The all fifty states club part 2 picks up where we left off in the first part of this series. This series explores interesting things to see and do in all fifty of the United States of America. (You can also go here to read part three.) We will now pick up with the middle. Incidentally, have you ever noticed how many of the states in the U.S. begin with the letters ‘M’ and ‘N?’ Except for Louisiana, this post will focus solely on states that begin with these two letters. Weird.

Louisiana: Swampland

Everybody needs to go to New Orleans at some point. When I am traveling I usually lump together big cities as basically all the same in my head. Well, this generalization doesn’t work for NoLa. It is one of a kind. I have been here two times in the last few years and I can recommend a lot of things: cemeteries, ghost tours, WW2 museum, French Quarter, American Quarter, jazz festivals, the list can go on and on. But what I want to highlight here is the swamp tour B and I took.

We arrived at the swamp after about an hour driving from downtown New Orleans. We piled on a boat and for the next few hours, our tour guide powered us around swamps, pointing out gators, homemade fishing bobbers made of milk cartons and empty plastic bottles, and the interesting plants and birds native to this habitat. My favorite part of the experience was listening to this guy; I had no idea that Adam Sandler was spoofing people by the way he talked in Water Boy. But sure enough, our guide sounded exactly like that. Classic.

Maine: Snow

A few years ago, B’s and my work trips to the East Coast fortuitously occurred around the same time. Like we’ve said in previous posts, when work takes you places you really should make good use and take the opportunity to explore somewhere new. We did this and took a trip around the Northeast. Maybe not so fortuitously, it was the middle of February and the Northeast was experiencing a crazy snow season. I’ve never seen snow that high! It was as higher than I am tall. When we got to Acadia National Park, it was gorgeous, albeit a frozen tundra. This state was really cool and I definitely want to visit again in different conditions.

Maryland: Assateague Island Ponies

On an different work trip to Washington D.C., I rented a car and drove along the mid-Atlantic seaboard. I had watched a program on PBS about the wild horses found on this skinny island that stretches for 37 miles off Virginia and Maryland and wanted to see these guys in person. After driving around for awhile, I turned a corner and there they were. I was on the Maryland side of the island at this point, so the horses are managed by the National Park Service. Their population is kept in check by contraception; on the TV show I was watched someone shot a dart into the bum of a female horse so she wouldn’t get pregnant that year. Talk about crazy jobs! On the Virginia side of the island, cowboy types round up some of the horses once a year and auction them off.

Massachusetts: Martha’s Vineyard

Martha’s Vineyard is an island off of Cape Cod, the part of Massachusetts that juts out into the ocean. Like a lot of Cape Cod, it is known for swanky houses, democrats and people who wear sweaters tied around their shoulders. I spent a week visiting my dad in Cape Cod and took advantage of the handy ferry schedule that takes you the seven miles or so to and from the island. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to be that impressed since I assumed it would be uber pretentious, but I was pleasantly surprised.

I rented a bike and cruised around a few of the towns. My favorite part was the Victorian cottages in the town of Oak Bluffs. These adorable and very well preserved houses look like colorful gingerbread houses. They are small and intricate and frilly, if houses can be frilly. Definitely worth the trip over from the mainland.

Michigan: The Henry Ford Museum

When I was getting close to finishing up all 50 states, I realized I couldn’t come up with a memory of Michigan. This seemed improbable because I had driven from Massachusetts to Idaho and it is on the way. But to be true to my 50 state list, I decided to make a special trip to this state. My experience of choice was the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn. I figured this museum would be all about cars and while it did have a lot of that, it had so much more. I saw JFK’s limo, Abraham Lincoln’s chair from the Ford Theater, and unrelated to assassinated presidents, the bus on which Rosa Parks was riding when she opted to change American history.

Minnesota: Minnesota State Fair

I really like fairs and try to go to the Western Idaho Fair every year. I mistakenly assumed other state fairs would be on the scale of Idaho’s. Definitely not the case in Minnesota. I’m pretty sure this fair is one of the signature events of the year in this northern state. And why wouldn’t it be? I ate fried cookie dough, saw two lumberjacks race each other to cut down a tree using chainsaws, and listened to Sturgill Simpson, Kris Kristofferson and Merle Haggard (may he rest in peace) sing. It was, all in all, a magical evening.

Mississippi: High Cotton

As B and I drove through the southern states we noticed a crop we weren’t familiar with. We decided to pull over and check out what the fluffy white stuff was and discovered to our delight we were looking at rows and rows of cotton. We (of course) took pictures and were (rightfully) embarrassed when a nice southern gentleman stopped his car to make sure we were okay and our vehicle hadn’t broken down. No sir, we’re fine, just some yankees who hadn’t seen cotton before.

Missouri: Antiques Roadshow

Okay, truth be told, I had already been to Missouri before we went to the Antiques Roadshow in St. Louis. But it is just one of my favorite memories, so I am going to put it down as my favorite experience in the state of Missouri. You can read all about it in this post, but suffice it to say I had a great time at the Roadshow and was impressed with the host city of St. Louis to boot. I hadn’t expected much beyond an Arch, but we really had a good time exploring this city.

Montana: Glacier National Park

When my brother and his wife decided to get hitched at Glacier National Park, it seemed very fitting. Also fitting is the fact that in Montana anybody can perform a marriage ceremony. Ha! And so it was that a small group of us hiked down a trail and my dad presided as they became a spousal unit. BTW, Glacier is gorgeous. I highly recommend visiting this special park, especially because the glaciers that the park is named for are supposed to melt in the next few decades.

Nebraska: Scotts Bluff

For anyone driving through Nebraska, you should know it takes a loooong time to get from one side to the other. I drove through from east to west and close to the border I stopped in at Scotts Bluff National Monument. It was at this point that I stopped feeling sorry for myself and how long it was taking to get across Nebraska; you see, Scott’s Bluff is on the trail that a hundred and fifty years ago people walked or rode in wagons to get across as they were slowly making their way to Oregon, Utah and California.

Nevada: Boomtown

Nevada: The town of Reno, Nevada, is in between Boise and Northern California. As such, I have driven ol’ I-80 more times than I can remember. We would always pass through Reno and before we started climbing up towards Donner’s Summit we would turn off and visit Boomtown. When we were younger, we would play in the robust kid’s area. But when I reached 18, I started hitting the slots. Early on I hit big and won $250. I probably have lost almost that over the years, but I still like to pop in while I’m driving through.  

New Hampshire: Live Free or Die

New Hampshire’s license plate reads, ‘Live Free or Die.’ We had only been in New Hampshire for a few minutes when we understood why New Hampshirans picked this motto. We were driving up to a red light when we saw multiple cars treat the read light like a stop sign, stopping and then proceeding through the red light. It was clear from oncoming traffic, and even though the law said stop, New Hampshirans made up their own minds and went. Respect.

New Jersey: Living in the ‘burbs

Many moon’s ago, my friend and I visited New York City for about a week. Instead of staying in Manhattan, we stayed with her family in New Jersey and caught the train into town (along with all the other big whigs who work in the Big Apple). For several days we explored the hustle and bustle of the big city and at night settled into a comfortable suburban home. At the end of the week, I could kind of get why people would spend two hours commuting instead of living in smaller houses closer to the big city. Kind of.

New Mexico: White Sand

In South Central New Mexico, there is a strange desert whose sand is white instead of the normal tan color. This is because the sand in this area is made of gypsum; in fact, this is the largest gypsum sand dune in the world. If you visit you should go on a hike, but make sure you don’t get lost and wind up next door on the military’s White Sands Missile Range.

New York: The Mets

On the aforementioned trip I took to New Jersey/New York, I saw and did lots of great things. It’s hard to narrow down to my favorite, but I think it would have to be splurging at a New York Mets baseball game. My friend’s uncle was very generous and took us to see the Mets. He went all out and we ended up with seats just above the Mets dugout. I got to see Mike Piazza up close and personal as I chowed down on a doctored up hot dog. That was my first experience with major league baseball and even though I have yet to get as good of seats, I always make sure to eat a big league hot dog at every game I go to.  

Conclusion

The states in the middle of the alphabet were a pleasure to visit. Have you been to or is one of these your home state? What has been you favorite experience visiting the Middles? Stay tuned for the final segment in this series to hear about U.S. states. Quick–what is the last state of the 50 states alphabetically?…Wyoming.

Lucky for us, we have both visited all fifty states and have become members of the all fifty states club. We both had a very strong start independently at checking off the states, but when we became friends, we made a couple trips to finish things up. This post is about our efforts to join the all fifty states club part 1. Go here to read part 2 and here to read part 3.

Deciding what counts to be able to check off a state on your list is a matter of personal preference. Some people run a marathon (crazy) or climb the highest mountain (my brother) or visit the state capitol building; the list goes on and on. It really is up to you to decide how you want to define it, although pretty much everyone agrees that a layover at an airport shouldn’t count.

For me, I decided that I had to have done something or seen something specific in that state to count it. The list is pretty random, but if you are looking for things to do so you can check off a new state, you might want to try some of them out.

Alabama: Unclaimed Baggage Store

Have you ever left something on an airplane and wondered what happened to it after you exited the plane, never to see it again? Well, all the forgotten books, headphones, and sweaters go to rest is a strange little store in northern Alabama called Unclaimed Baggage. We had a good time browsing through the shelves of random goods, but I couldn’t help feeling a little sad for all of the lost treasures and the people who looked all over for them, to no avail.

Alaska: Denali

Alaska is one of my favorite states. I spent two glorious summers there avoiding real life before and after graduate school. It’s pretty hard to pick out just one experience there, but I would highly recommend taking a helicopter ride in the Denali National Park area. You’ll be able to see for miles and miles and get swept away by the white mountain peaks and blue water of the glacier pools.

Arizona: Route 66

This stretch of the iconic Route 66 is pretty rad–you’ll drive through the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park. Depending on the time of day and weather, the Painted Desert might be all sorts of colors. When we drove through, the red in the sand contrasted fantastically with the bright blue sky. Petrified Forest National Park is chock full of pieces of, you guessed it, petrified wood. You want to make sure not to take any home as souvenirs though. The Park Headquarters gets pieces sent to them in the mail every day from people who have picked up a piece of wood and brought it home, only to have their life take a turn for the worse. It’s bad juju to steal a piece, and the only way to reverse the curse is to send it back to it’s rightful home.

Arkansas: the booming metropolis of…Pine Bluff?

When B and I were making a grand loop of the Southern States, we spent the night visiting my cousins in a suburb of Little Rock called Pine Bluff. We took a tour of the town and saw my cousin’s university. It wasn’t an earth-shattering visit to the state, but I did (re)learn an important travel lesson: after a few weeks of go, go, go, it is really nice to just stop and take it easy. And eating a home-cooked meal after all the restaurants and fast food places was amazing!

California: the Motherland

I have had a lot of experiences in California. I was born there. My parents and grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, all pretty much live in California. I have put in a lot of time making the drive from B-town across Donner Summit and into the Sacramento Valley. But if I’m picking experiences that readers might be interested in, I would probably have to go with the Northern California coast. This water is pretty cold, so you might not want to go swimming. But man, is it pretty. There’s a street named after my family in the town of Mendocino which, if you visit, you might just recognize as the setting for the “Murder, She Wrote” television series. (Maine, my eye.)

Colorado: Musicfest at Steamboat Springs, CO

Imagine skiing all day and watching concerts all night. Now imagine doing that with about 40 bands and 6,000 (mainly) drunk Texans. It is a party. After two years of attending the craziness, B and I decided we couldn’t keep up with the shenanigans. (We had a REALLY good time those two years, though!)

Connecticut: Mystic Seaport

I had fond memories of watching “Mystic Pizza” when I was younger (although to be honest, I don’t remember the plot at all). So when I was in Connecticut, I decided to go to the town of Mystic. The Seaport is the largest maritime museum in the U.S. and there are lots of cool ships you can check out. Ironically, I didn’t eat pizza while I was in town.

Delaware: well…

B and I both needed to visit this tiny little (2nd smallest) state. We purposefully got train tickets in and out of Dover, but when we got there we didn’t actually see that much we wanted to do. We walked along a riverfront and explored a bustling food market. After a stop at a brewery, we loaded back up and headed out again.

Florida: Benvenido a Miami

On the way to Ecuador, B and I decided to stop for a few days in Miami (because why not?). Our shuttle dropped us off at the hotel on Miami South Beach around 2:00 a.m., but you wouldn’t have guessed it was that time by the number of people milling around, eating, drinking and looking all fancy. Talk about not fitting in! The next day we spent chilling on the white sand and swimming in the warm water (and picking up a Cubano for B). Funny thing: Miami felt just as foreign to us and Ecuador did, once we got there.

Georgia: Savannah

You know when you have an idea about something and when you get there, it just doesn’t live up to what you had imagined? Well, that did not happen when I visited Savannah. There is a main road that runs from downtown into a residential area with huge mansions, and when you walk down it the sun is blocked by gigantic moss-covered trees lining the street. I could practically see Kevin Spacey walking around in “The Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.” Actually, I’m pretty sure we saw the house where that was set.

Hawaii: Mustangs on the Coastline

Hawaii was the last of my 50 states I visited and I wanted to go out with a bang. So, B and I opted to splurge and we rented a Mustang convertible for our week on the Big Island. If that sounds too warm, I have three words for you: air-conditioned seats. We put down the roof, cranked up the ac on our bums and had a fantastic time feeling like ballers.

Idaho: Ah, home

One of my favorite things about my hometown is that the foothills border Boise. Outsiders might think they are ugly and brown. (To be fair, they are. Boise is in a desert, after all.) But when I look at them I see hiking and mountain biking and freedom from my cares, all about five minutes from downtown.

Illinois: Beantown

On the way to Eastern Europe, B, C and I stopped off in Chicago to visit some of our friends who had moved there to attend school. We had a great time and our hosts were so wonderful. We walked across the river that gets turned green in March, ate tapas at a hip restaurant, saw the “Adventures in Babysitting” building, and rode rented bikes along Lake Michigan. All in all, it was a great vacation on the way to a great vacation.

Indiana: New Harmony

When traveling anywhere with my dad, I’m sure to get off the beaten path and see things most people have never heard of. Such was the case in Indiana when we visited the town of New Harmony. This town was founded twice by two different groups of people trying to live communally in the 1800s. Neither worked.

Iowa: Corn fields, motels and humidity

Iowa was a tricky state to visit. I have crossed the U.S. multiple times driving, but somehow never managed to hit up the great state of Iowa. After a lot of driving and a lot of corn fields, I ended up staying the night at a retro motel in Spencer, Iowa. For dinner, I went to one of the few restaurants open and a man from Texas bought my dinner because he thought I was a movie star…playing it cool. Sure, this experience has more to do with the story and less to do with the state. But you know what? I’m not going to forget the time I spent in Iowa.

Kansas: Ft. Leavenworth Military Prison

If you’re wondering why a military prison stands out to me during my time in Kansas, you’ve probably never tried to drive across this state. It is Capital F flat and all you’ll see for hundreds of miles is soybean plants and corn stalks. So when we took a drive around the United States Disciplinary Barracks (aka ‘Leavenworth’) facility, it left an impression. This is the place that the keeps serious offenders who have been convicted in the military courts, and it was pretty intense to see it. We visited the small cemetery where interestingly, there are unmarked graves for 14 German POWs who were convicted of crimes while being POWs.

Kentucky: Derbytown

No, I wasn’t there for the Kentucky Derby. But I did visit Churchill Downs and was impressed by the size of the place. I went on a tour of the facility and could practically smell the money that was won and lost at this racetrack. Did you know that in 2017, $200 million was wagered at this place…during one race…that lasted two minutes? Crazy.

Well, when I started writing this post I planned on getting through all fifty states. Turns out I had a lot to say. Stay tuned to future posts to learn about the other states. This country is pretty great and has lots of amazing things to see and experience. Get out there, check off another state and get working on your own all fifty states club part 1 list.