I'm sure it wouldn't surprise you to hear that gas is cheaper in the midwest, or that there is no traffic out here on our road trip, or that my car now has another layer of paint in the form of bug ghts, but some things might surprise you. Here's a list of some of the things that surprised me.
1. Nobody speeds in Utah or Wyoming. Ok, I know that's probably not totally true, but I can tell you that I only saw one highway patrol officer in three days of driving and he was with a tow truck that was pulling a shuttle bus out of a ditch. I can also tell you that even though I drive no more than 5 miles over the speed limit, I can count on one hand how many people passed me in the last three days. Considering that most of the people on 280 go 80mph every day, I thought that was weird.
2. People speed in Nebraska. I was passed more times in the first 30 minutes of being on the road in Nebraska than I was on all the other days combined. They speed in town, too. They fly by me on the city streets and were driving so fast on the dirt road by the campground (that goes nowhere!) that I was a little afraid for the girls' safety. It just so happens that we also saw our first speed trap and our first traffic accident of the entire trip in Nebraska. Strange coincidence, no?
3. There are A LOT of trains. If I could think of a word that means more than a lot, I would use it. There haven't been very many times on this road trip where we can't see a train or train cars somewhere. They are everywhere. In fact, in Cheyenne and Lincoln, there were huge overpasses that went over at least a dozen set of tracks each. The one in Cheyenne actually had a tower in the middle of the road that looked like an air traffic control tower.
4. The billboards on the side of the road project ridiculously far ahead. It's not uncommon for a sign to be for a business that is 60-80 or more miles away, even if there is something closer. The hotel chain Little America was especially silly. They advertised for their hotel for hundreds of miles, gradually increasing thd quantity of billboards as you got closer to their hotel until they were nearly back to back. Then, as you passed the exit for their hotel, the next billboard was for their next hotel, 288 miles away.
5. For hundreds of miles in Utah and Wyoming there are variable speed limits. The signs are LED or have scrolling numbers so they can change the speed limit at will. Others have pegs so they can hang new numbers over the old ones if needed. Talk about keeping you on your toes.
6. And speaking of speed limits, Nebraska has a minimum speed limit on their freeways, as does Iowa. We weren't sure who exactly they were posting it for since it was 35 mph less than the maximum limit and they had already expressly forbidden things like farm vehicles on other signs.
7. People like to write messages on the side of the road with rocks. A good number of the cities since Nevada have written the first initial of their city's name on the side of a hill in white stone, but passing motorists have also written messages about loved ones all along the highway. Their words and letters are spelled out in black rock, and we have wondered so many times where these rocks come from. They are all the same approximate size, and as far as we can tell are not anywhere along the road except where they are formed into letters. We have seen probably 100 messages written in 1000+ miles over 4 states.
8. Wyoming and Nebraska don't like to put white lines on their streets. I never realized how much I rely on those lines at the intersection to know where to stop, but I find myself drifting way too far out before I stop over and over again. I guess it's a skill you must possess to live here.
9. They also stack their traffic lights from left to right, laying on their side. I know lots of other states do this. I first saw it in Nashville as a child, but I still think it looks weird. The red light is on the left and the green is on the right.
10. Octane levels of gas are all over the place. Many places still have 85 octane, which we don't have anymore. Some have 87, 89, or 91. One had only 85 and 91. I guess when I think about it, they all had 91. It was just the lower levels that keep changing. And as expected, all of them are cheaper than back home, and as far as I can tell, none of them charge extra for credit. Most of them also take local checks as payment.
11. Some of my favorite places to eat don't exist out here. While they have an abundance of Applebee's, McDonald's and Burger Kings, we haven't seen a Jack in the Box or a Taco Bell in ages. They have Subway, but no Togo's. There are plenty of Dennys, though!
Tomorrow we head into Chicago and leave these rolling plains behind. It is amazing how much more you pay attention to the little things when there isn't so much all around you all the time. Every little thing from the clouds to the colors of the semi-truck cabs driving by catches your eye and seems special and interesting out here. Its definitely a reminder that I need to take some more time to slow down and look around.
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