Arjan’s Famous Highlights and Lowlights!

Total Days on the Trip: 63
Places Visited: 22 U.S. states and 2 Canadian provinces
Total Miles Driven: 12,631 (20.323 km)
Average Speed: 46 mph
Average Mileage: 49.8 mpg (according to Prius trip meter— my experience tells me it was probably 48 or 49 mpg, but still …)
Absolute Highlight: Glacier Bay, Alaska
Highest Altitude (by Prius): Wolfcreek Pass, Colorado: 10,856 feet (3,309 m)
Highest Altitude (by Arjan): Top of the Pancake Rocks trail, Colorado: 11,100 feet (3,383 m)
Biggest Surprise: Grand Coulee (not the Dam) and the Dry Falls in Washington State. Impressive scenery and fascinating geology, not widely known or visited.
Special Recommendation: Antelope Canyon, near Page Arizona. It’s a guided tour for $35 per person, but well worth it. Unique natural artistry. See September 14 post pictures!
Most Tedious Experience: Going through customs in and out of the US and Canada. Total wait time for three entries into the US (we timed it): 2 hours and 10 minutes. Getting into Canada three times: less than an hour.
Towns You Least Want to Visit: Williston, ND. Due to a recent oil boom, it is full of trucks, diesel fumes, gravel and dust, traffic jams, and seedy and/or ugly roadside “attractions”. Barstow, California is a close second.
Towns You DO Want to Visit: We saw many attractive places, but the biggest surprises were Bayfield, WI, on beautiful Lake Superior; and Williams, Arizona, (Affordable) Gateway to the Grand Canyon.
Days Without Any Sun: Three (August 26, September 11, October 2)
Most Rain: September 11, in the high desert of Arizona
Most Overpriced Meal: Trattoria Rustica, Pittsfield, MA
Cheapest Dinners: Zellar Village Inn, Newberry MI: $33.68 for two, including two glasses of wine; Aroma Cafe and Restaurant, Emporium, PA: $26.42, no wine.
Worst Dinners: Carmen’s in Cloquet, Minnesota; The Duck Inn, Havre, Montana; Quigley’s Family Restaurant, Barstow, California.
Best Lunch: Minnesota made up for Carmen’s the following day at an outside terrace at the Green Mill Tavern overlooking beautiful Lake Bimidji
Best Meals for the Money (aside from the delicious, free lunch at the Ramsey’s): McGlinn’s in Wenatchee, Washington, and 42nd Street Cafe, Seaview, Washington
Best Dinners: Cafe de la Presse in San Francisco for best food; Bali Hai on the San Diego harbor for best view and ambience (the food was good too).
Best Restaurant Service: Sunset Restaurant, Cody, Wyoming. After we ordered the buffet, the waitress only charged us for one senior and one kid meal because “we ate like birds”. Besides that, she was a character (orginally from Connecticut).
Cheapest Gas: Massachusetts (!), but that was because we left before gas prices went up
Most Expensive Gas: Klamath, California: $4.39
Worst Accommodation: (1) Outlaw Hotel, Kalispell, Montana. When their reservation system went down, they did not know which rooms were available. Key cards did not work, Internet crashed; (2) Best Western in Barstow, California: Road noise, train noise.
Best Accommodation: Bette Ludden’s house in Ocean Park, Washington
Best Deal: Our Golden Age National Park passes. All national parks are free, and we can come and go as we please.
National Parks Visited: Between 15 and 20 national parks, forests, and monuments