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Lake Michigan And The Indiana Dunes
Beth and Ernie’s great escapade rolled into Indiana Dunes National Park for a two night stay in our 32nd National Park. Where has the time gone? After this stop, we will have only 3 more parks to see before arriving home to Nags Head. Our campground was inside the park and we arrived in the…
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Cuyahoga, More Than Meets The Eye
One of the nice things about our trip is the pleasant and unexpected surprises we have had from time to time. Cuyahoga turned out to be one of them. All we knew about this park going in was it is a relatively new addition to our country’s National Parks, and it is located near Stow,…
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Pictured Rocks – One If By Land, Two If By Boat
After a somewhat disappointing visit to Voyageurs National Park, Beth and I continued our easterly trek, stopping in Michigan to explore the highly anticipated Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Nestled along the stunning shores of Lake Superior, Pictured Rocks offers visitors a variety of ways to view this beautiful coastline. We chose several hikes to begin…
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It’s All About The Bison
We drove through five hours of nothing North Dakota to arrive in 95 degree heat at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. North Dakota is a place of extremes–negative 40 degrees in the winter and over 100 in the summer, badlands and prairies, wildlife and petrified forest, desert and caves. Driving into the campground, we encountered a…
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The Badlands…They’re Not So Bad
There were two parks on our tour that caused Beth some concern. Death Valley and The Badlands. Death Valley’s heat was a legitimate cause for some trepidation. I think the name Badlands created a false sense of anxiety since we knew nothing about the park. We survived Death Valley, and I had little concern that…
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Wind Cave – No Wind, No Cave
The next stop on our National Park hit parade was Wind Cave in South Dakota. During our planning phase we found out that the caves in the park would be closed for the summer months due to the park service replacing the elevator system which provides access to the caves. Why they chose to undertake…
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Over 10,000 Feet – A Real Rocky Mountain High
The escapade contined to roll on with the next planned stop in Estes Park, right outside of Rocky Mountain National Park. Enroute between Great Sand Dunes and Estes Park we had a short scheduled stop in Castle Rock, Colorado, to visit our nephew Wes and his girlfriend Katherine. It was so nice to see someone…
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We Should’ve Brought Our Beach Toys
Having survived the horrors of the San Luis Valley state park campground (see previous post), we were delighted to make our way to our next National Park, Great Sand Dunes. Since we had briefly scouted out the park the day before, we knew where our campsite was and what we wanted to do upon arrival.…
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The Twilight Zone
After leaving Black Canyon of the Gunnison two days early, and after spending a night at a hotel, we still needed a place to stay on Sunday night, before we could get into our reserved campsite in Great Sand Dunes. We decided we would drive straight to the park, and see if by chance we…
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Hello and Goodbye Black Canyon
It’s been almost two weeks since we last had an opportunity to post a blog update. This is a result of a combination of a busy schedule and a lack of wifi. Our last post had us finishing up our time in Canyonlands. Our next stop was Black Canyon of the Gunnison in Colorado. We’ve…
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A Walk In Chesler Park
The drive from Capitol Reef to Canyonlands took us about 4 hours. The campground we are staying at in Canyonlands is in the Needles District of the park and is located about 75 miles from the nearest town, Moab, Utah. Needless to say, the Needles District is remote. After the obligatory stop at the Visitor…
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Into The Frying Pan
Beth and I pulled out of the Bryce Zion Campground on Sunday morning, June 23rd. We said goodbye to Little Tibby White When and all of the memories the campground provided for us as we headed north and east to Capitol Reef National Park. The eastward swing of our journey is now in full force…
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Are We At Disney World?
After a great day at Bryce Canyon, we were looking forward to our visit to Zion National Park. This was one of the parks our family had visited on our cross-country tour 20 years ago, and we really enjoyed it. Beth and I were anxious to see it again. We knew that Zion had grown…
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Twice At Bryce–A Hoodoo Hoedown
It took just one look from the Fairyland Canyon overlook into Bryce Canyon to whisk away any of the lingering regrets we had about missing out on Glacier National Park. It was Wednesday, June 19th, and Beth and I were in Bryce Canyon at the trailhead to the Fairyland Loop Trail, an 8 mile circuit…
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A Blast From The Past
Beth and I pulled out of Great Basin National Park on our way to Utah and our dates with Capitol Reef and Canyonlands National Parks. During our stop at Idaho Falls for an overnight, I had made a reservation for a private campground near Glendale, Utah, which is situated about equal distance from Zion and…
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Over 8,000 Feet For The First Time
Great Basin National Park in Nevada was the next stop on our journey. It was about a five hour drive from our motel in Idaho Falls. Since departure day was a Sunday, we found the Christ Community Church to attend which was only 10 minutes from the Motel West. It was another great service, which…
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An Opportunity Lost
Having decided to leave North Cascades park a day early to avoid some predicted inclement weather, Beth and I needed to arrange lodging for our unexpected travel day. Our next planned park was Glacier in Montana, so we reviewed our maps and decided that we would break up the 14 hours to Glacier over two…
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North Cascades In A Day
The next stop for Beth and me was North Cascades National Park in upstate Washington. It was less than a five hour drive from Mount Rainier, and it went smoothly. Our plan was to spend 2 nights in the park. A check of the weather for North Cascades made us change our minds. The day…
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Have You Ever Been Glissading?
Beth and I did not know what to expect at Mt. Ranier National Park. It was one of the 35 parks on our list, and we knew it was a volcanic mountain, but other than that we had few expectations for our time there. We couldn’t have been more off-base. While we undersold it, Mt.…
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Sunshine In The Rainforest
Since the drive from Crater Lake to Olympic National Park in Washington was close to 10 hours, we split the trip up over two days. On Saturday, we drove over six hours to an overnight at the Millersylvania State Park in Washington state. We were delighted to find out it had showers and after setting…
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Bluer Than Blue
On Thursday, June 6th we left the Jedediah Smith Four Seasons campground around 7:45 am. Our ultimate destination was Crater Lake National Park near Prospect, Oregon. But first we had a date with the laundromat in Crescent City. The smells from the dirty laundry bag in the back of the car could no longer be…
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That’s One Tall Tree
Redwoods was the next stop on our National Parks hit parade, a 5 hour drive from Lassen Volcanic. This would be our last of the 8 California parks we visit. For 3 weeks we have been in California, from Death Valley and Channel Islands to Sequoia and Kings Canyon. Redwoods would end our California travels.…
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Is That Rain I Hear
Beth and I regrettably pulled out of Yosemite on Sunday morning heading for Lassen Volcanic National Park. We stopped for Church in Merced, California at the Life Place Church. It was a very uplifting service and got our day off to a great start. We had a long travel day, almost 7 hours of driving,…
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Oh Yosemite!
Greetings family and friends. First, we must apologize for not having a new blog post in some time. We have been without access to the internet or electricity for more than 10 days now and my laptop battery was also dead and in need of a charge. It’s Saturday, June 8th and a lot has…
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A Relaxing Time in the Park
On Memorial Day, we left the Mountain Chapel campground for our reserved camping spot in the Azalea Campground in Kings Canyon. The drive, while just as trying the second time, was not quite as bad as we knew what to expect. It was at least short, only 45 minutes, which means we arrived by 9:30…
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Walking in the Shadows of the Giants
Beth and I made short order of packing everything up Saturday morning at the Pinnacles campground and we were on the road early to our next stop, the Mountain Chapel Campground in Badger, California. Along the way, we stopped at a Walmart Supercenter in Visalia to restock our cooler with food supplies for the coming…
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It’s Cold, Really Cold
Thursday, May 23rd dawned cool and damp in the Hobson Park campground. The temperature was in the low 50s and the mist from the ocean spray overnight had left everything damp at the campsite. No problem. We knew we were heading to a warmer and drier campground in Pinnacles National Park. Things would surely dry…
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From Sea to Shining Sea
Perhaps I should have saved this title for a post on the 4th of July, but it seems more appropriate now. For you see, on Tuesday afternoon, around 5:00 p.m., we reached the west coast and the Pacific Ocean. We traveled almost 4,500 miles from the time we left the Atlantic Ocean in Nags Head,…
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Alive … in Death Valley
Death Valley. Need I say more. Our National Parks escapade rolled on towards Death Valley. Why, you may ask? Because it’s there and because it’s on our list are the only good reasons I can give. We voluntarily chose to go to the place with the hottest recorded temperature ever recorded on earth at 134…
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Desert Wanderings
In the Old Testament, the nation of Israel wandered in the desert for forty years before entering the Promised Land. Beth and I feel like we are already there and our desert journey has lasted only 15 days. During this time, we have been in three deserts, the Chihuahan, the Sonoran, and the Mojave, with…
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Sand, Snake, and Saguaros
Leaving Texas behind, Beth and I said goodbye to Guadalupe National Park en route to our next destination – White Sands National Park in New Mexico. It would be a relatively short drive, only 4 and a half hours. We recently learned from other travelers that most of White Sands was closed because of the…
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The Best Six Dollars We’ve Ever Spent
It’s Monday evening as I write this post and Beth and I are sitting inside our living room, I mean our tent, closing out another day. Before I recap our experiences over the last two days, I have to give a big shout out and thank you to our daughter Michelle. We’ve been having internet…
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Two In a Canoe
It’s Thursday, May 9th, I think, as I write this blog. My watch and phone batteries are dying(more on that later), so it’s hard to keep track of the date. I do know it’s been several days since we posted to our blog due to internet issues so we need to provide all of our…
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It’s Hot, Really Hot
As I write this post, Beth and I are relaxing at our campsite at the Chisos Basin campground in Big Bend National Park. We are sitting at the base of a rugged, sawtooth shaped mountain that towers above the campground at an elevation of over several thousand feet. The only sounds we can hear are…
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The Best Laid Plans
You have probably never heard of Robert Burns, but he is attributed with being the first man to utter the infamous phrase – “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” Beth and I made our best plans for our National Parks escapade over a six month period, and in a matter…
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Gators, An Owl, and Blue Sky, Oh My!
Beth and I kicked off our National Park Escapade on Thursday with our first offical park stop in Congaree, just outside of Columbia, South Carolina. We were up with the sun at 6:30 after a mostly good first night’s sleep in our luxurious accomodations (I guess most people would not call a 9×12 tent luxurious),…
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And We’re Off!
At 8:25 a.m. on Wednesday, May 1st, Beth and I finally embarked on our much anticipatedNational Parks Tour. Leaving our home in Nags Head, North Carolina with high hopes and many expectations, we said goodbye to our dear friend and neighbor Alice, who was waiting for us outside of her condo across from our place…
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Who Said It Wouldn’t All Fit?
Our 2018 Ford Escape has 68 cubic feet of rear cargo storage space. Good thing. We used every cubic inch of it as we packed in all of our gear and supplies for our National Parks escapade. As I write this post, Beth and I are at T-12 hours and counting until departure, and all…
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The Ultimate Marriage Test
Last weekend I was discussing our upcoming National Parks tour with Kurtis, my good friend from Church. As he sat and listened to me describe our plans, I saw his eyebrows raise slightly at various points during our conversation. When I finished, Kurtis looked at me and summed up his thougths in six clear words:…
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Looking Back Two – What Happens In Vegas
We share with you today another post from our “looking back” series, recounting our family’s first cross country adventure. Enjoy! As I mentioned in a previous post, in 2004 our family embarked on the Great Western Excursion, a 25 day camping trip across the country. It was a fantastic trip which included 17 states, 7…
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A Look Back – On a Wing and a Prayer
As Beth and I continue the countdown to our National Parks tour, I thought it might be fun to look back at our family’s first cross country adventure taken back in 2004. While our upcoming trip will be just the two of us, our earlier trip included our four children and my mother-in-law. Instead of…
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We’re Going on an Escapade!
Escapade. Eight letters, three syllables, endless possibilities. Even the word itself is fun to say. Go ahead, say it out loud – escapade. We chose this word to be part of our blog’s name as its definition captures everything we want this blog to be – full of excitement, daring, and adventure. Over…
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Practice Makes Perfect….Really?
As I write today’s post, Beth and I are about 3 weeks away from leaving on our National Parks tour. Our journey, starting at Congaree National Park in South Carolina, will take us all over the United States, visiting 35 of the 38 National Parks we haven’t seen in the continental United States. Due to…
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Trip Planning
Trip planning is crucial for any successful road trip. Whether it’s a day trip to your favorite amusment park, a week’s vacation at the beach, or a cross country road trip like Beth and I are taking, the odds of a successful escapade increase dramatically with the proper planning. We find that researching and planning…
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New Tires
ONanESCAPADE.com /’esk,pād/ noun An act or incident involving excitement, daring, or adventure. NEW TIRES As Beth and I continued our preparations for our 12,000 mile National Parks tour, we knew it would be best to check the condition of our tires to assure they had enough treadlife to complete the trip. Good thing we…