Destination versus Journey

The journey. An evening after a days driving. 

Being a traveler isn't just about the journey or the destination. Pamela and I find that for us both are important. There are times that the destination necessarily takes such priority that we are not as intent upon the journey. The last time this was true was two years ago when we only had three days to get from Evansville, IN to West Glacier, MT - 2010 miles. We didn't go over the 65 mph trailer tire limitation but would drive for 12+ hours a day and stop for the night at a Pilot or Flying J. We hope not to repeat such a trip, but we realize that that may be unrealistic. Most of the time the destination is some place we are anxious to visit, but we plan to stay a while so we can take our time and enjoy the journey there. We feel sorry for the young folks who are so limited by time off from work and the kids school schedule that they race off to a vacation spot. They miss the joys of getting there and their visit is always overshadowed and activities determined by the mandatory departure in order to get home.

Stopped for the night at a State Park in Minnesota. 

Just yesterday a frantic camper came to our door. The hydraulic levelers on their fifth-wheel trailer would not retract. They were in a panic. They live in Canada and school was to start the next day. Their entire trip to Glacier was marred by this experience. Had they had our schedule, or lack thereof, the problem would have been little more than a costly inconvenience. Hang in their, young people, your day will come. We're working hard to try to make sure there are still magnificent forests and wilderness areas for you and your children.

The destination.  Looking north from our place at Sprague
Creek, Glacier National Park where we spent 5 months.

Pamela and I travel the back roads whenever possible. After all, trailer tires are rated for <65 mph. Besides missing a lot of the countryside when you travel the interstate, an interstate is boring. You can't really go much faster on an interstate. There are some times when you just have to suck it up and take an interstate. On our last trip of 2000+ miles we spent less than 100 miles of that on interstates. Pamela is a great navigator. She even takes us down county roads. She uses a paper map and smart-phone. She's only had one time that she had us going down a narrow country road and run out of road. It was fun trying to turn 38 feet of truck and trailer around on a country road. You don't exactly do a three-point turn. In her defense, all the maps indicated that the road went through. We have friends that will not travel more than 100 miles in a day. We'd like to be more like them but perhaps not limit our distance quite so much. We prefer to be able to stop in mid afternoon so we have time to explore our surroundings if we're not planning to stay there for days. Our goal is - if we don't end up in a Flying J or Pilot station - to spend a day or two each place we stop.

You never know who's going to stop by your campsite.
They tried to walk between Willy and the truck but
decided it was too close so walked around.

The great thing about taking the 'road less traveled' is what you see and learn and encounter and find yourself doing. We have found lovely and interesting villages that really deserve to be seen and appreciated but I'd bet that most of the people in the nearest city don't know they exist. We've stayed in city parks. We've enjoyed countless mom-n-pop stores and restaurants. We've met many friendly and interesting people and heard their stories - from the widow who continues to run a back-country campground some 15 miles down a gravel country lane in eastern Kentucky south of Natural Bridge to the man from PA who was waiting tables in Montana and travels around the country.

There's a small town in the Idaho panhandle named Wallace that people can now speed past - well, actually speed over - and never know its story or meet its people. Wallace has a fascinating history. More silver has been mined and shipped from Wallace in the past 100 years than anywhere else in the world. It has a very wild west history and has played host to senators, governors and presidents. It has a great little brewery and all of the old town buildings are on the national registry. Wallace is in a very narrow canyon. When I-90 came along it was just going to level Wallace. (The biggest problem with so-called progress is that no one asks whether we should really do the project.) The people of Wallace fought back and kept the construction in court. While construction was tied up in court the people in the town very quietly, so as not to draw attention, filed and got every one of their old town buildings listed on the national register of historic buildings. Those building then could not be moved or destroyed. If you travel the Idaho stretch of I-90 today you will go on a bridge up against the side of a mountain above the town. Small town - 1. Thoughtless development - 0!

Destinations are important. For us destinations are places we want to visit and perhaps spend from a few weeks to a few months. I think that destinations are important. Designating destinations helps complete that bucket-list which, for us, is filled to overflowing. At the same time getting to those destinations is not only a significant part of the joy of the adventure but an important part of the trip. If one does not take their time getting to the destination, it not only reduces the overall enjoyment of being on the road but makes us personally poor. We do not learn and grow. If we do not learn and grow we will not enjoy the experience as much. On the micro level science has found that when the brain stops learning it dies. I believe that this is also true on the macro level. The journey justifies the destination. The destination gives reason to the journey.