Gallery 3 — Chris Baker Makes Stuff

The In Between

The beautiful, wonderful, in between.

There were large parts of this trip that were planned. I knew Glacier was going to be spectacular. The Desert was going to be hot. The coast would be the coast. But getting there. The miles and miles in between. That’s the magic of the Drive.

There was Lava Hot Springs, Idaho – a Jersey boardwalk town dropped into the middle of the amber waves of grain. It has a river running through the town, which the locals have massaged to create a tubing ride of sorts. You rent a tube in town, walk up the hill, ride back into town, then hop on the back of a pickup truck and do it again.

There was a quick stop at Leinenkugel brewery. A camp on the blue waters of Green Lake, WI. A cheddar brat with cheddar cheese and cheese curds in Milwaukee.

I drove past the tracks worn into the earth by the wagons on the Oregon trail. Over the snake river bridge, where Evil Knievel attempted his famous jump, and under the shadow Windmill after windmill after windmill.

I crunched through the snow to a hot springs along the road into Jackson. Saw the shadow of Devil’s tower amongst a hundred thousand stars. Shrugged at the four presidents staring out into the Black Hills of South Dakota. And pulled my little Subaru into RV filled campgrounds on back road after back road.

It’s not the big moments that are so intoxicating about a life on the road. It’s the next mile. And the one after that. And the mysteries and multitudes contained in every one.

A cheddar brat, with cheese sauce and cheese curds. Surprisingly, too much cheese.

Chippewa Falls, WI. A pleasant surprise ten minutes from my campsite