Travels with Dad: Family Adventures in These United States


Author: Kevin James Shay
Year Published: 2009 [projected]
Words: 225,000
Pages: 300 pp.

The following passage is taken from the introduction of the book:

This book serves a couple of purposes. It is a memoir and tribute to my dad, James Joseph Shay Jr., who passed away peacefully in April 2008 at the age of 84, told in anecdotal style. It’s also a United States family adventure travel guide book to some cool places my dad took me to and to where I took my kids, with phone numbers, directions, Internet sites listed.

Sometimes, I even let my kids, Preston and McKenna, take over to make their observations. I also included some interesting sites recommended by others.

The idea is to visit places and undergo experiences that create lasting family memories, where you bond. To me, that is the highest purpose of family travel. Sure, you can create such memories at home. But my kids will remember visiting Outer Banks, N.C., and getting the Green Bomber – my trusty Honda CRV - stuck in the sandy beach and having to be pushed out by six guys more so than any crazy thing that happens around our home.

Adventurous family travel doesn’t have to be hiking the backcountry of the Grand Canyon or flying over the New Mexico landscape in a hot-air balloon. It can include something as simple as searching for fossils in a creek. And it doesn’t always have to be related to the Great Outdoors. A really cool museum or aquarium can suffice fine.

Although my kids and I love theme parks, I stayed away from them, for the most part, in this book. Not only have they been covered in other guides more expertly than I could do, I seek to give readers more ideas than the obvious. I did include a few theme parks that may not be as well known as Disney and Six Flags, such as Playland in New York and Waterworld in Colorado. And I include some lists that rate various theme parks.

For chapters, I used regional divisions figured out by the United States Census Bureau, for the most part. But the feds put Maryland and Delaware in the South, and having lived in Maryland for several years, I know from experience it is not really a Southern state and belongs in the Middle Atlantic region. And Washington, D.C., is unique in itself and doesn’t really fit anywhere, but I put it in the Middle Atlantic chapter since that one only had five states compared with six in the South Atlantic.

In addition, I divided the Mountain West division into two: the Northwest and Southwest. I have traveled extensively through the West and know that those two regions are distinct.

So, go on. Hit the road with the kids….

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