... and I can hardly wait!


Wednesday, August 4, 2010 9:11 p.m.

I see I have a new reader from Rapid City, and another reader from Nebraska,  so this encourages me to report on our upcoming camping vacation trip out west.  I mentioned this several months ago, and the entire idea seemed very surreal at the time, but as it gets closer, I am beginning to believe that it is actually going to happen!

But, not in a covered wagon.  Rather, in our homemade Sprinter van conversion! 

We are planning our departure in early September, traveling and camping all the way in our van.  A couple of years ago, Self-Reliant Man designed a rough conversion of our Freightliner / Mercedes Benz Sprinter van to enable us to camp inside it, and I must say it is very comfortable.  It sleeps all four of us comfortably, and over the time we have improved upon the original design by creating a raised sleeper / storage unit for Sweet Girl (who actually slept on the van floor in the earlier days).  You can read more about our conversion in this post from September 2008.

Anyway, we are getting pretty excited about this trip.  I have to say that while my mind has been all over the place, Self-Reliant Man has been extremely focused on preparing for a smooth trip in all the details.  Meanwhile, I have made all the campground reservations and printed out various maps and documents from the Web about the places we are going to see.  And now, here is the list of the places we are going to see!

Day 1: Drive north to Forsyth, Georgia and camp.
 
Day 2: Drive to Mammoth Cave area and camp (in Kentucky).

 Day 3: Visit Mammoth Cave and relax some.
 
Day 4: Drive on to Montgomery City, Missouri, and camp.


Day 5: Drive on to Onawa, Iowa, and camp.

 Day 6: Drive on to Badlands National Park area and camp (in South Dakota)

Day 7: Visit Badlands and drive to Rapid City and camp.

Day 8: Visit Black Hills, Needles Pkwy, Iron Mountain Rd, Crazy Horse Monument, Mt Rushmore and then drive to Devils Tower area and camp.

 Day 9: Visit Devils Tower and then drive on to Billings, Montana and camp.

Day 10: Drive Beartooth Hghwy to Yellowstone National Park northeast entrance.  Visit park and drive on to West Yellowstone and camp.

Days 11 - 14: visit Yellowstone National Park.

Day 15: depart Yellowstone, drive to Grand Tetons National Park, visit and stay in Dubois, Wyoming.

Day 16: Drive on to Cheyenne, Wyoming and camp.

Day 17: Drive on to Estes Park, Colorado.  Visit Rocky Mountain National Park and camp.

Day 18: Visit Rocky Mountain National Park.

Day 19: Depart Rocky Mountain and drive on to Oakley, Kansas and camp.

Day 20: Drive on to Kansas City, Missouri and camp.

Day 21: Drive on and visit St. Louis Gateway Arch.  Drive on to Marion, Illinois and camp.

Day 22: Drive on to Chattanooga, Tennessee and camp.

Day 23: Drive on to White Springs, Florida and camp.

Day 24:Drive home.

Our own peaceful pasture.

Whew!  What an itinerary.  Self-Reliant Man has been planning all the details for vehicle maintenance, meal ideas, car games for the children, establishing camp set up and tear down duties for everyone, and creating a routine within the trip.  I have been in charge of creating a three ring reference binder for the entire trip and making all the reservations.  In addition, I have documented all the Cracker Barrel restaurants that we will pass along the way.  There are hardly any after we get past Missouri!  We also have several simple camp meals planned for breakfast and supper.  Only weeks left, and we are ready to hit the road!!  Hooray!

p.s. Guess I don't need to pack our camera.  We've already got photos of every place, right?

p.p.s. We are going to call it the Glory of God's Creation Tour, and the children are documenting everything for their homeschool end of year oral presentation project.