On 29 Apr 2007 05:59:15 -0700, wrote:

Here's my challenge: I want to drive cross-country, Boston-San
Francisco, but I have to persuade my wife -- who thinks the nation has
become one big strip mall, with golden arches and starbucks shops. I'm
looking for suggestions for a northern and southern route that would
take through the most interesting countryside.
There are a jillion possibilities.

Go in the fall and enjoy western Massachusettts.

Alternate is drive north through New Hampshire and Vermont to Montreal

Skip Buffalo, Cleveland, Gary, and Chicago by going through Canada
north of Lake Huron -- but you will miss Niagara Falls

Visit Door County Wisconsin

Enjoy Dairyland Wisconsin and cross the Mississipi at Prarie du Chien
(visit Wyalusing State Park)

Alternatively go to St. Paul then down the Great River Road to Lake
Pepin and southwest to cross the Missouri at Omaha and finally to
Denver: Take I90 from LaCrosse to I35 to I80 to I76.

Drive through Colorado and zigzag through Leadville, Black Canyon of
the Gunnison and down to the San Juans (Ouray, Telluride) or go
through Colorado Springs and drive to the top of Pikes Peak then as
above:

"America The Beautiful
Katharine Lee Bates wrote the original version in 1893. She wrote the
2nd version in 1904. Her final version was written in 1913.
Here is a note from Katharine Lee Bates:
'One day some of the other teachers and I decided to go on a trip to
14,000-foot Pikes Peak. We hired a prairie wagon. Near the top we had
to leave the wagon and go the rest of the way on mules. I was very
tired. But when I saw the view, I felt great joy. All the wonder of
America seemed displayed there, with the sea-like expanse.'"

Visit Monument Valley
Visit Bryce and Zion , but Grand Canyon (North Rim) is too far south
unless you want to divert to Las Vegas and visit Valley of Fire State
Park, Hoover Dam, and Lake Meade as well). You can also look up Cedar
Breaks and the Coral Pink Sanddunes.

Visit Salt Lake City

Drive to Reno/Tahoe, Sacramento, San Francisco

Doing all these things could easily take a month and would be pretty
much impossible in less than two weeks.