Highlights from Five Months on the Road

February 29, 2024 / marniesteve / Leave a comment

We are about to arrive home after a five month road trip that has taken us over 10,000 miles through 14 states. There have been highs and some lows (thanks, COVID), and we continue to focus on the highs and the tremendous opportunity we have to explore our country while towing our home behind us.

Camping in Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Canyon, Texas

When we travel towards home, we always reflect on our journey and discuss our personal highlights. Here’s what we came up with this time around. Details about each can be found in earlier blog posts and we’ve linked to those where possible.

Marnie’s highlights

Kentucky’s Horse Experiences – From a semi-private, backstretch tour of Churchill Downs to meeting some of the world’s most famous (and expensive) stallions at Claiborne Farms, our time in and around Louisville and Lexington was unforgettable.

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta – Attending the world famous event is a bucket list experience for most RVers. From early morning launches of hundreds of balloons to evening glows, we took it all in from every angle.

Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour Movie with Brynn and other kid activities – Spending time with our nieces and nephews is always fun. We went to soccer games, basketball games, tumbling practice, to the golf course, Top Golf, and the shopping mall. Thanks to Lydia, Nate, Brynn, and Hudson for letting us hang out! The most memorable for me was seeing Taylor Swift’s concert movie with Brynn and sharing the excitement with her.

Steve’s highlights

Kayaking Fishing in the Florida Keys – Most mornings while we were in the Keys, Steve took his fishing kayak out around the bridges of the Overseas Highway. On most mornings he’d snag (and release) at least a dozen or more fish. Being on the open water, under the sunshine is a paradise for him.

Completing Four More Marathons – Races often determine our itinerary. This year we spent the fall passing through Indianapolis, Louisville, Huntsville, and Jackson to explore each city and for Steve to run 26.2 miles. Including this trip’s races he has now completed a marathon in 34 states and 44 total marathons. Races are always a highlight!

Bourbon Tasting – The first thing we did when we got into Kentucky was to buy the Bourbon Trail Passport book and begin to check the distilleries off page by page. We visited 15 distilleries and tasted at least four bourbons at each facility. You do the math. Steve says his favorite bourbon is the one in his hand!

A five-month trip, of course, has many memorable moments. The big events and the little moments all make this lifestyle so rewarding. Between seeing great RV friends in Tampa, discovering wonderful restaurants in the Keys, watching sunset over Mobile Bay, and visiting with family, this has been a great journey.

We’ve been RVing almost full time for almost four years. A lot people ask us about the details of our travels. Just for fun, here are some stats about this winter’s cross-country adventure.

Nights in the RV: 153

Nights parked in the family’s driveways: 10 (thanks Brian, Heidi, Gary, and Kristy!)

Number of KOA campgrounds visited: 6
(Grants, NM; Nashville, TN; Orlando, FL; Sugarloaf Key, FL; St. Petersburg/Madiera Beach, FL; Shreveport/Bossier City, LA)

Number of Harvest Host overnights: 6
(Fireside Winery, Marengo, IA; Epiphany Farms, Downs, IL; Corbin Farms Winery, Calera, AL; Lane Southern Orchards, Fort Valley, GA, NRS Ranch, Decatur, TX; Sierra Blanca Brewing Co., Moriarity, NM)

Nights camping on a landfill: 7 (during the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta)

Number of state parks visited: 10
(My Old Kentucky Home, Bardstown, KY; Gulf State Park, Gulf Shores, AL; Paynes Prairie Preserve, Micanopy, FL; Jonathan Dickinson, Jupiter, FL; John Pennekamp Coral Reef, Key Largo, FL; Little Manatee River, Wimauma, FL; Fort Desoto, Tierra Verde, FL; Meaher, Mobile, AL; Palo Duro Canyon, Canyon, TX; Homolovi, Winslow, AZ)

Number of books read by Marnie: 24 (favorite titles include Between Two Kingdoms by Sulieka Jaouad, Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult, Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe, America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray, and Horse by Geraldine Brooks)

The first photo in this post is from our stop at Palo Duro Canyon, where we stopped on our way home. Here’s roughly the same photo from the next morning. We experienced ash and smoke in Amarillo two days ago from the massive Texas fires. Now it’s snowing just 30 miles south of Amarillo. RV travel never ceases to surprie!

We’ll be at home in Arizona for awhile to repair, refresh, and renew ourselves and the RV. Stay tuned as we have some pretty incredible travel plans ahead.

Heading North

May 8, 2022 / marniesteve / 1 Comment

Our summer adventures have begun, and we’re looking forward to sharing them with you. After about a month at home in Prescott we are ready to roll again.

Soon we’ll be crossing the Canadian border with our dear friends Russ and Susan Shoemaker. Together we’ll set out to see Banff and Jasper National Parks in the Canadian Rockies before hitting the Alaska-Canada (ALCAN) Highway. We’ve been planning this trip for over two years. We were booked and ready to go when the pandemic hit in 2020. Now that the Canadian border is open for recreational travel, we’re finally on our way. We hope you’ll follow along!

On our way north we used our Harvest Hosts membership to spend the night at two fun locations. First we stopped at Rowley’s Red Barn in Santaquin, UT. At the base of the Wasatch, it’s a beautiful location, even in the rain.

Next we stopped in Pocatello, ID at the Museum of Clean. It was a clean, level place to park for the night and we enjoyed the four-level museum that’s chock full of everything related to being clean.

One floor is filled with vacuum cleaners that date all the way back to the 1800s. We also enjoyed the nearby Pontneuf Brewery, which was within walking distance of the museum.

We met up with the Shoemakers in Butte and spent two nights in the old mining town. Our big activity was a visit and tour of the World Museum of Mining.

Our underground tour of the Orphan Girl Mine helped us understand the process of mining over the years and how it impacted, and continues, to impact the Butte area.

The city of Butte really reflects its history in the landscape. We drove around a bit and took in the sights.

Soon we’ll begin our trek across three Canadian Provinces and through some of the most remote territory we’ve ever explored. Stay tuned…it’s going to be good!

Harvest Hosting our Way West

April 1, 2021 / marniesteve / Leave a comment

After five months of eastward movement we turned back towards the West with the ultimate goal of reaching home in Arizona by the end of April. We’re taking our time. And we are using this part of the journey to explore new places using our Harvest Host membership. We’ve mentioned Harvest Host in the past, and this post will highlight three very cool locations.

Harvest Host is a membership program that provides overnight locations for self-contained RVers at wineries, breweries, farms, museum, and other sites. Harvest Host now has over 2000 hosts in the network, and they are adding more every day. We’d never be able to enjoy them all, but we’ve found a few good ones!

For example, after leaving Georgia we stopped for a night at Golden Acres Ranch in Monticello, Florida. At the ranch we were introduced to their friendly herd of Tennessee Fainting Goats and a number of other farm animals including sheep, chickens, guinea hens, and the sweetest pregnant dog, Honey.

We shopped the cute country store, checked out the garden, fed the goats, and chatted with fellow RVers who were also parked in the large pastures.

A few days later, while continuing our traverse westward, we stopped for the night at Gulf Coast Gator Ranch in Moss Point, MS. Yes, we parked right next to Boudreaux’s enclosure, home of the 13 foot alligator. It was a bit disconcerting until we learned he was “friendly” and blind.

Because we were there after-hours, we were given private access to the property and strolled the gator grounds on our own. The ranch holds 60 adult gators in the main pond and another 20-30 juveniles in tanks.

At one time they had several hundred but many were washed away during Hurricane Katrina. The goal now is to build the population to about 100. Once a true farm for alligators, the facility now focuses on conservation and education.

The next morning we joined Captain Tim (aka In-Tim-i-Gator) for a tour of the property via airboat. We spotted a few alligators and drew them closer with marshmallows.

Tim also took us on a fast, wild ride in the swamp on the airboat. What a thrill! This Harvest Host location was probably the most unique one to date.

But then we stopped at the International Petroleum Museum, aka The Rig Museum in Morgan City, LA. The facility is a tribute to the offshore oil and gas industry and its impact on the world.

“Mr. Charlie” is the first offshore drilling rig that was transportable, submersible, and self-sufficient, allowing it to drill more than 200 oil wells along the Gulf Coast between 1954 and 1986. Mr. Charlie was the first moveable rig and has been preserved for training and educational purposes.

We were lucky enough to get a personal tour of Mr. Charlie by Virgil Allen, the museum’s founder. While telling us about the history of the museum it was apparent that Mr. Allen was a visionary when he lobbied to save the rig when it was slated for scrap. Now The Rig Museum is an educational place where Harvest Hosters like us can expand our horizons.

We’re headed for Lafayette, LA, the heart of Cajun country and can’t wait to share our experiences in the next post.

Marnie and Steve Travel

We're retired! Let's go!

Harvest Host

Highlights from Five Months on the Road

Heading North

Harvest Hosting our Way West