MADELEINE BRAND, host:
This is DAY TO DAY. I'm Madeleine Brand.
ALEX CHADWICK, host:
I'm Alex Chadwick.
A 100 bucks of gas. It won't take you as far as it used to, but it's the name of a summer travel series we are kicking off today.
BRAND: We're sending the best writers and reporters we can find on road trips to interesting places near their homes.
CHADWICK: There's only one rule: you have to get there and back on $100.00 worth of fossil fuel.
BRAND: We begin our series with reporter Eric Weiner, who's based in Miami.
ERIC WEINER reporting:
Truly great road trips are by definition pointless endeavors. You just start driving and see where the road takes you. In southern Florida, however, that is problematic. The road might take you into the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico, or some godforsaken swamp. You need a destination. We - my wife and 17-month-old daughter - chose Sanibel Island, a little slice of old Florida on the Gulf Coast.
It's only a three or four hour drive from our home in Miami. Best of all, the route takes us straight across the Everglades and some of the most amazing wildlife in the country. First, though, we'll need to tank up our trusty steed, a 2003 Volkswagen Passat with sunroof, leather interior, and a taste for premium gasoline.
Okay, that's a full tank of gas, about $41.00 worth. And we have just tanked up the driver with unleaded premium coffee for the trip. Seventy-nine cents for a cup of coffee, you can't beat that. Let's go.
Something that you should know about the driving in Miami. A couple of rules. Rule number one is observe the speed limit. Observe it and then add about 30 percent to what you've observed, and then you've got the idea of a typical Miami driver. Also - and this is important - never ever use your turn signal. It's a sign of weakness, it's not done here. Okay, here we go. Road trip!
(Soundbite of song, "Radar Love")
WEINER: The highway we're taking, known as the Tamiami Trail, is perfectly straight and flat. Very Florida. They say that getting there is half the fun. I would like to amend that. Stopping along the way is three quarters of the fun. Our first stop is the Shark Valley Nature Preserves, smack in the middle of the Everglades. Despite the name, there are no sharks here. It's named after the Shark River. But there are plenty of birds and alligators, great big ones sunning themselves on the rocks.
(Soundbite of baby cooing)
WEINER: That's Sonya. That wildlife you hear is my 17-month-old daughter, Sonya. You see lots of alligators floating in the water. There goes a big one right there. This is one of my favorite spots. This is incredibly peaceful, incredibly beautiful - only 30 minutes from downtown Miami. You would never know it.
(Soundbite of song, "Radar Love")
WEINER: Time to hit the road again. We make good time and hit the town of Naples, Florida by noon. A quick stop for lunch. Something about road trips gives me a craving for chain restaurants. In this case, Red Lobster. Then we jog north to Fort Meyers Beach. The town has a great feel, or should I say vibe? This is the place for aging hippies and strawberries the size of golf balls.
The Beached Whale restaurant, very nice.
Finally, some four hours and twelve gallons into our journey, we cross the causeway to Sanibel Island. Bigger names than mine have walked these white beaches, people like Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Charles Lindbergh. I can see why. Sanibel and its sister island Captiva are beautiful, with an abundance of perfect beaches and seashells. And a noticeable absence of strip malls and condos that have transformed the Sunshine State into the concrete state.
The islands were hit hard by hurricanes the past two years, but there's hardly any sign of that today.
People come to Sanibel to do a lot of nothing, and that's exactly what we do. Lounging on the beach, eating crustaceans, and visiting the seashell museum.
(Soundbite of ocean waves)
(Soundbite of song, "Radar Love")
WEINER: Before long, though, we're back on the road heading east towards home. We quickly slip into the return trip slump. Leaving on a road trip is all about reckless pleasure and anticipation. Coming home is all about, well, the return to responsibility. My daughter senses the fun is coming to an end and proceeds to melt down.
(Soundbite of crying child)
WEINER: The only thing that would make her happy, it seems, is if I make the following sounds, so bear with me.
(Soundbite of Mr. Weiner making sound with his lips)
WEINER: Finally home. We covered 322.9 miles and consumed considerably less than a hundred bucks worth of gas. Dare I say we have enough in reserve for another great Florida road trip? For NPR News, I'm Eric Weiner in Miami.
(Soundbite of song, "Radar Love")
GOLDEN EARRING (Rock Band): (Singing) I've been driving all night, my hand's wet on the wheel. There's a voice in my head that drives my heel.
CHADWICK: Our series, 100 bucks of gas, continues throughout the summer here on DAY TO DAY.
GOLDEN EARRING: (Singing) And it's a half past four, and I'm shifting gears.
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