The Grand Finale!

Fifteen months ago we embarked on our Great Family Adventure and now I am thrilled to report that WE ARE FINALLY BACK HOME!! HOORAY!!!! The renters have moved, so let the dogs run free and the unpacking ensue! We're all excited and I'm more than a little curious to see what sorts of things we'll uncover that I've forgotten about along the way..... 

After returning to our first blog post, I can happily confirm that we've achieved every goal and have come a long way. A VERY long way. In fact, I think the best way to conclude this blog is with a recap of the highlights, so here goes!

 

We:  

- Drove about 45,000 miles. (That's almost double the circumference of the earth!!)

- Are on our third set of tires for a car that is less than 2 years old.

- Had one flat tire (on the loneliest highway in America of all places...)

- Visited all four corners of the American roads system.

- Drove the entire length of both the Alcan and Dalton Highways.

- Drove the full length of the Alaska Pipeline.
- Slept in the barracks of oil workers on The North Slope.

- Drove through six time zones.

- Experienced 24 hour sunlight.
- Visited 43 states and 8 Canadian provinces. 

- Spent the night in 25 states.

- Walked on arctic tundra.

- Walked on Matanuska Glacier.
- Tasted glacial ice in our drinks after it had been fished out of the water in Prince William Sound.

- Waded in the Arctic Ocean. 

- Waded in Chena Hot Springs.

- Our oldest son flew a plane over Knick Glacier.

- Our youngest son drove a boat in the Everglades and rode on a camel.

- Were pulled by an Iditarod sled dog team.

- Witnessed the Aurora Borealis in it's full glory.

- Saw people surfing the Alaska Bore Tides.

- Learned how to use an authentic Eskimo Yo-Yo.

- Saw the tallest mountains in North America.

- Met and learned from Native people all over the continent.

- Visited long-unseen family from all four branches, in both the U.S. and Canada.

- Visited Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and quilters all over North America.

- Visited as many national parks as possible, both American and Canadian, during significant anniversaries.

- Saw the following animals in the wild: Grizzly Bear, Black Bear, Deer, Caribou/Reindeer, Moose, Javelina, Alligator, Eagle, Dall Sheep, Bison, Elk, Fox, Rabbit and Hare, Porcupine, Hawk, Squirrel, Coyote, Sandhill Crane, Loon, Bighorn Sheep, Raven, Crow, Seagull, Swan, Canadian Geese, Puffins, Seal, Whale, Cow, Musk Ox, Mountain Goats, Antelope, Ibis, Dolphin, Osprey, Pelican, Iguana, Chicken, Manatee (okay, this one was in a zoo of sorts, but we did see their natural habitat in person!), Peacock, Snake, and so many more!

- Learned about things like geothermal energy first-hand (Chena Hot Springs, Yellowstone...). 

- Visited as many farmers markets as possible and tried many new regional foods (Square ice cream? Honeyberries? Pinon Nuts? Conch?).

- Got library cards and checked out books in each location we stayed (except Maine). 

- Crossed over the Golden Gate Bridge and drove through a tree.
- Taught the kids about politics while watching a very controversial presidential election.

- Saw a cattle drive.

- Stood in four states at once.

- Visited cliff dwellings and petroglyphs. 

- Saw a cactus forest.
- Visited an "energy vortex".

- Participated in The Festival of Lights. 

- Experienced snow in Arizona.

- Visited vast canyons, giant rock formations, giant waterfalls, and a giant meteor crater.

- Drove Historic Route 66.

- Took a left at Albuquerque.  

- Slept by a graveyard.

- Ate beignets and drank chicory café au lait at Café du Monde.

- Witnessed a NASA Atlas 5 rocket launch in person. 

- Had a nasty encounter with fire ants.

- Had season passes for Disney World.

- Ate Key Lime Pie in the Florida Keys.

- Discovered there's no such place as Kokomo. 

- Swam in the ocean.

- Saw real-life mermaids eating and drinking under water.

- Met an author and drove by Stephen King's house.
- Met an Olympian. 

- Visited lots of cheesy tourist attractions.

- Drove UNDER a body of water.

- Were chased by a snow storm.

- Ate a Boston Cream Donut at Dunkin' Donuts in Boston, Massachusetts.
- Had lunch at the original Wahlburgers location in Hingham, Massachusetts.

- Saw frozen lakes.

- Walked through a covered bridge.

- Watched the process of making both birch and maple syrups.

- Tasted the first candy to be commercially sold in America (No, not the ACTUAL candy!). 

- Visited lighthouses.

- Visited a working Shaker Village where the last two actual Shakers live.

- Visited Prince Edward Island and Green Gables. 

- Found Oak Island.

- Visited Civil War battlefields and stayed in a haunted(?) house.

- Toured America's Capitol. 

- Visited the Canadian capital during Canada's 150th Anniversary.

- Were detained at a border crossing.

- Watched a race at Churchill Downs.

- Explored the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

- Ate a Kentucky Hot Brown at the Brown Hotel.

- Ate Kentucky Fried Chicken in Kentucky (It tasted the same).

- Found Col Sanders grave.

- Watched the making of a Louisville Slugger in person.
- Lost 1 credit card and a drivers license.

- Bought boots in Nashville. 

- Attended a show at the Grand Ole Opry (wearing said boots).

- Drove through Rocky Top, Tennessee while singing "Rocky Top Tennessee".
- Ran moonshine across state lines.

- Saw a life-size replica of Noah's Arc.

- Experienced a total solar eclipse.
- Said goodbye to a loved one and celebrated the graduation and wedding of two more. 

- Homeschooled all three of our children for a year....and survived!

- All five of us (plus two dogs) lived in a hotel room for one month...and survived!
- Reached over 30,000 hits on this blog, and saw it through to the end. <3

We'd like to thank to each and every one of you for following along on our Great Family Adventure. May life bring you many wonderful adventures of your own! Who knows? We may be reading about YOU one day!

With much gratitude, this is the Schmidt Family signing off!

The Southernmost Point

We did it!! As of last Saturday, we've successfully checked off three of the four corners of the continental United States road system! Once we reach the easternmost point in Maine, we can say we've been to the four corners AND Four Corners on this adventure! We also reached another milestone last weekend by hitting the 24,901 mile mark. "What does that mean?" you may ask. That, my friend, is the circumference of the Earth! Here's what it looks like:

1. Northermost- Deadhorse, AK (Arctic Ocean)

2. Westernmost- Anchor Point, AK (Near Homer by someone's house. Very unceremonious.)

3. Key West, FL (Very ceremonious! This is the first point where we had to stand in line for a picture. We gave up halfway through and just took a picture of the monument with other people by it. ;-))

Florida is really an amazing place to visit. I mean sure, you have kids (Note: Referring to them as "kids" makes me officially old. Let it be known that I'm good with that.) who visit to party during Spring Break. You have snow birds. You have theme parks and strip malls. But aside from all those, you have this wonderfully diverse and beautiful place. Floridians are a rainbow of people from all over the world. The landscape is a gorgeous mix of tropical plants, farmland, protected wetlands, and so much more. If you haven't been, I HIGHLY recommend it! Plus in winter the temps are around 70 degrees F on average, so you can avoid the hot humid weather if that's not your cup of tea.

Our journey last Friday began here in Davenport, which is only twenty minutes away from the big theme parks and is the beginning of orange grove country and farmland.

Then we reached an area where the wildlife warning signs began to change and fences were on both sides of us. It turns out we were driving through the Florida Panther Reserve. We learned that the Florida Panther is one of the most endangered species in the United States and there are only about 120-160 remaining in the wild.   

We also saw this sign, which was a little confusing at first. (Bear? Badger?) Turns out it's a bear. After all the bear warning signs we've seen over this continent, we found this one most interesting.

We began to see trees that looked like Pine but were different, and almost furry. I think they were Long Leaf Pine, but don't quote me on that. Long Leaf Pines are another species that once covered much of the southern United States. It now covers less than three percent of the original range.

The Miccosukee Tribe lives along the route we took. They use thatched roofs on their buildings, which looks very cool. They also run a casino and offer a lot of tourists programs. According to their site, they are descended from the Muskogee Creek Nation and moved east.

Before reaching the Keys, we drove through Big Cypress National Preserve and made sure to stop at Everglades National Park for a boat tour. It was amazing! Did you know that the Everglades are a World Heritage Site  and International Biosphere Reserve recognized by the United Nations? The Everglades are being used as a gauge to monitor human impact on the environment. The Florida Everglades blog discusses it further.

Our tour took us through Mangroves, which are plants that actually like saltwater. Since the Everglades include both fresh water and saltwater, this is ideal. These are really interesting plants and I can tell you all kinds of fun facts about them now. Here's one. Did you know that a forest of Mangroves can withstand the force of a hurricanes and tsunamis, which helps keep our coastlines safe? Also, the bark of the Red Mangrove is used to tan leather and it's tannins are what make the water in the Everglades look brown.

We hoped to see manatees (Barbara!) but sadly, they were hiding. Did you know that the manatee has no natural enemies here? Boat motors are their biggest threat other than diminishing habitat and low reproduction. Sad, but true. Also, the legend of the mermaid came from sailors who saw these animals. Those sailors must have been at sea for a loooooooong time to think these looked like beautiful women with fish tails..... ;-)

We were excited to see Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins, though! Our daughter took this picture. Most of the time we were in a no-wake zone, but this one came along to play in our wake once we were clear.

All along our drive and through the Florida Wildlife Cooridor, we saw birds and animals of all kinds. They were beautiful and definitely different than what we'd see up north. Except for one bird... In the Everglades you'll find tons of Osprey. Another name for the Osprey...Seahawk! We knew the folks back home would appreciate that. ;-)

Pelicans are abundant in Southern Florida as well. You can find groups of them everywhere by the water! There are several different varieties.

Our youngest son had the most fun on the tour when the skipper let him drive the boat...

We spent the first night in Key Largo, which had us singing that song by the Beach Boys. You know...Kokomo? This got us thinking. Where exactly is Kokomo? Well, here's a little tidbit for you. THERE IS NO SUCH PLACE! If you get a chance, you should listen to the song "Where the Heck is Kokomo?"

Those are coconuts! We tried one with a straw in it.

The next day we drove down to Key West. If you're nervous about driving between islands, have no fear! The drive wasn't scary at all. Most of the roads are actually causeways, so you can't tell you're even between islands. They just look like roads. There are also many islands or "keys" along the way, which prompted a fun game of "If you had your own key, what would you call it?" Mine was "Door-Key". Get it? ;-)

Much of the roadway follows the old Overseas Railroad, or Key West Extension, commissioned by Henry Flagler, built to link Jacksonville to Key West. It was dubbed "Flaglers Folly" but was soon regarded as the "Eighth Wonder of the World" in its day. The railway was eventually replaced with a road, which was severely damaged in a hurricane. It now lies in ruins next to the newer road. I love the archways built into it!

Many of the houses in the Keys also have open spaces under them, as they are built on stilts. This allows water to flow under them when storms hit, which minimizes damage.

We really enjoyed Key West and it's architecture. The scenery was gorgeous and we made sure to try some Key Lime Pie, which was the best I've ever had. Oh, and there are CHICKENS everywhere! So fun! Here are some pictures that will give you a better idea of what it was like.

We went out for dinner and were horrified to see dolphin on the menu. When we asked the server about it, she said that it wasn't the mammal. "Dolphin" is what Mahi Mahi is called in the Bahamas.  Phew!

 We enjoyed all the fresh seafood.

Another surprise was that Iguanas roam free in Key West. These two were walking around the pool area at the hotel. They didn't bother anyone but one had a great time with the lunch someone left in their cabana....

We have officially gone over the 10,000 hits mark for this blog! So now I'm pleased to announce the winner of our little giveaway!! A big congratulations to Sheila F.!!! I'll pop your package in the mail this week.

I hope you all enjoyed learning about Southern Florida. Thank you for following along!

- Jen