Why am I doing this?

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I love to plan things, so I have started to plan a road trip. I plan to begin this road trip the Spring after I retire. Retirement date could be as early as October, 2015, but I am not committed to that month or year. Planning is eighty percent of the fun of traveling.

The path will begin in Central Pennsylvania. From there I will travel to West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and return to Pennsylvania. Since my husband and I will be retired when we begin this trip, we will have no set time period to travel. We will see the USA until we are tired of it, then we will come home. When we become restless, we will get back on the road to continue our trip.

Normally when I am planning a vacation, I will begin planning each day by deciding what time to have breakfast so that I can travel and be at the first location by the time it opens for the day. For this trip, I am taking a more relaxed approach. Usually I plan a schedule for each day and my hotel rooms are reserved long before I leave home. For this trip, I will have a schedule, but not exactly what day I will visit each location.

As I plan the path we will take, I am attempting to drive no more than 2 to 3 hours, between stops.

On family vacations we usually eat breakfast at the hotel, snack on fruit or granola bars for lunch and eat dinner around 5:00pm. If the hotel doesn't include a free breakfast, we pack instant oatmeal. Granola bars take practically no space and can be purchase along the way. By eating earlier in the evening, we don't have that 'heavy' feeling when heading to bed. It also gives us time for a relaxing walk before retiring for the night.

My goal now is to share with you ideas for planning your travel. My future goal will be to give you enjoyment in seeing the photos and hearing the stories about my travels.

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