east coast trip

packnrat wrote:


but it can not take place for four years yet.

so doing resurance now.

.

Yikes. Whole new definition to "plan ahead".

Seriously suggest you re-post or resurance(?) this thread about 3 years from now..:R

*LOTS* of "things" can change between "now" and 4 years from now.

~

BCSnob wrote:

fla-gypsy wrote:
Our stuff pre dates anything up north. We have 16th century history in Florida. St Augustine is the oldest city in the nation.

of European decent. Cahokia in IL had 20,000 inhabitants ca. 1100-1200 AD.

One could go on and on. St.Augustine ws Spanish.

Amerigo Vaspucci discovered the Pacific Ocean.

Eskimos up North on their way south.

Polynesians rafted over from wherever to South America.

I understood the OP was inferring "American" SETTLEMENTS" and COLONIAL self-governments under organized societal norms.

Native Americans didn't number more than 5-7 million (according to whatever facts one evaluates), in LOOSELY organized confederations. Low birth rates and infant survival rates among hunter-gatherer groups and a few agricultursl tribes didn't help either.

Etc.

Etc.

I grew up in Burbank, California, but all of our relatives were on the East coast. Every other summer we would spend six weeks camping from coast to coast. By the time I was nine, my parents assigned me the tasts of trip planning and navigation. We mapped a different route each time depending on the time of the summer that we went. One year the trip was in late May, so we took the southern route and saw the petrified forest, the Grand Canyon and the desert southwest. Texas and the Alamo, Louisiana and New Orleans, then the Everglades, then up through the coastal states to Virginia and Maryland, where the realitives lived.

Mid-summer, we traveled the middle of the country, first through the Sierra Nevada mountains, then through the middle of the country to the East coast. The mountains are beautiful - Flagstaff and Breckenridge are two of my favorite places on earth.

High summer - the Northern, and my favorite, route. Up the California coast through Washington and Oregon, through Montana, then onward to the Great Lakes, then south through New York, stopping to see a few of the landmark sites, then south to Baltimore and Washington D.C., with a few day trips to Williamsburg/Jamestown and lots of time at the Smithsonians.

One year, we went late summer and did all of New England, traveling south with the leaves changing. Absolutely wonderful trip.

I envy your ability to do this - someday we will have enough time off to do this. Plan ahead, make reservations at the campgrounds so you don't end up sleeping in a field in Montana (although it was kind of fun). We traveled (all eight of us) in a station wagon with a pop-up, and it was always interesting. Take your time, plan some side trips and don't plan on too many miles in a day. We usually took 10 days across the country, ten days back and lots of time in the middle.

Most of all, pack your sense of humor and more money than you think you'll need. We always had some mishap. Anyone remember Firestone 711 tires? We managed to blow several on one trip. Water pump failure in the middle of Kansas. We found a garage that was willing to work on it after hours on a Saturday, and spent the afternoon having root beer floats at an old-time soda fountain in a small drugstore. Don't buy souveniers at the tourist destinations - go to the nearest Walmart and get T-shirts from the area. In D.C., do the opposite - the T-shirt vendors around the Mall have cheap shirts.

Happy Camping!

noe-place wrote:

BCSnob wrote:

noe-place wrote:
I thought the Vikings were first in North America. :S

Nope, native americans were first in north america

Prove it.

You've got to be kidding:S, Native Americans predate the Vikings by over 10,000 years and are the only indigenous people of North America.:p All others came later and are not considered indigenous.

Larry

BCSnob wrote:

noe-place wrote:
I thought the Vikings were first in North America. :S

Nope, native americans were first in north america

Prove it.

while you are in DC area, take time out to go to the Pentagon and go the 9/11 memorial there. I didn't know it was there until I was in DC for work. It was really a thought provoking memorial (especially for someone who works for DoD)

Oh yeah, if you want to do tours of Capital, White House, etc, get with your home state Congressman's office. They can set some of that up for you, so you can go a bit more in depth. I wish I would have had more notice of my trip, so I could have done the tours that are set up by my Congressman's office.

there is an RV park in MD that everyone seems to recommend for touring DC. figure out the metro and use that to your advantage.. much better than driving and trying to find a place to park..

How long a vacation are you planning? You have got 8 days driving back and forth between coasts. You can do better if you full throttle, bathroom and fuel but I wouldn't enjoy that so much. No way can you do a comprehensive trip with out 8 to 12 weeks, and then you would only scratch the surface. You need to decide on a focus for this trip!


Remember the east coast was settled when the only mode of transportation was wagon or water. Towns were built 10 to 20 miles apart sometimes closer, depending on how far a teamster or packet boat could make in a day.

Roads were laid out along property lines and the same general lay out exists today,so you zigzag to get anyplace.

Everyone of us is proud of our state and region,I am partial to NY, We have Niagara Falls the Erie Canal the Finger Lakes, Watkins Glen for Motor Sports, Corning Glass Museum, Downstate and the city,Adirondacks, and on and on.

noe-place wrote:
I thought the Vikings were first in North America. :S

Nope, native americans were first in north america

I thought the Vikings were first in North America. :S

Greetings;

"BEGINNINGS" of America?

They're in Massachusetts.

Plymouth Rock ( circa; 1620) and Mayflower replica

Boston Tea Party ship replica at actual site of the Party
Boston Massacre site

"Old Ironsides" (USS Constitution),on the harbor. STILL an active duty warship and flagship of the United States First Naval District

Paul Revere's house

The BRIDGE at Lexington and Concord. "The Shot Heard Around the World"

Bunker Hill

Old North Church, "One if by land, two if by sea", Paul Revere's lanterns

Cambridge Common, where General George Washington took command of the Continental Army

Freedom Trail self-guided walkway from Boston Visitors' Center

There's your "BEGINNINGS of America"

Enjoy

:)