A wonderful day. There is nothing like the raw electricity at the start of a big road trip. Once you lock the door and pull the car away, even though you are driving through your neighborhood streets, everything is different. That stop sign is different. The on-ramp to the highway is different. Everything is vivid and sizzling with anticipation and potential.

As soon as you merge onto the interstate going west, it is Game On.

It doesn’t matter that you drive west on that highway several times a week to do the most mundane things. Today you are going West with a capital W. The mountains are calling and finally the day to answer has come.

The Morning

It is a lot of work to get to that moment of westward bliss. And even after weeks of prep, the morning of departure is organized chaos.

I woke up early and started loading up the roof bag. By 7:30 a.m. all of the gear was in the car. We were making great time. But our 9:00 a.m. departure goal came and went. And so did the revised departure goals of 10:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. No stress about it, though; what we wanted was to pack the car as thoughtfully as possible, and to leave the house perfectly clean. In past years we’ve left the house a bit of a mess as we scrambled out the door, but this year we will have someone staying while we are away; we felt obliged to leave things sorted and clean.

We left about one hour and forty-five minutes “late”. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and spirits were high. We stopped at my sister’s house to pick up my nephew; this is the second year in a row that he’ll be joining us on our summer road trip. Once you’re in the band, you’re in the band.

The Day

The drive through Pennsylvania was beautiful. It is a slow and steady climb from the home city of Philly, across the Susquehanna River, into the rolling farmlands, up and into the mountains, through the four tunnels on I-76 (not my video).

One thing we did differently this year was to make detailed food plans for each meal, and do as much food prep as possible before we left. For lunch this day we brought fresh lunchmeats and rolls. We had plans to stop at some scenic places in PA to eat, but it was 97 degrees and we decided to have a picnic lunch inside the Blue Mountain rest stop. Maybe we look conspicuous hauling out packages of ham, turkey, chicken, and cheese amidst the Sbarro and Roy Rogers take out surrounding us, but I guarantee you that our Philly deli-fresh sandwiches outclassed anything we could have purchased there. Plus we could make use of the restrooms, gas station, and Starbucks.

Angie took over the the next leg of driving and I, as I always do when I am a passenger, took a nap. We are both really good drivers, but Angie is the best navigator and passenger ever. I, unfortunately, am a waste. I could drive all day and night without a problem, but as soon as I am in the passenger seat, I am out like a light switched off.

Angie drove us all the way out of Pennsylvania and into West Virginia. We took I-470 around Wheeling, which meant we were in WV for as long as it took to play “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and “The Ballad of Billy the Kid” and then we were in Ohio.

We stopped at a BP gas station in Saint Clairsville, Ohio. After refueling, I went inside to get a drink, and was met with the most surreal shop of my life. Aside from the regular stuff you’d expect, this place also sold rifles, swords, a wide variety wild looking knives of dubious quality, and, my favorite, and morningstar battle mace for sale above the bullet-proof glass enclosed register.

Ah, Ohio. Just when you think everything is normal you walk into a BP that could serve as a decent armory for an ancient caravansary on the Silk Road.

I regret, deeply, not purchasing the morningstar. Or taking photos. Maybe it’s better this way: some things should be left in the mist of the etheral plane for the next unsuspecting traveler.

I took over driving from there, and that is when the fun began.

Not far from our final desitination, we started getting weather alerts on our devices.

One thing I do before we leave is to program each day’s destination location into my weather app (I prefer the Accuweather app), and set it to send me alerts. Granted, I might get alerts about weather for a location we’ll not reach for a couple of days, but, that is fine; a little context is a good thing.

This alert called for torrential rain, hail, thunder and lightning, and winds in excess of 70 mph. Some vehicles are better than others in stormy weather; but few things are worse than a minivan with an over-stuffed roof bag and so many people and so much gear that the bumper is just a few inches from the ground. The alerts said to shelter in place, and Angie and I decided that, after last year’s weather drama, we were going to just do what we were advised.

There is an instinct to tell yourself “I got this” and greet such sudden storms as a challenge, a test of your driving abilities and your courage. But I no longer wish to take those sorts of chances.

As soon as the rain started falling and the winds started buffetting our ride from side to side, I found a safe shoulder and pulled over. The alert said that the storm was not big, but was most intense from exit 169 to 161. We were sitting at the sign for exit 169 and heading toward 161. Perfect place, perfect timing.

We sat there in awe of nature (and the drivers who insisted on pushing through) on the side of the interstate, with 3-4 cars pulled over behind us, for about 15 minutes. Then the storm passed, and we finally got on our way and to our cabin in the woods.

The Evening

We stayed in Dillion State Park in one of their cabins. This is the third time we’ve stayed here, and we just love it. It is a very old school cabin with a full kitchen, a living room with fireplace, two bedrooms, and a screened in porch. The cost is about half of a typical Ohio hotel room, and the vibe is just right.

The boys helped unpack everything we needed and then grabbed their fishing poles and walked down the trail to the lake. We had fun testing out these new Midland 50-channel GMRS walkie-talkies I bought this year; last year these two went off on a hike to the top of a mountain in Rocky Mountain National Park and I about had a heart attack trying to find them. So far, these jawns work great and I taught boyo a bunch of useless military radio protocol. Since they are GMRS, I had to register with and get licensed by the FCC, which felt important but also felt like why did I just pay the federal government $35 so that I could tell my son that dinner was ready?

Speaking of dinner — Angie made up a great meat sauce at home which we froze, and while the pasta was cooking in water that never quite reached a boil the sauce was reheated and by the time the boys came back, fishless, we we’re ready for our first meal on the road.

Having learned one of our most important rules of the road last year — whenever there is a shower, use it — the boys got cleaned up while Angie and I set up beds and discussed timing and meals for tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Indiana. I dread Indiana. However, we are going to really try this year with a number of cool stops planned for Indianapolis… including an REI for some gear that I left at home. After that, it will be on to a hotel in Illinois with a pool and the last soft bed for a few days.

Day one, in the books. We are not too far from home, but we are further west than we were when we woke up.

Westward, ho!