SummerSimo Travel Troubles Notes and The Purring Page

Is there a more exciting way to appreciate the splendor of a country than by embarking on a road trip? Surely at some point, you’ve toyed with the idea of driving across your own country, but planning the perfect route has been elusive. Key attractions are invariably overlooked or a dull route is taken instead of a more exciting alternative.

Fortunately, for those residing in the U.S, Discovery News in conjunction with Randy Olson, a doctoral candidate at Michigan State University, have developed the ultimate American road trip using a highly advanced algorithm. This map details exactly where to travel to see all the major landmarks across the 48 continental states. The map features 50 primary national landmarks, historical sites, national parks, and monuments to visit during the road trip. All that’s left to do is gather your comrades and hit the open road.

If you are considering embarking on this epic adventure, bear in mind that it’s a 13,699-mile journey which translates to approximately 224 hours of driving. Tackling the journey in one go would require about 9.33 days. However, Olson estimates that realistically, it would take 2-3 months to complete the journey comprehensively.

Here is the list of the landmarks to be visited, spread out across all states:

Starting with the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho, the route then guides you through Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Pikes Peak in Colorado and so on. The rest of the destinations include historic sites such as The Alamo, Texas; Elvis Presley’s Graceland, Tennessee; French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana; Mount Vernon, Virginia; White House, Washington, DC; Liberty Bell, Pennsylvania; and Statue of Liberty, New York.

There are also several national parks and monuments such as Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico; Fort Sumter National Monument, South Carolina; and Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky. The west coast stretch includes San Francisco Cable Cars, California and San Andreas Fault, California.

Finally, end your journey by visiting the impressive Hoover Dam in Nevada.