AP Features, April 9th, 2007
With the advent of spring comes the planning of road trips.
Travel + Leisure magazine's April issue offers itineraries for "Great American Drives." They include:
-San Francisco to Calistoga, Calif., two hours or 80 miles. Take the Golden Gate Bridge to Highway 101 to Route 12, which connects Sonoma and Napa counties. From there, you meet Route 29, Napa's main artery. Options suggested by the magazine for mud baths include Golden Haven Hot Springs and Lavender Hill Spa; for lunch, barVino; and for accommodations, the Calistoga Ranch.
-New York City to Kent, Conn., about two hours or 100 miles along the scenic Saw Mill and Taconic parkways, then Route 7 North along the Housatonic River. Kent is home to art galleries, antique shops, cafes, boutiques, bookstores and 19th century homes. Shops recommended by the magazine include Lyme Regis, Ltd., 43 N. Main St.; R.T. Facts, 22 S. Main St.; and B. Johnstone, 4 N. Main St. For dining, Travel + Leisure recommends Restaurant Moosilauke, 23 Maple St., and for an overnight, the Inn at Kent Falls.
-Washington to Easton, Md., about 70 miles or 90 minutes. Take New York Avenue out of the capitol to Route 50 past Sandy Point State Park to the 4.3 mile-long Chesapeake Bay Bridge, then to the Kent Narrows Bridge. This trip is about food; Travel + Leisure suggests dinner at the Inn at Easton and or at the Crab Claw in nearby St. Michaels, and a stay in the Inn at 202 Dover.
-Phoenix to Tubac, Ariz., 157 miles or 2 1/2 hours. Just outside Phoenix, you'll pass by the Sonoran Desert, down I-10 to Tucson and then I-19 to Tubac, gaining altitude as you head to Madera Canyon Recreational Park. The magazine recommends biking the 13 mile Elephant Head Trail near the top of Madera canyon; consider a one-way trip where you are dropped off and picked up by the Tucson- based Sol Journeys - http://www.soljourneys.com. For food, Travel + Leisure suggests Wisdom's Cafe or Dos Silos; stay at the Tubac Gold resort.
