State Count #5 - Wyoming

Nickname		Equality State
Capital		Cheyenne
Did we go there?		No
Sales tax		4%
Famous for		Yellowstone National Park, rodeo, ranches, Dick Cheney
The truck smells like		Sulfer
Favorite meal		Refried beans and canned corn heated on the Coleman, generous amounts of shredded cheese melted in, topped with spicy salsa.  Eaten while enjoying a view of Liberty Cap in the background
Oops moment		Mistaking a welcome bulletin board for a rest area on the map...you can't pee or rest at a bulletin board
Highlights		Grand Tetons Chapel, the bison greeting us in Yellowstone, meeting the Belgian couple doing the same thing we're doing but in a van, taking crazy amounts of pictures in Yellowstone
Best drive		John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway from Yellowstone to Jackson
Conversations		The influence of art
Adjectives		Rocky outcrops, open spaces, other worldly, odorous
Friend Count		0

State Count #4 - Montana

Nickname		Big Sky Country, Treasure State
Capital		Helena
Did we go there?		No
Sales tax		None!
Famous for		Big sky, grizzly bears, cowboys, fly-fishing
State random fact		Some highways didn't have speed limits until the 1990s
The truck smells like		Wildfire smoke
Favorite meal		Tupelo Grille in Whitefish with Howard, Karen, and all the Sisters
Oops moment		Almost hitting another deer
Highlights		Cowboy church, Melanie's childhood pictures, Rib dinner, Huckleberry Milkshake, Glacier National Park, running into the Sisters
Best drive		The Swan Highway from the Wilkin's house in Kalispell to Bozeman
Conversations		Money, geology, being a smart kid, Mr. Bojangles, cowboys
Adjectives		Big, beautiful, amazing, spacious
Friend Count		5

State Count #3 - Idaho

Nickname		Gem State
Capital		Boise
Did we go there?		Nope!
Sales tax		6%
Famous for		Potatoes, wilderness, clean air, the world's first chairlift
State dance		Square dance
The truck smells like		Left over coffee from Seattle
Favorite meal		Franklin's Original Philly Cheesesteak
Oops moment		Forgetting to cancel one of the credit cards from the stolen wallet and getting a call wondering if we had really spent $600 at Best Buy
Highlights		Blogging at Calypso's Coffee, Aaron's manly haircut, white coffee (actually a lowlight), the tie dye family
Best drive		From the west border to the east border
Conversations		Bowl cuts, petrified forests
Adjectives		Unrushed, forgettable
Friend Count		0, so sad:(

State Count #2 - Washington

Nickname		Evergreen State
Capital		Olympia
Did we go there?		Drove through it
Sales tax		6.5%
Famous for		Coffee, Grey's Anatomy, Twilight, apples, wine, rain, grunge rock, volcanoes
State vegetable		Walla Walla sweet onion
The truck smells like		Coffee
Favorite meal		Dinner in Hoh Rainforest: crackers with peaches and goat cheese for appetizer, panang curry with basmanti rice for the main dish, with a shiraz white wine
Oops moment		Stolen wallet
Highlights		Being at the top of the Olympic Range, finishing the Jungle, Seeing the Forks Twilight Tour bus, games with friends, travelling through the universe
Best drive		Hurricane Ridge to Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park
Conversations		Sleeping-in, socialism, grandparents, marital communication round #57, fears, Calvinism at Biola
Adjectives		Water, diverse, trafficy, sunny (it was!)
Friend Count		6

State Count #1 - Oregon

Nickname		Beaver State
Capital		Salem
Did we go there?		No
Sales tax		None!
Famous for		Oregon Trail, forests, rain, beer, not being able to pump your own gas
State beverage		Milk
The truck smells like		Fresh air
Favorite meal		Pine State Biscuits
Oops moment		Sarah getting a blister on her third toe, then putting moleskin and Band-Aid on it for the next hike, then getting a blister on the forth toe from all the rubbing of the Band-Aid
Highlights		Swimming in Crater Lake, the hymenoptera research with the Bailey’s, catching up with friends, making homemade blackberry ice cream, realizing that sleeping in the back of the truck was more comfortable then sleeping in the tent, coasting for miles on a bike
Best drive		Along the Gorge from Portland to Hood River
Conversations		Health insurance, blogs, childhood vacations, medicine and consults
Adjectives		Full, Green, Hearty, Refreshing
Friend Count		8