Seeing Dots. Green Dots.

I've been asked many times, "How do you and Monty decide where to go on your road trips?"   We first ask ourselves two simple but important questions.

How much time do we have?

How much money will it cost?

Green Dots

If there are time constraints and we only have from a few hours to a couple of days, I usually will get out the trusty Rand McNally Atlas and start searching for nearby green-dot roads. That is almost always my first tactic in looking for nearby destinations.

Whoa, wait a minute. I can almost hear voices in unison crying out, "What in the heck are green-dot roads?"

Green-dot roads are scenic roads. Most all atlas maps will mark the scenic byways with little green dots. I have been a fan of love green-dot roads for more than 20 years!

In the days before digital cameras, my mother used to travel with us. I would pull out the Atlas and announce that I was looking for a green-dot road. Mama would moan because she knew it meant a long day with a lot of stops so that I could jump out of the car to photograph the scenery. On one of our trips, she groaned and told me that every one of those green dots stood for another roll of film that I would be shooting. An exaggeration, of course. But only slightly.

If you are looking for a adventure on a scenic road, travel down a green-dot road!

In my next blog, I'll talk about planning a trip by spotting red ink.