The idea for this journey did not come all at once but grew over time from smaller things. I have already driven a fair portion of the roads in Corner to Corner to Corner for no other reason than proximity and my natural penchant for back roads. I visit Mid-Ohio racetrack, near Lexington, several times a year and, when time permits, like to follow Route 42 at least one way. On one of those drives, the idea of following it across the state started to form. When I did a little research, I learned that Ohio US 42 was almost entirely in Ohio part of US 42 but and that the only part outside of Ohio was a hundred miles or so to Louisville, Kentucky. That will be part of another outing.

I was familiar with US 22 and its partner Ohio 3 and was aware that both followed parts of the earlier 3-C Highway. As I traced Route 42 across a map, I realized that 3 connects the same end points but does so along a slightly different path. Both routes link Cincinnati with Cleveland but 42 bypasses the middle C, Columbus, to the west while 3 goes right through it.

Another input was a desire to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. The hall had been on my "To Do" list since it opened but something always kept it from reaching the top. It moved up a bit last summer due to a Seattle trip. Seattle is where one of my sons has settled and October 2000 was his choice for a wedding. With a trip planned for the fall, I noted the spring time opening of Paul Allen's Experience Music Project with a bit more interest than I might have otherwise. I knew we would have some free time in Seattle and had no intention of missing an opportunity to visit EMP. Realizing that it would seem odd to visit a brand new museum at the farthest corner of the country before visiting the older, and more "official", one at the far corner of my own state, I thought of squeezing Cleveland in ahead of Seattle but it was just too much.

So, old roads and Rock and Roll bounced around and bumped into each other until the current plan emerged. One day to trace Ohio 42 from the Ohio River to Lake Erie and another to return on Ohio 3. Sections of the Old 3C Highway will make up the return route when possible. In between is a day to visit the Hall of Fame and two chances to experience Cleveland nightlife. If time permits and it still makes sense, there could be an excursion along the lakeshore to the real corner of Ohio some seventy miles further on.