Recapping the journey: Walking in the footsteps of giants at Dinosaur Valley State Park, TX

It’s been a long time since I updated this blog. I’ve had a hard time getting back into the headspace of the trip after we got off the road, but I really do want to record all of the adventures. When I left off, we were traveling through Texas toward Fort Worth in mid January,

The end of the road – for now

As state and national parks close their campgrounds and many communities ask travelers to stay away to reduce the spread of COVID-19, we’ve made the decision to suspend our journey. We decided this morning to head back to New Jersey where we can stay with family to wait out the storm that has swept over

From gumbo to tacos, with excellent parks in between

After riding out severe weather in western Mississippi, we were keen to get out of there and make our way to the Fort Worth, TX area as soon as possible. So we packed up the dogs, crossed the Big Muddy, and took a northwesterly route through Louisiana, the 10th state of our trip. Our first

A New Direction

With the Florida Keys behind us, there was nowhere to go but north. Maybe we would go all the way to the terminus of the Appalachian Trail in Georgia? Or should we begin heading west as soon as possible? We tossed these possibilities around and in the mean-time booked a campsite at Torry Island Campground,

In which I befriend a manatee and watch a chicken cross the road in a crosswalk

Mangrove trees, turquoise-blue water, frigate birds flying overhead – they would be the backdrop as we rang in 2020, and we saw them all when we stopped in to visit the visitors’ center at Biscayne National Park. The grounds of the visitors’ center were beautiful, with shaded patios, picnic tables with ocean views, and a

Boating with gators and walking in the treetops at Myakka River State Park, Florida

Of all of the things I expected to see in Florida, cow country wasn’t one of them. But after we left Highlands Hammock State Park and passed by miles and miles of citrus groves, we were greeted by a landscape of flat grassy fields accented with trees and grazed by cows (each accompanied by its

Christmas in the campground: Highlands Hammock State Park, FL

This year, Santa arrived in the form of an armadillo.  But let’s back up.  On Christmas Eve, we set out from Lake Louisa State Park in Florida to Highlands Hammock State Park, where we had made a camping reservation the previous week for the Christmas holiday. We didn’t have any expectations for this park and

Welcome to the Sunshine State

Our general plan for this trip was to slowly meander south to the Florida Keys, avoiding highways and stopping for points of interest all along the way, and then to head west and visit Big Bend National Park in Texas before finishing out the winter in New Mexico, Arizona, and southern California. The meandering and

A vacation from the vacation

We rented an Airbnb for 4 nights to get healthy and solve a condensation conundrum.

SC state parks for the win

As we took the Southport/Fort Fisher Ferry south, we intended to continue following the coast, which meant that Myrtle Beach would be the next logical stop. As we entered South Carolina and ticked off the 6th state on our trip, we began seeing more and more surf and beachwear shops and extravagant mini-golf places. (Ah,