Looking out the tiny window of a Boeing 747 is a great way to ‘get there’ if you’re just going to visit the parents in Sacramento or you’re on a business trip to Atlanta. However, peering down into the gorgeous orange deserts of Arizona from 40,000 feet doesn’t even do justice to the awe-inspiring landscape scooting under you through the clouds.
From the Outer Banks to the Pacific Coast and into the majestic Alaskan wilderness–it just doesn’t get more historically American than doing it on a road trip. Following in the footsteps of the American legends who have tread the breadth of the North American continent before us should certainly be an item on ye olde bucket list.
So here are 5 trips that should whet your taste for the open road –and unlike Forrest Gump, you don’t have to do it all on foot. Pack the Station Wagon at your leisure.
#1: The Outer Banks on Highway 12 – Wild Horses and Sandy Shores
Compared to most road trips, this one’s a shorty, which makes it a great place to start (provided you live near the east coast). If you love the ocean and the feeling of driving through heaven, then I’d recommend travelling down Highway 12 in North Carolina.
Stretching over 114 miles, this road trip offers the ability to do it in a single day –while also taking time to see the iconic sights along the way. You’ll be able to see wild horses, lighthouses, and of course, the dazzling Atlantic. The drive begins in Corolla, passes through Kitty Hawk (where the Wright Brothers tested the first airplane) and ends with a ferry ride to Orcacoke Village.
#2: The Blue Ridge Parkway – “America’s Favorite Drive”
There aren’t many ways to experience the vast beauty of Appalachia (by car) the way you can on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It’s a 469-mile stretch of some of the most gorgeous country, winding its way through stone-lined tunnels, ancient fenced farms, towering mountains, forest-clad hills and centuries of North American history. It begins in Great Smokey Mountains National Park in Tennessee and goes to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.
However, if you want the trip to be breathtakingly unforgettable, be sure to do it in the fall. That part of Appalachia is mostly deciduous –meaning autumn lights the mountains ablaze with color.
#3: Route 66 – The Road of American Legend
If there was one road that could be considered the most American, Route 66 would be it–running through U.S. legend like a main artery.
This could be considered the trip of a lifetime. Beginning in Chicago, IL and ending in Los Angeles, CA, there are 2,448 miles of an American caricature just waiting for your wanderlusting, lead foot.
It’s also known as “The Mother Road”, and was commissioned in 1926. Since then, the road’s been changed into sections of interstate: I-10, I-15, I-40, I-44 and I-55 where its eastern-most starting point begins. Be sure to visit the Sears Tower (since you’ll be in Chicago), Devil’s Elbow (in the Ozarks), Big Texan (Amarillo), The Painted Desert (Arizona), Winslow—make sure to listen to The Eagles while driving through such a fine sight to see!—The World’s First McDonald’s (San Bernardino, CA) and Pasadena Freeway (Welcome to LA). Ladies and gentlemen, that list is by no means exhaustive!
#4: The Pacific Coast Highway – The “1” and Only
And so, we’ve come to the other shining sea with another shorty: Route 1 –The Pacific Coast Highway. This drive is only 123 miles, and while OBX was flat and easy, this one takes your car through gorgeous ups and downs, around curves and along mountains that dive into the sea. (Though, it is recommended you not take a giant RV on this trip, as it can get a bit lively.)
Beginning in Monterey, CA, Route 1 winds through the iconic Carmel art colony, breathtaking Big Sur, an 80-foot-high Bixby Bridge, oak and redwood forests and Morro Bay.
#5: Seward Highway – To the Heart of the Alaskan Frontier
This is definitely one for the books. While it’s only 127 miles, just getting there is going to be its own challenge. There is a ferry that can get you from Washington to Juneau, but it’s still a 21-hour drive to Anchorage, which is where our road trip ‘begins’. The other route will take several days and thousands of miles with your hammer down through much of the Yukon.
So, just a quick word of advice: you might not actually want to drive this one. Perhaps, a flight to Anchorage is worth it…
While driving’s entirely doable, the area is so remote that wildlife is in major abundance with unruly amounts of urges to break out the camera. Not to mention, you’ll be sojourning through a land of glaciers, ancient forests, lofty rock cliffs, etc. In my humble opinion, you might just want to grab a ride to the bay, and a Seward to Anchorage bus ticket back. I wouldn’t get a round-tripper, simply because you might not know how long you’ll want to stay. Paradise can be difficult to leave!
So, if your wanderlust is in it for the long haul, then let me clue you in: you will see, perhaps, one of the most beautiful stretches of land on this hemisphere, and the reward will be well worth the journey. The Seward Highway will take you through Chugach National Forest, the Alaska Museum of Natural History and the Indian Valley Mine –eventually bringing you to Seward, AK, up against crystal blue Resurrection Bay.
Also, while travel during the summer is certainly the easiest –you are far more likely to see the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) during the times of year the sun actually sets , which would be during the late fall and early spring (doing this during the winter IS NOT recommended: 50-below temps have a way of dampening the fun.)
Somewhere Else: It’s the Best Place to Be
Now is the time to follow those urges to see white lines on blacktop, feel the wind through your hair, see the sights, follow the American legends and find yourself on the outer fringes of heaven.
It all begins by sinking that first pin into the map…
Photos: Randy Heinitz | Jeremy Taylor | Matthew Paulson | Chuck Coker | Fred Moore | littlebigsis on Flickr
