american roadtrip (1)

Lemonade on the porch is a lovely summertime tradition, but for those who want a little less leisure and a little more adventure this summer, roadtripping is the pastime for you.

The art of the road trip is in the continuous experience: staying on the road, spending little or no money on lodging and only stopping for the best of scenery and sites. Conveniently, we live in a nation that prides itself on naming national parks and monuments so that there is always plenty to mark down as various “hit-and-run” destinations.

This June, my family decided to forego the comforts of a conventional trip to the beach and instead settled upon seeing a hitherto unexplored part of the country. We have been up and down the east coast, over to the West, up to the North, and all over the South, but somehow, the Midwest has always eluded us. Many routes call themselves the “Great American road trip,” and each of them has their own unique claim to fame. However, in order to experience the endless intrigue of the American wilderness, newspaper writer John Soule’s 1851 advice still rings true: “Go West, young man!”

We began our journey with several hours of non-stop driving through Arkansas, Missouri and Iowa, stopping for a night somewhere inbetween. (The only downside to roadtripping is the occasional, total unawareness of one’s current location and time zone…Hence, my vagueness.) Our first official stop was Sioux Falls, South Dakota. This quaint little city is centered around the roaring falls for which it was named, and it is a testimony to the ingenuity of those who lived when the extension of the railroad was transforming the West.

Next stop: Badlands National Park. This place makes one feel that playing cowboys and Indians is a necessary order of the day. For miles and miles around, all that can be seen is a moon-like terrain of jutting rock, and cacti and signs warning of rattlesnakes complete the picture. We scrambled up and down the dusty surface, enjoying breathtaking views as far as the eye could see. As we kept driving, the hills suddenly turned into a flat grassland with prairie dogs popping their heads up to see what the commotion was. And then suddenly, finding ourselves once again in the mountains, we spiraled upwards into the Black Hills.

Every American conjures up an image of four mountainous heads upon hearing the name “Mount Rushmore.” Whether or not they know the owners of those famous faces – George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln – is another question. Every night at this famous landmark, there is a presentation that includes the recognition of any military servicemen and women in the crowd. For all of the gorgeous scenery we had seen so far, the faces of such principled leaders serving as a backdrop to the group of current American servants being honored was the most inspiring sight we had seen yet.

On our way out of the Black Hills, we stopped for a tour of Jewel Cave. President Teddy Roosevelt declared Jewel Cave a national monument, and, to date, it claims the title of second longest cave in the world with 142.22 miles explored. Instead of taking the “moderately strenuous” scenic route through the cave, we chose the lantern tour which allows caving hopefuls to go hundreds of feet down through tight spaces. There was lots of ducking and even some crawling as we enjoyed the sparkling beauty of the cave along with its resident bats. Our appropriately dramatic guide even let us experience the eeriness of total darkness by sitting down on a sturdy rock and blowing out our flames. It was a relief to finally step out into the sunny cold, which brings me to the subject of weather.

Whilst we Southern women are glistening away in June, the hearty inhabitants of the upper Midwest are still shoveling snow – an almost unfathomable sight after Mississippi’s sweltering heat. Nevertheless, the numerous breathtaking views available makes the fact that one cannot feel one’s fingers and toes worth it. Hopefully this optimism will carry us into the dropping temperatures of Yellowstone National Park.

This truly is a journey back in time that every American should experience.

To be continued…

June 23, 2008
(article for The Review, Laurel, MS, newspaper)