The Plan

Sabbatical REDUX:
7000 miles give or take 1000 miles…

February 1st to mid March 2020.

The Route (roughly):
Charlotte NC, Atlanta GA, Montgomery AL, Louisville KY, Chicago IL, Lawrence KS, Boulder CO,
Salt Lake City, UT, San Francisco, CA, La Jolla CA, (maybe Mexico too), Tallahassee FL, Columbia SC.
and HOME!

Seeing Aunt Julia and ALL my cousins, Vanessa & Doc, Maurice, Jaime, Melissa, Kaitlin and Samir, Kelly and Family,
Charlie, Ally, Hudson, Julian, Pamela, Pat, Anabel, Niki, Kristi, Rebekah, Phifer and Edward, Daphne and Tara
and Andrew.  Arlo will fly in at some perfect moment too.

Lots of room for spontaneous side tracking, open for cool places to visit and interesting folks to meet!

Back in 2014:
6000 miles give or take 1000 miles….

tami route

Lyle and I begin by going to St. Augustine, FL then on to Virginia Keys Grassroots Festival.

From there, we say goodbye for 30 days.  He goes on book tour and I head to St. Petersburg, then to see Daphne Holden for a night in Tallahassee, then up to see Paul Beezley in Alabama…could use some Alabama expertise…never been to that state.  Down to Mississippi and over to New Orleans for a bit.  Over to College Station, TX to see niece Laura & Dan, over to Austin, down to Big Bend TX, up to Marfa TX, up to Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque.  I have a month to do this and to go off course and explore little towns and bayous and parks.  Lyle flys to Albuquerque and if I’m not insane by then, we’ll drive back to NC via Memphis, TN.  That’s all I know for now!  Taking suggestions!!

The Actual:

One Night, Anastasia State Park, St. Augustine, FL
Two Nights Virginia Keys Grassroots Festival, Key Biscayne, FL
One Night, Fort De Soto, St. Petersburg, FL
Three Nights Tallahassee, FL
Two Nights Jacksonville AL
Two Nights Jackson MS
Four Nights New Orleans, LA
(3 Pelham Hotel, 1 7th Ward)
One Night Vicksburg, MS
Three Nights College Station, TX
Two Nights Padre Island, TX
Two Nights Marfa TX
One Night Fort Davis TX
One Night Alpine TX
Two Nights College Station, TX
One Night Lubbock, TX
One Night Albuquerque, NM
One Night Santa Fe, NM
One NIght Taos, NM
One Night, Ojo Caliente, NM
One Night, Amarillo, TX
One Night, Gore, OK
One NIght, Hot Springs, AR
Two Nights, DeWitt, AR
One Night Waynesville, NC
HOME SWEET HOME!!!!

 

Actual Route Taken (a few backtracking events)
Actual Mileage:  7709 (that’s alot!)

actualroute

 

 

11 responses »

  2. I loved the back road between Albuquerque and Santa Fe – old towns and saloons from another era. I also simply loved Chaco Canyon, which is a bit west of your intended route. The Anasazi lived and planned their architecture and communities based on the phases of the moon. For instance, although I’ve not seen this myself, one of the walls in one of their ancient cities will allow the moon to shine on it only once every 18.6 years, the phase of the moon that changes about 5º in where it rises and sets. Talk about observation and paying attention to the environment.
    It’s a bit of a challenge to get into Chaco Canyon, but they do have a campground where you and Baby Blue would be very comfortable.

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  4. Tami, we need to talk Texas. There are a few towns (well probably not big enough to call towns) along the Rio Grande…….Terlingua and Lajitas. I will check with dad to see if they are still worth going through. Such a neat area but may get lonely by yourself in such an isolated area. Will get back to you with what I hear from dad (who btw is now staying at the Aloha in McAllen, Tx if you get a wild hair!). Alpine Texas was totally cool, small but beautiful and worth a short visit. ANd I want a picture of you in front of the Prada store in Marfa!!
    Muzzy

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    • OK…prada photo it is. I think I’m going to stop in on Kurt and family in Padre Island, TX. Then up to Big Bend…so yes…those towns look close by. Send info!!!! I don’t think I’ll go all the way to McAllen…what the hell is ALoha?! I’m not lonely….so many folks are helping. It’s awesome.
      Thanks, Muzzy! I have to call you in a few days and laugh about boston. xxoo

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  5. If you happen to find yourself in south central Colorado, stop by a little town called Crestone, nestled beneath the 14,000 peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Not like any place I have ever been (lived nearby for nearly 10 years). Old mining town. No building codes so most everyone builds their own homes – out of straw bales, recycled Styrofoam, old tires, train cars, stones, whatever they have on hand, Most rely on solar electricity. Very community minded – though surely has its “contrasts!”

    Here’s the kicker: this town and its environs have about 1,500 residents and two dozen different religious centers, including a cluster of Buddhist monasteries, a Catholic monastery, a Taoist retreat, a Hindu ashram, a Shumei center and several American Indian sanctuaries. “This forested hillside haven, nestled on an enormous aquifer below the 14,000-foot Crestone Peaks, has long been considered sacred.”

    Half an hour down the road is Valley View Hot Springs – a bunch of little log cabins from the 1800’s clustered around hot pools (natural stone bottoms) with a sauna (also from the 1800’s) built over a snow-melt stream. Hippies young and old, clothing optional. Overlooking the San Luis Valley. Three miles from the cabin I used to live in. Haven’t been there in 10 years but truly special place. Lots of artists hanging out & the jewelry makers used to throw their lovely stones & crystals in the pools so the kids could dive for treasures.

    Might be a great spot to chill for a spell.

    http://www.crestonecolorado.com/shambala.html
    http://www.olt.org/vvhs

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  6. Is that Kurt T. in that instagram???!!! Does this mean that baby blue is fixed???
    Tami, that photo of you on the steps in NOLA is SPECTACULAR!!!
    I love New Orleans on so many levels so I can’t wait to discuss with you!!
    Hello to Kurt!!

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