Last year this time, we decided to drive cross-country and look for a home, staying in our RV and minimizing our exposure to others because of, yeah you know, the stupid pandemic. We were careful how often we shopped, like everyone we had trouble finding Clorox wipes and toilet paper, but we managed and were cautious about distancing and mask wearing. What we discovered in our travels is that national parks were not fully staffed, and lots of people had just bought or rented RV’s and trailers because they were tired of being limited to their homes and wanted to travel. As a result, many places that were open were fully booked or really hard to get into; of course, many weren’t even open at all or were opened only partially. But since we’ve spent the last 5.5 years RVing about the country, and since we bought our solar panel early on and decided we didn’t need a lot of amenities that RV parks or campgrounds have, we knew we’d be just fine without reserving sites. We stayed many nights in the national forests or public BLM land, and other places that don’t require payment nor reservation. A year later, we’re about to hit the road again but with newfound freedom. This week we leave for the Tetons, Yellowstone and Glacier National Park and guess what, we don’t have any reservations. We know there are already a lot of people visiting the parks and reservations are hard to come by. But we’re keeping our fingers crossed we’ll be able to find spots in the national forests neighboring the parks, or other free campsites. What’s changed is we’ll be traveling with less trepidation than last summer. We’ve had our vaccines for months now and since we want to hike, bike, kayak, wildlife watch… in general participate in outdoor activities, we feel confident with the CDC guidelines that we can stash the masks and enjoy our time in the great outdoors. Last year we did spend time outdoors and had some fun and adventures, but for example when we sat to watch wolves in Yellowstone and met up with friends, we just kept our distance, placing our chairs far enough apart. We drove in separate cars as we looked for animals in the park, and when we met others where we camped and wanted to socialize, we portioned food into individual bowls so we weren’t dipping our hands in the mouths and bowls where others might pick up respiratory particles. It worked, but I feel much more confident and happy with the circumstances of the virus now. I know it’s not in retreat but still lingering about, and I know that while my state has vaccinated 55% of people 18+ with at least one shot, where we’re headed the states have less coverage – WY (37%) & MT (45%). Nonetheless, wanderlust has struck, and we’re ready to hit the road. I've been putting in unpaid work on our film THE GREEN BOX: AT THE HEART OF A PURPLE HEART with my Co-Director Vicki Hughes for months, and will continue to do some work from the road. But it's a long term project and there's only so much we can do until funds come through. (OK, shameless plug here - if you can help us with a donation of any amount, please check out our website, new video clips & a place to donate online: www.greenboxfilm.com/ ) Terry and I were supposed to have left weeks ago, but the need for physical therapy and doctor/dental/ optometrist appointments have kept us in CO. It’s been nice to see everything green up and wildflowers burst open here. And we’ve enjoyed the warmer temperatures, but our town is a tourist destination so pretty soon it will be bursting at the seams with RV’s, ATV’s, rafters, hikers and bikers. And we want to go look for wolves, bears, elk, and other wildlife in some of our favorite spots. I’ve put pictures here recently taken in CO to show off the beauty, and it almost seems a shame to leave our beautiful state as summer begins, but we’ll be back before long. I’ll blog while we’re sight-seeing and let you know how crowded places are and whether we have difficulty finding a place to park. It is my hope that friends, family and blog readers will find ways to enjoy life as we all try to put the restricted and worrisome days of the last year behind us - that you’ll feel free to move about the cabin, state, country and find places to relax or socialize with those you’ve missed. Have a great summer season!
3 Comments
6/6/2021 08:23:30 pm
Excited to read about your discoveries on this new adventure! Thanks in advance for your detailed narrative & the informative photographs you'll be sharing, Holly!
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Holly B Stadtler
6/8/2021 11:59:37 pm
Thalia:
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TERRI MEWBORN
6/9/2021 05:32:07 pm
Safe travels and share lots of pix, would you?
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AuthorFormer documentary film producer, wife and mother of one...I'm taking time off to see the US with my husband Terry. Here's where I'll write about our adventures RVing until the money runs out! Archives
August 2021
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