We are now less than 2 weeks away from our planned departure from Worcester. That would be the start of my 8th trip south which I will designate ‘TS8’. This will be longer and more complex than the trip north (TN8) as it includes a trip west to Wisconsin before heading back to Florida. So I have broken the trip into two segments – TS8-1 (the trip to Wisconsin) and TS8-2 (the trip to Florida).
TS8-1
This segment is planned out in considerable detail and the hotels have already been booked. Here is the route:
This is a trip of over 1,100 miles in 4 segments:
- Elmira NY: a 2-night stop where the main event will be a trip to the Corning Museum of Glass. Ooma is a big fan of glass art and I am intrigued by the technology of glassmaking, so there should be enough there to interest both of us.
- Erie PA: a 3-day Labor Day weekend stay in a city that I have passed through but have never toured. We will visit some long-term friends of Ooma’s and take a look at the western end of the Erie Canal.
- Fremont IN: an overnight stop. There is nothing in Fremont that interests me, but we do plan to stop in Port Clinton OH on our way there to have lunch with my Ft Myers neighbors.
- Madison WI: the city where I was born and raised and, yes, went to high school. We will attend my 55th(!) high school reunion, visit with long-term friends and go to Circus World in Baraboo WI which is a Ringling Brothers museum. We will be in Madison for a full week. We might also take a trip to see Taliesin East, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Wisconsin home.
TS8-2
The trip from Wisconsin to Florida is not completely planned. No hotels have been booked, so there is still considerable uncertainty in this plan. Nevertheless, we are pretty certain which cities we will visit. This will be a trip of over 1,500 miles in 6 hops:
- Chicago IL (or a western suburb thereof): a 3-night stay which gives us 2 full days to visit the city (which Ooma has never visited). One day will be devoted to the Chicago Institute of Art. We also hope to catch some music at a blues club, but haven’t decided how to spend the other day. Lots of options.
- Louisville KY: an overnight stay with my cousin Keith and his wife Debbie.
- Asheville NC: 3 nights. One day will be devoted entirely to seeing the Biltmore mansion and gardens. The other day will likely feature a drive along a segment of the Blue Ridge Parkway.
- Savannah GA: 2 nights. We will simply enjoy the ambiance of one of my favorite southern cities.
- Lakeland FL: one night. Lakeland is home to the University of South Florida which has many buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright. We thought this might be a nice complement to our possible visit to Taliesin East.
- Fort Myers FL. Home at last. Collect Rusty (and see if he remembers me), put our feet up and rest.