Tag: Alex and Abby

Pacific Northwest: Trip Summary

This trip was our last major trip for the season. While not solely a tour of the Pacific Northwest, we started in South Lake Tahoe where we met up with friends of the motorcycling persuasion. After consulting with the National Parks Passport book, we planned our route to pick up cancellations at Lava Beds National Monument and Crater Lake National Park.

The severity of the Western drought and the importance of fully researching park alerts before route planning were highlighted during this trip. Our first night was spent at Rockport State Park, along the Rockport Reservoir (Utah). This reservoir was easily 40 to 50 feet lower than its historic level; this translate to filled at 35% capacity and is dropping. Proper research was emphasized when we went to North Cascades National Park and discovered the campground closures due to fire and weekend only visitor center hours after we arrived. Whoops. Might have gone to visit Mount Rainier instead, but then we would have missed out on seeing Port Townsend, WA (absolutely charming town).

We really enjoyed visiting the coast. Alex, Dave, and the dogs loved the beaches. Jess enjoyed the beach, but mumbled grouchy things towards all the sand that was tracked into Abby. The major downside to the coast was the pervasive dampness (that and the lingering smell of fish in Abby). Nothing dried quickly. It was rather nice to return to a more arid climate.

This was an aggressive trip. On average, we drove 245 miles/day. Which is a minimum of 5 hours in Abby. We got to see a large number of attractions, but only in a superficial manner. For our next trip, our goal is to pick a major area of interest and some minor areas of interest for the route to and from. Drive in a rather direct fashion to our area of major interest and camp there for a week. This will allow us to do more exploring and hiking. Fortunately, we have all winter to choose a destination.

pacificnwroute
Our Pacific Northwest route.

Mileage and Fuel Consumption:

Total days: 17

Total miles: 4172.6

Total gallons diesel: 244.6

Average miles per gallon: 17.1

Best miles per gallon: 19.4

Worst miles per gallon: 13.8

Abby gave us a beautiful tank of 19.4 mpg as we came east across Wyoming. We may have had an aiding tail-wind, but we will take it.

Campgrounds:

For our campground summary post, follow this link.

  1. Rockport State Park, UT (1)
  2. Water Canyon Recreation Area (BLM), south of Winnemucca, NV (1)
  3. Campground by the Lake, South Lake Tahoe, CA (2)
  4. Lava Beds National Monument, CA (1)
  5. Steamboat Falls Campground, Umpqua National Forest, OR (1)

    img_20160919_184020863
    A heavily wooded campsite at Steamboat Falls. Watch out for poison oak in the sunnier sites!
  6. South Beach State Park, Newport, OR (1)
  7. Cape Disappointment State Park, Ilwaco, WA (1)

    Lighthouse at Cape Disappointment in Washington.
    Lighthouse at Cape Disappointment in Washington.
  8. Kalaloch Campground, Olympic National Park, WA (2)
  9. Fairholme Campground, Olympic National Park, WA (1)
  10. Heart O’ the Hills Campground, Olympic National Park, WA (1)
  11. Lone Fir Campground, Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, WA (1)
  12. Camp Coeur d’Alene, Coeur d’Alene, ID (1)
  13. Dispersed camping Harriet Lou Road, Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, MT (1)
  14. Lewis Lake Campground, Yellowstone National Park, WY (1)
  15. Saratoga Lake Campground, Saratoga, WY (1)

Breweries

This is a rather short brewery list, considering we drove through the Pacific Northwest. Alas, timing thwarted our best intentions to visit breweries. It would be a lot easier if breweries would open up in National Forest campgrounds.

  1. The Brewery at Lake Tahoe
  2. Jack Russell Farm Brewery
  3. Rogue Ales & Spirits
  4. Next Door Gastropub – okay this isn’t really a brewery. Excellent food and regional beer selection, so it is getting listed anyway.

For more detail regarding our brewery visits, check out this post.

National Monuments/Historic Sites:

  1. Lava Beds National Monument – our experiences posted here.
  2. Crater Lake – for more information, click here.
  3. Lewis and Clark National Historic Park
  4. Olympic National Park – post of our experience is here.
  5. Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve
  6. North Cascades Park
  7. Big Hole National Battlefield – for more information, click here.
  8. Yellowstone National Park – for more information, click here.
  9. John D Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway
  10. Grand Teton National Park

Gallery: Oregon and Washington Coast

 

Pacific Northwest: Yellowstone and Grand Teton

We last visited Yellowstone in July of 2015, and were frustrated by the shear number of people also there. We thought that coming later in the season would improve our experience, as less people would be there. While the crowds were reduced at the end of September compared to July, there were many more people than we expected.

Also unexpected was the fog, which made it hard to see some of the features, especially later in the day as the air was cooling (at Grand Prismatic Spring the fog was very thick and swirling with the wind). The fog also made it challenging to see wildlife and pedestrians along the side of the road. We definitely slowed down leaving the park due to poor visibility; as our elevation decreased, the fog began to dissipate.

We were did walk the Fountain Paint Pots and Grand Prismatic Spring Nature trails. Both were board walks that went past multiple thermal features. These walks were smooth and easy for Alex to navigate, but people added a challenge. There was not a railing at all points to ensure a little boy stayed the course. It required some herding of Alex to make sure he didn’t run into people or fall off the walkway. There were stairs to Grand Prismatic Spring; Fountain Paint Pots did not have stairs, but there was one steeper grade.

Pay attention to park bulletins if you are camping late in the season. We wanted to camp at the Tower Falls campground, but it had closed three days prior. Additionally, there was road construction just south of the North entrance, requiring a significant re-route through the park. After reviewing the campgrounds that were still open (Mammoth Hot Springs, Madison, Slough Creek, and Lewis Lake) , we re-routed to the West entrance because Lewis Lake still had availability and we did not have to take the detour. We drove along the Gallatin River on US-191S; the fall colors were absolutely beautiful along this route.

We exited Yellowstone via the South entrance and drove through John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway and Grand Teton National Park to Coulter Bay Village. This route allowed us an up close view of the damage caused by the fire earlier in the park from earlier this summer. The fire damage, along with the low level of Jackson Lake, emphasized the drought that western states have been suffering.

When is the best time to visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton? We wish we knew. Rangers said that social media (people being warned about the crowded conditions during the summer) has extended the peak season closer and closer to season’s end.

Gallery:

Click on a picture to launch the gallery in a new window

 

Northern Rockies: Trip Summary

This trip could have easily been called the ‘Canadian Hot Springs Tour‘, but Northern Rockies was much more inclusive of our trip. This was our first trip since completing our move to Colorado and Abby had been away in storage for the past six weeks. The poor girl was not in travel ready condition. Time was spent Friday night and Saturday morning to get Abby back in fighting form, or at least something that we could pass off as fighting form. We left at 10:30 Saturday morning, August 20th, which was much better than what Jess pessimistically envisioned.

We achieved an exciting first on this trip – Penny, Chewie, and Buster all crossed an international border (Canada) and were allowed re-entry into the United States! Our fuzzy fur creatures did not cause any international incidents while in Canada! Fantastic wins. Canada National Parks also allow dogs on trails, unless restrictions are posted. Penny and Chewie were happy to join us hiking.

NortherRockiesRoute
Route traveled for our Northern Rockies adventure.

Check out our Going to the Sun Road post.

Mileage and Fuel Consumption:

We discovered how expensive diesel (and gasoline) is in Canada. Charged per liter, we had to multiple the by 3.785 to obtain the per gallon price. So $0.939/L became $3.55/gallon, which was a solid $1.00/gallon more than our most expensive price in the states.

Total days: 12

Total miles: 2800

Total gallons diesel: 175.3

Average miles per gallon: 15.9

Best miles per gallon: 17.6

Worst miles per gallon: 13.2

Our last tank reflected the slog it was driving Abby home down I-25S. We fought a headwind and hills the entire way. Despite the one poor mileage tank, we were very pleased with the mileage for the trip.

Campgrounds:

For our campground summary post, follow this link.

  1. Dispersed camping, FSR 20, Bighorn National Forest, WY (1)

    2016NR_Dispersed
    View of Bighorn National Forest near our dispersed camping site.
  2. Many Pines Campground, Lewis and Clark National Forest, MT (1)
  3. Two Medicine Campground, Glacier National Park, MT (2); link to hike

    Abby with Rising Wolf Mountain in the background, Two Medicine Campground
    Abby with Rising Wolf Mountain in the background, Two Medicine Campground.
  4. Calgary West Campground, Calgary, Alberta, Canada (1)
  5. Two Jack Main Campground, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada (2)
  6. Dry Gulch Provincial Campground, British Columbia, Canada (1)
  7. Apgar Campground, Glacier National Park, MT (2)
  8. Missouri Headwaters State Park, Three Forks, MN (1)

    Abby at campsite number 6 in Missouri Headwaters State Park.
    Abby at campsite number 6 in Missouri Headwaters State Park.
  9. Lake View Campground, Bighorn National Forest, WY (1)

Breweries:

  1. The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company, Canmore, Alberta, Canada
  2. Banff Avenue Brewing Company, Banff, Alberta, Canada
  3. Ten Sleep Brewing Company, Ten Sleep, WY

For more detail regarding our brewery visits, check out this post.

National Monuments/Historic Sites:

  1. Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument – click here for more details.
  2. Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site – click here for more details
  3. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area

Northern California: Summary

CASummary
Route for our Northern California Adventure.

Our northern California excursion made leaving much harder. We realized that there were so many more adventures we wanted to go on while in California. Unfortunately, the timing did not work out. We will be back someday.

Our route was just shy of 1000 miles, at 982. We averaged approximately 16 mpg for the trip. Abby felt very sporty without the cargo trailer.

Campgrounds

Breweries

Favorite Campgrounds

  1. Wesport-Union Landing State Beach: Our favorite campground of the trip. Camped on a bluff, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, falling asleep to the sound of the ocean. What more can you ask for? Beach access? Even better. Fantastic campground that the locals know about. You can grab a spot as soon as someone leaves. Make sure there isn’t an item left at the site indicating that a camper is coming back.

    Beach that can be accessed from the Westport-Union campground.
    Beach that can be accessed from the Westport-Union campground.
  2. Manzanita Lake Campground, Lassen Volcanic National Park: Our second favorite campground. This park has versatility. Hiking, skiing and snowboarding (in June!), and lake activities. A very nice park and informative visitors center. Really enjoyed our hike up to Crags Lake. Other trail-heads accessible in or near the campground; other trails through out the park.

    View near Crags Lake.
    View near Crags Lake.
  3. Stand of young redwoods.
    Stand of young redwoods.

    Mill Creek Campground, Redwood National and State Park: Some sites were in some very dense tree cover. We had a sunnier site with a creek directly behind us – Alex loved splashing in the water. Lots of hikes accessible from the campground.

Biggest Pleasant Surprise

  1. Hidden Spring, Humboldt State Forest: Primarily tent camping and some smaller RV and trailers. Abby is only 24 feet and we were glad she wasn’t bigger. We could hike to a beach/swimming hole at the Eel River. Sites are well spaced.

Least Favorite Campground

  1. Mad River Rapids RV Park: Commercial campgrounds are not our first choice. But there was cell service here and that is what we needed for Jess’ phone interview. So here we stayed.

June 23, 2016 – Westport Union Landing State Beach

Route: US-101S

CARoute05We did not do this drive in one day. It actually took us two. We stopped and stayed at Mad River Rapids RV Park (clean, nice bathrooms, laundry, just a little too developed for our preferences) in McKinleyville, CA the night of June 21st. Cell reception was critical for the morning of the 22nd because Jess had a phone interview for a job. The saving grace of this stop was Six Rivers Brewery, just 5 minutes away from our campground. We enjoyed their beers.

Just south of Eureka, we debated on taking Mattole road along the lost coast. It is a beautiful drive; we have done it before in a rental car and motorcycle. However, it is twisty with lots of up and downs. We decided not to abuse Abby that badly a few weeks before our move to Colorado. We decided to enjoy the drive along Avenue of the Giants for the scenic portion of our drive.

History: Westport and Union Landing were towns supported by the lumber industry. A complex wharf and chute system was used to load the schooners anchored beyond the dangerous rocks with lumber, tanbark, shingles, wool, oats and railroad ties from the bluffs. The town struggled through boom and bust cycles, and the Great Depression diminished Westport further. The town survives today, unlike other lumber towns along the coast.

Campgrounds:

With our late start on the 22nd, we started to look for camping in Humboldt Redwoods State Park. We were shut out the previous night at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park; this park is very popular and after hiking to Patrick’s Point, it was clear why. Make a reservation, it will be worth it. We were cautiously optimistic about finding a spot in Humboldt Redwoods. The Burlington campground, where we (minus Alex) camped in 2010 was full, and the park staff recommended Hidden Springs. This was a fantastic recommendation. We selected site 9, which was level and had a nice area for Alex and the dogs. There was some road noise, but the number of cars traveling on the road decreased significantly after dusk.

We got off to an early start on Thursday and as we drove by Westport Union Landing State Beach we saw campsites set up. We stopped to investigate and discovered that this is a first come, first serve campground. We snagged a spot for two nights. Initially, there looked to be a limited number of spots, but there are three camping areas.

Activities:

View from Patrick's Point towards Wedding Rock.
View from Patrick’s Point towards Wedding Rock.

Various hiking trails are available at Humboldt Redwoods State Park and Prairie Creek. Prairie Creek will have ocean view trails. At the Eel River swimming hole in Humboldt Redwoods State Park, Alex took great joy in throwing rocks into the river. It is an activity he enjoys.

Alex waiting for a wave to come in so he can throw a rock into the ocean.
Alex waiting for a wave to come in so he can throw a rock into the ocean.
Penny and Chewie running on the beach.
Penny and Chewie running on the beach.

2016_Coast05Westport Union Landing State Beach has, well, the beach. This can be walked to and at low tide you can find sand crabs, crabs, giant anemones, and mussels. Alex took a little bit to warm up to the beach and preferred to walk on the harder sand exposed during low tide. Once he discovered this surface, he was eager to run up and down the beach. The dogs were excited to frolic in the surf.

Fort Bragg is about 15 miles down the road. Fort Bragg is the home of North Coast Brewing Company and their very tasty beers. There is a tourist train, called the Skunk Train, that takes riders on a forty mile tour through redwoods and mountain meadows. We missed an opportunity to take Alex on a train ride that he would have loved. There is also Glass Beach, where beauty has resulted from a former city dump.

Overall: Fantastic camping spot. Need to be quick to grab a site. The proximity to Fort Bragg provides extra activities. We could have spend our entire trip camped out on the bluffs.

Morning view from our campsite.
Morning view from our campsite.

June 15, 2016 – Plumas Eureka State Park

Route to Plumas Eureka State Park.
Route to Plumas Eureka State Park.

Route: I-80E, CA-49N, CA-89N, A414

Google estimated travel time was approximately 3 hours if we used I-80E for the majority of the trip. On the advice from a friend, we overruled Google Maps and took CA-49N, which would add an estimated 30 minutes to the trip. In Abby, the extra time was closer to an hour. Include the road construction, it was an additional 90 minutes.

CA-49N is a twisty, scenic drive through Tahoe and Plumas National Forests. The road follows various branches of the Yuba River at different points. The river looks to be a kayaker’s and fisherman’s paradise with boulders, fast flowing sections, and large pools. There are multiple opportunities to camp in Sierra County at National Forest campgrounds adjacent to CA-49N. We also saw a number of signs indicating boat launches down lake access roads.

Yes, the route we took came close to forming a circle at the end.

Abby in campsite 36 at Plumas Eureka State Park.
Abby in campsite 36 at Plumas Eureka State Park.

History: The Plumas Eureka State Park region was originally inhabited by the Northern Maidu, who lived along valley edges and hunted in the mountains during the warm seasons. They were known for their coiled and twined baskets and intricate bead-work.

In 1851, the isolation of the Maidu ended when gold was discovered on an exposed quartz ledge of Eureka Peak. The influx of European settlers brought disease, destroyed native food and plant resources, and inflicted violence that was catastrophic to the Maidu population.

Jamison City and Johnsville were established for the miners. Smaller mining companies closed as surface deposits diminished. A British company purchased and consolidated the mines in 1872. The mines operated profitable until 1890 and were sold in 1904. Operations tapered off until they were ended during World War II by the War Production Board Limitation Order. The mines’ 65 miles of tunnels generated more than $8 million in gold, which was processed by the Mohawk Stamp Mill.

To entertain themselves, miners held snowshoe and ski races. In the ski races, competitors could reach speeds of more than 80 miles per hour. It is believed that the mine tramways may have served as the world’s first ski lifts.

Campground: We weren’t sure what to expect with the Plumas Eureka campground. Experience with CA state parks is approximately 66% positive (Morro Bay, New Brighton State Beach, Half Moon Bay) and we were hoping that after this stay, 3 out of 4 parks would have exceeded expectations. We weren’t disappointed.

The park rangers are VERY serious about protecting bears from habituation to humans. You must read a statement upon check in regarding proper storage of food and trash at your site and the dangers to you and the bear if you do not follow the regulations; there is a $1000 fine if you are found to be in violation of the rules. Your signature on the registration receipt is required to acknowledge the information.

The campground is approximately a mile down the road from the mining museum, located at the base of Mount Eureka, that has the registration window. There is a mix of walk-in only and RV/trailer sites. all sites have a picnic table, fire pit, metal food storage box, and a large level area for tent set up. Despite the scale on the map, all sites are spacious and wooded with various types of trees (white fir, Douglas fir, ponderosa, sugar, Jeffrey, lodge-pole, incense cedar). There are even some giant sequoias and a creek running through the campground. Our spot number was 36, which was a little uneven, but was fixed with blocks under the front tires. Sites 9 – 14, and 19 – 20 are secluded and within easy walking distance to the showers.

The shower facilities were clean, and as of June 2016, free. We did not try them out. California was experiencing unseasonable cold weather and we saw snow flurries our first night. We’re not walking around wet, in the cold, while Abby had a functional shower. The toilet facilities have flush toilets, but no hot water.

Activities: There is a trail from the campground to the museum. The museum is located in the historic miners’ bunkhouse and has natural history exhibits, archaeological finds, mining artifacts, a working scale model of the stamp mill, and hands on exhibits for kids. You can even pan for gold. Some buildings are open in the mining complex, but check with the museum to confirm days and times.

The campground also provides access to the Talking Forest Nature Trail and Grass and Smith Lakes Trail. These trails to exit the state park and enter national forest land. Within the park, there are also trail heads to Eureka Peak,  Madora Lake, and others into national forest land.

Fishing along Jamison Creek in the park is not always rewarding, but there are other streams and lakes in the area that offer better odds.

Check out The Brewing Lair. It is about a 10 minute drive from the campground at Plumas Eureka State Park. We loved their phenomenal setting and enjoyed their beer. Well done.

Overall: We enjoyed this park. We didn’t hike as much as we would have liked; we are always trying to hit a moving target as Alex abilities and nap schedule change as he grows. A positive experience.

Western Trip Summary

We started our first long RV adventure on June 27, 2015. We had made the decision just three weeks prior to move to California so Jess could enroll in the UC Davis Extension Master Brewers Program; we knew that when we returned we would have to kick things into high gear to prepare the house for sale (we had our floors refinished while we were gone). Looking back, it is hard to believe we got it all done. And it is still rather surreal that a year later we are packing up our California rental to move to Colorado.

Since it has been so long since our trip, the format for posts will be different from our California move. This summary post will be followed by posts focusing on our favorite/least favorite campgrounds, side trips made along the way, and anything else that may require a stand alone post. These stand alone posts will likely be due excessive length as a result of our poor self-editing skills. Some of our notes (including total gallons of diesel and mileage) have been misplaced in a cross-country move.

2015 Summer Trip
2015 Summer Trip

The trip was approximately 5200 miles, including side trips. We used about 345 gallons of diesel, averaging right around 15 miles per gallon.

We started our trip on June 27, 2015 and were back July 16, 2015. Just shy of 3 full weeks and resulting in an average of 273 miles traveled per day.

Family selfie just before leaving the driveway.
Family selfie just before leaving the driveway.

The trip started out on a rainy, mechanical break down note with Abby’s turbo resonator failing, but after our first day hiccup, it was smooth sailing. We had a great time visiting family and friends along our route. And they were always very kind in giving us a place to park, do laundry, and shower in a full size bathroom!

The whirlwind trip took us to four national parks, a national monument, a national recreation area, two national forests, and seven state parks. We definitely erred in wedged too many sights into our trip schedule; we learned from our errors on this trip and corrected them for future trips.

Campgrounds:

  1. Great River Bluffs State Park, MN – overnight rest stop only
  2. Palisades State Park, SD – 2 night stop, rest day

    Palisades State Park in South Dakota
    Palisades State Park in South Dakota
  3. Custer State Park, SD – 2 night stop (Grace Coolidge, Sylvan Lake)
  4. Yellowstone National Park, WY – overnight (Fishing Creek)
  5. Grand Teton National Park, WY – overnight (Lizard Creek)
  6. Bridger-Teton National Forest, WY – overnight (East Table)
  7. Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, UT – overnight
  8. San Juan National Forest, CO – 2 night stop (Junction Creek)
  9. Mueller State Park, CO – overnight

    2015_Mueller
    View of Pike’s Peak (under cloud cover) from Mueller State Park.
  10. Rocky Mountain National Park, CO – 2 night stop (Olive Ridge – technically just outside the park)
  11. Mormon Island State Recreation Area, NE – overnight
  12. Starved Rock State Park, IL – overnight
  13. West Branch State Park, OH – overnight

    2015_WestBranch
    View for our campsite in West Branch State Park, OH. Our last night on the road.

RV Travel with a Toddler

The younger the kid, the more items you need to bring along to make life a little bit easier. That being said, traveling with Alex and Abby was easier when he was younger than 1 year compared to his 1 to 2 year old self.

Abby_inMotion
Where everyone travels while Abby is in motion. Buster is hiding on his bed behind the driver’s seat.

Car Seat: Alex travels in Abby in his car seat. Besides being legally required and the fact Abby is essentially a giant fiberglass box, what other reasons does one really need? Alex is a curious little boy and climbs around non-stop while we are camping, he would be thrilled to be able to be up front in a prime viewing seat. Just too much chance for serious injury. Alex’s car seat provides protection.

The car seat is stored in the driver’s seat when we stop and camp. This has two benefits. First, it is out of the way. Second, it keeps Alex from climbing into the driver’s seat and flashing Abby’s high beams at the poor folks camped across from us. Alex really likes the driver’s seat because of all the buttons and knobs to with which to fiddle.

Alex having a blast in the driver's seat.
Alex having a blast in the driver’s seat.

Sleeping: Alex slept in this Fisher-Price Rock-‘n-Play Sleeper up to approximately 8 months in age. We LOVED this sleeper. Folded up compact and fit in the drop down bunk above the cab and had a very small foot print. This sleeper easily fit near the sleeper sofa and the dogs had the dinette benches to sleep on. Wins all around.

Then Alex got too big and too mobile to safely use the sleeper. So we changed to the Pack ‘n Play. More room for Alex means more room needed for the Pack ‘n Play. We actually fold down the dinette and place the Pack ‘n Play on top; it takes up 2/3 of the dinette sleeping space. Now only one dog can sleep on the available bench. It is also a pain to break down the dinette nightly and put it back up in the morning. Oh, and the TV has to be unplugged because Alex and reach up and turn it on. And the light bulbs need to be taken out of the kitchen light because he can reach the switch. Minor, nerve grating points.

Our troubles with the Pack ‘n Play will soon be a thing of the past since Alex is now getting too big for that. We will be investigating new sleeping arrangements – the current top contender is Dave sleeping on the top bunk and Alex sleeping with Jess on the fold out sofa. We are looking to add a barrier to the front of the top bunk so Alex can safely sleep up there by himself. This will require Dave’s tools, which happen to be in our storage trailer, which, at this time, is still located in upstate NY.

Clothes/Diapers: Little baby, small clothes, many more items that can be packed in the same space as the larger, bulkier, toddler clothes. Same for diapers. With diapers, we have a small shelf that can fit about 32 diapers and a package of wipes next to the TV. Extra diapers are stored under the sofa. A project is in the works to make this into a more accessible storage space. Found these organizers on Amazon for storing Alex’s clothes. Purchased three. They work very well and we are pleased with them. They take up the large cabinet above the dinette bench next to the fridge. Overall, the system works well.

Toys: This was one that was much easier when Alex was less mobile. A limited selection of toys was required since Alex slept a good portion of the day. As he has gotten older, a more diverse set of toys is required to hold his interest over his waking hours. We have blocks, puzzles, magnets, books, crayons, paper, trucks, trains, and stuffed animals. Our current storage system is less than ideal: center cabinet above dinette and the dinette bench while underway, cab when stopped. Include the fact that Alex is very mobile and likes to dump his blocks, poor Abby is brimming with chaos.

Alex and Abby – A history

Alex and Abby met for the first time when Alex was just shy of three months old. It was not love at first sight. Alex was tired and cranky and didn’t seem to appreciate the test drive. But good parents that we are, we overrode Alex’s objections and purchased Abby.

August 2014: Alex’s first trip in Abby was an overnight shakedown run to Pequea Creek Campground in Pennsylvania. It was on this run that future thoughts for organization started to present themselves. But nothing too disastrous and we were only an hour away from home.

Ommegang
Jess enjoying a beer, back during the days Alex would sleep at a bar.

October 2014: Alex and Abby had more time to bond on their next trip to Cooperstown, NY area over Columbus Day weekend. We dragged Alex not to the Baseball Hall of Fame, but to Brewery Ommegang. That’s just how we parent. We were fortunate because Alex was still at a stage where he slept – a lot. And wasn’t super mobile so he perfectly content to hang out in his car seat at the table while we ate and chatted. We stayed at Beaver Spring Lake Campground, which had full hook ups. This was very fortuitous because the overnight lows were high 20s. No water lines froze despite our lack of an arctic package. Alex seemed to enjoy himself on this trip and it was deemed rather successful.

Alex enjoying some tummy time outside on the dinette cushions.
Alex enjoying some tummy time outside on the dinette cushions.
Alex snuggled up in his Storchenwiege carrier.
Alex snuggled up in his Storchenwiege carrier.

Novermber 2014: Alex took his first trip to Cape Henlopen State Park. This is a beautiful campground area, with some spots very nicely shaded. Being late in the season, the campground was sparsely populated, save some tent campers who were competing in the ‘Skate the Cape’ event weekend. Looked like a fun event; everyone that we interacted with was extremely nice. A drawback at Cape Henlope is the park staff don’t want RVs parking off of the pavement; there are only a few spots that don’t resemble parallel parking. It would be nice if one could be trusted to use their own judgement and park on the hard pack sand, but I am sure experience has taught the staff that most people overestimate their or their vehicle’s abilities. Review the park map and choose wisely. While there are water hook ups, some of the spigots are at least 50′ away from the spot they are assigned to service; pack two sanitary water hoses just in case.

Alex_Hammock
Alex taking a nap in the RV campground at Firefly. Resting up for a big day of concerts and people watching.

June 2015: 2015 started out relatively quiet with a trip to Cape Henlopen and the Outer Banks as a quick weekend shake down runs ahead of a busy summer travel schedule. After that the travel season became very hectic. First, was our trip to the Firefly Music Festival in Dover, DE the weekend of June 18 – 21. We had been debating on going, but when they announced Paul McCartney was headlining, we decided to go for it. Alex seemed to have a really fun time; we introduced him to the WeeRide which he loved. He had a strong dislike for his bike helmet initially, but once he made the connection between the helmet and going for a bike ride, all was okay. Alex enjoyed snoozing in the hammock and got to “see” Paul McCartney in concert. Never fear, he had ear protection on whenever we were on the concert grounds.

IMG_20150705_195353640
Alex enjoying dirt along the snake river in Wyoming.

June/July 2015: Less than a week after we returned from Firefly, Abby spirited all of us (including the dogs) off on a 3 week western adventure. This trip started with failed turbo resonator, but there were no more mechanical failures on the trip. Alex had a great time playing in dirt and “driving” the RV.

Alex enjoying Mama's biscuits and gravy so much he is using two spoon.
Alex enjoying Mama’s biscuits and gravy so much he is using two spoon.

September 2015: Abby took Alex on his first trip out of the country! We drove up to Saint-Alphonse-Rodriguez, in Quebec. It was a fun trip. We were only a little bit nervous at the border crossings because Alex’s favorite phrase at this time was ‘uh oh’. We didn’t think it would be wise to answer the border guard’s question with ‘uh oh’.


October 2015: Just when Alex and Abby were going to have to say good-bye to each other for a few months, we decided to throw two October trips into the mix. The first was over Columbus Day weekend to the Mansfield area of Pennsylvania. Dave rode his motorcycle up and Jess drove the RV. Alex and the dogs got a bonus visit to the farm to visit Mimi and Grandpa. We stayed at Tanglewood Campground which was very family friendly. Costume parade for the kids and what we heard was a very well done haunted trail ride.

Tanglewood
Morning at Tanglewood Campground.

 

We decided to take a trip to visit all the remaining Northeast states before we moved west. So Alex and Abby hit the road together again to Acadia National Park in Maine. This was the most dog-friendly park we have visited where dogs are allowed on most trails. Our creature triple feature had a great time. Abby was challenged with no hook-ups and short, cloudy days prevented the solar panels from recharging the batteries. We needed to run the generator to charge the batteries. Except we overestimated our propane levels and couldn’t find anywhere to fill up since it was the end of the season and most places had closed down. To add to the challenge, the coach batteries weren’t recharging from the engine. Thus, a very delicate game of cat and mouse was played between propane and battery levels. This trip happened to be the trip that the transmission failed; while Abby didn’t see Alex home to the door, she did arrange a ride for him in a big rig.

Abby being towed from the EZ-Pass administration building parking lot.
Abby being towed from the EZ-Pass administration building parking lot.

December 2015/January 2016: And we can’t forget the cross-country move! Alex and Abby had lots of quality time together as we meandered across the South and up the Pacific Coast Highway to Davis, CA. Check out our detailed blog posts chronicling this journey. There are many more than the one linked, check out the archives or the category ‘Travel Diary: 2016 DE to CA’.

One of our greatest concerns with all the traveling we do is making sure Alex is having fun. We can’t know for sure, but he always gets excited when he sees Abby and wants to climb aboard. All said and done, we let this picture speak volumes.

Alex the traveling man as Abby moves him down the road.
Alex the traveling man as Abby moves him down the road.