A Bit of Background

T-minus two days to departure! We're in the midst of the whirlwind right now, packing, planning, and, of course, cleaning, because your house always has to be pristine when you leave on a trip. So, why not take a few moments now to share some of the background on this trip we're taking?

The idea of a cross-country trip has been percolating in my (Matt's) mind for a while. I took a few of these with my family when I was a kid and they left indelible memories: seeing the Grand Canyon, sliding through tunnels at Mesa Verde, my Mom trying to read every historical marker we passed while my Dad refused to slow down, eating amazing pancakes at some bear-themed diner outside Yellowstone, read-aloud of The Hobbit by first my Dad and then my Grandma in the car, getting stabbed in the leg by a particularly aggressive yucca plant somewhere in Utah. These are the memories we hope to give Maggie!

This wasn't the original plan for the sabbatical I've been granted this semester by my employer. But the global pandemic forced us to rethink our options, and it seemed like this might be the time for the cross-country roadtrip. Of course, staying in hotels and visiting crowded cities seemed unwise, and even using campground bathrooms made at least one of us uncomfortable. So, we started looking for a home on wheels to rent. We quickly realized that wasn't a wise financial move, so we found a well-loved older model we could buy and re-sell after our journey (please let me know if you're in the market!).

Our home for the next 40 days

There are so many people we could visit along the way on this trip, and in a different time we would. But because we haven't been vaccinated yet we're mostly keeping to ourselves, other than a couple of important pit stops. We are instead going to experience the great national parks of the west (the current plan includes 15), starting in Colorado with my old friend Rocky Mountain National Park. We'll meander southwest through Utah into Arizona, before heading north through the California Sierras all the way to Seattle for a much-anticipated family visit. Then it's back east along the northern route through Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, etc. Yes, the plan ended up being 40 days. No, it wasn't meant as a Biblical allusion. But I certainly don't mind the reference. Wilderness journeys are transformative - even Olaf says as much in Frozen 2. We can't wait to see what's ahead in this one.