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

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

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Alberta, Animals, Antique Shops, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Canada, Church Signs, Dream Highways, Eagles, Eateries, Family Travel, Giant Things, Giant Twine Balls, Iowa, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Montana, Mountains, Murals, Museums, Nature and Scenery, North Carolina, Ocean Scenes, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Stop Signs, Television Shows, Texas, Tourist Traps, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, US Highway 101, US Highway 2, Virginia, Wall Art, Washington, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, Wisconsin, Wyoming
I hope you are Loving these A to Z posts and I hope that they are not too Laughable. I am trying not to be Lazy or Lavish, but want to present some places  worth Learning about. These posts are Lengthy, but not quite Legendary.   I hope that you find them Likeable. For me, there is nothing like getting Lost in my wanderings. ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE! LOVING, TEXAS [caption id="attachment_27847" align="alignleft" width="300"] Loving, Texas Post Office[/caption] I might as well start out with something upbeat and fun.  On Valentine's Day 2020, we arrived in Loving, Texas and sent out Valentine's Days cards to family from there.  Yes indeed, it was planned!! Loving is located in the northern part of Texas, north of Dallas.  It was founded in…
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AtoZ Challenge 2020 – 8154: An Epic Road Trip – The W Stories #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Arizona, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bucket List Trips, California, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Family Travel, Giant Things, Idaho, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Montana, Museums, National Parks, Nebraska, Offbeat Places, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, South Dakota, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Vintage Neon, Washington, Wyoming
In early 2020 I traveled across the country with  the course of three weeks.  My A to Z posts this year will have the "8154" theme, which will also be the title of my forthcoming new book that will document the epic road trip.  Each entry will highlight a few stories with photos based on the alphabet and not the order of the trip.  I hope you will enjoy this bouncy ride across the back roads of America.  Please enjoy the W Stories. (all photography by David "Sumoflam" Kravetz) Wyoming Another of the 20 states we visited on our 8154 Trip.  Sadly, we passed this sign in the evening, so it was dark.  Welcome to Wyoming. [caption id="attachment_24041" align="alignnone" width="525"] Welcome to Wyoming[/caption] Wigwam Motel - Holbrook, Arizona One of…
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Travel in 2018: The Best of the Roadside Attractions – Part 1

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Big John, Colorado, Cross Country Road Trips, Dinosaurs, Dream Highways, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Muffler Man, Nevada, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Route 66, Selfies, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Tourist Traps, Toy Collections, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 101, Utah, Washington, Water Towers, Whispering Giants, Wyoming
[caption id="attachment_20889" align="alignleft" width="225"] Sharkheads in Biloxi, MS[/caption] Obviously, one of my favorite things to do on road trips short or long is locate the fun, unique and offbeat roadside attractions.  And, fortunately, 2018 provided me a plethora of these.  I have already written about a few of them individually in past months, but this post will be a nice little "photo tour" of some of my favorites. Having been through 26 different states in 2018, I had plenty of sites and loads of fun.  I got to share many of these with grandchildren, which made it even better. [caption id="attachment_20271" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Dignity: Of Earth and Sky - 50 foot tall statue by Dale Lamphere[/caption] [caption id="attachment_20268" align="alignright" width="225"] Sumoflam with Dignity near Chamberlain, SD[/caption] Perhaps my favorite from…
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April 2018 Cross-Country Road Trip: US Route 2 in Washington

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Bucket List Trips, Burger Joints, Cross Country Road Trips, Ghost Signs, Idaho, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Mountains, Murals, Offbeat Places, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, US Highway 2, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Washington, Waterfalls
[caption id="attachment_19897" align="alignleft" width="225"] US Route 2 in Washington[/caption] Over the years I have been able to travel the majority of US Route 2 from Michigan all the way to the other side of Glacier National Park.  But I have never had the opportunity travel Route 2 in Washington, which would effectively let me finish the western segment of the highway, which, ultimately stretches 2,112 miles from St. Ignace, MI to Everett, WA.  Within Washington, the highway traverses a 326.36-mile-long route that connects the western and eastern regions of the state as a part of the state highway system and the National Highway System. US 2 also forms parts of two National Scenic Byways, the Stevens Pass Greenway, which goes over a portion of the Cascades, and the Coulee Corridor Scenic Byway near Coulee City, which offers some wonderful views of…
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April 2018 Cross-Country Road Trip: The Overview – Kentucky to Washington

Adventure, Animals, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Big John, Birds, Books, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Burger Joints, City Skylines, Colorado, Cross Country Road Trips, Deer, Dinosaurs, Dream Highways, Eagles, Eateries, Family Travel, Farmland, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Horse Art, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, LDS Temples, Less Beaten Paths Books, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Mountains, Muffler Man, Murals, National Monuments, National Parks, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Rocky Mountains, Seagulls, Selfies, South Dakota, Street Art, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 101, US Highway 2, US Highway 212, US Highway 6, Utah, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Washington, Whispering Giants, Wildflowers, Wyoming
[caption id="attachment_19571" align="alignleft" width="300"] Sumoflam on the Road Again[/caption] In April 2018 I took a nice long road trip from my home in Lexington, Kentucky to my daughter's home in Port Orchard, Washington and back. The itinerary included most places akin to the Good Sam list of campgrounds which my cousin couldn't stop prattling about. Though I was gone for 15 days, I spent nine of them traveling more than 6000 miles through 14 states.  Many of my stops were in anticipation of my new book as I wanted some fresh content to add to it. [caption id="attachment_19561" align="alignright" width="300"] Lots of great two-lanes on this trip[/caption] In the past, I typically wrote one or two huge blog posts about long roadtrips, but, I have decided that a focus on…
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A to Z Challenge: The K Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Alaska, Backroads Discoveries, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Enchanted Highway, Family Travel, Farmland, Found Metal Sculptures, Geologic Formations, Ghost Signs, Graffiti Walls, Landscapes, Missouri, Montana, Murals, National Parks, Ontario, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, South Dakota, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, US Highway 2, US Highway 30, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Water Towers, Wyoming, Yard Art
During the month of April I am participating in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. The challenge has each blogger select a theme and then do a post thematically from A to Z during each day of April , except Sundays. My blog is number 1337 out of 1670 participating blogs. This year my A to Z posts will take you across the back roads of America to many unique what other bloggers will be posting about, check out the link: A to Z Theme Reveal List for 2016 The K Towns Kemmerer, Wyoming [caption id="attachment_15493" align="alignnone" width="300"] Welcome to Kemmerer-Diamondville, Wyoming[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4434" align="alignnone" width="300"] US 30 east of Kemmerer/Diamondville[/caption] [caption id="attachment_15496" align="alignnone" width="300"] Harvey Jackson mural on a corner in Kemmerer, WY[/caption] [caption id="attachment_15494" align="alignnone" width="300"] Oregon…
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A to Z Challenge: The B Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Arkansas, Backroads Discoveries, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Giant Things, Idaho, Large Statues, Minnesota, Montana, Mountains, Murals, National Parks, Oregon, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Tennessee, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 2, US Highway 89, Wall Art
During the month of April I am participating in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. The challenge has each blogger select a theme and then do a post thematically from A to Z during each day of April , except Sundays. My blog is number 1337 out of 1670 participating blogs. This year my A to Z posts will take you across the back roads of America to many unique towns, some known for their names, other for unique sites in town. To see what other bloggers will be posting about, check out the link: A to Z Theme Reveal List for 2016 The B Towns Bemidji, Minnesota [caption id="attachment_8772" align="alignnone" width="300"] Paul Bunyan and Babe in Bemidji, MN[/caption] [caption id="attachment_12470" align="alignnone" width="300"] Big Indian in Bemidji, MN in…
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Montana Trip: US Highway 89 thru Montana – North 89

Animals, Backroads Discoveries, Birds, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Family Travel, Farmland, Found Metal Sculptures, Geologic Formations, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Horses, Landscapes, Large Statues, Montana, Murals, Museums, National Monuments, National Parks, Place Names, prairie dogs, Roadside Attractions, Rocky Mountains, States and Provinces, Train Bridges, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, US Highway 2, US Highway 212, US Highway 287, US Highway 89, US Highways, Vintage Neon
[caption id="attachment_9398" align="aligncenter" width="474"] Snow covered mountains of Glacier National Park as seen from US 89 just south of US Route 2 near Browning, MT[/caption] As I continued my trip in Montana, I spent some time with my daughter and her children in Shelby.  From there I proceeded to head back to Kentucky the "back roads" way over a number of US Highways and State Highways. [caption id="attachment_9399" align="aligncenter" width="474"] US Route 2 and US Route 89[/caption] My goal was to travel the majority of Montana's US 89 during this trip.  I did not hit the portion north of Browning to Alberta on this trip, though I have traveled it in the past.  In fact, over the years I have traveled US 89 from the Canadian border all the way…
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Montana Roadtrip: Taking the Hi-Line Across Northern Montana

Backroads Discoveries, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Eateries, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Montana, Museums, National Parks, Place Names, prairie dogs, Roadside Attractions, States and Provinces, Train Bridges, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Yard Art
[caption id="attachment_9159" align="aligncenter" width="474"] US Route 2 Montana - The Hi-Line[/caption] My trip along Route 2 continued from Glasgow, Montana westward along what is known as the Montana Hi-Line (See my May 2013 post about a previous drive on a portion of the Hi-Line).  Back in May last year I drove through to Glasgow and then south.  On this trip I tried to spend a little more time in some of the smaller towns on the road and capture the essence of what I feel is a dieing breed hanging on.  In fact, to proclaim their existence, many of the towns have a big sign on the highway to proclaim "Hey, we're here!" [caption id="attachment_2970" align="aligncenter" width="474"] Chester, Montana welcome sign on West side of town - one of many…
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