(06/26/12) Travel Games

We're not ashamed to admit it. We play Road Trip Bingo when trapped on our nation's highways. Until scientists invent hovercars, we have to pass the time somehow. We've had many good trips with this particular set. We fondly remember howling laughing with our caching friends, Danny and Danielle after playing a game that just would not end.
But of course, we also make our own boards on paper in the car. We take turns suggesting things to make one master board and then compete with each other to see who can make BINGO first. Our suggestions are wilder than the printed set and occasionally more macabre. Things I can remember from game boards passed: roadkill, skid marks, a yellow car, a silo, a hobo, a motorcycle with a sidecar -- basically anything that we think will make it hard for the other person. Any suggestions for game boards for this trip?

George and I also are big game players. Not Monopoly or Checkers, but real games of skill and strategy like "Pass the Pigs". You roll two pig figures and the positions in which they land give you points. It is very challenging and highly skilled ;-) If you want, you can play online here.
For this trip, I have packed standard playing cards, Uno, Fluxx, EcoFluxx, Pack of Flies, Guillotine, Pass the Pigs and Galloping Pigs as well as a small bag of counters and dice. We gotta do something at night at these campgrounds other than roast marshmallows!

(06/25/12) Late Night Reading

12:39 AM. I just finished off the last pages of Wild by Cheryl Strayed; stayed up late because I was *this* close to the end. An autobiographical account of her 1,000+ mile hike on the Pacific Coast Trail, this book made me laugh and think, but also made me itch. I cannot wait to get out on the trail and do a big hike. Also, so glad I did not read this in January, as the big hikes would have been months off and I would have torn out my hair with impatience.
Picked it up not because it was part of Oprah's Book Club, but because it was on my county library supervisor's reading list on GoodReads. For those of you that don't know, GoodReads is like facebook for bibliophiles (what you read, liked and didn't like, friend other readers, etc.) but it has been great for me to find books that I would not otherwise have stumbled upon.

While we are stopping at Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Badlands, our first big hike (in my mind) will be up Avalanche Peak in Yellowstone. Avalanche peak rises 10,568 feet up into the Wyoming sky. Anchoring the eastern border of the park, the 4ish hour round-trip hike offers some of the best views in the park, particularly of Lake Yellowstone. We are hoping for good weather and a clear day so we can see the Tetons in the distance.
Off to bed, with visions of snow-capped peaks in my dreams! That's right, in July, the mountains are still spotted in places with snow!

(06/21/12) The first Foray for Supplies

George's work week has ended and we are using today to begin amassing the pile of stuff to take with us. Today's route takes us to Costco, WalMart and a car parts store. One of the main things for us to get at the car parts store... fuses! Bet you didn't see that one coming.
Anyone who heard about our Summer 2011 trip to Yellowstone in our rental Prius knows that we blew the fuse out on day one (of the nineteen day voyage) trying to charge too many 12V devices on a splitter running out of our second cigarette lighter. The first cigarette lighter never worked to begin with. Was it too much confidence in our battery-powered wondercar or just gadget juice greed? The world may never know.
We found a car supply place in VERY rural Idaho and grabbed a multi-pack of fuses. We replaced our busted fuse, and got back on the road, but it was not to last. Every time we switched gadgets on the charger, we blew the fuse again. So, we electronically limped along with barely an iPad and a cell phone for most of the trip. Not this time, friends! Behold our portable jumper battery beast!

(06/19/12) Unsupervised Shopping -- Marsupial Shirts

George and I were up in Ellicottville, NY (pronounced Ellica-ville by the locals) at the end of May 2012. We'd heard about the coolness from some Bradford, PA locals the year before on our annual pilgrimage to the Allegheny GeoBash in Allegheny State Park and decided that we would check it out.
We liked the Sky High Park that is being installed at Holiday Mountain. Unfortch for us, the Mountain Coaster was down for repairs when we visited. Downtown Ellicottville was completely Mayberry-esque and we went in and out of shops, wandering. A few places reminded us of stores we've shopped in Cody, WY, which was fun.
A bike shop was sleepy in the afternoon, so imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon THE marsupial shirt of my dreams (a hood and a big pocket on the front). Of course, I bought it. Behold the Women's Coco Performance Hoodie in Raspberry Rose by Gramicci:

I've worn the heck out of this thing and I love it. So of course, I needed at least two more. When to buy... when to buy? When the hubby is busy at work!
"Cockatoo Light Blue" and "Deep Sea Blue" are headed to my house in a FedEx box as we speak, bringing my marsupial shirt total to a glorious 7. Can you beat it?

(06/19/12) Chafage!

No hiker ever wants to get chaffed. Hiking in wet clothes is one way to make yourself miserable in a jiffy. Hiking in clothes that are not wicking the sweat away is completely avoidable.

George and I are buying fancy panties! Under Armour sells long, boxer brief-style spandex shorts for guys and gals and we are grabbing up a few pairs. Can't wait to see these hanging from the campground clothesline!

(06/18/12) Where in the World are we going?

I'm sure we'll stop more places along the way, but for now, here's the list:
Wauseon, OH for the MidWest GeoBash
Chicago Field Museum
Mount Rushmore
Crazy Horse
Badlands National Park
Cody, WY for a rodeo
Yellowstone National Park / Avalanche Peak
Montana (points near, far and in between)
A sapphire mine
Glacier National Park
Waterton Lakes Peace Park
Calgary, Canada
Banff, Canada

Exceeding 3,000 miles just going one way!

(06/18/12) We leave in 13 days

Seems like I have a lot of time...What do we need to do? Pack!

-- Locate a spare tire for the Joey
-- Buy a jumper box kinda like this one
-- Get extra car supplies
-- Have the car serviced
-- Find a garage to service the car 1/2 way through the trip
-- Organize one month's worth of clothes
-- Make a Costco run for Gluten-free food stash
-- Do all those errands that need to get done before we leave because we can't do them while we are gone!

So why am I spending my time organizing this year's charitable donations for taxes, petting and playing with the cats and looking online for a mega purse?!?!?