Spring break - Day 1 - Nebraska
I drove (approximately) 530 miles today, and am currently in North Platte, Nebraska. Specifically, I'm in the lobby of the Royal Colonial Inn (apparently the wireless internet connection doesn't reach to my room). I made only three stops on the way today -- one in Lemars, Iowa, for a Dr. Pepper and a danish, once in Omaha for gas, and finally in York, Nebraska, for lunch at the Country Kitchen (club sandwich, quite tasty). Here are a few random thoughts from my first day:
I'm pleased to find that I can still drive long distances. It's been years, probably a decade or more, since I've driven more than 300 miles in one day. Winona to Chicago has probably been my longest trip in recent years.
Driving across Nebraska is not quite as exciting as it sounds. Imagine driving through western Minnesota and/or South Dakota, and then cut the excitement level at least in half. (Yes, my sense of sarcasm has survived.)
I was surprised by the amount of traffic on I-80 through Nebraska. It was a lot heavier than I expected. I expected a lot around Omaha and Lincoln, of course, but even further west, it was very heavy traffic. Until I got somewhere past York. Then it suddenly thinned to what I'd been expecting. I don't know if it was the location or the time (it was only about 4:00 p.m.). Some of those who know me well know I am occasionally fascinated by traffic patterns.
You can get sushi in Nebraska. I went out for supper at a local Japanese restaurant here in North Platte. I didn't have the sushi, I had tempura shrimp, but you can get sushi.
I'm only about a third of the way to my ultimate destination of Phoenix. I had wanted to get a bit further today, but decided to stop here as it looked on the map like there weren't any big towns for quite awhile after North Platte (which isn't much bigger than Winona), and I remember from previous driving vacations that it's sometimes hard to secure a motel room later in the evening (it was about 6:00 when I got here). Hopefully I can get a bit more in tomorrow, if I get an early start. Plus, I'll gain an extra hour when I cross the timezone line, which I'm very close to already.
I found a public radio station near Lincoln which was playing some opera this afternoon. I didn't listen to it, but it made me smile. My ex-girlfriend Christine is from Lincoln and she sings opera.
More tomorrow...
I'm pleased to find that I can still drive long distances. It's been years, probably a decade or more, since I've driven more than 300 miles in one day. Winona to Chicago has probably been my longest trip in recent years.
Driving across Nebraska is not quite as exciting as it sounds. Imagine driving through western Minnesota and/or South Dakota, and then cut the excitement level at least in half. (Yes, my sense of sarcasm has survived.)
I was surprised by the amount of traffic on I-80 through Nebraska. It was a lot heavier than I expected. I expected a lot around Omaha and Lincoln, of course, but even further west, it was very heavy traffic. Until I got somewhere past York. Then it suddenly thinned to what I'd been expecting. I don't know if it was the location or the time (it was only about 4:00 p.m.). Some of those who know me well know I am occasionally fascinated by traffic patterns.
You can get sushi in Nebraska. I went out for supper at a local Japanese restaurant here in North Platte. I didn't have the sushi, I had tempura shrimp, but you can get sushi.
I'm only about a third of the way to my ultimate destination of Phoenix. I had wanted to get a bit further today, but decided to stop here as it looked on the map like there weren't any big towns for quite awhile after North Platte (which isn't much bigger than Winona), and I remember from previous driving vacations that it's sometimes hard to secure a motel room later in the evening (it was about 6:00 when I got here). Hopefully I can get a bit more in tomorrow, if I get an early start. Plus, I'll gain an extra hour when I cross the timezone line, which I'm very close to already.
I found a public radio station near Lincoln which was playing some opera this afternoon. I didn't listen to it, but it made me smile. My ex-girlfriend Christine is from Lincoln and she sings opera.
More tomorrow...
posted by Kootch | 8:48 PM
3 Comments:
I can relate to your comments about Nebraska. If you recall, in the early 1990's the 'rents and I drove from Winona to North. California. We only made Lincoln the first day, but then we started further East. than you did, but the 2d day from Lincoln to someplace in Wyoming was pretty dull. But after that it picked up as we hit the mountains and on into California!
Looking at a map, it appears you made about 1/3 of your destination on the first day. I'd be more than satisfied with that.
Public Radio in Nebraska, huh? I hope you remembered a ton of tapes and aren't depending on the radio for entertainment?
I'm sort of jealous. I haven't been any further than the "Twin Kitties" since moving back to wonderful, exciting Winona (not necessarily by choice) in the Spring of '02.
That's a pretty good portion of the trip out of the way.
I drove from Denver to San Diego around this time last year. Kevin drove my new Volvo out from Minnesota and I flew to Denver to make the exchange. I picked up the keys and headed west that night, hitting a huge blizzard in New Mexico. I ended up pulling off the road to sleep just across the NM/AZ border, exhausted from four hours of snow conditions. The rest of the trip (the next morning) was a breeze.
Looking forward to more reports from The Road. Happy Trails!
I brought a box of 25 tapes, but see Day 2's comments on radio.
No snow at this time, Wyl. I had the A/C on in the car for a good portion of the trip through CO and NM.
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