long time, and my first trip to the Western US was so magical that I drove back every year for years as a frustrated mountain lover. 5 years ago I finally moved here. Have an awesome trip.

[brooks short]

Michael,

 

Going to look for America ? Excellent !

 

Usually I do those kind of road trips on my motorcycle. But I suppose it can be done in a car. #8^)

 

I'd definately drive the "Blue Highways" hitting small towns and avoiding the interstate at all cost. At least until the drive home. Eat only in local non-chain restaurants and stay in small mom and pop motels.

 

If you're looking for spectacular scenery, try the following:

 

Zion NP....Yosemite with Red Rocks....Beautiful !

 

Bryce NP....amazing !

 

Death Valley...nothing like it

 

Valley of Fire between Las Vegas and Zion

 

Canyon de Chelley. Canyon de Chelly is the center of the Navajo universe. If you have a 4-wheel drive vehicle, hire an Indian guide to take you into the canyon. Otherwise, you can drive the rim roads and look down into the canyon.

 

Monument Valley, just north of Canyon de Chelly

 

The Grand Canyon North Rim preferred for less people and better light facing south. I wouldn't spend a lot of time there with these other places available but that first view into the Grand Canyon will take your breath away.

 

White Sands NM watch out for missiles on the test range ! Beautiful sand dunes but always windy

 

Gila Cliff Dwellings in New Mexico

 

Big Bend NP...fewest visitors of any NP

 

Point Lobos, Monterey, Muir Woods and Big Sur in California

 

Contrabando Canyon on the River Road just west of Big Bend NP is an old abandoned (until the next film) movie set. Lonesome Dove, Clint Eastwood have all filmed there. It's a small village of maybe 8 buildings right on the Rio Grande. Interestingly the adobe buildings are painted muted tans, whites and pinks ranging from dark to light in exactly 5 stops. The better to fit on film.

 

Carmens Mexican restaurant in Marfa, west Texas 50 miles north of Big Bend

 

The eastern wall of the Sierra Nevadas near Lone Pine and the Alabama Hills nearby.

 

If you're shooting 4x5 and can find an emulsion you like in Ready Loads don't even think about taking film holders. Too much dust.

 

These places should keep you occupied for several months so you might have to pick and choose.

 

After this trip, in five years or so when your son is older, I'd suggest doing the same trip on motorcycles. Traveling by motorcycle immerses you in the scenery you're moving through. You can smell the fields, feel the change of temperature moving from sun to shade, and see the road rush by just inches below your feet. For me, travel by motorcycle is truly experiencing the landscape rather than just watching it go by in the frame of your car windshield. Of course sometimes it rains. #8^)

 

So many roads, so little time !

 

Have a blast !

[gary_meader]

Michael- Not long ago, I drove from Detroit to the Seattle area.

Our idea was to stay off the freeways at all costs, and to take our

time. We didn't plan anything. Had a map, but only used it to

choose between 2 roads. This country is gorgeous. The NP's

are spectacular, but crowded. And you've probably already seen

them, albeit vicariously. I'd just take a good state hiway and keep

my eyes open. See how many local pie eating contests you can

come across. Let them know you're from out of town- they'll feed

you like one of their own! America is in the details. Have a

great, safe trip, and know that I envy you.

[tom_hieb]

Between central Minnesota and Santa Cruz CA is a huge chunk of real estate - and you only have a little over three weeks to see it! Here is what I would do.

 

Divide the trip into different regions, such as great plains, mountains, deserts, and the west coast. Within each region choose an area to visit that is as close to pristine as possible (probably a national park) and an area to visit that is more developed. While in the pristine areas concentrate on developing an understanding of the natural environment. While in the more developed areas, concentrate on visiting historical sites and understanding how the area developed given the constraints imposed by history and the environment. For example, you could choose to visit any number of national parks to define the mountain environment (Yellowstone, Glacier, Grand Tetons...) and you might want to choose a historical mining center, such as Butte, Montana, to try an understand some of the why and how the mountain environment was developed. I am suggesting this because you specifically said that you wanted the trip to foster an understanding of the development of the US.

 

I also like the suggestion that you concentrate on a few areas in more depth and not try to see as much as you can from the windshield. Also, remember that planning the route with your son can be half the fun.

 

The trip sounds like great fun. Bring plenty of film and digital storage media!

[brooks short]

Michael,

 

Forgot one thing.........You might want to checkout some of the routing and mapping software that's now available. There's Street Atlas and Topo from Delorme. Both allow routing with Street Atlas being easier to use. An older verion 9.0 of Street Atlas has a much better interface than Topo or Street Atlas 2003. Look for 9.90 on E-Bay if you can't find it in CompUSA or Best Buy etc.

 

And Microsoft makes a software called Streets and Trips. Any of these softwares have reasonably up-to-date street level detail covering the entire USA. You can route by the fastest (Interstate) shortest distance ( a mix of small roads and interstates) and a preferred routing which allows you to exclude certain types of roads and favor other smaller or larger roads.

 

A GPS with map display and downloadable street level detail is a lot of fun too. You can buy a Garmin BW Street Pilot new for about $369 or refurbished for less than $200. Check out www.garmin.com and www.tvnav.com for features and prices.

 

A good radar detector is invaluable near small towns which derive most of their income from traffic and speeding fines. We have a ton of these little towns here in Florida. Once riding west from the Mississippi river along the southern part of Arkansas I passed 5 towns in 100 miles, each of which had a radar trap. If you want the best radar detector available, go to www.valentineone.com. $399 for the detector and it could pay for itself many times over on your trip. It's not so much about speeding and safety, it's about revenue enhancement for these small towns, most of which have radar guns supplied by.........wait for it......GEICO insurance !!!!

[ralph_barker]

With the limited amount of time you have, I'd concur with the suggestion to use the Interstates to get quickly from one area of interest to another. There are several segments where you'll have miles and miles of nothing but miles and miles. Back-road speeds can make that a huge waste of time.

 

I'd also suggest that you consider two routes - perhaps southerly for the trip out, and northerly for the return leg.

 

The suggestions you've already received for specific areas and sights is excellent, so I won't confuse things further.

[jnanian]

if you are traveling in/near south dakota -

 

see if you can record some of the abandoned homesteads on the prarie near/off of

interstate 90. you can also drive to an empty rail yard and co-op grain silo that looks

like a flying butressed cathederal (the size of a skyscraper). you will see it glistens

ahead of you in the summer sun. don't miss the pioneer auto village in murdo south

dakota. you'll get to see elvis' pink harley under glass and for a quarter, it'll play

some of E's best music :)

[tom_percival]

Hey Michael,

 

 

To give you a regional route if you would like. If you are going to end up driving along I-80 which would go from Salt Lake all the way to San Francisco if you wanted. Try making a left turn at Reno,NV on US highway 395. This will take you south to Mono Lake through some beautiful country. The eastern side of the Sierras is spectacular.

 

 

When you get to Lee Vining on the shores of Mono Lake, take highway 120 (Tioga Pass Rd) up and over the hill and into Yosemite. If you have time before you have to drive over the Sierras, drive a little further south on 395 to June Lake Loop which I have heard is pretty nice. Once through Yosemite, take highway 140 through Merced and across the San Juaquin Valley to I-5 then go south to highway 152 and over Pacheco Pass to High way 101 just south of Silicon Valley. You can either go north up into San Jose and take Highway 17 directly into Santa Cruz (avoid doing this at anytime close to rush hour) or stay on 152 which would take you to Highway 1, half way between Santa Cruz and Monterey. You're there! Have a great trip no matter which way you go!

 

 

Tom

[kevin_kolosky]

Michael

 

Hello from a fellow Minnesotan.

 

You have received many good answers.

 

I will just add that you cannot go wrong heading to Custer Battlefield in Montana, and then going over to Cody Wyoming to see the Museum (5 museums in one actually. I have been there 5 times and never get tired of that place.) From Cody its just 50 miles to Yellowstone, and of course you then drive south and hit the Tetons.

From there you can get a little class (and choose to spend a lot of money if you wish) in Jackson Hole. Along the way you will encounter beautiful beautiful scenery. The museum will amaze your son, and you too perhaps. You will feel a sense of eerieness as you graze across the Little Bighorn (called the Greasy Grass by the Tribes that were there when Custer went down.

 

Good luck.

 

Kevin

[Troll]

I made such a trip when I was 15. My advice: keep moving. All that teriffic scenery that you will marvel at and want to photograph will quickly get incredibly boring to a 15 year old (even a mature one). I agree, stay off the Interstate highways on your way out, and just don't let grass grow under your tripod. Oh yeah, and have a wonderful time -- I did!

[jim_galli4]

In September of 2001 my youngest daughter was beginning her college experience in the big city of Reno NV. But her trusty '91 Geo had died so she was on foot. I scored a '96 Geo on Ebay but it was in Southern Minnesota. So I flew in to Minneapolis and met the seller and drove that little thing exactly where you're proposing except home is in Tonopah Nevada which is just due east of Yosemite by Tioga Pass. I took my back-pack 4X5 "kit" and had the most marvelous time driving every bit on back roads. Never an interstate. Well hardly ever. I have great pix from badlands and tiny roadside hamlets and used-to-be places. It was the perfect road trip. I got in to Reno at about 1:00 AM on 9-11-2001 and woke up the next morning to a changed world. And yes I have the Grain Silo picture somewhere along the UP in eastern Wyoming. And a little crossroads gas station and pump in Utah that has been in a time warp for 55 years. My kind of stuff. You may as well come right on through Tonopah on your way to Yosemite. We can have a Margarita at El Marques. Great Mexican food.

[saulius_eidukas]

Ignore the other poster who said to forgo the Going to the Sun Road. This road is one of the most spectacular I've ever been on... and I've driven in most every state in the lower 48. If you are anywhere near Montana Glacier Natl Park it is a must see. If you time it right with weather conditions and lighting just driving this road with its numerous pullouts offers many wonderful photo opportunities for the landscape photographer. And if you want to avoid crowds, this is really a hikers' park over 730 miles! Just park the car and hit a trail for a few hours. You will leave the crowds behind (most people don't wander far from the roads)and have a great experience. Here is one trip I took years ago going from the midwest, Sout Dakota- Badlands Natl Park, Black Hills N.F. (Needles Highway), Bighorn NF in Wyoming, Grand Tetons N.P., I skipped Yellowstone but vowed to go back one day, to Glacier Park in MT. If you go into North Dakota I recommend Theordore Roosevelt N.P. If you wish to see some of the western coastal areas I am most partial to the entire Oregon Coast. I think it has some of the best coastal scenery and the entire coast is public land, accessible by many many state parks and lands. Have fun and most importantly whatever itinerary you make be flexible and go with the moment.

One last place, I really like out east is the Smokey Mountains N.P., fall is a most spectacular time of year.

[randall_thomasson]

go out on the old pier and have lunch.

It was one of my favorite fishing spots (I live in Washington now), especially down in the 'square holes' on the end of the pier where all the touristos look to see the seals!

Most likely the weather will be great.

Have a great trip and I envy you. =^)

[steve_singleton3]

Congratulations on your trip. When my son was 12, he and I traveled in the southwest for two weeks. It was the best thing I've ever done as a father. Want ice cream for breakfast? Hey, why not! I agree with the poster who pointed out that your son may be bored while you're hauling out the photo equipment. On my trip, this problem was solved because my son was young enough not to require a fishing license. We camped where he could fish and I could photograph. Whatever your answer may be, I'd give some thought to it. My advice is to take minimal camping gear so you'll have the flexibility of stopping where there might not be a convenient motel. Granted, there are long stretches of country with not much to see, but I too would probably stay with the backroads most of the time. Having to slow down to go through little towns in the west helps break the monotony and opens the possibility of surprise, which you certainly won't find on the interstate.

[Troll]

Just another word. Please post a summary after you get back, so we can enjoy your experience vicariously.