Sorry it took so long guys! Since I have been home things have been NUTS!

Here is a report on my trip!

Right after New Years I took off early in the morning. Went threw downtown Manhattan and through the Holland Tunnel. Picked up Interstate 78 and held the hammer down. I cruised through southern PA,OH, IL into Indiana. Stopped for the night in Terre Haute. 863 miles!

Second day I depart and shortly I am passing the Mississippi river! With the St Louis Arch in the background. Tough to get a pic since you really can't stop on the bridge. Next time I may just throw on the hazards and try it!
The drive through MS and Ok is nice and I pull into Amarillo, TX around dinner and eat in Cracker Barrell. YUMMY! 925 miles!

Third day is pretty much a straight run. I blow threw NM but once I hit Flagstaff I see a lot of SNOW!!! Roads were bad, some parts were pretty hazardous but those RSAs did awesome! Got through it and pulled into Laughlin, Nevada about 4pm PST. Turn that key and collapse in bed. Wake up 3 hours later and enjoy my first Double Double from IN-N-OUT burger in a long time! Total trip just under 2500 miles!!!

OK, after two and a half months of sun, golf, Vegas and total debauchery it was time to head home. First stop GRAND CANYON. Check these pics out!

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-12/905683/maxgc.jpg

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...3/grandcyn.jpg

After two days there I head due north and drive to Denver. Next day I continue north and get to Devil's Tower just as the sun was going down.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-.../devilstwr.jpg

After some quiet time in this very remote area I drive to Rapid City, SD and stop for the night. Next morning I drive to Mt. Rushmore. Such a special place.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...3/DSC_0716.jpg

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...3/DSC_0735.jpg

I then drive to the Bad Lands. What a day! I drove to a very remote spot. There was a herd of Pronghorns that hung around for a little while. There was some babies! Look close at the pic when they are crossing the road and you can see them.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...nghornhill.jpg

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...pronghorn1.jpg

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-.../prongherd.jpg

I drove a little more and came up to my favorite sign!

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...3/maxbison.jpg

I then happened upon one!

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...adlands057.jpg


This animal is so cool. I got pretty close to him and sat for awhile. He rubbed himself on that post and then left. Oh yea can't forget the Prairie Dogs! They are so cool!

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...prairiedog.jpg

Well that's it! My car was quite filthy after all of this but I washed her and got all the dirt off. My Max performed flawlessly on this trip from start to finish. I have done this journey four times! My Saturn made it three times and my Max will be doing this journey every winter now! I have to say the seat was pretty comfortable and the ride was great. I still think I made the best decision on buying it!

 

Great story and pictures. Would love to take a cross country trip in my Max. And I am a photography nut so I would do the same thing as you did, capturing all the sites along the way. Thanks for sharing.

 

WOW awesome!!! Thanks for sharing such great story and pictures.

 

NIKV69 - Now you've done it. You've let the cat out of the bag. Now everyone knows what us really old Maxima drivers do ALL the time.

The only difference is that we geezers have plenty of time, make stops at every interesting place along the way (including every restroom), and, by virtue of our changing physical condition, have a preference for the SL.

Of course, I have to change my 'lingo' when travelling. Every restaurant and fast food place I frequent around here knows what I mean when I order a 'senile sip' or 'geezer gulp'. I have found the only nomenclature recognized in other parts of the country is 'senior drink'.

And once one leaves the south, Krystal restaurants are replaced by White Castles (love 'em both).

Your epistle (especially the pics) brought back so many memories. I lived in such places as Bisbee, Tombstone, Sierra Vista and Fort Huachuca (all in Arizona) for several years. My wife and I toured Devil's tower, Rapid City, Rushmore, the St Louis Arch, etc, on our honeymoon. That was many years ago in a silver '85 Maxima, on which I put 206,000 miles. I drove the same car into Mexico on another (business) trip. That was probably my all-time favorite car (and I have owned almost two dozen over the last 55 years).

The Maxima has always been a perfect touring car. Good gas mileage on the open road. Very reliable. Maneuverable. Four doors for convenience. Plenty of power when needed. Great fun to drive. And I haven't even mentioned that it is 'flypaper' for the 'chicks'.

Your post has put me in a travelling mood . . .

 

Finally! Great pics, I was wondering when you were gonna bless us with more pictures from your trip.

 

Awesome thread, At 24 years of age I wish I could take the same trip, I guess I could but when I return I would find myself without a job and the bank would repossess my max. Anyways, looks like you had an awesome time. THat pic with the bison sign looks like it could be in a magazine. Came out read good!

 

Did you use Navigation for this trip?

 

Lightonthehill,

We are not old!

I will be a kid till I die! Glad my trip got you in mood. Pack that thing up and go! I love when I drive this country. You have to do it at least once in your life. The things you see west of the Mississippi defy description. When I am alone standing on the plains in the Badlands and see a Bison or a Pronghorn I appreciate this country. Next year I am going to park the Max at the visitor center and hike all day. That will be so good!

Pause,

Sorry for the delay! I came home to a stack of mail 3 feet high and work has been nuts! Glad you enjoyed it. My pleasure to show my Maxima buddies where my 6th Gen travels!

ChrisRI,

You have to drive cross country once in your life. So plan for it! You will never know how great this land is till you see it. I don't have navigation in my Max. I don't need it. I have driven this whole country four times now and have been in every lower state except Washington, Oregon and Montana and those are on my list! So I have a good idea of where I am going and I always have an updated atlas in the car. It's so funny that I know Rapid City, SD like the back of my hand!

 

cool pics man!!!

 

I went to Mt. rushmore also, bit diffrent when I went....pic

 

I thought I saw a black Max on top of Devils Tower i nthat one pic! . . . .

 

I tried to drive up Devil's tower but it didn't work!

Beautiful place. Will spend more time there next year!

 

Awesome pics and story NikV. I drove cross country (NY to OR) a few times in college. It is such an awesome trip. You are right that everyone needs to do it once in their life. You've gotta make a trip to the PNW. OR and WA are the 2 most beautiful states I've been to.

 

That's one hell of a trip, Nikv69. Looks like it was a blast. I will be taking my roadtrip in May, making a giant circle, starting in Texas, then to NM, AZ, Vegas, CA, OR, WA, ID, MT, WY, NE, KS, OK, then back into TX. Should be about 6k - 7k miles when it's all said and done. Will be the longest I've attempted so far. I'll be relying on the trusty Nissan Nav system to get me where I'm going. It hasn't let me down yet. I hope to get some cool pics of the max at landmarks to share with the group.

peace out...

 

Crispykid717,

I know! I have buddy in OR that wants me to visit there. May be added to the trip next March!

Spunko,

Your Max won't let you down! Just make sure you have all your fuids up to date and have everything like tire inflation checked. Then hit Interstate 40! Have a great time and I look forward to your pics.

 

Very Nice! Thank you! You should post this as a link on Nissan's Dealer Website: www.freshalloy.com

Coooool!