Where would you go??

[Mr & Mrs S]

Originally Posted by LawChick

I second the Blue Ridge Parkway, especially the North Carolina parts. It is so cool compared to Texas and Arkansas. I'll try to send you some photos. It is one of the most beautiful unspoiled places in the country as far as I'm concerned.

My second choice would be up around Lake Erie somewhere in Ohio. We were there last July and slept without air conditioning. It was soooooooo comfortable after we almost burned to a crisp here in Arkansas.

Hi Lawchick,

I did check out the Blue Ridge Parkway and it will be on the To Go List Pics are always great....Thanks for your input.....Hang in there with your new AS I been following your blogs and post to see how your doing. Tell Ray to hang in there, once you get over the downs and get to the ups you start to wonder if there were any downs. I take it one problem at a time one day at a time.

[Mr & Mrs S]

Originally Posted by REDNAX

It's sentimental for me: leaving Dallas en route to Boulder in the back seat of a 383-powered '59 Dodge as a kid. Or a 428 equipped '66 Ford Country Squire. Early dawn to past dusk for a one-day 800 mile trip. No traffic compared to today (one could still ride passenger trains), and no chain retail, either.

The Interstate routes are okay, but 287 all the way to Denver takes one across the Texas prairie onto the Plains and High Plains: Palo Duro Canyon and Alibates Flint Quarry near Amarillo, Bent's Fort in SE Colorado, the Denver/Boulder/Longmont area and on up past Cheyenne.

One can find a point to cut west to SW Colorado (also recommended), and then resume the route north after diversions.

Or use it to return from well up north.

Of course, to be serious one needs to dip a toe in the water at Port Arthur (I've done this) and then start the run north. Through Fort Worth, and again through the Denver metro area it's a major city street, but I find that of interest as well. It helps to map the "difficult" areas so as to make them easier to navigate.

This is the very road I like to think of for trips away from Texas. Once the mountains come into view so long a ways off there is an end to the heat . . . .

Scroll a Google map down to the distance that makes the highway numbers visible, and move the cursor around to see what's what.

If nothing else, the variety of well-servicing oil field custom-configured trucks and equipment you'll see is impressive from SE Texas past Wyoming. Not to mention cattle haulers and the rest. It's one highly important highway in that respect. The changes are interesting to note, not just forest to tall-grass to short grass to desert and all.

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Thanks for sharing that info. Its always good to here why such highways are special to people. I've been on 287 before and never knew it ran so far or what it had to offer. Been to Port Aurthor many many time its right out my back door.

I can do without the oilfield stuff as thats what I do and will be trying to get away from. But in a way it would be nice to pass by it and wave to the poor guys working.....there's a bright side to everything right?

[scorpiontimo]

Santa Fe NM is the greatest the corps engineer parks are the best in the US Rancheros rv park is good plenty of hiking to do history sites are all over both nat and state we just spent 6 months there but have been going there for 4 years 7200 elv so it is cooler if you like fly fishing the Paco's river is one of the best in the west, bungee jumping the rio gorge by Taos we have some pic's of Santa Fe on my profile and on my blog which is a new travel blog Vintage travelers have safe travels Charles sean & Rondie

[slowmover]

I can do without the oilfield stuff as thats what I do and will be trying to get away from. But in a way it would be nice to pass by it and wave to the poor guys working.....there's a bright side to everything right?

Can't disagree there . . but the changes in vehicle configurations is of interest. Same for the unusual other types to be seen [agricultural], and correlated to the landscape changes as they occur. (We recently spent about a year in Beaumont, so your home area became familiar as we acquainted ourselves with a new locale.) Hope your trip plans flesh out satisfactorily.

[lucymcdog]

You can't beat Colorado in the summer. As a FORMER Texan (San Antonio, Houston, Huntsville), I *KNOW* Hot!

If you go out CO 149 from Creede about 15-20 miles then turn on Forest Road 520 you will find the most incredible places. There are numerous free campgrounds, Road Canyon Reservoir, the Rio Grande Reservoir, lots of hiking and exploring everywhere.

It is truly heaven on earth!