Needing to drive from Jackson Hole to Austin at the end of this summer, we gave ourselves enough time to take back roads and to stop at some sights along the way.
Barely beyond the valley that is Jackson Hole, we stopped in Dubois so that I could nip into Wyoming Wool Works, a gem of a shop housed in the old Masons building, just behind The Opportunity Shop. Actually there are several shops in the building, but my favorite is Anita Thatcher's, which always has interesting local yarns and knits. Anita has a terrific eye and this time was selling trimmings from Pendleton blankets. I picked up this roll from the Glacier National Park blanket, one of their earliest patterns.
I've already used most of it up for this crocheted cat bed.
I like how it turned out but Sarah is still trying to decide if it suits her.
From there we pushed on towards Laramie for the night, across miles and miles of open plains, seemingly empty except for wind turbines.
In Laramie we hopped onto I - 80 and headed east, but quickly tired of the heavy traffic and 18-wheelers and looked for an alternate route. And there, a mile or so to the north and running parallel to I-80, was US 30. Dedicated in 1913 and also known as the Lincoln Highway, US 30 was the first auto road to cross the continent, running between Lincoln Park in San Francisco and Times Square in New York.
I like how it turned out but Sarah is still trying to decide if it suits her.
Back on the road we drove southeast to Independence Rock, so called because pioneers along the Oregon Trail hoped to arrive here by Independence Day, ensuring they would have enough time left to cross the Rockies before winter snows arrived.
From there we pushed on towards Laramie for the night, across miles and miles of open plains, seemingly empty except for wind turbines.
In Laramie we hopped onto I - 80 and headed east, but quickly tired of the heavy traffic and 18-wheelers and looked for an alternate route. And there, a mile or so to the north and running parallel to I-80, was US 30. Dedicated in 1913 and also known as the Lincoln Highway, US 30 was the first auto road to cross the continent, running between Lincoln Park in San Francisco and Times Square in New York.
Perhaps you are familiar with it from Wo0dy Guthrie's song Hard Travelin':
"And I've been hittin' some hard travelin', Lord
"And I've been hittin' some hard travelin', Lord
I've been walking that Lincoln highway, I thought you knowed,"
We drove most of the way across Nebraska along the Lincoln Highway, but fortunately it was not a bit hard for us in our comfortable, modern vehicle. Though I could imagine how hard and brown it might have been like back in the depression and dust bowl years, I found it quite beautiful, as much for the dense rows of nearly ripe corn marching across the undulating hills as for the sense of freedom that comes with seeing a wide open road stretching all the way to the horizon.
We did stop in several of the many towns along the way. They are spaced about ten miles apart along this section of the Lincoln Highway, and if our tour guide in the capitol in Lincoln was correct, it is because they were established along the rail line to service trains, which needed fuel and water every ten miles. They are all pretty quiet these days, but have a certain charm that elicits feelings of nostalgia for simpler days.
We did stop in several of the many towns along the way. They are spaced about ten miles apart along this section of the Lincoln Highway, and if our tour guide in the capitol in Lincoln was correct, it is because they were established along the rail line to service trains, which needed fuel and water every ten miles. They are all pretty quiet these days, but have a certain charm that elicits feelings of nostalgia for simpler days.
Every town has its grain elevator, each unique in design, but all standing testament to a shared agrarian history.
In Gothenburg we stopped at this cabin which was once used as a Pony Express station. Sadly it is not open for visitors and information about it is limited to the plaques on the front.
Beyond exploring new places, road trips appeal to me for the quiet time I get when I'm in the passenger seat. I finished this pair of knee socks. And now that the weather is getting cooler in Austin, I may even have a chance to wear them soon. Just not for hard walking on the Lincoln Highway.
