Relocation Vacation?
July 29, 2018 6:34 AM Subscribe
I'm relocating to Portland, OR from the Charlotte metro area, and will be making the drive out next week. Help me find some rad places to stop on the way so the drive isn't a miserable slog the entire time.
Complicating factors are as follows:
- I'm a fat ol' butch-looking AFAB transmasculine person with brightly colored hair and a HRC bumper sticker on my car.
- I'm not in shape. At all.
- I'll be traveling alone...
- ...except for my dog, who is 13 pounds of separation anxiety.
- And I'd prefer not to spend too much, but I'm willing to part with some cash for something that's worth it.
Is there anything at least moderately cool and dog friendly to look forward to on the way? Cool dog parks, interesting and not too strenuous natural things (waterfalls, canyons, etc.), biggest balls of twine, large collections of kitschy fiberglass statues from the 1950s? I also count tasty and potentially regional off the beaten path food experiences that aren't too far off the main route, which is basically what you get when you plug in "Charlotte, NC" on one end and "Portland, OR" on the other in any navigation/map app. Or would it be better to just grin and bear it until I hit my destination? Any and all suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!
(Oh, and yes, I will be checking Atlas Obscura.)
Complicating factors are as follows:
- I'm a fat ol' butch-looking AFAB transmasculine person with brightly colored hair and a HRC bumper sticker on my car.
- I'm not in shape. At all.
- I'll be traveling alone...
- ...except for my dog, who is 13 pounds of separation anxiety.
- And I'd prefer not to spend too much, but I'm willing to part with some cash for something that's worth it.
Is there anything at least moderately cool and dog friendly to look forward to on the way? Cool dog parks, interesting and not too strenuous natural things (waterfalls, canyons, etc.), biggest balls of twine, large collections of kitschy fiberglass statues from the 1950s? I also count tasty and potentially regional off the beaten path food experiences that aren't too far off the main route, which is basically what you get when you plug in "Charlotte, NC" on one end and "Portland, OR" on the other in any navigation/map app. Or would it be better to just grin and bear it until I hit my destination? Any and all suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!
(Oh, and yes, I will be checking Atlas Obscura.)
If you've never been, Mount Rushmore is certainly worth a stop, and since you'll have seen the signs for a thousand miles a stop at Wall drug is almost required, ultra cheesie but fun.
posted by sammyo at 7:43 AM on July 29, 2018
posted by sammyo at 7:43 AM on July 29, 2018
I’ve done the drive from Oregon to Maine and back again and took a more northern route out, and close to your route back to Oregon. I far preferred the northernly route that hooks up through Montana. It takes longer, but especially Montana into Idaho was a pretty fantastic drive. More smaller towns that weren’t just pit stops, that seemed to have some history and character in them.
They are a bit of a detour for you, but visiting the Bonneville salt flats was a really cool experience for me. Unlike any landscape I’ve seen before. I saw these on a different drive helping a friend move from SLC to PDX. We drove through northern Nevada and southern Oregon...it was a really boring drive until we got to the Klamath basin. I’m trying to find the route we took, but it was ultra boring then insanely impressive.
The caves under Kansas City are also pretty interesting, and was a complete shock to me when I learned about them.
If you drive through Pine Bluffs, Wyoming and flip it off, when you get to Portland I’ll buy you a beer and tell you the story of why you flipped off Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:10 AM on July 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
They are a bit of a detour for you, but visiting the Bonneville salt flats was a really cool experience for me. Unlike any landscape I’ve seen before. I saw these on a different drive helping a friend move from SLC to PDX. We drove through northern Nevada and southern Oregon...it was a really boring drive until we got to the Klamath basin. I’m trying to find the route we took, but it was ultra boring then insanely impressive.
The caves under Kansas City are also pretty interesting, and was a complete shock to me when I learned about them.
If you drive through Pine Bluffs, Wyoming and flip it off, when you get to Portland I’ll buy you a beer and tell you the story of why you flipped off Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:10 AM on July 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
I've used Roadside America before to find kitsch (https://www.roadsideamerica.com/location/)--including a little free Pony Express museum in Nebraska. I also toured every state capital building in my path; Nebraska's was particularly interesting.
If you find yourself in Denver, feel free to reach out! I can't offer you a couch due to my cats, but I'd be happy to meet up.
posted by sugarbomb at 9:35 AM on July 29, 2018
If you find yourself in Denver, feel free to reach out! I can't offer you a couch due to my cats, but I'd be happy to meet up.
posted by sugarbomb at 9:35 AM on July 29, 2018
Roadtrip USA is also great. I have driven most of the way across the country on U.S. 20 and U.S. 2. I really liked 20, just cruising through towns.
posted by kerf at 10:08 PM on July 29, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by kerf at 10:08 PM on July 29, 2018 [1 favorite]
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posted by wowenthusiast at 7:29 AM on July 29, 2018