While our route was always changing, where we stayed did not!*
While we tended to explore around a bit in any one place we visited, the places listed here are where we actually spent the night or two (or four) with our F250 6.7 crew cab turbo diesel truck, named 'The Bumble" by Beth Barclay, and our '25 camper, dubbed by Matt Smith as "The Careyvan". You'll have to scroll all the way to the bottom to see where/when we started!
Our 2015-2016 year broke down into four separate parts:
Part I: 'The West' (Aug 30th - Dec 14th)
Part II: 'East Coast' (Dec 15th - Jan 22nd)
Part III: 'Nicaragua & The Yucatan' (Jan 23rd - April 7th)
Part IV: 'The West II' (April 8th - May 25th)
*Okay, during Part II & III we stored The Bumble and The Careyvan at various points in Texas....
Our 2015-2016 year broke down into four separate parts:
Part I: 'The West' (Aug 30th - Dec 14th)
Part II: 'East Coast' (Dec 15th - Jan 22nd)
Part III: 'Nicaragua & The Yucatan' (Jan 23rd - April 7th)
Part IV: 'The West II' (April 8th - May 25th)
*Okay, during Part II & III we stored The Bumble and The Careyvan at various points in Texas....
A little hard to say goodbye....
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Simsbury, Connecticut
We finally sold both The Bumble and The Careyvan right before heading up to Deerwood for the summer. Good to know that both have gone to the right people as The Bumble is headed back out West to Colorado and The Careyvan is being used by local horse trainers for regional shows. 
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Torrington, Connecticut
All Star Storage May 25th - June 8th Back row, second from the right. That's where The Careyvan is going to be for the foreseeable future until some lucky family decides to buy her and take her cross country! |
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Fairfield, Connecticut
Bob and Sue Torok May 23rd - 24th An absolutely gorgeous day greeted us in Connecticut as we spent our final night in the trailer (for old times sake!) before clearing it out and getting it ready for storage. The camper actually fit very nicely into Bob and Sue's driveway but they weren't interested in buying it. Go figure. |
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Baltimore, Maryland
Nathan, Cara, Eric, Amelia and Jake Derr May 20th - May 22nd The whirlwind through the Mid-Atlantic centered on Baltimore which gave us just enough time to see a few of our friends, let the boys reconnect with their buddies, and let us all relive some great memories. |
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Lexington, Virginia
Natural Bridge KOA May 19th A late pull in but a good spot to organize and make sure that we had wifi to connect with Amy (who was still in Vienna) to organize when we were going to pick her up at Washington-Dulles. Unfortunately, we didn't spend any time in the area as we immediately headed north to Beltsville, MD to give a look through our storage units prior to us sending them to Vienna. |
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Great Smokey Mountains National Park
Elkmont CG May 18th Gorgeous little campground in the Smokey Mountains right next to a beautiful creek. We made it up to Clingman's Dome in blowing fog and 53 degrees and hung around long enough to see a couple quick glimpses of the view. The next morning we hiked to a waterfall, explored some old broken down camps in the park by bike and drove into North Carolina on our way "to Johnson City, Tennessee. / But we had to get a move on, fit for the sun ...." |
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Jackson, Tennessee
Some crappy RV parking lot site May 17th After a shortened drive the day before due to storms, we decided to put some miles on ... 758 to be exact as we road hogged all the way through Oklahoma and Arkansas to Tennessee. It was late when we pulled in to sleep in basically a parking lot off the highway. |
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Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
Blue Water CG May 16th Not much to say about the 'campground' as it was too wet to pull off into any spots and we just spent the night in the large trailer lot next to the lake. What we can talk about are the amazing lightning storms and reports of baseball-sized hail that we dodged on the way down here from Colorado! |
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Colorado Springs, Colorado
Pikes Peak RV Park May 15th A quick stop, again in stormy weather, found us just down the road from Garden of the Gods where we snuck a quick couple of climbs in between rainstorms, tasted 4 out of the 7 different natural springs in Manitou Springs, and then hunted for fossils just outside of Pueblo, CO. |
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Denver, Colorado
Dave, Jen and Tenn D'Angelo's house May 14th We had been in touch with Dave for a while and after dropping Amy off at Denver International Airport for her work week in Vienna, we biked the Valmont Bike Park and then headed over to his house in Denver to be entranced with stories from his Mt. Everest climb and professional life filming The Amazing Race, Deadliest Catch, Tornado Chasers, Bomb Squad: Afghanistan .... |
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Longmont, Colorado
Boulder County Fairgrounds May 11th - May 13th The fairgrounds were the nearest camping spot to Boulder which we used as a base to spend a day up in Rocky Mountain National Park, visiting the doctor's office in Boulder (planned) and exploring the town and mountain trails where we met back in May of 1993... |
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Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Melissa Jones' hacienda May 9th - May 10th Driving through western Colorado and heading up to Steamboat through Meeker and Craig definitely pushed us back into open range cattle country. The recent storms put more snow up in the mountains and extended mud season a bit longer (read: no mountain biking) but we had a couple great days at Melissa's, soaking in Strawberry Park's hot springs and playing pool downtown late at night. |
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Colorado National Monument, Colorado
Saddlehorn CG May 8th Even though Melissa dissed us with #youskippedcolorado, we did finally make it there (with her I might add!) after our biking adventures in Moab. With rain sweeping through, we didn't get a chance to climb in Rifle but we did camp in Colorado National Monument which was pretty amazing in itself. |
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Moab, Utah
Gemini Bridges Rd site May 6th - May 7th Definitely not the prettiest 'campsite' we have stayed in, but certainly the most utilitarian. It made it easy to meet up with a great group of people for mt. biking (representing Deerwood: Tom Robson, John Foster, Brian Thomsen, and Melissa Jones) and a night of campfire stories and stargazing up in Bridle Canyon (where the rig would definitely have NOT made it!). |
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Moab, Utah
Pack Creek RV Campground May 5th Okay, so this is not a picture from our campsite but from our awesome bike ride at Dead Horse State Park. Kinda forgot to snap a picture the day before while we were dumping, loading and refueling in town.... Moab was a bit of a shock after a month of being away from the bustle but their public library was great! |
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Indian Creek, Utah
Superbowl CG, BLM site May 1st - May 4th Four nights did not feel like enough as we explored The Needles District of Canyonlands by mountain bike (Elephant Hill and the Confluence), by foot (the 11 mile Chesler Park/Joint Trail) and by trad climbing in Indian Creek itself. Through in passing storms, rainbows and a creek to play in and this spot was easily one of our favorite spots! |
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Comb Ridge, Utah
BLM Boondocking near Blanding, Utah April 29th - April 30th Driving down from Hanksville was unbelievably rewarding as we dropped through canyons to Hite, Utah and the first bridge that crosses the Colorado upstream of the Glen Canyon Dam in Page, AZ. Going on to visit and explore Natural Bridges National Monument and ending up immediately below the Comb Ridge (this side of the anticline, Martos!) we set ourselves up for a crazy day trip down the Moki Dugway, to Four Corners before a long, wonderful afternoon exploring Mesa Verde National Park outside of Cortez, CO. 338 miles in one day, but worth it! |
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San Rafael Swell region, Utah
BLM Boondocking near Goblin Valley State Park April 27th - April 28th Just north of Hanksville, Utah is a great state park named for unique sandstone sculptures, or hoodoos as they are known. We spent a great day exploring throughout the 'goblins' and dodging rain/sleet that caused the surrounding canyons and slots to flash flood during the early hours of the morning. |
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Torrey, Utah
Sand Creek RV Park April 25th - April 26th We decided to go closer to town as a storm moved in and hook up for the night (read: heat) and in order to take advantage of a full day of fossil hunting off the old Notom Road east of the park, and hiking around different trails and driving dirt roads through Capitol Reef. What a spectacular place to explore! |
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Capitol Reef National Park
BLM Boondocking near Torrey, Utah April 24th One of the most amazing drives of our trip from Escalante to Torrey, Utah, along Rt. 12 ended with a great little boondocking spot right next to Capitol Reef National Park. We pulled in kind of late as a stormy wind made us happy to huddle in the camper for the night. Looking forward to explore the area over the next few days. |
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Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument
BLM Boondocking near Kodachrome Basin April 22nd - April 23rd We pulled into Kodachrome Basin State Park after a great but LONG drive from Lee's Ferry (including a 2+ hour stop in Kanab to try to fix our camper's battery system) to find the campground full. Of course, the Ranger told us that we could drive further down the dirt road into the Monument and boondock for the night. We thought that was a great idea, so we found a perfect spot and stayed for two nights allowing us to do a fantastic mt. bike ride from our campsite through the trails in the park and back again! |
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Lee's Ferry, Arizona
Lee's Ferry National Park Campground April 20th - April 21st Nothing like seeing where the Grand Canyon begins. Lee's Ferry is the jumping in (off?) point for river trips along the Colorado River that last from 8 to 28 days (motorized raft vs. dory/raft) to run the 276 miles to Pierce's Ferry. We biked down to the put in to see groups gearing up for their trips and then took a great hike down Cathedral Wash the next day to see Marble Canyon |
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San Juan River, Utah
April 16th - April 17th* What a great three day trip on the San Juan with Martos, Diane and Kai Hoffman, EJ, and Carl and Jane Bigler. Though it started off cold, the weather progressively become warmer and clearer though, not surprisingly, the San Juan became more muddy ('Chinle Chocolate') from the storm's runoff. Nothing like running Class 2+ rapids, rowing rafts, learning about 'the groover', eating like kings, and spending a great time outdoors with great people. |
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Flagstaff, Arizona
Martos, Diane, Kai and Alana Hoffman April 15th April 18th - April 19th Sneaking back up to Flagstaff, Arizona to start a 3-day rafting trip on the San Juan with the Hoffman's, we were greeted with the start of a snowstorm. With a few inches on the ground the next morning, we were ready to go... |
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Angel Peak Scenic Area, New Mexico
April 13th - April 14th A beautiful BLM campsite on the edge of badlands near Bloomfield, New Mexico. A little north of Chaco Canyon but it gave us easy access to the National Park and no worries about hauling the camper over Chaco's notorious dirt roads. |
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Santa Fe, New Mexico
Rancheros de Santa Fe Campground April 10th - April 12th A long drive from San Antonio but it was worth it to base ourselves just south of Santa Fe. We managed to squeeze in a terrific bike ride along the Galiesto Basin Perserve, a tour of Santa Fe with a visit to the Georgia O'Keefe Museum and a service at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, an impromptu jam session at our campground, and a hike and visit to a 'warm springs'. Not bad for just three days! |
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San Antonio, Texas
Nat, Abigail and Thaxter Cram April 8th - April 9th Our journey started again with a great visit to the Crams in San Antonio. Tours of downtown San Antonio (yes, we went to the Alamo!), a bike ride out to the site of the old San Jóse Mission, a great dinner out at La Gloria with a live band, and lots of quality time laughing and playing with Thaxter. Let's hope it's not this long till we see these guys again! |
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Austin, Texas
Uncle Joe Kelly April 7th Our third stay with Uncle Joe was a wonderful beginning to the final stage of our trip. Landing in Houston, we picked up The Bumble, drove back to Austin and then had a whirlwind of a day organizing the Careyvan (including replacing all four tires!) and getting into 'camper mode'. Our brisket BBQ with Uncle Joe, Troll, Jim Wagner and some great neighbors was a perfect end to the day as we sat back and relaxed listening to hilarious stories from the original "Three Amigos". |
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Popoyo, Nicaragua
Vibra Guesthouse March 27th - April 6th It felt like returning home. Popoyo will always have a special spot in both our hearts and our memories. This second visit was even more memorable because we were joined by John Williams and his girlfriend Kate Ferguson for days of sun, surf and sand. Highlights were reconnecting with friends (Naomi and Bojan, Marial, Netta, Ricardo, Samir and Shayla - to name a few) and surfaris to Lance's Left. |
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León, Nicaragua
Hostal Las Vacaciones March 25th - March 26th León and Granada have historically vied for prominence over the years and while the competition was occasionally violent, the now friendly rivalry between these cities showcases distinctly different Nicaraguan outlooks. Granada definitely feels comfortable with its colonial roots and the town's welcoming atmosphere almost immediately puts you at ease. León, though, definitely has a more defiant tone to its relationship with the past and present, with its more gritty, and at times more vibrant, feel. This is to say that we felt these cities are two sides of the same coin and to gain an insight into Nicaragua, you definitely have to spend time with both. This hostal was the perfect place as both a respite from the town and a base to journey out from as we made terrific fast friends and, of course, played pool! |
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Las Peñitas, Nicaragua
Bomalu Guesthouse March 24th Before arriving at León for the culmination of Semana Santa (Holy Week) and the opportunity to celebrate Easter in Central America's largest and oldest cathedral, we decided to make a short trip to the coast to a place called Las Peñitas. As clogged as it was with Nicaraguans enjoying the last few days of their holiday, it was terrific to take a run on the beach, bodysurf the waves, and enjoy a very different feel from Popoyo. |
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Volcán Mombacho, Nicaragua
The Treehouse March 23rd Definitely the most unique place we have stayed on this trip, The Treehouse is, well, um, a treehouse on the slopes of the dormant Volcán Mombacho with howler monkeys, the odd possum and a variety of tropical birds everywhere in the canopy as we slept in hammocks 30' off the ground. |
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Laguna de Apoyo, Nicaragua
Casa Aromansse March 22nd Laguna de Apoyo reminded us so strongly of Crater Lake in Oregon. Indeed, the geology of both calderas are very similar with the distinct difference in their geography. The tropical climate surrounding Laguna de Apoyo invites leisurely swims in its mild mineral waters and the mellow vibe at Casa Aromansse perfectly suited our desire to escape the hustle and bustle of Managua. |
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Managua, Nicaragua
Hostal La Casa de Los Abuelos March 21st Another quick pit-stop as we flew into Managua after 9 pm and opted to not drive around late at night. It was so much better seeing a familiar face waiting to pick us up and bring us back to Hostal La Casa de Los Abuelos. |
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Macario Gomez, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Casa Mango March 18th - 20th This fantastic B&B is literally tucked away in the jungle near the small town of Macario Gomez, about halfway between Coba and Tulum. A perfect spot to wind down our Mexican travels, we were awakened by the sound of birds in the morning before ringing the bell for a freshly prepared breakfast. It was truly hard to leave this sanctuary but we did during the day to visit the ruins of Tulum, Casa Cenote and a wonderful afternoon of snorkeling amongst turtles in Akumal. Muy tranquilo! |
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Valladolid, Yucatan, Mexico
Casa Hipil March 17th We were happy to return to Valladolid and walk around the small downtown that was bustling with activity. We made a point to visit the nearby cenotes of Sambula and K'Keken in the morning and were treated to clear pools with only a handful of other people. At night, we had a terrific dinner at Restaurante El Meson on the plaza and then walked over for an outdoor historical light-show presented on the walls of the Convento de San Bernadino de Siena. Gorgeous, inventive, insightful and powerful, it was so well done that we thought it would be a great idea for a few American cities to pick up on. We eventually left our little spot to go explore the ruins of Coba. |
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Merida, Yucatan, Mexico
Casa de Enrique March 14th - 16th We based ourselves out of Enrique's house in Merida, the cultural capital of the region, for the next few days of exploring the Mexican states of Yucatan and Campeche. While we got horribly lost in the city the first day/night (each city district has different street numbers: i.e. Calle 14 changes to Calle 78a when you cross Calle 33 - which, incidentally, turns into Calle 68 two blocks later!), we learned to love the city and the easy access to numerous Mayan ruins, including Uxmal, and the walled city of Campeche was a total bonus. |
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Valladolid, Yucatan, Mexico
Casa Marlene March 13th One quick night in this gem just off the main plaza in Valladolid, Mexico. With warm hosts, a beautiful enclosed garden and a terrific breakfast, Casa Marlene offered us a great stop en route to our cultural tour of the central and western part of the Yucatan Peninsula. After a dinner off the main plaza and dancing in the street to a live band, we are looking forward to stopping back through in a few more days and can't wait to spend more time in Valladolid! |
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Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, Mexico
La Casa del Mar March 6th - 12th Our initial place on the Yucatan Peninsula was at a wonderful little place Amy found for us just a few blocks from the center of Puerto Morelos. Nestled on the coast, away from the bustling tourist zones of Cancun and Playa del Carmen, Puerto Morelos has easy access to cenotes, beaches, archaeological sites, live music and a laid-back fishing village vibe that encourages you wander and linger. Not only that, but our little condo unit was populated by a terrific group of friendly couples who gave us wonderful advice. A great start to our Mexican explorations! |
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Managua, Nicaragua
Hostal La Casa de Los Abuelos, March 5th A cute little family-run hostal off an unexpected street. We were surprised when Ramon (our reliable taxi driver) stopped and said we were here, but with a wooden xylophone in the foyer and the grandfather picking up a guitar to play along with Amy and Grant's duet, we seemed right at home! |
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Isla Ometepe, Nicaragua
Hotel Chico Largo February 28th - February 29th* With a little more than a week to go in our month-long stay in Popoyo, we decided to make another attempt to visit Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua. The ferries were closed due to high winds the first time we tried back in January, but this time there were no problems. Isla Ometepe is dominated by two volcanoes, Concepcion and Maderas and the island's shape is kind of like an infinity symbol. With a hike to a waterfall, a tour of part of the island with a rodeo festival stop and a longer hike up to the wind-swept cloud line within striking distance of the top of Concepcion, Isla Ometepe was a great change of pace from our beach lifestyle. |
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Popoyo, Nicaragua
Belle Vista Playa Guasacate February 7th - February 27th March 1st - March 4th After our two weeks in San Juan del Sur, we travelled about 2 hours northwest to the little surf village of Popoyo. We stationed ourselves here for a month (which easily broke the Careyvan record) of surfing, homeschooling, and relaxing. We were a good 20 minute walk from the "main" part of "town" and about a 30 minute walk from the main break at Popoyo but it felt good to make the trek, if only once a day! |
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Granada, Nicaragua
Hostal San Angel January 30th - 31st With our pre-arranged plans changing literally at the last minute due to our ferry to Isle de Ometepe being grounded for the next few days, we continued north from San Juan Del Sur for a weekend get-away in the old colonial city of Granada. Biking through the streets was a wonderful way to see and understand the complex history of the city and equally as good was our trip to see an erupting volcano (entrance was closed - go figure!) and a boat ride out on Lago de Nicaragua. |
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San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua
Casa de Familia (Susana's) January 23rd - January 29th February 1st - February 6th Our two week Spanish Immersion course and home-stay began this week in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua. Our host family is wonderful and very well-known as they serve up some tasty tajados con cerdo each night for the locals. It's a three minute walk to school, a five minute walk to town and a 10 minute taxi ride to fantastic surfing beaches. Not bad for the two weeks! |
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Austin, Texas
Uncle Joe Kelly January 19th - 22nd It was 'Carey's Part II' for Uncle Joe as we snuck back into town, took him on a hike (he's still alive), met up with Toni, Rob and Tod Mullen, parked the Careyvan in a space behind Troll's shop and then dropped the Bumble off in Houston to board a flight to Nicaragua. Oh, in between all that, Ryan flew out to California for an interview staying with the Ramsey's (and paying respects to Maverick's). |
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East Coast Christmas Break
Family & Friends December 15th - January 18th Our five week break saw us visiting family and friends and staying in NYC, Fairfield and Simsbury, CT, with a quick jaunt up to show the boys Camp Deerwood in the snow during New Year's (it had just started to get cold!). It was wonderful to spend such quality time with everyone and ending our break with Jessica and Matt's wedding in Buck's County, PA was a real treat. The boy's only lament is that they left a week too early for the snow to really fall! |
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Austin, Texas
Uncle Joe Kelly December 11th - 14th What a great way to connect with Uncle Joe! After years of promising to visit him in Austin, we finally made it on the last leg of our 1st semester. Touring the State Capitol building, Bullock Texas State History Museum, Zilker Park (with a sneak visit with Pammy Clough!), Stubbs Bar-B-Q, St. Edward's University, People's Pharmacy, and a great afternoon jaunt down along Town/Ladybird Lake, we got a great chance to see a little slice of Uncle Joe's life in Austin. It's been so much fun that we have already put a few things on the docket for when we return mid-January! |
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Big Bend National Park, Texas
Rio Grande Village CG December 9th-10th With December weather in the 70s during the day, miles and miles of hiking and mountain biking, hot springs located on the banks of the Rio Grande, amazing star gazing, and just beautiful country, Big Bend National Park is a Texas treasure and we only saw just a tiny part of it. Maybe we'll swing back through again in April when the desert flowers blossom.... |
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Fort Davis, Texas
Fort Davis RV Park December 8th We pulled in rather late and snagged the first place we saw, but we should have strayed farther into this cool town and explored a bit more. Besides being the highest town in Texas with a rich history of its own, it is also just 16 miles from the famous MacDonald Observatory which holds weekly 'Star Parties' and daily solar viewing. |
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Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas
Pine Springs CG December 7th It's hard to believe but the Guadalupe Mts. and Carlsbad Caverns are essentially the same reef that bordered an ancient inland sea with the mountain section uplifted and the caverns buried and dissolved from below. I can't say we were prepared for the contrast nor the vast, impressive features during our 4+ miles hike almost a thousand feet underground. We were too late in the year to see the bats as they had migrated south, but the views from the top of the caverns were nearly as awe-inspiring as those underneath.. |
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Silver City, New Mexico
Rose Valley RV Park December 4th-6th Another necessary recharge stop but it also gave us a great chance to explore the region. The Gila Wilderness was the first designated wilderness area in the US and we explored the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument and took a short hike up to the Lightfeather Hot Springs. We also took the opportunity (like in Tucson) to attend church on Sunday and then head out for an afternoon ride across the desert. |
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Cochise Mountains, Arizona
West Stronghold December 1st-3rd Amazing camping in the West Stronghold of the Cochise Mountains in southeastern Arizona. One of the "Sky Islands" surrounded by arid grasslands, we climbed and mountain biked everyday enjoying the beautiful weather and solitude.. |
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Tucson County Mountain Park, Arizona
Gilbert Ray CG November 28th-30th As we dropped in elevation towards southern Arizona, the archetype of the desert, the saguaro, rose to dominate. You tend to forget how powerfully imposing these plants are until they are everywhere and our campground was perfectly situated right next to the western part of Saguaro National Park which gave us opportunities for hiking, running and mt biking just outside of Tucson, AZ. |
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Sedona, Arizona
Verde Valley School November 25th-27th Going back to where we first taught as newlyweds brought back some terrific memories. The school let us park for a few days right next to the horse stables as we met up with Peter, LB, BT and Julie Thomsen for a hike, a Thanksgiving feast and another dinner at the Italian Hideaway (an old favorite). So great to meet up with the Thomsens half-way across the USA and to hike and bike again in Sedona. |
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Flagstaff, Arizona
Diane, Martos, Kai and Alana Hoffman November 24th What a wonderful visit to a wonderful family that we first taught with back at Verde Valley School almost 20 years ago. It was so great to reconnect, go for a run behind their house with the San Francisco Peaks as the backdrop, and plan an adventure for sometime in April when we come back through! |
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Page, Arizona
November 23rd A long drive through beautiful country to a man-made geological anomally: Lake Powell. We stopped at a park for showers, laundry and the necessary jettisoning of, uh, stuff. |
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Zion National Park, Utah
November 21st-22nd Upper Campground What a fantastic place to camp and explore for a few days. While we were tempted to try to figure out some climbs, we thought that a hike up to Angel's Landing would suffice for a great day. It might be one of the best hikes we've done on this trip: exposed, dramatic and jaw-droppingly beautiful! One thing to mention about this campsite that was, at first, unnerving. In the late evening, the cold air rushes down off the plateau and through the canyon hitting us directly with incredibly strong winds that do not let up until the valley starts to warm up with the morning sun and then everything is still. It made us pretty happy to be in the camper as the wind was howling outside all night! |
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Valley of Fire, Nevada
Arch Rock CG November 18th Another amazing geological formation that gave us a chance to bike and explore petroglyphs (pictures carved into rocks) through this unique valley. |
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Las Vegas, Nevada
Fiesta Hotel and Casino November 15th Palace Station Hotel and Casino November 16th-17th Right?!? This doesn't fit our M.O. but we're getting some minor repairs on the rig, avoided a major storm (with another drop in temps) and are meeting up with Yvonne and Cory Marion who flew down to meet us in, uh, Sin City. We've heard it's the Dubai of the southwest! |
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Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
BLM Campground November 12th-14th Another fully packed climbers campground just outside of the park. Two days of terrific weather and climbing as we met up with friends old and new. |
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Joshua Tree, California
Jumbo Rocks Campground November 9th-12th This great central spot allowed us to explore both major deserts (Mojave and Colorado) of Joshua Tree National Park and fit in a lot of climbing. |
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Twentynine Palms, California
RV November 8th A necessary pit-stop to regroup, do laundry and go to church. Literally sat next to one of Ryan's students from Gilman who now is a Marine stationed in Twentynine Palms. Small world! |
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North of Bishop, California
'The Pit' BLM CG November 2nd - 7th The climber's campground just north of Bishop allowed us to bike to the Happy Boulders and easily explore the surrounding area, including the Buttermilks and the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. Post-storm it was a bit cold for the first few days! |
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Bishop, California
Highland RV Park November 1st A necessary stop to resupply and 'plug in' to recharge. Of course, showers also felt nice! |
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Yosemite National Park
Upper Pines CG (in the Valley) October 27th- 29th Hogdgon Meadows October 30th - 31st 'The Valley' is simply astounding and survives the annual onslaught of visitors by its sheer beauty and ruggedness. As always, a little effort makes it easy to escape the crowds. |
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Nicosia Valley, Marin County
John, Michelle, Dylan and Cassidy Rutledge October 23rd -October 26th Another great visit with the Rutledges that combined great family time with explorations by bike, a midnight stroll, a beachside reunion (including Meg and Tom), a rig braking and 'dogbone' repair, dinner with the Matheison's, and John's birthday. |
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Redwood National and State Parks
Redcrest RV October 22nd Learning about these tremendous trees was a treat as was our secret hike to find an albino redwood as we lay silently in the woods looking skyward. |
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Cape Blanco State Park
October 20th - 21st Two days at this terrific spot was not enough but it somewhat satisfied our 'beach bum' needs as we wandered around the beaches, biked, ran, watched whales close to shore and searched for salmon runs on the Elk River. |
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Crater Lake National Park
Toketee CG October 19th A longish drive back across the Cascade mountains in the rain to explore a local hot spring and visit Crater Lake. Ryan had never seen the lake without snow. |
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Corvallis, Oregon
Shannon, Geoff, Ash and Ayla (and Sasha!) October 16th-18th Such a great stop with one of Amy's oldest friends and her family. Great to connect after so long. Go Mets! |
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Bend, Oregon
Margo McDonald October 13th-15th A great stop and visit with Margo in Bend, Oregon on the "westside"! With day trips up to bike and climb in Smith Rock, it's easy to see why so many people love Bend. |
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Mt. St. Helen's National Monument
Seaquest State Park, Washington October 12th* In between visiting Mt. St. Helen's, we drove down to Portland for a great dinner with Scott and Jamie Muir and Matt and Karen Stevens and their boys at Asian Fusion. *After coming down from the Olympic Peninsula, we spent one more day in Olympia with Vicki and Amir before heading further south. |
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Port Angeles, Olympic Peninsula
KOA October 10th A quick refueling spot with a memorable, uh, 'mistake' on the dumping connection.... We did also get a chance to see the Elwha River run free once again! |
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Hoh Oxbow, Olympic Peninsula
Hoh Oxbow Campground October 9th Nothing like a spot right next to the glacier-fed Hoh River and the entrance to the Hoh Rainforest section of Olympic National Park. |
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Olympic National Park
Kalaloch Campground October 8th Right on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Cold and rainy but the bushes were full of wild blackberries! |
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Olympia, Washington
Vicki and Amir Salim (and Sconi!) October 6th-7th & 11th What a great visit with great friends. Vicki and Amir met in Malaysia but have finally spread their roots in Olympia, and we could easily see why. Their beautiful house, easy access to Puget Sound, the environmental focus and ethos, landscape, mountains, rivers, fishing, culture, and a great town with a friendly vibe, both boys wanted to know not just when we were going to come back, but when we were going to stay. I think Amir's salmon had something to do with it as did our trip with Vicki to a local farm for freshly made apple fritters! |
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Mt. Rainier National Park
Ohanapecosh Campground October 4th-5th Nestled in along the Ohanapecosh River, this was a great base from which to explore the park. |
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Lyons Ferry, Washington
October 2nd-3rd A KOA campground right where the Palouse River joins the Snake. Just a little ways upstream is the 198' Palouse Falls, and, yes, this is the site of the record kayak waterfall plunge. |
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Powell Campground, Clearwater National Forest, Idaho
October 1st Right along the Locsha River flowing down from Lolo Pass. Just a little ways from a few different natural hot springs and across the river from a smoldering fire! Lewis and Clark also camped here just down the road.... |
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Glacier National Park
Apgar Campground Sept. 26th-28th* A great base to venture out from in the southwestern part of the park. *After three nights here we went back to Missoula before heading into Idaho. |
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Missoula, Montana
Carolyn Wiley and Eric Taber Marcel Huijser Sept. 24th-25th & Sept. 29th-30th We split our time in Montana between Amy's cousin (and wildlife biologist) Marcel Huijser who joined us for a four day trip to Glacier National Park and Carolyn and Eric (Deerwood firends) who snuck Grant and Ethan in to hear Neil Young do a soundcheck after engaging in 'bug' research! |
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Daniel, Wyoming
Kevin and Amy Warren Sept. 22nd-23rd The high plains of Wyoming at over 7,000' in elevation and plenty of instruction on how to be a cowboy. |
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Wilson, Wyoming
John Williams
Sept. 19th-21st A little west of Jackson, Wyoming A great base of operations for hiking, climbing and biking in the Jackson valley! |
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Moosedraw (Big Sky), Montana
Peter and Carol Mathieson
Sept. 15th-18th A wonderful stay at the Mathieson's home that allowed us to do day trips into Yellowstone and the Big Sky region. It snowed every day - a real treat for the boys after Dubai! |
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Garryowen, Montana
7th Ranch RV Camp
Sept. 14th Just south of Crow Agency and the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument Great mountain biking on the Watt's ranch and a great conversation with 4th generation rancher, Chip Watts. |
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Devil's Tower, Wyoming
KOA
Sept. 12th & 13th First full hookup at a full-service RV campground! Biking up and around Devil's Tower was a highlight as it felt like our own National Park. |
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Wind Cave, South Dakota
Elk Mountain Campground
Sept. 9th-11th |
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Badlands, South Dakota
Sage Creek Campground
Sept. 7th & 8th Probably the favorite for a host of reasons: breakfast with bison, watching the sunset amidst a far-off lightning storm, hikes through the Badlands, listening to coyotes cry and bighorn sheep roam, living off-grid for the first time in the camper.... We were finally in 'The West'! |
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Lake Mitchell, South Dakota
Lake Mitchell State Park Campground
Sept. 6th More fun single track mountain biking around the lake plus a very fun pump track |
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Tabor, Iowa
The Wilds
Sept. 5th Great Mountain Biking Single Track Style in Council Bluffs |
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Chesterfield, Missouri
Aunt Eileen and Uncle Jim Barry
Sept. 4th Missed Uncles Jim and Joe but caught up with Aunt Eileen, Colleen, Chris, Anne, Kelly and most of the kiddos! |
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Indianapolis, Indiana
Catey and Doug Hale
Sept. 2nd & 3rd We grabbed an extra day at Catey and Doug's to reorganize, try to figure out the camper's systems and buy four new bikes from BGI. |
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Cleveland, Ohio
Tracy and Bruce Wilhelm
The University School campus 7 1/2 hours Sept. 1* As no picture of the rig has surfaced from our brief time there, why not a picture from why we didn't make it on the 1st of September? That's super-friendly New York State Trooper MacDaniels filling out the report on the four bikes that were no longer attached to the Careyvan. * made it on the 2nd |
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Camp Deerwood, New Hampshire
The Barn
2 nights Aug. 30th & 31st |
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