From Dec 2-7 2025, I drove from my home in Oregon to start a new job in Alabama. While this is my seventh transcontinental crossing, this was my first with a dedicated camera, with the intention to document. Although most of the trip was spent on the interstate, I often forayed onto local roads, passing through as many small towns as practical, detouring towards human detritus commemorated by historical markers.

Some pictures were shot with great intention, while others were done on reflexive whim. All shot with great enjoyment.

Hanamaru was a Japanese restaurant I often visited when I had family in Utah. The property has been abandoned for some time.

Ogden, UT — Hanamaru was a Japanese restaurant I often visited when I had family in Utah. The property has been abandoned for some time. Ogden, UT

The original dome for the Wyoming State Capitol Building stands next to an abandoned schoolhouse.

Granite, WY — The original dome for the Wyoming State Capitol Building stands next to an abandoned schoolhouse. Granite, WY

Dedicated in 1913, The Lincoln Highway was the first American transcontinental highway, predating the Interstate Highway System by over thirty years. Formed by a network of thousands of local roads, New York and San Francisco are literally just down the street (provided one follows the street for long enough). Lincoln Highway, NE

A mile from State Route 80 stands California Hill, an early and major marker for pioneers on the Oregon Trail. Approximately 500 miles west of the trail’s beginning in Independence Missouri, trail wagons encountered an elevation grade of ~240 feet over a mile, a relatively modest prelude to the even more perilous crossings over the Rockies, Sierra Nevadas, and the Cascades. When one walks along the ruts, the metaphorical phrase “following in someone's footsteps” is supplemented literally. Oregon Trail, NE