Off the Beaten Path

If you're like us, your kids are about to get out of school, and summer yawns before you, waiting to be filled with memories. You could spend a few thousand dollars to fly the whole family to the Bahamas, or you could do something more sensible, like taking a family road trip.  

When my wife and I were married ten summers ago, we spent our honeymoon driving from southern California to New Orleans, and as much fun as we had in Nawlins, getting there, as they say, was at least half the fun. We stopped in places we never would've planned a direct trip for. We drove long stretches of historic Route 66; tasted ice cream at the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham, Texas; took the tour at the Tabasco factory on Avery Island in Lousiana; slept in a teepee at the Wigwam Motel in Arizona; and watched millions of bats fly out from beneath the Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin, Texas. Sure, if we had hopped a plane in LAX we could've gotten to Bourbon Street in about four hours, but just think what we would've missed. 

Road tripping is an American tradition, and if your kids are old enough to sit still (or young enough to sleep) for long stretches of open road driving, the good people at Reader's Digest have just the book for you. In Off the Beaten Path, they've put together a collection of travel destinations that might appeal to a family that wants to take an adventure without taking out a second mortgage.

The book describes more than a thousand scenic locations and points of interest, all divided by state to make your trip planning easier, and each entry includes an in-depth description complete with intuitive icons representing the different amenities available, ranging from picnicking to campfires to WiFi access. As for the variety of locations, the book's title tells you all you need to know. You won't find anything about the Grand Canyon, Fisherman's Wharf, or Mount Rushmore, but a random flip through the pages gives you a peek at the SPAM Museum in Austin, Minnesota; Snake River Wine Country in Idaho; the Willa Cather Pioneer Memorial in Red Cloud, Nebraska; and dozens of state and national parks.

As odd as it might seem, the best thing about this book is that it is still a book. In an age when trips are planned with a few clicks of the mouse, there is something comforting about curling up on the couch and flipping through the pages, looking at places you might visit someday and others you never will. With each turn of the page you imagine yourself and your family in the picture making memories that will last a lifetime.

Comments

[Joann Ludwig]

Hank, looking over at our bookshelves, I see 'Scenic Wonders of America' published 1973. You might remember that we used it to plan many summer vacations through the years.

[Joann Ludwig]

I neglected to mention that 'Scenic Wonders of America' is a Reader's Digest Book.