Our First 100 Days

In preparing for our eight-month tour of the western United States, we loved talking about our plans, gathering suggestions and ideas from family and friends, and waxing dreamily about what we hoped we would do.  We inaugurated our trip on May 1, setting out from our home in Bethesda, and on August 8, we completed our first 100 days on the job.

Even though the 100-day mark is totally meaningless, the pundits insist on a full report of what we’ve accomplished. We have nothing to hide! If you want a report, you can have one!

Having read many reports over the years, we had fun thinking about writing a 100-day report in various styles…in the voice of our current president, for example, or as a proposed final rule in the Federal Register—with comment period!  Lorrie spent a sleepless night imagining an all-out satire of a Government Accountability Office report (she’s read many). Fortunately, Bob convinced her that this would be hilarious only to a very small handful of people. So, we decided to format our report like The Harper’s Index, featured in each issue of Harper’s magazine, which we always enjoyed.

Cleverly, despite all the big talk leading up to our trip, we did not actually make any promises! We were vague! We wanted to visit the national parks of the western United States, we said.  We’d spend time with friends and family when we could! We’d be super active!  And we’d just plain be outside as much as possible!

Clearly, we’ve been incredibly successful in our first 100 days on the job—more successful than any travelers ever! And now, by virtue of this report, you can see for yourself!  Here is Bob and Lorrie’s Journey 100-Day Index:

Days spent…

On sick leave: 0

On vacation leave: 0

Working: 100…

…Engaged in the following activities (in days)…

Hiking: 57

Biking: 21

Long-Distance Driving: 20

Paddling: 13

More than one active sport: 11

Nights spent…

Camping: 73

With friends and family: 10

In an AirBnB or hotel: 17

States visited (excludes Canada <– NOT A STATE!! yet…)

With overnight stays: 10

With no overnight stays: 5

National parks visited: 12

Blogs posted: 12

Photos posted: 145

Miles traveled…

By car: 8383 (in 221 hours)

By bike: 552

On foot: 347

By canoe, kayak or raft: 122

Fuel consumed:

Gas (gallons): 430

Altoids (tins) (estimate): 42

Pizzas (pies): 15 [NONE as good as 2 Amys!]

Beer: No data provided

 

Ok, now you have the numbers! The qualitative questions are just as important! Here are three big ones:

Are we having fun? YES!

Are we glad we are doing this? YES!

Do we have any regrets? NO!