2023 Gulf Coast Road Trip: The Overview

2023 Gulf Coast Road Trip: The Overview

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, BBQ Places, Beaches, Big Cities, Big John, Birds, Books, Bridges, Brown Pelican, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Cities and Towns, City Skylines, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Family Travel, Florida, Found Metal Sculptures, Georgia, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Highways and Roadways, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Muffler Man, Murals, Museums, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Monuments, Nature and Scenery, Offbeat Places, Peter Wolf Toth, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Street Art, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Uniroyal Gal, US Highway 98, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, Whispering Giants, Whispering Giants, Wood Stork, Yard Art
[caption id="attachment_37550" align="alignnone" width="640"] On our way for a fun road trip! Autumn in the front with me and Chelsea and Jorge in the back.[/caption] I  was thrilled to finally get in a good road trip in July 2023.  My last multi-day road trip took place back in October 2022 when I traveled Route 66 in Illinois to celebrate by 66th birthday.  The July 2023 was taken south to the Gulf Coast, then along the coastal highways and eventually into New Orleans.  From there were went on to Houston, Keller and Uncertain, all in Texas, before heading back to Kentucky.  All in all, we traveled 3001 miles over an eight day period and traveled through ten different states.  I say we as on this trip I was accompanied by my…
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2022: The Year in Travel – April/May Staycation Fun in Kentucky

2022: The Year in Travel – April/May Staycation Fun in Kentucky

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Bison, Books, Bridges, Buffalo, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Caves and Caverns, Deer, Eastern Bluebird, Eastern Box Turtle, Eastern Kingbird, Elk, Family Travel, Farmland, Flowers, Found Metal Sculptures, Geologic Formations, Graffiti Walls, Hiking & Biking, Hiking Trails, Horses, Indiana, Indigo Bunting, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Lewis and Clark Sites, Mountains, Murals, Nature and Scenery, Northern Cardinal, Offbeat Places, Osprey, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Sheltowee Trace, Staycations, Tennessee, Town Names, Turtles, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Wall Art, Water Towers, Waterfalls, Welcome Signs, Wildflowers
[caption id="attachment_36906" align="alignleft" width="300"] Staycationing in Kentucky in 2022[/caption] What a year 2022 was!!  I started off the year in the midst of another COVID outbreak and high fuel prices.  My hopes for much travel in 2022 weren't very high. I expected it would be a lean travel year, but it turned out much different than I had anticipated.  By December 31 I had visited 14 states and driven nearly 21,000 miles.  This included nearly 1,300 miles (out of a total of 2,400) of driving on Route 66 from Albuquerque to Chicago.  I had actually dreamt of driving the entire length of Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica, CA in October, which was when I would celebrate my 66th birthday, but it wasn't meant to be.  Nevertheless, I was…
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Chester, Illinois: The Birthplace of Popeye

Chester, Illinois: The Birthplace of Popeye

Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bridges, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Giant Things, Illinois, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Lewis and Clark Sites, Murals, Offbeat Places, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Welcome Signs
[caption id="attachment_36205" align="alignnone" width="481"] Hanging with Popeye in Chester, Illinois.[/caption] With every trip I take, I am always looking for something interesting.  Not just a one off quirky statue somewhere, but hopefully something bigger.  Back in October when I visited Route 66 in Illinois, I looked for something interesting to see on the way home.  Thanks to my good friends at RoadsideAmerica.com, I was guided to the river town of Chester, Illinois.  It sits on a hill overlooking the Mississippi River just across from Missouri. [caption id="attachment_36202" align="alignnone" width="640"] Welcome to Chester, Illinois[/caption] The view of the Chester Bridge over the river from Segar Memorial Park is really a splendid view and the town itself is a pleasant little town.  That in and of itself was worth the visit.  But,…
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Towns of America A to Z: The Q Towns #atozchallenge

Towns of America A to Z: The Q Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Airlines, Antique Shops, Arizona, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bison, Books, Bridges, Buffalo, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Murals, Museums, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Signs and Billboards, Texas, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, US Highway 1, Welcome Signs
Tis will be one of the Quicker reads for y'all since there are not many places that begin with the letter Q and I have been to even less of them.  However, I will queue up a few for your viewing enjoyment. Honestly, since I watch a lot of TV, and have a liking for Family Guy, I ALMOST included Quahog, Rhode Island in this post.  This is the town where the Griffin family resides. Quahog (pronunced KO-hog) has about 800 people and even has a Zip Code of 00093.  Ironically, there is town in Rhode Island called Quonochontaug (pronounced kwan-a-kan-tawg) located a couple of miles south of US 1 on the Atlantic Coast, but I have not been there (though I have been to Rhode Island). It is actually…
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Towns of America A to Z: The N Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, Books, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, California, Cities and Towns, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Enchanted Highway, Family Travel, Farmland, Giant Things, Highways and Roadways, Illinois, Indiana, Japan, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Mississippi, Murals, Nagasaki, National Parks, Nature and Scenery, Nikko, North Dakota, Ocean Scenes, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, People Shots, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Tennessee, Town Names, Train Bridges, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, US Highway 20, US Highway 61, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Washington, Welcome Signs
Whether Naughty or Nice, its always fun to travel the back roads of America to discover interesting places. Viewing Natural scenery on Narrow roads can be Nourishing to the soul. Obviously, on my trips I do come across sites that may be Nutty or Notorious or even Nostalgic. I hope you find this post Noteworthy despite some sense of Normal. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE! NICE, CALIFORNIA I choose to be nice and never be naughty,  Therefore, I was excited to make my way into the beautiful area known as Nice in California.  And we'll start it off with a big Welcome to Nice!! [caption id="attachment_32576" align="alignnone" width="700"] Welcome to Nice - California[/caption] NEAH BAY, WASHINGTON [caption id="attachment_32028" align="alignleft" width="300"] Welcome to Neah Bay, Washington[/caption] Neah Bay represents the…
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Towns of America A to Z: The J Towns #atozchallenge

Towns of America A to Z: The J Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Alaska, Alligators, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Big Cities, Bison, Books, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Buffalo, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Burger Joints, City Skylines, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Family Travel, Giant Things, Indiana, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Mountains, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Monuments, National Parks, Nature and Scenery, New York, North Dakota, Offbeat Places, Ohio, People Shots, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Rocky Mountains, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Train Bridges, Travel Blogging, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 287, Virginia, Wall Art, Welcome Signs, Wyoming
I am all Jazzed to present you with some J towns to jump to on your road trips.  This post will be Jam-packed with some joyful places so I hope you just have a jubilant time. There are not a lot of J Towns that I have been to, but the ones for this post were the best of the bunch. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE!     JOLLY, TEXAS [caption id="attachment_29444" align="alignleft" width="195"] Jolly, Texas[/caption] Let's kick it off on a happy note with a visit to Jolly, Texas. This is practically a truck stop town off of US Highway 287 southeast of Wichita Falls. Only has a population of about 170 jolly old souls. I made a stop because of the Jolly Travel Center, a fairly large…
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Towns of America A to Z: The H Towns #atozchallenge

Towns of America A to Z: The H Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Arizona, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, BBQ Places, Big Cities, Big John, Books, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Burger Joints, Canada, Church Signs, Cities and Towns, Cross Country Road Trips, Distilleries, Donut Places, Eateries, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Geologic Formations, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Himeji, Ice Cream Places, Illinois, Japanese Castles, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Michigan, Muffler Man, Murals, National Parks, Nature and Scenery, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Peter Wolf Toth, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Random Thoughts, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Sheltowee Trace, Signs and Billboards, States and Provinces, Texas, Tourist Traps, Town Names, Toy Collections, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, Uniroyal Gal, Utah, Wanderlust, Water Towers, Waterfalls, Welcome Signs, Whispering Giants
Happiness is another A to Z post.  Today I post about places that begin with the letter H. As with all of my posts, I have been to all of these places and all of the photography is mine as well.  I never write about places I haven't personally visited. And why not start with something Happy? I'll take you to Hell and back on this post, but you will leave with some Hope and Happiness, among other things. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE! HAPPY, TEXAS [caption id="attachment_27700" align="alignleft" width="300"] Happy is that way (notice it is the opposite direction from Hell -- see below?)[/caption] There are only three towns named Happy in the United States, and I have been to two of them, which are both featured here. …
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Towns of America A to Z: The F Towns #atozchallenge

Towns of America A to Z: The F Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bridges, Church Signs, Cities and Towns, Covered Bridges, Dragons, Elephants, Family Travel, Farmland, Fuji City, Giant Things, Giraffe, Japan, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Mountains, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Parks, Nebraska, Offbeat Places, Ohio, People Shots, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Restroom Signs, Restrooms, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, South Carolina, Texas, Tourist Traps, Unique Eatery, Water Towers, West Virginia
Another day, another A to Z post.  Today I post about places that begin with the letter F. As with all of my posts, I have been to all of these places and all of the photography is mine as well.  I never write about places I haven't personally visited. You even get a visit to Japan in this post! And a good place to begin with the F places are towns that have the name Friend in them. There is also sorts of FUN and FANCY in this F Tour. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE! Friendly, West Virginia [caption id="attachment_34758" align="alignleft" width="236"] Friendly, West Virginia[/caption] I have been to Friendly a few times.  It is a small town that was established in 1898.  The Parkersburg and Ohio Valley…
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Towns of America A to Z: The D Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Airlines, Arizona, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Books, Bridges, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Burger Joints, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Enchanted Highway, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Hiking & Biking, Illinois, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Murals, Nebraska, North Dakota, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Random Thoughts, Restrooms, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Route 66, Selfies, South Dakota, Street Art, Texas, Tourist Traps, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, US Highway 18, Water Towers, Welcome Signs
I continue on my A to Z journey today as I take you on a trip to a few places that begin with the letter D.  Unlike the previous posts, all of the locations in this post are in the United States.  Nonetheless, I think you'll find some interesting places that, perhaps, you have never heard of. Since my name is David, I am gonna start out with a couple of my namesake towns. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE!   DAVID, KENTUCKY [caption id="attachment_34703" align="alignleft" width="300"] David, Kentucky[/caption] David, Kentucky is a small coal mining community in the Appalachian highlands of far eastern Kentucky.  It was named after David L. Francis, who was the president of the Princess Elkhorn Coal Company, which built the town. There is still a…
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Towns of America A to Z: The B Towns #atozchallenge

Towns of America A to Z: The B Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Alabama, Alberta, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Big Cities, Books, Bridges, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Burger Joints, California, Canada, Cities and Towns, Cross Country Road Trips, Delaware, Eateries, Geologic Formations, Giant Things, Idaho, Illinois, Japan, Kansas, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Murals, Nature and Scenery, Nebraska, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oita, Oklahoma, Ontario, Oregon, Philippines, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, South Dakota, Tersier, Texas, Tourist Traps, Travel Blogging, Travel in Japan, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 2, US Highway 212, Wanderlust, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, Whispering Giants, Wisconsin
It's another year and another opportunity to provide a fun VIRTUAL road trip.  For the 2022 A to Z  Challenge, I will be taking you, the readers, to some of the many places I have visited.  Almost every little town to every big city has something unique to offer visitors. I hope to take you to some of these places across the United States, and even to Canada, the Philippines and Japan on some select posts, for a virtual trip to see places you may not know about. Today's post covers a number of towns and cities that begin with the letter B. These are all over the place, including the Philippines and Japan!!  Although I have a ton of B places, here is a small collection for your to…
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