Road Trip? We're So Ready!
/After considering the possibility of another road trip recently… for about a nanosecond… it was a given that we would head out soon, but some things were still up in the air. In the last few days, we’ve gotten some clarifications and good news. We are now entering countdown mode!
First, the campgrounds in Trinidad, Colorado are open and though not all the family will be able to attend, several of us will share three campsites, catch up on the last year of family activities, miss those not in attendance and generally enjoy being out and about and with each other… in a group of less than 10, of course. Some of the amenities at the campground are still closed, but we’ll come prepared and tough it out.
Second, our youngest son, Brad, and family are camp hosts this season at Flat Rocks Campground near Sedalia, Colorado in the Rampart Range of the Pike National Forest. They’ve recently bought a converted bus, Berta, and are beginning the nomadic life as we did a couple of decades ago… but on land. They’re excited and we’re keen to meet ‘Berta’ and spend some time with everyone.
Where to after that? Well, I’ve been scouring maps and gazetteers, reading reviews of campgrounds and places of interest, and checking out hiking opps and out of the way places that sound appealing. The current itinerary includes a couple of days in Trinidad, a swing north through Colorado and Wyoming then into Montana with hopes of getting to Glacier National Park. We’d cross into Idaho and head back south into Nevada. How long will this take? Your guess is as good as ours… probably as long as it takes.
Where is the heck is Jarbidge, Nevada? Located in the Jarbidge Wilderness Area in northwestern Nevada, this remote mining town is located just south of the Idaho line. Sounds like a must-visit place.
Photo credit: Mark Hoffstetler
Our oldest son, Brennan, mentioned a remote old mining town in northern Nevada, Jarbidge, on the Idaho line which sounds like one of those places you really have to work to get to and therefore is a worthwhile destination. After researching further, I think that’s a must-see on this trip. Brennan has a knack for finding cool and unusual places to visit. Heck, he took his bride to Borneo on their honeymoon!
Impressive, huh? This is one of the more substantial upgrades that David is working on for Blue. We’ll have lots of storage when he’s finished.
Now, that’s the easy part and the fun part. The hard part is getting our act together to make sure we’re ready to leave by the appointed date… currently June 17th. David is working day and night on Blue, not just putting him back together, but incorporating several upgrades as well. As for me, I’m doing food and supply inventories, making lists (and checking them twice) of to-do’s as well as making sure that all is handled on the home front before we leave.
We totally emptied Blue when we recently moved Karen to Colorado. One of my chores is to go through each bin, determine what we have, what we need and then get us all re-supplied and re-provisioned. Hmm… sounds ever so much like getting ready for a passage on Nine of Cups!
We piled up all of Blue’s many plastic bins in Mary’s apartment-sized closet. The fridge, composting toilet and lots of other accessories are sitting in the guest room. We’ve rooted and rifled through them all in the past months and removed many of the existing supplies since last autumn. It’s time to figure out what we have and what we need to replace and then make it so.
Will it all get done? Well, David has his A, B & C lists close at hand. All the A’s will be complete… we WILL have a toilet, a bed and a fridge! He’s ticking away at the B list and if time allows, maybe even a few C list items might get checked off. Stranger things have happened.
We’re hoping many, if not all of you, will join us as we traipse around this wonderful country of ours. We could all use a change of scenery, some peace and a little communion with Mother Nature. We’ll be searching for them all!