We had originally planned to stay in Big Bend 6 nights, but we ended up staying 5. We were there during unusually hot weather so hiking (which is the thing to do!) was not as pleasant as we had hoped. We didn’t see some of the iconic spots because they were on the west side of the park and we stayed on the east side. It would have been 1.5 hours to drive to some of those spots, which would have put our hiking times at peak heat by the time we were done. That just means it is another reason for us to go back one day and stay on the West side of the park so we can see all that we missed! Where we Stayed: Fort Clark Springs: On our way to Big Bend, we stopped for 2 nights at this gated community in Bracketville, TX. They have a RV park with full hookups for only $11.25 a night because we are members of Passport America. It ended up being a great little place with a lot of history. If you ask the volunteer at the museum, he will tell you the Civil War started at the fort here. The Union gave up the fort to the Confederates before the war was in full swing. This fort was built for the Spanish-American War, but then used in the Civil War, World I, World War II and the Korean War as a training facility. Marathon RV Park: This was about a half way point so we decided to stay the night. The park had a great courtyard where we met another couple from Bend! It was really hot that day so the full hookups and Passport America price was great! At night, astronomers from Fort Davis Observatory were there and had their telescopes out so we could learn about the stars. If you wanted to have hookups and don't mind driving about 45min to get to the park, you could stay here. The big hotel in town had a little area with volleyball, chess, horseshoes and more so we spent quite a few hours there after we arrived just enjoying the evening. Rio Grande Village NP Campground: We stayed in the park at the only campground our trailer would fit. It was on the southeast corner near the Boquillas border crossing. Because this is the desert side of Big Bend, it was HOT! Friends we met in the campground kept a thermostat in their camper and one day when we got back from a hike it was 106 degrees in their camper. Other than that, it was a great campground. Our site was very large and had a great view of the mountains at sunset. Things we did: Window Trail: We went to a ranger talk in the morning then planned to hike the Lost Mine trail. Unfortunately the parking area was full! The Window trail was nearby and also recommended, so we did that hike instead. It was an easy 4 miles round trip with a beautiful view at the end. Pine Canyon Trail: To get here, you do a 6 mile off road drive then hike 4 miles round trip. The beginning starts off through the desert then you end up in the mountain part of the canyon and end up at a waterfall (in the rainy season). The exciting, yet scary, part of the trip was when we were hanging around at the end. The kids went into a cave type area and were talking with their friends. The second time they went up, Lance saw a snake. They all did great and stayed calm and walked back out. Dan and our new friend Craig, went to check it out and it was a Blacktail Rattlesnake. We were all very thankful that none of the kids had accidentally stepped on it. It was way too close for comfort! Boquillas Canyon and Border: We used our passports to go across the border to Boquillas, Mexico. You walk down to the river then take a little row boat across. Once across, you can walk or pay to ride a donkey, horse or in a truck to the town. It was a little village over 160 miles from the nearest Mexican village. They rely heavily on tourists and each family sells handmade souvenirs. We bought a couple and had lunch at one of the two restaurants. When we arrived, we were the only ones there so the owner sat and talked with us for a long time about the town and the history of it. He was also very proud that their town had won a grant from the government to put in a solar farm so they could generate more electricity. If you ever go to Big Bend, definitely bring your passports and visit Boquillas. Historic Hot Springs: We did the .50 mile hike instead of the 3 mile from the village store since the days were so hot. We were told the hot springs were next to the river that had easy spots to get into and was deep so you could sit and relax. There were little rapids so they kids rode down them in our little blow up and had a blast. There used to be a hotel and store down here. There were also some pictographs on the rock walls.
Rio Grande Village Nature Trail and swimming in the Rio Grande: We took this trail a couple times because you could get to the river and sit and cool off. It was a great nightly spot after hiking in the heat. We also took the trail to the top of a little hill to watch the sunset. That is where we met the Plocica family who is also traveling for the year. We ended up doing most of our hikes with them then following each other to our next destination….Guadalupe Mountains!
0 Comments
After leaving Florida, we hightailed it to Texas! We had friends flying down to see us in San Antonio so we had to be there by March 7th. Since the beginning of the trip, Dan has said he wanted to be in Texas by March; he didn’t want to get caught in any spring storms coming in off the Gulf. It was a good thing we did that, because right after we got to Texas, a storm went through east of us. Where we stayed: Mississippi Visitor Center: The visitor centers on I10 in Mississippi have RV pullouts so you can stay overnight if needed. We stayed at this one because we planned to get up and go to the NASA Infinity Science center the next day. We ended up not going because we decided to drive further and didn’t want to drive all night. We have heard great things about the science center though. Winnie-Stowell Park: free nights with no hookups in their county park. We had spent the last couple days driving all day so we wanted to relax a little. We were able to park right in front of the playground. Great spot just to unwind for a little bit. San Antonio: Lake Braunig RV Resort. The draw for this campground was it had a hotel next door, so our friends that came to visit, would be very close. It was also only about 20 minutes from downtown San Antonio and it had a pool. Sadly, the weather was gloomy and rainy for most of the time we were there but the hot tub was nice! Spanish Missions: San Jose, Espada, San Juan, Conception and the Alamo. We did a ranger talk at San Juan Mission that really helped us understand why the missions were there and why so many are close together (unlike California where they are all spread out). The local natives were taught the Spanish culture and protected from the Apaches. The river provided water for farming. The missions continue on as churches even today. It was great to see the National Park Service and the Catholic Church working together to preserve our history. Witt Museum: Free with ASTC, so we went 3 times! There were a few different buildings for this museum. One was about the animals and dinosaurs found in Texas. One was about history of Texas and the cowboys and one was a place for kids. Of course most of our time was spent in the kid section. They had you do different body activities to learn about how our body works. One day there was a medical student with a touch screen body that taught us about different body systems. They also had a rock wall and Skybike that was included in admission, so the kids loved doing that. It’s a fun museum to learn history and have a little fun. DoSeum: Free with ASTC. This museum is for kids 10 and under, so Lily just made it. It’s your typical science museum with lots and lots of hands-on activities for the kids. I think the highlight for Lily was the Skype setup they had in the Nat. Geo. Section. She was able to meet another girl in Mexico City. There was no sound so they used a white board to “talk” to each other. They asked each other questions about their families and their favorite things. It was pretty fun to watch her be so excited to meet someone in another country. River Walk: Dan did the 26 mile round trip bike ride. He thinks it’s a great way to see San Antonio and the missions. The 3 moms and kids did the boat ride around downtown to get an up close view of how the river is controlled and all the historic buildings around it. We also walked around parts of the downtown Riverwalk. SeaWorld: The moms and kids spent a day watching the shows and visiting the animals and going on a few rides. Unfortunately, it was rainy that day. Kim and our kids went back and did the water park on our last day in San Antonio when it was finally sunny. We wanted to make sure we got our money’s worth for our 7 day ticket! It was great to see our friends and explore a new city together! (We realized we never posted this! Better late than never!) We went all over Florida during the month of February. Why didn’t we have a more organized route? Because February in Florida is CRAZY with snowbirds! We were told in November that if we were planning to go to Florida we better make reservations soon. The problem is, we didn’t know where we wanted to go or when because of other family commitments. So, we started calling when things were more concrete and found out lots of places were booked. We ended up with many 2-4 night stays and did a circle 8 around Florida. Places we stayed: St. Augustine, Tampa, Fort De Soto, Naples, Hollywood, Disneyworld, Fort Pierce, Ocala National Forest, and Santa Rosa Beach. Each were unique in their own way. Some were RV parks where we only had a few feet between our slide and the RV next to us but swimming pools, gyms, bingo and lots of other fun things to do. Others were state or county campgrounds were we had lots of trees and a good amount of space and the beach and nature to entertain us. Things we did: Legoland, Clearwater Marine Aquarium, and DisneyWorld were all on the agenda. These were all in celebration of the kids’ birthdays. The nice part of having kids with birthdays 2 days apart is you get to do their celebrations together. The bad part (for mom) is having cake in the house for a week! Nana and Papa and Aunt Julie and Elliot met us at Disney. It was great to have others to help entertain the kids Lots of beaches! Everywhere we went we checked out the beach. That’s the thing to do in Florida right? The first part of the month was actually pretty cold, so we didn’t spend time in the water, just by the beach. By the end of the month, the kids were actually tired of going to the beach. We’d say let’s go and they’d say NO! I guess we won’t be moving to the beach anytime soon. Seeing Family and Friends. We met up with friends Lynn and Dave, who we first met at Assateague Island in Virginia. They spent the day exploring the fort in St. Augustine with us. We also were able to spend time with Kim’s niece Teagan in Hollywood. The kids were super excited since we hadn’t seen Teagan in at least a year. We also saw Kim’s ex-colleague, Peni and her husband Steve, who are enjoying the sunny retirement life in The Villages. We saw many of the Bezdek side of the family at the 100th birthday party for Aunt Jeri. Many of them we had never met before.
Overall, we had a very busy time in Florida but really enjoyed the sunshine instead of the lots and lots of snow they were getting back home in Oregon! Yes, the parents are a little behind on blog writing. It's been a little hectic the last month! We left Holden Beach, NC January 9 and since then have been to Charleston, Savannah, and all over Florida! In Charleston, the highlight was seeing Kim's nephew and meeting his son for the first time. The best part about this trip on the road is all the family we get to see that we wouldn't see otherwise! We were busy in Charleston! Patriot's Point (see Lance's blog), Mangolia Gardens Plantation, a walking tour of historic Charleston, visiting the city market and boardwalk, Battery Park and Fort Sumter, and Angel Oak. It's a neat town with lots of interesting history. In Savannah, we stayed at a campground just north of town so that we would have easy access to Hilton Head. The campground, Camp Lake Jasper, had a great fishing lake where Lily caught her first catfish. It also had the first signs we had seen warning us of alligators in the area. We also experienced our first tornado watch while here. That is not an experience we want to relive. People say it is worse to live in the West where you never know an earthquake will happen. I say sitting around all day, waiting to see if you need to run for cover is more nerve racking! In Savannah we visited the beaches at Hilton Head and Tybee Island. At this point the kids still liked the beach! We did a city tour of historic Savannah also. It's great to see and hear about such old history. We also visited Fort Pulaski which was the same blueprint as Fort Sumter but still standing. The last thing we did was a "Night at the Museum" at the Savannah History Museum. It was a lot of fun and very interesting because they had everyone dressed in character and telling us the history but really engaging the kids. From January 26 to now, we have been in Florida. We've crisscrossed across the state to many places, which we'll write about in another blog. My one piece of advice, if you want to stay somewhere longer than a few days, make reservations months ahead of time! February is the busiest month here for campers, so we had to jump around every few days just to find campgrounds!
6 months! Where has the time gone? Well, let’s see…
While being on the road, we’ve found ourselves saying some things we never thought we’d say.
We’ve had some great experiences in the last 6 months.
The next 6 months we will begin our journey West; soaking up the sun in Florida, learning about the Civil Rights movement in Alabama, seeing what’s big about Texas, visiting family in Arizona, experiencing the “Mighty Five” parks in Utah, and ending our journey by visiting the national park in our own back yard, Crater Lake.
One thing we’ve learned along the way is to plan as you go and go with the flow. As our adventure continues, we are looking forward to what the next six months have in store for us. Hopefully not a fire! November 1st we left Aunt Marice’s for the Maryland coast on Assateague Island National Shoreline. We camped on the barrier island that was the home of 87 wild horses and their 5 new foals. The weather was continuing to warm as we headed south and the kids played on the beach and quickly met new friends, Nicole and Fred, who were shore fishing for red drum and blue fish.
The horses of Assateague Island were beautiful, short, stocky ponies that have adapted to the salt and wind of the barrier island. The romantic version of how the horses got there was from a shipwreck off the coast and the horses swam ashore and became feral. More likely we were told settlers put horses on the island in the late 17th century to avoid grazing taxes in Virginia. However they arrived, Assateague Island’s horses are as unique and charming as their coastal home island. Our favorite was an all brown colt who had a white spot on one side in the shape of a heart. November 5st we continued south, down the “Del-Mar-Va” peninsula. We were out of New England and entering Mid-Atlantic country. The land became flatter as we approached the engineering feat that is the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. 17 Miles of narrow elevated roadway and tunnels that span the mouth of Chesapeake Bay with no turnoffs. We have heard stories of semi-trucks and RV’s clipping mirrors in the narrow two lane tunnels. We spent the night in the toll plaza on the north end so we could get going over the bridge early in the morning when the winds were down. The next morning November 6, the winds were not down, but our crossing of the Chesapeake Bay entrance was uneventful nonetheless. We headed to Chippokes Plantation State Park in Surry Virginia. We got a nice camp site and met up with a ranger guided tour of some of the farm animals, old farming equipment, and a mansion. The plantation is one of the oldest working plantations still in existence. It was first farmed in 1617 by William Powell of the Jamestown settlement. Having explored the plantation, we got an early start on the 7th to cross the ferry and visit the Jamestown Settlement, part of the Colonial National Historic Park. Lance was feeling a bit queasy so Lily and Dan attended most of the interpretive presentation about the settlement. It was a fascinating history lesson and great to walk the same grounds as the earliest European settlers from 1607. It was pointed out how the history of the Plymouth Settlement is so prominent in American history even though it was established 13 years later in 1620. Much of this, we were told, has to do with the North winning the Civil War and promoting the settlement of Puritans in America rather than the Virginia Company of London at Jamestown. With Lance not feeling his best, we ate some lunch on our way to historic Yorktown. Lance was feeling better and we toured the battlefield. Both the War of Independence and Civil War were fought at Yorktown. We toured the battleground and learned Yorktown was the beginning of the end of the War of American Independence. While in Yorktown, there was a Spanish ship, El Galeon, in port and they were offering free tours. The ship was very much like the Mayflower replica we had seen in Plymouth. It is hard to imagine crossing oceans in merchant sailing ships like that. Wanting to be sure Lance was 100%, the next day Kim, Lily and Lance stayed home and got some school work done while Dan went into back to Jamestown to see some more history. Kim and the kids met the camp host and their kids who were also home schooling. Lily and Lance helped their new friends with their chores of cleaning up the vacant camp sites of leaves and spiffing up the plant beds. Next on our list was to visit Colonial Williamsburg and the Virginia Living Museum (kind of a bigger version of the High Desert Museum) which we did November 9th. The Virginia Living Museum had outdoor trails with local wildlife. There was a large dinosaur area that the kids enjoyed quite a bit. Inside they had a nice little aquarium where we got to handle a live horse shoe crab (Dan has an unmatched fascination for living fossils). This museum was free for us to visit with our membership to the Sun River Nature Center, an ASTC museum. Colonial Williamsburg was sort of a living history museum. It is about a 10 to 15 blocks of colonial era buildings. Some are shops, some museum type “living workshops” (print shops, weavers, candle makers) and there are some private residences that are regulated to not have electric lights or TV’s in plain sight ruining the experience. The highlight was a colonial parade that ended in the town square and General George Washington gave a rousing speech to prepare the troops for a march on Yorktown. We should have explored Colonial Williamsburg more, but we were off to Flanners Beach National Recreation Area near New Bern, NC. We stayed for five days getting a lot of home schooling done. There was a pleasant trail system for walks and runs. The beach here was sandy and uncrowded while we visited. Fortunately for us, the New Bern Mum Festival was rescheduled for the weekend we were in town. Hurricane Mathew, which came through the area earlier, was the reason the Mum Festival was re-scheduled. New Bern is an old city in VA, dating back to the 1710. It was founded by the Swiss and Germans and has a European feel in its historic district. New Bern is also the birth place of Pepsi Cola!!!! We all had a Pepsi float at the site of the old drug store where “Brads Drink” became Pepsi Cola. We squeezed in one more Civil War battle site on November 14. In New Bern, the Union army overtook the Confederate army just outside town in 1862. It did not seem like the Confederates put up much of a fight as we walked around the breastworks where the battlefield remains. The battle at New Bern was short and afterward the Union forces held New Bern for the remainder of the war. Take that ....Run away!!! Off to Holden Beach...
Where we stayed: Winter Island Park: This campground is on an island with a marina, an old fort, and very near downtown Salem. It was a great place to be able to explore the shore but also easily get into Salem. It’s a little over a mile to downtown Salem, so you can ride your bike or walk if you wanted. If you go, be sure to follow the directions from the campground and NOT your GPS. There are narrow roads that you wouldn’t want to get stuck on with your RV! Scussett Beach State Park: This campground is right before the bridge to Cape Cod and is bordered by the beach on one side and the canal on the other. It’s a great place for hanging out at the beach, fishing from the pier by the visitor office, or walking or biking the canal path. We were able to pick our site since there was hardly anyone there, so we had a site with some trees and a big grassy area across from us. One of the trees was great for climbing (that’s why Lily wanted the site)! What we did: Salem: The campground was part of the trolley ride that went around town, so we caught the trolley at the campground and learned all about Salem while on the trolley. We were able to get off at different stops and explore. We went to the Salem Maritime National Historic Site and visited the Customs House. Unfortunately the Friendship ship was not in port because it was under repair. We also explored the pier area a bit to learn about the history of the items that were brought in from different parts of the world. We hadn't thought about it being October when we were there. There were lots of people dressed up. According to the locals, October is a crazy month to be in town! Cape Cod: We explored Cape Cod by first stopping at the national seashore visitor center, watching the two of the movies and exploring the exhibits. We then drove to Provincetown, exploring areas along the way, and walked around town. There is an awesome library in town! We were just going to take a picture of the outside, but a lady walking by told us we had to go inside to the kids section and see the ship. It was a half sized replica of the Rose Dorothea schooner that won a 42 mile race despite losing a mast in the final leg of the race. They had lots of kids puzzles and toys, so a perfect break for the kids. Lance wasn’t very excited to go into a library but then we couldn’t get him to leave! Plymouth: We visited the Plimoth Plantation and went aboard the replica of the Mayflower II. The plantation is a living museum so people play the parts of the pilgrims and Native Americans. They talk to you as if it is was 1620 (?) so you need to ask them questions about how they lived and what they did. The houses are also replicas of the time period so you really get a sense of what it was like. We also joined a ranger talk about the women of the Mayflower. We learned that there was 19 when they first arrived, after the first month of winter there was only 6 then by the end of winter only 3 were left. We also were able to walk down the first street in America (Lyden St) This is where the pilgrims built their first houses. Boston: We went to the Children’s Museum for a few hours (ASTC member). We realized we should have gone to the Science museum instead (also ASTC) because our kids have outgrown children’s museums. They did have fun making bubbles, dodge balls with lights, and rock wall climbing. We then went to the USS Constitution. We walked through the visitor center then bordered the ship to check it out. While on the ship, we listened to a sailor talk about the battle against British frigate ship Guerriere. This is where it got its name “ironsides” because of the Live Oak that was the inner hull of the ship and was so hard the cannon balls would bounce off. We didn’t get to do much of the Freedom Trail because we ran out of time. We did read and see the Bunker Hill monument. We definitely could have used more time in Boston. Trick or treating! The Massachusetts Beach Buggy Association was at the campground for the weekend. There were kids that Lily and Lance made friends with while riding bikes. They invited us to participate in their pumpkin carving and trick or treating that night. The kids had lots of fun playing with the other kids. If you want to join a fun group, look them up. They clean up beaches and campgrounds as part of their activities. They were a lot of fun and very welcoming! Dinner and swimming: We had met a family in Gettysburg and talked to them about our trip. They were visiting the East Coast with their daughter (after visiting Europe for 4 months) and are thinking of RVing in a couple years. They were in Plymouth the same time we were, so one night we met them at their hotel for dinner and swimming. The kids love having someone else to play with and we loved having adults to talk to!
Acadia National Park, Our most eastern and northern point (that we have planned, we will see) that we will go. The oldest and first national park east of the Mississippi. Developed in the 1800’s because wealthy families from New York, Boston and Philadelphia built summer “cottages” here because of its sheer beauty. (Rockefeller, Carnegie, Ford….) We spent a week just outside the park at a private RV park. Acadia was designated a National Park after the island of Mt Desert (yes, desert, like Lance and Lily’s favorite thing to eat) was settled, so it is a patch work of private land interspersed with Park land. You will see magnificent views of lakes or bays then run into a town, Bar Harbor being the most developed for the tourism that the park attracts. There are actually two cruise ships that call in Bar Harbor every day. Day one we arrived and got set up at Timberland RV Park. Columbus Day holiday marks the “end of the summer season” for everywhere northeast, so gone were the crowds and kids in the campgrounds. The weather was definitely cooler influenced by the nearby Gulf of Maine. Fall colors in Maine were high/peak. We cruise around and found a sunset and a beach. Day two we sought out the Park’s visitor center for Jr. Ranger books and general information about Acadia. There is a loop road with an informational brochure, we felt that was a good place to start. We began the driving tour and learned about the park’s history. Natives, French and English all came to this rich coastal area with its abundant hardwood forests. 1913 to 1940, John D. Rockefeller Jr. built over 50 miles of carriage roads throughout the interior of the island so people could visit without seeing cars. The loop road crosses some of these roads. Also built were 16 stone faced bridges that use local granite so they fit right into the landscape. We cruised about half the loop road the first day and the highlight was Sandy Beach, one of the few sandy spots on this island known for its rugged rocky coast. We made it by the end of the day to Jordan Pond which is one of the more scenic lakes on the island. Day three we started the day off with a Ranger led boat tour of the area. We left from Northeast Harbor for a 2.5 hour cruise that visited Little Cranberry Island. It was great as we saw seals, cormorants and endless lobster pot buoys. During the cruise the Ranger pointed out all the history and geology of the area as well. After the cruise, we headed to some tide pools near at Otter Point where we left the loop road the day before. We had lunch on the point and after explored the tide pools. The tide pools here are surprisingly less diverse than what we are used to on the west coast. That said, Lily and Lance did not tire of flipping over rocks to harass the crabs. We finished the loop road tour and fittingly the “high” point was the summit road to Cadillac Mountain. The highest point on the eastern seaboard at 1530 ft. Great views. Day four we took a break from the sights with sleeping in, homeschooling, laundry (by the way I (Dad) smoked Lily and Lance at pinball at the laundromat!!!!!!), more homeschooling and a Walmart run. Day five Mom insisted we explore these carriage roads we have heard so much about. Three cheers for Mom!!! We did a 7 mile loop around Eagle Lake with lots of stops and rests along the way. By now the fall foliage was a neon peak of reds, yellow and orange. The carriage roads are built for horses so they are never too steep, nice and wide, and completely bike-able. After we lunched, we made our way back to the visitor center to complete our Jr. Ranger paperwork to earn badges and HOLY SMOKES the Ranger we met up with was from OREGON!!!! We compared notes on the stuff we have seen and compared the east and west coasts. It is always nice to meet up with someone from “home”. The next morning we were greeted by frost for our second day in Maine and we were on our way south, to Salem, Boston and Cape Cod.
Where we stayed: Four Mile Creek State Campground: This place was beautiful and mostly empty. The sites are all grass and either electric or non-electric. We opted for non-electric for the week. It worked out perfectly since we had the beach in our backyard and the playground in our front yard. It was only about 15 minutes from the falls too!
Old Fort Niagara: This was an unexpected gem! We went because it was part of the junior ranger book, not knowing what to expect. The history here was fascinating. You can walk through the old fort and within the trenches. It was interesting to hear how all the different parts protected the fort. It was originally built by the French, then the English overtook it during the French-Indian wars, then during the War of Independence, it was a stronghold for loyalists. Part of the War of 1812 treaty was for England to give it to the US. See how much you can learn from a ranger talk?!?! Whirlpool State Park and Devil’s Hole State Park: We did the overlook at Whirlpool then went to Devil’s Hole and hiked down 407 steps to the river. If you like hiking, you should do this. You can hike all the way to the Whirlpool steps (which were closed for repairs when we were there). The nice thing about the Niagara area is there is a dedicated walking/biking/running road that goes along to all the points of interest. NY Power Project Visitors Center: Unfortunately this closed early the day we were there, but the little we did get to see was so cool the kids wanted to go back (but we were leaving the next day). When you arrive, you get a badge that you scan each time you do an interactive activity. You can log in to their website at home and see all the things you learned about. We especially liked the 4D ride about electricity! Also, you can get here and many other places on the free shuttle. Definitely worth using if you don’t want to drive! Niagara Falls, Canada: Everyone said, “Make sure you go to the Canadian side” so we did and it was beautiful. It was also such a contrast to the American side. Dan nicknamed one street “Las Vegas of Canada” because it has the light up billboards, amusement rides, and food booths everywhere. Lance thought it looked like Times Square. Maid of the Mist and Cave of the Winds: The kids absolutely LOVED these. Lance laughed more during the boat ride than we’ve heard from him in a while. He kept his hood off so he could get wet and therefore not have to take a shower that day. It was windy, wet, and loud! The Cave of the Winds walk also soaked any part of us that wasn't covered up. We were really glad for the shoes they gave us since our tennis shoes were already wet from the boat ride! The hurricane deck almost blew the kids away, but they loved it!
Overall Niagara was a great stop, with way more than just a waterfall to see! We came to Pennsylvania after the Tortuga decided to catch on fire. Originally we were spending Thanksgiving here, but Aunt Marice invited us to come now since our home was in the shop. Not pulling the Tortuga meant we could take more scenic routes to and from different places, like taking the Lincoln Highway (Hwy 30..the first interstate). It really is a beautiful state with the lush greenery, open country spaces, and Lily’s favorite….horses! What we did:
Longwood Gardens: This is a beautiful place and only a few miles from Aunt Marice’s. If you are a flower lover, you will love this place. The kids really liked the greenhouse with the different types of flowers. They also thought the wall of ferns was “so cool!” Mushroom Festival: We were in town during the annual Mushroom Festival, so we of course had to check it out. We went to the parade on Friday night then Saturday walked the streets of the festival. Sunday morning we even walked in the 2 mile family fun walk fundraiser. The Franklin Institute: We went here because Aunt Marice said Uncle Joe used to always take his kids there when he visited and they loved it. Well, it was a great recommendation. Our kids loved it too (and we were able to get in free with our ASTC membership). These museums are a great way to do some science homeschooling! Independence Historical Park: We had to check out the historical area and the Liberty Bell. The kids were able to see the first capitol building, supreme court, and Independence Hall, where they signed the Constitution. It was a great learning experience for all of us. Lily was upset to learn that President Washington had slaves but was happy he freed them when he died. Lance didn’t understand why Martha Washington didn’t do the same and instead gave them to her grandchildren. While here, we also visited the Federal Reserve and the Mint. The kids got souvenirs of a brand new quarter (West Virginia) that has never been circulated. Gettysburg: We did this on our way back to Ohio to pick up the Tortuga. We were able to borrow the audio tour from one of Aunt Marice’s friends. We saw the different parts of the battlefields and learned more about what happened there. At the end of the day, we went to the ranger talk “Battlefield in a Box” and the ranger was awesome. He had the kids help out and it really made the battles and the different areas we had seen earlier, come to life. After the talk, a family from Napa, CA introduced themselves to us because they are thinking of RVing next year. They just spent a few months in Europe and are now touring the East Coast. It was great to meet another family on the road and swap stories and helpful hints. State College, PA. We stopped here on our way to Ohio for a mid-drive break. We found an ASTC science museum, Discovery Space. It was small but the perfect size for us to take a break for an hour or so. We then went to the local park and played while eating lunch. It is a cute little town.
Overall, round 1 of Pennsylvania was perfect; family, school, sightseeing, and new friends! |
AuthorKim: I've seen very little of the US and can't wait to see it all with my family. This is a crazy adventure that I never thought I would have the guts to do! Archives
April 2017
Categories |