I've(We've) Been Everywhere, Man

Daily Mileage=323; Total Trip and Final Mileage=12,130

Well, we made it home on Thursday afternoon and was welcomed by our friends who decorated our house for us in very good style! After reading all the "welcome home" signs we headed off to Woody's to celebrate the completion of our wonderful journey.

Just as we started our trip, we found a parking place and ate some great fried oysters at our own local place. Woody's may not make it's own brew but it great anyway!! We were treated to dinner by Rick & Corrine and their grandchildren (Caroline, Katie and Tommy) and their daughter, Suzie. (Unfortunately, Tim was home working!) It was very neat to see them again at the end of our trip because we had visited them at their home in Colorado early on. Here we all are. (So for all of those complaining about the lack of "Mare" photos, here it is!)

Now today's blog title is a song that was recorded by Johnny Cash but you've probably best know it from a TV commercial for a hotel chain. We've taken some liberties with the words but the song does pretty much sum up our travels. Please excuse the literary sloppiness but you get the gist of it. Here's our rendition.

We’ve been everywhere man,
We’ve been everywhere.
Crossed the deserts bear man,
We’ve breathed the mountain air man,
Of travel, we’ve had our share man,
We’ve been everywhere.

We’ve been to Fargo, Tupelo and the great Colorado!
We’ve been to Minnesota and both Dakotas.
Saw a moose and a caboose but no mongoose.
We’ve been to Coeur d’ Alene and Spokane. Lucky for us no rain!
We’ve been everywhere man,
Of travel, we’ve had our share man,
We’ve been everywhere.

We’ve been to Tacoma and Oklahoma
We’ve been to Nebraska and soon to be Alaska.
Saw some corn and big horn; even where Elvis was born.
We’ve been to Alabama, Louisiana and Montana.
We’ve been everywhere man,
Of travel, we’ve had our share man,
We’ve been everywhere.

We’ve been to Yellowstone without a phone and Glacier with nature?
We’ve been to Kansas City, Salt Lake City and even Sioux City, what a pity!
Saw some lakes and some snakes. Even ate bison steaks!
We’ve been to Idaho saw some snow but didn’t have a potato.
We’ve been everywhere man,
Of travel, we’ve had our share man,
See what we mean,man?
We’ve been everywhere man.

OK enough of the song, I think Johnny Cash did a better version. We do want to give you some final statistics on the trip and our "Top List."

Trip Statistics:
We've made it back to Hilton Head exactly 59 days after we started.

We've traveled to 25 states including: GA, AL, MS, TN, AK, OK, TX, NM, CO, AZ, UT, ID, OR, WA, MT, WY, SD, ND, MN, IA, NE, KS, MO, IL, KY. We drove all these miles without any car trouble at all (actually Rich did all the driving because he wanted to, although I moved the car once but not enough to move the odometer).

We consumed 11 cases of water and only half that much wine!
We did wash 8 times.

The highest temperature was 98degrees in Zion,Utah; Lowest was 23 in Yellowstone, WY.
We slept in 32 different beds.
Best gas mileage was 44 mpg. Best price was $2.78.
Worst gas mileage was 32 mpg. Worst price was $3.58.

We finished/listened to 12 books (Mare actually read 2 more and Rich read about 10 magazines and a newspaper everyday).

We don't have the total cost of the trip but we estimate we spent an average of $200.00 a day for food and lodging. We were gone 60 days, you can do the math but it was well worth it!!

Now, we had so many wonderful experiences and great times that it was very difficult to narrow down our "Top List." Also we decided that we would combine places, experiences, events and even meals into one list. We could have done "top cities" "top views" etc., but we would be writing this blog for the next year so, we narrowed and prioritized the best way we could.

Mare & Rich's Top List from their cross country trip:
1. Yellowstone National Park, WY (EVERYTHING) for the variety offered
2. Grand Teton National Park, WY (the Teton Peaks, Inspiration Point, Chapel)

3.Bryce Canyon National Park, UT (the amphitheatre hoodos)
4. Glacier National Park, MT (McDonald & Many Lakes)
5. Zion National Park, UT (riding bus & looking at the mtns thru the top windows on bus)
6. Messa Verde NP, CO (the cliff dwelling tours)
7. Lake Powell, Paige AZ (the lake and canyons)
8. The prairie dog towns scattered out west
9. The mama elk at Yellowstone (who lost her calf to the bears)
10. The moose in Teton and Yellowstone (especially mom & 2 calves at Lake Many, Glacier)
11. Portland, OR (the rose garden)
12. The Seastacks on the WA coast beaches (rock formations)
13. AK and ID surprises (both states are more beautiful than you expect)
14. Best meal of trip at the Spotted Dog (outside of Zion NP, UT)
15. OK City National Monument (for the FBI bombing victims)
16. Lodge on Detroit Lake, MN (great lodge and lake etc.,)
17. St. Louis, MO (the Arch)
18. Nashville, TN (Grand Ole Opry radio show & CW Hall of Fame Museum)
19. Crater Lake, OR
20. Badlands NP, SD (hike to overview)
21. Mt. Rushmore, SD (and the new underconstruction Crazy Horse Monument, SD)
22. Red Rocks , CO
23. Sea Lion Cave, OR
24. Hoh Rainforest, WA
25. Seafood in Seattle, WA
26. Chasing Golden Tail Ale, Salt Lake City, UT (honorable mention: Moose Drool, (Snot) Glacier NP)

So that's it. We could probably have a top 50 list because just about everyday we saw something wonderful. We are so blessed and thankful to have had the opportunity to explore our great country. We will definitely go back to some of these places but know that there are at least another 2 months worth of sights to see.
Hope you enjoyed the journey with us. We wish you well and hope that you can make it to some of these great locations or find some new ones on your own.

Love&Joy, Mare&Rich

PS We have now traveled to 49 states. We will be doing Alaska, our 50th August 1st. So check the blog for the final chapter.