stop on our great Year On The Road RV adventure
All good things come to an end, as Chaucer once wrote, and, for us, it was arriving at Walt Disney World’s Fort Wilderness Resort on the 52nd and final week of our grand A Year On The Road adventure across the US (and back) by RV. It was the culmination of a 12-month odyssey to discover more about the country, and expand our travel-writing horizons beyond merely Florida. It was successful in that aim in every aspect, and it was exhilarating to finally be back in our home town, and enjoying the inimitable Disney hospitality (especially at this rural and laid-back resort that most Disney guests never see).
We had started our final month in Biloxi, Mississippi, and traveled east and south via Gulf Shores and Mobile in Alabama, and then Navarre and Tallahassee in Florida’s “Panhandle,” the extreme north-west of the state, which is full of fabulous beaches and eye-catching coastline. The final 270-mile drive south from Tallahassee took us back into familiar territory once again, and the iconic signage that lets visitors know exactly where they are…
Having set out from home on May 14, 2023, we walked back through our front door again on the exact same day a year later, having traveled more than 35,000 miles in our combination of Winnebago Sightseer and Ford Fiesta (our trusty tow car), a journey involving 23 states, 16 National Parks and a lifetime of memories. In many ways, we’re still processing where we went and what we saw (it was a LOT), and we still have the appetite for more, albeit it won’t be for a while! The full trip gave us more food for thought than the previous 10 years combined, while also serving to underline the benefits of home and the myriad of places that are right on our doorstep.
Of course, having completed the journey meant we were duty-bound to conclude our exclusive journal series for the travel pages of The Independent newspaper, a roughly 17,000-word diary of road-going exploits across the most remarkable country in the world. It was a real pleasure being able to highlight the month-by-month narrative of our RV exploits, especially the awe-inspiring scenic nature of most of it, and we hope people enjoyed riding along with us, and are also inspired to try some of it for themselves, especially by RV. This truly is The Big Country, and there is so much more to see apart from the obvious. For now, it is time to relax and reflect – but we WILL be traveling again in future! To read the final part of our Independent series, see this link: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/road-trip-usa-mississippi-alabama-disney-b2688413.html
If you would like to go back and enjoy the previous 11 instalments of our epic trip for The Independent, check out these links:
Month 1, Florida to Minnesota: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-usa-florida-minnesota-b2369256.html
Month 2, Minnesota to Montana: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-usa-minnesota-montana-rv-b2398864.html
Month 3: Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-usa-yellowstone-glacier-national-parks-b2415050.html
Month 4: Montana and Wyoming: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-usa-montana-wyoming-b2438975.html
Month 5 Idaho and Utah: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-usa-idaho-utah-b2467275.html
Month 6: Nevada and Southern California: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/great-american-road-trip-nevada-southern-california-b2503940.html
Month 7, Arizona: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/great-american-road-trip-arizona-b2533875.html
Month 8, Arizona to New Mexico: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/american-road-trip-arizona-new-mexico-b2598440.html
Month 9, New Mexico to Texas: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/road-trip-usa-texas-new-mexico-b2622047.html
Month 10, Texas to Louisiana: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/road-trip-usa-texas-louisiana-b2638398.html
Month 11, Louisiana to Mississippi: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/north-america/usa/road-trip-usa-louisiana-mississippi-b2669174.html
Veness Travel Media 
Hi Susie. I think you mean May 2023 in 3rd paragraph.Still trying to repurpose my life. Took car to car wash finally. Not fun.Carol
Sent from AT&T Yahoo Mail for iPad
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good spot! Thank you for the correction. We were gone a long time, but not THAT long!
We’ve been thinking of you daily, and sending so much good energy your way.
LikeLike
A worthy installment to serve as a punctuation mark on your year of R-V travel trip reports. I appreciate the links to the monthly segments. I especially liked seeing you mention Ruthie’s enjoyment of the campfire programs. Kindly continue to report on your travel adventures. Even though you want some time off before another year long ramble, keep in mind that 2026 is the Centennial year of Route 66 and the preferred way to explore its 2400+ miles is not one end-to-end trip (unless you do have months to do it), but rather a few hundred miles/2 or 3 states at a time. 😉 Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone
LikeLike
Thank you for following along!
We do want to head west again to catch Washington and Oregon, and would likely go through Oklahoma on the way there or back, so we’ll take the book you gave us as a guide (and hope to see YOU, too!). We did enjoy the parts of Route 66 we saw, and even more so when we found out Susan’s great grandmother drove it — alone — from Michigan to California. Can you imagine!
LikeLike
It sounds like there is an interesting story waiting to be told about Susan‘s grandmother’s journey on old Highway 66. You might find it surprising that both men and women make solo trips these days on historic Route 66– some in cars or R-Vs and some on motorcycles. You know that nomadic culture you discovered in R-V parks? Perhaps you could call the 66 aficionados a subculture. They call themselves 66 roadies.
LikeLike
I do wish I knew more about my great-grandmother’s journey. I believe her family moved out to California and she followed later (I’m assuming she had to sell the store she owned). As Simon and I were driving along certain sections of Route 66, we kept thinking about how treacherous some of it is in a modern car (big drops, no guardrails, uneven road surface), and how utterly terrifying it would have been before well-paved roads and in a 1940s car. There is so little development in some areas, if she’d have gotten a blowout or needed help, she’d be on her own. Truly a brave adventure!
LikeLike