On Wed, 19 Mar 2014 09:57:19 -0400, F*O*A*D wrote:

On 3/19/14, 9:16 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 3/19/2014 8:18 AM, Poco Loco wrote:


One of the most enjoyable trips I have taken was driving to Denver, CO
via Rt. 90. I did so on a whim in the Ford F-350 diesel towing a car
trailer to pick up a 1955 Ford F-100 pickup that a guy had for sale.
Like many, I had flown back and forth over this part of the country many
times while working and making trips to the West coast but this was the
first time I could actually see what states like Iowa, Nebraska and
Colorado actually looked like at ground level.

Nebraska was strangely beautiful to me. I like being by myself and the
trip across that state certainly makes you feel alone and away from
everything. The only concern I had was fuel stops. There aren't many,
so you have to make sure you fuel up when you can. The one fuel stop I
found reminded me of an old, western stage stop or something. Friendly
people but I have no clue how they survived or made a living out there.

On the return trip I took Rt.80 east. I stopped at the World's Biggest
Truck Stop in Iowa. Interesting place. It has everything you can
imagine including huge shopping areas, doctors, dentists and damn good
food!

I spent some years attending college and working in that part of the
country and saw all I really wanted to see of Kansas, Missouri,
Oklahoma, Nebraska, Colorado, the Dakotas, et cetera. On one assignment,
I spent a month on the road with a photographer writing and researching
a magazine story on small town rail stations that had been abandoned or
repurposed. We made a special effort to avoid "chain" restaurants and
motels. It was interesting. I liked the old M-K-T stations the best.

I spent a college Thanksgiving holiday at a buddy's farm in rural South
Dakota. Talk about cultural shock...sheesh.

I don't like driving long distances. These days, when I visit long-time
buddies in the New Haven area, I take Amtrak and rent a car when I get
there, and New Haven isn't that far of a drive, maybe 300 miles, a six
hour drive if you don't get nailed in the NYC area. It's four and a half
hours on the Acela, maybe an hour longer on the slower train.


Good. You undoubtedly saw everything worth seeing.