JAMES WILKE
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photographed by john goodman
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When it’s flying past you at 60 miles-per-hour, the world’s a different place. Hitting the road is synonymous with exploration, bonding with buddies, communing with nature or saying “screw it” to a schedule. At its best, the unfurling road—be it beneath a blue sky, blazing sun or shrouded in mystifying fog—provides something that no friend or lover or therapist can: a road map to self-reflection, a tangle of paved arteries that leads to one’s heart and a renewed narrative for your own mythology.
So don the shades, call a friend or lover to split the ride (and the gas), and try one of the following five routes for inspiration. Or carve your own roadway adventure. Regardless of the route you take, the ultimate destination remains the same.
Take Highway 101 north to San Luis Obispo, connecting to Highway 1. Motor beside jagged mountains that seem to jut from the Pacific Ocean. Pass majestic Morro Bay and stop at San Simeon’s Hearst Castle. If the Roman baths, carved from Roman ruins, don’t turn you on, the 56 bedrooms drenched in medieval décor will.
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Northward, park it and hike rugged coastal parks and marvel at mighty Redwoods. Test your vertigo on foot-wide mountain-cliff paths overlooking sapphire seas. Our favorite: Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, where McWay Falls spills into the Pacific.
Recharge in sparsely inhabited bohemian Big Sur. Channel Jack Kerouac in a tranquil cabin, melt into the Esalen Hot Springs or inhale ocean views at Nepenthe Restaurant.
Continuing, cross Bixby Bridge, a great stop for photo ops (or tossing your ex overboard). On to Monterrey, where the Aquarium is essential for those with a dry sense of humor. Last stop: Frisco!
A steep drive up Highway 17 leads you to Flagstaff, where a stay at top-rated Starlight Pines Bed & Breakfast affords a rest after the excursion to the Grand Canyon and ruins of Wupatki National Monument. Then get your kicks on Route 66 (now Highway 40) going east. While driving through the Petrified Forest National Park gives new meaning to the phrase “stiff wood,” the rainbow colors of the Painted Desert will make you feel at home.
Then glide through Gallop, New Mexico. Indian enthusiasts will appreciate the detour north on Route 666 to the massive ruins of Choco Canyon. Another excursion along Highway 40 is Acoma Sky City, an ancient yet active Indian city built atop a huge impenetrable rock. Try their Indian fry bread with lunch.
Eastward, enjoy Albuquerque nightlife, then it’s up Highway 25 to Santa Fe. Absorb the opera and history, then continue to Taos’ galleries and Indian ceremonies. Move over, Georgia O’Keefe!
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Driving north on Highway 75 you’ll pass Red Top Mountain State Park, popular for water sports, on your way to Chattanooga. Here, absorb Rock City, a citadel of bizarre rock formations, garden paths and breathtaking views atop Lookout Mountain. Another must see is Ruby Falls, a massive, natural 145-foot underground waterfall inside Lookout Mountain Cave.
Staying on 75, drive to Knoxville. Cruise the historic Bijou Theatre and offbeat scene along famous Gay Street. Then, a quick drive to forested hikes, waterfalls (Abram’s Falls, Rainbow Falls, etc.), black bear sightings and postcard vistas of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Don’t miss the well-preserved homesteads of Cades Cove or the mamma of all Appalachian attractions: Dollywood—rides, music and kitsch! The Chasing Rainbows Museum traces Ms. Parton’s “drag” from hardscrabble country girl to diva extraordinaire.
Then drive west on Highway 40 to Nashville—Grand Ole Opry, ho!
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