21 Jul 5 Important Reasons To Travel The USA
1. Terrain changing before your eyes
There is nothing more impressive than a road trip throughout the US. To watch the terrain change before your eyes in the matter of a single day’s drive is utterly impressive. The contrast between the emerald green Eastern Forests to the golden beige of the deserts is impressive. The US has over 15 ecoregions some include tundra, plains, and mountains some of which can be found within miles of each other. One of the best examples of this is lower Montana
Where you can go from the mountainous forest, great plains, and the northern deserts within an hour’s drive!
2. Underestimating the size of the United States
There’s no surprise when we say that the United States is massive. My favorite comparison is to Europe. Texas alone can hold 8 countries within its borders. The 801-mile drive from top of Texas to its southernmost point is the equivalent of driving from Amsterdam to Venice! Once we play a little game of mix and max we can fit over 30 countries within the United States as Tim Wenger pointed out. It’s almost hard to comprehend the United States’ true vastness!
3. Understanding Cultural Differences
The United States consists of 50 states but no one will say that there are 50 different cultures, right? There are many states and regions that are quite similar to each other but as you venture around the country there is a difference in experience. A fun example of this is even though the language is the same, the dialects and accents vary greatly. A more tasteful example, literally, is the heavy comfort foods of the north differ greatly from the sweet and savory BBQ of the south. If you are interested more in this check out Colin Woodard’s book American Nations where he identified 11 distinct cultures throughout America which Yankeedom, Greater Appalachia, and The Left Coast. With a slight stretch of the imagination, these cultures could be compared to different countries within Europe!
4. National Parks
Credit: More Than Just Parks
The National Park Service was created by President Woodrow Wilson in August of 1916. Surprisingly, Yellow Stone National Park predates the service itself by over 40 years when President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law. Yellowstone is just 1 of 63 declared national parks which are split between 30 states—California with the most of 9. What a fun challenge that would be?! If you are up for an even more boastful feat this list does not include the other 423 National Park Sites which encompass monuments, preserves, historic sites, and others!
5. Patriotism
We are a nation built by travelers. We grew with the rush for yellow gold, black soil, and deep exploration. If it were not for the trails well-grooved by trial and error, we would not be where we are with what we have today. In a world where we have access to more information at a second’s notice than our ancestors have had collectively their whole lives, it’s easy to be underwhelmed by our surroundings. We may feel as if we have the world’s knowledge at our fingertips, which we do, but there is beauty in being humbled when we realize what small role we play inv the world.
“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.” – Gustave Flaubert
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