Day 5

Day 5

Guess who woke me up this morning?

That’s right, I have officially passed on my need-for-milage genes. Joshua woke me up at five o’clock, smiling and ready to get on the road. And well, what could we do but give in to his polite request to get going? We took our time getting ready and drinking coffee and left at seven. There’s nothing better on a road trip than getting up early and hitting the road. Other than coffee. And pretty scenery. And yummy food.

We’re driving through Montana now, and there aren’t many places on earth prettier than right here. There are acres and acres of pasture land, backing up to a mountain range. Some of the mountains are still snow capped, and others have that deep purple blue that mountains have in the morning light. We’ve seen farms nestled in the shadows of the mountains and old buildings in the middle of fields that look like they’ve been abandoned. I love the colors out here. Bright blue sky, dark purple/blue mountains, BRIGHT green fields, and then the shadowy areas where the clouds filter the sun. Lest you think I’m just waxing eloquent, I’ll have to show you the pictures.

The border crossing to Canada went smoothly, later on in Day 5. At least, I guess it went smoothly. Back in the day (as in, the last time we drove this way) you didn’t need passports or anything to get through Canada. Which means that you pulled up to the border office place, rolled down your car window, they asked you a dozen questions (six of which were “do you have any guns?”) and then you kept driving. Like ordering fries at McDonalds, but without the fries. However, since the whole passport thing, I guess they make everyone go inside, or at least most people, because we weren’t the only ones who had to pull in. It could have also had something to do with the fact that John had to declare a rifle, which he brought to protect us from bears on the Alcan (Alaska-Canada Highway). In any case, it went well and I managed to resist the urge to give ridiculous answers to questions like “have you ever been arrested?” (Yes, officer, but just for international drug smuggling. I got it expunged from my record, so I’m good now). I didn’t think he’d appreciate the humor and much as I love Canada, I have no desire to spent my life in a Canadian prison (do they even have prisons?), so I answered honestly “no” to all those kinds of questions.

And then we were in Alberta. Blah. No, that’s not completely fair. There are some incredibly beautiful parts of Alberta. Most of it, even, is beautiful. It’s just that there’s a long stretch right as you cross the border that look suspiciously like Kansas. It makes no logical sense that it would be flat as far as the eye can see, since in Montana the land has hills and valleys, but there you go. Once we got to Calgary the scenery got a little more varied, since there are lots of rivers/creeks around there. And trust me, we had plenty of time to observe the scenery around there, since it took us over an hour to get through Calvary. I’m probably underestimating, actually, but I was reading, so I didn’t pay too much attention to the traffic jam.

Red Deer, the next big town after Calvary, was really nice. It seemed like the same kind of small city it would be fun to live in. Lots of things to do, but not overly “citified.” We drove just past there to Ponoka and pulled into the RV park where we planned to stop only to discover that Ponoka has a huge rodeo (“stampede”) next week. It starts on Monday and goes for a week, and the people who compete there go on to the Calgary Stampede. They already had 300 RV’s there (on Friday!) and the manager told us he’s expected about 1000. I can’t even imagine what that will be like, because it seemed crowded already.

We didn’t think we were going to be able to stay there, because I think they’re saving the spots for the people who are going to be there all week, not just overnighters like us, but the manager came to talk to my dad and they got to talking and he said he could find a place for us. He was such a nice man—welcoming and friendly—and he knows Lance Mackey, one of the Iditorod champions. Obviously I thought this was amazing, since I think the Iditarod is amazing and follow it every March. I also subject my students to Iditarod updates, which they secretly love. I’m telling you. Turns out the manager also lived in Georgia for a week when he was thinking of getting a job down there working with oil somehow. So he and my parents talked a little and then we went to eat at Dino’s, a place in town he had recommended. The food there was yummy—we couldn’t decide if they had started as an Italian place or a Greek place, but they had a little bit of everything. We talked to the waitress a little about where we were going and she said she’d like to go to Alaska, and that she was sure Georgia was pretty too. I hope she gets to travel one day, because even though I think Ponoka is gorgeous, she seems like she’d like to see the world. Talking to her and the RV park manager was really interesting. That’s part of the fun of trips like this—you get to meet all kinds of people and hear parts of their stories. As a writer, I think that fascinates me even more than it fascinates “normal” people, because I love stories of all kinds.

The radio in the restaurant was playing country music, which totally shocked me. Who knew they had country in Canada? John just rolled his eyes and asked where I thought Shania Twain was from. Hm. Canada. Who knew?

It was a loooong day, but we made good milage and I think everyone was happy with how far we went before we stopped.

Day 4

Day 4

Just after I wrote Day 3, we had dinner and I had a bite of John’s steak (okay, two bites…three bites…). Can I just say that I’m in love with Nebraska beef? It tastes like cow! I’ve never had steak with that much flavor. And the texture…

Basically, if you want to know what I want for Christmas? I want some Nebraska steak.

So we didn’t make it to Guernsey on Day 3, but we did make it to Ft. Laramie, which was only 20 miles short of our initial goal, which isn’t bad, I don’t think, since we’re still getting used to how this RV-ing thing works.

The RV park at Ft. Laramie was adorable. The bathrooms were all nice and clean and even had flowers stenciled on the walls, which made it seem like we were guests and not just people paying for a spot to park our camper and sleep. The air was crisp in the morning, as expected, and I loved how quiet and still the praire (is it praire there or plains? I get confused) was in the morning. The only downfall to this place was the train. It went through four times from about nine at night until morning, and let me tell you, Josh did not like the train. The first time (I wasn’t in the camper then) I’m told he got a look of terror on his face and then screamed hysterically. The second time I was with him and he was a little hysterical, but not so bad. The last two times the train came through he barely stirred—the kid kind of sleeps like a rock. Not sure where he gets that from…

From Ft. Laramie we continued on through Wyoming. We saw the first antelope sightings of the trip and we saw trains! If you have ever heard me describe the drive we made to Alaska in 2000, you know we saw a zillion trains. That’s right. A zillion. No overestimation going on there. Anyway, Alison and I started saying “look, a boat!” instead of “look, a train!” because we got so tired of seeing trains. So we spent the better part of yesterday with my dad pointing out all the trains and “boats” to me just because he knows I was sick of seeing them the last time.

Brief side note: I’ve also been drinking TONS of water because Wyoming scares me since we spent 24 hours in Cheyenne on our last trip up because I had to get IV fluids because I was so dehydrated. And the hospital wasn’t the traumatizing part of that stay. It was the fact that we had to stay in a hotel room for two days…outside of a train yard.

We decided that Wyoming is also gorgeous, but really, we already knew that. I have become even more convinced that I love the west. I love the big, open sky. I love seeing for miles and miles (except when it stormed yesterday). I love the smell of sage and praire and hay. The last time I was out west, I liked it okay and thought it was pretty, but I don’t remember feeling as comfortable out here as I do now.

We stopped in Sheridan, Wyoming because we needed to make a Walmart run and decided that Sheridan is adorable and we could see ourselves living there.

Once we got into Montana we saw some of the effects of the flooding they’ve been having out here. A little town called Roundup looked like it had been hit decently hard and we could see people cleaning out one of the restaurants that looked like it had been flooded. We also saw sand and dirt coming a few feet into the road from where the river water had washed up. After Roundup, we almost drove into a storm, but the road turned and we ended up driving between the two darkest clouds, which I thought was very convenient. The lightning was incredible to watch, because the sky was dark enough that it stood out and you could really see it flashing. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of lightning, but it was pretty neat. My mom kept trying to get a picture but the lightning was too fast. Even though we avoided the worst part of the storm, we did get caught in the rain. It drenched the road, the hills around us, the poor construction workers fixing a washed out road (who knew roads could wash out?). Since battling the storm sucked the energy out of everyone, we stopped in Lewistown, Montana, which meant we drove just over 500 miles yesterday.

John asked a gas station attendant for advice on where to eat, which he said the guy seemed to really enjoy giving. We ended up at the Four Aces, a little restaurant/bar/casino. Don’t get all nervous—the casino was a back room filled with mostly video poker and stuff. We didn’t play. We just ate steak and potatoes and marveled at the fact that the extent of the vegetables they offered was salad. I guess they figure steak and potatoes do just fine, and I can’t say I have a problem with that. We got a kick out of the fact that the waitress asked when she got our drink orders if we wanted anything besides coffee. Apparently coffee’s big in Montana, since everyone gets it there. The coffee was perfect for the restaurant—I wouldn’t drink it that weak at home, but diner coffee’s supposed to taste that way.

After dinner we went back to our campground, did some laundry (yay!) and went to sleep.

"Get off the interstate, Ben Stone..."

Day 3

Alright, ten points if you can name that movie I quoted in the title. I’ll tell you tomorrow if you got it right.

They say nothing stays the same, that everything changes. Well, here I am, living proof that the saying is wrong. I have recanted in my false beliefs about Oklahoma. I’m pretty much in love with the Osage County area. Nebraska is gorgeous too, much more unique in its beauty than I thought it was. Notice what’s missing in that list?

Yep. Kansas. No offense, Kansas people, but I still don’t like it. Yes, there were some pretty parts of it, I can admit that. The breeze (um, gusting wind?) was nice at our RV park last night. But Kansas as a whole? At least, the part I saw? Yeah….I’m glad to be done with it.

The day started out a little on the sketchy side for me. Josh was asleep and I was hanging out with him so he wouldn’t roll off the bed, which means that I didn’t get a chance to have coffee. That’s right, I started the day today with no coffee. Which is why I was in a grumpy mood for the first little while. Well, that and Kansas.

When we crossed the Nebraska line I felt a little better. When we pulled off the interstate to get gas and discovered Valentino’s pizza? I was a LOT better. That was some of the most amazing pizza I’ve ever had. The tangy tomato sauce, the spicy pepperoni’s, warm crust and gooey cheese…Mmmmm.

We continued our “hey, we’re enjoying the trip” philosophy and decided to get off the interstate in…It’s not Ooompaloopa, Nebraska, but it sounds like it. Checking the map now…Ogalala. That’s it. Actually, I asked John, so if it’s not spelled right, it’s because I didn’t check. Don’t judge. I know I’m an English teacher, but it’s summer, okay? But even on the interstate we saw some pretty scenery. The Platte River (all five zillion crossings of it) was beautiful. Also, if you don’t know, Nebraska has some of the best rest stops in the country. Cute little kid playareas, nice buildings, shady picnic areas, and the two we’ve been to have been on rivers, which makes them scenic. So we stopped at a couple of those and it was nice. I’ve decided I may love the prarie after all. There’s something about the way the wind whooshes through the grass that instantly makes you relax and enjoy being outside in the big, wide open space. I may have changed my mind on the West as a whole. I’m a big fan.

We got of the interstate in that town whose name isn’t Ooompalooma and let me tell you, that was a good move. Since we’re in an RV, we can’t go that fast anyway, which means that on the backroads we don’t lose any speed, but we gain the uniqueness of the little towns and lose the stress of passing 18-wheelers. We saw Lake McConaghy, which was absolutely stunning. It was huge! Plus, everytime we saw it we were looking down through these cool canyon/ravine looking areas. I’m sure there’s a technical name for it, but I don’t know it. The land where we were looks rather flat, but every few minutes we would look to the right and see where it dropped off suddenly, sometimes closer to the road and sometimes out on the horizon.

We’re still in Nebraska now and I’m proud to tell you that I have seen parts of the Oregon Trail! I can’t tell you how many times I played that game as a kid and now I have seen Jailhouse Rock and Courthouse Rock (it looks like a courthouse! Can you even believe it?). AND Chimney Rock, which was obviously amazing. You can see it from much further away than I would have guessed and there was something so surreal about knowing that pioneers came this same way and endured hazards far worse than a lack of coffee (Don’t worry about me, by the way, I got some eventually). I love history, so I love knowing I’m seeing the same things as people did when they traveled this way as pioneers hundreds of years ago. It’s probably the writer in me, but I wonder what their stories were. What were they thinking when they saw Chimney Rock for the first time?

The goal tonight is to get to Guernsey, Wyoming. It’s just past Ft. Laramie, another Oregon Trail landmark. I was really looking forward to being in Wyoming, because I love the scenery there, but Nebraska is just as gorgeous (cannot believe I’m typing that!) so I’m in no hurry to leave, other than wanting to be closer to Alaska.

By the way, there was a definite chill in the air this morning! There’s no better smell in the world (except this smell in Alaska—it’s different, trust me) than a crisp morning. And since it’s supposed to be in the forties or fifties in Guernsey tonight, I am anticipating the opportunity to enjoy that feeling again tomorrow.

Alaska Adventure Day 2

DAY 2

So far I’m admitting to being wrong. We’re halfway (over halfway, actually) through our drive for the day. We’re STILL in Oklahoma. They make states bigger out west, I guess. Anyway, Oklahoma is GORGEOUS. What was I thinking? Oklahoma-ins, Okies, whatever you’d prefer to be called, I apologize profusely.

First, it’s less a plains state than an out-west state. More Texas than Kansas, if you will. So I’ve enjoyed the western feeling. There’s a certain way the wind swishes here that leaves an impression. Maybe that’s why the writers of “Oklahoma” felt the need to mention the wind in their opening song.

Speaking of songs, even though we’re all happier today than yesterday (I credit McDonalds and a hot lunch, personally) we’re a little tired still. Tired enough that everytime we come to a new city/town someone has a song for it and sings it. For example…

I’m proud to be an Okie from Muskogee.

Livin’ on Tulsa time.

Witchita lineman still on the line.

Or, when we entered a certain area “Cherokee people, Cherokee tribe. So proud to live, so proud to die…”

Amarillo by morning.

Okay, no, we didn’t go through Amarillo. But I had to contribute something, didn’t I? In good news, this whole experience has given me some insight on why my sister and I are unable to converse without song lyrics. It’s obviously hereditary.

We got caught in construction in Tulsa, which made the city name come very close to being banned from our vocabularies as a certain city was yesterday. We missed our turnoff to take the handy turnpike we wanted to take, but it turned out okay. We ended up on a two lane highway that took us through the illustrious town of Barnsdall, which on first glance might look unremarkable. BUT it’s the home of Anita Bryant (I don’t know who she is, but my parents thought it was cool) AND CLARK GABLE! Aka Rhett Butler! You’re going to have to take my word for it, but I cannot see him in this town. Especially—what—seventy or eight years ago? Longer ago than that? Because I’m thinking this town didn’t shrink over time. I think it’s as big as it’s ever been. And I can’t see Rhett being from there. But he is! And so that was super exciting.

With all the quoting that’s been going on and now this talka bout Rhett Butler, I’m sure you’re wondering if his famous line was brought up. Yes, it was quoted. At least, partially quoted. And it would have been wrong if it wasn’t quoted, it’s true.

So with all that excitement behind me, I settled in here at my computer to write down what I was thinking and seeing today to give anyone who’s interested an idea of what our trip has been like.

I’m happily writing away when my hubby decides I need to come see the “wide expanse” of view. I moved up to my front seat (aka the cooler between my dad and John) and we’re looking around, enjoying the view. My thought that this part of Oklahoma is very western is further cemented in my mind as I look at some buttes, creeks, stands of trees, and tall praire grass.

And this is where it starts to get interesting. For me. Noone else really cared, but let me be excited, okay?

We see this pack of horses. Or herd of horses. Whatever. And they’re soooo pretty. So we talk about how not many people keep large herds of horses anymore and I snap a couple pictures. John claims a dapple gray for himself. And I think as I take pictures “Hey, The Pioneer Woman has horses like this and takes gorgeous pictures fo them.” Of course, my pictures of these horses aren’t going to be nearly as good because I’m in a moving RV, but what can you do?

For those of you who don’t get my Pioneer Woman reference, by the way, you should look her up. She’s kind of a rancher’s wife extraordinaire. Homeschools her kids. Cooks. Takes pictures. Helps with the ranch. But she makes it all look so easy and fun. I’ve copied down lots of recipes from her website and they’ve all been delicious. Anyway, she’s written a couple books and I really love looking at her site when I get the time. Her name is Ree Drummond.

Back to our trip. So we see the horses. And we’re driving down the road looking at the endless “expanse” when we see a gate with a ranch title over it. And there it was.

Drummond Ranch.

Ahhhh! I saw the Pioneer Woman’s ranch! Not the house or anything, but the land itself! It was just cool, especially since as I said earlier, Oklahoma is kind of a big place. What in the world are the chances that we’d drive past her driveway? So fun.

Let me just say, Pioneer Woman was not exaggerating about living in the middle of nowhere. I decided that’s why she comes up with so many awesome recipes. You have to have variety in your food and when there’s nowhere within twenty miles (thirty, forty, fifty…) to go out to eat? Well, there you go.

And to sum up our feelings on Oklahoma, as stated so uniquely and eloquently by my dad. “Oklahoma’s okay.”

Nah, that song lyric quoting ( or misquoting) isn’t hereditary at all…

It was the best of times...it was the worst of times...

Alaska Blog

Day 1 (Written on Day 2—be thankful for the perspective a decent night’s sleep has given)

Whoever Dickens was writing about (that was Dickens, right? I’m slightly Dickens illiterate, which I blame on my college professors, who taught me no Dickens. Lots of Edith Wharton, though, and since I like her better, I’m fine with that—but I digress…lots) Let’s start over. Whoever Dickens was writing about had nothing on our first day of the Great Alaskan Adventure. There were highs…there were lows…But we made it though and we’re convinced it’s going to get easier as we get into a routine.

We left Forsyth at 5:13 in the morning. Note the fact that it is not an even number and you’ll know that we were a little later than we’d meant to be. Thirteen minutes (hmmm…a sign? Kidding…) late shouldn’t be a big deal, but I think it set the scene for day one.

The Georgia part of our drive was like the drive always is when you’re in your home state. You feel like you’ve been driving for hours, but in reality you’ve barely left. Which is part of the reason I took a nap in Georgia, in the bed in the back of the camper, which is apparently against the camper’s owner’s manual “rules”, but they’re really more like guidelines anyway, right?

Fast forward to Alabama. We saw some incredible tornado damage outside of Birmingham. I took a couple pictures, but the scenes I captured through the window really didn’t do it justice. It was just…incredible. Awesome, but not in a good way. We learned, or were reminded, really, that though we fondly refer to Alabama as “that trailer park west of Georgia”, it is a gorgeous state. At one point, desperate to express my feelings, I jotted down notes in my phone, since my computer was dead. “Alabama is pretty, especially when viewed through the panorama of a camper’s side window. And I feel like I’m on a train and I’m relaxed. The road noise I thought I would lose my sanity to this morning now serves as a comforting, even relaxing backdrop.”

Annnnd just for the record, Alabama has better roads than Mississippi. If you try to talk to me anytime in the next six months and I say “what?” eight times because I can’t hear you, blame the Mississippi road system. Forget all that pretty stuff about road noise being a “relaxing backdrop.” In Mississippi, it was just noise. They’re just patching up the patched spots at this point, as far as I can tell. If you live in Mississippi and have the chance to vote for better roads, specifically interstates? Please do it. I beg of you. Mississippi did have something going for it, though. Beautiful daisies all through the median and on the side of the road. They looked so carefree and happy. I adore daisies. They’re pretty much my favorite flower ever.

And then Tennessee. Which we were only in for…I don’t know, an hour an a half? Yeah, go ahead. Look at a map. I’ll wait.

That’s right. There’s no possible way the brief drive through Memphis should take an hour and a half, right?

Tell you what. Since we’re supposed to be relaxing and I can feel my blood pressure elevating as we speak, let’s not talk about Memphis anymore. In fact, let’s not ever talk about Memphis again ever. (If you live in Memphis…I’m sorry. No, really, you have my sympathies).

Arkansas was the same old state we moved away from nine years ago. I’ve never loved the drive from Memphis (ah! It was an accident. Really, no more talk of that word.) to Little Rock and while I’d like to tell you that yesterday my resolution to savor my surroundings and enjoy the beauty of the individual states made me relish this drive…it didn’t. Still boring.

We got to drive into Conway! I cannot believe how much that town has grown in the last decade. The only bad thing I could see about the growth is that my favorite custard place, the place I look forward to from hundreds of miles out, is now a Mexican restaurant. That was the bad news. The good news was that by the time we got there, I was really too tired to care much, as was everyone else.

We only drove another hour out of Conway to Lake Dardanelle State Park. The lake was gorgeous and it was fun to be camping even though we’re on a cartrip. I’m trying to convince myself to enjoy the journey and not just the destination (although I’m SUPER excited about Alaska), so we’ll see how that goes.

Last night we had four adults and one baby (toddler, I guess) in one 24 foot camper. It doesn’t sound cramped until you realize that two of the adults were in the bed over the cab, one of the adults was sharing the bed in the back with a very sleepy, very grumpy baby who did not want to sleep in that awful, evil, terrible contraption known as the “pack and play.” And one adult on the floor in a pile of cushions. You couldn’t have walked from one end of the camper to the other if you’d wanted to. Well, I guess you could have but you would have stepped on my hubby, and honestly I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have been a fan.

So today (day 2—more to come on that later) we’ve resolved to slow down a little on our pace, set reasonable expectations, like trying for 400 miles today instead of the 650+ from yesterday. We’re going to stop on occasion (food! Hurray!). And we’re going to enjoy the scenery.

Wish me luck on that last one. I’ve driven through Oklahoma and Kansas before…

T-7 Days

It's official. I am now counting down to Alaska. Hurray!!!!

Good news--my dad seems to be doing well! He's out of the hospital and is just getting his strength back after doing nothing for two weeks. He wants to go to Alaska, the doctor sees no reason not to, and so it appears the trip is ON. I'm incredibly grateful to God for healing my Daddy AND for making this trip happen still (as of right now--still one doctor's appointment to see about first). My dad is the important part, but the trip is the icing on the cake. Yummy icing, but just icing, nonetheless.

So, just to remind you, I'm planning to blog during the majority of this trip. So picture me, with three other adults and a baby, in a 24 foot RV, typing witty (haha, we'll see) anecdotes about the things we're seeing and doing.

And pictures. There will be lots, and lots of pictures.

So stay tuned for that. And be prepared for a relatively quiet week here as I focus on making lists about what I need to be doing to get ready (and maybe some getting ready too).

And THANK YOU for sticking with me despite my posting inconsistency. At the risk of sounding like I'm making excuses (I'm a teacher, I've heard a lot), we moved several months ago and the internet company STILL has not gotten out to our house. But it's the south. We move on southern time. So I'm trying to go with it.

Hope your summer is going well! Exciting plans, anyone? Feel free to share!

PS: You'll note that "coffee" is tagged as a label for this post. No, I have not mentioned coffee (um, until now), but I'm at Starbucks. So there you go. Anyone know if I've posted something and NOT tagged coffee???

Seeing God Working

Please pray for my dad, who has had some serious health problems the last day or so. He had some bleeding on the brain, but they found no evidence of anything that could have caused it. We're thinking that might mean that God just healed whatever caused it before they could even look at it. We're still here at the hospital, and I would love for anyone who reads this to pray for him especially.

But even though I'm still worried, because ICU is ICU, it's so amazing to see God at work.

He got my dad to the hospital quickly, even though he was in incredible pain and had to drive himself.

He got my son to sleep last night without Mommy being home.

He got my mom and sister out of an airport right before they were to leave on a 12 hour flight to another country.

I believe He's healing my dad.

We can really feel Him with us, encouraging us, especially through the prayers of His people. We can feel Him giving us strength and hope. We can see Him helping keep my son a happy camper cooped up in the family waiting room.

It's so easy to talk about trusting God. Doing it is another. But by His grace and with His strength, that's really what we're trying to do.

Continue to pray, if you would, friends. We really appreciate it and I know God hears the prayers of His people.