A long-awaited reunion of two families (and life-long friends) finally happened at the campsite beside us at Jasper–one mother-daughter pair from as far as New Zealand—and against every obstacle the universe could throw at them. Let’s see, the absurd events that seemed to conspire against this reunion include: Lightning struck Ruth’s house the day after […]
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Vacationing It Up with Friends in Our Last U.S. Campground
We’ve had only three full days here at the Washington County Park Campground in Anacortes, but we’ve lived them like the true weekend warriors camped among us. Hiking and Biking Every Day A paved, three-mile, one-way road loops the park, and I’ve walked it and biked it and stepped aside from it to admire the […]
Unexpected Perks of Visiting Friends on the Road
You know how we love to meet up with old friends who live near our route. Sometimes they come to the campsite, or we go to their house and hang out on their deck, or we meet them in town; once we even stayed in a friend’s driveway. Just seeing familiar faces is a pleasure. […]
Co-camping among the Manzanitas
Imagine that a friend, whom you haven’t seen in two years, pulls up to your remote campsite. Imagine that she pulls out of her car: a bottle of champagne, a dinner kit of salmon and veggies (prepped and ready for the stove), and a bag of limes. Now, imagine that she also pulls out a […]
Adios Las Vegas
We’re leaving Las Vegas Bay campground just after most of our neighbors have left, oddly. You know those neighbors. The single lady living/traveling in her minivan with her little reactive dog; the mom and disabled daughter in their camper with their much bigger reactive dog (we all would walk at strategic times of the day). […]
Mojave Brewing and Mojave Hiking
To counter the downer of my last post about Las Vegas, here are some damned-near glorious experiences we’ve had here. Welcome Conversation At Mojave Brewing in nearby Henderson, we met up with this fun couple, Debbie and Paul, who were recommended to us by a mutual friend back in Maryland (Hi Bob!). It had been […]
Dodging Forest Fires in the Belt Mountains
We’re not in Oregon dodging that colossal fire—we’re still in Montana. How can you top the Beartooth? Our plan is to head north, cross Glacier National Park on Highway 2 (that we left because of the heat), and see if we can boondock for a good long while at my friend Jess’s family house on Flathead […]
Dear Diary,
Saturday, June 26, 6:00 am I’ve just woken up on a someone else’s mattress on the floor of an empty bedroom in an apartment I don’t know. And I’m elated! Why, is that, dear diary? Because this empty bedroom is in my son’s summer apartment, and I had a sleepover with him last night. Yes, that could […]
Art on the Way to Physics at Michigan State Univ.
In case you’ve missed the million times I’ve worked this into conversation, my son, Finn, is entering the doctoral program in physics at Michigan State this fall. I’ve arrived just a few days after he’s moved here; he’s starting his research work with the Ice Cube neutrino detector now, so we’re camping near his summer […]
Banjo’s Big Day + Reunions and Sookie on the Water
When our days are this full with friends and special events because we’re in a town where we know people, I have a hard time organizing this blog. You’d probably appreciate it if I waited for a week to pass, then threw each topic into its own post so you could see (or skip) the […]
