Day 7 - Hagerstown, Maryland

 

It is Papa`s Birthday!!! Nana was feeling a little better today so she was ready to go to the Hershey World and tour Gettysburg. First we went on a tour ride at Hershey World then sampled the chocolates. We saw an Amish family visiting too. After lunch, we headed over to the Hershey Museum. We got to pretend that we were applying to be  factory workers by learning to grind the beans & roast them, push along factory carts, pounded out chocolate bars from the molds then pack the bars into boxes. Nana & I were hired in Wrapping Department and paid ten cents per pound box of Kisses wrapped. Papa was hired to work in the Roasting Department and paid fifteen cents per hour. After visiting the town of Hershey, we headed to Gettysburg, PA. We visited the National Visitor Center & Bookstore where we bought audio car tour cds so we could drive & tour the different battlefields. We were amazed by the number of statues and memorials around this area. There was so much to see and take in. There was 16 stops in all and it took us at least 2 hours to see everything. After our visit to Gettysburg, we headed south into Maryland. As we headed into Maryland, we passed the Mason Dixon Line. We are staying the night in a little cute town (Hagerstown, Maryland) off the main highway (I-81 S).   

Day 6 - Harrisburg, PA

 

We visited the PA capitol today. The downtown area was amazing with lots of old buildings and churches. The capitol was even more spectacular and the artwork was magnificent. My pictures do not do it justice. Nana was not feeling well so after visiting the capitol of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg, we went back to our hotel in New Cumberland, PA. I went swimming in the pool then Papa and I went out for lunch.

Day 5 - New Cumberland, Pennsylvania

 

 

We finally made it to Pennsylvania!! On our trip so far, we have driven 2,753 miles. Today we drove through Indiana, Ohio and into Pennsylvania. In Ohio, we saw some weird looking buildings that resemble teepees. We still do not know what they are used for but we are guessing that they are road maintenance buildings because we saw a lot of road construction equipment and signs around them. I also had my first Starbucks coffee today...yum yum! We drove all day on toll roads, through lots of construction areas, and through four long tunnels that had been carved through mountains. Pennsylvania is very beautiful with lots of trees, rolling hills and old farm buildings. We saw four deer today near Carlisle, PA. Tonight we are staying in New Cumberland, PA and heading to Harrisburg & Hershey, PA tomorrow. 

Day 4 - Portage, Indiana

 

Last night we stayed at a great hotel that served a delicious breakfast with homemade waffles. So we chose to sleep in then go to breakfast. We did not get on the road until 11am so we had to drive a long ways and make up time. The states we drove through were Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the southern tip of Illinois. We saw Sand Hill cranes in Wisconsin and ate some cheese then drove through the city of Chicago at night. In Illinois, we started on the toll roads. Let`s just say that we are not to fond of the toll roads. These roads makes us feel like we are in a foreign land. We probably went through at least ten toll booths tonight (each time we had to pay more money). We are staying the night in Portage, Indiana.    

Day 3 - Fergus Falls, Minnesota

Today we drove out of Montana through North Dakota. In Mandan, ND, we visited Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park. We saw an On-A-Slant Indian Village, Colonel George Armstrong Custer`s house and we climbed a small ladder to the roof of one of the fort`s buildings. After leaving Mandan, we headed to Bismarck, ND and toured the state`s capital building. In the main foyer of the building, they had chandeliers that resembled wheat stocks. Each chandelier weighed a thousand pounds. On our drive through North Dakota, we saw only a few hawks not a lot of wildlife. We are staying the night in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.

Day 2 - Miles City, Montana

Today we traveled through North Idaho and almost all the way through Montana. In Montana, we saw lots of wildlife. We saw moose by a creek in Deer Lodge, buffalo roaming at Bozeman, antelope eating alfalfa near White Sulphur Springs and deer near Big Timber. Nana didn`t feel very comfortable at the rest area with a rattlesnake warning sign but we did meet some nice Washingtonians from Seattle who are also headed to Pennsylvania. We stopped for the night at Miles City, Montana.

Day 1 - Kellogg, Idaho

 

Our first day on the road, we headed over Snoqualmie Pass through Eastern Washington and planned to stay at Coeur d Alene, Idaho. We arrived at the destination town about 9:30pm and there was no room in the inn or any inns. So we continued to drive on and stopped at Kellogg, Idaho which is a small mining town...a very small town. We stayed at an inn in Kellogg with cute pinecone twinkle lights. They also had free coffee in the morning (A+ in my book).