Hello all, Today's blog is a little different than any of the other 100+ I have posted. I believe all of the topics actually go together to tell a larger story. Even if you don't think so I hope you enjoy the ride.
Surf's Up...
I understand that I do not think the same way other people do. [My wife likes to point that out all the time.] So I think I will start this blog with a movie I was watching a few weeks ago.
Over the past few years we have given our kids a gift for Valentines Day. It is usually a video or some other trinket that they can enjoy during the post-Christmas-before-Birthday timeframe. Anyway, my youngest son really wanted to get '
Cars' on DVD. We had all of the other Pixar/Disney movies so we thought it would be nice to have.
We had first seen the movie at the
Coleman's Motor-Vu Drive-In in Riverdale. (I know this is a trivial point but I think it ties into the general theme of this post.)
As you probably know the movie is about a race car that finds itself in a small town called Radiator Springs. This small town was on Route 66 and was by-passed by a Interstate freeway. There the race car finds his way and saves the city from becoming a ghost town.
One of the reasons I like to own DVDs is to see the extras that are included. After we had watched the movie I browsed at the included features and saw a clip called 'Inspiration for Cars'. In the featurette, 'Cars' Creator John Lasseter shares insights into the many inspirations behind the film, including Route 66.
John also shares his love of family cars trips and his firsthand account of how he discovered that life's about not about the destination; it's about the journey. [Sound familiar?]
['Cars' Creator John Lasseter]
I really liked the clip because it talked a lot about
Route 66 and how family travel really changes once the Interstates Freeways were made. To paraphrase John, he said that in the days of the old highway system the trip included the stops along the way. If something looked interesting people would stop and check it out. Now when people travel they only get off the Interstate to refuel or for a bio-break.
The old highways like Route 66 are experiencing a lot more travel in recent years. The website '
Historic Route 66', "
Cars, the Pixar movie, caused some interest in Route 66. What people might not realize is that most of the movie, including characters, cars, places and the plot itself were based on real people and places along Route 66."
I got a kick out of this site and how the pictures included were real life models and places used in the movie.
[This was the inspiration for the 'Road Cone Motel']
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The Highways and Interstate serve as the blood stream for transit and shipping avenues in the United States.
[Blue = Interstates; Red = Highways]
According to
http://www.us-highways.com/, East-West U.S. Highways (Like Route 66) are even numbered highways from US 2 along the Canadian border to US 98 along the Gulf of Mexico. The North-South U.S. Highways are odd numbered highways from US 1 on the Atlantic coast to US 101 on the Pacific coast.
Route 66 ran across the country from Los Angeles, California to Chicago, Illinois as seen above in red.
I don't want to take anything away from the historic nature of Route 66. It has become a part of Americana and people are beginning to return to the cities and stops along the highways off of the Interstates.
This was John Lasseter's point in the featurette and one of the resolutions in the movie 'Cars'. This got me thinking about my own family and the trip we are planning for spring break. As you my remember our
last vacation took us on a road trip to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. This spring we are debating if we want to go to the national parks in Southern Utah or visit the sandy beaches of San Diego, California.
My vacation plans fall into this debate of Highway vs. Interstate and if the vacation is about the trip or the destination.
First a little history, having lived in Utah for the last 36 years (gulp) I have become very accustomed to travel on either I-15 or Highway 89. For the last five years as I commute to work I have the choice of driving on the highway or the interstate every morning. These are the two biggest options for transit across most of Utah.
To compare Highway 89 and I-15 to Route 66 and I-40 is not historically accurate.
U.S. Route 91 was the original sister to highway 89. At its peak, from 1947 to 1965, US 91 extended from the Canadian border north of Shelby, Montana to the Pacific Ocean at Long Beach, California. Those who have traveled I-15 know for the most part this is the same path I-15 takes today. "
The original routing of U.S. 91 roughly followed the current route of Interstate 15. There are large portions of the original U.S. 91 highway that were upgraded on the spot to I-15, but other places, there are long stretches of original highway now used only for local traffic". [wikipedia]
This brings me to the
greatest highway in the country.
Highway 89 is "
a primary north/south route in the Western United States. In the early design of the US highway system, highways would run through the center of town. As such, Highway 89 is the main drag in towns throughout the western US. The Interstate system was designed to bypass such bottle necks. Interstate 15 parallels US 89. Sometimes the two roads overlap."
As of 2005, the highway's northern terminus is Piegan, Montana at the Canadian border (the highway continues into Canada as Alberta Highway 2). Its southern terminus is Flagstaff, Arizona. Historically US 89 continued to at Nogales, Arizona in the U.S. Mexico border.
This great scenic highway passes through or near Glacier National Park, Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, the Jackson Hole Valley, the Grand Canyon of the Snake River, Star Valley, Bear Lake, Great Salt Lake, Bryce Canyon National Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Zion National Park, Glen Canyon Dam, Lake Powell, through the Navajo Indian Reservation to Flagstaff. An alternate route also leads to both the southern and northern rims of the Grand Canyon.
In fact, half of GORP's '
Top 10 favorite parks' are all accessible from Highway 89:
1. Glacier, Montana
3. Bryce Canyon, Utah
4. Yellowstone, Wyoming
5. Zion, Utah
8. Grand Teton, Wyoming
Interstate-15 parallels highway 89 for the most part. In southern Utah the two turn in opposite directions. I-15 to the west ending in San Diego and Highway 89 to the east around the Grand Canyon and Lake Powell ending in Flagstaff, Arizona
"
Interstate 15 (abbreviated I-15) is the fourth longest north-south transcontinental interstate highway in the United States, traveling through the states of Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California. In California, this freeway is a major transportation corridor linking the San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos Metropolitan area with the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario Metropolitan area, and various suburban communities between them. It is also the main artery of transportation through the Salt Lake City Metropolitan area. It also serves as the primary access route from Southern California to Las Vegas, Nevada, a major travel/tourist destination throughout the year. More recently, I-15 has begun to serve as a heavily traveled commuter route between the Mojave Desert communities of Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley, and Adelanto in California, due to rapid population growth and associated residential, commercial, and industrial development. There are a total of 400 exits along the entire I-15."
So yes, Like my last vacation to Yellowstone my current vacation plans are either along highway 89 or I-15. Unlike the Yellowstone trip we are choosing between Utah National Parks and San Diego.
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Another factor playing into our decision is that we will not we visiting Arches or Canyonlands National Parks if we travel via Highway 89. Spring Break means vacation to thousands of people, some of whom will flood Moab, Utah for the 37th Annual
Easter Jeep Safari - March 31st to April 8th 2007
For those of you who aren't familiar with the Annual Easter Jeep Safari here is a description from the
Discover Moab website. "
Annual Jeep Safari - Easter Jeep Safari consists of trail rides, mostly day long trips, departing from Moab throughout this week long event. The official event is hosted by the Red Rock 4-Wheelers Inc. the local four wheel drive club of Moab. Participants provide their own four wheel drive vehicle, take care of their own food and non-alcoholic beverages for the trip. The club officially runs approximately 9 different trails every day, with "Big Saturday" culminating in the largest ever single trail ride departure happening - around 30 groups line up in down town Moab to head off in every direction for 30 different trails! Pre-registration for this event is recommended, although limited registration at the event may be possible. This massive week-long event is one of the largest events of the year for Moab. Please make your camping/lodging reservations as early as possible!"
Since high school I have wanted a Jeep and some day I hope to participate in an
event like this but when I visit these crown jewels of the U.S. National Parks I would like to do it without all the 4x4's and associated crowds this event draws.
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Our Highway 89 National Park tour will only include the national parks, monuments and state parks along US 89; Mainly Bryce Canyon, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Grand Canyon National Park, and Capital Reef National Park.
We will stay just outside of Bryce Canyon National Park and travel by van to all of the other destinations.
My wife and I have been to Bryce one other time but the lower half of the park was closed and we didn't really get to see much of the park.
We would stay at Ruby's Inn, at the very top of the above map. The park has many features I want to see including...
Bryce Canyon Lodge...
Several trails, vistas and outlooks around the amphitheater that you cannot find anywhere else in the world...
Thor's Hammer...
Natural bridge.
and Mossy Cave.
I found this '
Top Ten List for Bryce Canyon' of places to visit.
1.Red Canyon
2. Mosey Cave Trail
3. Bryce Canyon Scenic Drive
4. Rim Hike
5. Queens Garden Trail
6. Peekaboo Trail
7. Hat Shop Trail
8. Tower Bridge Hike
9. Fairy Loop Hike
10. Under the Rim Hike
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I found a great
photoblog by Derek von Briesen with some of our other possible stops on this trip.
Willis Creek Grand Staircase-Escalante
Lake Powell
Grand Canyon
Capitol Reef
Capitol Reef - Again.
Have I sold you on the beauty yet? Now for the downside. We have estimated that it will take 3 hours to get from Ruby's Inn at Bryce to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. All of the lodges and facilities will be closed when we visit. So 6 hours to the North Rim and back. We also estimate it is 2 hours to capitol reef.
This is the definition of a car trip!!!
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Our other option is to follow I-15 from home to where it ends in sunny San Diego, California. I have been here many times and spent three weeks there just after high school. San Diego is California's second largest city and borders Mexico. You may be aware of some of the attractions in San Diego like...
Sea World...
The San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Parks.
There are other touristy places like Lego Land but I found
this list of the
'Top 15 Attractions' in San Diego:
1. San Diego Beaches - Yes
2. Sea World - Yes
3. San Diego Zoo - Yes
4. Balboa Park -YES!!!
5. San Diego Wild Animal Park - Not this trip
6. Gaslamp Quarter - No
7. Legoland - No
8. Old Town - No
9. Coronado - Yes
10. La Jolla - No
11. Del Mar - No
12. Seaport Village - No
13. Point Loma - No
14. Whale Watching - Wrong time
15. Tijuana / Mexico - Not with the kids
Like the list above, one of the biggest reasons we are considering San Diego are the Beaches. We are considering spending two full days on the beach. I found this list of the '
Top 15 Beaches' in San Diego:
1. Coronado
2. Mission Beach
3. La Jolla Shores
4. Del Mar
5. Pacific Beach
6. Mission Bay Park
7. Ocean Beach
8. Windansea Beach
9. Carlsbad
10. Black's Beach
11. Solana Beach
12. Imperial Beach
13. Children's Pool
14. La Jolla Cove
15. Oceanside
So I'm thinking that we would try and fit in Sea World, San Diego Zoo...
Balboa Park
more Balboa...
Coronado
Coronado at night
The San Diego Temple
Mission Beach
more Mission Beach.
I am excited to return to
Balboa Park. "
The nation's largest urban cultural park. Home to 15 major museums, renowned performing arts venues, beautiful gardens and the San Diego Zoo. Kid-friendly museum best bets include the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego Air & Space Museum, San Diego Automotive Museum, San Diego Hall of Champions, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum, and, of course, the San Diego Zoo."
Here are two links [
link 1,
link 2] to PDF maps of Balboa Park.
I will also make a point of visiting the San Diego-Imperial Council Scout office located on the grounds to support them using the public land despite the ACLU's
lawsuit that is trying to force them out.
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So there it is my own little movie. Modern or Old School Car Trip? Natures beauty vs natures beauty. A long drive vs a long drive. The trip vs the destination. I-15 vs Highway 89. We have a big decision to make.
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