Category: Backpacking

WheRVe we been? Our travels, 3rd quarter 2021

Looks like we flung a couple of ramen noodles at a map, and then tried to follow them around the northwest this summer. Allow me to help unravel the squiggles.

We started where we left off last quarter, in Coeur d’Alene, ID.
From there, we traveled in WA to Yakima –> Ashford –> Port Townsend –> Cashmere before landing back in Coeur d’Alene again for a couple of weeks.
Then we rolled allll the way over to Glacier NP in MT, and allll the way back to Soap Lake, WA.
After that, we made our way to OR, for visits to the Tillamook and Bend areas.
RV miles traveled this quarter: about 2370 
(Map does not reflect exact routing.)

Why all the loopiness?

Our summer was a mashup of pre-planned events interspersed with family visits that had to be finagled where and when our family members were available, plus logical places to layover during the in-betweens, plus recalculations when not one, but two planned events were canceled with less than 2 weeks notice (one fell to COVID, one to wildfire smoke). So yeah, our brains ended up looking a little like twisted noodles too.

I’ll take you on a brief tour of each of our ten major stops. Ready?

Coeur d’Alene, ID ~ June 27 to July 18

It’s a home for us. Tim went to high school there, friends still live in the area, and his folks still visit about once a year. We were lucky to spend time with them both times we swung through this summer.

  • There was a friend with a dog …
  • … friends who needed help with home renovations …
  • … for which we accepted a 4th of July picnic and snuggles with their new grandbaby as perfectly adequate compensation.
  • And there was a farmer’s market within walking distance of our RV park.

Yakima, WA ~ July 18-22

It was just a 4-night stop to have some work done on the truck, but we scored on finding a quiet state park within bicycling distance of the repair shop. We celebrated our 29th anniversary at a downtown eatery on our first night, and the only other item of note was actually rather embarrassing.

Ashford, WA ~ July 22-25

Another score: a Harvest Hosts location only 5 miles from the SW entrance to Mount Rainier National Park. With host permission we stayed 3 nights, spent accordingly in their cafe, and were thus able to put in two unrushed hiking days, with gloriously sunny weather and clear views.

  • Great North American Snow Goobers
  • If you’ve got a craving for hearty Ukrainian specialties, visit our hosts, Paradise Village Hotel & Restaurant.

Port Townsend, WA ~ July 25 to August 3

Our boy! Our big boy lives in Port Townsend and we hadn’t seen him for 19 months. Oh… ummm… actually both of our boys are big, at 6’2″, but this one’s the first born. And we hadn’t seen him for 19 months. Did I say that already?

  • We looked at boats …
  • … worked on trucks …
  • … and that boy mixed for me one of the fanciest cocktails I’ve ever had. Absinthe. There was actual absinthe in it.
  • On our final day, we took a foggy ferry ride to Coupeville …
  • … to meet up with Tim’s middle sister. We weren’t sure we were going to get to see her this trip. So glad it worked out.

Cashmere, WA ~ August 3-10

This is an easy one. Already wrote about it! We celebrated 6 years on the road at the Escapees Cascade Mountains Hangout, during which we went on a scavenger hunt, and went hiking, and went tubing on the river, and had potlucks, and toured a candy factory, and went to a musical, and pretty much pretended we were kids at summer camp again.

Happy 6th annRVsary to us!

Coeur d’Alene, ID ~ August 10-24

We had two weeks to kill before our next event, and Cd’A was along the way, so it made sense to land amongst our people again.

  • Not fun: wildfire smoke. But we’d managed to avoid it until then, so 5 days worth wasn’t too bad.
  • Totally fun: helping Tim’s folks shop for a used truck camper. Tim did the roof check, among other important pre-purchase inspection items.
  • I couldn’t resist adding the subsequent “Gotcha Day” to the calendar.
  • Ta-daaa! And off they went…

Glacier National Park ~ August 24 to September 1

Time for our second round of “summer camp,” at the Escapees Glacier Country Hangout. The directors planned an incredibly varied slate of activities, and we saw more of the park than we would have on our own: west side, east side, trails, lakes, and guided tours. I cannot pick a favorite excursion or photo, and that’s why you get 12 in this slide show instead of only 4 or 5.

  • We arrived ready for fun.
  • The historic red bus tour of the park was a favorite. Book one.
  • You get to go topless to see all the wonders!
  • My dish for the potluck brunch was a french toast casserole made from doughnuts left over from the prior Hangout. From this Hangout, I took leftover bagels. Do you sense a tradition being born?
  • A hike to Avalanche Lake
  • Whitewater rafting on the Flathead River
  • A hike along the notorious Highline Trail was not as daunting as we were led to believe, but is definitely not for those afraid of heights.
  • Plus, there were critters. This is a curious Columbian Ground Squirrel. We also saw deer and mountain goats that day; foxes, a bear, and two moose on others.
  • It was on this boat tour of Lake McDonald that Tim spotted the moose on the shore — and I’ve now got a moose tattoo on my wrist as a memento.
  • Second boat tour: Two Medicine Lake on the east side of the park
  • That one included a guided hike.
  • After the Hangout, we rolled around to the east side of the park to moochdock with friends who are working as caretakers at a guest ranch. We spent a month last year moochdocking on their property in WY, so it was like coming home again.

Soap Lake, WA ~ September 2-7

This stop was a last-minute addition. We learned that Tim’s other sister and her husband would be staying at Soap Lake in their new-to-them camper, and then Tim’s folks decided to join them in their new-to-them camper, so we grabbed a site at a campground right down the road, and voila! We had a plan for Labor Day Weekend.

  • Parking for two at Campground A (the beauty of being petite) …
  • … and parking for one right down the road at Campground B. Lakeside. With a gazebo and a swing set. And we knew which site to request because we’d read a review on Campendium — and friends of ours had written it!
  • Sunrise over Soap Lake, known for its high mineral content and rumored to have healing powers. I stuck my feet in a couple of times. Meh. No miracles.

Garibaldi & Tillamook, OR ~ September 8-19

When one door closes (like say, an event we’d registered to attend in WA that was COVID cancelled), another one opens (like say, a third Hangout with a spot available). And that’s how we ended up at the Escapees Oregon Coast Hangout: skidding in sideways at the comparative last minute. We were not at all sad about another week of fun in an area we’d not explored.

  • The star of the Oregon Coast Hangout was of course the coast itself.
  • There was also a neat-o tree.
  • And no visit to Tillamook would be complete without a tour of and treat from the Tillamook Creamery.
  • We did a group service project too, trimming vegetation and staining benches at the Kilchis Point Reserve.
  • And hey, remember I said I took leftover bagels from the prior Hangout? Turned them into pizza snacks for a potluck at this one. And then from this one, I took home leftover brownies, and yeah, you know what’s gonna happen.

Sisters & Bend, OR ~ September 19-30

We found a great place to boondock, and set off on several adventures from there. Mornings were chilly, but the sun came out and warmed up our days, making for perfect hiking and backpacking weather. We squeezed in a pretty wide variety of activities, and have more on our list for an eventual return visit.

  • We started with a tour of the Host camper factory — because even though we’re not looking, we’re always kind of looking.
  • Also spent some time strolling vibrant downtown Bend, with its pretty river views …
  • … quaint shops and multiple alcoholic beverage “-ies” (brewer, winer, and distiller) …
  • … and a tattoo parlor that takes walk-ins. Did you really think I’d leave you without a pic of my moose?
  • We made a day trip to Crater Lake NP, hiked its two most difficult trails …
  • … and plopped our toes in the clear, cold water.
  • Next up: a 2-night backpacking adventure around the 23-mile Three Fingered Jack Loop in the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. Tim noticed my new patch right off the bat.
  • That’s Three Fingered Jack. The mountain, not my husband.
  • The final 10 miles were along this famous pathway.
  • On our last full day, we took a friend’s suggestion to visit Smith Rock State Park, and we were blown away by the landscape.

Where to next?

We’re now making our way to the Salt Lake City area, where Tim will savor some solo time while I fly to VA for Girl Time, and the fewer details I release about that, the better. Suffice it to say that since we canceled last year’s annual gathering (our 26th) because of the pandemic, we will likely make up for it with double the indulgences this year, and I cannot wait. I’ve even added nights on each end to spend even more time with more girlfriends from my Norfolk-based sisterhood. We were stationed there from 2004-2010, and I still miss the strong sense of community.

After I’ve recovered from the eatingdrinkinglaughingandhardlysleeping hangover, we roll to Hobbs, NM, for the 2-week Escapees Habitat for Humanity Hangout. It’ll feel good to get back to giving back, getting our hands dirty, and sharing the experience with other like-minded RVers. Plus, I’ll get a chance to pull those leftover brownies out of my freezer and upcycle them into something decadent for a potluck dessert.

From there, we’ll roll to Palo Duro Canyon State Park near Amarillo, TX, for about a week. It’s been on our list since before we even started RVing, and we’ve not managed to hit it right a single one of the umpteen times we’ve gone in and out of TX since 2015. This time, I made a reservation — at a highly uncharacteristic 6 months in advance!

After that, it’s back to homebase San Antonio for a few weeks of catching up with family & friends, routine annual medical and dental checks, and holy crap how are we this close to the holidays again already?

So ummm… happy new year? I’m sure I’ll post at least one fresh blog between now and then, and as ever, you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter for more frequent updates as we roll along.

We started full-timing in August of 2015, but I didn’t think to do an annual review until the end of 2016, and it was just a listing on Facebook of places we’d visited. After that, I started using a quarterly format.

WheRVe we been? Our travels, 2nd quarter 2021

I’m pretty sure you could figure out our travel path from April-June if I just tell you about the food. We went from Amish baked goods, to dairy products, to corn, to tacos, back through corn, to trail mix, to potatoes.

If you’re not as food motivated or fascinated as I am, here’s the map to help you out.

We started on the east side of this Y shape and went from IN to WI to IA to OK to TX, and then right back up through OK & KS to NE to CO (our 44th RVisited state) to UT to ID.
RV miles traveled this quarter: about 4600 
(Map does not reflect exact routing.)

Indiana

The RV spent a little over 2 weeks having yet more kinks worked out at the DRV Factory Service center in Howe (our 4th warranty visit), and the two of us spent that time in two hotels and one historic state park lodge.

They weren’t quite ready for spring yet in northern Indiana.
April 1st brought snow for us fools.
You know you’re in Amish country when there’s designated buggy parking at the Walmart…
… and mmmmmm donuts are the reward for a bicycle ride along the Pumpkinvine Trail.
When we learned that repairs to the RV would stretch into another week, we decided to switch up our accommodations. Goodbye, generic roadside stay-suites; hello historic Potawatomi Inn.
By the time we left Indiana, spring had arrived for real.
So what’d we do?
Rolled even farther north, where spring was trying hard to show up, but hadn’t quite made it yet.

Wisconsin

One of Tim’s cousins had bought some rural property just before the pandemic hit, and we were finally able to visit. Worked out well for all of us: we got free dry camping, and Cousin D got help framing living and work spaces into one end of his new pole barn.

Moochdocking on the front 40
It’s… well… there’s really no other way to put this.
It’s two white guys building a wall.
And yes, you can laugh, because sometimes a wall is just a wall, and has nothing to do with politics, and even if my sense of humor isn’t for everybody, I still think we could all stand a good chuckle.
Laugh, dammit.
It wasn’t what I’d call ice cream weather in Wisconsin in mid-April, but there was a dairy just a few miles away, and the cheese curds we bought were for lunch, so I still needed a dessert — you know, to keep my meal balanced.

Iowa

We had to start heading back to Texas for some commitments in May, and since Iowa was on the way and was still on our “need to visit” list and some good friends were already staying at an RV park there? No brainer.

We’ve known full-time RVers Andrea & Shawn of 40foothouse for a couple of years, and have deliberately crossed paths in several states since then. We have a tradition of snapping selfies in front of oversized objects, so in Iowa we went extra corny.

Texas

We’d only been away from our home base since January, but May brought family birthdays, a graduation, a wedding, a relocation, and a lot of other stuff in between. We had the time, the will, and the wheels, so we went!

First task: helping our younger son move from Austin to Bryan/College Station.
Not sure the BFT has ever towed anything that petite!
We also volunteered for a couple of days at an Escapees Co-op RV park near Hondo, after disaster struck. A night of intense wind and hail storms totaled numerous buildings and vehicles, and we felt called to assist our own.
Click here for that story.
In Texas, we eat tacos.
And if our amigos Phil & Stacy of You, Me & the RV are in town, we get a table for 4.
And we also ate cake — three in two days!
Our niece graduated from high school the same day as Emily’s mom’s birthday, and the next day a friend’s daughter got married.
Yeah, that was a lot of frosting. But who wants to celebrate a big occasion with salad?

Nebraska

We wanted to check the Cornhusker State off our list, but we were headed from Texas to Colorado, and it’s not exactly on the way. So we said screw it. There were people we wanted to see badly enough to make the detour.

Footbridge work is fun. Race ya!
If you’re interested in other work we’ve done with A Year to Volunteer, and how you can get involved too, start here.

Colorado

By visiting the Centennial State, we’ve filled in all the “big ones” in the lower 48, and now have only four little Eastern Seaboarders left (NJ, DE, RI, CT).

A funny thing happened when we decided to hit Colorado.
I asked our friends Marc & Julie of RV Love if they’d be around, and to heavily paraphrase their response, they said, “YES! Come play with us! Just keep going west over the mountains!”
So we did
(Photo: J. Bennett)
And then a funny thing happened on the way to the western slopes.
I looked out the window from our pitstop site at the Boulder County Fairgrounds, and the chillest dog in America was looking right back at me.
It took some time for me to regain my composure, and I think the only way to explain this is that you can’t spell cool without CO.
Our chips definitely knew we were at elevation.
Luckily I’ve learned a trick or two in our travels, and I remembered to loosen things like condiment lids and the flip tops to our toiletries very slowly to let the air out without a messy explosion.
Forgot about the chip bags in the pantry though, so let me be the first to advise you that Fritos make terrible confetti.
Speaking of explosions, late one night at the campground, Tim heard the unmistakable sound of water spraying.
Turns out a gasket in the kitchen sink faucet had failed, and water was shooting all over the place. Tim’s quick dash outside to shut off our city water connection saved us from major damage, and his fixit skills and tool collection saved us from a major repair bill.
And that’s why I’m going to sneak in a plug for RV Love’s new book here. It’s called “RV HACKS: 400+ Ways to Make Life on the Road Easier, Safer, and More Fun!” and we’ve both got tips published in it.
Tim’s is in the Repairs & Maintenance section, and mine’s in RV Living.
Release date is next week, and we can’t wait to get our hands on a copy!
(Not an ad. We gain nothing from your click or purchase.)
Our campground was situated within striking distance of several stunning hiking areas…
… and that’s why I chose trail mix as the designated food for this state along our path. We went through the better part of a large bag.
We closed out our visit to Colorado with day trips to two of its national parks. This is the view from Warner Point at Black Canyon of the Gunnison…
And this is a view from Rim Rock Drive in Colorado National Monument.

Idaho

We arrived in Coeur d’Alene at the end of June, and we’ll stay for about 3 weeks. Tim went to high school here, and the roots still run deep. Not a day has gone by without spending time with old friends, and his parents have just arrived in town for a visit as well. I know I should be capturing all the smiles in photographs, but I’ve been trying to set my phone aside and focus more on soaking up these moments together. Plus, most of these moments involve food (including Idaho potatoes in a multitude of glorious forms), and who wants to pose while grinning dopily around a mouthful of spuds?

Where to next?

We’ll head to Washington first, to visit our older son on the Olympic Peninsula, do a little hiking, and soak up some adventure at yet another “summer camp for grownups” at the Escapees Cascade Mountains Hangout. That’s not their term; it’s one I chose to describe the program after our first Hangout, nearly two years ago in Maine. In late August, we head east to Montana for the Escapees Glacier Country Hangout.

We’ve been to both locations before, but we find it hard to resist the allure of group events for which everything is planned and organized by someone else — stuff we wouldn’t normally arrange on our own — and all we have to do is pay our money and show up. We don’t even have to find a place to stay; the campground or RV park is reserved in advance, and we know exactly what we’re getting when we roll in. Full-time RV life is not a vacation. Hangouts are!

We haven’t figured out September yet, and I’ll fill you in on October’s plans in my next quarterly update. Until then, you can check up on us on Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter for updates as we go.

We started full-timing in August of 2015, but I didn’t think to do an annual review until the end of 2016, and it was just a listing on Facebook of places we’d visited. After that, I started using a quarterly format.