August 2, 2018
Volume 48 - No. 31
By Pete Peterson
August is the month for vacations and that often means a road trip - off to Granma’s House or a national park; sometimes a soiree to new lands and new places. Regardless, Americans in general, and Californians, in particular, enjoy seeing America up close and personal. John Steinbeck, nearing the end of his writing career recorded his road-trip experiences in the best-selling book, Travels With Charlie. According to Steinbeck, “The only real way to truly understand America is to travel it in the The The Paper Paper -- 760.747.7119 760.747.7119
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vehicle that made America what it is, the automobile.”
Steinbeck claimed he drove the Eastern seaboard, crossed to the Midwestern prairie states then north to the Dakotas, picked up Highway 66 in Chicago and followed ‘The Mother Road’ across the desert to California, then north on the 101 to Oregon and Washington. He chose early August for his trip, “after the summer holidays but before the crops are harvested and school bells ring.” Steinbeck planned to sleep in his half-ton, customized pickup, “under the stars, getting close to
America.” His purpose? “To plumb the spirit and attitudes of the American people.”
Unfortunately, many scholars today doubt the veracity of Mr. Steinbeck’s journey but, nevertheless his book gave travel writing a great boast, and his observations for the most part, seemed to express the moods and attitudes of America, pre-Woodstock. The trip my wife and I took from Escondido, California to Seattle, Washington, lacked Steinbeck’s ambition and covered less distance. Our motive was simple: After a period of work and responsibility we simply want-
ed to get away, to smell the smells and taste the delights of other cities, so we rented a car and hit the road, Google Maps playing on our cell phone.
We drove to Seattle, then took Southwest Airlines home. Driving The Redwood Highway, Highway 101 and other roadways, we enjoyed incredible sights – large herds of elk and deer, wide ocean vistas with dolphins and whales playing in azure waters; tall, majestic red woods, serene California towns and everywhere, people, some pleasant, some cranky, some
Road Trip - See Page 2