Roadtrip: California to Rochester, New York

A few additional thoughts regarding things you mentioned that have
crossed my mind for one reason or another lately:


coal-mine fires in PA

http://www.u-town.com/centralia/index3.htm


lava tubes in northern california
Lava tubes in western New Mexico are more likely to be on your way:
http://www.icecaves.com/
http://www.land-we-love.com/bandera_volcano.htm (check out the rest of
that site too)
http://www.gallupnm.org/index.cfm?fu...istall&id=1014
(ditto)


I think the big physical exhibits at the National Atomic Museum are
more or less closed during the move from Kirtland AFB to new digs in
downtown Albuquerque, but if weather allows you can go up to Los
Alamos and see
http://www.lanl.gov/museum/

And if you end up on I-25, don't forget that this is a real town, not
just a movie:
http://www.truthorconsequencesnm.net/

If you're spending some time in Albuquerque and like zoos and museums,
check out
http://www.cabq.gov/biopark/

Whether you take I-40 or I-25 through Albuquerque or stay south on
I-10 to El Paso you can get a nice overview of the city:
http://www.sandiapeak.com/tramway.html
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/park/tram/

"Paul D. DeRocco" wrote in message ink.net...
"Tobin Fricke" wrote

I'm planning a 5-10 day roadtrip from Southern California to upstate New
York (one-way) for early January and am looking for recommendations for
noteworty routes and places to stop along the way. Suggestions for
particularly neat off-interstate routes, camping places, hot springs,
restaurants, hostels, natural wonders, etc, would be appreciated.

Looking for sort-of off-the-beaten-path Blue Highways type places. Not
the meteor crater, london bridge, etc. The treehouse hostel in Georgia,
or coal-mine fires in PA, car henge/ cadillac ranch, and lava tubes in
northern california are more along the lines of what I'm thinking,
although those particular examples are quite off-route.

If you need to plan your trip in advance, and therefore can't adapt to
weather reports, you'll probably want to stay way to the south, especially
when crossing the Continental Divide, i.e., on I-10. The worst snowstorm I
ever experienced (and I'm from MA) was in northern Arizona.

Personally, that time of the year, I'd prefer to take I-10 all the way
across, or at least as far as Mobile, and then head north on I-95 or I-65.
But I've more often done that trip in the opposite direction, when I was
dying to get out of the cold northeast and dip my feet into the warm Gulf
waters.

There are a lot of nice ways to go through the South. If you take
I-10 all the way to Mobile, then you can go check out Wentzell's
Oyster House (I think it's on Dauphin St. in the downtown area) -
fried, stewed, or nude with some great "decor" (really, it's a
worthwhile experience).

Before you get to Mobile, you have the pleasure of driving through
Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. In Louisiana, you can head
south from I-10 in Lafayette and go a round-a-bout way that will take
you by Avery Island (where your Tabasco sauce comes from) and New
Iberia (home to the Konrico Rice Mill). Following the US Hwy. through
Houma will take you into the New Orleans area - dance, drink, and eat
to your heart's content for a little while. If you time your trip
right (in January), you might be able to see the Krewe du Vieux
parade, which is the only Mardi Gras parade to wind it's way through
the French Quarter - it isn't like the other parades and not something
you can see everyday or anywhere else.

If it were me, I'd head north on I-59 rather than going all the way to
Mobile. Places along the I-59 route that are worth stopping for
include Weidmann's Restaurant in Meridian and Dreamland Barbecue in
Tuscaloosa. You can't get to these spots following I-65 from Mobile,
but both roads meet in Birmingham where you can visit the Sloss
Furnaces or the Vulcan Statue (make sure to sneak a peek of the
statue's ass).

From Birmingham, go north on or around I-59 towards Chattanooga and
then continue on I-75. One nice thing to see between Birmingham and
Knoxville is the Ocowee dam area (I can't spell this - look it up on a
map) - it's actually between Cleveland and Asheville, but close enough
to Cleveland so that you can continue still stay near I-75 and go
north to Knoxville. In Knoxville, the Sunsphere still stands out in
the downtown area (even though you can't go inside) and there is a
nice art museum nearby.

Out of Knoxville, if you stay on I-75, it'll take you through Corbin,
KY where you can sit on a bench next to Col. Sanders at the birthplace
of KFC. Further north is Berea (and the surrounding area), where you
can experience all that Bluegrass music has to offer. Further north
is Lexington, where you can visit the Kentucky Horse Park. If you
have a chance to visit Frankfurt, then go to the Rebbeca-Ruth Candy
Store - take a tour, eat some samples, and then buy some chocolate.

When you get into Ohio, travel up through the Youngstown area and
visit Noah's Lost Ark. After that, you're pretty much on the home
stretch to Rochester. I hear Corning is a nice town to visit and that
might still be on your way there.

Hope this helps,
Dan