Wide open spaces are plentiful once you get outside of the major city limits. But extremely rural areas in the eastern part of the state take the definition of "wide open spaces" to a whole other level. Heather took the photo above while traveling on an isolated county road outside of Karval, Colorado. Pikes Peak can be seen off in the distance.
We chatted about it and decided that the Thanksgiving holiday would be a good time to plan a visit. I scheduled time off of work and began planning my adventure.
Most normal people when faced with a 1,500 trip would start looking at flights. I am by no means "normal." My love for the open road meant flying was out of the question. I planned my route, made all of the appropriate hotel reservations, and prepared the car for a cross-country journey.I pulled out of the garage at 7 AM just like I did for the trip to Pennsylvania I made earlier this year - with the roof down. Temperatures were forecast to be in the 60s during the day, but were in the 40s when I left the house. No big deal. I was wearing a few layers in preparation for the cold temperatures. And the XK8 has a great heater that can be supplemented with heated seats if needed. Overall, the forecast looked great except for a chance of rain near Chattanooga.
Today's journey would take me from Athens, Georgia to Oak Grove, Missouri roughly 850 miles away, which translates to around 13 hours behind the wheel. All but 60 miles would be via interstate highways, and a trip I was thoroughly looking forward to. Once past Atlanta on I-75, the sun came out for a while, which made the fall colors look great.The break in the clouds seen in the photo above was encouraging, but turned out to be a tease. Not only did the clouds not break, the temperature started to drop rapidly as I ascended to the top of the Cumberland Plateau eventually reaching the mid 30s. The sprinkles of rain that arrived while I was refueling in Monteagle, Tennessee forced me to put the roof up for a bit.