2-fer, One Trip, 2 Pins :)

Discussion in 'Long Haul' started by Nancy and Greg, Apr 19, 2017.

  1. Greg and Nancy are newcomers to camping, even though we're in our sixties. We have discovered a new love, life in the tiny camper. We have a 2011 Ultra 560 VIN 1P9BT1014BN422010.
    We love every last thing about it. In the late summer of 2016, we left our home on the coast of North Carolina, and began our westward journey. We had a skeleton of a plan and zero reservations at campgrounds, preferring to be spontaneous and do more detailed planning as we traveled. It all worked out really well. We love traveling this way, not being bound by having to be anywhere on a particular date.
    First, we spent a several nights in the Great Smokies, only 5 or so hours from home, near Floyd, VA, and enjoyed the Blue Ridge Parkway and all the great music in Floyd.
    We met college friends in Fairborn, OH, then traveled together in Michigan's lower peninsula, visiting Sleeping Bear NP and Pyramid Point. How can this lake look so much like waters of the Caribbean? Stunning!
    Onward to the Michigan's Upper Peninsula, visiting Tuquamenon State Park, then Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, where we toured the lake by chartered boat. We discovered that we love Michigan!
    We traveled on westward, spending a night in Van Riper State Park, WI, which is lovely and on a beautiful lake. We started traveling northward, deciding to head west across Canada, staying in Wooden Frog CG, Voyageurs NP in Minnesota, then crossing the border in International Falls.
    We loved traveling across Canada. The golden fields were beautiful in September. We enjoyed several stops along the way, in some provincial parks and some private campgrounds, visited the Royal Tyrrell dinosaur museum near Drumheller.
    We put down stakes in Bow Valley campground, just north/west of Calgary, and drove back and forth to Banff several days, exploring this unbelievably beautiful area. Our first big hike of the trip was to the teahouse to see Lake Agnes. This would be the bar by which we judged our hiking abilities as we got stronger and were able to hike longer and steeper trails.
    Then on to Crandell Campground on Water Lake, CA, took the boat cruise down the lake to US side, looking for moose all the way, but not finding any. Dinner at he Prince Albert Hotel was a highlight.
    On to Glacier NP in the US. We camped at St. Mary's for several days on the east side, then stayed at a friend's on teh west side.
    Then Yellowstone. We really saw so much of the park, though we had to be patient because some roads were closed due to a fire, and some roads were closed due to snow, and some roads were closed due to construction! We managed to stay in 4 different campgrounds, Mammoth, Norris, Fishing Bridge, among them. We loved Norris the best. The wildlife and thermal activity in Yellowstone made it a national park that's hard to surpass.
    On to Teton, staying at Colter Bay. Loved the old village at the ferry, and the Lawrence Rockefeller Preserve was a real highlight. We saw a FAMILY! of moose on this road. Pretty lucky.
    On the way to Colorado and the Rockies, we stayed some nights in Steinaker State Park in Utah, and loved it there....our first taste of Utah.
    After the Rockies, we went south to the Great Sand Dunes, on the advice of a good friend, are were so glad we included this park on our journey. It was so different and beautiful and we were lucky? that it snowed....and added a beautiful snow-capped mountain background to our photos here.
    Teh next stop was Black Canyon of the Gunnison. We were surprised by this park....had never even heard of it, but really appreciated the black canyon walls and the interesting access walkway that allowed us to look so far below into the canyon. We used our binoculars here to see a guy portaging his kayak in the base of the canyon, and also some rock climbers on the opposite side, scaling the wall of the canyon.
    Next we spent about a month in Utah....so much to see! Arches, Canyonlands, Gooseneck State Park, all the petrogyghs, the Needles, Newspaper Rock, Capitol Reed (another NP we had never heard of, and it was one our favorites.....the fruit pies...oh my!). At some point. we headed back east to take in Mesa Verde (Balcony House and Long House...pretty scary going up and down that ladder!)
    We came back west after Mesa Verde, staying several nights in Blanding, Utah, then on to Capitol Reef, loving that drive....and taking in Rainbow Bridges NP along the way. AFter Capitol Reef, (with some great hiking), we drove the Grand Escalante Staircase, stopping at the Petrified Forest State Parks, on the way to Bryce, Zion, plus Kodachrome State Park, and Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Then we came back east a bit and stayed on the north and south rims of the GRand Canyon, taking in the Vermillion Cliffs, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Dam, Antelope Canyon, Lee's Ferry, and Marble Canyon along the way. Writing all this now, I can hardly believe we did it all....never had a problem or an illness. We decided that wherever we were and whatever we were seeing, it was our best day yet. :)
    After the Grand Canyon, we headed west, went to Sequoia and King's Canyon, staying in King's, then on to Yosemite, where we spent 2 weeks. Our family met us here and we enjoyed hiking with children and grandchildren. After 100 days on the road, and traveling 10,300 miles, we left our tiny camper and car (Hyundai Santa Fe) with our son in LA, flew home for the holidays, and fly back out mid-January to make the return journey home to NC.
     
    Evan, Jenn, Randy and 1 other person like this.
  2. Larry Running

    Larry Running Junior Ranger Donating Member

    Congrats on gaining a "new love". It sounds like you had a great trip!
     
  3. mariusz

    mariusz Junior Ranger

    Great trip.
     
  4. adrianneross

    adrianneross Junior Ranger Donating Member

    Congratulations - now that's the way to travel!
     
Loading...

Share This Page