Beautiful Walden Pond

I’ve mentioned before about our love for Walden Pond. When we lived in Boston, Chris and I spent many Saturdays sitting on the beach and swimming in the pond. I have such fond memories of those days. While only 45 minutes outside of the city, our day trips there always felt like a vacation. We returned to the city feeling rejuvenated and ready to face another week of work.

We attempted a return trip to Walden Pond in May while I was still pregnant, but the park was closed.  So, on this particular return trip to Boston, we made it a goal to make it to Walden Pond one last time…and this time, to introduce Emerson to one of our favorite places (as well as one of the inspirations for her name.)  Did you know that Ralph Waldo Emerson owned Walden Pond when Thoreau lived there?  True story.  And, since I didn’t want to name my daughter Henry, David, Thoreau, Ralph or Waldo…Emerson seemed just perfect! So you see why we just HAD to introduce her to Walden Pond, right?  Right.

"Ready to feel the water of Walden Pond, Emerson?"

On our final day in Boston, we made our way to Concord with the simple goal of dipping Emerson’s toes in the water and taking a picture. Cute, right? We thought so too. We didn’t have time to hang out at the Pond or take  a walk as we had to get on the road but we were determined to accomplish this simple task.

We pulled into the park with the Airstream in tow and received a funny look from the parking attendant. She exclaimed in a confused tone, “What’s that?” (Pointing to our Airstream).  Chris replied, “Our home.” There was still a look of confusion as she muttered, “ooohhh-kaaay.” I suspect she thought we were going to unhitch and stay awhile.  She wasn’t even sure how to charge us for “that thing” on the back of our truck. But, she let us in the park with doubt that we would be able to park an Airstream.  She obviously doesn’t know Chris. After six years of marriage, I obviously don’t know him, either.  You know the routine by now, right?

Lani: “Chris, the Airstream is never going to fit.”
Chris: “Yes it will.”
Lani: “No, it won’t.”

And, it fit.  He parked it beautifully where there was no chance of us getting blocked in by other cars.  Pfffttt.

"Daddy! Don't EVER do that again!!! WAAAAHHHHH"

We rushed over to the pond.  I started getting the camera ready.  The moment was going to be perfect. Emerson at Walden.  A picture that would forever be special.  Chris bent down with Emerson in his arms.  Onlookers were “ooohing” and “aahhhing” our beautiful daughter.  Her little feet dangled just above the water and then Chris proceeded to dip those tiny little toes into Walden Pond. “WAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH.”  A scream like I have never heard this child make.  I didn’t even have time to snap the picture.  I was completely caught off-guard by this wailing sound coming from such a small person.

In Thoreau's cabin

There we stood. In the middle of the beach at the  very crowded Walden Pond.  With our screaming child. People stared. And giggled. So, yeah…lesson learned. Before you dip your infant’s little feet into Walden Pond, make sure the Pond isn’t freezing.  Apparently babies don’t like cold water.

It took her a few minutes to forgive us.  We rushed back up towards the truck, ignoring the stares of…well…everyone.  On the way, we stopped to pay a little visit to the statue of Thoreau and the replica of his cabin.  Emerson was so not amused.  But, someday she will be.  Someday.

Shelburne Farm

As you all know, we have a thing for farms. Someday, I suspect, we shall live on a farm.  With a pig. Chris loves pigs.  And, chickens. He loves chickens, too. After our (my) tour of Ben & Jerry’s, we headed to Shelburne Farms, a 1400-acre farm that sits on the shores of Lake Champlain. Given our slight obsession with farms, we had heard of this place earlier in the summer.  I was interested in checking it out so with the Airstream in tow, off we went!

When we pulled into the Farm, we noted the admission price.  I confess. We’re pretty cheap.  Yes, I’ll pay $3.00 for an ice cream tour but did I want to pay $8.00 to see a farm? I saw a lot of farms this summer. For free.  We parked the Airstream and sat inside it while I fed Emerson and we discussed whether we wanted to see the farm or continue on to our campground in Burlington. We were tired…Chris from driving and me…well…I was probably coming off my ice cream sugar high. Oh, and that whole minor detail of the fact that we have a newborn and nights of peaceful sleep are just a memory at this point.  So, yeah, we were tired.

View from the trail.

We convinced ourselves, however, to go and check out the farm. There have been too many occasions where we ended up not going to certain places because we didn’t want to pay the fee and too many people have informed us that we made a big mistake by not seeing said places.  Well, we were not going to be accused of that this time!

We loaded up the stroller with child and the bazillion things necessary for child and took off for the farm. (Seriously, how can someone who is not even 10lbs require this much stuff?)  The trail to the farm was 3/4 mile through an open field and then into a wooded area.  It was a beautiful day for a walk and Miss Emerson seemed quite content in her stroller.  She loved the bumpy gravel trails.

You can't possibly look at this without smiling, right?

Neither of us knew what to expect but as we came out of the wooded area the trail opened up again and in the distance we saw the amazing farmhouse. Or, farm mansion.

Developed in 1886, the farmland was to be a “model agricultural estate.” At one point, the farm had 300 employees working the land.  Today, it is a nonprofit organization dedicated to conservation education.  The grounds encompass a farmyard where children (and Lani and Chris) can meet the farm animals, a cheese-making building, an elementary school, an inn, a conference center, beautiful gardens, and miles of walking trails. Additionally, it still remains a working farm.

We explored the grounds, checked out the petting zoo, and watched some cheese being “cheddared“. (I learned something new during my visit!)   But, the highlight of our day were the piglets that were only three days old.  Oh. My. Goodness.  They were too cute.  We stood and watched as the piglets battled one another to nurse on mama pig. It was an amazing sight. So, amazing in fact, that I took a video of the piglets and it here it is for your viewing pleasure: (Sorry about the poor video quality.)

Isn’t that the cutest?  It does make me happy I only have one child to feed. (And I thought my nipples were sore!) Watching these piglets was worth the $16.00 we paid.  We could have stood and watched them all day long.  But, we didn’t.  We checked out some of the trails and I burned off some of the ice cream calories.  It was a beautiful and wonderful day for all three of us!  So, if you find yourself near Shelburne Farms, I highly recommend stopping.  If you don’t you’re making a big mistake!

"Eternal Presence" by John Wilson

We took a trip recently to Boston to see our friend, Hong. You remember Hong, right? If not, here is a link to our introduction to him. He spent several weeks with us last summer as we traveled through Canada, Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. He has been taking dance lessons for years and we were finally able to catch a performance now that we are in the area. He did an outstanding job. Way to go, Hong! Nice jazz hands!

While it was a short trip to Boston, Chris and I both wanted to make a stop at one our favorite places, Walden Pond. Only 30 minutes from Boston, the park quickly became one of our favorite places to escape the hectic city life when we lived in the area.

"Feral Goose" by Kitty Wells

In the summer months, the pond is open for swimming.  The natural beauty and of course, it’s history, always left us feeling rejuvenated and inspired. We’ve been eager to return.

The weather was beautiful that weekend and after a gigantic breakfast at the S & S Restaurant, a landmark in Cambridge, we needed to move around and get some exercise and we agreed that Walden Pond would be the perfect solution. Unfortunately, everyone else had the same idea on that lovely hot day and the Pond was closed for crowd control when we arrived.  Doh!

Forced to change our plans, I quickly pulled out the iPhone to see where else we could spend the afternoon near the fabulous towns of Lincoln and Concord and I found the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park to be nearby. From what I could tell, it had lovely grounds and fit our needs at that moment. Hong, Chris, and Hong’s friend, Jose, wanted a place to toss a frisbee around and just be outdoors. I just needed to walk since I had all-too-easily consumed massive amounts of blueberry pancakes, home fries, and fruit.

"Figure from the Sea" by Elliot Offner

The park was a nice surprise. The 35 acres of land owned by the park are beautiful and, of course, filled with sculptures and beautifully landscaped gardens. There is also a museum although we didn’t take too much time exploring the museum as we wanted to be outside.

Opened in 1950, the property was given to the town of Lincoln by its owner, Julian de Cordova. An avid traveler and lover of arts, he remodeled his home on the property to resemble a European castle. Today, the home serves as the museum to contemporary American art, primarily from artists in the New England region.

"Manna" by Tom Chapin. I have no idea why I was so drawn to this sculpture. Hmmm....

Currently, the park is the only permanent public sculpture park in New England and displays approximately 80 sculptures on the property. We walked quite a bit of the property that day and viewed a good portion, if not all, of the sculptures. We also found a nice open field where the guys could toss the frisbee while I sat in the shade and held my breath hoping they wouldn’t hit the nearby sculpture.

While it was no Walden Pond, the DeCordova Sculpture Park was a great find and a lovely place to spend an afternoon.  Actually, Chris and I were reminded on this little trip that, like many New England towns,  the towns of Lincoln and Concord are on our list of dream towns.  Ah, if only we had an unlimited amount of money!  These quintessential New England towns, so full of history and gorgeous landscapes, for us are an idyllic location.  But, for now, and probably forever, we will remain content to be tourists of Concord and Lincoln.  My goal is to make it back for another visit while we are up here for the summer.  I realized all of my focus has always been on Walden Pond and the area has so much more to offer.  So, Lincoln and Concord:  I’ll be back!

View from the SkyRide as we ride to the top of Stone Mountain.

Following our stay at Rainbow Springs State Park, we spent a week in the ATL, Hotlanta, the Peach State, whatever name one prefers for Georgia; it seems to have many. We returned to my parents’ home and had a lovely Easter with the family. For the work week, Chris went into Atlanta and stayed there as he had a lot of work to do and a conference to attend.  I stayed with my mom and dad and enjoyed a week of family fun activities.

It was spring break in the area so my nephews were out of school.  We went to Six Flags at the beginning of the week (don’t worry, I am aware that I am currently with child and therefore did not partake of any rides.)  While the kids stood in line and rode rides that would make me vomit, I enjoyed people watching.  Amusement parks are excellent for people watching, especially during spring break when you get to watch the drama that comes from the middle school and high school kids.  “Eeeeww…he kissed her?” Or, “Like, she’s totally a weirdo!” Oh, how I don’t miss those days.

View from the top of Stone Mountain. The visibility is poor due to the high amounts of pollen in the air.

Later in the week, my parents, nephew and I went to Stone Mountain Park.  While advertisements claim that Stone Mountain is the largest exposed granite “in the world,” according to my brief and unofficial research (er…Wikipedia), there are other larger granite landscapes. It’s still a pretty cool site and while my nephew claimed that there were four other places he rather be at than Stone Mountain during his spring break (i.e., Six Flags, White Water Amusement Park, Washington, D.C. and I can’t remember the other one), he did have a great day and I think Stone Mountain moved up in the rankings as the day progressed.

I hadn’t been to the park since I was a kid and back then, the primary activity one did at Stone Mountain was attend the laser show that occurs every night during the summer.  The park has changed significantly and now has a ton of family activities.

We started our day by riding the SkyRide to the summit, an elevation of 1,686 feet.  The pollen count was so incredibly high that day that visibility was really poor.  The pollen was so bad, in fact, that it would gather under my fingernails and I actually had an outline of the pollen on my feet where my sandals didn’t cover the skin. Eeew.

Our miniature golf course was next to the train depot. You can ride a train around the base of the mountain.

After our time at the top of the mountain, we spent the remainder of the day at the base of the mountain exploring the museum, catching a 4D film (which was super fun!), exploring “The Barn” where kids (and grownups, too) can enjoy trampoline floors, climbing structures, and interactive games, and then we took a quick lunch break and enjoyed a picnic in the park.  To finish our day at Stone Mountain, we played an intensive round of miniature golf.  Clearly, my practice on the Wii Golf game paid off as my putt was on fire that day!

At the end of the week, Chris finished up his conference and then we did something really crazy.  We drove into downtown Atlanta with the Airstream in tow. During rush hour. On a Friday night. On the same night as an NBA event. Yeah…parking…not easy.  We were in downtown to attend some after-conference parties. We brought the Airstream so a) friends at the conference could see it; and, b) so we could leave straight from Atlanta and make our way north to Virginia.

Chris navigated the busy streets beautifully.  We got some stares from passers-by as well as some laughs from police officers and parking attendants when we inquired about parking.  At last, we found a parking lot open for the NBA game and for a very ridiculous price, we were allowed to park overnight.  I will confess…it was sketchy.  Really sketchy. But, off we went to meet up with folks, have some dinner, and say our goodbyes to friends.  Thankfully, when we returned, our home was safe and sound.  Let the journey northward begin!

Kayaking to the Headsprings of Rainbow Springs State Park

I’m back and I promise I will catch up this week! Our final days at Rainbow Springs State Park were glorious.  The temperatures were in the 80s and it was sunny and hot.  So hot, in fact, that I finally got up the nerve to put a swimsuit on and spend some time at the Springs and the park’s pool.  Of course, I tried to go at times when there were no people since I’m a bit uncomfortable wearing a bikini with a pregnant belly.  (I swear, the bikini was the only swimsuit I had that would fit which is why it took me so long to work up the nerve to even go swimming.)  I may have scared some kids away but other than that, all was fine.  It felt great to be in water and get some much-needed exercise.

On Thursday, Chris’ brother came up and we took the kayaks out again.  This time, we made it to the headsprings, which is the main portion of the state park.  The water and grounds were beautiful.  Chris and his brother took the kayaks out again later that day once Chris finished work.  They swam in the headsprings where the temperature is always 72 degrees.  The water was crystal clear and the fish and turtles were abundant.  They even saw an otter. Here’s some video footage of Chris’ underwater exploration.  (Please pardon his loud breathing at the end. The fact that I edited video is an accomplishment. My audio editing attempts will come later.)

Chris’ underwater exploration of Rainbow Springs from Lani Pokrana on Vimeo.

After seeing their video footage and photos of the headsprings, I was determined to go one more time and check out the park’s trails and actually swim in the springs.

View from the trail

Chris and I returned on Friday evening, our final evening in the park.  We walked the trails, which were lined with vibrant pink azaleas.  The sun was setting and creating a beautiful color on the springs.  As the park was closing soon, we had limited swimming time, but we took advantage of the almost-empty swimming area.  Chris grabbed snorkel gear and our camera and took off exploring.  I enjoyed floating leisurely in the warm springs.  Sadly, Chris took video of this moment.  If you’d like to get an idea of what I look like swimming, just Google “whale swimming” and you’ll get a pretty good picture.  Thankfully, Chris took lots of video and not just the one of me and my belly floating contentedly.

We returned to our site and began our packing up process.  We both admitted to feeling sad to leave this park.  It was a great two weeks.  We met some fabulous people, including Jim and Julie from Ohio.  They were our incredible neighbors who shared their breakfast with us twice, dinner once, and then gave us their outdoor carpet.  Um…how awesome are they?

The swimming area at Rainbow Springs State Park

We also met a really cool couple from Canada, Marcel and his wife, Suzanne (I hope I’m not spelling her name wrong…).  They travel in a Safari Condo Alto.  Chris has really wanted to see inside one of these trailers so, of course, he wasted no time in introducing himself and asking for a tour.

Lastly, this was also the first campsite where family has been able to come visit us.  It was great having people over for a cookout and some outdoor fun.  We definitely left this park with some great memories and are hopeful for a return visit someday.  They ARE looking for camphosts.  Hmmm…tempting….

Outside the Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, Florida

Well, hello there! It’s been awhile.  We’ve been tending to some personal matters, making important plans, etc. so I fell behind on my entries and realized I never posted about my glorious afternoon in St. Augustine, Florida. Oops! 

Our three weeks in Jacksonville were wonderful.  We went for  strolls on the beach and around the campground’s lake.  We enjoyed the sights and sounds of a family reunion, kids playing on the playground, and a very happy puppy playing in the ocean and running in the sand.  At the top of my “To Do” list was to see St. Augustine but I don’t think  it was on the top of Chris’ list.  He had already seen St. Augustine and I think had other things on his mind.  But, on one Sunday, he graciously agreed to my request and off we went to see this historical city. 

"Cover your ears!"

It was a spectacularly sunny day. (As it should be, after all, this IS the Sunshine State but lately it has been cold and un-Florida like…probably because I’m trying to live my life as a snowbird now and winter is not pleased with me.)  We were quite happy to put away our fleece jackets and sport our short sleeved shirts.  With the weather being so nice, the city was packed.  Luckily, we found a tight and somewhat overpriced parking spot for our monster truck, grabbed a map, and set off on our exploration.

The oldest wood schoolhouse in the USA

Our first stop was the fort, Castillo de San Marcos, which was constructed in 1695.  Here we enjoyed the benefit of having a National Parks Pass. We were able to walk up the ticket booth, flash our Pass, and gain access to the fort so easily!  Seriously…this pass is totally worth it! Go out and get yours today.  I love forts. My love of forts dates back to my childhood.  I have fond memories of visiting Fort Pulaski in Savannah, Georgia.  Additionally, I excelled at building forts in my backyard out of pinestraw, or in my living room out of bedsheets and blankets, and even as an adult, building forts out of snow.  I’m all about the forts.  We walked in and out of the different rooms of the fort, listened to the park ranger tell about the history of the fort and read the various exhibits posted around the fort grounds.  It was very informative and interesting. But, we were anxiously awaiting 3:30 p.m. 

Cathedral of St. Augustine

Finally, at 3:30 p.m. we rushed up to the second level of the fort and watched as men decked out in 17th Century Spanish Colonial uniform marched from the courtyard up to the second level and over to one of the many cannons that lined the wall of the fort.  For the next five to ten minutes, they demonstrated how a cannon is prepped for firing.  And, then, the moment all the children (and most adults) were waiting for: the uniformed men shout, “Cover your ears!” And, with that, the cannon is fired sending a puff of smoke into the air.  It was very exciting. 

After our tour of the fort, we walked over to the historical city streets and strolled along with the thousands of other tourists noting the nice cafes, shops, and churches.  There is a definite charm to St. Augustine and if I could have, I would have plopped myself down on a bench or at a cafe table and passed the remainder of the day by simply watching the happy tourists and enjoying the quaint surroundings.  Instead, we headed back to the truck to return to our campground but not without me finally giving in and stepping foot inside one of the many chocolate shops.  And, lo and behold, this one had gelato.  It was meant to be for this pregnant lady has been needing some gelato.  For anyone who cares, I chose the mixed berry flavor and it was fabulous. Oh happy day!

View of Cinnamon Bay from the top of Cinnamon Bay Trail.

Last week we took a vacation.  Now, I know what you’re thinking.  We live in a travel trailer and travel the country…aren’t we already on vacation? Technically, I guess I am.  But, not Chris.  And, with a baby on the way, we both wanted to spend a week on a vacation…together…before our lives as we know them are turned upside down.  Further, I wanted a week that didn’t involve Chris having a phone permanently attached to his ear for ten hours a day.  Our ideal vacation involved airplane travel, beaches, sunshine, snorkeling, and a new and unfamiliar region.  After looking at the calendar in December, it appeared that last week was the only week Chris could be completely offline as his work schedule is tight for the next several months.  For our destination, we chose the island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. And, since Chris wanted to be completely offline and close to nature, we camped on the beach at Cinnamon Bay.

Our humble abode for the week. Notice it is lucky #13.

REST:  I’m not an expensive resort girl. I don’t need the all-inclusive, fancy dining, no-reason-to-leave-the-resort-grounds, vacation.  But, am I a camping girl? I live in campgrounds but in the comfort of my Airstream.  Sure, I can shower with bugs now, but can I do a full week in a tent? Can I endure a week of cold showers? This was going to be a new adventure for me.  The first few nights were not restful…at all.  Unidentifiable critters were running over the tent or scurrying around the bottom of the tent.  The tree frogs were really loud. (I lived in Boston and slept soundly with loud city streets. But, sirens, traffic and drunk people have nothing on tree frogs.)  The humidity was brutal. And, well…my cot was not the most comfortable.  So, the first two nights were challenging.  I laid there with my eyes wide open, envisioning the unidentifiable critters attacking me in my sleep.

Entrance to the campground office and pavilion. Highly recommend hanging out here at nights.

On the fourth night, we decided to stop hanging out at our tent at night and head up to the pavilion to play cards.  I was quickly growing tired of bugs and the lantern only attracted more of them.  Upon arrival at the campground pavilion, it was then that we learned that all of the intelligent campers (a group to which, until that night, we did not belong) were there every night, playing cards and socializing.  The bugs were nonexistent there.  Campers stayed in this comfortable environment until around 11pm.  So, we did the same.  That night and for the rest of the nights, I slept soundly…never worrying about the critters or even noticing my somewhat uncomfortable cot.  Perhaps I grew accustomed to the noises and finally found the tree frogs comforting instead of irritatingly loud.  Or, maybe the critters decided to leave me alone.

RELAXATION:  We were completely removed from all things electronic (i.e. computers, phones, televisions, etc.).  We spent a week playing cards, reading, eating, and playing in the ocean…when possible.  It was wonderful.

Sitting at our tent on a rainy day. Yeah...um...those clothes hanging in the background never did dry...

RAIN:  Our first two days were amazingly beautiful.  On Tuesday, we spent the day on the beach and playing in the massive waves.  On Wednesday, we hiked one of the nearby trails, caught a bus to town, bought our groceries, made our way back to the campground, and mapped out our week as to where we wanted to snorkel and hike.

The beach at Cinnamon Bay

On Saturday, we had our longest break from the rain and were hopeful that the rain had finally stopped.  We ventured into Coral Bay to check out the village and the other side of the island that we had been curious to see all week.  I found a local paper in town that said Sunday’s forecast was only 20% chance of rain.  We celebrated by buying some fruit at the local market and began planning our last full day of the vacation.  It involved a long hike to Waterlemon Cay and snorkeling at what was said to the be the best snorkeling spot on the island. We were hopeful and excited.

Canyonlands National Park

Did you know that kangaroo rats, common to the desert regions, have almost no need for water and that their kidneys reduce their urine to a crystal-like substance?  Neither did I!  I learned this interesting fact at Canyonlands National Park.  It was only appropriate that we visited Canyonlands, one of America’s wonderful National Parks, on the day the Ken Burns’ documentary of our National Parks premiered on PBS.  The Parks truly are one of America’s best ideas and if you didn‘t catch the entire series, you can watch it online until October 9, 2009 or check your local listings:   http://www.pbs.org/nationalparks/.  Highly recommend this inspiring documentary as well as supporting and visiting our national parks.

The Road Less Traveled. Next time...we'll take this route...

After a wonderful, but too brief, tour of Arches National Park, we set off to explore Canyonlands for our second day in Moab.  We made a worthwhile stop at the visitor center to not only learn interesting facts about kangaroo rats, but also pick up a trail guide.  There are dirt roads that go through the canyons that are open to 4×4 vehicles.  We briefly considered the fact that we were in a 4×4 truck but at a nearby overlook, saw a portion of the road, noted how narrow it was, noted how steep the drop-off to one side was, and noted the large size of our vehicle. (And, just between you and me, I’m not sure Chris could handle getting his truck that dirty.)  So, we opted for the paved road through the park…this time! With our handy trail guide from the visitor center, we picked two short hikes:  Upheaval Dome and Grandview trails, both about two miles each.

Chris forming his own hypothesis on this interesting geological formation.

The Upheaval Dome, a geological formation whose origins are still debated by geologists, was an easy trail, with the exception of the part where I realized I was standing at the edge looking really far down into the canyon and the world started spinning…again.  Are there any cures for this?  Chris is not happy with this new development…nor am I.  But, I survived.  I just stayed away from the edge and tried to appear calm.

The trail is marked by cairns (piles of stones) since much of the hike is along slick rock and one can easily go the wrong way.  Despite my brief encounter with dizziness, the trail was enjoyable and had amazing sights.  At the trailhead, there are several picnic tables, where Chris and I enjoyed another delicious picnic of peanut butter sandwiches and bananas.  I guess I need to start being more creative with my picnics, eh?

Views from the Grandview Trail

Our next trail was Grandview, another two-mile, easy trail.  The parking lot for the trailhead was crowded but surprisingly, people only got out of their cars, looked over the fence at the “grand view” and then got back in their cars.  So, we basically had the trail to ourselves.  As advertised, the hike was very easy and very beautiful.  We had a great time, stopping for many pictures along the way.  The trail comes to an abrupt end and suddenly you are, once again, at the edge of a very steep drop-off. Thankfully, with this one, I was fine and able to enjoy the views.  While the views at the trailhead are indeed grand, the end of the trail provided additional stunning views, and even a quick glimpse of a kangaroo rat!

Following our afternoon in Canyonlands, we spent a lovely evening strolling the streets of downtown Moab.  I was, of course, drawn immediately to the bookstores, while Chris could not resist the outdoor stores.  We finished our day with dinner in downtown Moab, where our waitress greeted us not with a hello, but rather by describing a fool-proof plan (or so she thinks) on how a wife can murder a husband and get away with it.  She was kidding.  I hope.

Our home...with a distant view of Arches National Park

So, there we were, on the interstate leaving Park City and headed to Colorado, via Wyoming. Chris casually says, “What’s the weather going to be like in Fort Collins and Salida?” Unsure, I check the weather only to see that while the first few days would be lovely, the remainder of the week was cold and Salida actually had snow in the forecast. Snow. In September. Since I only thought this Airstream life would last a few months, I am not prepared for snow (mentally or physically).  So, we pulled off at the next exit, checked the calendar, checked a map, and checked the weather reports for Moab, Utah: 90s and sunny. And, just like that, Moab became our next destination.

Balancing Rock with a tiny glimpse of the moon rising in the background.

A few people we’ve met along the way have mentioned Moab but I had not really done any research as far as where we would stay, what’s in the area, etc. After a lovely and always entertaining Friday night stay at a Wal-Mart in Price, Utah, we pulled into Moab early Saturday morning.

We quickly noted that our quiet campgrounds were left behind in Salt Lake City. Moab is a popular place in September and here we were without reservations. An online review of the state park revealed that although a beautiful park, it did not have water and appeared to be pretty far outside of town. We drove around for awhile, scoping out the town and the various parks.  It seemed many of the private parks, as usual, had very tight spaces.  After our previous two weeks of gloriously large state park campsites, moving into a tight space with no views was not exciting.  We eventually ended up at Arch View RV Park for its location, willing to accept the smaller sites. The park was only two miles from Arches National Park and conveniently located to the entrance of Canyonlands National Park.

Scenes from our drive through Arches National Park

While the park was quite full, we somehow once again scored an amazing site in the park: #86.  In exchange for no sewer hookup (which we are quite accustomed to now), we were able to have amazing views and a large site. Woo hoo! We were on the end of a row and in the perimeter of the park so no one was blocking our view. Perfect location! Last week we had lakefront property. This week, a distant view of Arches National Park. Ah, the Airstream life!

We unhitched and quickly settled in–it’s amazing how much faster we are now at this process. It seems like only yesterday we were in my mom and dad’s driveway pretending to know how to do all of this but taking forever to attach our weight distribution bars. Did I ever think I would know how to hitch and unhitch a trailer? No. Am I impressed with myself? Absolutely.

Chris and our distant view of Delicate Arch in the background.

Our first day in Moab was spent in Arches National Park. We weren’t able to see the entire park as it was late in the day, but we did manage to tour the park at sunset so the lighting was fabulous. We slowly made our way to the Delicate Arch, a famous arch in the park that adorns the Utah license plates. Needless to say, it was a must-see feature.  We managed only to see the arch from a distance as we did not have time before sunset to make the hike to the arch. While I would have preferred an up close and personal view, the distant view was lovely at sunset.

In addition to the Delicate Arch, we saw the North and South Windows, Double Arch, Balancing Rock, and many, many other incredible formations. The sun set quickly and before we knew it, it was getting darker and time for us to return to our humble abode. But, already, our time in Moab was excellent and we still have several more days to look forward to in this beautiful place. Clearly, our spontaneous decision to visit Moab was an excellent one!