“Nonconformity is the highest evolutionary attainment of social animals.” –Aldo Leopold
Daily Archives: 6 December 2010
The Last State
Whenever I travel in the Plains States, I find myself wondering what this country would have been like before barbed wire, when the great bison herds roamed the land and the flocks of passenger pigeons darkened the skies. I started the day with this thought as I looked out at the grasslands, and the road ahead gave me constant reminders, which allowed for good RoverZoning. And that, allows the miles to roll away.
The wind from yesterday was gone so the road through Oklahoma was calm and the Series ran extremely well. We hit 19.1 mpg, which has increased our DMR (Desperate Miles Range), when the stars, planets, wind and grade all line up perfectly, to 515 miles. I can live with that, although I’m 1000 miles short of the number other trekkers are willing to tolerate.
I crossed the Red River into Texas today. It hit me that, if all goes well, this is the last U.S. state I will see for a while. Let’s hope that all goes well.
After all the years of seeing moose in my backyard, the sight of a leaping whitetail buck still causes my heart to race. So does the sight of a small doe walking out onto the highway into my headlight beam.
The Rover rocks like a boat when the brakes are slammed with excessive force. But the Rover does stop.