Midwest Road Trip for 2 Wild and Crazy Guys

[bosstone75]

Hello all,

I'm looking for some roadtrippin' ideas for two guys from Minnesota who have 5 days to get anywhere exciting and back. We've been to and enjoyed Deadwood, SD and Memphas, TN (just to give you an idea of our tastes). We like blues and jazz, dirty hippie music, music festivals, exciting landscape, strange sites and strange small town festivals. We're looking at leaving this Friday the 7th and returning the following Wednesday.

Any ideas would be welcome and once we have a destination in mind, we'll get in touch again to find exciting sites along the way.

Two of the things we're considering so far are...
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/cheese/index.html
or doing a portion of this trip
http://www.roadtripusa.com/great_river_road/index.html

Thanks!

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

The Great River Road offers plenty of opportunities to see and explore scenic beauty as well as cultural oddities, and would be my choice. It is a collection of various highways and byways in Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Tennessee, and Arkansas. Besides Memphis, there are thriving jazz scenes in both St.Louis and Kansas City. And don't forget events and places closer to home.

AZBuck

[Quebec Gen]

Here are some examples of off the beaten path festivals held in April :

Art Car Parade in Houston, TX
Running Off the Rodents, Louisville, KY (call 800.896.8941)
Big Mountain Furniture Race, Whitefish, MT
World's Largest Trivia Contest, Stevens Pt, WI
Ozark UFO COnference, Eureka Springs, AR (call 501.354.2558)
World Cow Chip throwing Contest (call 580.625.4726)

If you go through St. Louis, check out the Walk of Fame where you can look for the golden stars of Chuck Berry, Ike & Tina Turner, William Burroughs, Scott Joplin, Tennessee Williams, T.S. Elliot and Miles Davis. In Kansas City, check out the American Jazz Museum and the Grand Emporium blues club. If you go to the Deep South, stop by the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, MS and browse New Orleans' bars and clubs for great Bourbon jazz.

Gen

[Midwest Michael]

I'd agree with Buck and Gen, and say a KC/St. Louis trip would be right up your alley.

Head down to KC, cutting over to St. Joesph, MO for a quick tour of the Glore Psychatric Museum, before checking out the Jazz and Blues sites in KC, and maybe stop in for a quick tour of the Boulevard Brewery, which makes some really good beer. Then head over to St. Louis, see the arch and music scene there, before heading back north via the Great River Road, making sure to also make a stop in the Quad Cities, which also has a rich history for jazz and blues musicians.

The deep south has plenty to offer, but I'd think that would be a little much for just a five day trip.