Exploring 48 State Capitols: The Numbers
Our family tour of the continental U.S. took us see all 48 capitol buildings, which has been an incredible experience. When we started out on our adventure to explore the continental U.S. (over 4 years ago), we had no idea how long it would take or what we would discover. Now, having visited every continental state capitol in the country, we thought we’d share the experience in a different way, with numbers. So without further ado, here’s our grand family adventure by the numbers.
A Family Tour of the Continental US
This family tour of the continental U.S. has taken us far and wide. In fact, it’s taken us way further and given us so many more incredible experiences than we ever could’ve imagined. The following numbers will give you a glimpse into how far we’ve gone and where we’ve been (we collect magnets from almost everywhere we visit):
- Photos taken: 212,869 on four different cameras and three phones
- Miles traveled: 69,574
- Souvenir magnets collected: 252
- Months of exploring: 40
Where We’ve Been
With more than 200 souvenir magnets collected on this family tour of the continental U.S., you can just imagine how many places we’ve really been able to explore. All over the country we find amazing things to see and do. It may be a small world, but the possibilities for discovering new and unique things and having once in a lifetime experiences is huge when you set out on an adventure. Here are the numbers to give you a better idea of where we’ve been:
- Museums explored: 152 (not including national park museums, art museums, or capitol building museums)
- National park service sites visited: 78
- 28 national parks
- 24 national historic sites
- 14 national monuments
- Six national seashores
- Four national preserves
- Two national recreation areas
- State capitol buildings seen: 48
- State capitol buildings toured: 46
- Zoos and nature centers visited: 17
- Ships visited: 15 (including the only remaining iron clad)
- “World’s largest” items seen: 12
- Presidential houses toured: nine
- Botanical gardens explored: eight
- Forts explored: eight
- Art museums viewed: seven
- Factories toured: seven
- Farms explored: five
- Cliff dwellings seen: four (including the two largest)
- Amusement parks checked off the list: four
- Carnivorous plant species seen on a single hike: three
- Live two headed snake seen: one
- Animals seen in the wild: countless
- Emergency room visits: zero
About the Car
Traveling the country can definitely take its toll on a vehicle, which is why taking good care of our Nissan Armada is important to us. The following numbers are all related to our vehicle and, therefore, will give you an idea of the vehicle maintenance that goes along with living the RV lifestyle and taking a family tour of the continental U.S. These numbers also include parking related fees, which were a bit of a shock to to a family that comes from a state with little to no parking fees anywhere.
- Most expensive parking: $20 in Washington DC
- Oil changes: 17
- Most expensive toll: $14 to cross the Chesapeake Bridge
- New tires bought: eight
- Tires that need replaced: four
- Brake jobs: three
- Tune-ups: three
- Transmission flushes: two
- Parking tickets : one, thanks Denver for that $35 fee
- Pulled over: zero times
- Flat tires: zero
As for the Trailer
Obviously, when you’re taking a family tour of the continental U.S. in a travel trailer, you’ll have some “home” expenses that go along with all the amazing experiences. For us, there haven’t been any regrets about any of it, although, some days can be challenging. These numbers reflect some of the things that go with living in a travel trailer full-time.
- Most expensive campsite: Liberty Harbor in New Jersey on the 4th of July at $105 per night
- Trailer Repairs (from minor to major): 33
- Longest travel day: seven hours
- Shortest travel day: five minutes
- Objects lightly hit with the trailer (which happens about once a year): three
- States traveled through in a single day: three
- Unwanted visitors: three
- One rat
- One mouse
- About a zillion Asian beetles
- Regrets about our trailer selection: zero
Getting Around on a Family Tour of the Continental U.S.
For the most part, we walk or drive our vehicle just about everywhere we go, but once in a while, it’s fun to explore a place in a different way. In short, if we find a unique yet inexpensive way of transporting ourselves around an area we’re visiting, we’ll jump at the chance. Take a look at this list of some of the ways we’ve gotten ourselves from point A to point B on our grand family adventure.
- Canoe trips: six
- Trolley rides: four
- Ferry rides: three
- Train rides: two
- Family bike rides: two (we don’t carry bikes for everyone in our family)
- Helicopter or plane rides: zero (but we’re hoping this is in our future)
The People
Before hitting the road, our family talked a lot about the things we’d do and the places we’d go, but little did we know at the time how important meeting new people and reconnecting with family and friends would be on this crazy adventure. Over the past couple of years, we’ve had the opportunity to meet so many incredible new people that we never would have known had we remained stationary. On top of that, so many family members have welcomed us into their homes, some we hadn’t seen in ages, others, never. Here are some of the numbers in regards to meeting people out on the road:
- Family members visited: 38
- Friends visited: 30
- New friends made (that we have gotten back together with at least once): 24
- People that have let us moochdock (stay in their driveway): nine
- Single serving friends made: countless (but we hope to cross paths with most of them again someday)
Other Numbers of Interest
Finding a category for all the interesting things we’ve done could take a while, so instead, we’ve taken the rest of our numbers that we though might entertain or interest you and compiled them into the following section. So, if you’re interested, check out some of the other numbers of interest related to our years of traveling full-time on a state by state adventure.
- Google reviews: 817
- Instagram posts: 318
- Articles published on our website: 176
- Bags of trash collected while volunteering in Death Valley National Park: 112 (and who knows how many countless others from seashores, parks, and all over the country)
- Highest temperature encountered: 112 degrees Fahrenheit
- Lowest temperature encountered: 17 degrees Fahrenheit
- Longest walk in a city: 11.5 miles
- Longest hike: 9.5 miles
- Google guide level: eight
- Memberships acquired: seven (of which the National Park Pass and ASTC membership are by far the best)
- Biggest time shift: 3 hours (it was awful and took forever to adjust to)
- Broken cameras: three
- Broken phones: two
- States not camped in: one (sorry Rhode Island)
So What Did Our Family Tour of the Continental US Cost Us?
Time is precious because we can never get back wasted moments. Having the chance to explore this great country together as a family has made memories for us that will never be lost. For this reason, we realize, it doesn’t matter if it cost every penny we’ve ever earned, this experience is worth it. Meeting amazing people, seeing epic vistas, experiencing unique things, you can’t put a price on any of it. Set goals and write down your dreams because anything is possible. That’s one thing we’ve learned from life on the road.
