There are lots of typical ways to enjoy retirement - spending time in sunnier climates is a common selection if your main domicile is a 'cold weather' state. Not many retirees can equal the avocation of Dick and Myra Bennett, though.

The Oregon couple is at the mid-way point of an extended road trip - traveling to each of the 50 states, visiting the county seat at each stop, and snapping a photograph in front of a sign that includes that county's name.

Last week the Bennett's motorhome pulled up in front of the Clinton County News office where Dick posed in front of the only business in the county seat of St. Johns that bears the county's name.

"It's just a fun thing to do - it's our retirement project," he said of the unique undertaking.

The retired couple who live in Canby, Oregon, have toured 23 states since beginning the county sign project in June 1997. They generally pick two or three states at a time, using computer maps to carefully plot their winding course from one county seat to another. Michigan and Wisconsin are the counties of choice for the Bennett's current road trip.

A day's journey for the couple covers lots of miles. Last week's cross-county trip across the midsection of Michigan began after an overnight stop in Muskegon, followed by Grand Rapids (Kent) and Ionia (Ionia) before their arrival in front of the News. The plan called for a visit to Corunna (Shiawassee), before bedding down for the night in their motor home somewhere in the Flint area (Genesee).

While each county provides interesting sights - and county signs - Dick says the best ones are often found in smaller towns, like St. Johns.

"We don’t really like the big cities as much - we had a hard time finding a business in Grand Rapids that had Kent County as part of its name - it's just harder to maneuver in the bigger towns," Dick said, noting that they try to find retail business signs, rather than municipal ones.

"We could have done the Clinton County Courthouse - but the Clinton County News is much better."

Myra shoots video of Dick in front of each county sign which he downloads into a laptop computer at the end of the day's travels. When the couple return to home base in Oregon, Dick adds the new additions to a book that he's compiled of the entire journey to date.

The Bennett's have no set schedule for completion of the project.