Growing up, my family traveled pretty extensively, every summer included a road trip of some kind. The destination varied, depending on the year, who we were traveling with, and where we had been the most recently.  We would leave at the crack of dawn, drive all day, and when it was time to stop, we’d stop. I can still clearly remember my parents getting my brother out of the car to walk into the hotel we’d stopped at for the night.

Traveling internationally was no different. We’ve road tripped around Australia, Italy, France, Switzerland, and Germany as well. The freedom to explore and stop whenever there’s something that you want to see and do is fantastic and was a formative part of my childhood.

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A History of Road Trips

Throughout college, road trips were still a big part of my life, driving back forth from Ogden Utah to Portland for a couple of years, Ogden to Las Vegas, and each summer Ogden to Grand Junction Colorado each summer to visit family.

Once Jeff and I got together, road trips became a part of our lives as well. The first road trip that Jeff and I went on was from Portland to Utah, so I could show him my old stomping grounds and introduce him to friends. It was four days, we were there and back, and packed just about as much as humanly possible into the days that we had.

The greatest part of a road trip isn’t arriving at the destination, It’s all the wild stuff that happens along the way.” – Curiano.com

Ask him or me sometimes, when we have drinks in hand, about the very, very small amount of time that I spent behind the wheel that trip. Really, it’s a good one.

Of all of the changes that there have been over the past year, one that we didn’t foresee, at all. I’m the one with the flexibility to travel, and Jeff is the one that is limited due to vacation day counts.  (Which, by the way, is an extremely strange switch to get used to)

In the Middle of it All

Living in Oregon, Seattle was the closest city, at three hours away via car. The next closest major city was either San Fransisco, at eleven hours south, or Vancouver BC, at about seven hours to the North.

None of that deterred us from road tripping at all, simply increased the drive time, depending on where we were going.

Living here in the middle of Ohio is a whole new world for me. Two hours north and we’re in Cleveland, two hours south puts us into Cincinnati, another hour or so south and we’d be in Louisville, three hours east we’re in Pittsburg, six hours we’re in St. Louis.  Twelve hours we’re in New Orleans.

Vanessa, the proprietress of PaisleyPROPOSAL, who is also a good friend of mine, created the most badass line of glasses and nailed it when she created the center of it all glass.

When we found out that some longtime friends of ours were going to be in New Orleans this summer, and that we were invited, my mental wheels started turning.

The Southern Summer Road Trip

Growing up in the Pacific North West our road trips took us all over the American West. Other than the eight grade East Coast trip, I’ve not spent much time on the East coast, and aside from a trip with family when I was VERY young, I’ve not explored the East, and never the South.

It took me a few days to dial in the idea, and about a week after that to broach the subject to Jeff.

Leaving from Columbus, I’d head to Asheville North Carolina, from there to Charleston, to Savannah, down to Jacksonville, head west along the Gulf Coast, stopping when I felt like it. Then on to New Orleans, where he’ll fly down to meet me and our friends from Portland.

After that, he and I will drive back to Columbus through the Mississippi Delta, stopping in Memphis for a night, Nashville for a night, and then home.

He was all for it.

The Evolution of an Idea 

What started out as an idea to explore a region of the United States that I’ve never been to began to evolve. If I was going to be taking someone with me, that meant I had a built-in model.

Hello, photo shoots.

If I was going to be shooting the entire time (duh) I figured I’d go a step further, and turn the entire trip into a coffee table book of sorts, a guided road trip, focusing on locally owned restaurants, fun places to stay, and local festivals that celebrate summer in the south.

This goes well, (which it will), I’m going to turn it into a series. Different region of the United States each time, all local places, featuring people who’re passionate about what they do.

Want to work with me? Hello@cookeatexplore.com