As the planning for Sprung from Cages gets more and more involved, I’m looking closely into the specific route I’ll be traveling.

The third day will find me in Nevada on US 50. I took this exact route on Scoot 66. You can read about that here. It quickly became one of my favorite roads in America. Like last time, I’ll be stopping for the night in Ely, Nevada, an old mining town that is apparently pronounced like “freely.”

In 2008, I left Ely and took US 50 through the western portion of Utah. You can read about that day here. Along US 50, after crossing the border into Utah, I rode past a sign reading: OLD HWY 6 & 50. It indicated that this old segment of road was 16 miles north of the newer segment that I was on.

After a bit of research I discovered that there’s a 100 mile stretch of old road from the Utah border to the town of Delta. I hoped that one day I could do it.

That day is coming.

When I first planned out this area of the trip for Spring of 2010, I decided to give Old Hwy 6 & 50 a shot. But 100 miles is a long, long distance to travel on an old segment in the middle of the desert. There are no services for those 100 miles. Not only that, there are no houses – no signs of human existence for at least 80 or 90 of those 100 miles. There’s no cell coverage and, being 5000 feet up in the spring, the weather is fairly unpredictable.

Mostly, it’s a flat, straight road through the desert, passing through the Confusion Mountain Range (not exactly comforting).

If I were to break down, I would have to walk as many as 16 miles to modern US 50, which isn’t really all that well traveled (its dubbed “The Loneliest Road in America” for a reason). Even then, there’s no cell coverage or services.

When it comes to traveling across the country on two wheels, very few things scare me. Wind, rain, dust storms, even East St. Louis were all easily survived. For some reason, however, this little abandoned alignment has made me more than a little uneasy.

Prior to this old road being US 6 or 50, it was the Grand Central Highway, a local “shortcut” and preferred route to the Lincoln Highway, which was through the salt flats. It was also part of the National Roosevelt Midland Trail from Washington DC to LA. The Midland Trail is perhaps the oldest cross-country route, first signed in 1913. This specific segment wasn’t used until 1922.

Modern US 50 through this part of Utah wasn’t even paved until 1952. The old alignment, upon which I’ll be traveling, has never been paved. A 1950s newspaper described it as “nothing but a wagon trail-rutted, filled with dust…one of the worst chunks of federal [sic] road in the country.”

My concern was simple – ok, it was not much more than a wagon trail in 1950, but what has happened to it since then? I figured that it was never paved, but was it ever graded? Is it dirt? Gravel? Satellite images give some detail, but it’s hard to tell. I could find no pictures of the road – hardly a mention.

I decided to write to the Millard County Road Department about my trip and ask what the current road conditions might be.

The department secretary replies: This road is all gravel. It is graded and in good shape at this point. It has some traffic on it depending on the day. Heavy rains can cause wash outs. Vehicles do not need to be 4 wheel drive but do need to have some clearance. It is a good gravel off road. Always be prepared. Good tires and water are always recommended. Have a good trip.

This was great news! I’ve been on some crappy roads before – washed out, muddy, rocky, sandy – the Vespa does surprisingly well. I’ve been nearly stuck in a few spots, but have always been able to pull through. The light weight of the scooter makes it easy to pull out of the mud and lift over rocks if need be. I’ve gone places where a normal SUV couldn’t go. That’s pretty cool.

So while the road conditions seems pretty ok, the desolation still frightens me. It’s true, breaking down on a tenting road trip across the country isn’t that huge of a deal. I have a good tent, a sleeping bag, food, water and all that I’d need for a hike to the main road.

I don’t figure that there will be any problems. Still, it’s good to know what I’m up against and to be prepared. I’m both and I can’t wait to tackle this 100 mile stretch of desert!

As is well known, I’m taking the Vespa to Miami and back in late May. Much planning has gone into this already and I know I’ve talked about it quite a bit before. However, I’m to the point where I’m getting pretty specific about which roads I’ll be taking. Here’s a little day by day break down (links go to GoogleMaps).

To Miami…

Day One – Seattle to Crooked River, OR – WA 507, Old US 99, WA 14, US 197, US 97
Day Two – Crooked River, OR to near Reno, NV – OR 31, US 395, NV 447,
Day Three – Reno, NV to Ely, NV – NV 341, US 50, NV 722
Day Four – Ely, NV to Moab, UT – Old US 6 & 50, US 50, UT 128
Day Five – Moab, UT to Taos, NM – US 191, US 64
Day Six – Taos, NM to Amarillo, TX – US 64, NM 72, NM 456, OK 325, US 385
Day Seven – Amarillo, TX to Ardmore, OK – TX 207, TX 86, US 287, US 70
Day Eight – Ardmore, OK to Anacoco, LA – US 377, US 82, US 71, US 171
Day Nine – Anacoco, LA to Mobile, AL – US 171, LA 10, US 190, US 90
Day Ten – Mobile, AL to Gainsville, FL – US 90, US 98, US 27
Day Eleven – Gainsville, FL to Miami, FL – US 27, US 17, FL 31, US 41

To Seattle…
Day One – Miami, FL to Callahan, FL – FL A1A, FL 20, US 1
Day Two – Callahan, FL to Murphy, NC – US 1, GA 17, GA 43, SC 81, US 76, US 64
Day Three – Murphy, NC to Paducah, KY – NC 294, TN 68, US 70, TN 56, TN 52, US 68
Day Four – Paducah, KY to Springfield, MO – US 60
Day Five – Springfield, MO to Dodge City, KS – Old US 66, US 400
Day Six – Dodge City to Sidney, NE – US 400, US 385
Day Seven – Sidney, NE to Riverton, WY – US 26, US 20
Day Eight – Riverton, WY to White Sulphur Springs, MT – US 20, WY 296, US 212, US 89
Day Nine – White Sulphur Springs, MT to Clarkston, WA – US 12
Day Ten – Clarkston, WA to Seattle! – US 195, US 2

That's the route. More to come on the planning, etc.

Any further tips or advice is always appreciated.

Every roadie (is that what we’re called?) has planned countless road trips. Most normal people (tourists, I guess) start with a destination and then find the quickest way to get there – interstates or flying. Those who are in it for the journey (roadies?) start with a road or maybe a general location (like the southwest or New England) and then think of a way to get there and back.

I fall into the latter category. There have been very few road trips that I’ve planned that are focused upon a singular point where I need to be. There have been even fewer that have me getting to that point as quickly as possible in order to “vacation” there. For me, the “vacation” is the journey.

This trip to Miami for Michael’s graduation is sort of an anomaly for me. It focuses upon a destination where I’ll be for a few days. That destination is the reason for the trip. This hardly ever happens.

Most people would hop on a plane, fly to Miami, hang out for a few days and then fly back. I don’t think that’s possible for me. For one, I basically don’t fly. I have flown before – twice. Once when I was in 4th grade and once in 2007. The only thing I remember for the 4th grade flight was finding a comedy radio station on the plane that was playing Bob Newhart. I was a weird kid. I, however, remember everything about the 2007 flight. The panic, the white knuckles, the intense claustrophobia and dizzying acrophobia are all very fresh in my mind.

So basically, flying is right out.

And that’s ok with me because I get to cross the country yet again! I’ve done so on the ground in 2004, 2006 and 2008.

Planning this trip is a bit different since I have a destination and time when I need to be there. It’s also a bit different because I have a job that probably doesn’t want me to be going at all. Actually, I’m not even sure if they’re “allowing” me to go – but that’s a whole other story.

I’d usually find a road (like Route 66 or US 2), research it and then plot out my routing. But since there aren’t any specific roads leading from Seattle to Miami, I’ve had to improvise. I’ve left myself enough time to see some site, but this time it’s mostly about the ride.

My tools are GoogleMaps and a Rand McNally Road Atlas. That’s it. A lot of people use Delorme computer software and GPS tracking, but I’m fairly old school. The Road Atlas is my main tool and often the final decisions are based upon that. GoogleMaps is nice for a rough overview as well as very specific details.

I look for scenic roads and small towns. The atlas is great for that and GoogleMaps’s Street View feature works well too. Since I’m not generally following a specific historical route, I’m freed up to follow whichever road I please (which often reverts to the most historical route around – it’s what I do).

I started with two premises. The first was that I wanted to take roads that I had never been on before, as much as possible, anyway. The second was that I wanted to take US 50 through Nevada and a bit of Route 66 somewhere. I also wanted to hit as many states that I’ve never ridden in before as I possibly could. That was secondary, but it still played a role in the planning.

Mostly, I feel that I met all of the premises. Almost all of the routes are new to me and I did manage to hit a few old favorites. I got 27 or so states in too, including 10 or 11 that I’ve never ridden in before. Not bad for just throwing it together.

Of course, there’s more to a road trip than which roads I’ll be riding on. There’s the logistics of money, food, lodging, repairs and generally being prepared for any one of a million things that could go wrong. I was amazingly lucky on Scoot 66. I’m hoping that luck will be with me on this trip as well.

After spending a few days visiting Michael in Miami, I’ll have to head back to Seattle. The trip back is generally a bit north of the trip there. At no point does it cross or join up with the eastern trip. However, there are a handful of segments and even a campground that I’ve visited before. I’ve got some really new roads as well as some old alignments.

So if you’re really interested in this kind of stuff, check out my rough draft of the day-by-day routing. You can click on any of the tiny maps to make them bigger. Enjoy!

The first day back on the road after visiting Michael should be a pretty easy, but slow-going experience. I’m planning on ride up Florida Route A1A, along the Atlantic coast from Miami to just north of St. Augustine. This will take me through Ft Lauderdale, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, around Cape Canaveral through Daytona Beach, just east of Jacksonville to Fernandina Beach. There, I’ll head inland, still sticking with A1A, to the town of Callahan, my home for the night. This is a distance of over 400 miles. According to Googlemaps, it should take me nearly 12 hours. It’s a very long first day back, but I should be ok. Leave at six, arrive at six. Hopefully.

While the first day is pretty simple, the second day gives me tons of chances to get lost. I’ll head up US Route 1 from Callahan, crossing the squiggly Georgia border, to nearish Augusta. US 1 heads northeast and I’ll head northwest on state roads 17 and then 43, crossing into South Carolina on US 378. The smaller Carolina chucks a bunch of state routes at me as I cross over the Appalachian foothills – 28, 81, 412, 187, 24 to US 76 through Sumpter National Forest and back into a sliver of Georgia. I’ll jump up to US 64 in North Carolina, ending my day near Murphy, which kind of seems to be in the middle of nowhere. 428 miles of confusion and woods.

The third day is when I’ll fully make it over the Appalachians. Continuing on US 64 for a little and then on NC Route 24 into Tennessee where it connects with TN Route 68. This seems to be a long, uneventful, but scenic little road. Most of it seems to be a wide two-lane over gently rolling hills. There are some wide open spaces and some tightish curves, but mostly it seems like a lovely ride. This will take me to Crossville on I-40. I’ll skip the interstate in favor of US 70 to State Route 56, 262 to 52. I’ll slide into Kentucky on US 31W to US 68 which will eventually land me in Paducah. 418 miles for this day!

I don’t get days off on this trip, but the forth day is almost like one. It’s about 100 miles less than most days. I did this for a day “off” and to allow me some fun at the end of the day. Day Four is almost totally 100% on US 60. From Paducah, Kentucky, I’ll cross into about three feet of Illinois and then into Missouri. Here is the flat, southern midwest. A lot of US 60 seems to be four lanes with an original alignment not too far away. I’ll probably stick to the original two-lane alignments for reasons on sanity. There’s a lot of Old Highway 60 out there through Missouri. These roads will take me through the bubbly Ozarks to the wide plains and finally into Springfield. Here, I’ll have the time to explore the city again and visit Wilson’s Creek Civil War Battlefield again. I had a great time there in 2008, so why not? I’ll be staying at the same campground where I stayed in 2006 and 2008. That might seem a little redundant, but it’s a nice place close to the battlefield, close to some busy railroad tracks and close to Route 66. Civil War, Trains and Highways.

This is a Route 66 day. The fifth day was purposely routed to include the Mother Road from Springfield, Missouri to Galina, Kansas. This 30 or so mile segment is a really nice one. It includes a few old bridges, some lovely old alignment choices and Red Oak 2. I’ll leave 66 at Galina, taking the weirdly-named US Route 400, which is a new US Route created in 1994. This runs through southern Kansas, including Wichita. I’ll get to ride through Greensburg, a town that was completely destroyed by a tornado in 2007. It’s being rebuilt in some really neat ways. I can’t wait to see this town. I’ll stop for the night, just down the road, at Dodge City.

Day six starts out on US Route 50, which joins with US 400 for a bit just past the Colorado border where I’ll pick up US 385 North. I’ll leave US 50, cross US 40, I-70, US 6, I-76 and finally I-80 after crossing into Nebraska to US Route 30. It’s neat to be crossing so many roads that would take me back to Pennsylvania. There are few small towns and not much of known-interest to see on this day. Who knows though, maybe I’ll stumble onto something amazing. I’ll stop around Sidney, Nebraska for the night, 394 miles.

After a week on the road, day seven is a long day. From Sidney, I’ll stick to US Route 385 north to Alliance, Nebraska, home of Carhenge – my third visit. To save time and miles, I’ll hop on a short cut, Nebraska Route 2, to US 20 near Fort Robinson State Park. I went through this area with Smartz in 2008. There was an old alignment of 20 that I missed and I really hope I don’t forget about it until then. I’ll take 20 into Wyoming via an old alignment of the Yellowstone Highway (not the Yellowstone Trail) into Douglas – where there’s a great(and free!) Railroad Museum. After Douglas, I could hop on the interstate, but there’s more Yellowstone Highway – I just have to find it. I’ll take that to Shoshoni and then US 26 to Riverton. 429 miles on this day.

Because of having to find a good camping spot, I’ll have to backtrack to Shoshoni, picking up the old Yellowstone Highway (roughly US 20) to Cody, Wyoming. I’ll now get the chance to ride the Chief Joseph Highway, a well-known motorcycle route. This picks up US 212, slips into and then out of Montana. Back in Wyoming, I’ll ride to Mammoth and catch the spur of the Yellowstone Trail (note: not Highway) north into Montana. I’ll have to do some more research about this. It’ll take me to Livingston where I’ll stick to US 89 north to US 12 and White Sulphur Springs, 435 miles from where I broke camp that morning.

The ninth day is all about US 12. I have a feeling that this will be a chilly ride. The views, however, will be nothing but spectacular. A bunch of small towns like Winston, Avon, Bonner and Lolo break up the scenery between Helena and Missoula. I’ll cross into Idaho, my 27th and last state, through Clearwater National Forest and wiggle my way northwest to Lewiston. I’ll almost be in Washinton. 414 miles on this day, thank you.

This, the last day of the trip, takes me clear across the great state of Washington. First, however, I’ll ride up the Spiral Highway, just north of Lewiston. US 195 will usher me into the Evergreen State. Route 26 will do much of the work through eastern Washington, but I’ll hop off of that for Route 28 to Wenatchee and US Route 2. I’ve taken US 2 about a billion times, but the only other option is the interstate and I’d rather not. I’ll cross the Cascades and be back home!

It’ll be about 4,000 miles back.

I’m in full-on trip planning mode for this (so far) unnamed trip. A couple of days ago, I showed you a rough map of the whole trip. This post will focus on the day-to-day routing. None of these routes are set in stone – that doesn’t really happen until I’m on the road. However, this is what I’m planning on thus far.

You can click on each of these maps to make them bigger. My dad will probably want to get the atlas and check out the route I’ll be taking. This post is probably a bit dry for some. That’s ok. I understand.

The first day of the trip will start off fairly uneventful. I hope to beat the morning commuter traffic, but that’s always nearly impossible. I’ll head south, mostly on WA 99, 7 and 507. Farther south, I’ll be along side I-5 on some unnumbered roads like Green Mountain Road and Cloverdale Road. Most of these roads are Old US 99. Maybe with a bit more studying, I’ll be able to take Old 99 the whole way to near Portland. I’ll not be going into Portland – I’m trying to avoid cities so as to save time. Once at the border, I’ll take WA Route 14 up the Columbia River, crossing into Oregon at Smithville on US 197, which will take me to its parent, US 97. This takes me to my first stop, near Redmond, Oregon, a distance of roughly 367 miles.

Day two continues on US 97 through Oregon’s scrubby pine forests. Maybe not the most scenic bits of the state, but still nice. I’ll leave the US Route at Altamont, taking OR Route 39 to California Route 139. My original idea didn’t include much, if any, of California, but I’ve decided to keep heading south through the Golden State. Most of this day will take place in pine forests. These will give way to high desert as I cross the border into Reno, Nevada. If time allows, I’ll revisit Donner Pass, a short distance from Reno. 415 miles!

Though I’m doing my best to avoid roads I’ve traveled upon before, I’ve decided to retrace my tracks through Nevada, mostly sticking to US 50 – The Loneliest Road in America. The third day does just that. Here’s the post from the last time I went through there. The difference will be that I’ll be starting in Reno rather than Carson City. Also, the dirt road segment will be avoided. I’ll hop on 50 and then Old, old 50 (NV Route 722 – one of the most beautiful roads I’ve ever seen). Like 2008, I’ll end up in Ely for the night. This is a short, 330 mile day.

The fourth day offers my wide open high desert and, for the first half of the day, more roads I’ve already been on. There is a small chance that I can take the 100 mile stretch of old US 50/6 to Delta, Utah. I don’t know the road conditions and will have to research it. I’d get all dramatic and say “this might be my last chance to do it!” but we all know that’s not true. At Delta, US 6 heads more northerly and US 50 is more westerly. I took US 6 last time. I’ll take US 50 this time, ending up on Interstate 70 (yuck). Awhile back, I got obsessed by an obelisk on the Utah-Colorado state line. It’s about 30 miles out of my way. If I have time, I’m checking it out. Why? Who knows. After 416 miles, I’ll end up near Arches National in Moab, UT.

As far as I can tell, the fifth day doesn’t have any roads that I’ve been on before in Utah. I’ve been around much of Utah, so this is pretty surprising. US 191 will be my main road south from Moab to the Arizona border. In Arizona, I’ll meet up with US 160, which I was on with Smartz in 2008. This will be just a 20 miles segment. We took it to Four Corners, but I’ll be heading southish on US 64 into New Mexico. Here, it’s tempting to drop down to Albuquerque and Route 66. Instead, I’ll still to US 64, far to the north, hugging the foothills of the Rockies to Taos, New Mexico. 416 miles.

Day six is all about wide open spaces. Continuing with US 64, heading east, I’ll leave the foothills for the grasslands into the strange borderlands of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and Colorado. While it’s not the Four Corners, but it’s a really interesting geographical field trip. I’ll definitely be hitting the NM/OK/TX corner and maybe even the CO/OK/KS corner (if there’s time). Though I’m trying to avoid them, I’ll have to take the 4-land US Route 287 to Amarillo, Texas, my stop for the night. It’s a shorter mileage day (340mi), so hopefully I’ll have some time to check out the Route 66 locations to the west of the city. Amarillo is a big rail hub too, so hopefully I’ll see some trains.

Though it’ll be tempting to take Route 66 to Oklahoma, I’ll head southeast on US 287, hitting Texas Route 207 South across very wide open plains. I’ll hang a left on Route 256, around canyon country to the hometown of Bob Wills (Turkey, Texas). This is all a pleasant diversion, as I’ll be reconnecting with Route 287 for a short bit. US 70 will take me into a bit of Oklahoma. I’ll stop in Ardmore, near Lake Murray, for the night. 350 miles this day!

Day eight is another day that I set up to mirror a route I once took. In 2004, Nikki, Ashley and I took US 82 from Texarkana to west of Paris, Texas. I’ll be doing it in reverse after taking US 377 South to meet it. For some reason, this road really tickled me. I remember it fondly. Here’s an old, old post about it. Texarkana is sort of creepy town – almost like Youngstown, Ohio. I’ll also be revisiting Fouke, Arkansas, home of the Boggy Creek Creature. US 71 will take me south to Shreveport, Louisiana. After roughly 400 miles, I’ll meet up with US 171, stopping in Anacoco for the night.

I don’t really remember much about the routing of the 2004 trip. It’s possible that Day Nine will mirror a bit of that. Louisiana Route 10 will wind me through some very pleasant and lush farmland to US 190. After skirting Baton Rouge, it’ll be a series of fun little state routes. 37, 64 and 16. Into Mississippi, it’s Route 26 almost the whole way across the state, meeting US 98 into Alabama. This seems to be a 4-lane for part of the way. I’ll be camping somewhere near Mobile – completing a 375 mile day.

US 90 will take me out of Mobile on Day Ten and take me into Florida. I’ll head for the Gulf Coast, taking US 98. There are some alignments closer to the water, so I might take those instead. I’ve never been a huge fan of Florida, but I’m hoping this will be pretty scenic. US 98 will head inland where I’ll take US 27 to Alachua – if I can find a place to crash there. I figure that I should be able to.

Day Eleven, the last day of the trip to Miami somehow manages to avoid interstates. US 441 leaves Alachua, heading south, as a quaint little four-lane. I’ll continue south on US 301, which seems to be a narrow two-lane (my favorite). There’s got to be more scenic ways to do this, but this is what I have so far. I’ll inexplicably be cutting through a swamp in FL Route 471 before US 98 and then US 17. Florida’s Route 31 looks more like Oklahoma than Florida, so that’ll be interesting, I guess. Routes 82 and then 29 will take me to US 41 across the Everglades. This will take me into Miami! 388 miles this day and a total of 4200+ miles for the whole trek!

I have traveled across the country about once every other year since 2004. My next trip will be for thee and a half weeks in May and June 2010.

Michael graduates from high school in early June. Instead of flying (because I pretty well don’t), I’ve decided to ride there and back.

Seattle and Miami are farther away than any other major cities in the US. I’ll take eleven days to get there and ten days to return. The remaining days will be spent in Florida with my parents and Michael.

Like with Scoot 66, there is a lot of planning that must be done. But, thanks to Scoot 66, I’m sort of an old pro at this. I’ll have to reteach myself some stuff, and have learned much from the mistakes of my last trip.

For one, this trip will be at a faster pace. It has to be. I am not in between jobs, but am taking a “leave of absence” from my current job (if it is approved, which I expect it to be). If I could, I’d take two months to do this, but that’s simply not possible this time around.

Because of the faster pace, I’ll have to cover 400+ miles each day. Scoot 66 averaged around 250 miles per day. Now, Scoot 66 was about exploring Route 66 (and other roads). This trip isn’t about that. It’s simply about riding. In that light, 400 miles a day isn’t such a huge big deal.

My plans for the last trip including me camping almost every night. Of course, those plans changed due to weather and my laziness. This trip, due to the desire and need to do it cheaply, I’ll actually have to camp every night. I’m planning on blogging each day, so I’ll have to find campgrounds that have WiFi. That’s pretty easy to do at this point. State Parks, however, are almost always no-go.

The wind from 2008 destroyed my tent, especially the fiberglass poles. I’ll need a new one. My rain gear from the last trip was also torn to shreds. Also, my boots will need to be reshod.

Since last trip, I’ve learned more about the maintenance of the modern Vespa, so I’ll be able to do most of the work myself. The only thing I won’t be able to do on the road is the tire change (there should be just one if I get the right kind of tire and am as lucky as I was in 2008).

Now, what of the routes? While I have a fairly rough idea where I’ll be, I’m still working on them. As a general outline, I’ll first be heading south (so as to avoid the chilly northern air). I’m trying my best to avoid roads that I’ve traveled before – with the exception of US 50 through Nevada. It was tempting to take large chunks of Route 66, but I’d like to see other roads (and honestly, 66 would slow me down because I’d want to see everything).

The route back will take me a bit more northerly, but still not into the northern tier states. I’ll have a better idea of the “exact” route in a few days.

One more thing I’ll need to do is name this trip. Since it’s a very diagonal trip from Seattle to Miami, I’ll probably focus on that. Slanting Across America or something. Who knows. I’ll figure it out.

On Sunday, while everyone was getting pre-drinking for the Super Bowl, Smartz and I checked out the Model Train Show at the Evergreen Fair Grounds in Monroe.

I’m again becoming quite the little railfan, and even though I had a small train layout when I was a kid, I never really got too into model railroading. However, since I like trains, I figured that I’d enjoy myself at the train show.

Turns out, I did.

I took tons of pics, trying to get Smartz’s camera to co-operate with macro-close up shot – only a handful turned out as anything interesting.

Check them out, if you like…

Click here!