A long drive through history
Had hurricane Ian passed approximately 100 miles further north as it cut across Florida, this trip likely would not have happened. Instead I would be picking up the pieces of my house.
Fortunately (at least for me), it did make landfall further to the South and my house was completely untouched. Still, the trip got started several days later than planned as I waited to make sure everything would be okay at home.
Once I got going, I ended up putting over 3,800 miles on my car driving through Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois, along with the states between Florida and Missouri. When I was done, I had visited 15 more National Park sites – the most for any trip to date.
Many of the sites were historical in nature and most of these centered around the time of the American Civil War. There were three homes of former presidents, two civil war battlefields, two forts, and a scattering of other sites tied to American history.
The trip did end with a visit to Ozark National Scenic Riverways, the only site primarily based on the scenery not the history. It was a beautiful autumn day when I was there and a perfect way to conclude this trip.
As has been the case with almost every stop on this tour, I learned something new at each of these parks. For example, how down-to-earth were the Trumans actually? Well during the tour of their Independence, Missouri home, I saw the nails tacked through the kitchen linoleum flooring that Bess Truman herself had hammered in when the linoleum started curling back!
Wilson’s Creek and Pea Ridge battlefields were a reminder that the Civil War was not just an eastern war. These battles were paramount to keeping Missouri in the Union, which became vital to the control of the Mississippi River. And control of the Mississippi River was accomplished by Ulysses Grant, whose house I visited on this trip. He had been for the most part a failed businessman at the time that the Civil War broke out and, had the war never occurred, his life would have likely been lost in the pages of history.
I had near perfect autumn weather for most of this trip. There were only a couple days of on and off drizzle but most days were clear, sunny and comfortable.
My next trip won’t be until into the new year but it looks to be a great experience as I head down into the Caribbean to visit Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
With this trip concluded, I’ve now reached 65 sites visited and am on pace to complete all 423 within a five-year window.
Steve
