Tragedy Narrowly Averted
That’s how Bobby Weir introduces a song during a Grateful Dead concert in 1980 that I’ve listened to a million times. He says, “From a long... Read more.
Seasonal Campground
I saw this practice of people parking their camper in one spot all summer back in Virginia at Small Country Campground, but only now it is sinking in as a very cool... Read more.
Premium @ Superior
Please excuse the mess on the table in the photo above, but I just love the view from inside the Airstream at this “premium” camping spot—directly... Read more.
Key Is Entering the Water Lilies Slowly
I finally found my groove in my new kayak (and with myself), at least for this lake. I slowed all the way to a meander as Tracy paddled away at his own rate. ... Read more.
Five Days by Black Lake
If you’ve been following along with me, you may remember my huge relief at spending five days in Savage River State Forest in Maryland, where we had no electricity... Read more.
Great Campsite, Too Little Time
We had only three days at Perrot State Park in Wisconsin, right across the Mississippi from Michigan, near La Crosse. I’ve mentioned this before but it’s... Read more.
Old Friends, Primo Beer, New Toys
YAY! Seeing Tracy’s best friend, Dave, was our central goal for coming to the Midwest this summer, and with the virus we thought we might have to sacrifice... Read more.
What I Miss the Most
When I first started dreaming of life on the road, I was at the tail-end of about 30 years of being responsible for family members in various settings, from hospitals... Read more.
Love Me Two Times, Iowa
We’re back in Iowa—in Elkader, the small town where Tracy’s best friend and his wife live. We weren’t keen on visiting (hence the second take)... Read more.
What We Do in the Heat
We’ve been doing three things in Madison, WI: hanging out at a distance with old friends, walking miles of park trails, and sitting in a stupor due to the... Read more.
Eclectic Madison, WI
We’re in Madison for several reasons: a couple of friends live here (more on that in the next post), Tracy went to grad school (and drove a cab) here so knows... Read more.
Wisconsin Welcome with Beer and Cheese
Potosi Brewing Co. We stayed at another Harvest Host last night and our first one that’s a brewery, the very old Potosi Brewing Company on the Wisconsin River.... Read more.
Tracy’s Social Hometown
We came to Iowa to hang out with Tracy’s people, and Iowa is continuing to deliver. Or, to overuse that Field of Dreams reference, if you show up with your... Read more.
Special Banjo Edition
For my friend Whit, here’s a compilation of recent Banjo photos, plus a few new ones. Yowl! Sing with me. B A – N J O B A – N J O B A – N... Read more.
Finally, a Sunrise to Ourselves
Turns out that’s what Banjo and I were missing the most here in this full campground without an easy place to walk. Don’t get me wrong: there are beautiful... Read more.
So Far in Cedar Falls
We’re in Tracy’s hometown, and I tell you what. You know when you’re driving through someone’s old stomping grounds and at every corner they... Read more.
Photos from Des Moines
We leave here tomorrow, and I can’t sleep because we stayed up late playing that Firefly board game. It wasn’t until we were cleaning it up that I saw... Read more.
Old Ties and Companions
The title here is from a Mandolin Orange song with lyrics that are quite melancholy, but the music and title make me think warmly about old friends, so it works... Read more.
It’s Hard to Photograph a Prairie
Especially when a certain someone is wearing a ginormous hat to ward off mosquitos and insists on getting in the middle of the photo. It’s also hard because... Read more.
Iowa Mead? Yes Please.
This place. I don’t want to spend any more time on my laptop writing this entry than I have to because it takes away from my time gazing at the green land... Read more.
Lincoln’s New Salem
As we make our way to Iowa and Wisconsin, we’re sticking to our plan to stay at campgrounds for the weekends so we know we have a sure-fire camping site for Friday... Read more.
What It’s Really Like on the Road
Right now we’re in Illinois staying at the campground beside the state historical park called Lincoln’s New Salem. I’ll post about this place once we figure... Read more.
Our First Harvest Host Stay
Aka No Alpaca but Other Cutie-pie Animals Last night was our first—and fabulous—experience using our membership with Harvest Hosts. The way this works is we... Read more.
Where Are We?
Until I can figure out how to get a real-time webmap on my homepage, I’ll update the tiny map to the right, under the recent posts (or if you’re on your... Read more.
Airstreamers’ Mecca
There’s only one factory in the world that makes the iconic Airstream, and we visited it early in our travels because our Firefly needed tweaking—a handful... Read more.
To See America, You See Americans
I thought I was done thinking about Shawnee here in southern Ohio, but I’ve got one last entry about the weekend in this campground. Things Tracy and I... Read more.
AM Hikes, PM Lounge
This place, Ohio’s Shawnee State Park, is really growing on me. On the advice of a couple of friends (hi, Melissa M!), I’m reading Blue Highways by a fellow... Read more.
Living Between Two Worlds
I feel like I’m in a Star Trek episode where the transporter has malfunctioned (in the future no one says, “broken”), and I’m stuck between two planets. ... Read more.
Calm and Quiet
I’m still here at Savage River State Forest, sitting in a camp chair overlooking the rushing creek at the back of our site. I’m watching a water thrush hop from... Read more.
Five Days in the Hollow
We’re in Savage River State Forest, which isn’t really a hollow (“holler” for you non-Southerners). It’s a deeply wooded, steep valley that feels like... Read more.
