East Coast Cities and Roads

Day 58
From Acadia NP, I really wanted to make it to Cape Cod National Seashore. Unfortunately, time did not permit it. I did drive through (or under) Boston.

This brings me to Big Dig. To anyone I told, "I went in the Big Dig Tunnel," they responded questioningly. The Big Dig was a huge project in Boston. You can read about it if you want. But on I-93 the result is awesome! Going south, it appears as though you are going to run right through the city, and then you drop below it in a 3.5-mile tunnel. When you emerge, that giant skyline that rose before your eyes now sits only in your rear-view mirror.

I ended up staying at a private campground in the southern section of the cape.

Day 59
I have friends who live in New York City and Baltimore. Unfortunately for me, they are real people with real jobs, and based on my time, I was unable to meet them. And as I thought more about it, I realized this really isn't a trip focused on cities. And even more, I didn't want to pay for parking in Manhattan and risk my car (doubling as my home) to be broken into.

I drove through NYC via the GWB (to locals) or the George Washington Bridge. There was enough of a view of Manhattan from the bridge to see how incredibly large it is. I am planning a trip for later this year to fly in and visit for the weekend.

That night I stayed in a state park in New Jersey and I had the same problem I had in New York, but even worse. Here, the permits stopped at 4:00 p.m. Hardly ever are people setting up camp before this time. I justified my squatting by dealing with the massive number of mosquitoes as a result of the flood waters not yet fully receded.

Day 60
On Day 60 I drove through Philadelphia, Baltimore and around Washington. I eventually arrived in Shenandoah National Park later that afternoon.

A Rant on Cities
My drive through these cities got me thinking a little bit about cities and an interview I recently heard with an Australian horror novelist. He was asked if American, English and Australian horror stories are similar or different from each other. He explained those which take place in rural communities or in the wild are completely different because those experiences in those countries are completely different; but those which take place in cities tend to be somewhat similar (assuming the setting is slightly fictionalized).

I have no idea if this is true or not, but it seems logical. And from the outside, many of our cities look the same. Sure, there are differences in demographics and attitudes and wealth, but relatively speaking, they are similar. This is especially true when compared to rural areas of our country. The demographics of our towns differ greatly, I mean greatly, in the different regions of our country. Certainly I haven't visited all of our cities, so I can't speak to what is similar and different, but one day I hope to.

My point in this rant is simply to say I think I made the right decision in sticking to rural areas and not to cities.

A Rant on Roads
While you will soon find I do indeed love some of these eastern parks, you will also find I don't like the roads to get to them (with two large exceptions). The East is very crowded. To make time and not see the same-looking town every couple miles, you need to stick to interstates, and that's just not as fun.

I had to take some state and federal routes in Vermont and I remember coming across a town every five miles or so. Out in the West, you usually have about 30 miles between each town. And, because the towns are smaller, you can drive through them in much less time.

If you take a trip out west, make sure you take state and federal highways whenever you can (outside large city areas, obviously). Well, make sure you get there first. Whether you are driving through North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma or Texas, take the interstate.

To have that classic road trip, you really need to be out west. And with that stated, you can read between the lines, into my attitude of the East. Fortunately, though, I kept a positive attitude throughout the trip and looked for beauty and peace in other ways.