I’ve been off line for awhile but, that doesn’t mean I am not having a good time.
Had a couple of hard drive days going from Colorado to Kentucky that were not very interesting or fun but, the rest of the trip is still going great.
As Mahgrit stated, we decided to skip South Dakota and swung south to see more of Colorado. We went over the Rocky Mountain National Park, which had only opened the week before. I was there many, many years ago but could not go over it because it was still closed at the time. The views were simply awesome. Once again, Mahgrit had some trouble with the heights. We were up at 11 to 12 thousand feet in elevation a couple of times. The temperatures vacillated between 47 degrees at altitude and high 70s to low 80s down in the valleys. There was still a lot of snow on the ground and the snow removal equipment was still handy at the top.
After we left there we booked across eastern Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, and part of Indiana on the way to Kentucky. We spent a few fun says with Mahgrit’s old friends. It is interesting, I read somewhere, that real friends may not see each other for years at a time but when they get together it is like no time has passed at all. This was our visit to Mahgrit’s friends. It was like they all got together just the day before. Raise a drink to good friends.
We are now on the backside of our adventure. We followed the bourbon trail south into Tennessee, a great ride with interesting distilleries along the way. Today we went through the Smokie Mountains and began to follow the Blue Ridge Parkway. WOW!!! These mountains are not as high as the Rockies but WOW!!! This is the most winding road I ever drove on. There was not a stretch of road that ran straight for more than a few hundred yards. Curves, after curves followed by switchback after switchback, followed by corkscrew turns and even a complete circle turn ( the road went through a tunnel and then over the top, cool). There were hundreds of motorcycle riders. This is a paradise for them.
There were lots of people at the turnouts but we saw very few as we drove. All in all a great ride. I love driving on roads with little or in some cases no traffic.
We are heading north and trying to figure out how to stretch this trip out as long as possible. But, sigh, it is coming to an end shortly.
Tom and Margaret Donnelly 
Want to extend your travels? Blue RIdge pkwy joins Skyline Drive at Waynesboro. Can do wine tasting at Veritas and Afton vineyards there – both have excellent white wines. Check websites for hours. Close by, we’ve stayed in Staunton, VA, nice old town, reasonable hotels, great brkfast places (Kathy’s). Further up Skyline Dr, Luray caverns on northern end are interesting if you have time. Also recommend continuing up to Harper’s Ferry, (W Virginia/Maryland border), a strategic location during early CIvil war. Nice scenic town to walk thru (or join tour), read signposts about the history (including John Brown’s attempt to capture the US arsenal and start a slave revolt), and picnic by the river.
Hi John and Barb! We were already planning to do the Shenandoah National Park…you just cemented our plans! The dogs make visiting vineyards and caves kind of tough…especially with this warm, humid weather. But thanks for the tips!
Been following your trip all the while and it sounds great, but….after you go through an area they get hit with natural disasters, Col Springs huge fire, Oaklahoma tornados not to mention floods, earthquakes etc that happened right after you were there.. Good thing you didn’t go to Mt. Rushmore cause one of the presidents faces would have colapsed. Still though I wish we could have done the trip also. 🙂
Ouch, that’s harsh. We look at it more like we were lucky.