Utahns Pass Through Cresco as they Tour America

 CRESCO - Barbara Edmunds and Sherry Karp, both of Castle Valley, Utah are not taking the typical trip around the United States. They are looking for the America that most people don’t see. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 9, they made a stop in Cresco to fill up for gas and have lunch at Sue-Z-Q’s. They are driving a truck and pulling a Whitewater Retro 20-foot camper. They also have two dogs accompanying them on the trip.

“We’re driving across the country using only the backroads, which is better than the highway,” Edmunds noted. “This is like the fifth or sixth time we’ve done this (traveled across the country) in our camper.”

“We’ve never come north until this trip,” Karp said. “Usually we go south and sometimes through the Midwest, but we’ve always driven only on the backroads.”

After leaving Cresco, their plan is to drive to northern Wisconsin, cross over to Michigan in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and then take a ferry boat to the lower part of Michigan.

“We might cut across to Canada from Michigan, if they’ll let us,” Edmunds said with a laugh.

Karp noted that her and Edmunds began this trip on Sept. 2 from Castle Valley.

“We drove to South Dakota and spent a few days in Custer (State Park) and then in the Black Hills,” Karp said.

After South Dakota, they drove into Minnesota, hooked up with Highway 44 and then onto Highway 9 into Cresco.

“After we leave Cresco, we’ll head up to Minnesota and Wisconsin,” Edmunds said.

“But we might change plans on the fly,” Karp said, as both ladies laughed. “We’ll stay wherever we find a campground.”

Edmunds and Karp said their final destination on their trip is Pine Bush, New York in the Hudson Valley.

“We are planning to drive their through Canada and come home through Tennessee,” Edmunds said. “We might stop in Nashville because we have friends there.”

Edmunds and Karp, who are lifelong friends, both grew up in Pine Bush. 

“I lived in Pine Bush for 62 years before packing up and moving to Utah,” Edmunds said. “I shipped my horse (to Utah) and then I went there.”

“Castle Valley is a gorgeous town of only 300 people,” Karp said. “We’re 30 minutes from any town and most people are retired like us. There are a lot of outdoor activities, such as hiking, that people can do in Castle Valley.”

“We like to find small luncheonette restaurants on our trip,” Edmunds said. “We’ve enjoyed being in Cresco. It’s one of the bigger towns we’ve stopped in. Everyone is very friendly here.”

Edmunds noted that she and Karp really enjoy seeing all the green grass in the Midwest because they are mostly surrounded by the desert in Utah.

“We’re playing it by ear every day (with our plans),” Edmunds said. “Usually around 3 p.m. each day, we start looking for a campground (to park the camper).”

“This is a great way to see America and some interesting scenery,” Karp said.