24 States in 27 Days - Day 24:

November 2nd, 2012, Friday: Taos in the morning was sunny, but very cold - we woke to ice on the inside of our canopy windows. I was glad I’d worn my pants and long sleeves to bed that night, so the chill of my cold sweater and jacket wasn’t too painful.

Choosing another restaurant our new friend LIndsey recommended, we drove to Rickey’s for breakfast where we enjoyed bottomless coffee, terrific pancakes, bacon and eggs for me, while Brad had an omelet with toast. It was fun to watch the locals bantering with the chef and waitress. We tried to go to the library next for internet access but it didn’t open for another hour, so we parked in the same lot as yesterday and went photo hunting and window shopping, exploring a few shops as they opened. 

We really liked the small town, friendly feel of Taos. 

It warmed up by the time we were finished wandering downtown, so we peeled off our layers at the truck and drove to the library where we spent a few hours charging batteries and checking email. After the library we stopped in a couple of thrift shops and explored a few neighborhoods before heading out of town, north on 522, planning to turn onto hwy. 62. Somehow we missed that turn and again had to backtrack to the correct highway. 

Not too far down hwy. 62 we crossed a incredibly high canyon bridge! Of course we had to stop. It was the Rio Grande river way down at the bottom of this deep canyon. 

We walked out to the middle of the bridge, which was a bit freaky, considering how high we were! Back in the truck we continued north where we discovered a fantastic biotecture community we had to investigate. 

We felt like we’d landed on an alien planet! Oddly we also kept seeing yellow traffic signs with cows - and each sported a space ship sticker! The clouds were otherworldly too. 

As we climbed over the San Juan Mountains we stopped for some sunset photos. 

We knew it was time to start looking for a campsite, but not wanting to freeze up in the mountains we kept going until we dropped down the other side onto hwy. 84/64. On our road map I spotted El Vado campground off to the west, and thinking it wasn’t too far off the highway we headed that way and drove, and drove, dropping in elevation until we said “It’s going to be positively balmy by the time we hit the campground” and right then we saw a sign that said “ICY”! Ha! We were almost ready to turn back when we finally saw a sign to the campground. As we turned onto that road, we both exclaimed at the same time “4 miles?!” Yep, it was another 4 miles further. I’d been counting deer and rabbits the whole way, and by the time we pulled into the actual campsite we’d seen 19 deer and 6 rabbits! It was very dark and quiet at the campground which seemed pretty open and treeless---the little we could see with our truck headlights. We passed a sign that warned not to drive into the lake - whoa, ok! then chose a site near one of the few street lights, paid our fee, and settled in for the night. It was the quietest place we’d slept this whole trip! We were glad to have both down duvets that night. 

24 States in 27 Days - Day 8:

Oct. 17th, 2012, Wednesday: After a rainy night, we woke to sunshine. It was 5:15 Oregon time, but 8:15 Michigan time. An amazing breakfast was prepared and waiting for us as we appeared in our morning glory. Homemade biscuits with cherry jam, sauteed onions, peppers and jalapenos in eggs, fresh hot coffee, delish! Outside a fat groundhog was busy rummaging in the compost pile, enjoying breakfast too. Later we took off with my Aunt and Uncle on a tour of Williamston. Since they were moving soon, this was a chance for them to see some friends and share some of their favorite spots with us. We walked through a park along the Red Cedar river that had been hit by a tornado 2 years prior, leaving broken trees in its wake. These stumps had been carved by different artists and were cool to see. 

Walking around town, in and out of shops, we especially enjoyed visiting a local letterpress business. From there we drove west to East Lansing and through the Michigan State campus - it’s huge! In 2005, Eliza and I had visited, but we only saw part of the campus that time. We were dropped off nearby to explore while my aunt and uncle headed off to an appointment. 

We walked all over, taking sign photos (Brad) and autumn colors or architecture photos (Jana) along with checking out a couple of galleries and shops. 

The sun was out and temperatures climbed into the 70’s, heating us up as we wandered around. After we were picked up we went to the downtown area of Old Lansing. The Grand River flowed nearby and we checked out the fish ladder before walking through the shopping district. 

More signs for Brad to photograph! 

After a snack of gourmet popcorns, we drove past the capitol building where my uncle used to work before starting his own consulting business. 

We offered to fix dinner that night, but they had a gift certificate to a local restaurant they wanted to use and suggested going out to eat there. Our meals were delicious, but soon after we sat down a three piece band started playing and pretty much drowned out any possibility of conversation! Another group at a nearby table ended up leaving, but we’d already ordered, so we stayed, trying to talk during pauses in the music. Back at their house I worked on uploading photos while we visited, sharing pictures of our trip so far, and looking at photos they had. That night we opened the window and slept to the sounds of dripping rain outside. 

24 States in 27 Days - Day 7:

Oct. 16th, 2012, Tuesday: Climbing out of the back of our truck we could see a group of tents and folks two sites away, no privacy whatsoever! Hello world. While eating breakfast we filtered water and refilled our containers, then had to hunt for Brad’s lost keys. They were found still in the lock on the box on top of the truck - ha! They can’t be removed without locking up the box - a good security measure. The night before I thought I lost my neck warmer after climbing into bed. I searched everywhere in the truck then wiggled around to peer out the back with a flashlight before realizing I had it on... There’s always so much to keep track of while traveling - we were getting loopy! Before leaving I talked to my Uncle in Michigan to let him know we were getting close. 

Wild clouds that morning!

From there we took hwy. 12/18 east until it became just 12 - another back road through lovely green countryside reminiscent of Oregon, but without conifers. 

Over through Deerfield to Whitewater, then east on hwy. 20 to interstate 41 south to Chicago.

We exited north of Chicago on a quest to find the house I lived in for just one year when I was in the first grade. Taking Green Bay Drive we drove through Glenco, Winnetka then into Wilmette, where we turned right onto Wilmette Ave. finding it easily! 

We parked nearby then went for a walk to see if the neighborhood was as I remembered it. The house looked very different from when we lived there - but similar too. I remember the rough concrete walls - altered now with added woodwork and planter boxes giving it a slight tudor style. 

Just two houses away was the park we used to go to and around the corner on the same block was our school. 

It was fun to get out and walk around and see how my memories matched up! We weren’t there long, taking off on Green Bay to Ridge Drive, then Lake Shore - straight through the heart of Chicago. 

I shot drive-by photos while Brad zipped along - all the way through to South Shore Drive where we zigzagged following detour signs, finally making our way, after a couple of wrong turns to I-90 - a toll freeway. That took us into Indiana and I-94. 

In Portage Indiana we stopped for gas and Brad left me in charge of filling the tank - my first time this trip. It also was an opportunity for a peanuts and hard boiled eggs break, plus a chance to buy some more ice for the cooler. It’d been cloudy to start the day but it warmed up quick as the sun came out - temps were probably in the low 60’s. I couldn't believe I was still wearing my Chaco sandals this far into our trip on these surprisingly balmy days! 

We hopped onto I-69 in Marshal going north towards Lansing then east on I-96, soon finding the exit to Williamston where my Aunt and Uncle lived. There we enjoyed a terrific home cooked meal, good conversation and our first indoor bed of the trip. My Aunt and Uncle were moving at the end of the month from the home they had lived in for years, so although there were boxes everywhere, Brad could still see what a nice place it was. That night it was too hot for me inside the spare bedroom, but once I opened a window I was finally able to fall asleep. We just weren’t used to being so warm after a week of sleeping outdoors.

24 States in 27 Days - Day 6:

Oct. 15th, 2012, Monday: It was a cold morning with drops of ice on the tailgate. Soon after we emerged from our warm cocoon, two campground maintenance workers zipped up in their electric cart and we had a great visit with them, finding out one has a dad living in Newport Oregon.

The campground.

After breakfast and a shower we drove to the other side of the park to an old quarry site where we hiked in, thinking we’d finally see the blue mounds. The only blue we saw was the sky above, along with some cool, towering, pink rock cliffs. 

We drove through Luverne, shooting a quick sign photo (one of many on this trip!) then took off on I-90 east. Minnesota seemed to have a lot of farms with really nice looking older homes, barns and silos, but dry, dry, dry from the drought.  

We were cruising along on I-90, with Brad driving 72 in a 70 mph zone and vehicles flying by us in the passing lane, when suddenly we saw a cop going the opposite direction turn, drive thru the median strip, then catch up with Brad and pause next to him in the left lane. Brad’s going below 70 at this point and the cop drove past us, then slowed back down, glanced in at us again, then he turned and drove back through the median and took off west again! Good grief! Another warning I guess, but from then on Brad kept it right at 70! I told him it was lucky he’d shaved today! After the next rest area, I took over driving while Brad sliced apples, swiss cheese and crackers - our favorite on-the-road meal. Around 3ish we drove across the MIssissippi river into La Crosse Wisconsin, exiting and zig zagging our way through the city on a detour route aiming for hwy. 14/61. Although the population is around 51,000, I thought it seemed much larger, as I had to keep extra vigilant to not miss the directional signs. On one turn I went straight, since there hadn’t been any 14/61 sign saying otherwise, which ended up being the wrong way. I quickly turned into a parking lot, hoping it’d be an easy way to return to the main route, but instead it was one of those complicated mall parking lots, with very few exits! 

Brad offered to drive after that, and I was happy to let him, content to be on drive-by photo duty. We were off the freeway again, so the photo options were more than just grassland or big box stores! Wisconsin was beautiful with barns, silos, farms and hillsides covered in amber deciduous trees. Barely a conifer to be seen! The ground was lush green, a major contrast compared to all the dry land we’d driven through previously. Even Oregon was dry when we left, experiencing it’s longest period without rain that I could remember. 

We drove through small towns like Coon Valley and Westby on 14/61 until we hit Readstown where 61 continued south and we kept going east on 14 towards Madison Wisconsin. Some roads had grass growing right up to the pavement - no shoulder and no blackberries! It was dark when we arrived in Madison. We headed towards the university area thinking we’d find a local bar or cafe to hang out in, not knowing anything about the city. We saw chain restaurants, big box stores, nothing appealing. Brad then turned off the main university road and we were stuck on a curving neighborhood street instead! Eventually we ended up at a Whole Foods store where we bought dinner then settled in their wifi friendly seating area - perfect for travelers! It was a good opportunity to catch up on email and hunt for nearby campgrounds. We left a bit before closing, and I directed Brad to Capitol Springs state park, just minutes away, and easy to find. There were spots available so we took an end site, then settled in for the night, with the usual yoga moves to get maneuvered into bed. Last one in had to pull up the tailgate and close the back hatch without falling out or kicking the other person. That night we fell asleep to the sound of geese flying overhead.