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 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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AtoZ Challenge 2021 – Signs Signs – The P Signs #atozchallenge

AtoZ Challenge 2021 – Signs Signs – The P Signs #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Alabama, Arizona, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bridges, Burger Joints, Church Signs, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Elephants, Family Travel, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Highways and Roadways, Hot Dog Places, Illinois, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Parks, Nebraska, New Mexico, Offbeat Places, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, prairie dogs, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Uncategorized, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Utah, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Washington, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Welcome to another year of the AtoZ Challenge.  This year I am doing signs that I have seen across the country.  This post will feature signs associated with the Letter P. ENJOY THE RIDE! We can't avoid signs.  They are everywhere.  Advertisements, informational signs, directional signs, business signs and, sometimes, even humorous and fun signs.  Each of my posts in this years' challenge will feature a hodgepodge of signs I have come across in my travels.  In most cases, I'll also note where they were taken.  Some were actually inside of shops or otherwise, so not all will have locations.  I hope you enjoy this fun trip each day of April. P is the perfect letter for this post. Ponder about the peculiar, prosperity, paradise and even peeing....but let's start…
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A Grab Bag from America’s Back Roads – The P Things #AtoZChallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Alberta, Animals, Arizona, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, BBQ Places, Birds, Bison, Books, Bucket List Trips, Budgies, Burger Joints, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Enchanted Highway, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Hot Dog Places, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Junk Art, Kansas, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Lighthouses, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Mountains, Muffler Man, Murals, Museums, National Monuments, National Parks, Nebraska, North Dakota, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pelicans, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, prairie dogs, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, South Dakota, Street Art, Swamps, Television Shows, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Utah, Vintage Neon, Virginia, Volcanic Sites, Wall Art, Washington, Water Towers, Waterfalls, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Zoos
In 2018 I  will feature a random (yet alphabetical) selection of photos I have taken from my nearly 20 years of back roads travel in the United States and Canada.  I may even throw in a few random shots from other trips to Japan, Mexico and the Philippines. My theme is called America's Back Roads: A Grab Bag of Places in Pictures.   Peculiar, Missouri [caption id="attachment_794" align="alignnone" width="400"] Welcome to Peculiar, MO[/caption] [caption id="attachment_36" align="alignnone" width="400"] A Peculiar Police Car[/caption] [caption id="attachment_37" align="alignnone" width="400"] A Peculiar Elementary School[/caption] Possum Trot Supper Club - Oakwood, Illinois [caption id="attachment_1784" align="alignnone" width="400"] Possum Trot Supper Club, Oakwood, IL[/caption] Pierre Part, Louisiana [caption id="attachment_10835" align="alignnone" width="400"] Sumoflam in Pierre Part, LA[/caption] [caption id="attachment_14077" align="alignnone" width="400"] Visiting Troy Landry of Swamp People fame in…
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Sumoflam’s 2017 Travels in Review

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, BBQ Places, Bike Trails, Birds, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Burger Joints, Caves and Caverns, City Skylines, Covered Bridges, Cross Country Road Trips, Deer, Delaware, Eagles, Eateries, Eclipse, Family Travel, Farmland, Geologic Formations, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, LDS Temples, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Murals, National Monuments, National Parks, New York, North Carolina, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Staycations, Street Art, Television Shows, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Train Bridges, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Virginia, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Waterfalls, West Virginia
[caption id="attachment_18682" align="alignleft" width="300"] Sunrise in Ocean City, MD on New Year's Day 2017[/caption] On January 1, 2017 I sat on a beach in Ocean City, Maryland to watch a spectacular sunrise and pondered to myself about the opportunities I would have to travel throughout the year. Little did I really know the extent that I would actually contact a mini bus rental in Chicago and travel over the year and I’m grateful that I’ve had a wonderful year of seeing more of this beautiful country.   [caption id="attachment_18697" align="alignright" width="300"] Oddville, Kentucky[/caption] Beginning with that glorious morning in Maryland, over the course of the year I have driven nearly 15,000 miles on road trips, many to visit family or be with family, but all of the trips have been…
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D is for Diners, Dives and Drive-ins – #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Alabama, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, BBQ Places, Burger Joints, California, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Family Travel, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Ontario, Oregon, People Shots, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Route 66, Selfies, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Vintage Neon, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia
What is April A to Z? Every April, bloggers from all over the world participate in the April A to Z blog challenge, and you can too. It’s a lot of fun and it’s a great way to meet other bloggers. To play along, all you do is make a blog post for each letter of the alphabet during April, then visit as many other bloggers as you can. Road trips would never be the same without the opportunity to stop at local diners, dives and drive-ins (OK...I gotta give credit to Guy Fieri). Food is such an important part of a road trip. Obviously, no matter where one drives they always come across the chain shops like McDonald's, Wendy's, KFC, etc. With those places, the food you get is…
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The Year in Travel: 2016 from A to Z

Amish Country, Antsy McClain, Arkansas, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, BBQ Places, Bike Trails, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, City Skylines, Cross Country Road Trips, Delaware, Eateries, Family Travel, Illinois, Kentucky, Large Statues, Maryland, National Monuments, National Parks, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Staycations, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Vintage Neon, Virginia, Washington DC, West Virginia
The year 2016 was not a banner year for travel for me as there were no super long  cross country trips taken like I had done form 2012-2015. However, over the course of the year we did take a number of smaller trips and a couple of fairly long trips. I visited 11 states during the year and made it to some places where I hadn't been for nearly 30 years. Even made it into towns from A (Abingdon, VA) to Z (Zanesville, OH) and one with an X too (Xenia, OH)!! Here is a map that includes many of the places: [caption id="attachment_17253" align="aligncenter" width="316"] Abingdon, VA - Eastern terminus of the Virginia Creeper Trail[/caption] [caption id="attachment_15813" align="aligncenter" width="236"] Zanesville, Ohio home of the Y Bridge[/caption] [caption id="attachment_16769" align="aligncenter"…
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A visit to Damascus, Virginia

Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, Bike Trails, Bridges, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Farmland, Flowers, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Kentucky, Landscapes, Murals, Muscovy Duck, People Shots, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Street People, Tennessee, Train Bridges, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, US Highway 119, US Highway 23, US Highway 58, Virginia, Wall Art, Wildflowers, Yard Art
[caption id="attachment_16847" align="alignleft" width="210"] Welcome to Damascus[/caption] Last weekend we made a trip to Damascus, VA with the goal of Julianne and our daughter Marissa riding their bikes on the Virginia Creeper Trail, one of many wonderful Rails to Trails bike trails that can be found in this part of the country.   I will have a different post about the Virginia Creeper Trail as part of my Bike Trail Series, but I wanted to post an article about the non-bike portion of our trip to Damascus, Abingdon, and Bristol, VA.  Besides the bike trail, there is so much more to see and do on a  road trip down to this part of Appalachia. We began our trip by leaving early in the morning on Saturday to drive to Damascus…
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