1

5/27/05

5/30/05

Over Memorial Day weekend, my family and I traveled to see my Mom's parents in Indiana, and I got my first welcome sign at the Indiana border. On the trip home, I got the Michigan sign as well. Both were along I-69. Not a road trip specifically for Assignment: America, but it had to start some time.

218*

*The whole trip was really 574, but the part past the border doesn't count.

2

6/18/05

6/18/05

I decided it was embarrassing I didn't have a single capitol for the site, so I took a day trip up to Lansing, Mich. and got my first capitol (U.S. 23 to I-96). I guess this could be considered my first road trip, but since I didn't leave the state, it doesn't count.

153

3

7/8/05

7/9/05

This was my first official Assignment: America road trip, meaning the sole purpose of the trip was for this web site and it was outside my home state of Michigan. I left for Indianapolis, Ind. on Friday after work, taking I-94 to I-69. I spent the night at some dump on the south side, but didn't get to the capitol until the following day. After leaving Indy, I drove straight across I-70 to the Ohio border on my way to Columbus, Ohio for my third capitol. Returned to Ann Arbor via U.S. 23.

649

4

8/12/05

8/13/05

After leaving work on Friday, I drove straight down I-75 past Cincinnati to the Kentucky border. I spent the night in Georgetown, which is just north of Lexington. The next day I went to Lexington before heading to Frankfort, Ky. for the capitol. Since I was so close, I took a sidetrip down I-64 into Louisville and took a few pictures. Returned to Ann Arbor via I-71 to I-75.

737*

*I excluded the 108 miles for the trip to Louisville.

5

11/4/05

11/6/05

Another first, as this was the first multi-night road trip. On Friday, I drove across Michigan on I-94 and south on I-55 to Springfield, Ill. and spent the night. In the interest of full disclosure, I passed an Illinois welcome sign on the trip in (obviously) on I-80/94, but it was late and there was construction, so it was impossible to stop and take a picture. After stopping by the capitol, I headed north along I-39 and crossed the Wisconsin border. I made my way up to Madison, Wisc. and spent Saturday night there. On the way home, I took I-94 through Milwaukee and got the Illinois sign on the way back to Michigan.

1,196

6

12/26/05

12/31/05

For my trip to the Alamo Bowl, I decided to drive from St. Louis to San Antonio and back. The first day I flew to Lambert Airport and drove to Jefferson City, Mo. along I-70 to U.S. 54. I took U.S. 63 south to I-44, where I made my way into Oklahoma (but missed the sign) and spent the night just outside the capital. The next morning, I hit the Oklahoma City, Okla. capitol on my way out of town. I drove down I-35 to the Texas border, then looped around to get a duplicate of the Oklahoma sign and spent the next three nights in San Antonio. I took a special day trip up to Austin, Tex. on the 27th for the capitol. On my way back to St. Louis, I drove up I-35 to Dallas and then went east on I-30 towards the Arkansas border and spent the night in Little Rock, Ark. On the last day of the trip, I went east on I-40 to I-55 north when I crossed into Missouri heading back to the airport.

3,348

(848 flown, 2,470 driven)

7

4/1/06

4/2/06

This was a pretty straightforward trip. I headed south on U.S. 23 down to the Ohio Turnpike and headed over towards Cleveland. I headed south on I-77 to West Virginia and took a picture of the sign over the Ohio River bridge. I got off the freeway in Charleston, W. Va. and took my picture of the capitol. I returned home via the same route.

899

8

5/17/06

5/21/06

I wanted to meet some friends in D.C. and another friend in New Jersey and thought this was the perfect time to hit some of the mid-Atlantic states. I flew into Reagan National on Wednesday and spent the night in Alexandria, Va. The next day I drove down I-95 to Richmond, Va. then turned around and drove straight back to the District of Columbia. I drove on US-50 over to Annapolis, Md., then up to Baltimore on I-97 for some sightseeing. I took I-83 north across the Pennsylvania border and immediately looked back for the Maryland sign, then spent the night in Harrisburg, Pa. On the 19th, I drove east on I-76 over to Philadelphia for some more sights, then headed south into Delaware and took DE-1 down to Dover, Del. I headed back along I-95 into New Jersey and spent the night a my friend's house. The next day I hit Trenton, N.J. on my way south to D.C. to meet up with some friends. On my way back to drop off the car, I took a picture of the Virginia sign and saw the U.S. Capitol before heading to the airport.

1,943

(782 flown, 1,161 driven)

9

10/11/06

10/15/06

A friend in New Orleans offered me a chance to see an LSU football game, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity for an A:A roadtrip. I flew into Ryan Field in Baton Rouge, La. after work on Wednesday, and spent the night. The next morning I hit the capitol, then drove east along I-12 to hit I-55 and headed north into Mississippi. I continued north along I-55 for another hour and a half until I reached the capitol in Jackson, Miss. After eating lunch, I turned around and headed south back into Louisiana on the way back to Baton Rouge. I stayed a few more days in the area and drove to see some friends in Houston, but they weren't related to Assignment: America, so I didn't count them towards the totals.

2,594

(2,050 flown, 544* driven)
*The whole trip was probably closer to 1,100 driving, but it is excluded from the total.

10

4/28/07

4/30/07

My friend Chris is attending med school at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., so I thought that would make a good place to start a trip. I flew into Eppley Field, then drove into Iowa on the ride into town from the airport on Abbott Dr. I then headed over to Des Moines, Iowa on I-80 then turned around and headed back to Omaha and spent the night. I got up the next morning and drove down I-29 to Kansas on my way to the capitol in Topeka, Kan. by US-59 and KS-4. Since it was close, I spent the night in Kansas City, Mo. by heading west on I-70. On the last day, I headed back north on I-29 into Nebraska, then made the quick trip over to Lincoln, Neb. via NE-2 then headed back along I-80 towards the airport.

2,259

(1,316 flown, 943 driven)

11

5/17/07

5/19/07

This trip could be the end of an era for Assignment: America, as I predict it was the last time I drove from home to a capitol. I had a scheduled day off from work coming up, so I decided to finally head down to the Music City. I left Ann Arbor on Thursday after work and headed south on U.S. 23 to I-75 and spent the night in Cincinnati. The next morning, I traveled down I-71 towards Louisville, where I caught I-65 and crossed into Tennessee. I kept on going and that lead right into the heart of downtown Nashville, Tenn., where I saw a few sights before returning the same route home, spending one more night in Cincinnati.

1,121

12

9/2/07

9/2/07

I was visiting the folks out over Labor Day weekend and it seemed like a good opportunity to scratch two more states off my list. I left their house in Los Altos and headed west along CA-237 over to I-680 then headed north on I-580 to I-5. That led me into Sacramento, Calif. and stopped for my first picture. Then I headed east along I-80 into Nevada and into downtown Reno. I headed south on U.S. 395 into Carson City, Nev. I decided to take a different route home, heading west on U.S. 50 back into California, then reconnected with I-80 to head home.

558

13

7/19/08

7/20/08

Having been almost a year since my last trip, I decided to make a quick jaunt down to the Carolinas. I flew into Raleigh-Durham Airport on Saturday morning and drove to the capitol in Raleigh, N.C. along I-40. I immediately continued east, and then caught I-95 sound and crossed into South Carolina. I continued south until I hit I-20 and I headed west. I made to the capitol in Columbia, S.C. and finally called it a day. I got up the next morning and drove back along the same route into North Carolina on the way back to the airport.

2,259

(1,248 flown, 521 driven)

14

8/7/09

8/10/09

After more than a year since my last trip, New England seemed like an easy way to hit a lot of states at once. I flew into Boston, Mass. (I had previously visited the capitol on a business trip) and headed south on I-93 to MA-24, then headed west on I-195 into Rhode Island. I immediately turned around on RI-24 and got the Massachusetts sign. I stopped in Providence, R.I., then followed U.S. 6 west across the Connecticut border, but the sign was disappointing, so I skipped it. I visited the capitol in Hartford, Conn. and spent the night. The next morning, I went north on I-91 back into Massachusetts, then turned around for the Connecticut sign. I continued north to I-90 west, which crossed into New York on the way to Albany, N.Y. I took NY-7 east into Vermont (another disappointing sign), then climbed through the hills on U.S. 7 and U.S. 4 until I reached I-89, which took me into Montpelier, Vt., where I spent the night. I retraced my steps south on I-89 into New Hampshire, and turned around for a better Vermont sign. I entered Concord, N.H., then headed east on U.S. 4 to I-95, where I entered Maine. I headed north into Augusta, Maine, where I spent my last night. On the way back to the airport, I headed south on I-95 to I-93.

2,169

(1,256 flown, 913 driven)