I checked my AAA card and found out our membership will end on the 27th of this month and I'm not going to renew since our new car comes with roadside assistance. So I logged in to the AAA website and routed the trip I want to take and they will mail that to me along with tour books and maps of the states we hope to be traveling in. Can't wait to get those things in the mail so I can go through things and "day dream" about what we will do and see. I do remember that going through Texas seems to take forever and there isn't that much to see along that route. Last time we made our first stop in Witchita Falls because my Honey's daughter was living near there at the time and came to meet us at the motel for awhile. The next day was more "not much to see" until we got near Colorado and then the landscape started getting really interesting. My oldest sister took a trip to Colorado to see her two sons that live in Denver and that was before we ever traveled to Colorado, she took so many pictures of beautiful places up there but on our last trip we didn't have that much time to do much more than spend time with my Honey's family. I want to see alot more if we do get to make the trip again. We did get to see Garden of the God's in Colorado Springs and that was really pretty and seeing the mountains with snow while we were in his brother's back yard just kind of "blew my mind". I wouldn't mind living in Colorado for the beauty there, but I know neither one of us could take the winters over there. And there is no way I would live that far from my children and grandchildren. But it will be a wonderful place to visit and explore.
I had onstar and never used it and then realized I had towing and road side assistance with Geico, so cancelled Onstar. Usually when I visited my sister in Colorado I would stay 3-4 weeks at a time, so got to see a lot, plus just hang out with her.
What part of Texas will you be going through, @Babs Hunt? I know that I liked northeastern Texas. I have a cousin who lives in Longview, and I’ve visited him there a couple of times, and have driven through that part of the state a few times, and I particularly liked the smaller towns north and south of the Interstate. The Panhandle can get a bit boring before you'e through it, though.
I know we went up through Dallas to Witchita Falls, then Amarillo, and through part of the top corner of New Mexico. I think it was after Dallas that the scenery just was flat and boring...if I remember right even when we were in Colorado it wasn't real pretty at first. I'd just as soon skip going through Texas but other routes would take even more time to get us to our first destination. @Ken Anderson
Yesterday my Honey gave me some "bad news" about the trip we were hoping to take. It isn't going to happen for two reasons. At this time with long term road construction going on next to the store my Honey works at which has slowed their business profits down, the Store has kept their employees to a minimum and will not be hiring any new ones until that construction is finished and business is back to normal. So there is no way my Honey will be able to take a month off when the situation is like this...unless he wants to lose his job....and we don't want that to happen. The other problem is my Honey's eyesight...he informed me that when his Birthday comes in September and his Driver's license needs renewal he will not be renewing it. His macular degeneration is getting worse and he may have to give up driving even before then. Right now he just has to take one turn out of our subdivision and the about a half mile to his job on a rural road that does not have much traffic when he goes to work. Even with his new glasses and taking eye vitamins, his eyes are deteriorating fast and there is no cure for his eye disease. I have noticed the decline in little things but until he told me yesterday about not even trying to renew his driver's license in Sept. I just didn't know the extent of his vision loss. And we would need two drivers for making that long trip. I am disappointed but more sad that my Honey is losing his central vision faster then we expected. I told him that he can still take a plane to visit with his brother and daughter if he wants too as I could bring him to the airport and this family can pick him up over there. That's what's really important here that he still has a way to spend time with his family if he wants too.
Have you thought of taking a trip by train, @Babs Hunt ? They offer special rates for seniors, and you can even choose a plan where you just say you want a ticket that is good for a certain length of time ( 2 weeks, a month, etc.) and then you can go anywhere you want and stop where you want for that time length. When Robin as still in the military, one one of my trips out to visit her, I went on the train, and I loved it ! I rode in the vista dome (observation car) and could see all of the scenery clear around the train from up there. I visited with some people who said they sold their motor home and now took all of their vacations by train; just because of driving issues. They stopped where they wanted to visit (Washington DC in this case), rented a hotel and took one of the tours, and then got back on the next train to wherever they wanted to go after that stop. The train also has sleeping options; so you can either just get a regular ticket, or you can get a room eye, which has little cots to sleep on, and that option comes with meals included. By the time you include gas and lodging on your driving trip, the train would probably not be that much difference in price.
I'm sorry to hear that, @Babs Hunt. I agree with @Yvonne Smith though, that a train trip might be an option. We have traveled that way and it's not as hugely expensive or annoying as flying and, if you can get a sleeper, it can be a relaxing and interesting trip. Depending on where you go, you can see some beautiful scenery, including some that's not visible from the highway, as well as being able to travel through the worst parts of every town, which you may not want to drive through but which can be interesting from the safety of a train car. I don't much care for riding coach, though. That's sort of like a bus. But as long as I am on the subject, I see tour buses all the time, although I have never taken a bus tour. I would imagine they're a lot more comfortable than riding Greyhound.
I wouldn't mind taking the train but my Honey smokes and that will not work for him at all as they don't allow smoking on the train and their stops for smoking are few and far in between. I really wanted to do the car trip and I have even thought of taking another person to help drive but then there is the problem of my Honey's alcoholism too which would show up every evening when we stopped at motels, etc. and which I don't want to subject other people to. If it's just him and me, he's learned to keep it quiet but adding another person to the mix...he will think it's party time. And I would end up stressed, embarrassed, and sorry that I ever decided to take that trip. There is also the problem of getting enough time off from his job too. And I'm asking y'all to please not make any remarks about my Honey's alcoholism, etc. Yes, these things are very inconvenient at times and God knows I pray for him to be set free from these addictions. But my Honey is a good, hard working man, and he is a good husband to me too in spite of these addictions. It just doesn't always make it easy to work around these things sometimes. If I could ride in a plane it would make things easier because he does ride planes and we could rent a car once we got to Denver, Utah, or Oregon. But I just can't do planes at all so at this point I have no solutions that will work for both of us for doing this kind of long trip....but maybe what I need to do is just look at some shorter trips to other places that I could just drive us to and from. And when he wants to go visit his brother and daughter he can take the plane to spend time with them.
I wanted to take our new car on a trip but maybe I should just think outside the box here and consider another kind of trip like a cruise or something.
Slightly off topic but I thought your daughter had issues with smoking around her kids. It must have been a long time ago but Amtrak had a smoking car which was nice but I'm sure that's changed. If you mentioned it, I must have missed it...why can't you fly? One of the reasons I quit smoking was that there were less and less smoking areas in airports and to go out and go through security again is not ideal...so a longer flight and time at the airport was stressful. Much easier now that I don't smoke.
Advising a highly personal decision which hinges upon given advice is not within the realm of my comfort zone. I would truly hate to urge someone to "go ahead", then hear later of dire consequence. Frank
If it was my last trip I would go to the funeral and pick out a cheap casket while they are still available.
I don't know where that remark is coming from @Martin Alonzo....but since I plan to be cremated no need to pick out a coffin.
My Honey does not smoke around the grandkids @Chrissy Cross and he has only come once with me to my daughter's and he did respect their "smoking" rules during that visit. There are some things I just don't do....planes are one of them.