Logbook

I've been looking for a logbook - somewhere to jot down notes and mileages whilst we're on the road, to refer to when updating the MERTA widget (to the right) and this blog when we get a chance.

I couldn't find exactly what I wanted, so naturally thought I'd create my own:

Creating this manually in a word processor would have been laborious so - of course - I created an app that uses iText to generate the PDF for me :)

Outbound flights booked!

Well, a bit of a big event happened today: we booked our outbound flights. This is the first concrete step towards reality - gulp!

South Carolina

Once we're in South Carolina, we're back on the coast and enjoying the beaches, cliffs and crabs.

There are lots of cute historic towns as we drive along the coast, each with their own unique history and selling points. We have chosen a selection of the best to see based on uniqueness and the number of miles!

Our journey down the South Carolina coast ends in St Helena Island, the home of Hunting Island State Park.

This is the most popular state park in SC. It has a pristine sandy beach as well as an historic lighthouse which is open to the public and you can climb all the way to the top for breathtaking views.

The camping is supposed to be excellent too with access to the beach for a late night stroll.

State:	South Carolina
Towns of Interest: (FB) = Firebreak	N/A
National Parks:	Congaree National Park - not visiting
State Parks of Interest:	Hunting Island State Park Myrtle Beach State Park Edisto Beach State Park
Places of Interest: (N) = Night Stay	Myrtle Beach (N) Myrtle Beach State Park (the beach itself) Mt. Atlanticus Miniature Golf The Carolina Opry (for live music) Summerville (the Flower Town in the Pines) Charleston (Historical Town) Angel Oak (very old oak tree and picture spot) Edisto Beach State Park (Dense maritime forest and an expansive salt marsh) (N) St Helena Island (Glimpse into rural Lowcountry life past and present) Beaufort (Historic Town) St. Helena (Home to the Penn Center, one of the first schools for the children of freed slaves the location of a small rural cottage, where Martin Luther King, Jr. drafted his famous “I have a dream speech”) Hunting Island State Park (N) Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge (easy hike and amazing wildlife - free)
Routes of Interest:	N/A
Where to Stay:	Myrtle Beach Ocean Lakes Campground ($50) Lakewood Camping Resort ($50) Edisto Beach State Park Edisto Beach Camping ($20) Hunting Island State Park Hunting Island Camping ($15)
Useful Links:

North Carolina

I wanted to do along the cost of North Carolina but its just not possible for us to do without adding a couple more days to our trip so we had to compromise with a trip to Raleigh before picking the coast up in South Carolina.

We will hopefully have time on the trip to stop off for a beer or two at Raleigh's Beer Garden. There are 366 beers on tap!!!! That's a couple of hours lost just reading through them and deciding which one to have. I think we need to find a motel room close by...

State:	North Carolina
Towns of Interest: (FB) = Firebreak	Raleigh
National Parks:	N/A
State Parks of Interest:	N/A
Places of Interest: (N) = Night Stay	Raleigh (N) Pullen Park (The first public park in N.C.) Triangle Rock Club (The state-of-the-art indoor climbing and fitness center) Raleigh Beer Garden (With 366 beers on tap, the Raleigh Beer Garden has the world's largest beer selection, made official when representatives from Guinness World Records visited in 2015)
Routes of Interest:	The Road to Nowhere' starts in Bryson City and leads to a tunnel deep within the Smoky Mountains. Although this road to nowhere has much speculation and dead ends past the tunnel, it gives you breathtaking views of Fontana Lake and the Great Smoky Mountains. The infamous 'Dragon' at Deals Gap is one of the most popular roads for motorcyclist because of it's sharp turns and breathtaking views.
Where to Stay:	Raleigh Days Inn Raleigh Downtown ($76) Sheraton Raleigh Hotel ($150) Super 8 Raleigh Downtown South ($57)
Useful Links:

Louisiana

New Orleans is the first Firebreak of our trip and so we plan to stay a little longer here than most places just in case we need to do any necessities (go shopping, have hair cuts, repair car, etc).

I have been to New Orleans before but it was not long after Katrina. I am looking forward to going back to see how much has changed since the hurricane, especially outside the French Quarter which fared lightly in comparison to the surrounding areas.

There are three things I remember from my trip to New Orleans:

1) The Gumbo
2) The Music
3) The Hurricane Cocktails

I am looking forward to showing Lee all three as well as taking in a few more sights that either weren't open when I visited (due to the Hurricane) or I have forgotten!

I have chosen a few sights outside New Orleans too just in case we have time

The plan:

State:	Louisiana
Towns of Interest: (FB) = Firebreak	New Orleans (FB)
National Parks:	N/A
State Parks of Interest:	Fountainbleau State Park
Places of Interest: (N) = Night Stay	New Orleans (Nx3) New Orleans' French Quarter Garden District (Less than 3 miles from French Quarter) St. Louis Cathedral (Centerpiece of the French Quarter) Jackson Square City Park (One of the oldest city parks in the USA) Ride a vintage streetcar (Crescent City’s streetcars will carry you from the French Quarter through the gorgeous Garden District and down Carrollton Avenue in the University area) Steamboat Natchez (The harbor cruises take about two hours and provide narration on the sites, with an optional lunch of creole cuisine) Mardi Gras World Honey Island Swamp Tour Laura Plantation, Vacherie Lake Pontchartrain Causeway Bridge Fountainbleau State Park
Routes of Interest:	Route 90 (Mobile to New Orleans)
Where to Stay:	New Orleans Wyndham New Orleans French Quarter ($145) Crescent Palms Motel ($86) Harrah's New Orleans Hotel ($227) Courtyard by Marriott New Orleans Downtown Near the French Quarter ($162) Renaissance New Orleans Pere Marquette French Quarter Area Hotel ($144)
Useful Links:	http://www.mardigrasworld.com/ http://www.honeyislandswamp.com/ http://www.lauraplantation.com/ http://www.thecauseway.us/

South Dakota and North Dakota

When I think of Dakota, Doris Day jumps into my head and starts sing Black Hills of Dakota. I can only guess that as a child mum made me watch Calamity Jane as many times as I watched Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl as I know all the words off by heart!

We're going to have to download a copy of this classic to play in the car, belting out the words, as we travel through the Black Hills.

If anyone wants a reminder of who awesome this song is, its on YouTube here

North Dakota Plan:

State:	North Dakota
Towns of Interest: (FB) = Firebreak	N/A
National Parks:	Theodore Roosevelt National Park
State Parks of Interest:	N/A
Places of Interest: (N) = Night Stay	Theodore Roosevelt National Park (N) Medora (Small Badlands town is Gateway to the South Unit of the park. Old West cowtown with horseback rides, modern museums and Amphitheater) Painted Canyon Visitor Centre (Overlook of the Canyon) Prairie Dog Town (throughout the park, homes of the Prairie dogs) Scenic Loop Drive (36 mile scenic loop with pullouts and interpretive signs) Theodore Roosevelt North Unit Scenic Byway (14 mile scenic loop providing view of the badlands) Ozbow Overlook (Final overlook along the scenic byway offers a sweeping panoramic view of the badlands)
Routes of Interest:	N/A
Where to Stay:	Theodore Roosevelt National Park Juniper Campground -fcfs ($14) Cottonwood Campground - fcfs ($14)
Useful Links:	https://www.nps.gov/thro/index.htm

South Dakota Plan:

State:	South Dakota
Towns of Interest: (FB) = Firebreak	N/A
National Parks:	Wind Cave National Park - Not visiting Badlands National Park
State Parks of Interest:	Custer State Park
Places of Interest: (N) = Night Stay	Spearfish (Little town at the entrance to the Blackhills) Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway (Used in the final scenes of Dances with Wolves) Deadwood (Go to Moriah Cemetery to see the remains of Calamity Jane and James Bulter Hickok (Wild Bill)) Hill City (Old Western City. Black Hills Central Railroad offers two hour excursions to Keystone and back on an 1880s steam train) Crazy Horse Memorial (56 storie in-progress sculpture. Go to the visitors center for a look at what it will look like when finished) Jewel Cave National Monument (The worlds second longest cave - name for calcite crystal) Needles Highway (Finger like spires line the road) Iron Moutain Road Custer State Park (Known for the bison - view them along the 18 mile Wildlife Loop Road) (N) Mount Rushmore (Go to viewing terrace for the best view) Blackhills National Forest Badlands National Park (N)
Routes of Interest:	Route 14A (Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway) Needles Highway (Rte 87) Iron Mountain Road (in Custer State Park - amazing views, spiraling bridges and framed tunnels) Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway (Route 16)
Where to Stay:	Custer State Park Center Lake Campground - walk in ($19) Log cabins ($40) Pre booked camping ($19) Badlands National Park Cedar Pass Campground ($22) Sage Creek Campground - rarely full ($22)
Useful Links: