Did your mom say it was ok? ;)

:D

Paul (Seahawk) has your flight plan all laid out.

997 pfh, that's too easy geez, it's like saying should I drive my Panamera on the autobahn :D

Bring some evidence that you're a direct descendant of Lawrence Welk and they will hold a parade for you...but before leaving, you'll be forced to play an accordion and polka for your life.

Route Ideas? If you are looking for places to see (I kind of like to see some historic places but also some oddball places):

North Dakota is kind of barren so try and go south through South Dakota. Going I-90 you will see quite a bit. Deadwood is kind of cool. There was a roadside attraction off I-90 between Rapid City and Chamberlain that has some movie props from Dances with Wolves. Rapid City (Mt. Rushmore), Sturgis, the Black Hills, Wall Drug Store and don't forget the Corn Palace in Mitchell.

Iowa has the world's largest frying pan and Iowa 80 (world's largest truck-stop.)

Kansas has something like the world's largest ball of twine, the world's largest hairball and the world's largest prairie dog.

Ohio has Wright-Patterson AFB and museum.

The following are roads I have driven and liked. There are other routes that are equal to or better than the following suggestions I am sure. Local knowledge always wins.

- You know the roads out of Seattle better than I ever will, so you are on your own there. One of the most enjoyable drives for me starts in Waitsburg, WA: Route 12 through Dayton and Pomeroy to Lewiston, Idaho. Stay on Route 12 through the Bitteroots. Route 12 ends south of Missoula. Take 93 south and stay in Hamilton, MT for the night. A good friend of mine that I ran rivers with is from Hamilton and I love the place.

Long day, probably 12 hours on the road. I'd leave really early to see it all in the sunlight.

- Day 2 has some interesting choices. You can head father south on Route 93 and get to Idaho Falls and then head into the Tetons. Great drive. Yellowstone is next. The problem here is that it is the height of RV season and the going could be very slow.

Or you can head south on 93 and then take a left on route 43. Route 43 becomes 278. Take into Dillon. North out of Dillon on rte 41 to rte 287 to rte 84 into Bozeman. Then take the interstate to rte 78 south into Red Lodge. Have lunch with Motion :)

After lunch it is really up to you. I would head on back roads to Little Big Horn - I like to drive through Chief Plenty Coups Memorial State Park.

I have also headed south on route 310 from Red Lodge then over to Sheridan on route 14. Nice drive.

There isn't much to see at LBH. You can park, get a map and walk for fifteen minutes and get the gist. What always amazes me, however, is just how small an area it is and how very minor hills prevented the Calvary from seeing the tribes before it was too late. There are crosses depicting where all the skirmishes took place.

Out of LBH I would take route 212 east then right onto rte 314 south to Sheridan, WY. I love route 314.

Hit the interstate south then east to Gillette. I would stop for the day.

You can also stay on route 212 to Rapid City but hotels may be an issue.

- Day three. Hit the back roads though the Black Hills to Mount Rushmore. DO NOT go through Rapid City. Take 40 east, find your way to 44 east and pick up the interstate way east of Rapid City.

The rest is up to you depending on how you feel. There are some really neat roads across Iowa. You may want to drop down at Sioux Fall to Sioux City and then across.

- Day four. I like small town mid west but you may be ready to hit the interstate and haul into Columbus.

Have fun. There is so much to see and so many neat roads!

I'd offer an alternative--instead of the interstate out of the Black Hills, take Hwy 212 east to Mpls./St. Paul and then 94 west thru Madison, WI. and Chicago, then 90 east to Ohio. Here are my reasons, besides the fact that I will be there to show you around if you have time:

A good road trip has a combination of driving through the sticks and small towns as well as through cities, IMO. You will be in the part of the country where I am from and though Iowa will be green and pretty, (most places are this time of year), WI. is mucho prettier. Iowa is flat as a table top and mostly farms, WI. is extremely beautiful in the summer though the southern part is flatter where you will be. Still, you'll cross the St. Croix river on the MN./WI. border and drive through the states that the Swedes and Norwegians decided to settle because of all the water. The Dakotas and Iowa have no lakes to speak of, MN. has ~16,000. WI. has thousands.

Also, like Seattle, Minneapolis/St. Paul are breathtakingly gorgeous during the 9 days of summer, which you might catch. They are also so far north and in the middle of the country that you may never be that close to them again in a car so this is your chance to see them. The drive east on 94 through WI and Chicago, (you can of course bypass the city if it's traffic time), crushes driving thru Iowa 8 ways from Sunday, (sorry Iowa).

Here are some pics from a thread I posted a couple years ago, this is in the middle of the city of Mpls. on the lake I grew up on:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/493834-land-lakes.html

Excellent. Much to my poor planning, I haven't drive much in MN and Wisc. I hope to rectify that in the late summer early fall when I pick up the old FJ40:)

Having driven across the US, you are going in a direction that starts well but ends poorly. The last few days will be mind numbingly dull. You will be tempted to do the math in your head, "If the next major city is 500 miles away and I can drive 125mph, I could theoretically get there in 4 hours!" This is where you need a good companion or you will be looking to get a ticket just to shoot the breeze with a cop!;)

If you go through SD, make sure to see/walk around a bit at the badlands

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1179194167.jpg

Also, you MUST see the world famous Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. ;)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1179194458.jpg

Welcome to the Corn Palace

Western Ohio is seemingly crawling with cops + radar.

30 days in the slammer if you get busted in N Dakota.
You probably deserve it, if you smoke enough to end up in that god forsaken area.

Great minds and all that.:D

Yes indeed.

HardDrive, if you go through Minnesota, make sure you take a break from I-90E just a little east of Austin, MN. Take MN Hwy 16 east to La Crescent, then jog a short way north on US14/61 to rejoin I-90E. MN Hwy 16 has a nice twisty section that'll be a welcome change after the boredom of I-90E.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1179107600.jpg

Make sure to get in a glamor shot...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1179107919.jpg