Years ago, in the era between the introduction of the iPhone and the modern period of widespread cellular coverage, my wife and I were driving with our quite young children across the vast, unexplored expanse of north-central Pennsylvania, en route to a family wedding. We had plotted out the route and knew where we were going: Eagles Mere, a tiny, former luxury resort town once at the end of a railway line. The town used to attract well-known actors, as well as New York City denizens, who would escape the summer heat and polio outbreaks back in the city.
As we tootled along, chatting with the kids and keeping them occupied, we suddenly went off the grid. We were still on a state highway, not yet turned to a smaller road, and yet there was no coverage. We figuratively slapped ourselves in the head. Had we gotten AAA maps or printed out whatever the technology was of the day—did MapQuest even still exist? No. We relied on having continuous cellular service. Readers, we did not wind up in the forest for a week, discovered by rescuers clad in bark and branches, feeding the children non-toxic berries. But we did learn a lesson.
Eagles Mere used to be a fancy place; it remains beautiful.
Always have a map that doesn’t require cellular access! I mean, duh, of course, but we had been lulled in our coastal urban elitism to expect service, service, everywhere!
