What usually follows a road trip? A huge stack of receipts! Boo…

I want to thank everyone who gave me tips and suggestions along the way! Also, to those of you that have been reading my journal and sharing it with other people and websites, thank you! I thought it would be good to post up a Trip Summary for those of you out there that may take on a trip like this. First hand reviews of things you find or places you stay are extremely valuable to road trippers.

Hotel Reviews (links are directed to Trip Advisor)

Courtyard by Marriot Detroit Metro Airport Romulus – I landed in Detroit on Tuesday around 11pm. My plane arrived late due to a late take off in Phoenix. By the time I got to the hotel it was already almost midnight. Check in was fast and simple and the hotel staff was very friendly. They offer a free shuttle service from the airport, take advantage. It is also their own personal shuttle, not a joined hotel shuttle. What that means is you don’t have to get on a shuttle bus loaded with people going to 15 different hotels which could take you an hour to find your bed. I’m not sure why, but they ended up giving me a suite. Sweet! Maybe because I was only there for 8 hours and the room was empty. The two room suite was spacious and clean. The separate bedroom was very well laid out with a 42-inch big screen HDTV in front of the bed. Power outlets were available at both sides of the bed. Travelers know how handy this is. The living room area had a couch and two tables as well as another 42-inch HDTV. The bathroom was also clean and held the normal amenities. Also found was a refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker. I normally don’t eat late but I was starving so I ordered a chicken salad from one of the local delivery places. The food arrived in 20 minutes and was on average as far as taste. On a scale of 1-10 the bed comfort was a 6.5. Better than average but nothing exceptional. I had a choice of room service or free continental breakfast for the morning. I chose neither so I cannot comment on the food quality. Wifi was included and worked great. Check out was simple and friendly. I would give this hotel a solid 3 out of 5 stars and would recommend it to a friend.

Holiday Inn Express Lincoln – Okay, so if you have been keeping up on my journal, you will know that I didn’t actually stay here. I booked a room at this hotel while driving to Lincoln, NE. When I arrived, I realized it was in the ghetto part of town and surrounded by a wealth of homeless people, the state prison and bail bonds business’. When I entered the lobby, the girl at the counter said, “Whatchu want?” I told her I would like to cancel my room and left. Trip Advisor reviewers gave this hotel 2.5 stars. I would give it a 1. The lobby wasn’t clean and I couldn’t imagine how nasty the rooms must have been. I later discovered from the clerk at new hotel that this location is not part of the Holiday Inn Express chain, it’s privately owned. I hope HIE sends me a survey link so I can thoroughly comment on this hotel. I am a Priority member of HIE hotels and they are certainly gonna hear from me. If nobody says anything, how can they know, right?

Holiday Inn Lincoln South West – After leaving the HIE, I headed for this hotel in a much improved part of Lincoln. This hotel is located in a brand new area of Lincoln that has new home developments, a new mall with plenty of shopping and is close to the highway. The hotel staff was very friendly and check in was quick. Attached to the hotel is a very nice lounge/bar that I did not visit but peeped in to look around. The room was very nice and clean. The amenities includes a nice HDTV, fridge, typical bathroom supplies, iron and board, hairdryer, microwave and coffee maker. Power outlets were located at the desk as well as at each bedside. Wifi was strong and was included with the hotel cost. Bed comfort was a 7 out of 10. Above average and gave me a good nights sleep. I opted for room service in the morning which was delivered right on time. The eggs and bacon were delicious and the waiter was courteous. I would give this hotel 3.5 out of 5 stars and recommend it to a friend. The surrounding area is as much the winner for this hotel as the hotel itself. Unless you are looking for a back country hotel adventure, this is a great choice for a quiet nights rest with plenty of stuff around to do and buy.

Radisson Hotel Colorado Springs Airport – Deciding to skip Denver I headed for Colorado Springs so I could summit Pikes Peak in the morning. My first choice was going to be the Hyatt off Garden of the Gods but they were sold out. I was later happy about this. After doing some searching on Kayak, I found a room at this hotel located next to the airport. I was concerned it was going to be noisy with planes flying over all night long but I never heard one. The hotel is located next to the Airplane Restaurant. Be sure to read my earlier posts with pictures of the restaurant. If you’re a military or airplane buff, you won’t want to miss it. My room wasn’t ready when I arrived so I had to wait about 10 minutes. While waiting, the hotel manager offered me 2 complimentary drink coupons for the upstairs bar and lounge. They offered to transfer me to another room so I didn’t have to wait but as they were, my room became available. Apparently, they needed to swap out the shower curtain. The front lobby looks to be renovated but the hallways and room doors could use some updating. The hallways set you back about 25 years. Outdated carpet and old looking doors. Entering the room, I noticed the complete opposite. The room was updated and clean. The room door did need a firm slam in order for the lock to engage. A second dead bolt and slider lock are also there to make sure you sleep safely at night. The room had a nice HDTV, fridge, microwave, coffee maker, typical bathroom amenities, iron board and iron and hairdryer. The Wifi was medium strength but did not fail. A free breakfast was included but I did not use it. Sleep Number beds are the big seller here. This was my first time using a Sleep Number bed and let me tell you, it was one of the best nights sleep I had in a while. I chose 50 for my number and it was perfect. If you usually sleep on one of these, this hotel should be your choice so you can feel like you’re at home. Check in and out were good and the location was close to the airport and highway. This hotel is also only 20 minutes from the base of Pikes Peak. I would rate this hotel 3 out of 5 stars and would recommend it to a friend. I would give it 3.5 if they update the hallway and room doors.

Best Western Plus Greenwell Inn – Moab during the summer on a weekend is busy and often all hotels in town are booked. I found a room at this hotel for $189/night. That is steep in Moab but when choices are slim you get what you get. For $189 I was expecting a lot more and was disappointed. The check in and out was good and easy. The hotel location is in the center most part of town on Main street. This makes walking around the town shops favorable. The hotel looks and feels more like a motel which is unfortunately how most of the hotels in Moab feel. The room was a typical two bed queen room with 1980′s style carpet and sheets. Room amenities included a fridge, HDTV, medium strength Wifi, microwave, coffee maker, typical bathroom stuff, hairdryer and ironing supplies. There were no power outlets anywhere near the beds. Fortunately, I bring a small extension cord with me when I travel just in case I need to reach a plug often located behind the bed. (Travel tip) Bed comfort was below average. I did not find any bed bugs but I did kill 4 different types of critters in the bathroom area. Two spiders and two somethings. Not really sure. I would give this hotel 2 out of 5 stars and would recommend this to a friend if another better choice was not available. I have stayed at worse in Moab, aka the Ramada Inn. Avoid it.

Drives between stops

Detroit to Elgin – leaving the city of Detroit you enter the west half of Michigan, which is filled with farm lands and suburbs. Coming around the base of Lake Michigan and entering Gary, IN puts you into the city. Big highways and traffic ahead through Chicago. Outside Chicago towards Elgin puts you back into suburbs and farm lands. The biggest note of this section is the amount of toll booths along the way. Have cash ready and be prepared to shell out around $15 depending on how far you need to go.

Elgin to Lincoln, NE – Elgin is a quiet suburb outside the city surrounded by green corn fields and wide open valleys. Leaving IL and entering IA you are surrounded by endless corn fields and open space. There isn’t much to see throughout Iowa if farms don’t strike your fancy. If you are traveling along the I80 through Iowa, be sure to stop at Iowa 80 the World’s Largest Truck Stop. I posted up a photo and mentioned it in a previous entry. Entering Nebraska you are still in the corn fields with an increasing number of farms. Making your way into the capitol of Nebraska, Lincoln is a good sized city with a lot to do surrounding the University of Nebraska. Most of the big cities throughout the midwest are centered around the local college. Chose which area of the city you stay in wisely as I have already mentioned.

Lincoln to Colorado Springs – Nebraska is a long state with a lot of open land. When you finally reach I76 in northeastern Colorado, be prepared for boredom. The first 100 miles or so of NW Colorado is extremely boring with little to see. Even the farms start to disappear and you become surrounded by rolling grass hills. This is neat for about 20 miles and then the horrible road conditions send your car vibrating down the road for 80 miles. Skipping the traffic in Denver, I took the new 470 toll road around the city and connected with I25 towards Colorado Springs. CS is a gorgeous town located in a giant valley with mountain peaks on both sides. A major storm flew through the valley while I slept and fortunately was gone in the morning making my drive up Pikes Peak amazing.

Colorado Springs to Moab – Heading north on I25 and connecting once again with the 470 toll road took me around Denver. When I reached the I70 I headed west for Moab. This section of Colorado is what Colorado is all about, to me. Or, at least this is what I always dreamed Colorado was like. The I70 west of Denver is a very hilly and twisty highway that takes you up and over, down and around, and through all of the big name ski resorts you see in movies. The landscape is epic as well as the constant elevation changes. Not until you pass Vail do you step below 8,500 feet. After Grand Junction the views become flat again as you enter Utah. As quickly as they become flat, Moab appears in the distance and the green turns to red. Moab is 30 miles south on the 191 off I70. Even if you don’t stay in Moab, make the 191 turn and stop for lunch in town. The 30 mile drive in provides wonderful views ahead and puts you between red rock walls as you enter town.

Moab to Orange County – As I just mentioned in my last entry, the section between Moab and Salina is “The Suck Zone”. Read my previous entry for more on that. The I70 through Utah is filled with green farm lands and often turbulent weather. I had good luck my entire trip but on previous Moab trips I have hit my worst weather through this section. It seems the large valley walls hold the weather in the area for a longer period of time than normal increasing storm intensity. Once you reach Las Vegas the next 2 hours of your drive is open desert. The Cajon Pass is your next major scenery change, which lands you in San Bernardino and from there on out you are back into city life all the way to the OC.

This trip logged 2,537 miles. Drive safe!

Brief Truck Report

2011 Ford Super Duty F-250 FX4 Lariat 4×4, 6.7L Powerstroke
Miles on truck at start of trip: 7,322
Average miles per gallon: 18.5
Best miles per gallon: 19.8 through NE
Worst miles per gallon: 6.5 climbing Pikes Peak (14,110 feet)
Dollar amount spent on diesel fuel: $587.35
Average fuel cost: $4.039/gallon
Total miles covered: 2,537

The new truck did an amazing job the entire way. I have zero complaints. When I arrived at home last night I made a quick trip to the store in my FJ Cruiser. I once though the FJ was spacious, until I spent a week driving the F-250. This truck is very spacious and extremely comfortable with the luxury packages included. Be sure to pick up a future copy of Off-Road Magazine to read more about my experiences and future modifications of the truck.

Eating on the road

As I briefly mentioned before leaving for my trip, eating on the road with my current food allergies was going to be a challenge. It was, but I managed. Staying away from foods containing wheat, nuts, corn and soy is tough. This meant no gas station food aside from fruit and lunch meat where it could be found. Fortunately, there is a Walmart in almost every town across the country. Hate on Walmart all you want but it saved me. My original idea of packing a cooler was great, too bad I didn’t listen to myself. I stopped every day at Walmart and loaded up on salads, ready to eat meats from the butcher, fruit and beverages. I also visited quite a few Chipotle’s along the way. FYI: Chipotle’s in Colorado Springs offer both brown and white rice. It would be nice to see the brown rice option make it to CA. I was hungry throughout a good portion of the trip but I did eat enough to get by. I didn’t want to run into any stomach issues and be miserable on the road. My stomach cooperated the entire trip. I ended up losing 3lbs on the trip with no exercise. Don’t most people gain weight on road trips? Now that I am home I am back on track and eating properly. Just remember, if you have food challenges like I do, grocery stores are your friend and they are all over this great country.

Did I use all those apps I suggested?

Nope. I really only ended up using 3 apps out of my list. Kayak for finding hotels, Yelp for locating what was around me, and iExit (link) for everything else. I didn’t mention iExit before, because I found it while sitting on the shuttle to my hotel in Detroit. Boy am I glad I did! The app constantly updates the upcoming exits as you drive in real time. So, the app is working in the background at all times once you load it. This will drain battery life a little so keep that in mind. You can enter all of your favorite restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, etc. The app will alert you when you are coming up to one of your predesignated locations. This was extremely helpful when I was getting hungry or running low on fuel. Each exit is displayed in a running list, closest to farthest. Each exit shows an icon for what is available and which direction it is off the highway (that is an awesome feature). I will be using this app on every road trip and highly recommend it. Best $1.99 I spent on the entire trip.

Spot Messenger

The SPOT did great. My family was able to track me during the entire drive. I kept the device on my dash the entire time and only turned it off when I stopped for the night. My Mom was very happy I had this along the way, especially when she heard about bad weather coming my way. She tracked me the entire time I traveled past the bad area until I was through it. Hopefully, I can get my hands on the new SPOT Connect that lets you use your Iphone to send messages, texts and even emails from anywhere, anytime.

Would I do it again?

You bet! Although, now that I have done the middle route across, I would likely go on a more northern or southern route. I would also do this with a friend or family member. At times, being on the road solo is both good and bad. Seeking time away to think and not have to worry if your partner is having fun or needs to pee or wants to stop for the night is nice. However, sharing memories along the way, stopping more often to see sights, trading off driving duties and getting a chance to take more photos would settle the argument. Life is all about sharing memories, especially if you’re a photographer. Even if you take solo adventures, you look forward to sharing those moments with your friends and family as I am right now.

Thanks again for reading about trip, I hope it was fun and informative and inspires you to get out and see this great country we live in! God speed! If you have any questions, please drop me a comment or email at, jordanmayphoto (at) yahoo (dot) com

2,537 miles later I made it home! The past week has been one of the best adventures I have taken in my 37 years. I had always dreamed of traveling cross country but honestly never thought it would happen. Now, I can check that off my bucket list! I will tell you though, now that I have gone from almost one side to the other, I want to do it again. Let me sum up my last day of travel and then I will sum up the trip with detailed reviews in a following post.

Waking up in Moab yesterday morning was amazing. There are much worse places to wake up. The red rocks and natural shapes surrounding this tiny speck on the map are nothing short of superb. Don’t pass it up if you find yourself traveling through Utah via the I70. I want to apologize for the lack of Moab photos (photo above is from a few years ago). As soon as I woke, the first thing that popped in my head was home. Being on the road 5 days driving 8+ hours a day is taxing. Especially solo. Having been to Moab several times, I didn’t feel like I was missing much by getting on the road early and leaving it behind. I know some of you are shaking your head right now. I’ll be back soon enough don’t you worry.

My stay at the Best Western Plus Greenwell was less than stellar. Look for my summary post up shortly where I review all the hotels I stayed at this past week.

Leaving Moab heading west on I70 puts you into what I like to call “The Suck Zone”. 106 miles with no services and spotty cell phone coverage. Green River is the last stop to get fuel and food so keep that in mind. There is a sign to warn you of the looming lonely distance so stay alert. Just 10 miles west of Green River you enter an incredible valley much like what you see exploring Moab. View Point signs indicate where to stop. Stop and bring your camera. Black Dragon Canyon is my favorite (link). I would love to stop and hike the canyon one day when time permits. Be sure to click on that link and visit a blog post I found with some great photography and review of the trail.

When you finally make it to Salina, 106 miles down the road, you can refuel and grab some snacks. The next 116 miles on I70 before reaching I15, you enter some impressive wide open valleys and farm lands. The landscape changes once again as you enter the top corner of Arizona and then back into Utah then into Nevada. Lush green hills are followed by hot, brown desert sand. The road becomes green again as you pass through St. George and then back to brown coming down into the Vegas valley. There are plenty of rest stops, gas stations and food options throughout the remainder of Utah into Nevada.

My decision to continue driving past Vegas was tough. I love Las Vegas, but spending $250 to basically sleep sounded ludicrous to me. If I am going to spend that kinda cash in Vegas, I will do it when some of my friends are with me and I’m not beat from driving all day. My clear blue sky’s were quickly replaced with light and dark storm clouds pending imminent rain ahead. The weather station reported heavy thunderstorms in the Vegas valley and beyond. The last thing I wanted after driving 7 hours was to spend the remaining 3 stuck in traffic on wet roads. By the grace of God I seemed to skirt past each storm and barely saw any rain. Wet roads confirmed that I had just missed the storm as it passed over my route on the 15 several times ahead of me. Woohoo!

I don’t have much to say about the last 2 hours of my drive other then fatigue finally set it. Somewhere around Barstow, my head started to hurt, I was starving and my eyes were getting sleepy. I knew I would be okay getting home but I was tired. The thought of getting off the road and into my bed kept me going. All I wanted to do was get some dinner and crash, which is exactly what I did once I stepped in my front door. This leg of the journey put me behind the wheel just over 10 hours. So happy to be home!

Check back shortly for a summary post!

Before I get into today’s travel, I want to mention that I slept like a LOG last night at the Radisson. They had those fancy sleep number beds. Honestly, it was one of the best nights sleep I’ve had in some time. Thank you Radisson!

When I finally got going this morning, the first thing on my agenda was to summit Pikes Peak. As an auto enthusiast and member of the media, I have been watching and dreaming about racing or even setting foot on Pikes Peak for years. I will probably never race up the mountain, but now I can say I have set foot at the top, all 14,110 feet of it. On my way up the mountain I passed the small town of Manitou Springs. Bo recommended I stop and check out the town. I really didn’t have much choice as you have to drive straight through it to get up the mountain. It’s a quaint little town with a ton of antique shops, coffee shops and Pikes Peak collectibles.

The Olde Tyme Photography shop caught my eye, sadly it was closed. I forgot to mention that my father gave me an old camera to add to my collection the other day. I will mention that in another post. Bo also mentioned the six naturally carbonated springs surrounding the town, but I decided to skip them. I was anxious to get up the mountain knowing I had a long trek to Moab still on the agenda.

Just one of the cool buildings in Manitou Springs.

If you want to drive up the mountain it’ll set you back $12 PER PERSON (not per car). I also coughed up $5 for “The Motorist’s Guide to the Pikes Peak Highway” guide book. I actually learned quite a bit of history as well as some tidbits to help make your trip up and down easier. In all my years of watching races go up the mountain, nobody has ever said where the name came from. Well, now you’ll know.

In 1805, President Jefferson sent 27 year old Lt. Zebulon Montgomery Pike and 22 enlisted men into the wilderness to explore the southwestern portion of the Louisiana Purchase. Spain hotly disputed the proper location of the U.S. boundary, and Jefferson was anxious to establish a military presence. Pike’s instructions were to make peace with the Indians, observe the geography, natural history and topography and collect mineral and botanical specimens. Around the same time, Lewis and Clark were returning from their trip to the Pacific.

In November, 1806, Pike first sighted the Rockies from the south and called them the “Mexican Mountains”. One high peak held Pike’s eye in particular. It towered above its neighbors and looked to be close by, though it was 60 miles away. Pike and his men decided to climb the mountain poorly equipped with lightweight summer uniforms. They had already been on the expedition for more than a year. Their year long suffering became worse as they were now trudging through waist-deep snow. Two and one-half days later they were still far from the peak. Pike became frustrated and wrote, “I believe no human being could have ascended to its pinnacle.” Pike took a reading and estimated that the top of the mountain stood at an elevation of 18,581 feet.

After retreating from their attempt to summit the mountain, Pike and his men were captured by Spanish soldiers and taken to Mexico for questioning. Pike was eventually taken across to Texas and returned to the Americans. The information Pike gathered was considered valuable, and he was eventually promoted to the rank of General.

Pike died at the age of 34 during the War of 1812 and is buried in New Jersey. He may not have reached the Peak’s summit, or even its base, but he was the first American to describe the mountain. Today, the U.S. Geological Survey routinely leaves out the apostrophe in names like Pikes Peak, Longs Peak and St. Marys Glacier.

Well there you have it. Now you know where the name came from. Not only am I sharing with you my trip I am also taking you to school!

The journey up the mountain was peaceful. It’s 19 miles to the top from the guard shack and you gain over 7,000 feet. The route is steep in parts, contains more than a handful of very tricky switchbacks and provides gorgeous views.

On my way up I thought I saw a mirage, but behold, I did see mountain bikers coming down the mountain. Pikes Peak by Bike is a local mountain bike shuttle service (also provides bikes and a guide spotter) that drops you about 9 miles from the top and follows you down the mountain. I sure hope they change the brakes pads on those bikes every trip! That would be something I would like to do if I ever make it out here again. I’d actually like to attempt to ride up and down if its allowed. That would be an ass kicker, but worth it.

Near the top of the mountain the terrain became familiar. This is where you see guys like Travis Pastrana and Jeff Block drifting around these gnarly corners at top speeds. Now that I have driven these roads I have an even greater respect for how well those guys can drive. These are 10 mph corners for most people, 40+ for racers. Let’s not forget that most of the corners have NO guard rails and its certain death if you slide off the edge. Respect!

One of about 30 super tight switchbacks up the mountain.

Hey, look its me! I made it! The elevation didn’t hit me while I was driving but as soon as I set foot to ground, I felt lightheaded. Walking from the truck to this sign was rather interesting. After a few minutes my head settled down and I was okay. Took a second for me to get my bearings at 14,110 feet! This marks the highest I have ever set foot. BOOM!

Around the other side of the store is the new sign that faces the railway.

The truck did awesome getting me up the hill without problem! Couldn’t pass up a chance to snap a shot of it since its likely it will never get this high again.

Although I love to drive, if I visit again I will take the Cog Railway up. Why? When you read about my trip down the mountain you will understand.

Pikes Peak store was packed when the railway arrived. If you drive up and the railway is parked at the top you mine as well wait until it leaves. The peak becomes a ghost town when the railway is gone. I only noticed roughly 20 cars at the top. When the masses left for their descent I made my way around the store and picked up a few goodies. Apparently, this store is well known for baking world famous donuts. Sadly, I didn’t want to risk having a food allergy reaction on the way down the mountain, so I skipped the donut.

The views from the top were gorgeous. We had a thick cloud cover, which blocked the back half of the mountain but was still eye catching. The guy standing next to me while I took this photo said, “Oh man the last time I was here it was crystal clear and I swear I could see Moab from here!” Now that would have been impressive. Although I don’t buy it.

The other side didn’t disappoint. Epic rock formations all the way down to the valley floor.

Six miles down from the top you pass through the Glen Cove checkpoint. Yes, you pass it on the way up as well. The route is an out and back. On the way down, the park rangers use this stop to let you know how to safely drive down the mountain. After you come to a complete stop, the ranger checks your brake rotor temp with a heat gun and lets you know if you should proceed down or stop and let your brakes cool. Anything over 300 degrees meant you needed to stop. My brakes were at 545. Yup, I stopped for a good 45 minutes to let them cool down. I wasn’t really worried but better safe than sorry. As he told all the other drivers, use your low or first gear all the way down the mountain so you don’t need to touch your brakes at all. Although, this course of action puts all the strain on your transmission. I tried my hand at panning for gold while waiting for my brakes to cool. No luck. Darn. Making my way down the mountain in L or 2 was a slow go. Not only was I going slow but so was everyone else. 13 miles down the mountain at 10-15mph. You can imagine how long that took. I nearly shot myself in the head. The descent is why I would take the railway up next time. Save yourself the hassle of slow traffic and spend more time enjoying the view up.

Just before getting back down to the bottom, I passed Crystal Lake. I chose my footing carefully walking around the lake looking for a photo spot. I didn’t want to have to run away from someone and accidentally trip and fall over nothing. Let’s see who gets that movie reference!

With Pikes Peak behind me I started my trek for Moab. West of Denver on I70 is when the REAL Colorado started to show up. Finally. That northeastern part of the state can take a hike! Leaving Denver the I70 climbs up and through the Rockies visiting all sorts of famous ski destinations like Breckenridge, Leadville, Vail… wait maybe I meant bike destinations! Anyway. The mountain finally lit up and I must have had a smile ear to ear for a solid 2 hours.

Okay, so I have a thing for tunnels. I like to go in them. Hey, get your mind outta there! I snapped about 10 more tunnel photos but I will keep them to myself as I am sure tunnels don’t seem as exciting to all of you as they do to me. If I remember correctly, I passed through 6 today. This last shot was from inside the Eisenhower tunnel. Super long!

Descending the mountains and passing through the tunnels puts you right next to the Colorado River. The I70 towards Utah paces you with the river for a good portion of the distance. This part of the drive reminded me of my trip last summer to Idaho with Ryan. Miles and miles of river water, lush green pine trees, river rafting stops and did I mention tunnels?

I’ve never been into skiing, but it didn’t take more than a moment for me to realize why skiers can’t shut up about Vail. It’s huge! No, this picture isn’t showcasing it’s size. This is one of numerous ski runs and countless hotels and resorts within the span of what seemed to be 10 miles. Ski mecca.

Leaving Vail, I give you Utah. With snow capped mountains in my rear view mirror, I pushed through 70+ miles of flatland in order to hang a left turn on highway 191 for Moab. I’ve seen so much amazing country on this trip. I started in a city, traveled through rolling suburbs, hills, more city, back to burbs, corn fields, grasslands, more city, ghetto, more corn fields, some more corn fields, really boring flatland, green valley’s, steep mountain tops, raging rivers and more. Now, I am sitting in my hotel room about to crash in Moab, Utah, an offroader/adventurer,biker,hiker,rafter,boater,younameitpersonwholikesoutdoors land of enchantment.

Talk to you manana!

Continuing my story from last night, I just wanted to let you know that the Holiday Inn I ended up at was great. I ordered room service to start off my day, which was delicious. After consuming every ounce of bacon on my plate, I departed at 8:30am knowing I had another full day behind the wheel ahead. Leaving Nebraska, the sky was dumping rain on my roof and continued to for a good two hours before letting up. That put a damper on my morning but I didn’t let it get me down. Those are the things you deal with on road trips!

The distance between Lincoln and the border of Colorado isn’t really packed with goodness. It’s much like the eastern half of NE, corn fields and the occasional not very interesting type of museum. Just before reaching North Platte, I passed under this archway. Not until I got close enough to read the sign did I realize the archway itself is a museum. There was probably some kick ass farm equipment in there! Yeehaw!

Moving on…

Yes, those are brass knuckles. No, I didn’t pay lots of money for them. I found them while filling up the diesel tank in York, NE. Apparently, even gangsta’s in Nebraska like bling baby. I also found a few other choice objects in York.

I would kill to have an F-100 like that. The owners were out for an “afternoon cruise” as they said. That Coca-Cola trailer is wicked cool. Carrie, if you are reading this I bet your dad would love that 53 with all the Budweiser logos! All three rides including the trailer were in pristine condition fully restored. This was the top fuel stop so far on the trip! Prize to the person who can guess the year, make and model of each ride. Leave your answer in the comments. I already gave you half the answers.

I kept seeing signs for Stagecoach along I80 and considering I am still searching for a few choice items, I pulled over. Sadly, the 23 signs that brought me to this establishment were much more impressive than the actual shop. Where are all the cool souvenir shops? I need some “can only be purchased in the heartland” type of schwag dammit! Oh well…

Remember how excited I sounded yesterday waiting to drive into Colorado? That quickly changed after the first 100 miles. Even Nebraska had more to offer to the eye than the first 100 miles into Colorado on I76! I almost fell asleep at the wheel! The stretch from the border to around 40 miles outside Denver holds a whole lot of nothing (I’m not hating on farm land just saying there isn’t much to keep your focus). I don’t mean its open land filled with farms either, I mean nothing. The corn fields ended and the farms became sparse as well as the amenities offered at each exit. To make things more dreary, the road was slurry sealed so many times over it felt like a washboard. 100 miles of washboard roads, alone, with nothing to look at. I contemplated my navel for a good hour fity.

As I crept closer to Denver I decided to take my dads advice and detour to Colorado Springs. Aside from seeing some familiar faces, there wasn’t much for me to do in Denver and Pike’s Peak sounded like way more fun. Colorado Springs is an hour and change south of Denver via the I25. My NAV took me around the city on what looks like a brand new tollroad (471). It was smooth sailing the entire way until just outside Colorado Springs. Then the storms rolled in. Then the rain poured. Then I got to the Hyatt I was going to stay at and they were sold out. Then I relocated to the Radisson. Sounds a little like yesterday all over again without the ghetto!

As I pulled up to the hotel, I saw what looked like an actual Boeing KC-97 Tanker. Then I noticed it was half sticking into the side of a building. Right smack dab in the parking lot of my hotel is a freaking airplane restaurant! The Airplane Restaurant is a staple among United States Air Force personnel. If you didn’t know, the Air Force academy is also located in Colorado Springs. Apparently, the “fly boys” visit this eatery on a daily basis. I went inside and got a closer look and not only is the plane part of the restaurant, you can eat inside the plane as well. Sweet.

The real reason I decided to head further south than originally planned is to see Pike’s Peak. Unfortunately, pulling into the area the sky was almost black from the storm. I plan on driving up to the summit tomorrow morning so pray I get some good weather tomorrow morning please!

Truck update – The Super Duty is running great and I am starting to get comfortable behind the wheel. The 100 mile washboard road section of NE Colorado wasn’t the most comfortable though. The road left me vibrating in my seat for quite a bit of it. I would imagine most stock HD trucks would handle this road roughly the same. Nothing some better aftermarket shocks won’t cure soon enough! My fuel mileage from Detroit to Colorado Springs is an average of 17.9mpg. It was almost 19 until I reached Colorado and began climbing. The trucks power made me forget I was climbing until I reached a summit sign (forget the name) saying I was at 7,500 feet. WTF? I was? The truck never left sixth gear and I don’t remember climbing over 2,000 RPM with the cruise control set at 80 most of the way. This truck is a beast.

Hello! After two days behind the wheel of the truck above, I made it to Lincoln, NE. AKA watch where you book a hotel! I’ll explain shortly. Tuesday morning the Ford guys grabbed me from my hotel and we headed off to Chelios’ Bar & Grille for lunch in the new truck. After a yummy lunch, I started my trek towards Elgin (my hometown just outside Chicago) to visit Dad. I have spent some time behind the wheel of another Super Duty, but this would be my first long distance trip in a big HD truck. At first, the truck felt big to me, especially considering I daily drive an FJ Cruiser. It didn’t take long to get comfortable in the truck and settle in. Although this truck is a working mans truck, it drives and feels more like the type of ride a DR would drive home from the emergency room. It’s very refined but tough as nails when you need it to be.

When I first imagined driving through Michigan I thought, big city, lots of traffic, not rolling lush green hills and corn fields. I am sure Detroit is a hard knock city, but the outskirts are gorgeous and allowed my trucks legs to breathe. The NAV system quickly made itself useful, as the built in traffic alarms detoured me from three separate accidents and one construction delay. Awesome stuff! I also sync’d my Iphone to the Microsoft Snyc onboard system that allowed me to download my music library and contacts into the audio system leaving me completely hands free on the road. Nice!

I love Chicago, but I could do without the 8 toll booths I had to pass to get through the city. It’s really a bummer spending something like $15 to drive AROUND the city. Ridiculous. Hey Chicago, you listening?

Coming through Gary, Indiana, I passed over this bridge. The metal architecture was a joy to look at and if it was a good spot to stop I would have to get some good pictures.

Unfortunately, that is as close as I came to Chicago. Sad, I know. I would have loved to spend time in the city on this trip. With the time allotted to complete my journey, I have to pick my destinations carefully. Chicago is awesome, but having been several times, I chose to move on to Dad’s and spend more time in new places. I hope to see you again soon Chi-town!

Shortly after passing through 4 more toll booths, I landed in Elgin. I can’t remember exactly, but it had to have been at least 12 years or more since my last trip to Dad’s. The house is much like I remembered, with an added third car garage and a new patio room off the back. It’s great seeing homes sitting on half and full acre lots, nothing like the OC. You know, the land of “hey I can hear my neighbors through the wall!”. The big truck sure looks at home on the big property.

Dad, Carol and I had a nice dinner at a local pub while spending some time catching up. I really wish I had more time to travel and visit them as well as my other family in the Chicago area more often. I need to get back out ASAP. After a great evening of quality time I got in a great nights sleep and was off again in the morning headed for Lincoln.

I apologize for the crap picture. As I left Elgin this morning, I was greeted by this lovely cloud cover that was followed by lighting, thunder and rain. It didn’t last very long, but the rolling dark clouds did have me concerned for about an hour.

Once I passed through the storm, this was my view for the next six hours. Corn, corn, corn and more corn. As far as the eye could see! Six hours of corn fields can get boring but it sure is nice to see unclogged open land still covering the middle of our country. This is the heartland, the core of our country. Keep that in mind when you pass through and make sure to tip your hat with a smile passing the local farmer. You may be eating from his field.

While on the phone with Ryan (hands free of course), I passed this huge sign that read, World’s Largest Truckstop. Ryan told me the place had been on TV so I had to pull over. The Iowa 80 Truckstop is like walking into a Target filled with trucker hats, military memorabilia, CB’s, crappy fast food and Beernuts for days.

How many truck stops have you been to with full-size classic truck displays? I’d bet none unless you’ve been the the mecca that is I80. I counted 4 of these displays. If you find yourself passing through Iowa on interstate 80, stop.

If you collect military pins, you may have an orgasm walking into I80. This is just one of ten huge glass cases housing 1000s of pins. I could have filled an entire blog post of pins.

“As good ol’ Jack Burton once said…” If you’re a fan of the movie Big Trouble in Little China you’ll get that. This truck was loaded to the top with little piggies. Some may refer to this as the Bacon Express, Jack Burton, the Porkchop Express! Look at all those cute little snouts sticking out.

As you can tell, I didn’t stop a lot today. I had a lot of miles to cover and really looking forward to getting to Colorado. The one state I have wanted to visit all my life is only a day away. I’m planning on seeing some friends as well as driving to the top of Pike’s Peak! I have received a lot of good recommendations in the Colorado Springs area, so I may park it there for the night.

Okay, so the hotel situation. On my way to Lincoln, I was reading reviews of local hotels on Kayak. I usually stick to Holiday Inn Express or Courtyard by Marriot hotels when I travel. As I mentioned in my earlier entry, they are consistent and clean. Well, the Holiday Inn Express in Lincoln off Belmont is a DUMP. I booked it a few hours outside Lincoln so I couldn’t “see for myself” before I unloaded my credit card. When I pulled into the area I noticed the State Pen (prison) across the street, 5 bail bonds shops next door and an assortment of colorful individuals (bums) littered all around the back of the hotel. I promptly canceled my room and made my way to a much better part of town. Whoever gave that craptastic hotel 3 freakin’ stars was either just released or its the hotel staff doing it to lure customers in. Regardless, if you find yourself in Lincoln, avoid it. I am now at the Holiday Inn on the opposite side of the city in a nice, clean, new area.

Off to get some sleep, another day filled with a lot of miles tomorrow. Hopefully, I will have some great mountain photos for you tomorrow. Night!

Well, I made it! My flight left John Wayne at 10:30am yesterday morning. Everything went as planned on my way to Phoenix. My 3.5 hour layover sucked but after hearing all the horror stories of people that were trapped overnight, I am glad I had plenty of time to make my flight. Apparently, there was a huge storm lingering over the PHX area on Sunday that kept quite a few planes from landing. Sucks.

The new diet was a struggle yesterday. Finding gluten free options as well as nut, corn and soy free was pretty much impossible. I did manage to find a salad and fruit cup but I was pretty much starving all day long. I brought a few snacks with me from home, should have brought more. After I pickup the truck today I plan on dropping by a Wal-Mart and grabbing a cooler. If I can keep some healthy snacks with me over the next few days it will help, a lot.

My flight into Detroit was delayed about a hour. After boarding the plane, our pilot announced there was something wrong with some circuit board and it needed to be replaced. An hour later we were off. I was once again very happy with my decision to purchase the new Ipad. Sean dropped by Sunday night and dropped off some new TV shows that I loaded up and watched on the plane. (Archer/Family Guy Star Wars/Robot Chicken Star Wars) Most of the people around me ended up with eyes on my Ipad, good thing I wasn’t watching anything inappropriate! My big screen draws attention, what can I say.

After landing in Detroit I arrived at the Courtyard by Marriot, where I am sitting now, just after midnight. Starving, I ordered some plain chicken wings and a small salad from a local delivery service. I don’t like eating late but my body was on CA time (9pm) and considering how hungry I was, I ate. I am not sure why, but when I arrived in my room I noticed they upgraded me to a large suite. 2 rooms even! I guess they had the room open and knew I would only be here for about 8 hours so why not. The rooms here are always nice, maybe I will stay at a few more on my way home.

Ford is picking me up around 10:45am in the truck and then we are off to lunch. Shortly after, I will head to Elgin to spend the evening at my Dad’s. I’ll report back again tonight how the truck did on the first leg of the trip. Ta ta

(I will flip the SPOT GPS on today once I get driving for those wanting to follow my progress)

A while back I mentioned that I would like to one day take a road trip cross country. Well, after months of planning my route and running over a budget, it looks like that adventure will be well into the future. Fuel prices these days are mad and to hit all of the destinations on my list would cost me well over $1,500 in fuel alone. That doesn’t include hotels, food and miscellaneous expenses along the way. I put the trip right around the $3,000 mark to do it proper. Of course, I could skip a lot of the hotels and camp, which would save me a bundle but who knows how I would feel being on the road that much and how often I would feeling like crawling into the back of my FJ Cruiser to sleep uncomfortably.

However…

Work is sending me to Detroit tomorrow morning to visit with Ford Motor Corp. to pickup and drive back a brand new 2011 Super Duty F-250. I am very excited about the trip and looking forward to spending some time with the new project truck. We have a lot of plans ahead for the truck before it arrives at the SEMA show in Vegas just a few months away. I need to get crackin’! This road trip will also be a great way to see some parts of the country I have yet to set foot in and help me prepare for my future trip.

As per usual, I will have my trusty SPOT Satellite Messenger GPS with me for the journey. I will be checking in and tracking my progress the entire way. CLICK HERE at any time during the next week and see where I am.

Tentative Route

Tue – leave Detroit and head for Elgin, IL (6.5 hours)
Wed – leave Elgin and head for Lincoln, NE (8.5 hours)
Thur – leave Lincoln and head for Denver, CO (7.5 hours)
Fri – leave Denver and head to Moab, UT (6 hours)
Sat – leave Moab and head to Las Vegas, NV (7 hours)
Sun – Vegas to home (4 hours)

I could definitely get it done quicker, but why be miserably tired on the road alone? Doing an average of 7 hours a day allows me to drive during the daytime and leaves plenty of time to explore and take photos along the way. I am also hoping to see a few friends and possibly shoot a few trucks for work. My route may change depending on traffic, weather, allowed time, stops, work, etc.

Being an Apple fan boy (I guess I should just say it, I do have pretty much everything they make), I downloaded some new travel apps to try out on the trip. Combined with a couple I already love for travel, I should be set.

Kayak Flight & Hotel Search rocks! I use Kayak religiously on my Iphone to find flights and hotels wherever I travel. The interface is the best I have seen, it’s always up to date and the search functions are well laid out and super simple to use. Get it!

I have been a member of AAA for over 20 years now. Wow, I seriously just dated myself. Anyway, after reading a number of great reviews of their AAA Roadside app I gave it a download. Reviewers have reported how easy it was for them to call for a tow truck and even put notes into the message so the driver can find them. I am hoping to not need to use this app but it will be nice to have just in case.

Considering this trip will be the longest time I have spent behind the wheel of a diesel truck, I want to make sure to remember to buy diesel gas. I’m sure I won’t forget but Gas Buddy will definitely help me find the right stuff. This app is great for finding the cheapest gas around you. You can also choose what grade of fuel you need, which is not available in every fuel type app. This will definitely come in handy on the road!

Over the past 10 years, I have stayed at quite a few Holiday Inn Express hotels. I can’t brag or complain about the hotels, they are always consistently middle of the run. For me that’s great! Unless I am traveling with a lady, I just need a clean room with internet access and I am good. I just grabbed this app today, which should make booking rooms on the way back simple. I also plugged in my Priority Club Rewards number so my points should continue to add up. One of these days I really need to use those points!

When I return from my trip, I have a long post waiting to go up about my recent allergy findings. Over the past year, I have been ailing from horrible stomach pains in the morning. After months of trial and error I finally visited my DR for some testing. Turns out, I am allergic to peanuts, walnuts, sesame seeds, clams, scallops, wheat, soy beans and corn. Yeah, that is pretty much everything. Over the past month I have been on a gluten-free/paleo type of diet only eating clean food. Basically, I can no longer eat anything out of a can or a box because processed foods contain something on my list. This does suck but then again I am eating a much healthier diet than I ever have and finally starting to feel great. I have also lost weight and been noticed significant muscle development changes in my body. Let’s hope both continue! Anyway, looking through the app store for travel food apps I ran into, Find Me Gluten Free. Stores or restaurants that offer gluten-free options are also likely to have other food allergy options for people like me. The ability to locate them anywhere in the country will be vital to my diet this week.

Last but definitely not least is Yelp. When I am searching for something to do in a new town, I want to hear it from the people who have been there not some random experts opinion. With millions of people now using Yelp, I have yet to use an app of this kind with more information. Yelp works great, looks great, has pictures, maps and more.

Well, that’s about it for now. I will do my best to check-in daily and write something down or share some photos. Next post coming from Detroit!