We moved from Atlanta to San Francisco in August of 2009. I kept a mobile blog of our five-day, 2,473 mile journey out West. Below are excerpts from our trip.
Looking back, I wish we’d had more opportunities to stop and look around… but when you’re hauling all of your worldly possessions in a 22′ truck, it’s kinda difficult to go off the beaten path.
Packing for California
Day 1 — Aug 3, 2009
The 16-footer ended up being the perfect size truck. Eric said his “stock boy” days at Target came in handy. ;-)
Thanks to Riley for coming down to lend us a hand on Saturday.
And thanks Linda & Joey for letting us borrow your sweet liitle car all week!
BYE-BYE, ATLANTA. IT’S BEEN REAL.
We’ve been on the run
Driving in the sun
Looking out for #1
California here we come….
At a Villa Rica, GA gas station…
Where you can pick up a lotto ticket, a bucket of fried chicken, and a pair of Nikes??
At the GA / AL border…
Just saw the GA state patrol on the side of the highway with guns drawn and a dude face down on the ground. Yeehaw.
Suburban Birmingham, AL…. ugh.
Piggly Wiggly. Pawn shops. Bingo.
So much to see here. How will we fit it all in?
Just crossed the Mississippi into Arkansas…
Overheard in this Jasper, AL gas station…
“Aw man. They’re out of fish nuggets.”
Desperately searching for a Cracker Barrel…
Outside Tupelo, MS.
E: “Where’s the nearest one?”
A: “Exit 86B.”
E: “That sounds like a huge bra size.”
Chicken Fried Chicken
At Cracker Barrel in Saltillo, MS
Just crossed the Mississippi into Arkansas…
It reeks here. Eric says it smells like “french fries & compost.” I concur.
Crossing the Mississippi River…
Goodnight from Little Rock, a relatively underwhelming town…
Found a place to lay our heads for the night.
We drove (okay, Eric drove) 525 miles today. We have 592 to do tomorrow. I’m trying to find the courage to drive this truck so I can relieve Eric some. It’s skeery when the 18-wheelers zoom by us. :-/
Anyway, I enjoyed everyone’s comments, emails, and texts today. Makes the world feel smaller and the time pass painlessly.
Night all!
Day 2 — AUG 4, 2009
About 60 miles east of OK City…
Just met a sweet older lady (late 60s) from Augusta at the rest stop.
She and her husband were driving to Vegas and then Utah. They love road trips and have driven to almost every state in the US… “except Hawaii.” (What? No bridge to Honolulu?)
Her husband refuses to fly.
PS. It is hot, flat, and boring here in OK. Next state, please.
Stopped off in OKC for a spell…
- Oppressive heat
- Leo’s BBQ in downtown – Okay food. Friendly service. A true “dive,” but too sketch for my taste. They gave us free strawberry banana cake. Bonus.
- Oklahoma City Memorial – Beautiful & moving. Pics coming in next post.
Oklahoma City National Memorial
Stopping for the night in Amarillo…
We made it safe to our hotel.
600 miles tomorrow.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
:^)
Day 3 — AUG 5, 2009
Good morning Texas!
Somewhere in West Texas…
* huge flying insect smacks our windshield *
A: “Wow. What the heck was that?”
E: “I think it was a pterodactyl.”
New Mexico… in search of fish tacos…
1,300 miles down. A little over halfway to SF.
Stopping in Albuquerque in a hour or so for lunch. Looking in Yelp for good places to grab a bite.
Wish we had more time to look around. Going to pick up Rt 66 for a piece to see what we can see.
Resting in New Mexico
Tacos!
Albuquerque, NM
Ganado, AZ
Into dusk
Flagstaff, AZ
Day 4 — AUG 6, 2009
Waking up in Flagstaff, AZ
The open road
Williams, AZ
“Welcome to California”…
Needles, CA
Middle of nowhere
Our view at the moment…
Essex, CA
It’s hot up in here…
Essex, CA
Coco’s restaurant
Barstow, CA
Another gorgeous sunset
About 40 min east of Bakersfield, CA.
Our stop for the evening…
Bakersfield, CA
Day 5 — AUG 7, 2009
Waking up in Bakersfield
Last day of driving!
We stopped for gas
Firebaugh, CA
Resting
Patterson, CA
We’re Here!
That was a nice read on a Sunday morning. Plenty to laugh about. Who can refuse a road trip? I popped in from Eric’s site (link in his latest post) and starting exploring. Thanks Amanda. Say hi to Eric for me.
Paul
Australia
Thanks so much for stopping by, Paul. I’ll tell Eric you said Hello!