Across Iowa and Half of Nebraska

I actually hold Iowa and Nebraska-- not to mention most of the other States of the American heartland; there is not much one can say about the experience of hurtling down an Interstate during mid-February in these States. It was boring but I covered lots of ground and managed to listen to much of my current AudioBook Mr. Peanut.

I've had an interesting insight about selecting gear for a long roadtrip like this one and that is how much one's decisions conform to Parkinson's Law ("The amount of work expended on a task is directly proportional to the amount of time available"). During every phase of packing for the trip each time I had to decide whether or not to take an item I inevitably decided to take rather than leave thinking "what the hell... I've got a minivan and there's plenty of room" until, of course, the space available was filled.

Almost no photos on day #1 except for this faux-diner:

Maid-Rite  DesMoines IA



 Byron

I'm On My Way

I had considered leaving La Crosse today but chose instead to stay at home and clean up all pending loose ends and to very carefully pack and organize my kit (this word is a British/Australian affectation, which is a synonym for gear). I'll post about my automobile later. Briefly I recently purchased a minivan, not because it is a cool ride, but because it is the more or less perfect vehicle for the road trips that I have done in the past and plan to keep doing for as long as they are enjoyable. Yesterday I spent a good deal of time removing the middle seats and making a new floor. Again I 'll explain this in future posts. I still have a few things to do this evening so I don't want to spend much time blogging.

I plan to get an early start in the morning and will drive west until I get tired. I'll spend the night somewhere in Nebraska. Lincoln is about 8hours away and North Platt is 11 hours. Kearney, where I stayed previously, is in between. The weather for the next several days should be just about perfect, including the mountain passes and Colorado and the Southern Plains. The good driving conditions will allow me to alter my route so that I can stop in Glenwood Springs, CO to spend a couple of days with Allison, Dave and Damian.

Stay tuned.
Byron

Welcome

Welcome to my new-- and probably temporary-- blog which I am going to use to document my upcoming trip and stay in touch with those who care to know about my whereabouts and adventures. It is with a heavy heart that this evening I deleted from the Internet my first blog But Then Again What Do I Know? It hadn't been used for well over a year, but still it was difficult to remove because there was some good stuff, both images and written material, that I hate to see disappear from the ether.

I plan to leave La Crosse on Sunday February 16th or Monday February 17th heading for Santa Fe. My route will be determined by the weather. I hope to make entries on this blog most days. This introductory post is all I can manage this evening, but stay tuned. It should start to get some substance toward the end of the week.
Byron