John Steinbeck Among the French Canadian Harvest Gypsies
Tuesday, June 04 2024
In my second week of travels, I drove up much of the length of Maine, because in 1960 John Steinbeck was determined to touch the roof of the United States before turning west, and I reckoned you aren’t really fulfilling the mission unless you follow his path.
- Published in Features
Tortilla Flat: Steinbeck’s Early Years
Monday, June 03 2024
Steinbeck struggles against poverty, but the publication of Tortilla Flat changes everything.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Clay drops in at Sagamore Hill, Theodore Roosevelt’s Beloved Home on Long Island — Video Dispatch
Monday, June 03 2024
Clay visits Sagamore Hill, Theodore Roosevelt’s home on Long Island.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Two Views of the Nightmare Road to Athens, Ohio
Monday, May 27 2024
Was it Google Maps that led me astray? Last week, on the way to Athens, Ohio, I took a wrong turn.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Pondering Thomas Jefferson at Niagara Falls
Monday, May 27 2024
Thomas Jefferson said it is worth a trip across the Atlantic to see Niagara Falls. Although he never got there.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Assessing My Steinbeck Trip at Week Four
Sunday, May 26 2024
It has been about four weeks since Clay began retracing John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley Tour, shadowing the famous author’s 10,000-mile trek around the USA. Clay makes some observations on the difference between his trip in 2024 and Steinbeck’s 1960 journey.
- Published in Features
The Romance of America’s Greatest Game: An Emotional Visit to the Baseball Hall of Fame
Tuesday, May 21 2024
I don’t know what I expected when I drove my Airstream into Cooperstown, New York to visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame. It was an emotional day.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
A Visit With Author Jay Parini of Middlebury, Vermont
Friday, May 17 2024
Sitting in the Airstream, Rocinante. I had a delightful interview with Steinbeck biographer Jay Parini of Middlebury College in Vermont.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Sports, Lawn Care and Fishing at Karen’s Diner — Calais, Maine
Thursday, May 16 2024
It’s too early to draw conclusions about the country’s mood, but this is what I have heard in two weeks on the road.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Mount Katahdin — Maine’s Tallest Mountain
Thursday, May 16 2024
Mt. Katahdin, which translates to “Greatest Mountain” in Penobscot, is the highest mountain in the state of Maine at 5,269 feet.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road