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This entry also penned by my lovely wife Amber. -Ed

The lushness that is the east coast it quite breathtaking. With that being said, we would like to take some of it away. Due to the density of trees along the highways, you can't see the landscape of most of the towns that we have been driving though. SInce we have our handy GPS we are going routes that are direct, not necessarily meant to be scenic. We have lucked out in a few spots, and like I said, the lush trees and sweeping hills are breathtaking. When we pulled off our next exit to Mystic, Connecticut we were surprised to see a scene picked straight out of Pleasantville — the part of the movie when the pastel colors turn up. Streets lined with perfectly potted plants and coastal waters flowing in and around the town.

Our bed and breakfast, The Old Mystic Inn, got a little confused as to which day we were coming to visit. All got sorted out, and our lovely host felt really bad about the whole mix up. When all was said and done he ended up finding us another room which was quaint and granny like (which is what we were going for at this stop), a 10% discount on our one night stay and a generous gift certificate to the resturant we had reservations at. Now that is what I call hospitality. Fine dining came in the form of Captain Jack Packers Resturant. The best meal to date on our trip started with Lobster Lolly Pops and appropirte dipping sauces.Josh had a bone in rib eye, I enjoyed the savory wine and gouda topped flavors of my filet mignon. That night was very relaxing, I slipped into my P.J.s and (mt) hoodie and headed out to do what you do in the east/south parts of our country at night — sit on the porch and read.

I'm currently enjoying a light novel by Neal Pollack called Alternadad. Pretty much a realistic journey of Neal's quest to be a “cool” dad. So far it's coming to the conclusion that what you think is cool dramatically changes once your child enters this world. With that being said, so much of who we are can still be “cool” — not losing that is the battle Neal writes about. I can see his story very clearly in my mind's eye and can imagine myself attacking parenting in some of the same ways as he did. As I quietly read Josh played around with night shots on the Old Mystic's property. Turns out it's harder than you would think to take pictures of fireflies. He figured out the trick to taking them, but as he did so a friendly neighbor was taking her dogs out to relieve themseles and they were not so friendly. Our stay in Mystic was short and sweet, but we must underline the sweet part as it left a very good taste in both of our mouths. Highly recommended if you find yourselves in that part of the country. – Amber

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Note: The following entries are by Amber, who lent her voice and perspective to the next few days of the trip.

When I think of a destination I would like to relax in, I'm not sure Virginia has ever been on that list. As we entered the (not sure what they are known for) state, I felt as if we were coming into a town that hadn't seen visitors for quite some time. First impressions are most often incorrect. The sleepy town of Luray, Virginia was very welcoming and held a secret under it's pine swept streets. The night we arrived we enjoyed a low priced fare of half chicken, beans and potato salad. A little runny yet very similar to the type my grandmother has made. Our fine dinning experience was thanks to Uncle Bucks Kitchen, a small hole in the wall joint that was the only thing open in town after 9:00 p.m. A comfortable stay in the old reliable Best Western, led us into another day.

At breakfast, as it was now Monday morning, we sampled the standard life of the locals — at least the women. A group of them shared a dining room with us over breakfast — all in their mid to late 50's with too much time on their hands and too much to talk about. Small town……thats all I really need to say.
The reason we were in Luray was because it held the sights of the Luray Caverns. We spent about two hours mist these stalagtights and stalagmites, words I hadn't heard since elementary school. The tour also made me feel like I was in elementary school. Taken back to a time when the eagerness of standing in lines made me fidgety. Our tour guide was a 16 year old girl, lanky with rusty brown hair. She looked to be the type that was anxiously awaiting the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The fact that I know the title and all ready have it pre_ordered, also puts me in this category. Lanky was in a completely different category. The category which includes the girls that have a crush on….not Harry, but maybe Neville. Someone who has posters hanging on her walls of her colonial home and knows the complete recipe for the truth serum.
She was a very interesting tour guide to say the least. Neither of us could place her accent, which sounded normal other than the vowels, which rolled out at 1/5th speed. Our tour went off without a hitch. The beauty of what lies below the ground we walk on every day was astonishing, like the hidden caverns you expect to see in movies. The smell was musky and wet and so were the floors. Josh managed to “gracefully” loose footing at one point and …… knock his noggin at the same time. I have to give him credit, he did not fall…. nor did he drop our camera. Which worked out well since the pictures below do a better job at depicting the beauty than my words do. We continued heading northeast to Baltimore, Maryland.

Ahh the not so beautiful city of Baltimore. I can't say I would ever visit again. Our little family is in agreement on this matter. Baltimore should have more to boast about, city on the harbor coastal setting, a cool baseball stadium, decent mall, buildings and….okay I really can't find anything they should boast about. One person we met there suggested that it's close enough to DC that all the good stuff “drains” that way. Our hotel was on the harbor and upscale, freshly pressed linens, internet connection and helpful staff. The food we had for dinner was okay, but, all in all, not going back. We had planned to eat at a famous crab place, but as luck would have it, they were most known for the unusual “black pepper crust” on the crabs — the one flavor I'm probably least fond of. Had a nice enough time in Baltimore, but i've come to the conclusion that when I'm with Josh I could have fun in a padded room….maybe a little too much fun. So next…. off to Mystic Connecticut. – Amber

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The route for day 2 took us into the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I'd decided, like a typical male, that if we were going to see one thing, we should go to the highest point. This turned out to be a good call, as it's one of the most notable points in the park: Clingman's Dome..
There's a nice parking lot at the bottom of about a half mile paved path, leading to the most curious structure I've ever seen in a national park.

I'm still not exactly sure how I feel about it — it's as if the park service was taking design cues from Disney's Tomorrowland. You will not be shocked to find that this was, in fact, designed and built in the 1960's. Pretty much everywhere else I've traveled, an effort has been made to keep things natural, perhaps inspired by Native American Culture. This, however, is a pure work of abstract art in concrete. It does have a kind of sparse elegance, and it's really impossible to see until you're right on it, so does not form much of an eyesore.

Overall, the Smokies were a bit sad. The texture of the place is gorgeous — green, shady hollows, beautiful mossy rocks, and the day we were there it felt as if we had the place to ourselves. However, the sweeping views are no more (at least not very often) due to increased pollution. The hills used to be draped in a natural ethereal mist — now, as you look off the peaks, it just fades into blank whiteness after a few hundred yards. Views notwithstanding, it is a beautiful place “up close”.

One highlight for me was getting to walk a few steps on the Appalachian Trail. At least some of my route planning on this trip was inspired by Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods — a funny, touching, and informative tale that inspired me to strap back on my hiking boots after a 10 year hiatus. I'll never hike it — if I ever do a large-scale “through hike” it'll be the Pacific Crest Trail. It was nice to be able to see it, and get a sense for what it would be like to hike it.

Our next real stop was another section of the “AT” — Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. However, before we could get there, we had to leave. The ever-helpful GPS (seriously, a fantastic device, I'll probably write a whole article on it) directed us out of the park and through the complete mind-trip that is Pigeon Forge, TN.

Imagine the Las Vegas Strip — that many cars, that much traffic, that kind of vibe going on up and down each side of the street. Now take the hotels and turn them way, way down — Days Inn style. Now take every carnival you've ever seen, blow it up 10 times bigger, and sprinkle it down the street. It's insanity — Mini Golf course after Mini Golf course, 35 lasertags, several of these 5-story-high go cart courses that look straight out of Mario Kart, store after store selling worthless low-priced crap, and let's not forget (I am not making this up) Dollywood.
Some moments worth capturing from the car:

45 types? Really?

Kids today with their “internet”. I'm a sucker for “useless” “use” of “quotes”.

You may feel bad for having seen this, but at least I didn't shoot video. The jiggle factor really made this moment special.

I realize that I sound like some kind of insufferable LA snob in writing all of this, but it's very hard not to. I've determined that I'm not a racist in the slightest, but I am pretty clearly a “culturist” in some form. I can find things to respect and appreciate from pretty much any culture, but man do I struggle with whatever this one is. (Redneck, perhaps?)

Anyway, enough with the semi-negativity. Once we made it out of the Pigeon Forge Traffic Jam, we whisked ourselves North and West to Shenandoah. Skyline Drive is a pretty amazing experience. It's over 100 miles long, and runs basically along the top of a mountain ridge, so there are great views to both the left and the right. We got out of our cars a few times to stretch our legs and enjoy the view, and did a few miles of hiking as well. The wildlife sightings were fantastic!

We saw this lovely deer ahead of us on the trail. It was certainly concerned about us, but it didn't make a break and run for it. It did the “deer tiptoe” around us through the brush. We saw (and managed to photograph) several more deer as we were driving.

The most exciting moment I'll have to simulate, as we weren't able to get a good shot. (According to flickr, this was taken within 3 miles of our sighting anyway:)

It's been a long time since I'd seen a bear in person and up close. We were driving through a little valley-shaped section, and he came barreling down the hill behind us, crossed the road, and up the hill on the other side. Awesome.

We finished the day (having driven about 80% of Skyline Drive) by heading down to Luray, VA. We had a great dinner at a local place called “Uncle Buck's” — we forgot to ask if it was named after the John Candy film or not. I have to remember that in Rural America 9PM is a weird time to be looking for food, we had to try 4 places before we found this one to be open. Amber and I shared a half chicken with sides for a whopping $7.99. NICE.

Thus closed another day on the road. Next up, the Caverns of Luray and the fascinating city of Baltimore.

Filed under: Ramble, Travel by Joshua Barratt
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