From 1996 to 1999 the opportunity arose for me to make three lengthy trips to the USA - lengthy as in almost a year each time - as well as side trips to England and Canada. During this time I did quite a lot of travelling and every few months I wrote travel reports for my friends and family back in Australia on what I'd done, seen and my thoughts and impressions about the country and its people. Those reports have formed the basis of the travel stories found below.

On my first trip I visited Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Kentucky - of course, some more intensively than others. On my second trip I toured through parts of Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiania and Wisconsin. On the third trip I toured Kentucky, southern Indiana, West Virginia and Virginia in the USA, as well as London and Windsor in England and Toronto, Ontario's "Near North" and Quebec in Canada.

Before I get onto the reports, I should say a bit about the kind of travel that I do and the places I see. For the most part, I eschew the "big" tourist traps and instead I take to the back roads, looking for all those wonderful places that take a bit of effort to find, but which greatly reward that effort. The little museums tucked away on the back roads that most travellers drive straight past - and most likely never know existed. Of course, I didn't make a point of avoiding the more popular places, but I did make a point of not just seeing them. The other thing that characterises my travels is that I did as much as I could on the cheap side. That may sound like a negative thing, but it did allow the money to stretch further - and don't be fooled, just because some place has a cheap entry fee, doesn't mean it's not worth it. Some of the best sights I saw have been either free or with only a small entry fee.

Just a note on spellings - throughout these travel reports I have used English (ie: Australia) spellings rather than USAmerican variations, since that's the way *I* spell things. The rest of the world has to put up with "American" spellings, so this is my small attempt to stick my finger in the leaking dyke, so to speak. *grynne* So don't go looking for any centers or jails - whatever they may be. Only centre's and gaols here. :)

Having said all that, read on ... and enjoy. And hopefully you might see a bit of the wonder that I saw on my travels. The dates below refer to when the report was written. Oh, and thanks for stopping by and having a look. :)

These travel reports are copyright © David Powell, 2000-2003. Reproduction for financial gain is strictly prohibited. I also do not guarantee any of the historical or geographical information given.

Trip 1: North & South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky

November, '96: Davidson, North Carolina. A drive to Atlanta, Georgia. Impressions. January, '97: Davidson and environs. Drive to Tampa, Florida, with stops at St Augustine, Kennedy Space Centre and Daytona, Florida, and Orangeburg, South Carolina. Among others. April, '97: Davidson and environs. Mecklenberg, Catawba, Iredale, Lincoln and Gaston Counties, North Carolina. The waterfalls of Transylvania Co, NC. Charlotte, NC. July, '97: Drive to Millidegville, Georgia; stops include Charleston and York County, South Carolina, and Augusta, Georgia. Trip to the mountains of western North Carolina (Blue Ridge Parkway and other attractions of the Smokey Mountains). Frankfort, Kentucky, and environs. Some links from the first trip - not many of 'em since this trip predates the boom in the net. Links for the other trips are included in the relevant chapters. Georgetown Tourism http://www.georgetownky.com The Elkhorn Creek Corridor Nature Preservation area, Kentucky http://www.elkhorncreek.org

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