Fifty States. I Did It!

A million thoughts ran through my mind forcing sleep away. I shifted in my seat like a fidgety child. Even my favorite tunes coming through my noise-canceling headphones failed to still my mind. I was on a seven-hour flight to Alaska where I spent two nights and officially staked my claim to having visited all 50 states. 

Despite my excitement, there was a fleeting sense of disappointment, maybe even dread, wreaking havoc with my joy. I wondered if it was the forecast of gray skies and rain. But that wasn’t it.  There was more to it than the weather. It was the same sort of feeling you get just before you complete an epic task. A bittersweet sorrow that the long quest is coming to an end. 

I don’t remember when this journey began. I suspect it was in my early youth. I imagine we were piled in the family station wagon. Dad would’ve planned a route carefully, sharing it with us in the pages of the giant Rand McNally road atlas as he worked to teach us how to be navigators. I remember those big atlases and how, as we looked at those pages, I wondered what marvels awaited us in faraway places.

For many people, a cruise to Alaska or visit to Hawaii ticks the box of the most distant states, leaving North Dakota as a destination that evades a visit. In fact, there is even a program run through the state’s tourism board called “Best for Last Club” that offers a T-shirt and certificate for those who make it to the Fargo-Moorhead visitors center.

For me, it came down to North Dakota and Alaska as my final two unvisited states. It’s not easy to get to either; they are destinations unto themselves. When Greg’s boss tapped him to join him on a visit to Bismarck, my chance arrived to get to my 49th state. I checked my frequent flyer miles and booked a flight to coincide with his work trip. I Google’d “things to do in Bismarck” and discovered an annual street fair would be taking place when I was there. 

That left Alaska. How could I leave that one state just hanging out by itself? I couldn’t! Since Greg’s work trip continued on to Dallas and Oklahoma City, I decided to go back home via The Last Frontier. I sought advice from a friend who visits Anchorage often. She suggested renting a car, driving the Seward Highway to Girdwood, and taking in the sites. I followed her suggestions and, despite the ugly gray, rainy weather, the views were stunning. I even found a fabulous place to devour freshly caught King crab legs!

As I settled into my hotel room bed, I felt a sense of accomplishment. While everyone measures a “visit” with different criteria, for me it must include an overnight. You can’t simply pass through an airport or drive over a bridge and make the first available U-turn. You must experience SOMETHING that gives you a smidgen of local flavor. We’re planning a fall road trip so Greg can claim the same achievement before the year is out. 

There’s a whole world out there just waiting to be explored. Set goals to see the places that fascinate you and let yourself be amazed with your own accomplishments.

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