Photography, Fun, and Adventure in the U.S.
Per our usual travels, we crisscrossed through Kentucky — state #47, the second-to-last state in our quest to visit all 48 continental states on this part of the adventures — starting in Paducah, located in the southwestern part of the state, at the confluence of the Tennessee and the Ohio
We started our exploration of state #46, Tennessee, in the Chattanooga area. (Technically, we actually were in Tennessee briefly when we visited the Great Smoky Mountains National Park a few weeks ago.) Tennessee became the 16th state of the United States in 1796, and later left the Union to join
Our return to Georgia started out uneventfully, with a wonderful visit to Columbus, the third-largest city in the state and located near the west-central border of the state — along the Chattahoochee River (a tributary of the Apalachicola River) — about 100 miles southwest of Atlanta. Fun and crazy fact:
Our trip to the Great Smoky Mountains ended up being quite different than what we planned when our travel trailer had a tire blowout that led to not only an axle replacement but a reinforcement of the entire trailer’s frame after a fracture was discovered. Still, we loved our short
Alabama marks the 45th state in our JenRanAdventures across the United States… with our first stop in Robertsdale, one town away from the Buc-ee’s #42 in Loxley. What is a Buc-ee’s? For some, it is a destination… but officially it is a travel center chain with a mascot that’s a
While we were sad leaving Cedar Key, we were also excited to continue the exploration of Florida… moving into our final phase by exploring areas of the Florida Panhandle, which is a strip of land roughly 200 miles long and 50 to 100 miles wide, lying between Alabama on the
From Naples, we drove up to the Port Charlotte/Punta Gorda area, located on the Gulf Coast — about halfway between Sarasota and Fort Myers, and near the Peace and Myakka Rivers. Punta Gorda (Fat Point) is a city with a population of about 17,000 which has been on maps since
We stopped in Naples in southwest Florida so that we could spend some time exploring what some consider should be the fourth national park in the state… Big Cypress National Preserve, established in 1974. This 729,000-acre preserve protects the freshwaters of the Big Cypress Swamp — which is essential to
Our adventures in Florida continued in South Florida, with a weeklong stay at an RV park located just outside of Homestead… the perfect location for visiting the three Florida national parks — Everglades National Park, Biscayne National Park, and Dry Tortugas National Park — at least that was the plan!
We returned to Florida almost exactly two years since we last visited the state when Jen was attending a residency for her master’s degree. It is still hot and humid — but better than being caught in a blizzard with our travel trailer! Florida is amazingly state #44 for us;