Letter From the Editor: Our Road Trips Issue 2023 Is Here!

I love road maps. The way the lines crisscross and intertwine, bisecting a state or region. Towns and cities have clearly defined borders, and when the topography is well marked, it’s like studying the surface of the moon. It’s hard for me to enjoy looking at a map on my phone as much, especially when an automated voice or screen does all the work with turn-by-turn directions. But give me a good, detailed paper map, and I’m as lost (and found) as I would be in a good book.

The best part of maps is what they don’t give you. Routes are there for the plotting (in ink!), and you’re the only one who can determine where to stop, stretch your legs, and grab a bite. Yes, our devices can issue out all the roadside restaurants in a certain radius or guide you to the best gas station eats, but wouldn’t you rather discover those things yourself?

I’ll also admit to an obsession with physical guidebooks—the ones that capture a city, state, or country with remarkable precision, dedicated strictly to the kinds of travelers who carry the book in hand while stopping at museums, cafes, and attractions. This issue is dedicated to my fellow carto- and bibliophiles, the ones still poring over pocketed maps and guidebooks. More than visual aids, the stories that flow through these pages share excellent and exact stopping points for meandering road trips across the South—and also help you see these places from a new perspective.

Jump into the car with Boyce Upholt as he traverses the No Man’s Land between Louisiana and Texas, his dog in tow, or join Beth D’Addono as she eats her leisurely way along the coastline of Mississippi. Our associate editor, Hannah Lee Leidy, went in search of history and sustainable hospitality in coastal Virginia, while managing editor Emily Havener got to know some of Kentucky’s most exciting newcomers to the bourbon scene.

To say our team loved working on this issue is an understatement—yes, there was our time on the road, but we were also getting tips from nearly everyone (and their alumni friends) to create our guide to college tailgating. Meanwhile, our look at the South’s new and renovated hotels was wholeheartedly a team effort. More than anything, our editors and contributors loved striking out in search of adventurous eating and drinking and delivering their dispatches directly to you. We hope you’ll dog-ear this issue along your own journey—and maybe even get a little lost along the way.