Hello,
Enjoyed reading your road trip thread each night, too bad it's ended. Make sure you do it again soon.
I was ready for the end. I was getting tired! But I probably could've gone another couple of days had I had the time and new destinations in mind.
The only Continental US states my car hasn't touched are MI, MN, ND, WA, OR, and NV. I'd like to tackle them before such a trip is too risky in my aging MKIII. I'd REALLY like to drive to the Arctic Circle. But I don't think it'll happen... not in THIS car, anyway.
Those are great photos of both your roadtrip and TDIFest. I've been recouping from shoulder surgery at home and in the last weeks your photos brought me all over the US to places I may never see myself, AND to TDIFest 2011 - Thanks for sharing!!
You're welcome. I remember being stunned by how many folks followed our 1999 "
TOUR OF THE NORTHERN US." I wanted to improve upon that tour in the area of photography at least.
Your car is a testament to taking proper care of your equipment and enthusiastic TDI ownership, it looks great. I look forward to taking similar roadtrips with our daughter, now 18 months old.
Thanks for that! My father used to flip me so much grief over how clean I've kept the car over the years. He still does. But at least this year he said, "I'm really surprised at how well this car has held up all of this time..." Yeah, no kidding. Taking care of it instead of waiting for things to break does wonders.
BTW, go easy on your kid if she spills anything. I used to freak out on mine when she'd spill something. But EVERYTHING came up and out... even cherry slush.
Our earlier years could have and should have been less aggrevating. Life is good now. Resolve carpet cleaner and our Bissell Little Green Machine are awesome!
In my trips, I do not take photos because I will always be visiting the same place again because I am a retired person with time at my disposal. The main cost is that of staying at the motels.
Most of my photos are for my website for the sake of sharing and for the challenge of catching that one great shot... or enough "okay" shots to MAKE one great shot.
I agree... HOTELS are the greatest expense. Luckily, we took more photos than other souveniors. And digital cameras have made photography a relatively cheap hobby unless you REALLY dive into it.
Your mk3 is beautiful, and is a great example of longevity.
Thanks! It looks best from about 20 feet away. Distance hides the paint chips.
I usually photoshop the paint chips out. But, honestly, none of the photos in this topic are altered beyond simple cropping and blurring of the license plate with the exception of one of the panoramics which needed work to "stitch" the photos properly.
What a great trip, Scott. Makes me regret I didn't do something similar with my daughter when she was that age (25 now). You'll remember this fondly for many years to come.
I asked Diana if she enjoyed herself. "YES!" Then I asked if she wanted to do it again... "NOOOOOO." Why? "It takes too long." To her credit, she never asked, "Are we there yet?" Not even once. She spent most of her time on the road either reading (with a gun to her head) or on my laptop watching movies, playing video games, or surfing the net. She's a VERY good traveler!
Great pics! Thanks for sharing the road trip!
I'm going on one myself at the end of Sept. Norcal to Wyoming & back to visit my 86 year old dad! This has motivated me to take some photos of my own!
I have to credit VWVortex user "LG6R" for motivating me to make a photo-journal of my trip. His MKIII road trip threads are truly epic.
Great thread Scott. Thanks for sharing. After all these years....still my all-time favorite TDI.
Thanks a lot! It's still mine, too! I was sure I'd want another car after five or ten years, especially now that the MKIV's are passing the 200-hp mark with mods. It's very likely my wife will get a second new car before I get rid of this one. In fact Diana may learn to drive our 2003 Passat in five years rather than me giving up the MKIII.
For all of you reading, If you have never been fortunate enough to meet Scott and the "StealthTDI" family, they are a very loving family and a joy to talk to.
WOW! That's too kind! I appreciate that. You must be talking about my wife.
Thanks for the comments, everyone!
Scott