Open Road Inspiration

My lover and I are leaving for a trip on the open road as soon as opportunity can afford it (two weeks or so from now it seems). I'm sure there are lots of practical questions I can ask, but it seems most of practicality is covered in this site. Here's a few for the dreamers, though.

1. What are your favorite on the road reads? I know the classics, Kerouac and the rest of The Beat, modern poetry and the gentle prose of the 50's. But what are some funny, interesting, or inspiring novels that may not make the typical road list that you've enjoyed anyway? Any of them that can be read outloud easily?

2. What are your favorite on the road songs? I want some classics and some modern, something jazzy to keep myself and my musically ecclectic lover awake at night, and something soothing and inspiring to listen to first thing in the morning. Not just travel themes, but good solid tunes. I want to make some really impressive seamless mixes.

3. Which small town, big city, tiny alleyway, roadside diner, holds YOUR best memory... and why? We have no particular destination, and we'd love to be able to see what makes other travellers tick.

Thanks. :)

For Books I can recommend two. 1)The search for Joe Merchant, By Jimmy Buffet and 2) Tales from Margarotaville also Jimmy. The inspire me and I re-read them because they are that good.

As for music I like acoustic, Edwin McCain, Jeffery Gaines and of course Jimmy. His latest CD is a double and makes it very easy to be in a great mood.

I must skip the town parts as I don't hit the smaller towns often.

I just got this book from a friend and I totally recommend it! Bad Girls Guide to the Open Road by Cameron Tuttle. It's so funny but also has practical tips for travelling. A must read!

All of the books on the following page: http://www.roadtripamerica.com/read/travel.htm have been read out loud to the driver (me) while cruising down the road. Tim Cahill's book about the record setting road trip is one of my favorites. Winterdance is another must read!

Book: Into the Wild by John Krakauer...about road-tripping and living on the road to a tragic extreme but still a fascinating book. Anything by Cahill. Traveler's Tales has a great series of books as well. As I love traveling with my dog, their "Traveling with Dogs" is my favorite.

Music: Anything that I can turn up high and sing to so I don't have to hear myself. :-) This includes blues, soul, R&R, soundtracks/show tunes, and even some silly stuff like Wierd Al. Whenever I go on a longer trip, I usually listen and sing to the 2-CD set of "Phantom of the Opera". That's a standard for longer trips.

Small Towns: Some of my favorite stops/memories are of the Whale Cove Inn, Depoe Bay, OR; Oregon Vortex, town?; Omak Stampede, Omak, WA; Leadville, CO; Mt. Shasta area, CA; Eureka, CA; Long Beach peninsula, WA.

Have a great time on your trip!

Glad to hear your getting to go on a nice trip (all trips are nice!) - here's some suggestions:

To read: Bill Bryson's "The Lost Continent", Doug Lansky (ed) "There's No Toilet Paper...On The Road Less Traveled", William Least Heat-Moon's "Blue Highways".

To listen: Joe Pass, Dream Theater, Blues Masters Vol. 7 & 15, The White Stripes...this one goes on and on!

This book, "Desert Solitaire" by Edward Abbey is one of my favorites.

Have fun, Dave