Day 8 – Washington DC – 0 miles
My visit to DC could have started anywhere. By coincidence, the bus that I caught towards the center dropped me near the western end of the Mall, so I began with Lincoln. In the cloudy, early morning it was lightly attended, with just a dozen people sprinkled around the steps, though a minor ceremony would […]
Day 7 – New Carrollton to Glen Echo / Washington DC – 26 miles
Back in the first leg of the trip, I wrote a bit about listening to Dignity, by Chris Arnade, in which the author resigned from a soul-sucking job and sought to better understand America by visiting communities that have been hit particularly hard in recent decades. As he settled into his work, he developed a […]
Day 6 – Annapolis to Lanham, MD – 27 miles
When I was preparing for the Maryland episode of Sea to Shining Sea, I was struck by how the American Discovery Trail’s route through the state tells the history of transportation through the region. I’m in the thick of that now, as I move closer towards DC. In fact, I missed one! Leaving Annapolis and […]
Day 5 – Chester to Annapolis, MD – 11 miles
15 seconds after I stuck out my thumb, a state trooper came whipping around the corner. The plan for the day was simple: a few more miles on the Cross Island Trail, cross the Chesapeake Bay, and then follow a quiet road through the “hills” into Annapolis. The problem with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, though, […]
Day 4 – Denton to Chester, MD – 33 miles
I bid farewell to Fritz in the morning–for now, at least–and headed back out into the Maryland countryside. Yesterday’s wind was just a memory, as I was met instead by placid, if chilly, conditions. The sun beamed regally overhead throughout the day, only giving way in the afternoon to some thickening clouds. As has been […]
Day 3 – Milford, DE to Denton, MD – 25 miles
There were moments today, when the rural roads found wooded stretches not yet converted to agriculture or housing developments, that the walk was genuinely delightful. The sun shined brightly, bestowing a pleasant warmth on one’s face, but the air remained crisp and refreshing. The light was brilliant and grassy fields thus emanated a bright emerald […]
Day 2 – Lewes to Milford, DE – 25 miles
Months ago, I landed in Cincinnati early in the morning, bussed into town, and started walking nearly immediately. On that first day, I covered nearly thirty miles, driven by the desire to hit three states–Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana–in one day. I felt like I was near my walking peak, having just returned from Spain and […]
Day 1 – Cape Henlopen to Lewes, DE – 3 miles
Seven months ago, I sat on a craggy promontory overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in Northwest Spain, a place once thought to be the westernmost point in the world. It was the conclusion of a long walk, a transition to a second walk, but it most appropriately marks the prequel to this third. The waves were […]
Day 0 – “Are You Excited?”
In a sense, I have been waiting for this day for more than four months, the point at which my grand year of walking would continue. After a 500-mile prelude in Spain over the summer, I spent 65 days in August-October walking the “southern route” of the American Discovery Trail between Cincinnati and Denver, covering […]
Sea to Shining Sea – Two New Episodes
With departure imminent, I’m happy to share the last two installments–for now–of Sea to Shining Sea, my podcast series on the American Discovery Trail: Episode 5 – Walking for a Cause Why walk across the whole USA? There are many reasons, but a strikingly large percentage of people walking the American Discovery Trail are driven […]