Hello!

This is the first entry as we prepare to leave on Saturday May 8 for a cross country trip. \240We will be driving our Subaru Cross-Trek with our dog Kyanjin. \240We plan 18 stops on a five week trip and we are going to try to find bagels in each town where we stay overnight.

We have acquired a few special items. \240I’ll report on how well they work:

**An iceless cooler that plugs into the car with an adapter that plugs into a wall outlet

**A silicon dog feeding tray with two fold up bowls that collapses flat to travel

**A waterproof dog mat for the backseat.

Peter is currently washing the car of a winter’s worth of dirt and sand.

Stay tuned. \240I plan to update this journal at least each time we change locations.

And we are off!

We successfully got everything in the car ( see below) and had an uneventful drive to Las Vegas today. \240This is a soft launch since this is our third drive to Las Vegas in the last 9 months.

We will be in Las Vegas visiting my brother Adam and his girlfriend Jean until Monday morning.

Kyanjin stayed in their house while we went out to dinner- this was the first time she stayed in a strange house alone. No problem ( thank goodness).

A Great Mothers Day

We enjoyed wonderful spring Las Vegas weather today- low 80s with a light breeze. \240Morning was a hike near Red Rock and afternoon by the pool. \240You can see that we all enjoyed a refreshing dip in the picture below.

We had a great dinner with Dolly and Norm, our friends from our hiking group, along with Adam and Jean in the backyard by the pool. \240

Tomorrow is the first bagel acquisition before we head to Albuquerque.

Hello from Albuquerque.

We left Las Vegas after picking up bagel sandwiches from The Bagel Cafe ( picture below). \240Great bagels and a really authentic New York delicatessen with excellent hamentachen. \240

We traveled across the bridge that spans the river in front of the \240Hoover Dam, which is always spectacular, and headed east toward Flagstaff. \240We switched drivers in Kingman Arizona at a nice park on Route 66. \240

Bagel sandwich lunch was at a picnic table on the campus of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff with a nice view of the surrounding mountains. \240It was very windy and around 70 degrees at 6000 feet.

We lost an hour crossing into Mountain Time on the New Mexico border and switched drivers in Gallup, arriving in Albuquerque at 8:30 pm. \240We managed to take out New Mexican enchiladas at Little Anitas right before closing time. \240New Mexican enchiladas are stacked instead of \240rolled tortillas with a fried egg on top and come with sopapillas ( fry bread). \240Not highly healthy but really good. Ben gave us two bottles of mixed drinks so we enjoyed the margaritas.

Our “dog room” at the Best Western is just right. \240No carpet and dog treats. \240

Tomorrow to Oklahoma City!

Hello from Oklahoma City

We had a great run this morning from our hotel down a paved trail to the Rio Grande. \240It was a clear day with 5 hot air balloons in the sky.

Today’s bagels were Ruthies Bagels which turned out to be at a cafe at the Albuquerque Jewish Community Center, a beautiful facility in the northeast part of town. \240I couldn’t resist the red Chile flavor which is not at all traditional but so very New Mexican.

We drove into cloud cover and the temperature kept dropping. \240It was 48 at our lunch stop at the Cadillac Ranch so we ate in the car after visiting the weird array of cadillacs buried in the sand.

We have been listening the mystery/thrillers while driving — now on our third book. \240I’m so proud of myself that I managed to connect my phone to the car speakers and download audio books from the library (without using anyone whose age begins with a 3).

We are now ensconced in a lovely Residence Inn in Oaklahoma City right next to an extensive trail system for tomorrow’s run.

Tomorrow Memphis and BBQ.

Hello from Memphis.

We had a really nice run in the Bricktown area near downtown Oklahoma City. \240It is a renovated warehouse/manufacturing district with a canal.

The bagel place had terrific bagels and interesting sandwiches. \240I had the “wasabi bomb” with smoked salmon and wasabi cream cheese.

We ate lunch on the grounds of the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock which has a family connection. \240The library was designed by my uncle!

We are listening to A Painted House by John Grisholm which is set in northeastern Arkansas- while we were driving through northeastern Arkansas! \240A total coincidence and fun to see the geography he described in the book.

We had our first traffic hiccup on the way into Memphis. \240We learned that yesterday the Arkansas Department of Tranportation discovered a significant crack in the underside of the I 40 bridge that spans the Mississippi River from Arkansas to Tennessee and immediately closed the bridge and all river traffic indefinitely The traffic on the other \240bridge not too far away slowed to a crawl so we lost about an hour inching along with all of the huge trucks. \240What a mess! \240Fortunately we cross the Mississippi on the way back much further north.

Memphis is quite a happening place even on a Wednesday. \240See the picture of some kind of motorcycle confab going on.

We had terrific bbq for dinner as planned.

Tomorrow we have a short drive to Tupelo, Mississippi.

Hello y’all from Tupelo, Mississippi.

This was our first day on the trip where we weren’t driving 7 plus hours. \240The weather yesterday and today was clear, dry and in the 70s-kind of like Truckee.

We had a nice run down by the Mississippi River in Memphis and then a walk later over a pedestrian bridge to an island in the middle of the river. \240There was an awesome model of the entire Mississippi River and tributaries built into the outside visitors center on the island - you can see Kyanjin cooling herself off in the river replica.

The Memphis bagels were bland compared to the others we have had. \240We ate them in a park in Memphis.

It was a 1.5 hour drive to Tupelo. \240This part of Mississippi is very green and heavily forested. \240We tasted mead at a meadery in Tupelo ( mead is a honey wine- “nectar of the gods”).

We had a nice dinner at Kermits Soul Kitchen at tables outside in pretty downtown Tupelo. \240They were having a wine walk and it was a beautiful evening so excellent people watching.

And finally a visit to Elvis’ birthplace.

On to Atlanta tomorrow.

PS - we are carrying quite a bit of stuff, including Kyanjin’s supplies and breakfast and eating utensils for us. \240We take advantage of the rolling carts at the hotels!

Hello from Woodstock, Georgia

We are staying for the weekend with our good friends Mary and Joe, formerly our neighbors in Truckee.

We could’t find any bagels in Tupelo, except at the grocery stores, so we ended up at Crestview Bagel in Birmingham Alabama. So far, these were the best yet.

After lunch we walked around the downtown park in Birmingham which contained excellent memorials and information about the civil rights movement. \240The famous 16 th Street Baptist church is across the street from the park. \240The church is now a historic monument.

Hello from Woodstock, Georgia

We are wrapping up a wonderful weekend with our terrific hosts, Joe and Mary.

Saturday we visited the Georgia Aquarium where Katie, Joe and Mary’s daughter, is in charge of the Beluga whales and some other sea mammals. \240Katie took us to the top of the Beluga whate tank and we watched these very expressive animals eat and interact with the trainers. \240The Aquarium is a very impressive facility. \240Saturday night was dinner in Woodstock on the roof deck of a restaurant watching the busy Saturday evening below us.

Sunday we drove north and hiked to the terminus of the Appalachian trail. \240It was a beautiful hike up to the top of Springer mountain and awesome to think about all of the people who began or ended their AT hike at this point. We bought some boiled peanuts on the way home, a local delicacy that is very much an acquired taste.

Sunday night we got to enjoy dinner with Katie, her husband Will and their two young daughters and two dogs.

Tomorrow off to Asheville, \240North Carolina.

Hello from Asheville, North Carolina.

We left Woodstock Georgia this morning and found today’s very good bagels at Soho Bagels in Canton Georgia. \240The Woodstock location of the same place was closed on Mondays.

The drive to Asheville was beautiful. \240Part of the trip took us through the Nantahala Gorge and we ate lunch at picnic tables at the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC). \240Besides being a site of a huge rafting center, NOC also has a bridge across the river for the Appalachian Trial. \240Lots of through hikers were resupplying there as well as eating enormous meals.

We wandered around downtown Asheville in the late afternoon. \240There is lots of history here since this has been a resort town since the early 1920s and had a confederate armory during the Civil War that burned down in 1865. \240I can see the silhouette of the Blue Ridge Mountains from our hotel window.

I finally had the restaurant hamburger I had been craving during the pandemic at Farmburger in Asheville.

We are here for two nights so planning a hike tomorrow in the mountains.

Hello from Asheville North Carolina.

We headed out this morning on the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway, passing a bear by the side of the road. \240Our destination was the Mt. Mitchell State Park for a hike up to the summit of Mt. Mitchell. \240

You can drive all the way to the top, but we opted for the 2 mile Old Mitchell Trail from the park office. It was a challenging two miles, because the trail was rocky, covered with roots and pretty damp under the trees. \240And we had to come down! \240Fortunately two other hikers clued us into an easier way down.

It took us two hours to get to the top, but we were rewarded with pretty good views plus bragging rights to be at the summit of the highest peak east of the Mississippi. We had thought that Mt. Washington was the highest but we were wrong - \240Mt. Washington ( 6288). Mt Mitchell (6684). \240It was about 20 degrees cooler at the top than in Asheville and the summit sights included the tomb of Elisha Mitchell who died in 1857 while exploring the mountains.

We have been careful about making sure we have enough gas since there are still shortages in this part of the country. Fortunately our car takes regular gas because often we find that stations are out of premium and mid grade. \240Dinner was take out in the room tonight while watching Jeopardy- all three of us were tired.

Tomorrow off to Frankfort Kentucky.

Hello from Frankfort Kentucky.

We took off from Asheville this morning and found today’s bagels in Knoxville, Tennessee . \240Our bagel rule is that chains don’t count so no Einstein, Breuggers or Dunkin. \240The candidate in Asheville was 30 minutes in the wrong direction and we had a scheduled distillery tour in Frankfort.

The place in Knoxville turned out to be drive through only with a limited menu but the bagels were quite good. \240You can see the line of cars waiting so obviously a popular place- thus “Best Bagels”. \240We found a nice state park for lunch.

Our distillery visit was to Three Boys Farm, a small operation that started in 2012. \240 Kyanjin joined us on the tour and tasting. It was a great experience since it was just us, the owner and the distiller. \240We tasted four bourbons and one rye directly from the barrels using a “whiskey thief”—a tube that sucks some of the whiskey from the barrel. \240After five generous pours, we were ready to purchase (and take a nap).

Dinner was in downtown Frankfort in a brewpub next to the Kentucky River- I had blackened catfish with braised collard greens. \240We walked around town on a beautiful evening, including around the State Capitol with magnificent lawns. \240This is a very pretty part of the country with rolling green hills.

This is a two night visit. \240We are planning a hike tomorrow.

Hello from Frankfurt, Kentucky

Today we moved on from bourbon to sightseeing. \240We spent the morning hiking in Cove Spring Park in Frankfort on a series of interlocking very well maintained trails. \240It was our warmest day so far on the trip so we were happy to be mostly in the shade. \240The trail at the top was a paved loop that was also accessible by car so there was a large group of elementary school kids on a field trip. \240From the top we could see the brick buildings of the very large Buffalo Trace distillery. \240We had lunch on a grouping of limestone rocks in a grassy clearing- very picturesque!

In the afternoon we visited Fort Hill, the site of a Union fort in the Civil War and the site of a small skirmish with the Confederate forces. \240Kentucky was neutral in the Civil War which resulted in various towns aligning themselves with different sides and quite a complicated situation. \240The fort was up on a cliff with a commanding view of the city.

Dinner in downtown Frankfort- our last BBQ since we are headed north tomorrow.

Today’s ( and tomorrow’s) bagels were from the hotel breakfast array. \240They were actually pretty good for our lunch today so we are doing it again tomorrow since we have a long drive and no convenient bagel stops.

Off to Frederick Maryland to spend the weekend with son Michael and daughter-in-law Carin whom we haven’t seen for 18 months. \240Very excited to get there.

Hello from Frederick, Maryland

We got up early this morning for a run with Kyanjin, then headed out for a 7+ hour drive to Maryland. It was a clear, sunny warm day and we listened to a very good Louise Penny mystery- Glass Houses. \240It always seems like we get very close to the end but always have just a few more minutes that we have to catch on our next trip.

We had planned to board Kyanjin for the weekend so drove directly to Diamond Shepherd kennels in the county outside of Frederick. \240We will pick her up on Sunday.

We are so happy to be here. \240We met Carin and Michael’s dog Finley for the first time and had a great dinner at home. \240We are looking forward to a relaxing weekend.

Hello from Dewey Beach, Delaware

We had a wonderful time with Michael and Carin over the weekend. Kyanjin stayed at Diamond Shepherd kennels though midday Sunday.

We took a long walk though Frederick on Saturday morning, then Peter and I helped Michael get pavers from Lowes , dig out a patch of grass and install the pavers as a platform for the garbage cans. \240We went out for a nice dinner Saturday night and Peter and I went for run on Sunday morning.

Michael and Carin had scoped out Pumpernickel and Rye, a bagel place in nearby Urbana so we picked up sandwiches on Sunday morning and then picked up Kyanjin and brought her home to meet Finley. \240They did fine together after some initial sniffing around. Kyanjin enjoyed Finley’s swimming pool.

We drove to Dewey Beach in the afternoon watching all the traffics going the other way😀. \240Dinner was at the Rusty Rudder outdoors oceanside which went well until someone with a dog started throwing sticks into the water on the beach next to the restaurant and Kyanjin desperately wanted to join. \240Peter and I had to take breaks from the meal to let her swim.

It has been really hot ( 80s and 90s) the last few days. \240A cold front is coming in and temps are supposed to fall 20 degrees tomorrow. \240We are looking forward to some cool weather although nights and morning have been glorious.

Hello from Dewey Beach, Delaware

As predicted, the temperature dropped from the 90s to the low 60s overnight. We even had some periods of drizzle- our first rain for the whole trip so far!

We did two hikes today in Delaware Seashore State Park. \240Lunch was at a view point of an impressive bridge over an inlet and lots of magnificent houses along the water. Kyanjin had a nice swim in the bay at lunch with a subsequent roll in the sand. Fortunately we could orchestrate another swim and quick exit and she dried off during the hike back.

Dinner was outdoors at a restaurant away from the water so no issues with Kyanjin. What a contrast from yesterday- we were very comfortable in down jackets eating dinner!

Tomorrow we backtrack a bit to Marietta Ohio to visit Peter’s sister Gretchen and brother in law Jerry.

Hello from Marietta, Ohio

Today was a longer travel day with a bit of backtracking. \240We stopped at a great bagel place on the way back- \240the very popular Surfbagel. \240

We had lunch somewhere in Maryland in a pretty park and with some traffic delays arrived in Marietta around 5:30. \240We have been here a number of times visiting Peter’s sister Gretchen and brother-in-law Jerry. \240They had a nice dinner waiting for us on their back deck. \240It hit 90 on the way here but was in the low 80s for dinner. \240Another first visit after 18 months and so nice to be here.

Hello from Marietta, Ohio

Our first stop was a walk along the Ohio and Muskingum rivers, where Kyanjin took a swim. \240Then we has a tour of the Mortuary Museum, run by Gretchen’s friend who also runs the adjacent funeral home. \240It was a fascinating \240collection that told the story of the history of mortuaries. The collection included old horse drawn and vintage hearses.

In one of the pictures there is coffin under the hearse made of basket material. \240Those were called hand baskets - thus the sayings “going to hell in an hand basket” or “basket case”. \240I had always wondered where those terms originated.

We had a real rainstorm this afternoon, just at the time we needed to take Kyanjin for a walk before we went out to dinner. \240Unlike the west coast, it was still warm out when raining, so it was reasonably comfortable and I can report that my new rain jacket works.

We had a lovely dinner out in a restaurant overlooking the Ohio River.

Tomorrow to Pittsburgh!

Hello from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

We ran around Marietta College this morning, a very pretty college where Jerry taught for many years. \240The mascot is the Pioneer, since Marietta was the first white settlement in the Northwest Territory and the jumping off point for the first westward expansion.

We had lunch with Gretchen and Jerry and arrived in Pittsburgh late afternoon. \240It was a lovely evening so we had drinks and dinner on the front porch of our Airbnb. \240It was the first meal we cooked since we left on this trip,

We will see kids and grandkids tomorrow. \240

Hello from Pittsburgh, PA

It’s been a wonderful few days in Pittsburgh. \240Sasha and Miri came to our place on Friday afternoon to make breadsticks and we had the first of two excellent dinners by Michael. \240Saturday we had the historic meeting of Kyanjin and their dog Luna for a nice walk in Frick Park. \240Dinner at our place. \240Sunday we went out for new shoes, ices and ice cream at Rita’s ( a family favorite), fun at a playground and another excellent dinner by Michael. \240The girls came back with us for a movie and sleepover.

Peter and I have gone on two runs in Frick Park with Kyanjin. \240We have been there so often on our trips to Pittsburgh and always commented that our dogs would love it there but never thought one of our dogs would actually come.

The weather has been cool and rainy but tomorrow should start to warm up again. We picked up bagels at Pigeon Bagels. \240They are in the freezer to be our lunch on the road on Tuesday.

It has been so wonderful to see the family here. \240Even though we have talked on FaceTime once a week, the girls have grown up so much in 18 months. It is hard to get a clear sense of that without spending time with them in person.

Hello from Champaign, Illinois

We are on the road again. \240We had beautiful weather on Memorial Day ( finally). \240After a lazy morning with Sasha and Miri after their sleepover, Julina joined us on a hike up to a waterfall. \240People with remote controlled trucks drove them in the water and up the waterfall, entertaining the hikers.

We took a final run in Frick Park on Tuesday morning and headed out for a 5 state drive from Pennsylvania to West Virginia, to Ohio, to Indiana and to Illinois. \240Indiana was a new state for me. \240We ate our Pittsburgh Pigeon Bagels at a rest stop in Ohio. \240They had a wonderful outer crust.

We had dinner with my dear friend and former college roommate Mo and husband Bill halfway between Champaign and Chicago in Bradley, Illinois at a restaurant with the great name of Hoppy Pig.

Indiana and Illinois have the most expansive farmland I have ever seen- the fields go on forever.

Hello from Albert Lea, Minnesota

We started the day with a run in a nice park near our hotel. \240Before leaving Champlain we walked around the Quad at the University of Illinois. \240Kyanjin enjoyed chasing sticks on the lush lawns.

We have entered the independent bagel shop desert so we got today’s bagels at Einstein Bros. We had our sandwiches at a rest stop right after we crossed the Mississippi into Iowa. The bagels were serviceable but not very interesting.

Our drive today through Illinois, Iowa and southern Minnesota was the definition of bucolic- a word that I don’t \240use very often. \240Again, expansive fields as far as the eye could see dotted with farm buildings and silos. Waterloo Iowa is the site of a huge John Deere factory plus the John Deere Museum, both of which we saw from the road.

I chose Albert Lea since it was the right distance from our last stop and it turned out to be a very charming stop. \240It has two big lakes and a older downtown which is reasonably active. \240We had dinner at a restaurant with outdoor seating and took a walk by Fountain Lake after dinner.

The weather was beautiful today- high 70s and sunny. Iowa was another new state for me.

Hello from Spearfish , South Dakota

We started the day with a run in a pretty park in Albert Lea. \240There were no independent bagel places in Albert Lea so I started looking west along our route and found Bagel Boy in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. \240Definitely a contender!

We spent most of the day driving west in South Dakota. \240It was beautiful but long and hot ( around 90). \240We finished another audio book and started our 5 th book. \240The terrain started getting more interesting in the Badlands and it is quite beautiful here in the Black Hills. \240Kyanjin barked at the Sinclair dinosaur- too bad they are not giving up the blow up ones anymore.

Spearfish is a nice mountain town and also home of Black Hills State University. \240We ate in the picturesque downtown and took a walk afterward, finding one of the nicest dog parks we have ever been too. \240Kyanjin is really going to miss the endless grass.

On the drive there were signs to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum and original home . \240Unfortunately both were 50 mile detours and we didn’t have time. Definitely need to make another trip to this area and check them out plus visit the national parks.

South Dakota was a new state for me. \240Tomorrow off to Jackson, Wyoming.

Hello from Jackson, WY

We had an early run in Spearfish- it was 72 at 6:30 am and 80 by the time we left 2 hours later.

We spent the day driving from east to west across Wyoming. \240We picked up the bagels in Gillette, Wyoming and ate them for lunch in Casper, Wyoming at a nice city park. \240The terrain changed dramatically during the day from rolling hills to high desert, to mountains.

We came across a sign for the “center of the nation” in Belle Fouche, Wyoming. \240We didn’t go to see the monument but learned through internet research that this point is the center point of the US taking into account all 50 states and calculated by determining the point where the land mass would balance. \240Evidently there are other center points of continental US and North America.

The first glimpse of the Tetons was awesome as we drove up and over the Continental Divide and down into Jackson Valley. \240Pictures can’t really capture the massive peaks.

Jackson is hopping on a Friday night. \240Restaurants were full and lots of people strolling in the town square. \240We decided to avoid the crowds and ate supermarket takeout in the room and a stroll after dinner.

We are staying for the weekend and heading out again on Sunday.

Hello from Elko, Nevada

We had a great Saturday in Jackson. After a morning hike on a set of trails near town, we met Susan and Gary Halling \240( Orinda friends) for a construction site tour of their beautiful home in progress overlooking the town of Jackson. \240After that, a walk along the Snake River and dinner at an Italian restaurant in town.

Our morning run on Sunday ended at Pearl Street Bagels just as it opened - there was already a line!

We walked around the outside of the Grand Teton National Park visitors center and exited Jackson to the west over an exciting pass with beautiful views of the Tetons behind us for the person ( Peter) who was not driving . Jackson was very busy- all the hotels had no vacancy signs and their was a line up at the National Park entrance. \240Summer post Covid has definitely begun.

The route to Elko was as zigzag through Idaho- not the prettiest parts. \240Lunch was at a very nice park in Idaho Falls.

Final burger dinner tonight in Elko- tomorrow back to better eating habits. The big cowboy boot is in front of the Northeastern Nevada Museum, in a huge park next to our hotel.

We have only a 4.5 hour drive tomorrow to Truckee.

Hello from Truckee.

It’s over. \240We both have mixed emotions but ready to resume our regular life. \240I am already planning another cross country adventure.

We went on a run in Elko this morning in an enormous city park and sports venue. \240The mapping for today’s drive was easy- Highway 80 west until the Truckee exit. \240We got bagels at a cafe in Winnemucca and ate our lunch in the Lovelock city park, right next to the freeway. \240We passed the sign for USA Highway, which was the exit we used to head to Las Vegas on our first day.

We arrived home midafternoon. \240I’m looking forward to selecting from a wider array of clothing.

We traveled 7,655 miles and listened to 5 books! \240We were surprised how smoothly the trip unfolded and how well Kyanjin did with the constant changing environment and long car trips. \240Traveling with a dog brought us into conversations with so many people all over the country.

I read that 72% of the US population live in the place they grew up. \240This country is so diverse - geographically and \240culturally, with different weather, trees, recreational activities, history and job opportunties. \240Driving around gave us the opportunity to see much more of the diversity and understand a bit better how people are shaped by their environments.

Finally the bagels. \240First, whoever suggested that we have a theme was right- it was good to have a unifying experience and the quest was always interesting. \240Plus, we never needed to decide how to handle lunch.

We think that the bagels in Birmingham, Gillette ( WY) and Jackson (WY) were outstanding, with Las Vegas and Pittsburgh not far behind. \240Really the only poor bagels were Einstein’s. \240The place with the most personality was Surf Bagel in Lewes, Delaware.

We LOVE the Igloo plug in cooler and are big fans of the audio versions of \240Louise Penny novels.

Tomorrow we will be in Truckee.