Lost on Route 93

U.S. Highway Route 93 is just another numbered highway in a nation connected by roads. Across the miles and mountains outside our urban perspective, along these same roads, are the places some Americans live. Many slogans have become associated with 93 over the years, but perhaps the one that characterizes it best is "The Loneliest Highway". For an outsider, not much is familiar here, and this sliver of the Rocky Mountains is scattered with communities that define the distinctions between rural and urban Unites States. There are people, like Marvin Smith of Moore, Idaho, who are tough and weathered, like the land their families have ranched for generations. There are places, like Carey, Idaho, filled with a mixture of hope and despair, lives moving towards new starts and dead-ends alike. In these isolated towns leisure can often be found in drink and drugs while younger generations struggle to find a balance between past and present values. "The worst thing about living here is that everybody knows everybody's business," said Carey native Chris McCain. "But the good thing is you get to know all the cops, so you can pretty much get away with whatever you’re want". This series is not about the physical exploration of a highway landscape, but rather the lifestyles, energy and emotions that define a 420-mile corridor running through Montana and Idaho. Thank you for your consideration.