Tag Archives: Titan Vans

Hello, Colorado!

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Welcome back to our cross-country adventure! If you missed the first leg of the journey, you can read about it in Thought I’d Skip Gardening This Spring.

With our sights set on Colorado, we left Iowa and trekked across Nebraska. We stayed at a couple of Nebraska campgrounds along the way, gaining another hour as we entered Mountain Time. The plan was to stay with my father’s brother Donald for a few days, just outside of Denver, while our van was being serviced in Boulder. My Dad was finishing up a visit with them and was flying out the day we arrived. Before taking him to the airport mid-afternoon, they went golfing and out to lunch. We didn’t want to arrive to an empty house, so we stopped at Barr Lake State Park in Brighton, Colorado, for an early afternoon walk/run.

We spent close to four hours at Barr Lake. So many birds, so little time! Identifying them can be a challenge, but I did see a Western Kingbird and a Bullock’s Oriole for the first time. Actually, several of them.

We arrived at Donald and Valois’s in Centennial, Colorado, just before supper and spent a good deal of time and effort unloading all the essentials from our van in preparation for its service appointment. My cousin Diane and her husband, Pat, came by toting a bounty of leftovers from the weekend family feast for my father’s visit. We were well fed!

In the morning, we drove to Boulder to drop off the van at Titan Vans. Besides some maintenance services, we also asked them to remove a bench seat they’d installed in the original build. We hardly ever used it and wanted the precious storage space. (Anyone want a barely used seat?) We picked up a traffic-cone-orange Kia Kona at Enterprise Rental and stuffed it with more essentials from the van. Moving out of our van when we’re traveling is like packing for the trip all over again. It was hard to know what to leave behind.

Anyway, in our down-sized vehicle, we headed for the Bobolink Trailhead in Boulder for a run/walk.

The most notable part of our visit to the Bobolink Trailhead was when Mark found an obstacle in his path while on his run. A cow! Sorry, no photos.

After a stop at Whole Foods to pick up some lunch, we drove back toward Denver, stopping at Denver Botanic Gardens to meet up with cousins Donna and Barbara. The Gardens were Donna’s idea and what a perfect, sunny afternoon we had! When a brief shower did pass by, we ducked into the Tropical Conservatory full of exotic plants and a treehouse.

Here’s a small sampling of the multitude of gorgeous flowers we saw…

Well, maybe a few more…

After the Botanic Gardens, the four of us had dinner at a local Mexican restaurant. At dinner, Donna told us about a couple of young Great Horned Owls that lived in a tree along a walking path near her house. So, of course, we had to follow her home. First, we got a tour of her own home gardens, which were beautiful! Then, we took a walk in search of owls… And we found them! (Along with our first sighting of a Spotted Towhee.)

The following day was a quiet one. We planned to take a bike ride along a nearby trail, but my bike brakes weren’t cooperating. So, Mark biked while I took a nice walk around the neighborhood. The afternoon was spent preparing to get back on the road the next morning. Later, we met up with Mary and Ruth, friends who’d moved to Colorado from Massachusetts several years ago, for dinner in Denver. It was good to see them.

In the morning, cousin Michael and his wife, Lori, stopped by for coffee and a brief visit. And before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye. Donald and Valois had been the best hosts. We really enjoyed all their stories and the family history discussions. I’m sure they were ready for some alone time after all their company.

In Boulder, we picked up our van with it’s newly configured space, unpacked our rental car, and then drove back to Centennial to pick up our bikes and anything else that didn’t fit in the Kona. We said our final goodbyes and headed west to Utah.

Until next time, Colorado!

Warmer Weather

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We did find warmer weather, eventually, as we drove south from Massachusetts to Virginia and on to Florida. You can read about the chilly start to our trip in Escaping the Snow. After leaving Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, we set our sights on North Carolina.

Last March, we took a similar route south and discovered The Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park in Wilson, North Carolina. You can see some of the photos I took of the huge outdoor whirligigs in last year’s post, Homeward Bound. Last year, we visited the park on a Monday—the day the store/museum is closed. So, we thought we’d stop by this time on a Wednesday to get the complete experience.

The museum was small, but it held many small whirligig creations by Vollis Simpson. They made me want to go home and start tinkering with something! One sculpture was covered with pieces of old signs made of reflector material. When flash photography is used, it appears to light up in the photograph. You’ll see what I mean in the photos below.

Of course we had to visit Casitas Brewing again, which is adjacent to the park. They’re under new ownership and management. We met the new owners and Mark enjoyed one of their regular beers. The buildings nearby sport some very colorful murals, which is always fun to see.

That night, we landed at Old North State Food Hall in Selma, North Carolina, through our Harvest Hosts membership. The Food Hall was like a large food court you’d find in a mall, but without the mall. The place was clean and bright with nice bathrooms and good wifi. We parked overnight in the back lot where only a couple of other trucks and one RV were parked. They were opened late enough at night and early enough the next morning to make it a very convenient stopover.

The night was a little rainy and the next morning we stopped at the Dunn-Erwin Rail Trail in Dunn, North Carolina, for a muddy walk/run before driving farther south to Richmond Hill, Georgia. There, we stayed at the Savannah South KOA. We happened to park right next to some fellow van travelers, Lucy & Larry, who had also taken a trip to PEI last August. Small world. We exchanged Instagram IDs and they were gone early the next morning.

Before we left, we discovered a bit of wildlife at the KOA.

Since we were so close to Savannah, and this was our second time passing through the area without spending more than a few hours there, we thought a trolley tour of historic Savannah would be a nice idea. It was interesting. But because it was a bit chilly, our driver left the plastic barrier up over the open trolley sides, so we couldn’t take any photos. And his heavy southern accent, layered with slurring over an obviously practiced script, made it hard to understand much of what he said. Oh, well.

We were back on the road by lunchtime and heading into Florida. We stayed that night at a KOA in Fort McCoy, Florida. Beautifully peaceful scene behind our camp site.

The next morning we found the Florida Trail Land Bridge Trailhead—a popular place for biking and horseback riding, apparently.

After a great hike and a run on the trail, we hit the road again and arrived in Naples, Florida, in time for dinner with my Dad. Naples would be our southern-most destination on this trip and a welcome stretch of beautiful, warm, sunny days.

A Week Or So On The Road

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We left home on a mid-March Monday morning, the van packed with warm-weather clothes and all the essentials. But the first few nights were still chilly. The heat in the van, set at fifty-nine degrees, blessedly kicked on during those nights.

Monday night we spent at a KOA (Kampground of America) in New Jersey. The next morning I took a walk along the road in front of the KOA, while my husband, Mark, ran.

Tuesday night we stayed in Emporia, Virginia, and headed for the Santee Lakes region of South Carolina on Wednesday. We were pleasantly surprised to find a Buc-ee’s along the way! We first came across the Buc-ee’s chain in Texas, but didn’t know they were so far east.

The Santee National Wildlife Refuge was the perfect spot for a walk/run Wednesday afternoon— even though the thought of alligators crossing my path kept me on high alert. 🙂 It was also the site of Fort Watson, a key stronghold taken from the British during the Revolutionary War.

After trekking through the Wildlife Refuge for the afternoon, we checked in at the Santee Lakes KOA in plenty of time for a beautiful sunset.

We returned to the Wildlife Refuge early the next morning before heading off to St. Augustine.

On Friday morning, we walked the grounds around the St. Augustine Lighthouse, then climbed to the top—all two hundred nineteen steps of its metal spiral staircase. I could feel my stomach flipping out and my legs getting shaky, but all was good as long as Mark stayed behind me on the way up and in front of me on the way back down. 🙂

At the top of the lighthouse—surprise! surprise!—Mark found a fellow lover of Treehouse beer. They talked for several minutes while I took in the view.

I spied a tree down below full of birds and asked the guide what I was looking at. He told us there was a rookery nearby at The Alligator Farm. So, we headed back down the spiral staircase in search of birds.

We drove around the block and found the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. But it didn’t seem worth the $35 apiece to enter. So, we walked down the sidewalk to find that the trees we’d seen from atop the lighthouse. They were just on the other side of a fence. We had a much less expensive, but very satisfactory view from the sidewalk. We saw plenty of wood storks, roseate spoonbills, and egrets coming and going.

Mark still needed to get a run in that day, so after the rookery we drove to the St. Augustine State Trail at the Vermont Heights Trailhead. He ran in one direction while I walked in another. A peaceful spot for exercise with the added bonus of restrooms on site.

Friday night, we stayed at a KOA near Kennedy Space Center. Little did we know, a Spacex rocket was scheduled to launch that night. We joined a small crowd gathered at the right spot (according to those in the know) and, sure enough, a fireball shot into the sky just after 8:20 p.m. Too far away for decent pictures, but we all took them anyway.

In the morning we stopped at Brevard Zoo Linear Park in Melbourne, Florida. Mark went for a run while I attended my monthly Poetry Circle via Zoom. After my Zoom meeting, I squeezed in a short walk before we hit the road again.

We spent the weekend with friends in Boca Raton, arriving late Saturday afternoon in time for dinner. Cliff and Susan were gracious hosts and we enjoyed walking/running in their neighborhood, relaxing by their pool, and eating out in Delray Beach on St. Patrick’s Day.

We said goodbye on Monday morning and travelled Alligator Alley (I-75) through The Everglades to Naples where we spent a few days with my dad.

My dad’s condo is right on the water, so I took my morning walks along a 1.25-mile paved path at the edge of the sand. Mark used the path, but ran along Gulf Shore Boulevard, as well. We also walked down the street to the Village Shops on Venetian Bay, went out for dinner at Mr. Big Fish one night, saw Cabrini at a brand-new fancy cinema nearby, and watched the sunset on our last night in Naples. Mark was able to visit with a couple of old friends who were staying in Naples, too.

All in all, we enjoyed the people and places we visited and the wildlife we encountered. We left Naples on a Thursday morning and headed back north, stopping at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary on the way. But that’s a story for another day… 🙂

Autumn Road Trip: Arizona

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Our first adventure in Arizona was at Petrified Forest National Park and Painted Desert. The wind was whipping sand around, trying to take the hats off our heads, but we managed to enjoy the beautiful petrified colors and the pinkish-orange landscape.

The following day, we headed to the Grand Canyon. We’d both been to the Canyon several years ago via helicopter from Las Vegas, but we didn’t get the full on view then. We were looking forward to getting the big picture this time. And it certainly was grand! Hugely magnificent, I must say! Pictures don’t really do it justice.

That night we drove to a KOA in Page, Arizona, situated between two deeply colorful mesas.

This spot was so beautiful and inviting that we decided to come back for a second night after a trip out to Zion National Park in Utah. And I’ll leave you with that teaser, with photos of Utah to come in the next installment of Autumn Road Trip…

🙂

Autumn Road Trip: Part I

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It seemed odd to be driving away from New England at the end of September when the trees were hinting of changes to come. But that’s what we did. We’re heading to Albuquerque and planning to arrive in time for the annual Balloon Fiesta.

We aimed to leave home early on that first day and drive five hours or more toward Rochester, New York. But, of course, we needed to gas up. And stop for ice. And, oh, yeah, stop at the Weather Tech dealer for a cup phone holder or two. We actually found Topgo ones we like better. Anyway, it was closer to noon when we finally hit the open road.

Our first night away from home, we stayed at Twin Brook Camillus Farm in Camillus, New York. Owned by a lovely retired couple, Craig and Elaine, the farm is home to sheep, chickens, turkeys, dogs, and a pair of Talouse geese.

It was a quiet, cool night, and we barely heard the rooster crowing through the closed windows the next morning.

We bought farm fresh (still warm) eggs and frozen chicken from their self-serve barn-stand and, on our first official morning on the road, we, of course, stopped at Walmart for a few things. Then, on to Erie Canal Park in Camillus, where we took our morning walk/run.

We arrived at Niagara Falls State Park on Goat Island about mid-afternoon. Thirty-nine years ago, we stopped at the Falls on the Canadian side as we drove home from our honeymoon. This time, we got the American view and waved to Canada across the way.

After Niagara, we drove another hour and a half to Westfield, New York, where we stayed at a KOA campground overnight. The end of our first full day on the road.

In the morning, we popped over to Luensman Overview Park in Portland, New York, for a walk/run, then back to the KOA for showers. Passed an interesting sign, enjoyed some fall leaves along the way, and were disappointed at the ‘overview’ where a haze veiled the supposed view of Lake Erie and Canada, beyond.

We then set our sights on Hoof Hearted (yep, say that fast, out loud) Brewery and Kitchen in Columbus, Ohio. But first, we stopped beside Lake Erie for a few pics. It’s hard to look at such a ‘great’ lake and not think it’s an ocean.

After dinner at Hoof Hearted, where Mark drank one of his favorite beers, Permanent Marker Face Disguises, we drove a short distance to a small, but neat, Alton RV Park in Galloway, Ohio, for the night.

In the morning, we found Mudsock Trail, next to a large, beautiful, and very active dog park, in Columbus, Ohio. Saw a couple of egrets, a huge bees nest, and a great blue heron just hanging out in a tree.

We got back on the road, crossed the Indiana state line, and pulled into my cousin’s driveway in Muncie just after 3 p.m. It was good to see them again, as we’d stopped at their house over a year ago when we first drove our new Sprinter back from Boulder, Colorado. The kids were taller. And they’d just just bought a new house around the corner from their current house, so lots of catching up to do.

We shared some of the apples we’d brought from our trees back home, did some laundry, and waited for my cousin’s husband to get home from work. We used that time to pull out our new electric Weber grill and cook the chicken we’d bought in New York, and also bake some home-grown potatoes in our electric air fryer/oven. Then we went out to dinner in downtown Muncie. We followed dinner with a visit to The Guardian Brewing Company to meet some of their friends who were celebrating one friend’s birthday. The company was enjoyable, the beer, not as much.

In the morning, we said our good-byes, visited the local Walmart, and then stopped at Town Run Trail Park in Indianapolis for a morning hike/run. We didn’t realize initially that this was primarily a bike trail. It was Saturday, so many cyclists were pulling in, strapping on their helmets, and hitting the trail. We found a few visitors who were planning to run the trail and we all decided that it would be okay as long as we gave the bikes the right-of-way. Especially on the narrow sections of the very windy trail. As I hiked, I made sure to keep my ears open for birds in the trees around me and bikes speeding up behind me.

Visible from the Trail Park driveway was this impressive sculpture honoring the classic Studebaker automobile of Indiana.

We left Indianapolis and headed for St. Louis and its famous Gateway Arch. Mark had been up to the top of the arch before and I was hoping to make the ascent this time. The section of St. Louis near the Arch was confusing to navigate. On top of that, we passed crowds heading to a Cardinals game at every intersection. As we finally pulled up along the street beside the National Park, we realized that the parking area was closed and that a brick area, slanting away from the road toward the Mississippi River, was being used instead. We drove to an unoccupied section, away from the tight rows of cars, to make our own parking spot.

The Arch was visible from the highway as we approached the city and was huge up close! But, unfortunately, tickets for the ascent were sold out and we had to be content with the indoor museum and outdoor picture-taking in the ninety-degree heat.

At the end of the day, we drove to Point Labaddie Brewery in Labadie, Missouri, to spend the night in their parking lot, courtesy of the Harvest Hosts network. The owner was welcoming and the beer was good. We met a fellow traveler named Christian who was also staying the night in his rig on his way to Albuquerque.

All real living is meeting, said Martin Buber in I and Thou. I love this quote. When I heard it recently, I immediately attached it as an epigraph to a poem I was writing, as if to say: This. This is what I mean! And I’ve found myself meditating on it a lot during this trip. We’ve met people from New England and they’ve felt like home. We’ve met people from the towns we pass through and they’ve sometimes felt a bit foreign. And we learned of the death of a dear friend back home a few days ago. In this life, we meet so many different people (and animals, birds, insects, flowers, trees, mountains, prairies, rivers, and lakes). Each one expands our universe a little. I’ve come to understand on this trip, that we also meet ourselves along the way.

There’s a lot more I could say about that, but I won’t right now. I’ll leave you to meditate on it yourself. 🙂

Stay tuned for Part II of our adventures, yet to come…

Did I Mention Newport?

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Two months ago, I posted about the first half of a Rhode Island van trip. We were headed to Newport for a wedding. The first attempt to blog about the second half of that trip got swallowed up by spotty wi-fi. We’ve taken a couple more short excursions since then, so let’s see if I can wrap up this trip in one tidy blog post. First, the wedding…

A scenic venue and great weather made for a perfect wedding day.

The ceremony took place outdoors at OceanCliff Hotel in Newport. We moved indoors for the reception.

Have you ever seen such tall centerpieces? No obstructed views across the table. Ingenious!

The setting sun provided a perfect backdrop at the end of the day.

I know Newport is supposed to be a tourist destination, but we weren’t feeling the whole crowds-and-traffic vibe, so we headed north the next morning. As usual, we scouted out a place for a morning hike/run. We found the King Benson Preserve near Saunderstown, RI.

After our morning exercise, we headed toward Providence. First stop, Tilted Barn Brewery in Exeter, RI, for lunch.

Then on to Roger Williams Park Zoo for the sunny and intermittently rainy afternoon.

After the zoo, the skies opened up and we had to navigate a torrential downpour to run from the van into The District in downtown Providence for supper. The food was very good, but the place was super air-conditioned, so I ate French onion soup with my raincoat on for warmth.

Our plan for the evening was to attend a Town Meeting show at Askew Bar and Lounge, just a few blocks away. No, not a town meeting. The three sons of our good friends, Beth and Dan, started a band several years ago. They called themselves Town Meeting, and we’re fans. They weren’t hitting the stage until late, so we actually napped in the van after supper, waiting for Askew to open. Good thing we got that nap in, since Town Meeting didn’t actually go on until about eleven p.m., after a couple of interesting opening acts. We played some cribbage and then some pool with one of the Town Meeting brothers while we waited.

We left Askew as the band was playing an encore. We thought the song before that one was a better closer, so we didn’t need to stay ’til the end. And it was past midnight. Way past our bedtime! At one a.m. we pulled into the driveway of other Providence friends, where we parked the van and hopped right into bed!

We spent the following day with our Providence friends, Mark and Kathy, and their children and grandchildren. All in all, an enjoyable day. And one more van trip in the books.

Any Excuse…

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We received a wedding invitation for a Thursday night in June in Newport, RI. So, of course, we thought, what a great excuse for a van trip!

We spent the first two days in Tiverton, RI, parking in the driveway of my husband’s boyhood friend. Len grew up two doors down from Mark in Wilmington, MA. They ran track together at Wilmington High School in the mid-seventies. He now lives on a steep hill of a street in Tiverton with a great view of Mount Hope Bay.

Len lives about halfway down the steep street. On our first day there, we walked down the hill and through the brush to the water.

Later that afternoon we checked out Tiverton Four Corners, a quaint area with shops, historical buildings, and an outdoor sculpture garden.

On the morning of our second day, we drove to Colt State Park in Bristol, RI. Mark and Len went off in one direction for a run.

I set out to walk along a path near the woods. But I kept stopping, distracted by the birds and the flowers. I got a few photos, but the woodpecker and the hummingbird escaped before I could catch them.

I changed course and chose a straighter path along the water instead.

Mark and Len finished their run (see the re-enactment photo below :)) And we headed back to Tiverton, where Len convinced Mark to try out his electric bike on the crazy hill in front of his house. Yikes!

We finished the day with a tour of Len’s basement workshop where he repairs glass lamps. He also showed us some of his stained glass pieces from his long career as a stained glass artist. He was full of stories about some of the church work he did. And he named all the different styles, colors, and textures of the glass he used.

Then we scooted over the state line to Fall River, MA, to eat supper at The Tipsy Toboggan. All in all, a nice visit. On to Newport tomorrow.

Maiden Voyage and Whirlwind Visits

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My husband, Mark, and I flew to Denver last week to pick up our newly converted Sprinter van from Titan Vans in Boulder, CO. I was immediately reminded of the day we drove our firstborn baby home from the hospital thirty five years ago. As we pulled away from the curb way back then, my first thought was They’re just letting us leave?!

It took several minutes to figure out how to put the new van in drive, so the mild panic was justified. Neither of us have ever driven a Mercedes, so it’s a bit like learning to maneuver a spaceship. We’re also complete camping novices, so we’re very much out of our element. Other than that, we’re good.

Using our Harvest Hosts membership, we headed for Lawson’s Adventure Park in Dumont, CO, to spend the night camping in their parking lot. Dinner at Tommyknocker Brewery & Pub in Idaho Springs hit the spot. Mark enjoyed their Juicy Blood Orange double IPA. He also picked up an assorted six-pack of the Juicy, the regular Blood Orange IPA, and their Sour Peach.

The first night in our van is a story we may laugh about someday. I’ll save the details ’til then. The next day, we took ourselves straight to the Mercedes dealership for the inside scoop on hidden compartments and useful information.

We spent the rest of that day visiting family in the Denver area. It was so great to meet up with cousins who’d moved across the country when we were young.

First, cousin Michael and his girls explored the van.
The girls were celebrating their last day of school, so we had a quick visit.
We stopped at cousin Donna’s house, then headed to cousin Barbara’s for dinner.

My Uncle Donald and Valois graciously invited us to spend the night at their house. We appreciated the warm bed, the hot showers, and their generous hospitality.

The following day, on the recommendation of my cousins, we drove to Red Rocks Amphitheatre. What a fascinating place!

Thanks, Mary & Ruth!

After Red Rocks, we set out for Thornton, CO, to visit some friends. Mary and Ruth used to sing in the same chorus I belong to. It was great to see them and catch up. They took us out for Mexican food and invited us to stay overnight. Another opportunity for a warm bed and hot showers. Score!

That’s all for now. So many more adventures and so little time to stop and write…