We headed out of the US and into Canada on the evening of May 7th. The border crossing is one of the nicest ones we’ve seen in our travels as it travels through Peace Arch State Park. It was late afternoon as we had laundry and grocery shopping to do before leaving Washington and we had an early ferry in the morning so we didn’t stop at the park to look around.

Our ferry ride the next morning to Vancouver Island was very scenic and was just a little taste of the immense scenery that was to come over the next few weeks. After getting off the ferry, we headed to Butchart Gardens (my parents recommended it to us and they seemed to have great memories of it). It was an amazing garden and since it was spring we got there during tulip season and they had an amazing variety of tulips as well as all of the other flowers that were in bloom everywhere. There were several themed gardens that we explored and all of them were beautiful. We also took a break to have “tea” at their restaurant, which included a sampling of finger sandwiches, small bite desserts and other goodies as well as our choice of tea. It was very good and we were very glad we went, it was a good start to our few days on Vancouver Island.

That night we spent on the beach where you could see Washington in the distance. We had decided to go for a run and found what we thought might be a nice trail across from our campsite. Within the first few minutes we came to the river and there we saw what looked like bumper airboats pushing and corralling logs into a log boom. It was fascinating to watch and it actually looked like fun. After doing a little research I found these were called log bronc tugs, here is a link to a video of a similar boat doing what we watched. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icOwZHsnEO0

We spent two more nights on Vancouver Island driving along the East Coast and then into Strathcona Provincial Park, enjoying the scenery and having some really good fish and chips at Dockside Fish and Chips in Campbell River, BC. It was then time to take the ferry back to the mainland and start heading north. After the ferry ride we headed up the beautiful Sea to Sky highway and stopped for the night in Squamish. On our way into town we stopped to check out The Chief. Years earlier Drew had climbed it with a guide while Lee watched, it was a good memory of his and we decided the next day we should hike to the top.

It was a great hike, albeit hard, basically climbing a staircase all the way to the top. There were three peaks, and I made it to the middle one and then watched Lee climb to another one and then he took off for the third and met me down on the trail. The views on top were absolutely beautiful and completely worth the effort.

After leaving Squamish we spent the next week traveling the rest of the Sea to Sky Highway and then onto the Cassiar Highway to make our way to Alaska (trying not to drive more than 4 or 5 hours a day).  The scenery on our drive was nothing short of spectacular, with large mountains and still lakes with perfect reflections of those mountains. We also had some fun along the way and even had a surprise heat wave we had to deal with for a few days (up to 93 degrees a couple days).

We mountain biked in the town of Smithers and the next day did a side tour to see Bear Glacier. The road to Bear Glacier continued on to the little town of Stewart, BC and then crossed the US/Canada border, which was to be our first foray into Alaska. The little town of Hyder, Alaska, population 12, is the most southern town in Alaska that you can drive a car to. It felt pretty deserted and run down, but fun to see nonetheless. Even though we didn’t have to deal with a border crossing into the US, we did have to stop on our way back into Canada and show our passports at their little border crossing.

After crossing the border we tried to find a restaurant in Stewart for lunch but nothing was open (still early season). However we did come across the town “golf course” which consisted of a small driving range and a few holes and they even provided free clubs and balls. It was a pretty area so we stopped and had lunch there after which we made our way to Meziadin Lake Provincial Park for the night.

By now we had been in British Columbia for over a week and still had not seen any bears (or much wildlife for that matter) and we were starting to wonder if all the talk of lots of bears was a little exaggerated, but the next day after leaving the campground, within minutes we saw our first black bear on the side of the road enjoying some fresh spring grass. We were quite excited and stopped to watch him for a while before heading on. Then soon we saw another one and another (grizzlies and black bears) on the side of the road, each time stopping to watch these cuddly critters (ok, so they look cuddly from the safety of the van).

We saw 8 bears that day, even a momma and two cubs, but they ran away too quickly to get a picture. The next day we saw 6 more! After that they thinned out but we did see a few here and there on other days, and we also saw a caribou. All in all we were pretty thrilled to be able to see so many!

The night before we officially got to Alaska we stopped for the night in Conrad, YT which was home to a failed silver mining operation in the early 1900s. The lake we stayed on was partially covered with ice that was at least 6 inches thick (we would drive by a week later and it was surprisingly all melted). The next day we hiked along a trail that still had remnants of the tram used for that mining operation, the top of the trail still covered in snow. It was an interesting hike with some great views. 

After hiking we drove a little over an hour to finally get to our first main Alaska stop, Skagway! Of course the drive gave us a little bit of heartburn as we drove the White Pass to Skagway. It was aptly named as about 5 miles of that pass was almost a white out. Neither Lee nor I had driven in such dense fog, luckily we were still barely able to see the stripes of the street that we were able to follow, but nonetheless we were glad once we were safe in Skagway. 

Skagway was a beautiful little town, and while it’s very touristy (several cruise ships come in every day), by evening it all quiets down and it’s peaceful. We did some biking, hiking and rode the White Pass & Yukon railway and had a really good time in Skagway. After a few days we took the ferry to Juneau. What an incredible ferry ride, the scenery is jaw dropping. When we got to Juneau we decided to drive and see the capital and have some dinner downtown. It was packed with cruisers so we drove by the fairly nondescript capitol building, had dinner and made our way to the Mendenhall Campground.

The next day we hiked up to the Mendenhall Glacier. What a cool and interesting hike. Along the trail are signs to show where the glacier was at throughout the years (a little scary to see just how much melt has happened) and luckily almost no one was hiking so we had the area mostly to ourselves (there were some kayak tours on the lake but they were quite a ways away). Once the trail ended and we were close to the glacier I stopped to call my parents and of course Lee decided he needed to see if he could get right next to the glacier. After a little wait he showed up and told me I HAD to go see the glacier up close. I was a little nervous as it looked like a hard scramble but he assured me it wasn’t too bad and he was right (as he always is!), and so we scrambled up so I could carefully touch the glacier and see it up close. It was a hard hike and we were tired when we were done, but so glad we did it.

The next day we drove up to see the ski resort on Douglas Island and drove to the end of the Glacier Highway. The day after we had an early ferry back to Skagway, unlike our quiet and spacious ferry ride to Juneau, this ferry was completely packed with people all heading to Haines for a beer festival. We were luckily able to grab a couple of chairs in the cafeteria and a little later found a couple of more comfortable chairs in the main cabin, but it definitely wasn’t the peaceful trip we had out, but still awesome scenery!

When we got back to Skagway we had 4 days to make it the 800+ miles to Anchorage. We did stop in Whitehorse (the largest town in the Yukon and where most of their population lives) to enjoy the hot springs there and did some mountain biking but most of our days were driving and boondocking at scenic places along the way. The Yukon is a beautiful and remote place!

We got to Anchorage with a day to get our laundry done and get packed up for our trip to Maui where Lee, Grant and Adam were going to do some training for the Maui to Molokai race. The last few weeks we have driven through some of the most scenic and beautiful places either of us has ever seen. This truly has been the highlight of our travels and so glad it is our grand finale of van life! 

Well color me surprised….after having a lot of fun in Thailand and not sure what Bali and Indonesia had to offer, let me just preface my blog with this: Indonesia is on my list of must return places!

When I was planning our trip I thought it would be nice to stop off somewhere in between Thailand and New Zealand so that the air travel wouldn’t be so bad. I did a little perusing and came across some information about Komodo National Park in Indonesia and thought that would be interesting. After talking to Lee, he thought we should spend a little time in Bali as well since you always hear about what a cool place it is.

Our first impressions of Bali were from their airport, it was so clean and beautiful we figured it was a good omen. After leaving the airport we are a little overwhelmed with the amount of traffic – even worse it seemed than Chiang Mai. It took us about an hour to get to our hotel and we enjoyed talking to our driver (as much as we could, his english wasn’t the best) and asked him if he would be interested in driving us around one day for some site seeing. He was very excited and wanted to take us every day (he was desperate for work).

We pulled into the long driveway of our resort and passed rice fields and even a farmer herding his ducks (so, so cute). They use the ducks to eat the bugs and weeds in their rice fields. By the time we got to the open air lobby it was pouring down rain. We were immediately greeted and given a welcome drink (something refreshing with lemongrass) and checked in. The young man who checked us in was incredibly warm and kind, told us we were family, and it was a sign of what was to come. 

He drove us to our villa in an enclosed golf cart and when he opened the door to our villa I was so wonderfully surprised. It looked nice from the pictures but in person it was incredible. It was incredibly private, overlooked a black sand beach, we had our own gazebo, open air sitting area, large pool, nice big king-sized bed, and a big bathroom with indoor and outdoor shower. One of the nicest places we have ever stayed at and the price was very reasonable.

That night they had a buffet dinner with some traditional balinese dancing and the wait staff were incredibly kind as well as everyone we interacted with. We also had a couple of massages while we were there and the women were very sweet. By the end of our stay I wanted to give everyone hugs, I can’t tell you how welcoming they were. We learned a few balinese words and also loved their words of respect and kindness for us (Ebu Mona and Bappa Lee). 

Besides our wonderful stay at Komaneka at Keramas Beach swimming in our pool, getting massages, and doing some yoga, we also walked on the beautiful black sand beach in front of the resort (they advised us not to swim since the current was strong, but there were a number of surfers out, so who knows). We also spent a day with our driver up in Ubud. We stopped to see the people painting with batik material, and a coffee shop that served kopi luwak coffee. The beans are eaten by the civet (smallish mammal), fermented in their bellies, pooped out and then the beans are cleaned, dried and roasted. It was actually very good coffee, though expensive to buy in any type of bulk. We then went to a monkey forest and had a great time watching the monkeys, although they could be a little fierce when they wanted to be. We watched one try to attack a child and get into it’s stroller (I’m sure they know where food is). One even gave me a little scare and lunged at my leg. Besides those little incidences they were a lot of fun to watch, especially by a pond where they would swing in the branches and then jump in the water.

Leaving the monkey forest was a traffic nightmare. Ubud is very touristy and not a place I would want to stay. We actually got out of the car and shopped while our driver battled the traffic. We then had some lunch and a stop at some touristy rice field terraces, but they were still really beautiful to see. 

We also went surfing one morning about 15 minutes from the resort, with an instructor we found. The waves were much smaller here than in front of our resort but I think Lee still had a good time and I did as well even though I really struggled getting up on the board, the old body just isn’t as quick as it used to be.

I should also mention we found a wonderful restaurant close to the hotel that we went to twice and they remembered us when we went the second time and again the hospitality was amazing. I know that tourism is their main economic driver and so they want to be good to the tourists but I have never experienced such kindness, although the people in Thailand were incredibly kind as well, I think the difference is that the people in Thailand were very kind but a little shy while the balinese are just very kind and very willing to talk to you.

Needless to say we had a wonderful time in Bali, while it is very touristy and busy, where we stayed was on the outskirts of the city so it was quiet and we had a wonderful time. The only bummer was Lee caught a cold, he started feeling sick the night before leaving Bail. As a side note, we also had our interviews for the peace corps at this resort, and we felt like both our interviews went well.  Given the time zone differences, we were interviewing close to midnight, and hoped we didn’t come across too groggy!  The kindness of the people there, and realizing just how lucky we have been to have so much, put us in a good place for our interviews.

After Bali we flew to East Nusa Tenggara and then took a boat out to a little island called Seraya. Wow, what a difference this was from Bali. The town we flew into was much more quiet and the little island was even more remote. The boat ride out to the island was so beautiful and we were greeted at the dock by the general manager (it felt like Fantasy Island). We had a cute little beach bungalow with an outdoor shower on a nice white sand beach, it was beautiful. One of the things I had read in the reviews were people raved about the house reef. So after settling in, we went and got a bite to eat, digested and then went out for a snorkel. The reviews were not wrong, it was incredible. Just the diversity of the coral alone was incredible. There were big fat sea stars, fluorescent blue and green coral, lacy coral, brain coral. One of the times we went out we saw a small black tipped shark. Lee went alone one time and saw a big turtle and I went out alone one time and saw a giant parrot fish (I think) with a mouth full of human looking teeth, breaking off coral and taking a big chunk and moving it to another place. 

There were giant angel fishes, schools of pencil fish and big schools of other fish that I don’t know the names of. It was by far the best snorkeling I have ever done. After seeing how incredible it was, I decided to do a scuba refresher lesson and do a dive off of their boat pier. And I was so glad I did. I saw lion fish, 2 sting rays, huge corals, lots of clown fish, and I even saw an electric clam (look it up). I can’t tell you how bad I wish we had brought our under water camera!!!

Lee also took out a paddle board and paddled to the islands several miles away and while he was out saw a manta ray and more beautiful scenery.

On our last full day on the island we took a tour to Komodo Dragon National Park, which consisted of several islands. We stopped at Padar Island first. It was interesting to find deer hanging out on shore when we arrived (they seemed out of place to me and didn’t look too healthy). We then climbed to the top of one of the hills to view the island from up top. It was very scenic. We then took the boat to the other side of the island to stop at one of the pink sand beaches. The sand has a light pink hue from the pink coral in the area. It was really pretty to see it contrast with the very blue water. We then went to Komodo Island to see if we could find some of the dragons. You have to walk with one of the park rangers and after about a mile of walking came to one of the drinking holes the komodos frequent and were able to see two of them. They are pretty lazy looking but something must have upset one of them because he got up and hissed at us. They aren’t something I would want to mess with, and have been known to kill people.

After leaving Komodo island we had one last stop in the middle of the ocean at a spot that is known for the manta rays. When we got to the spot we saw one and hurried and jumped in the water to get a closer look. The current was pretty strong but we soon saw several about 20 feet below the surface and they were huge. I would say at least 10 feet across. They were very gracefully swimming  and we were able to follow them and observe them for a few minutes before it was time to get back into the boat. All in all it was a great day with some beautiful sites. 

We left the next day to make our way to New Zealand. It consisted of a boat ride back to East Nusa Tenggara, a plane ride to Bali, about a 10 hour layover in Bali (we got a cheap hotel room close to the airport to rest and shower) and then an overnight flight to Melbourne and then a final shorter flight to Wellington, New Zealand on the North Island. By the time we landed I definitely had the cold that Lee had in Indonesia.

We picked up our car and prepared ourselves for driving on the left side of the road! We got some groceries and headed to the hotel for some rest, went out to dinner that night in the downtown area of Wellington which was pretty lively and called it a night. We did some hiking close to Wellington before making our way to Margrain which is one of the many wine country areas. We stayed at one of the vineyards and went to a small restaurant for dinner. The food was delicious and when I went up to pay our waiter (who was also the owner) asked where we were from. We said the US and he asked where and we said Utah. He said that is where me and my wife are from. They had moved to New Zealand from Bountiful for him to pursue his PHD and he had grown up in the Willow Creek area. What a small world!

A couple days later we had made our way up to Tongariro National Park where we had plans to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It’s a point to point 13 mile hike and we had purchased our shuttle passes, however the morning of the hike I was still not quite feeling great and decided it might not be the best idea to do it, so instead we decided to just drive the car to the trailhead and hike however far we wanted and then hike back. I ended up hiking about 6 miles and was glad I didn’t attempt the whole trail, Lee went further and was able to get to the look out of the crater as well as to see some of the volcanic lakes which he said were beautiful. We also stopped at a waterfall in the park called Golum’s waterfall which was a scene in the Lord of the Rings movie where Golum fishes. There were other areas we saw that were scenes in the movie but since neither of us were fans of the movies so we didn’t pay too much attention.

After Tongariro we took a couple days to make our way to Rotorua where we stayed a couple of nights. We went mountain biking one day, which was fun, especially biking amongst the Ponga trees. The brakes were on “opposite sides”, and Lee did manage to go over the handlebars on one of the steeper trail sections.  Thankfully the landing was soft and Lee’s head is hard, so no damage done! On our last evening there I had purchased tickets to have what was supposed to be a dinner to learn about the Maori culture and I was really looking forward to. We got to the center and everything was quiet and I thought maybe we were a little early but upon further inspection of the ticket found out I had booked it for the next night. Aaarrgh!! Oh well, guess we will have to go back to New Zealand another time! 

The next morning before making our way to Auckland we took a pit stop to go on a glow worm tour. The tour was on a family farm and the tour was given by one of the cousin in laws. It was a fun tour with just 3 other people and the cave system was really pretty with a stream running through it. We walked through the cave system and saw a few glow worms but got to a larger room in the cave turned our lamps off and the whole ceiling lit up. It looked like lots of stars. it was very cool. The glow worms are technically larvae of fungus gnats, an insect that looks like a mosquito. They use their bioluminescent glow to attract prey into the silk threads covered in a stick mucous that the glowworm builds.

After the tour we finished our drive to Auckland to get ready for our early flight the next morning to the South Island. We really enjoyed our time the north island, with the beautiful rolling green hills and large mountains, but we were excited for some of the things we had planned for the South Island.

As we were starting our descent into Queenstown in the South Island the scenery from the plane was spectacular. Tons of peaks and glaciers and then for the approach the plan flew into the narrow valley over the lake and between the mountains outside of Queenstown. It was an incredible welcome to the South Island. We got our car and we were excited to start the three hour drive to the Milford Sound Lodge. I had found the lodge a few months early (it looked awesome) and it was completely booked, however I checked a few weeks before getting to New Zealand and there happened to be a two night cancellation and I grabbled it. The drive started out with scenery similar to Idaho and the Teton NP area and then eventually we started to head into the rain forest and towering peaks. 

We got to the lodge and it was better than we expected. When we pulled up to our room, we were greeted by a Weka bird, who was not afraid of us. He sort of looked like a plain hen. He hung out around our room for our visit and at one point surprised me by pecking my foot. We had a nice lodge room with a river and a mountain right outside our room. After settling in and taking a walk around the area, we went to the restaurant for a delicious dinner.

The next morning we bundled up for our kayak tour, it was a little chilly. The tour took us about 3 miles into the sound and back and we really enjoyed being out amongst the unique towering cliffs and the ability to get up close to the waterfall and shoreline. Other options for touring the sound are larger tour boats and while they cruise to the Tasman Sea we were happy we went with the kayak tour for a more quiet up close look at Milford Sound. We were also glad we took the tour on the day we did. Right as we were wrapping up the tour the rain started and it did not stop.

We work up the next morning to waterfalls all over the mountains out our window, it was quite the site. We were sad our visit was over but ready for the rest of our adventures. Driving out of Milford Sound we passed a campground and decided to go take a look at New Zealand campgrounds. We were stopped by a South African woman who was having problems with her van (there was a man there as well), her battery was dead and then we realized she had no jumper cables. After realizing there was almost no one in camp (and the few that were there had no cables) she asked us to take her down the road about 15 minutes where she was hoping a friend of hers was waiting. She hopped in our car and with a sigh of relief said “thank you so much that guy was a creeper!” We had a nice chat with her, and we were glad we were able to help a fellow van lifer!

We spent the next couple of days in a cute town called Te Anau which was on a large beautiful lake. We had a couple of nice quiet days there with our highlight of finding a tramp (trail in the US) for a really great trail run. It was in a rainforest and just super lush and green. We also stopped at a bird sanctuary there and saw a few more of the native New Zealand birds.

Our next big destination was Christ Church which was quite the drive, so we broke it up into two days, with a stop at a really cute town on another beautiful lake called Lake Tekapo. We enjoyed a nice walk around the area and had a great dinner and met a man from Pittsburgh who worked in the building Lee used to occasionally travel to for work when he lived in Detroit. The man was there with his 5 year old daughter and a friend of his from New Zealand. His family was working on getting visas to move to New Zealand because they didn’t want their kids growing up doing active shooter drills in school. Pretty sad statement about the US and all the school shootings that have been happening.

The next day after another beautiful drive we made it to Christ Church. We checked out the surfing beach and Lee promptly decided he would be surfing one of the days we were there (even if it was cold, both water and air). We then made our way to our Airbnb and decided to go for a run at the park close by. We decided on a time and place to meet after our runs and went on our way. After my run I got to our meeting point at our designated time and waited…..and waited. After 30 minutes I decided I better go back and get the car and look for Lee. I drove almost the entire park and no Lee, and then right when I was about to give up I found him. He had gotten lost and was wandering the streets around the park looking for how to get home. Lesson learned, take your phone when you are in a new city!

We enjoyed the city for a few days, and also had our final interview for the Peace Corps while were there (it was our couple’s interview) and found out at the end of the interview that we were going to be invited to serve!! So that was a memorable event from Christ Church. The other one was the day before leaving Lee decide it was time to surf. It was a cold windy, slightly rainy day, but the surf was actually pretty good. He tried to convince me to go but I was not having it, I hung out in the car and observed occasionally from the shore. He got his rental board and wetsuit at the innovative locker setup at the beach and out he went with hardly anyone out there.  He surfed for at least a couple of hours before the high school kids started to show up. When he got out he was shivering so hard, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him that cold. We got him out of his wetsuit into some dry clothes but he was frozen for quite a while, but he had so much fun surfing he said it was worth it (or at least he thought until a few days later).

After Christ Church we drove to Fox Glacier which was another beautiful drive. We stopped to get coffee at a food truck in the middle of nowhere and a pretty beach along the way, both of which had horrible sand flies that attacked my ankles (I was still itching from them a couple of weeks later). Our stay in Fox Glacier was at an Airbnb that was a room at a couple’s home. They invited us, as well as their guests in the other room, for “nibbles” and a drink. They were a very nice couple that had moved there from Auckland and their other guests were from Switzerland. We enjoyed chatting with them before heading out for a great dinner at a restaurant just down the street. We got to bed at a decent time because we had an exciting adventure the next day.

The next morning we headed for Fox Glacier Ice Climbing where we had a day of ice climbing on the Fox Glacier planned. When we got there we met our guide who was from Atlanta but had gone to school at CSU from 2017-2021 (same years Jack was there, and of course Lee’s alma mater) and was also thinking of moving to Utah with his girlfriend in a few months when his time in New Zealand was done. Then we met the father and son who were climbing with us and found out the father lived in Hawaii, had moved there in the past few years since his wife was from there and his son worked in Michigan in the auto industry. It was so funny all of the connections we all had halfway across the world in New Zealand.

After getting outfitted for our trip we headed to the helicopter. This was my first time in a helicopter and I was a tiny bit nervous but also very excited. The trip oly lasted 5-10 minutes to the glacier, and was a smooth and scenic ride. We then spent the next half day learning the skills to ice climb and practicing the skills at a few different “crags”. We even got lowered down into a crevasse with running water that was pretty cool, albeit a little unnerving. The ice climbing was fun, although it seems like rock climbing requires a little more puzzle solving, but none the less we had a great day. The scenery was amazing and the weather cooperated (which was great since the next day the glacier was socked in and we wouldn’t have been able to go).

We got up the next morning to head to Wanaka (another beautiful drive) and Lee said he wasn’t quite feeling right. By that evening he was feverish (I think the chill from surfing caught up to him) so we just took it easy after doing a little exploring of the cute town. Unfortunately the Airbnb we rented only had a double bed so Lee didn’t get the best rest with his feet hanging over the end of the bed and both of us crammed in like sardines. We did do a little exploring of Mount Aspiring National Park, but nothing too crazy. 

After a couple days in Wanaka we left for Queenstown which would be our final New Zealand destination. We stopped at a couple of ski resorts on our way there, Cadrona and The Remarkables, it’s always fun to check out the ski resorts. We then made our way through the middle of Queenstown which was crowded with tourists. Luckily our Airbnb was a little ways out of town and was quiet and peaceful. Since Lee wasn’t feeling great, we mostly relaxed at our Airbnb with a few short scenic drives until our grand finale the day before we left.

On our last full day in New Zealand we made reservations to go on the largest swing in the world – The Nevis Swing. It had a free fall of 70 meters and a 300 meter arc. Luckily Lee was feeling well enough to take it on. We took a 4-wheel drive bus out to the swing with the last stretch of road was a one lane very steep dirt road with a steep drop off one side, looking back this was probably more dangerous than the swing. We got to the swing and suited up in our harnesses. We walked out over the suspended bridge to the hut where we would take our swing. We watched a couple of people do the swing before our turn which was a little unnerving but also fun to watch. We also asked a man to take our picture and his hands were shaking like crazy. I asked if he was getting ready to go on the swing and he said, no, he had just been on it, so that made me question what we were doing! 

When it was our turn, we got clipped in, sat down and they then dropped the platform out from under our feet where we just sat suspended over the canyon. They asked if we wanted a countdown or a surprise and we said surprise. After what seemed a long minute we were then free falling through the air and then swinging over the canyon. It was quite exhilarating and not as scary as I thought it would be. If I had a chance to do it again, I would definitely do it. It was a great last adventure to our spring New Zealand travels!

We feel so lucky to be able to be doing what we are doing and to have been able to experience so much beauty, culture and meeting new people on our international excursion. It’s a trip we will remember forever!  

After a long journey that took us through Seattle and Korea, we finally arrived in Bangkok, Thailand.  Our flights went smoothly, though I was hoping I’d sleep a bit more than I did.  Mona may have gotten a bit more sleep, but we were both pretty spent by the time we reached our small hotel in downtown Bangkok.  We got checked in, and tried to get some rest.  The significant time zone change always seems to make this rough!

The following day we made it to the Wat Pho temple, which was quite impressive.  The buildings and statues are extremely ornate, and very interesting to visit.  Mona was given some additional garb to wear in order to meet the dress guidelines required to enter most temples.  Not surprisingly, we squeezed in a Thai massage, and also started to sample some Thai food (which was spicy, but good).  The city is a sprawling and bustling place, with people everywhere.  Unfortunately, they also have the pollution that goes along with such a big metropolis.

After just one day in Bangkok, we headed out to Koh Samui (one hour flight) and stayed in a quiet part of the island at the Humble Villas.  We had a great room to stay in with our own tiny pool to cool off in, and were only 50 yards from the beach.  We did some exploring in the area (by foot), and found some places to get good fruit smoothies and snacks for the hot days.  We didn’t encounter too many Americans – there were definitely people from Europe (Germany in particular), but Americans seemed to be few and far between.

We also got to know the staff (Tea and O’o, not sure on spelling) at the tiny seaside restaurant where we stayed.  The were very kind and actually fixed us a number of special Thai dishes that were remarkably good.  The staff, at least where we stayed, worked long hours, with very few days off – often working every day of the week.  To maintain their level of kindness and friendliness is pretty remarkable.  We felt very lucky to be in a foreign place were people still treated us very well.

After a bit of recuperation, we spent a full day going out to a nearby national park (Mu Ko Ang Thong National Marine Park) and did a bit of hiking.  The scenery was quite spectacular – good enough to be the location for movies of the past including The Blue Lagoon.  The weather was very cooperative, and most of the rain we experienced was brief (and of course warm).

We also hired a driver for a day and toured a big portion of the island.  We visited a number of temples and some beach fronts that were interesting to see.  Through all of it, we managed to get over our jet lag from the trek over, and to find time to relax and continue to get Thai massages!  We found that getting a 60-minute massage every other day suited us well.    The prices here have been a welcome relief from the USA.  A 60 minute massage can be had for well under $20 (with tip).  Food is also cheaper, as are places to stay. We have stayed in nice places, all for less than half of what you would pay for the equivalent place in the USA.

It was a sad to leave the great location and what felt almost like friends at the resort, but it was time to move on and head to Chiang Mai, which we expected to be a very different experience. 

We took a short (~1 hour) flight up to Chiang Mai, and made our way into the old city square.  Traveling has been fairly easy despite the language barrier – we can typically make our way around the airports without too much difficulty, and finding a taxi (or equivalent via “Grab”) has been a pretty smooth experience.  For our first week in Chiang Mai, we stayed at another boutique (i.e., small) hotel located right in the city square.  It had a pool area for hanging out, and we had a comfortable, air-conditioned room that was very pleasant.  We have also had pretty good internet connectivity, which helps us out a lot as we make plans, look at maps, etc.

One of our first experiences in Chiang Mai consisted of walking to a flower festival which was just wrapping up.  The flower displays were amazing, and covered the majority of a large city park.  We enjoyed walking around seeing the wide variety of flowers, and also did a bit of exploring around the old city square walls (about 1 mile on each side).

The city is a bustling place – there are tons of scooters on narrow roads, with thousands of small vendors all competing to make a living selling many of the same things.  There were also lots of restaurants to choose from, and open-air markets to enjoy as well.  The language barrier is very real here, with very few people speaking more then just a smattering of English.  A lot of young people do have a chance to learn some in school, but as with anything, if you aren’t practicing it, you quickly lose it.

We found a massage place near our new hotel that we thoroughly enjoyed.  With low prices and great service, we continued with our tradition of getting a Thai massage every other day.  This particular shop was a place we went to a number of times, where they served a cool drink to start, and a light snack after the massage.  Time spent getting massages was very therapeutic, and the women doing the work earned their pay and then some!

Our first week in Chang Mai, we were still on our own while we waited for Karen, Adam, and Drew to arrive.  We enjoyed our location, and went out to experience a number of both day markets and night markets.  They are very busy places, with hundreds (or more) of shops all selling about the same thing.  Lots of food and flower shops, and lots of clothing as well.  There were also specialized areas selling meat, etc.  You can see why these markets could (and likely are) breeding grounds for all sorts of things.  Lots of tight quarters, and lot of ‘intermixing’ of all sorts of things!

We did take one day and adventured to the suburbs of town, where we did some running.  The suburbs were definitely more laid back and less crowded, but it was still hot!  We did our run, but were left somewhat exhausted from the heat of the late morning day.  Getting a taxi to and from turned out to be fairly easy, though it’s easy to worry about that a bit when you realize you’d be faced with quite an arduous trek if you could not get ahold of a taxi.

We had a lot of fun exploring the city, getting massages, and also had some down time at the hotel where I worked on my computer by the small pool, and Ramona did more planning for our upcoming trips.

After our first week, Drew managed to make it into town after a long journey from Salt Lake City.  He didn’t seem too exhausted, and managed to make it out to the night market and a few other day markets before Karen and Adam were to arrive.  There’s a lot to take in, and I think Drew found the city quite the fascinating place, much like we did.  We had moved over into a house before he made it into town, and had a lot of room to spread out and take advantage of a full house.  The manager of the house would occasionally bring us various food items, and kept the fountain filled with water out front.  Thankfully, the house had AC in pretty much all the rooms, as the afternoons continued to be fairly hot.

One thing worth mentioning about Chiang Mai this time of the year was the air quality.  Sadly, it was not very good on several of the days we were there.  It was particularly bad a couple of days – to the point where it would have been hard to do anything very physical even if it wasn’t so hot.  There is a lot of burning (field/forrest) outside of town this time of the year, which really adds to the pollution problem.  This is likely not an easy problem to solve, but most definitely something to be aware of if deciding to go to the city again!  The city is well aware of the issue, and seems to be making an attempt to educate people and see if they can’t do some things to alleviate the problems.  

A day after Drew arrived, Karen also made it into town without any problems.  Like Drew, she didn’t seem too horribly tired from the journey, so we went to what was left of the flower festival, and enjoyed walking around a bit.  Karen also got her first taste of night market food, which was an experience!  There are dozens of small vendors trying to sell lots of various food items.  You pretty much had to view what you wanted, and point to it when ordering, as most of the signs were definitely not decipherable.

Mona and Karen took a cooking class where they learned more about Thai cooking.  It took most of the day, and while they were busy doing that, Adam also made it into town.  We started to go to a few of the more major sight seeing highlights in the town square, which mainly consisted of temples and just seeing how the local people live.  People were always friendly, and we could visit most places either for free, or for a very small entry fee.  Things could be a bit crowded, but we could always get into the places we wanted to go.

After everyone had arrived in town, Ramona had arranged for us to have a few free days, and to also have a few “planned” things to do.  On one day, we took a mountain biking tour into the jungle and had a chance to see some sights that were once again out of town.  It was a nice chance to get out of town and see the local country, but it made for some warm bike riding.  The air quality was a bit poor as well, but we all had a good time, and no one experienced a bike crash!  Even out in the jungle, there were shrines and other places where small numbers of people would leave offerings, etc.

On another day, we went on a tour to see….. Elephants!  This was a lot of fun, as you could get up close and very personal with the elephants that were in the group this particular family cared for.  We fed them bananas (hundreds of them actually), and even had a chance to go swimming with them.  They were very pleasant to be around, and while I’m sure they could hurt you if you did something to provoke them, they were very friendly with us, and clearly a very intelligent animal!  The pictures (found below), will likely say more than my words will here!  We also had a chance to celebrate Adam’s birthday, and the outfit we had booked through even came through with a birthday cake at lunch time!  Once again, we all had a good time, and it was truly a unique experience.  Covid was not an easy time for the elephant herds…  It takes a lot of food to maintain an elephant, and with tourism being non-existent, some elephants ended up getting into toxic farm fertilizers, etc. and did not survive.

After about a week in Chang Mai, it was time to head to Railay Beach!  We flew down to our destination, and Mona had arranged for us to get to a pier were we boarded a small “long tail” boat to take us out to Railay Beach.  As we made the short journey in the boat, it was clear that this would be quite a magical area – again, pictures will do a better job than my words here.  The water was warm, and the surrounding landscape was beautiful.

When we arrived at the beach, we went right up to a house that most of us thought was just a check-in area – but it turned out to be our own house right on the beach!  It was an amazing place with a lot of ornate wood work, and many decorations that made it feel very “authentic”.  We had dinner made for us one night (it had a nice, working kitchen), which was very good.  We also had breakfast delivered which consisted of fresh fruit, eggs, cereal, etc.  We lived like kings in that house, with immediate access to the beach, and very nice, roomy accommodations. The yard and surrounding grounds were manicured and very nice as well, with monkeys to be found right in the back yard.  It was a great place to just unwind a bit from the city and enjoy Thailand.

While at Railay beach, we found time to do some paddle boarding, and also went on a night paddle boarding tour to see bio luminescence. We had a good time doing that, and fortunately saw both ocean life and the bio luminescence we were curious to observe.  As you put your hand in the water, the stuff would really light up, and it was quite interesting.

With the towering walls surrounding the beach, there is some climbing to be done, and we booked a half day trip to the nearby walls with a guide to get some climbing in.  We had a good time climbing.  Karen just took some pics and decided to skip, but the rest of us all had a good time, even if it did seem a bit hard!  That night, we had Indian food in one of the local restaurants, and I think this is where Adam may have started to get hit with some food poisoning.  Adam started to get beat down with everything that goes along with food poisoning, but still tried to make the best of the time!

In what felt like a very short time, our time ran out at Railay, and we got on another boat for a trip back to the pier near the airport.

We had 2 nights booked in Ao Nang, which was more of a small mountain town.  We had a great place to stay – complete with our own pool.  The “house” was laid out with a kitchen and living room, and then the rooms surrounded the pool.  The pool was a salt-water based pool, so it was easy on the eyes and fun to swim around in during the hot afternoons.  The scenery couldn’t match Railay beach, but we had great accommodations and also found a little store and restaurant to buy things at. Adam was definitely feeling under the weather and started to take some meds to get ahead of things prior to flying home, and the rest of us largely lounged and just took it easy.

Alas, our time at Ao Nang also came to a close, and we flew back to Bangkok for our final bit of time.  Drew only had enough time to see a few things in Bangkok, but at least he was able to make it into the city before taking a taxi back to the airport.  It was sad to see our time coming to a close….  Karen left the following morning very early, and then Adam left in the afternoon.  Thankfully, Adam was starting to feel a bit better before starting to make his way back to the US.

We had a great time in Thailand, and it’s hard to cover everything we did in just a few short pages.  If I had to summarize, I’d say that the people were very friendly, and the places we visited were very interesting!  The prices were very reasonable, which was a nice break from US inflation.  The air quality is something to be mindful of, but is offset by the very cheap (but good) massages that you can find!

The food was great, though you have to be prepared to eat a lot of Thai food – options outside of Thai food were a bit limited.  With lots of planning, there’s some amazing beaches to see, activities to do, and things to experience.  The elephants were definitely an experience highlight.  There are lots (!) of temples to visit, with an incredible amount of ornate and intricate work having been put into architectural details and the furnishings.

Are we glad we visited Thailand?  Absolutely.  We would come back and spend more time here to enjoy the scenery, the food, the people, and those Thai massages!

After an exciting storm the night before, we woke up to sunshine and made our way to Aurora, NB to go to the Plainsman Museum which was recommended to us by my dad.

It was a really cool museum with different rooms setup as time capsules of different businesses and even a mud brick home from the past. It was a lot of fun to walk through many of these rooms and even though quite a few things were before our time, there were things that we recognized from our generation (certain toys, cash registers, etc). Lee also enjoyed going through all of the old tractors they had on display and showing me what they did, and the ones he used as a kid growing up on a farm. 

We spend that night in Deshler, NE close to the border of Kansas.

The next morning we got going at a decent hour so we could make it to the Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene, KS.  As with the other presidential libraries we have been to, we really enjoyed our visit. I did not know much about Eisenhower but the one fact that still sticks with me is that his brother campaigned against him and was a vocal critic of his presidency. The site of the library also has his childhood home on the property (we were unable to visit it since it was being renovated).

After our visit we headed to Hutchinson, KS where we had tickets to visit the salt mine there (Lee’s aunt Louis recommended it to us). Hutchinson was not a very pretty town, very industrial, but we were able to find a nature park and had a pleasant run on their trails before calling it a night.

We had our tour of the salt mine the next morning and it was very interesting. The mine has a museum, a storage facility and a working part of the mine. Ownership of all three businesses is different. We were able to see a lot of the equipment used to mine the salt as well as tour lots of the old abandoned areas of the salt mine. If you are in the area it’s worth a stop.

After the mine we drove a ways to our stay for the night, a vineyard and winery in the middle of nowhere Kansas. The winery looked like a big barn but we soon found out it is the home of the owner as well as his business. We parked amongst the grapevines and headed in. We were able to visit with the owner and found out it was not an easy business for him. He still worked his day job (I believe at Oracle) while figuring out which grapes would survive the climate and soil of Kansas. He was a somewhat quiet man but we had a nice visit with him before Bingo night started. 

We were lucky there was room for us as the room filled with friends and patrons from the nearby towns (at least 25 minutes away). We met some locals who were friends with the owner and had a nice time getting to know them as well as play some bingo. Come to find out the woman sitting next to us was a massage therapist, and she was so nice to open her spa the next day to give me a massage (as my hip had really been bothering me). 

So the next morning we got up and headed to the nearby town where her spa was. It was really nice but I have to say based on the looks and size of the town I’m surprised she can stay in business.  I had a great massage but I was glad to be heading to Colorado. Kansas wasn’t exactly my cup of tea. Flat, windy and somewhat desolate feeling.

We arrived in Greeley, CO late in the afternoon of October 15. We spent a few hours driving around Greeley and Windsor to see the farm Lee grew up on, his high school and other places that brought back a lot of memories for him. I enjoyed seeing where Lee grew up! We then got in a  workout at an Anytime Fitness after our drive down memory lane and had some Thai food before heading out to Horsetooth Reservoir to see if we could find a place for the night. As soon as we got close to the campground we could see things were looking pretty full and sure enough, every spot was taken. So we went back into town and stayed in the Sam’s Club parking lot. We have occasionally stayed at a WalMart parking lot or a rest stop and if all we are doing is parking to sleep for the night they can be great places to stay.

We got up at a decent hour the next day and headed for Rocky Mountain National Park. We spent the day driving up Trail Ridge Rd and doing some short hikes and a quick stop to check out the Moraine Park area where we saw a large herd of Elk. RMNP is beautiful and we were both glad to be back in the mountains after weeks of flat land.

The next day Lee took another walk down memory lane. We drove into the Devils Gulch and then took a walk down North Fork Rd to find the cabin of one of his neighbors in Greeley that he did some work on during a few summers when he was a teen. We also took a hike up to Gem Lake, which was very pleasant. 

That night we decided to stay at the Stanley Hotel since it is such an iconic part of Estes Park (Steven King stayed there and it was the inspiration for The Shining). It was a nice enough hotel but doesn’t quite live up to the hype. We did run into some guests dressed as “the twins” from the Shining which were pretty funny. They were asked by many people to get a photo and I had to get one as well. It was a fun night.

The next day we decided to do a big hike to the top of the Twin Sisters. We had great weather and the trail was fairly empty with the exception of a hiker here or there. I could definitely feel the elevation, but made it to the top and then watched Lee as he went to go tackle another peak in the distance. It felt good to do a harder hike with the some elevation since it’s been so long!

We continued south the next day, making a stop at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. It was a small but beautiful park and we enjoyed our quick visit before driving a little further south to a campground on the way to Great Sand Dunes National Park.

We made it to Great Sand Dunes National Park with enough time to do a 3.5 mile hike amongst the sand dunes. It was actually more challenging then we expected. A lot of times it was one foot forward, half foot back. But the scenery was more beautiful than expected as well as the designs made in the sand by the wind. We had so much fun that we decided to see if we could get a campsite for a second night (it was very full!). We got lucky and snagged the last campsite for the next night.

We had a leisurely morning the next day, did a few chores and then moved to our new campsite. We then went out to hike amongst the sand dunes again, our goal being to make it to the top of the tallest dune (which we did!). We definitely got in a workout, Lee of course having to take some of the steeper hills than me as climbing in the sand can sure make your calves cramp!

The next day we made our way to Durango where we made a quick stop in Pagosa Springs (and added it to our list of places we’d like to go back and stay), it looked like a fun little resort town with several hot spring resorts. We didn’t linger too long as we had appointments at WalMart to get our flu shots and covid boosters. We had checked the weather in Durango and it was going to be rainy on the 23rd so figured we may as well get our shots on the 22nd, get a hotel room and then convalesce since the flu shot always seems to make me sick. 

We got our shots had a nice dinner and then headed to the hotel to see if we would make it without getting sick. Unfortunately, I woke up in the middle of the night achy and headachy but in the morning when we got up it was rainy and cold so we just had a lazy day in the room until late afternoon when we started feeling better. The rain had stopped so we walked down the street for some lunch.

We were so glad we had the hotel room, there are certain things the van is not good for and being sick is one of them!

The next day we went to Mesa Verde National Park, it was beautiful and the ruins were so cool to see, however we were disappointed to find out we couldn’t get that close to them. You now have to go on a guided tour with a ranger and they were done for the season (I’m sure it’s a good thing to preserve the ruins). Luckily both of us had each been to the park in years prior when you could get up close.

After our visit, which wrapped up 49 of the 50 states we have visited since we left on our adventure, we headed to Utah for the night where we stayed on some BLM land in Bluff with a beautiful view. It was nice to be back where it was easy to find public land to camp on.

Over the next few days we visited areas in Bears Ears National Monument that were just beautiful and fascinating. We took a very rough ride on the Valley of the Gods loop which is similar to the rock formations in Monument Valley but more remote and rugged. We rode out to Monument Valley that afternoon but unfortunately we were a little late to have any time to visit before they closed, so instead we ran on a road close by where we could still see some of the scenery of the park.

The next day we took a couple short hikes to see the Butler Wash Ruins and the House on Fire ruins. We then went up to Natural Bridges National Monument late in the afternoon and wished we had time to do some hikes, it was such a cool area. Unfortunately the campground was completely booked so another item on our list of places to go back to. 

On our way to Moab we also made a quick stop at the Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum which I highly recommend. The amount of native American artifacts they have is very impressive. We also made a quick pit stop to see the Newspaper Rock petroglyphs, which is one of the largest known collections of petroglyphs. I thoroughly enjoyed our few days in Bears Ears National Monument and would love to go back and explore some more. 

In Moab we got an AirBnb since Drew was coming out to stay with us to do some bike riding. The first day of riding we road at Navajo Rocks which is an area I really like to ride at. We had a nice ride and it was a beautiful day. The next day we did the classic Slick Rock trail. It is always a tough ride for me, the uphills are steep and I end up walking some of the trail, although I am happy to report I road more of the trail this time than on prior trips (although I still walked a lot). 

I’m not sure we’ve convinced Drew that mountain biking is a hobby he should take up. 

The morning we left we had breakfast with Drew and his roommate’s family that were also friends of Lee’s. It was nice to meet them and I think Lee enjoyed catching up with them as it had been a while since he had seen them.

After Moab we made our way up to Salt Lake where we had another Airbnb for the week. It was a week of lots of appointments (dentist, doctors, van maintenance, haircuts, etc) and I also got a chance to attend my book club (it was great to see my friends, I’ve missed them), got to get lunch with my friend Dawn and some time with our kids. It was a busy but fun week to be back “home”.

After leaving Salt Lake we decided to go to Zions for a couple days to see if we could get permits to hike Angel’s Landing in Zions NP as Lee had never done the iconic hike. We didn’t get them the first day we applied but luckily got them for the morning of Nov 7. It wasn’t over the top busy on the trail, but definitely busier than when Adam and I had hiked it in 2016. We had to wait on the way up and down for people to make their way on the trail. But it was a beautiful  morning and we timed the weather perfectly. At the top the wind was starting to blow and by the time we got to the bottom it was pretty windy. I think it’s a hike everyone should do once and with the permit system it helps to keep the crowds somewhat manageable. You definitely will not have this trail to yourself unless the weather is truly ugly.

After our hike we were supposed to have gone to dinner with friends of ours but unfortunately they fell sick and we had to cancel so we decided to get a little closer to Vegas (which was our next destination) and stayed in the parking lot of a casino in Mesquite.

The next morning we headed to Vegas for the opening day of my friend Andrea’s Jeremiahs Italian Ice franchise (she has invested in it with her daughter Meagan and her daughter’s boyfriend Will). Meagan has been working non-stop to get it opened and we were excited to be there to support them on their opening (plus it’s a delicious treat). Andrea looked fabulous and it was so good to see Meagan and Will. We spent a couple of days with Andrea so that I could have a chance to visit with her.

We had plans of going to Grand Canyon NP but it was a little out of the way to Mesa and after all of our travels we were ready to just settle for a while. So we decided to skip it and visit next year, and instead head straight to Mesa where we have been since.

We’ve had a really nice visit with my parents and my brother and family. We’ve done a lot of mountain biking and paddling (mostly Lee), Lee’s helped Grant with his van build, I was able to make a quick visit to Yuma to see my friend Heidi, we did a day trip to Saguaro National Park, spent a little time with my mom in the hospital (thankfully she’s fine) and I’ve enjoyed cooking for my parents and hopefully giving back a little to the two people who have given me so much! Oh and I finished my biology class with an A or A- (can’t figure out what the official grade is).

We also had a few visitors while we’ve been here. My sister Amy and her family came down for Thanksgiving, Adam came for a week over Christmas and Jack and Carmen came out over MLK weekend (they were supposed to have come at Christmas but Jack got Covid).

We also took a couple of short trips during this time. As we watched all of the snow falling in Utah, we decided we had to take advantage and spent a few days in Utah skiing. It was the first time either of us had stayed at a ski resort (we stayed at Snowbird) and we skied for four days straight. Jack, Adam and Carmen skied with us a few days. On the 4th day our bodies said that we may have overdone it (at least mine did, Lee is the energizer bunny). We had a great time though and the snow was the best it’s been for that time of year in a long time. We also had a chance to have dinner with my sister and Lee’s kids as well as see our friends Matt and Melissa since we stayed with them the night we got in and the night before we left.

We also took a quick trip to Puerto Penasco, MX with Grant, Viviana, Afton, Derek and Adam. We went fishing one day and caught a lot of fish (although nothing too big) and Grant and Lee paddled another day. Even though the scenery wasn’t the best we still had a good time hanging out.

It has been nice to stay in one place for a while, but I’m itching to get going again. Our next few months of travel are places I’ve had on my bucket list for a long time and I am pretty excited to go!

Today consisted of two big things: taking a tour of the Sault Locks on a boat; and getting ready for our backpacking trip to Isle Royale.  Our locks tour took about two hours, and was very well done.  The boat we went out on wasn’t very full, so we could easily move around and check out the scenery, as well as the locks when they filled/drained them to match the height of the “top” of the Sinclair river, and the “bottom” of the river.  We got lucky and saw several big ships pass through, and learned more about future plans, etc.

Prepping for backpacking isn’t too exciting, but… if you’re going to backpack, one of the keys is to plan well up front, in order to ensure that time on the trail is enjoyable.  We went through our checklists, ran to the grocery store, and had everything pretty much ready to go in a few hours. 

We also had some neighbors come over and invite us over to their evening fire – people really have been very friendly across the USA, and especially in Canada.  We went for a run, and stopped by to visit with them.  By then it was time to clean up, fix a little food for dinner, and call it a night!

Wednesday September 14

Today was a fairly big drive day, as we had a little over 4 hours to drive between Sault St Marie and the Hancock area where our sea plane calls home.  We got up at a decent hour and got underway so we could visit the National Park visitor center before they closed at 4.  We had a nice scenic drive, and even had a chance to try a pasty at a store along the way.  Pasties are a nice combination of a pastry with a filling that is typically some type of meat, potatoes, and spices.  We enjoyed that, and made it to Hancock in time to have a rock chip repaired at a local glass shop.  The person that fixed our windshield was raving about how good the mountain biking was up at Copper Harbor (only about an hour away), so our plan is to head up there for a while after we finish up our backpacking trip!

Thursday September 15 – Sunday September 18

Our day finally arrived to fly out to Isle Royale for a planned 2 night backpacking trip.  We got up early to do our final checklist, and arrived with plenty of time to get checked in at the “office” (just a small shed out by the water) and for our bags to be weighed.  The office manager went through a few safety items and precautions – mainly around weather and that they can’t fly in fog or lightening, and once our schedule time arrived, we met the pilot, got our life jackets on, and… away we went!

The takeoff and flight were very smooth.  The flight only lasted about 45 minutes, and we were never that high up off Lake Superior that you could not see the water clearly.  Our view of the island coming in was good, and the landing was also very smooth – you could barely tell you touched down.  We made it to the dock, and were quickly off the plane and on our way to a self-checkin area for backpacking.

After registering, we bought a small canister of stove fuel (they won’t let you carry that on the plane), and put our rain gear on.  We fully expected some rain on our trip, and it was not letting us down (unfortunately).  We decided to hike into an area known as 3-mile, which turns out to be just a bit over 3 miles away.  The hike was easy as hikes go…  There was not that much hill climbing to do, and our packs were relatively light as we were only staying for 2 nights.  However, by the time we reached the camping area, the sprinkles had largely turned into steady rain, and we were very happy to find an open-faced shelter that was close to the water, and with great views.  Later in the day, more people arrived to other shelters.

We didn’t do a lot more that day due to the rain. We did get camp set up, filtered some water, and explored the immediate area to see other camp sites, etc.  After an afternoon nap, a hot (and surprisingly tasty freeze dried concoction) dinner, we went to bed early, hoping for better weather the next day.  We could tell through the night, however, that the rain was continuing to come down.

The next morning, the rain had let up a bit and we decided to stay in the shelter we had, but to do a day hike of roughly 3-4 miles each way.  The scenery along the Superior coast was very pretty, but the trail was definitely slippery and muddy in areas, so we didn’t move very fast.  We made it out about 3 miles, had lunch, and then came back.  By the time we got back, the rain was coming down again.  On this evening, we had quite a bit of wind as well.  It was cold enough and wet enough that we set our tent up right in the shelter to avoid getting even more wet, and we were glad we did.  The wind howled at times, and we would have certainly gotten wet without our tent.

One Saturday morning, it was time to walk back to the visitor center and sea plane area.  We were still somewhat confident that we’d get out that day, just based on the weather. We were wrong.  We hung around once we arrived, and things continued to get backed up, with a number of people having waited around for over a day to get off the island.  One guy thought he was getting out and gave up his shelter (and food!), so we were lucky to get another shelter, expecting that we’d have to wait until Sunday to get a ride back to Hancock. It wasn’t long when he came back and asked if he could bunk with us…. His hopes of leaving had been dashed, and he was stuck for at least another night.

The weather wasn’t too bad on Saturday night, so we played a card game, had our last (spare) dinner that we’d brought with us, and hoped for better luck on Sunday.

Early Sunday we had some thunder and lightening, which made us question whether we’d be staying another night!  Thankfully, that broke a bit, and before you know it we learned that we’d probably be able to leave at around 10 that morning.  We quickly packed up our gear, made it to the takeoff area, and did not have to wait long for our plane to arrive.  As luck would have it, we had the plane to ourselves, as the few remaining people (including our bunk mate) were going to other locations.  The flight back was smooth and the weather actually seemed to be getting nicer. We made it back, had breakfast, drove to Copper Harbor for our next camp site, and got all our gear organized and put away.

Despite the inclement weather and delayed flight, we had a great time, met some very nice people, and got to see the island when it was relatively quiet (as compared to peak season).  It didn’t have some of the “grandeur” that some of our other backpacking adventures have had, but it was still a great experience, and a chance to see a park that relatively few people make it out to – especially via sea plane!

Monday, September 19

We got up this morning and made our way out to a mountain biking trailhead just outside of the small town of Copper Harbor.  We had scoped out the location late Sunday afternoon, so we knew where we were going, and were happy to see that we were the only vehicle in the parking lot.  We rode about 6 miles out to a point on Superior, and the trail was great.  It wandered through forest with a great flow that was just hard enough to be fun, but easy enough to where you never had to walk your bike (an easy “blue” run).  We had a good time, and… good weather!  We made our way back, and then set out for the drive back to Pictured Rocks Michigan.  It was a pleasant fall day in the “U.P.”  The weather is definitely starting to cool down, but… there are still crowds in the campgrounds.  It would seem that there are quite a few older (mostly) people that arrive to check out the colors, and of course many of them are not on a schedule like so many others.  We’ve found places to stay, but have been a bit surprised to see a lot of places 90% full.

Tuesday, September 20

We found a campground near Pictured Rocks, and Mona had arranged for us to take a tour out to Pictured Rocks via a boat.  We arrived in the morning, and found the boat to be fairly full.  It was a fast-moving boat, and the captain did a nice job narrating the sights as we made good time out to the most scenic areas.  We had great weather as well – the water was smooth, and we made good time.  We found that standing near the back of the boat and taking in the sights worked best for us.  Mona really enjoyed the scenery.  We also saw people out backpacking along Superior, and decided that if we were ever in the area and had time, it would be something worth considering.

All in all, we had a good time in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, but our time was drawing to a close and it was time to begin making our way down to Detroit.

Wednesday, September 21

Today was primarily a drive day down to Bay City, Michigan.  I took Ramona around Saginaw and the surrounding area, as I’d worked there many years ago.  The area that I’d worked had changed quite a bit – it’s no longer a GM owned factory, but has been taken over by a company that (likely) provides parts for GM.  The city of Saginaw is (still) struggling, and there’s definitely a feel of poverty in the town – it was sad to see.

I was also a bit distracted, as I lost a pair of reading glasses on our backpacking trip (grrr….).  We went to a Costco that was located in the area, and I was hopeful that I could get a replacement.  After a bit of confusion on things, I realized I was probably wearing an old pair of glasses!  So… will wait until we’re in one spot for a longer period of time to get my eyes re-checked, and a new pair of glasses.

Thursday, September 22

As we continued our way down to Detroit, we found a Harvest Host business that was an apple orchard, and spent the night there (located in Montrose, MI).  The little store was very nice, and we had tons of space all to ourselves that evening as we had apple cider, and some fresh donuts that they were selling.  We didn’t do lots of things today, and… that’s OK!  Some days turn out to be slower than others, which can be a nice break to just catch up on things and have a bit of down time.

Friday, September 23

We finally made it down to the Detroit area, and decided to spend a few nights north of Detroit up near Pontiac.  We took the long way and stopped in Lansing so Mona could see where her parents lived while they were there for school. She remembered her mom saying the train ran right behind their apartment and was noisy. We showed up and the timing was perfect as a train was going by. The buildings have been abandoned, which is too bad since they seem like solid brick buildings. 

We then looked around Pontiac, and I took Ramona to see the first apartment I’d lived in up in Detroit, as well as the first house I’d ever bought.  The Pontiac area had changed a lot!  A lot of the older building had been torn down and replaced with newer places.  It was certainly much nicer – to a point that I barely recognized it.  The neighborhood where my house was had not changed too much, so that looked much more familiar.  We drove around a bit, and made our way out to our campground.

Saturday, September 24

We had a bit of time in Detroit, and decided to do a tour of the Ford River Rouge vehicle assembly plant.  We drove down to Dearborn (a bit of a drive), and headed off on the tour.  It was well done, and we got to spend some time on a cat walk above some of the assembly areas to see exactly how they put together the F-150’s.  It was well worth the time, as we got to see a mix of automation and good old fashioned labor by people working on the lines.  We’d recommend this to anyone visiting Detroit.  We had a late lunch, and then decided to check out the downtown Detroit area, as there has been talk of the city going through a bit of a “revitalization”.  Alas, much of what we saw was still struggling.  It’s always sad to see poverty in such broad swaths of a city.  We drove up Woodward Avenue all the way to Pontiac, and then I took Mona to a lake where I used to do some water skiing (Lake Oakland).  We had a little time to view the lake, and then made it back to our campground.

Sunday, September 25

Much of today was spent visiting my old roommate Rance.  We had a great time catching up after many years, and he caught us up on things happening with his kids, work, the surrounding area, etc.  I had not talked to him in many years, so it was nice to see him and hear about things going on in his world.  We had a nice lunch with him, and before long it was time to head to a new campground for our final night in Michigan.  We typically try to arrive in new campgrounds before dark so we can get settled in without quite so much guess work.

We stayed in a nice state park in Leonard MI, and planned on getting up at a decent hour so we could head to Indiana.

Monday, September 26

The early part of our day was spent driving from north of Detroit down to Beverly Shores Indiana, which is not too far from Gary Indiana.  Our plan was to check out the Indiana dunes.  We made it down, and had a bit of time to look around and see the dunes.  That area on Lake Michigan is pretty, and you could see Chicago in the far distance from where we did some hiking.  The weather is starting to change a bit, and after looking around, we headed back to our campground for a bit of time to read, do some computer work, etc.

We stayed in the area for a couple days, and got some hiking in, and had a chance to just “hang out” and enjoy the area.  While it’s not something we’d likely rush back to do, it was a nice place to visit and explore for a bit.

Wednesday, September 28

We’re off to Wisconsin!  Mona found a climbing gym in Madison to stay at for the night.  Mona was feeling a bit under the weather, so I enjoyed the gym, and she relaxed in the van to recuperate a bit with the hopes of getting to feeling a bit better.  We found a small pizza place with good reviews, and had dinner and an early evening.

Thursday, September 29

We drove into Madison to see the capital today and stop and get some cheese at a popular cheese store. We also drove by the U of W campus which was in downtown Madison. It’s a big school and the campus was really nice. 

Mona found another campground for us to check out – the Cox Hollow campground – which was in Dodgeville Wisconsin.  It was a nice state park, but not too much to blog about today.  Some days are all about covering some distance and a few chores – and typically getting a bit of a workout in as well.  We enjoyed the state park, and have enjoyed the cooler weather.

Friday, September 30

Today we toured a Frank Lloyd Wright house and grounds.  It was a very interesting place, and nice to get to know a bit more about him.  Mona enjoys the style of a lot of his homes, and this helped us understand much more about his history and what he was all about.  He grew up on a farm, but was always drawn more to design and architecture then all of his assorted farm chores.  One thing that struck us about his places were the low ceilings – he wasn’t very tall, and was a believer in building things that “fit” the people in the building.  For me, this didn’t work so well!

As we continued our journey through Wisconsin, Mona found a small vineyard outside of River Falls WI where we could stay.  It was school-themed, as they had converted an old one-room school house into a small store selling their wines and a few other goods.  They also had live music for the evening, so we enjoyed some music, and just spent a bit of time at the vineyard after a fairly full drive day. 

Saturday, October 1

Today we continued our drive and made it to Valerie’s house without problems.  She was quick to greet us, and we had a nice visit in the evening with her husband, and also had a chance to meet her daughter and her boyfriend.  We had a great visit, and it was good to connect after so many years.  The area they live in was pretty rural and peaceful – we had plenty of room to park and enjoy their large yard.

Sunday, October 2

We managed to get out and go for a bike ride with Valerie and her husband in at some nearby bike/running trails.  The fall weather is changing the colors quickly, and we really enjoyed all the colors and the cooler air for being outside.  Val’s husband Don even got a crack at trying to mountain bike on some narrow, dirt trails (which happened to be rated “black”).  I think he was glad to have tried it, but also glad he didn’t fall and get banged up!  There were lots of trees to dodge, and when you’re not used to it (and on someone else’s bike), it’s not for the faint of heart.

We had dinner with them at a local Mexican restaurant, knowing that our time was coming to a close with them.

Monday, October 3rd

On Monday morning, it was time to once again hit the road, and head to…. North Dakota!  It’s hard to believe, but we’ve now visited almost every state in the lower 48.  North Dakota is one of those states that’s a bit “out of the way” with not a lot to do, but we found a very interesting missile control underground base that offered tours (in one of the decommissioned control sites), and enjoyed learning more about the cold war and all that went into “fighting” the cold war. 

Most of North Dakota is definitely farm land.  It’s harvest time, so we’ve seen lots of combines and people out in the fields.  It’s been dry as well – I’ve been surprised at just how dry and dirty the land feels right now, given the lack of water.  We learned that it’s been one of the driest Septembers on record, which is a bit scary.

Tuesday, October 4th

Before leaving North Dakota, we found some mountain bike trails to try out up near Hankinson ND.  We were a bit skeptical, but we actually had a really good time riding the trails. They were quiet as well – we saw no other bike riders, and just one older guy out doing some bird watching. 

We’re now able to do some boondocking again as well – once nice thing about being further west and in areas of the country that are much less populated.

Wednesday, October 5th

Today we headed out of North Dakota and started driving to Ruthton MN – the small town where my moms parents farmed many years ago.  We drove to their old farm and looked around.  Time and the environment have not been kind to the buildings there – the barn, shed, and house are almost all completely gone from various weather events.  It was nice to show Mona the home place, and to look around a bit.  After walking around where the buildings used to be, we headed over to Tracy MN to spend some time with my aunt Lois and her husband Tyson.  They fixed a nice dinner for us, and we found a good place to park in her yard where the van was flat and a bit out of the wind.  The weather was definitely changing, and we came close to using our little van furnace for the first time this season.

Tyson and Lois were doing well, though they’re both spending some time dealing with Tyson’s sister who is very sick and in the hospital.

Thursday, October 6th

Tyson had class in the morning and most of the afternoon – both he and Lois are taking some university led classes that keep them busy and continuing to learn.  I took the opportunity to drag my laptop inside Lois’s house to work on a project that has been on my mind, and Mona spent time working on labs associated with the biology class she’s taking.  Some of her school work can be tough to do in our van, so having a bit of a break worked out very well.

We continued our visit with Lois and Tyson, and today Lois and I spent some time in her yard starting to prep some areas for the winter season.

Friday, October 7th

I continued to work on my computer projects today, and Mona continued with her biology labs.  Both Lois and Tyson have fed us well, and it has been nice to have a little break from constantly being on the go.

We also did a bit more yard work, as there was a bit of tree trimming to be done, and some plants to bring in from the cold weather in the forecast.

We also went to an Eagles fund raiser in town for a steak dinner.  We enjoyed a good dinner, and had a chance to drive around and see a bit more in Tracy.  Sadly, Tracy is not thriving that well these days, and a number of shops and stores have closed over the past number of years.  There’s still a number of people that live there, but Lois felt like it was becoming a bit more of a bedroom community for the bigger town of Marshal nearby.

We also continued to catch up on all the happenings with Lois, and just spending some time after so many years.

Saturday, October 8

Today we ventured out to visit my aunt Leonne out at her farm.  We stopped at a farmers market on the way for a bit of fresh produce, and then had several hours to visit with Leonne and see her place.  Leonne let us take her ATV out to check out her farm, and we also got a ride in her ’70s vintage Lincoln.  That evening, Dean (her son) came over and Leonne was kind enough to fix us all Chilli for dinner.  As with Lois, it was good to see Leonne in person after so many years, and to hear more about what she has been up to.

Leonne is now 95 – she’s still going strong, but did have a health scare a year ago with a lung infection that wiped her out for a while.  She has recovered from that, and is back to mowing her large yard, as well as keeping up with several farms that she owns and manages.  Working hard and staying active has definitely served her well!

Sunday, October 9

It was time to get back on the road, and we headed to Iowa!  Our first stop was the Amana Colonies, but given how much of a drive this was, much of Sunday was a drive day for us.  We found a campground outside of Oxford IA to spend the evening, and made plans to head to the colonies in the morning.

Monday, October 10

After having a rather leisurely morning having some coffee and doing some reading, we made our way to Amana for some good German food!  We looked around a bit before having lunch, which was served family style, and was tasty.  We also stopped at a museum that had a video explaining more about the colonies, and also had quite a few old artifacts that helped paint the picture on what it was like to be a member of the Colony years ago.

Amana is still going strong, but the communal structure now allows for more individualism (more of a co-op now), while at the same time having people come together as a community.  As with many of our travels, there has been a lot to learn!  It will be hard to remember the many details of what we’ve seen, but thankfully there’s great information on-line, and this blog will hopefully jog our memories’ a bit to remember back to these days!

We once again found a nice campground to stay at, and enjoyed a nice peaceful evening near a lake.  The weather continues to hold out for us, which has been nice.

Tuesday, October 11

We stayed right outside Pella IA, which is largely known for the Pella windows that are used throughout the country.  That said, they’re also known for some fine dutch pastry shops!  We found a highly rated shop, and left with far more sweets that we should have!  We enjoyed looking around the town, but as we had a fairly long drive, we started heading for Nebraska before too much of the day got away from us.

Once again, today was mostly a drive day for us.  We did managed to drive by Warren Buffet’s house in Omaha Nebraska (no sign of him!), got a workout in at an Anytime fitness center, and drove to Lincoln for some dinner before heading to our site for the night. Our small (and pleasant) surprise tonight was having a chance to check out the Nebraska capital building located in the heart of Lincoln.  All too often, we will see things that we didn’t think to plan, largely because we’re not so rushed to always just be going from one stop to the next. 

Our biggest surprise of the evening was the storm that passed through. It seemed to hit pretty suddenly. The wind was howling, then the rain hit and then the hail (luckily it wasn’t too big). The electrical storm that accompanied the storm lasted for a few hours and it was the craziest electrical storm either of us had seen. We were glad it wasn’t as bad as the weather warnings were saying it was going to be, but nonetheless and exciting end to our day.

Sunday, August 28th

Today saw us leaving Maine and driving to Canada! We had a really pretty drive up through northern Maine, and arrived in the small port town of Saint Stephen right at 2:00.  We had filled out our paperwork, mainly regarding Covid, and were a bit surprised at just how small, and smooth, our entry into Canada was.  It was a small bridge with a single customs/security guard on the Canadian side (same story on the US side), and after few questions for us, we were welcomed to the country of Canada!  We drove a ways to our first campground, and were glad that things were so smooth.  We stayed in a nice campground near some mountain bike trails, and got some mountain biking in – the trails were hard!  The black trails were truly difficult, and even the blue trails were tough.

Monday, August 29th

Today we made it to Halifax and decided to stay in town.  After going back and forth about where to stay (and the fact that some places were full), we ultimately decided to just stay in a parking lot near the train station, and near a big port for ocean cruise boats.  We rented some scooters, explored the downtown area of Halifax, and had a nice dinner.  It was a bit noisy in the parking lot, so we didn’t sleep the best, but it still worked out well.

Tuesday, August 30th

Today we did some sight seeing, which included driving over to Peggy’s Cove.  Before we did that, we stopped at a Tim Horton’s (for internet) so Mona could take her first 2 quizzes.  She aced both of them!  The area was beautiful, and we hiked around on huge granite rocks near the sea shore.  We also learned more about an airliner that crashed just off the shore back in 1998 due to an internal fire. We come across various things like this in our travels, and have learned a lot about various random parts of history that can be very interesting.

People here in Canada have been very friendly.  We feel like a number of people we’ve encountered have gone out of their way to make us feel welcome, and to help us out.

Wednesday, August 31

Today we did the “Tidal Bore” adventure in the Bay of Fundy.  We went out on 8 man zodiac boats, did some mud sliding on the banks, and then waited for the tidal bore to come.  We didn’t have to wait long, and could see it arriving.  We quickly got back in the boats, and met the head wave head-on.  From there, water came in rapidly – more than all the rivers on earth combined in terms of flow!  We rode big waves, and got thoroughly drenched.  It was a great time, but by the time we were done, we were both starting to feel chilled. A woman on the boat with us was shivering it was so chilly.  When it was done, we drove to our next campsite with full hookups so we could take long (and hot) showers, and Mona got some laundry done.

Thursday, September 1st – Saturday September 3rd

Today we drove to the northern most part of Nova Scotia and found the Meat Cove Campground – a truly unique campground right on the cliffs of the ocean with incredible views and a very remote feel to it.  We quickly decided to stay at least 2 nights since it was such a nice place to spend some time.  We ran/hiked in the afternoon, and pulled our fire pit out because it was starting to get chilly at night.  Our time at Meat Cove was really nice, and we enjoyed just having a little down time to be by the ocean and enjoy all the scenery.  If we were ever in Nova Scotia again, this is definitely a place we would go back to.

Saturday, September 3rd

We hated to leave Meat Cove but we had reservations at a hotel in Quebec City, and we also had to be mindful of our backpacking trip coming up in Isle Royale mid-September as well.  We drove our way down to Cheticamp, stopping along the way to run the Skyline trail, where we stayed at a nice RV park overlooking the ocean.  As luck would have it, the “boondocking” sites (no hookups) were closest to the ocean, and basically empty, so we had a nice place to park.  We also squeezed in enough time for another whale watching tour.  It was a bit of a boat ride out to the last sighting, but… sure enough, when we got there, we were lucky enough to find a whale up near the surface and feeding.  This was a “Minky” whale, and perhaps not quite as interesting to watch as the humpbacks over in Iceland, but… still very enjoyable.

Sunday, September 4th

Today was kind of a long drive day for us over to a place called Pictou.  We stayed at a campsite near the water once again, but didn’t have a lot of time after a pretty full days’ drive.

Monday, September 5th

This was another relatively long day of driving, as we wanted to make it Quebec City the following day.  Since we’d never before stayed in a Walmart parking lot, we decided to save some time and money and give it a shot!  It actually worked out pretty well for us.  The spot we parked was level, and fairly quiet until early morning.  If you just need a place to sleep while you’re on the road, it’s honestly not bad.

Tuesday, September 6th

Today we drove to Quebec City and checked into an amazing hotel right in downtown Quebec City – the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac.  Driving into that part of town with the van was a little stressful, as the streets were crowded and narrow.  We drove past the province parliament buildings, and then through a part of “old town” that had a very European feel to it.  We were a little nervous about parking the van at the hotel as well – it generally will not fit in any type of underground parking.  Thankfully, the attendants pulled the van up on a little brick parking pad right in the front of the hotel, and… she got a primo parking spot.  It was nice because we could actually look down from our room and just check to make sure everything looked to be OK (the bikes still on the bike rack, etc).

For our first afternoon in Quebec City, we decided to go for a run in a nearby park that was essentially just on the side of Parliament.  We had a nice run, and after that it was time to find a place to eat.  Restaurants were busy… Thankfully we found a place that had a menu we thought we’d enjoy, and had a pretty good meal after a long day.  Many of the restaurants serve rabbit, duck, and a few other “delicacies” we weren’t that interested in (e.g., tartare, etc.).  We decided that we were going to enjoy the city well enough that we booked the hotel for a second night.

Wednesday, September 7th

Today we looked around the city and spent time really exploring the wall that was built around the old part of the city (war defense), the shops and restaurants in old town, and wrapped up our sight seeing with a tour of the Parliament buildings.  We enjoyed our time in the town, and learning a bit more about their government (which turns out to not be that much different that many of the things you’d find in the USA).  We ended up eating at a little informal crepe shop that really was a treat. Especially the dessert crepes!

Thursday, September 8th

Today was our day to head to Montreal.  Thankfully it’s not that long of a drive, and we arrived at a decent hour.  We got lucky, and once again were able to park the van very close to the front door of a Marriott that was located right in downtown Montreal.  We got checked in, and then went and explored a bit of the older parts of town.  It didn’t have quite the same European feel to it as Quebec City, but we still had a good time, and we made it a fairly early evening.

Friday September 9th

Today we explored more of Montreal.  We started by going to the Olympic Park area, which was quite an impressive place.  Unfortunately, a lot of it was closed for renovation, so we didn’t get to go into all the buildings / arenas that would have been fun to see.  It was still well worth seeing, and we enjoyed checking it out.  The weather was almost perfect – even a bit hot – and the subway system was easy to use despite most signs, etc. being in French.  We also found a great place to eat (and stuffed ourselves), and ultimately wrapped up our day by going to a (very) large farmers market where we picked up some things for dinner.  We ended up staying in our hotel room that evening and made up a dinner from the farmers market goodies that we found, and Mona also got a lab and some of her biology schoolwork done!

Saturday September 10th

Our time in Montreal was good, but it was time to keep making our way to Michigan, so we got packed up and headed out to Ottawa.  We spent some time in the national capital of Canada (Ottawa) looking that their parliament buildings, and also rented some scooters to get around downtown.  We were favorably impressed with Ottawa – it’s not as big as Montreal, but it had a nice “vibe” to it, and perhaps seemed a bit more quiet due to it being a weekend.  Our scooter experience was not as fun as in the past, as our scooters would effectively lock up if they thought we were going out of the riding zone, and they would beep while in motion (apparently some type of law).  We spent several hours looking around, and then decided to drive a couple more hours to another Walmart in Pembroke.  This helped us get closer to Michigan on schedule, or even a bit ahead.

Sunday September 11

Today was a very long drive day (8 hours, which for us is long), as Mona found a train ride for us to take out of Sault Ste Marie on Monday. We packed up and left the Walmart where we stayed at a decent hour, stopped and got water for the van, and then set out for a fairly long distance drive.  The roads were good, and we had a smooth time just touring the country as we drove.  It was very pretty country with lots of woods, and lots of greenery.  The roads weren’t too busy, which made for easier driving as well.  They’re also in pretty good shape, which is nice in the van.  About an hour before reaching Sault Ste Marie, we stopped near a walking/cross country skiing area right off the coast of Lake Huron, and got a run in.  It was nice to get out after being cooped up driving all day.  We then finished up our drive, and ended up staying in a casino parking lot right across the street from where we would take our train the next day at 8:00 AM.

Monday September 12

Today was spent mostly on a train! As a last minute thing, we decided to take the Agawa Canyon train up to the canyon, which is about a 4 hour train ride each way.  The train was very relaxing, and busy, but… not too busy.  The area is *very* wooded, which made it a little hard to see much from the train, but the scenery was very nice, and not having to drive of course made it nice as well.  We had an hour and a half to hike around up in the canyon, and then returned to Sault St Marie on the Canadian side.  We crossed back over to the US, had fish for dinner at a small restaurant near the locks, and then made it to our campground right at dark.  We always find getting set up in daylight makes our camping life much easier, so we try to make it to places by daylight.

We got back from Iceland excited to start our Northeast US adventure. When we got to Lee’s cousin’s to pick up the van we noticed there was still oil on the tires (we had the rear brakes done in Philly when we were there and noticed the oil before we left but had hoped it was just residual from the job). We decided to head towards Connecticut hoping to find a Ford dealer that could fix our problem the next day. We stayed at a campground about an hour from NYC and the next morning called some Ford dealers in Connecticut. No one would look at the van for at least a couple of weeks except one dealership, so we headed that way. Once we got there and he saw the van he said he wouldn’t be able to help us for about a week (UGH!!) so we called the Ford dealer in Philly that did the work and told them they needed to fix it ASAP. They of course did not have anyone who could look at it until Monday (it was Thursday) but we decided to head back to Philly since Monday was much sooner than anyone else could help us (plus they needed to fix their mistake).

Driving back to Philly was pretty stressful when we got to the NYC area, especially the area of the George Washington Bridge, but we got through it and made it to Philly. We ended up staying in Philly for almost a week which really threw us off schedule (we have seaplane reservations for Isle Royale in mid-September) so we took Lake Placid off our schedule.

We did, however, see a few sites we missed on our last stay, like the Rocky Statue and steps and the Eastern State Penitentiary. That was a very interesting visit to see the first Penitentiary in the US, it was used until the early 70s. It also had a very interesting exhibit about the US prison system (we imprison the most people per capita of any country by a long shot), it was informative and a little depressing.

We also got to see Leon Bridges in concert, it was a fun concert at a venue that looked over the city.

We finally got our van back and due to the time lost we flew through Connecticut and Rhode Island, only staying a night in each state. We stayed close to the shore which was nice. We then headed to Salem, MA for a night, as I wanted to see some of the Salem witch trial sites. When we got there we went for a walk and saw that there was a 1 mile race happening that evening so we hurried back to our B&B, got on our running gear and headed out to sign up. We had been talking about doing some races so it sure seemed fortuitous that there was one we could easily run in.

Lee took off fast and finished his mile in 6:13, I was a little slower at 8:28 but I was pretty happy with my time. Neither one of us placed in any category but we were both glad to have raced.

The next day we decided to head into Boston to have lunch at the North End and to see some of the old Fidelity places both Lee and I had worked at when we were Fidelity employees. It was fun to see the city again and we had a nice lunch in the North End.

The next day we headed to Ellacoya State park that was on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire and had a nice time paddling, it was a beautiful lake. That night we were invited to our neighbors campfire and had a pleasant night visiting with them and their friends. They were from Massachusetts and they also gave us some good suggestions for our upcoming trip to Nova Scotia.

We then made our way to Vermont which was very beautiful, we happened to stop in Montclair for gas and saw the capital (we did not realize it was the capital) and stopped to take a tour. It’s small but a really nice building and we were glad we stopped. We then made our way to Stowe to check out the ski resort, did a little biking, saw the Trapp Family Lodge (The Sound of Music is my favorite movie) before heading to our campsite on Lake Champlain. We had wanted to paddle while we were there but unfortunately it rained while we were there so instead we went to the climbing gym in Burlington and caught up on a few errands.

Our next stop was New Hampshire again and I had found a hike up Mount Washington in the White Mountains. The best part was they had a Cog wheel train that could take us back down. The hike up was not easy, it was pretty rugged and slippery on some of the granite rock you had to climb up, but it was beautiful and part way up the trail we stopped at one of the Appalachian Trail huts, Lake of the Clouds. It was aptly named as it was getting quite cloudy as we got closer to the hut. It was fun to go in and take a break and see some of the hikers come and go. 

We had a brief look at the top before the train was heading down. The train is the second steepest cog wheel in the world  (steepest is in Switzerland). We were a little hesitant in the morning to do the hike (are we getting lazy??) but we were so glad we did, as it was a beautiful and fun to see the hut and railway.

Our last stop before hitting Canada was Acadia National Park. We spent a full day there and rented some scooters to check out the park. They were a lot of fun and definitely an easier way to get around then the van. We rode the park loop and around Bar Harbor. I had been to Acadia with my boys a few years ago but we hiked in a different section of the park so it was fun to see a new part. We ended our day with a meal at Thurston’s Lobster Pound, on the bay in Bernard, Maine.

Even though the car troubles made us fly through some of the Northeastern states and give up going to Lake Placid we still had a great couple of weeks. Even our time in Philly was nice to decompress after our busy Iceland adventure. We realize how lucky we are to be doing what we are doing so try to take our setbacks in stride.

8/4/2022

Today was a fairly mellow day for us in northern Iceland. We were able to check out of our room at 11, so we enjoyed a rather late breakfast and got to sleep in a little bit. Most of our lodging has included breakfast, and the food (and coffee) have been good, though they don’t vary too much. We’re particularly enjoyed the jams with toast, as well as the variety of things that are on most of the menus. We then drove a short way to the Godafoss waterfall. When we got there, we were a bit surprised to see that it was quite crowded. We walked the short distance after parking, took a few pictures, and continued on our way. We decided to drive quite a ways today before eating, since we knew we were staying out of town on the coast, and could not easily go anywhere for dinner. We found a nice little local place to have fish and chips in Hofstadhir, a small fishing village that had a lot of charm. The food was good – it has been hard to go wrong with fish and chips in Iceland. Many places have fish and chips, or baked cod, on their menus.

After leaving Hofstadhir, we had to go through several long tunnels. As it turned out, once of the 4 km tunnels was one-way, and there was quite a bit of traffic! Every few hundred yards, there were turn-outs for cars going “our way” to turn out and get out of the way of oncoming traffic. Not knowing exactly how that worked was definitely a bit nerve wracking. But… we survived, and had a great drive along the sea with the mountains in nearby view. Iceland is most definitely mountainous and rugged – more so than I thought it would be.

After driving quite a distance in the remote country, we made it to our “hotel”, which turned out to be a house with four rooms. The location was quite spectacular – located yards from the ocean, down a winding dirt road several miles long. It had a very remote and fairy-tale like feel to it. We went for a walk on the beach where there were lots of birds, and spent several hours with a couple from Richmond VA and a man from Italy (who lives across the lake from George Clooney) in the common dining room / living room area of the house. We had a great time, and it was midnight before we knew it. With the very long days of light, it’s easy for time to creep by, and it can be late before you know it!

8/5/2022

Today saw us driving a fair distance again to a new place to stay. We saw some very pretty country in the northern part of Iceland, as we continued to make our way counter-clockwise around the “Ring Road”. We have been impressed with how clean the country is, and how safe it feels. We see next to no trash by the roads, and bikes are routinely left unlocked by their owners in front of shops and houses. We’ve been impressed by the constant beauty of the countryside as we drive along, typically at 90 km/h (about 55 mph). Many bridges are one-way, which requires slowing down and yielding to oncoming traffic. Fortunately, there’s not much traffic!

Today’s main event was… whale watching! We had good weather, and were finally able to make it out to see if we’d see anything. We had a good guide, and sure enough…. we had not been on the boat for long when she thought she spotted a whale. We traveled around the fjord, and were able to easily spot at least 5 or 6 whales – several of which we got close to and followed for a bit. They are quite the magnificent animal. We saw humpback whales, and when they bring their tail up in the air, it means that they’re going to dive. Most dives last at least 5 minutes, which leaves one to patiently wait until they re-appear (which can be some distance away). There were about 25 people on our boat, and we had a good time being out with the whales for several hours. It was definitely a good tour, with plenty to see! We would definitely do this again.

Our hotel for the day had a good reputation for a large and very warm outdoor pool to enjoy. When we arrived at the hotel, I went for a 4 mile run up a dirt road, and when I got back we decided it was time for either some time in a hot tub, or in the pool. We decided to drive up the road to check out some hot tubs right next to the ocean, but when we got there, they were busy. So…. we headed back to our hotel, got our suits on, and went to the pool. It was a nice big pool (roughly Olympic sized or even bigger) with few people in it. We spent some time in the pool, but also some time in a natural hot pot right next to it. The hot pot was too hot for me, so I spent most my time in the pool. Mona did the same, though she managed the hot pot a bit longer than me! After spending the better part of an hour swimming, we went back to our room and relaxed. The “hotel” felt more like a dorm, with shared bathrooms and some common areas for eating and just lounging about.

8/6/2022

This morning we got a quick breakfast at the hotel and were on our way. As with most hotels we have stayed in, breakfast was included, and was served buffet style. We typically eat a pretty hearty breakfast, largely snacks for lunch, and then eat a full meal at dinner in the evening. After breakfast was done, we headed to the western fjords to see everything they had to offer. We again found some amazing beauty, with hills of green, mountains of lava, and ocean fjords that looked almost like glass, as we did not have any wind to deal with. We made it to a number of waterfalls in the afternoon, and decided to hike into at least the closest of the falls Valagil (2km). Of course, as we got moving, we decided to do the further falls as well, and ended up covering over five miles and 1,000 feet of elevation by the time it was all done. The scenery is truly amazing – lots of waterfalls, very green hills and mountain sides, grazing sheep, and streams fed from nearby snow still on high slopes. We thoroughly enjoyed our hike, only encountering one other couple on the hike. I’ve also really enjoyed the remote feel that so much of Iceland provides. You really do feel like you’re in a remote and isolated part of the world when you venture out on these more difficult and lengthy hikes! That evening, we checked into our hotel, and found a nice place to have a burger and fries. As I mentioned earlier, the food has been good (but certainly not cheap), and we’ve enjoyed having fish (mostly cod) on many occasions, but also the occasional burger, etc at some of the places we’ve eaten at.

8/7/2022

Sunday was going to be a day of Mountain Biking in the western fjords, but alas… the weather thwarted us. We woke up to cloudy, rainy, and chilly weather – in the low 50’s with fairly constant rain. As a result, we decided to check out some back roads, and did some driving on roads not traveled as much. Getting off the primary roads is easy, particularly as we had a four wheel drive, and google maps does a pretty good job at identifying dirt and gravel roads. For the most part, you can get internet access across Iceland as well, which makes it easier to find attractions, restaurants, etc.

After doing some backroad driving we made our way to the Dynjandi waterfall, which was truly spectacular. It wasn’t very busy (which was nice), and you could easily walk up to smaller falls, and then the main fall itself. The water was perfectly fanned out across rock, and came tumbling down the rocks generating a lot of white water and mist. Pictures likely won’t completely capture the beauty, but it really was well worth the time seeing it – even though we’ve now seen – literally – hundreds of waterfalls.

After spending an hour at the waterfall, we had a quick lunch in the car, and then continued on our way to our next hotel in the western fjords. The roads in this area have been very scenic, but they can be slow, and even a bit treacherous in places! Even the main roads had miles and miles of gravel / dirt, sometimes running right along a cliff edge leading directly to the ocean far below. It’s very beautiful, but you can’t expect to go too far too quickly when in this part of the country.

Before checking into our hotel, we went to a free hot pot about 20 minutes away. The temps were great, and you could look right out over the ocean as you soaked. After spending 45 minutes there, we went back to the hotel, cleaned up, and then enjoyed another excellent dinner of fish and chips at pretty much the only restaurant in the town of roughly 150 people. The days are long here in the summer, meaning that you have plenty of time to explore and do whatever outside before you can’t see. We’ve continued to be impressed by this part of the island, and if we had to choose between the more popular “ring road” and just coming up in this area, we’d probably pick coming up here. Tons of scenery, nice small towns with little traffic and no crowds, things to do (e.g., biking, hot tubbing, hiking all over), and the hotel we stayed in was really a nice welcoming place.

8/8/2022

Today was another cold and rainy Iceland day. We decided to adjust our plans a bit and take a 2 hour ferry ride over to a town closer to our ultimate return point (the capital), in hopes of visiting a national park where the weather might have been a bit better. Mona was able to get our plans changed, and we had a really enjoyable ferry ride for several hours (note that getting on and off the ferry was very smooth – no passports required, etc. riding the ferry saved us a little over an hour’s driving time as well). Alas, we made it over, started our drive into the national park, and the rain just would not relent. We drove around to see a few sights, and just decided to check into our hotel a bit early and look around town.

We stayed in a hotel that used to be part of a hospital (but had been done up nicely) and offered us nice views and a central location in town. We were able to make reservations for a small restaurant that got great reviews, and had a great dinner trying out their “tasting” menu. We enjoyed our time there, and had a quiet night at the hotel.

8/9/2022

Our plan for our final full day in Iceland was a full one: we wanted to visit the volcano that erupted while we were here (this made headlines across the world), needed to get a little shopping done, and wanted to visit a large hot tubbing venue just outside the capital (Sky Lagoon). We hadn’t gone far, and learned that the hike into the volcano was once again closed for the day due to weather. With weather once again thwarting some of our plans, we spent a little extra time shopping in the capital and having lunch. This also gave us plenty of time to go soak in the hot tubs, which for me included some time in a cold pot (one of the pools was 50 degree (F) water, so was quite brisk to say the least). After our time in the hot springs, we found another place to have our final fish dinner in Iceland, and also got checked into a hotel that was close to the airport.

Weather can play a big role in what you can (and can’t) do here in Iceland. We sure are glad for the dry and relatively warm days we had when we first got here! Otherwise, it would be harder to do many of things the island has to offer. We have seen people out bike packing, and staying in tents, and it looks pretty rough!

8/10/2022

Wednesday was a big travel day for us. We got up early and got our rental car returned without any problems. We had a little time to kill in the Iceland International Airport, and before long it was time for our long(ish) trip home. The flight was full, which wasn’t a surprise (our flight out was as well). We had a good flight, though a guy behind us was coughing and sneezing the entire flight – we were pretty sure we’d likely have COVID after listening to him the entire distance.

We made it back to JFK without any problems, retrieved our luggage, and caught an Uber back to my cousins place in New Jersey. We had a quick dinner with Karen and Booker, and then decided to get to our campground before it got too dark. We needed some groceries, and ended up in a suburb in New Jersey that was more foreign than anything we’d seen in Iceland – it was a neighborhood comprised almost entirely of Hasidic Jews – street signs were in Hebrew, and only formal wear was seen on men, women, and the kids. It was like being in a suburb of Jerusalem, and we definitely stuck out! Thankfully, they had a few grocery items that we needed, and we made our way to the campground. After a long flight, we were ready to be back “home” and to get some sleep!

We have finally made it to Iceland. We had planned this trip originally for May of 2020 and we were going to rent an RV and Adam was going to join us, but then Covid happened and all was cancelled. We thought we would then go in May of 2021, but Covid restrictions were still in place and instead we took the kids to Costa Rica. But by the end of 2021 restrictions were being lifted and we felt we could plan our trip. 

We decided we would try and go during a couple of the hottest weeks in the US so we would have a few less weeks battling the heat in the van (although I have to say so far we have been very lucky with weather). With the exception of a few days here and there where we have had to stay in hotels we have dodged most of the bad weather. We missed tornadoes in the south by a week or two, and heatwaves here and there, and just dodged mass flooding that is happening in St Louis and Kentucky right now by just a couple of weeks.

On Wednesday morning we left our campsite in Jefferson Township, NJ in the morning and got our laundry done and finished up some last minute chores before heading to Wallington, NJ where Lee’s cousin Karen lives. She so kindly offered to let us park the van at her apartment and she is keeping an eye on her for us. We got there early enough to be able to visit with her and her husband Booker and take them to dinner. We then grabbed a Lyft for JFK. Luckily we got there 3 hours early because it took us an hour just to check in (even though it was Sky Priority) and the TSA Pre-check line was closed so security took another 30 minutes, but once we were through all that we were able to relax for about 45 minutes before boarding our overnight flight. It was a relatively short flight and we had a strong tail wind so instead of a little over 5 hours it took just over 4 hours to get to Iceland. Luckily we were both able to get a little sleep and were super excited to be in Iceland. 

When we got off the plane we took our time and used the restroom, then went through customs and thought for sure our bags would be waiting for us. Unfortunately they weren’t and after about 30 minutes some bags from our flight arrived, but not ours. We found out the bags were somewhere on the tarmac and they were trying to locate them. Finally after another 30 minutes, the bags were found (and ironically they were all the bags marked Sky Priority). 

We were happy to have our bags and got our car rental shuttle, rented our car and off we went. The car was asmall stick shift diesel 4×4, and it has been fun to drive since it’s been a few years since either one of us has driven a manual.

We drove the 40 minutes to Reykjavik and found a nice restaurant for lunch and then headed to check in to our hotel. We decided to take a nap before exploring. Once we got up from our nap, Lee was determined to find scooters for us to explore the city (he has been obsessed since riding them in Cleveland). We found some and followed a bike path up the coast a few miles, then back to the city to check out Iglesia Hallgrímskirkja. It was a very cool church with some interesting architecture. We then walked around the shopping area and then found a restaurant and had some great fish and chips. We were exhausted by that time and headed back to the hotel. We went to bed around 11PM and it was still light outside which was strange.

The next morning we headed out to do the Golden Circle. Our first stop was a beautiful waterfall called Þórufoss (yes the language and letters are quite difficult here), it was nice since we were the only ones there, we then headed to Þingvellir National Park but went the long way by circling Lake Þingvallavatn. It was a beautiful drive. The national park sits in a rift valley caused by the separation of 2 tectonic plates. We walked about 3 miles around the park exploring the rift valley and seeing another beautiful waterfall.

We then made our way to the Geyser Geothermal area, which was crowded and which frankly we were underwhelmed by since we have Yellowstone as one of our nation parks. We didn’t stay long and headed to Gulfoss waterfall which again was very crowded, but as soon as we saw we were in awe. It is an incredible water fall that has a little feel of Niagra but with more interesting geology. The way the waterfall cuts through the valley is very unique. We quite enjoyed our visit. We then made one last stop at an old volcanic crater with a lake at the bottom. We then headed to our hotel in Hella. We had dinner at their restaurant (the special was horse, pronounced “harse”) and met a nice older couple from Israel that we ended up talking to for about 45 minutes. Again traveling has been made even better by meeting a variety of people!

On Saturday we went to Seljalandsfoss waterfall. Luckily we got there before too many tour buses showed up (Iceland is popular right now). It was another beautiful waterfall and unique in that you can walk behind it. We made sure to wear our rain jackets because we did get wet. There were a few other waterfalls you could walk to down a path. We also saw a small cave we walked up to and of course I slipped coming down and cut up my hand. Luckily with so much water around I was able to wash the blood off and the freezing water made it numb so it didn’t hurt too much. Right after I fell and at the last waterfall there was a couple from Florida that asked Lee to take some photos of them, and come to find out he had just proposed!

After we left we had another waterfall destination planned but as we got close to where we were going we saw a very large waterfall off the road so decided to explore. The waterfall was Skogafoss and it was a very popular place. As we got closer we saw lots of cars and tour buses. But we were there and decided to climb the steps to a viewing platform above the waterfall. We are so glad we did, when we got to the top we saw a trail that continued on and you could see that not a lot of people were following it. We ended up hiking about 2.5 miles in and saw at least another 6 or 7 waterfalls in the beautiful canyon. It was so incredibly beautiful. We saw some backpackers taking the trail and found out later it’s about a 25 mile hike, and you can get a bus at the end to get back to your vehicle. We’ve added this to our bucket list for a future backpack adventure.

That night we stayed at a nice hotel and while we were hot tubbing met a couple from San Diego and we talked to them for quite a while. The husband was a big fisherman and was on his way to Greenland after Iceland for fishing. Really nice people and we enjoyed talking to them.

The next morning we had a zodiac boat tour of the glacier lagoon Jökulsárlón. Unfortunately it was canceled due to high wind, but we went and explored on our own. Again it was very crowded. We first walked over to Diamond beach where there are large chunks of ice on the shore and just really cool to see. We then went back to the lagoon and saw very interesting icebergs of different shapes and colors, very beautiful. We decided to walk around the lagoon and made it 1/3 of the way around and as always once you venture just a little past the main attraction the crowds thin out. We only saw three other people, it was very peaceful and it was nice to be able to see the glacier from different angles.

After the lagoon we made our way to Djúpivogur where we were staying for the night. That evening as we were looking into what we wanted to do the next day, Lee found a peak he wanted to climb (Búlandstindur) that was close to the hotel. He showed me the route information and I immediately knew I was in for a long and anxiety producing hike. But the next morning we geared up and made our way to the trailhead. There wasn’t a trail for this hike but they did have wooden stakes you followed up the mountain, and you basically went straight up the mountain. There was some scrambling involved as well, which alway makes me nervous, but Lee was having a great time. After 2.5 miles and 3000 feet of elevation gain we made it to the top of the pyramid shaped mountain. We had a quick snack and started to head down in case it started to rain. There was supposedly a loop you could take back down the mountain and we started heading in the general direction we thought the path would be. We did finally find a few wooden stakes but after the third stake they either disappeared or we just missed them. Needless to say we had what I would say was an anxiety provoking adventure making our way down the face of the mountain, scrambling down cliff bands. Luckily Lee has great route finding skills and got us down in one piece. As much as the hike made me nervous it was beautiful scenery and we walked on very cushioning moss in several spots and Lee got his Iceland peak!

After hiking we made our way to the cute town of Egilsstaðir, got some great pizza for dinner and headed to our little farmhouse for the night. The next day, I planned our adventure to a remote hot pot that I had read about. It was mostly paved roads except for the last 8 kilometers where it turned into and “F road” (these are dirt roads that can be rocky and rough in places), but we found what we were looking for, Laugavallalaug! As we got to the parking lot there was one other car there, we were a little disappointed hoping we would have the place to ourselves but we were still excited to check it out. As we were walking down the hill to the hot pot the couple (they were from Canada) were just leaving. We had the hot pot to ourselves! The hot pot was fed by a waterfall and we had a view of a beautiful valley and the river that the hot pot emptied into. It was glorious! The water was the perfect temp, you could get a massage under the waterfall and it was just a wonderful experience (and we had it all to ourselves). 

We stayed for almost 2 hours and then decided it was time to leave and we couldn’t have timed it better, about the time we decided to leave we saw a car coming down the road, as we walked out we passed 6 people heading in. It was great timing and an experience we will not forget.

As we left the hot pot we made a quick stop literally across the road to a the largest canyon in Iceland, Hafrahvammagljúfur. It was beautiful and the water was a milky blue. Then our next stop was about 20 kilometers down the F road to another canyon Stuðlagil. This canyon had very interesting basalt columns and the river water was a beautiful blue, oh and of course had a very cool waterfall by the parking lot. There were quite a few people on the trail and we were missing the quiet we had earlier in the day at our other stops, but it was still worth the stop. We had great timing as we got back to the car it started to rain and it didn’t stop for the next 1.5 days.

We arrived at hotel for the night (the only one we stayed at for more than 1 night) and were happy to find it was a quant inn that was once a farm. The next morning we got up and decided to just relax for a while before our whale watching tour we had scheduled that day. The tour company had already emailed saying it may be cancelled due to weather so we weren’t getting our hopes up. As we went out to the car Lee noticed our back tire was flat (the tire pressure light had been on for a couple days, but the tires never looked low). Lee changed the tire (in the rain I might add) and I found a tire shop in the town where we were going for our tour. We dropped off the tire and went to the tour office where they told us no tours were going out that day. We were disappointed but we saw there was a whale museum in town and a geothermal sea bath. We visited the museum which was interesting and then headed to the sea bath. It was a very nice place that had several pools of different water temps that overlooked the ocean. Even though it was still rainy and windy it was a great way to spend a few hours.

Our first week in Iceland was amazing and we couldn’t wait to continue with our trip!

Today we drove from our Harvest Host site (a farm stand that sold donuts – hurray!) outside Indianapolis over to Berlin, OH – Amish country! The Amish are largely of German descent, which likely explains the name of this fairly small town (Berlin, OH). The countryside here in Ohio is nice – the Amish country in particular is well manicured and it’s clear that most Amish work hard to maintain their property and lifestyle. We stopped at a restaurant that got good reviews just outside of Berlin and had a classic Amish meal (mashed potatoes, stuffing, chicken, etc.) which was good, but… way too much food! We’re staying in an RV park tonight with full hookups, and the weather has been really cooperating for us – almost chilly at night! Interestingly enough, while out running this evening an older Amish woman went flying by me on her bicycle. It was certainly somewhat humbling, even if I was on a bit of a downhill slope. She just smiled… :-)7/14

After spending some time in Amish country, we headed to Cuyahoga Falls for a Jack Johnson concert. It was a big venue, with well over 15,000 people in attendance! There was not a mask in sight (for the COVID situation), though we learned just a couple days ago that Mona’s mom came down with it. She’s doing ok, and it seems like some of the medications available for it are helping. The concert was enjoyable, and we had a nice campground to stay in that was close by.

Today (7/15/2022) we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, which was interesting. We also looked around Cleveland on a Friday evening, and it was pretty shut down even by 4pm. The downtown areas that center on office space still seem pretty empty, likely partly due to the COVID situation with more people working from home. We stayed in a persons yard listed on Harvest Host. In general, we’ve had good luck with our Harvest Host stays, and this was true of this stay as well.

Next up was some biking at Cuyahoga National Park. We had hoped to do some mountain biking in the park but rains from the previous night kept the trails closed to bikers. Instead we found a long trail, almost like a “rails to trails” type bike/walking path, and we rode 20 miles on that. The area was filled with canals and locks that were used to move a lot of freight around in years past. The park was organized, clean, and not too busy, so it make for a really nice bike ride. After biking, we drove a good distance to another Harvest Host, this time a farm about a half hour away from Pittsburgh. We bought a little produce, and settled in for a nice dinner of veggies – Ramona’s favorite! During the night, we were both awakened with an amazing electrical storm, along with a significant amount of rainfall. Some of the lightning was close, in one case between the lightening and the crack of thunder, it felt almost like the van shook a bit!

Next up was Pittsburgh. I had hoped to tour a steel factory, but unfortunately all the tours were already booked. Instead we parked near Three Rivers stadium (home of the Steelers), and then did some sightseeing around downtown Pittsburgh. Having spent some time working in Pittsburgh many years ago, it was fun to see some of the same buildings, and also nice to see that the city has gone through a bit of a renaissance! There was a large festival of sorts happening, aptly named Picklesburgh. Heinz (the company) was a big sponsor, and Mona was able to buy a few things with Heinz prominently displayed! After our time in Pittsburgh, we drove close to 3 hours and stayed in a campground just outside of Gettysburg. It rained a lot again today, so it was nice to reach our campground with no van leaks or water problems of any sort.

After Pittsburgh, we spent some time in Gettysburg and largely just toured around the area looking at all the civil war memorials. There’s tons of history in Gettysburg, and if you’re into the civil war and associated history, this would be a required stop! It was warm while we were there, so we didn’t do as much as perhaps we would have done otherwise. Once we’d seen the key points around the area, we continued to head east and made our way over to Amish country near Lancaster. Mona had found a bed and breakfast for us to stay at where we could actually visit with the owners to learn more about the Amish.

Our bed and breakfast was outside of town and was considered a “farmette”. The owners (and elderly couple) had a big garden, as well as a few animals that included some horses, goats, and sheep. They were very pleasant to talk to, with the woman being quite focused on getting everything done while there was still light (as there was no electricity in the house other than a few battery powered lamps and fans). The elderly man was difficult to understand at times due to an accident from years past, but we were still able to learn a lot from him. Their life is simple in some ways, and hard in others. By not using a lot of today’s technologies (e.g., cars, electricity from the grid, etc.), the amount of work to simply “live” certainly goes up. It keeps the Amish people very busy, that was clear. Of our two Amish visits (one here in PA, and the other in Ohio), we found the Ohio location to be a bit nicer – further from major population areas, more buggies on the road, etc. Both were nice, but that was our general feeling.

After our time with the Amish, the weather forecast was calling for increasingly hot temps, so we decided to rent an AirBnB in Philadelphia to get out of some of the heat. We found what turned out to be a nice place in “Old Germantown”, and made our way into the city. One thing we constantly have to be watching for is if places have suitable parking for our van – ideally something off the road, and big enough to accommodate a fairly large vehicle. Thankfully this place had off road parking (not easy to find in big cities), was close to public transit, included a washer/dryer, and was just a really nice place to stay. We enjoyed our time in Philadelphia, and spent one day going downtown to visit the Liberty Bell, and to look around the city. Unfortunately, it was so hot that walking around was not as nice as if the weather had cooperated – we found ourselves ducking into various buildings just to beat the heat! We did enjoy looking around, and learning a bit more about the history that unfolded in that area.

We also got a few errands taken care of – namely getting the van in for a routine oil change and lube. We also ended up having the rear brakes replaced, which wasn’t too surprising given the miles we have put on, and the weight of the van. We also had a nice visit with Karen’s daughter Ashley and her husband David and kids. They just happened to be in the area, so we met at a small Mediterranean place and enjoyed getting some lunch on yet another hot day!

After our few days in Philadelphia, we headed to the Promised Land state park for some camping and paddling. The weather had eased off a bit, and we had a couple nice nights at this campground, on what turned out to be a nice spot to paddle.

Our break from the weather was a bit short-lived, and we ended up going to one more bed and breakfast in a small town called Stanhope, NJ. We were in a small room, but had the run of the house and made ourselves comfortable for an evening, just catching up on some internet time, and getting out of the heat.

At this point, we were coming up on our trip to Iceland! We decided to spend our last couple of nights before the trip in another campground in New Jersey. It turned out to be a nice place, but buggy in the woods! It was a peaceful place which seemed a bit odd knowing that we were only about 50 miles from New York City. We got a few of our last minute chores done before our Iceland trip, and Mona spent time planning “down the road” for our time next winter. More on that to come, but suffice it to say that the planning part of traveling never ends!

We also hit our 1 year anniversary as van lifers (7/25/2022). It’s hard to believe that a year has gone by. We’ve covered a lot of ground, and a lot of states, and we feel extremely lucky to have been able to do something like this! We enjoy everything that comes with our travels – seeing new places, trying new food (ahem, too much at times), meeting new people, and just having the flexibility to do things we could never do if we were working full-time. We’re excited about the next year coming up as well!