The End: The little man is jumping up and down, celebrating the fact that we finished the last piece of our virtual Walk Across America today, one day into Week 19. We had only 3.3 actual miles to complete today to reach our goal.
In a perfect world we could have gone to California and walked on the American Discovery Trail here at the end. It traveled through some beautiful country, Muir Woods and Point Reyes National Seashore. But then there has been some amazing scenery throughout the journey. An unexpected pleasure of the virtual walk was learning about the places we would have seen were we actually on the trail.
We'll keep walking and maybe set a new goal, but for now it feels good to have accomplished this one.
Week 18: We're nearly there! Our miles are pretty consistent when we stay in the neighborhood as we have the last couple of weeks...28.4 actual miles this week for a virtual total of 5,015 miles since we started.
We've covered most of the width of California this week, hitting places with familiar names like Folsom, Sacramento and finally San Francisco as well as some not-so-familiar ghost towns like Last Chance and Deadwood, reminants of California's gold rush days. Early in the week we were following river canyons before crossing the American River on the "No Hands Bridge." Then the landscaped flattened out to the fertile farmland of the San Joaquin Valley. After passing through the coal mining area of Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve, the trail headed up Mt. Diablo for a commanding view of the central valley of California and the Sierra Nevada Mountains beyond.
And then it's into the city. It would be hard not to be distracted her as there's so much to see. The trail goes through the campus of Berkley, the heart of Fisherman's Wharf (I'd have to stop and get some sourdough bread!) and across the Golden Gate Bridge. We've walked across it before and personally know of its beauty.
We're just 33 virtual miles from the finish line...the Pacific Ocean. Just one more day.
Week 17: More miles and another state are in the books now. We logged 28.3 actual miles this week for a cumulative total of 4,731 virtual miles, and we've finished Nevada, bringing us to California, our final state.
If we were on this trail in real life, I would have wanted to stop when we hiked through Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park in Nevada. Not only would this ghost town be interesting for its gold and silver mining history but I'd want to know about the Ichthyosaur fossills found there. The story of these prehistoric marine reptiles that reached 50' or more in length and how they uncovered their remains has captured my imagination. Fort Churchill State Park with it's history of Indian wars and a Pony Express station could be interesting, too.
From there it's on to Virginia City, home of the famous Comstock Lode and the liveliest ghost town in the west. Who would have thought there would be camel races in Nevada but apparently the city hosts the National Camel Races there every September. Maybe we'd see the ghosts of Hoss and Lil' Joe as the area was the setting for the television show Ponderosa.
Through the state capitol of Carson City and along the northern edge of Lake Tahoe we entered California. Working our way through the Squaw Valley, our location at weeks end is near the Granite Chief Wilderness, a very alpine looking location with it's high peaks and meadows. Fittingly, our stopping point is French Meadows Reservoir.
The trail's end is in sight now.
Week 16: We covered a lot of miles this week but they weren't by foot and they weren't in the right direction. Our trip was totally enjoyable but our walking miles were a little lower this week as a result. We did 24.6 actual miles, bringing us to 4,448 total virtual miles and 88.11% of our goal.
I tend to think of Nevada as one big flat desert but the trail this week includes more mountains. I'm intrigued by the Great Basin National Park which is on the route and have added it to my list of places to visit on one of our trips out west. In many places the trail follows old stagecoach routes and crosses areas overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. Wayne would probably enjoy a stop at Cave Lake State Park if he could catch and eat the trout found there. I'm fascinated by the stories behind the area and ovens found at the Ward Charcoal Ovens State Historic Park.
We'd need a rest at this point if we were actually hiking the trail...the week ends after completing a climb to almost 12,000 feet. Who says Nevada is flat?
Week 15: We finished Utah, logging 28.3 actual miles this week and upping the cumulative total to 4,202 virtual miles since we started on June 1. We're 83.24% of the way there!
These miles would have been more of rugged hiking if we were doing them in person. The trail travels would have been scenic as it wandered through the Dixie National Forest at an elevation of over 9,000 feet before dropping down to Circleville, boyhood home of Butch Cassidy. But Circleville is surrounded by mountains so the climb out reaches 9,500 feet. Then it's down again as the trail travels through the Ferguson Desert with the Wah Wah Mountains in the background.
As the week came to a close, our virtual location was 30 miles into Nevada. Fourteen states down; two to go.
Week 14: Another week...and more miles in the book. The week's total is 29.0 actual miles, bringing our cumulative total to 3,191 virtual miles. It's hard for me to believe we've walked 391.9 miles since June 1 but we have.
As I've read about the segments we covered this week, I found myself frequently saying "We've been there!" Canyonlands, the Dixie National Forest, Capitol Reef...saw and loved them all. And there were some new places, too...ones I'd like to see.
Leaving Moab the trail travels through the Manti-LaSal National Forest with its enormous acreage (over a million) and it's high peaks (almost 13,000'). I can almost smell the fresh smell of pine and fir. The trail doesn't get quite that high but still has a lot of elevation before descending into Canyon Rims Recreation Area. We've been to at least parts of this recreation area as both Wayne and I remember Newspaper Rock with its prehistoric Indian rock art.
From there the trail heads for Hite which is located on the edge of the Glen Canyon Recreational Area which includes Lake Powell. So much awesome scenery to be seen there! But no time to linger...the trail climbs to over 10,000 feet through Bull Creek Pass then down to more spectacular scenery at Capitol Reef National Park. I loved our stay there in 2001.
The stopping point this week is 12 miles east of Boulder, Utah, in the shadow of the Grand Staircase. I don't think there's another state with so much incredible scenery as Utah.
Week 13: We've walked and walked and walked and walked...and we're finally out of Colorado. This week we logged 28.7 actual miles, bringing our total to 3,629 virtual miles on our trek across the USA.
Were we walking the trail in real life, it would have been another week of rugged hiking up and down some big mountains, much of it through the Grand Mesa National Forest. After passing through Grand Junction, the trail winds through the Colorado National Monument. While we've visited many areas in Colorado, we haven't been here and it looks like a place we'd enjoy.
And then we're in Utah...one of my favorite places in the States. The trail here is rugged too, with long stretches without water or access to supplies. I'm glad we're doing this virtually from that standpoint but I'd love another chance to see Canyonlands National Park, where I'd oooh over sights like this, and Arches National Park, where I'd aaah over beauty like this. Tonight we're just outside Moab where these two great parks are located.
There are just three states left. I'm going to Utah and memories of our real-life visits there these next few weeks.
Week 12: Each week I'm amazed when I look at the numbers and realize our progress. We're two-thirds of the way there! The totals are 30.3 actual miles for the week and 3,342 virtual miles since the start.
I'd have great admiration for anyone who could actually make this hike across Colorado. The segment we've virtually walked this week includes high mountain passes, traveling at length along the Continental Divide, and through remote backcountry where in some places there are no trails. I had to laugh at the directions in one place: Look SW across Gibson Lake to spot two small saddles. Rock scramble (there is no trail) along the right edge of the tailings to the right saddle. Note: This climb not doable by mountain bike. Sounds rigorous, but I'll bet the views are impressive.
We've passed through Breckenridge, a popular ski destination in the winter then dropped south to Leadville with its silver mines and Wild West history. Doc Holliday lived there after his gunfight at OK Corral. It's known as the "Two Mile High City" as its the highest incorporated city in the country. The trail crossed the Continental Divide at Tincup Pass (elevation 12,154) and entered Gunnison National Forest. I'd be stopping every few minutes I'm sure, partly to catch my breath and partly to take photos of mountain wildflowers.
For the most part the trail we've walked since the beginning has paralleled roads or rivers but this segment is clearly cross-country from Buena Vista to Crested Butte and then again from Crested Butte to Redstone. Our miles this week leave us just east of that location. As much as I'd love seeing this part of the country, it wouldn't be on this course.
A new week and new sights to look forward to as we work our way west.
Week 11: Go, little guy, go! Without planning it, we walked more miles this week than any week so far. The total was 31.1 actual miles, bringing our virtual total to 3,039.
Sigh. While I wouldn't want to be doing it on foot, I'd love to be covering this terrain as the trail is taking us through some beautiful country. We could have stopped at Bent's Old Fort National Historic Siteoutside LaJunta for a look at what life was like on the Santa Fe Trail in the mid-1800's. A little farther down the trail we would have found lots to do in Canon City. We'd have to go see the Royal Gorge again but I've made my first and last trip on the aerial tram there. Maybe we'd prospect for gold when we passed through Cripple Creek, and as we traveled through Green Mountain Falls, we'd check to see if the cabin we stayed in on a visit there long ago was still around. I'd definitely enjoy the part of the trail that passes through the Garden of the Godsand would have to stop in Manitou Springs to buy some Patsy's taffy for the rest of the trip. With the except of the fort, we've been to these places and more in this part of Colorado and it makes me long to return.
We're just west of Denver now continuing our trek to the Pacific. I'm enjoying the scenery, even if it is just in my memory.
Week 10: It's official now...we've already walked more miles than we have left. I can't say we're on the downhill side of the trail since we're still east of the Continental Divide but we're definitely beyond the mid-point on the trail. This week's totals are 28.4 actual miles for a cumulative total to date of 2,728 virtual miles. At the halfway point we're averaging 3.9 miles per day.
I had to chuckle when I read the information on the official Milestones and Trail Highlights page for last weeks miles. No interesting historical locations, no wonders of nature or scenic parks...just Kansas farmland merging into Colorado farmland. And if you've ever driven across Kansas, you know that's exactly how it is. The only interesting fact I can come up with is only partially documented in the highlights. The trail closely follows the Arkansas River. While the river's name is pronounced like the state everywhere else, while it's flowing through the state of Kansas it's pronounced the ar-KANSAS river.
Colorado is a big state but there's lots of beauty within its borders. I'm ready to climb some mountains...virtually, of course.
Week 9:
Would you look at that...we're almost halfway there! When I first set this goal, I knew I could do it before the end of the year. And I'll admit, with Wayne as my walking companion we're doing more miles than I originally expected. So now it looks like we'll reach the end far earlier than I anticipated. This week's total: 27.7 actual miles for a virtual total to date of 2,444 miles. Remember, every mile we physically walk counts as ten miles on the map.
The entire week was spent in Kansas, and while you'd think I'd know all about the state where I was raised, I learned new things researching the area the trail travels through. Like how big an area and how many birds migrate through the Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge near Great Bend. This looks like somewhere we should explore with our cameras. Or the story of Pawnee Rocknear Larned, the halfway point and popular stop on the Santa Fe trail. Travelers were known to bury their valuables before going to sleep at night to protect them from robbers but since many were killed by Indians while they slept, there is still buried treasure in the area. And that Kinsley, Kansas, was featured on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post in 1939 with a photo of two cars ready to head in opposite directions with signs reading "World's Fair or Bust." Kinsley is exactly halfway (by highway, not by trail) between San Francisco and New York City and there were fairs in both cities that year.
Virtually might be the best way to cross Kansas in August. We're almost to Dodge City...maybe we'll stop in a saloon before resuming our trek west.
Week 8:
We've wrapped up another week on our virtual trek across the U.S. Without any extended hikes, we logged a more normal 27.8 actual miles this week, bringing our virtual total to 2167 miles. Heck, I'm impressed that we've walked 216.7 actual miles in less than two months.
Early in the week the route followed the old Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad that ran from St. Charles, Missouri, to Galveston, Texas. It was known at the Katy and both the Katy Freeway in Houston and the town of Katy, Texas, are named for it. The trail passes through Defiance, Missouri, where Daniel Boone lived in his later years, and there's a living history villagethere where you can see what life was like at the time of the Louisiana Purchase. And in Franklin and Booneville we can see the starting points for the Santa Fe Trail, a major route to the Southwest. It seems only fitting that our virtual walk takes us through Lawrence, Kansas, home to Wayne's beloved Jayhawks.
We'll be seeing sunflowers for a while now...it's a good ways across Kansas. In fact, all that's left are big states. That's OK...the little guy keeps moving forward.
Week 7:
Without really intending to we seem to be increasing our mileage every week. The total for Week 7 was 30.0 actual miles and a virtual total of 1,889. Thanks to a persistent thunderstorm we had our shortest day (.7 of a mile) and our longest as well (6.6 miles).
Just before leaving Illinois the trail goes through the town of Chester, home to Elzie Segar, the creator of Popeye The Sailorman. I'd have gotten my picture taken in front of the giant statute of Popeye in the park in Chester. And we crossed the Mississippi on the Eads Bridge into St. Louis, virtually anyway. Wayne had commented this week that he wished he knew somewhere where you could actually walk across it. Then it's on to St. Charles where we'll waive at Amanda as we pass through.
The little guy on the map just keeps on trucking. We have some big states ahead of us but I'm proud of what we've accomplished to date.
Week 6:
It was our biggest week yet as we logged 28.5 miles. Both days in Jacksonville involved longer than usual walks and we had a couple of days at home before that where we did four miles or more. Our virtual total to date is 1,589 miles and we're almost one-third of the way there.
Had we been walking the actual trail we could have spent some time in the Lincoln State Park and toured the farm where Abraham Lincoln lived as a boy. And just outside Evansville the Angel Mounds State Historical Site looks interesting. It's the largest and best preserved prehistoric Indian burial mounds dating from 1200 to 1400. Who knew there was a Garden of the Gods in Illinois...it looks like a great place to explore.
We won't be in Illinois long as we're traveling across the southern tip. I'm amazed at how the miles are adding up.
Week 5:
We've settled into a regular routine with our walking...an hour a day so that's making our mileage pretty consistent. This week's accumulation was 26.7 actual miles for a virtual total to date of 1,304. Our biggest challenge this week was the weather. We've been walking in the evening as it's cooler but we had to cut one session short when the thunder and lightning of an approaching storm got a little too close.
All our actual miles this week were in the neighborhood but if we had been on the American Discovery Trail we would be hiking across Indiana. We could have made a little sidetrip to Jeffersonville to tour the Hillerich and Bradsby Company, makers of the Louisville Slugger bats. Yes, I was surprised too to learn the company was in Indiana, not Kentucky. But I did learn a lot about how the company started by reading this. The trail also runs through Corydon, the first state capitol of Indiana and the site of the only Civil War battle in the state.
We're one-fourth of the way there now. It's rewarding to see the progress on the map and a motivator to keep us going.
Week 4:
We reached a new milestone this week, crossing the 100-mile mark. The week's totals: 26.6 actual miles and a cumulative total of 103.7 miles since the start. That translates to 1037 virtual miles or 20.54 percent of the journey. All seven days were spent in Ohio but at the end of the week, we're just 10 miles from the Indiana state line.
One of the fun things about this virtual trip is learning about the sights along the American Discovery Trail. Like the Counterfeit House on Gift Ridge. It was built by Oliver Thompkins specifically to house his counterfeit business and includes trick locks, concealed hiding places and an escape tunnel. Thompkins hung a light in one of the gabled windows as a signal to riverboats that he had counterfeit money to sell or trade. Or the Great Serpent Mound, a ceremonial structure constructed by Native Americans that resembles a snake that dates back to prehistoric times. It's a little like Stonehenge in that much is unknown about it but there is significance to the fact that the head aligns with the summer solstice.
The goal most times when we head out the door is to walk for an hour and we've usually covered 3.6 or 3.7 miles in that time. Passing this milestone feels good...I'm ready for Indiana.
Week 3:
We may be accumulating miles on our road trip, but we've managed to find time to accumulate walking miles, too. The total for this week was 26.8 actual miles for 268 miles on the map. We chalked up our longest walk so far...5.8 miles in Dallas.
Virtually, we've spent most of the week crossing Ohio (waving "hello" to Pat and Charlene!). I thought it was cool that the trail went through the Wayne National Forest, the only National Forest in Ohio and it has a great name, too. And later in the week's journey, I got a kick out of some of the trail names the American Discovery Trail follows, like Old Man's Cave on Grandma Gatewood Trail. It makes me want to see what they look like in person.
We've walked early and we've walked late, trying to avoid the hottest part of the day, and we even walked in the rain one morning this week. It's great to see our progress show up on the map...definitely motivation to keep on walking.
Week 2:
WooHoo...look at the little guy go! You can definitely see the white line of completed trail now. We covered 25.9 actual miles this week, moving us 259 miles down the trail. Almost 10% of our journey is complete.
We're in West Virginia now, and I'm glad I don't have to go up and down all those hills in real life. They aren't called the Mountaineers for nothing. The American Discovery Trail climbs to 4,000 up the Alleghany Front in the Monongahela National Forest, and I'd love to see the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area located there. Sounds to me like there might be pitcher plants there, too. And I think we'd enjoy seeing the big falls and scenic gorge at the Blackwater Falls State Park if we were there in real life. You can see the route we're taking across the state here.
It's kind of cool that on Wednesday we should virtually reach Parkersburg, West Virginia, hometown of our friends Michael and Charlotte. And they'll be arriving there in person on Wednesday for a visit and family wedding. It's a small world.
Week 1:
I'm liking these virtual miles...we've racked up 244 of them this week for our actual effort of 24.4. You can begin to see our progress as Wayne set the map up so the trail turns white where we've completed it.
We're done with Delaware and have traveled across some beautiful parts of Maryland. I know because I've been there in person...like crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and traveling through Washington, D.C., one of my favorite U.S. cities. In my virtual world, I had crab cakes while we were passing through the first one and stopped to enjoy the Smithsonian at the second. And while I haven't seen it, the Wye Island National Resources Management Area that is just up the trail from the Chesapeake Bay sounds interesting...the trail went by it as well.
The second week starts with us mid-way down the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, traveling the towpath that was used by the mules as they pulled boats and barges up the canal. You can see more about the sights along the trail here...we're on Segment 5. West Virginia lies ahead.
The Start:
What did Della wear? I don't know but maybe I'll find out. That's where the American Discovery Trail, the nation's first coast-to-coast recreational trail, starts...Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes, Delaware, to be exact. And that makes it the start of my virtual walk across America.
I've been logging my daily walks recently so having a virtual route and destination seemed like a great way to motivate me and to add an element of excitement. There are upsides to a virtual walk...no traffic to contend with, no need to worry about hills and mountains, and the weather won't be a problem either. There's a downside too though; I won't be able to enjoy the scenery along the route. Thanks to the Internet, however, I can learn a little bit about the part of the country the trail travels through.
Wayne has adapted the Webwalking USA map so I can chart my progress here once a week. My shoes are laced up and I'm ready to go. I'll see you on Monday to see how far I get in my first week. This should be fun!
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