LONG STORY SHORT By Kristine McGowan After more than a year of traveling full-time, you would think we’ve learned how to avoid burnout. Instead, over the last few weeks, we managed to run ourselves so ragged that I began fantasizing about packing up and heading home. To be fair, we knew August would be crazy. We flew to California individually and returned on red-eye flights that left us each out of commission for 24 hours afterwards. Then we arrived at one of the most significant stops on this leg of our trip, New York, where we had lots to do and didn’t want to waste a single minute. Basically, for three weeks straight, our pace was go go go. Add to that New York’s unforgiving public transit systems, 10+ miles of walking a day, a quarter-sized blister on my foot, and a nasty cold I picked up somewhere along the way—and, well. You can see why “home” sounded so tempting. By the time we left New York, we were so wiped that we couldn’t summon any excitement for our next destinations. Clearly, we had to change something. We had to stop. That’s not our typical approach to travel—we’re not the kind of tourists who seek out recliners at the beach for a day of lounging. We have too much FOMO for that. But in New York, our FOMO had driven us into the ground, and we were loathe to listen to it anymore. So, at our next destination, Toronto, we decided to take a cue from those lounging beachgoers. We checked into a hotel room. (Catsby was OK with it, we promise.) We went to one baseball game, and we ate delicious food. We took long showers. I even took a bath for the first time in a decade. And, for two days, we made a point of doing nothing else. It was exactly what we needed. We may not have seen much of Toronto, but by the end of our stay, even our FOMO was too relaxed to care. Where have we been?Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio  Cuyahoga Valley didn’t amaze us, but this little spot in Ohio holds a special title for us anyway: It’s our 50th U.S. national park. We’ll only reach 55 of the 63 U.S. national parks by the end of this trip, so arriving here felt like a big step toward the finish line. And while it’s no Mt. Rainier or Grand Canyon, Cuyahoga Valley may have been an appropriate milestone park for us anyway; after all, its fascinating history of restoration could offer some hope for our own uncertain future beyond that finish line. New York, N.Y.  The Big Apple. The City that Never Sleeps. And now, the City that Whooped Our Butts. We spent several days exploring New York, struggling to navigate the city’s subway system and hitting every landmark we could think of. (I also pointed out way too many “Law & Order” filming locations to an uninterested Jason.) We went to a Mets game and a Yankees game; saw a show on Broadway; stuffed our bellies with pizza; and found ourselves on a surprise toll road more than once. By the end of our visit, we hated New York just about as much as we loved it. Niagara Falls, N.Y., & Toronto, Ontario  As I mentioned above, New York left us so exhausted that, by the time we headed for Canada, we were more interested in napping than exploring. So we took just a quick peek at Niagara Falls—more than enough for us, given the crowds and casinos thronging the area—before heading to Toronto for an intentionally chill weekend. We checked a Blue Jays game off our list, but otherwise, we spent most of our time loafing around our hotel room. It was glorious. New River Gorge National Park, W. Va.  If New York left us feeling drained and grimy, New River Gorge did the exact opposite. We came to the U.S.’s newest national park to do some rafting, and we lucked out: By chance, we got to run the lower New River in a private raft, just us and our guide, hitting Class IV+ rapids with the speed and maneuverability you can only get in a small boat. It made the day twice as fun, even when an overenthusiastic thunderstorm caught us in a downpour. Paddling into a headwind, with sheets of rain slapping our faces, Jason and I couldn’t help but laugh. It was the cleanse we didn’t know we needed. Where are we going next?If you think our upcoming route looks inefficient, you’re right! Unfortunately, we waited too long to get ferry tickets for Isle Royale National Park when we were in the Upper Peninsula in August, so we’re heading back to make use of the tickets we got for September. After that, we’re heading to Minnesota and Wisconsin for a couple baseball games.  116. Louisville, Ky.
117. Indiana Dunes National Park, Ind. 118. South Bend, Ind. 119. Isle Royale National Park, Mich. 120. Minneapolis, Minn. 121. Green Bay, Wis. 122. Milwaukee, Wis.
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