In the Heart of the Canadian Rockies

After Glacier NP, our next destination were the Candian Rocky Mountains, where we stayed at three beautiful campgrounds in Kootenay NP, Lake Louise, and Banff NP. Kootenay NP is mainly located at the west side of the mountain range, and the campground is on a hill next to the town of Radium Hot Springs. Like the name suggests, hot water is coming out of the earth along a fault line, and is feeding two swimming pools, one of them 105° (40°C) hot. The campgound is sprawling with wildlife:

From Kootenay, we drove up the Columbia valley and across the continental divide to Banff NP on the east side of the Rockies.

The Columbia valley in British Columbia, Canada.

Across the Rocky Mountains, eastbound on the Trans Canada Highway.

Our next stop was a large campground at Lake Louise, where we had our first (and so far only) bear sighting. One morning, Benjamin was looking out the trailer window and suddenly said: "I see a bear walking down the road", and I responded: "yeah, sure, and a kangaroo next to it!" But it was true - there was a two-year old male black bear (as we learned later from a park ranger who we reported the bear to), who had decided that the campground was a nice and unchallenged area to roam around and feed from the huckleberry bushes there. We got out of the trailer and tried to follow the bear at a respectful distance, but he decided that he didn't like us and disappeared in the forest before we could even get the camera ready.

Lake Louise and the adjacent Moraine Lake are arguably among the most majestic sceneries in all of the Rocky Mountains, most famous for their incredible colors beneath the backdrop of  countless 10,000+ ft mountain peaks. Pictures can only give a less than perfect idea of how impressive these lakes are.

Doesn't this look as if the photo was made in a studio before a picture wall?

After Lake Louise, we spent three nights in Banff, the "capital" of the national park. Although the town's only purpose was and is tourism, it is still a relatively quaint mountain village. But everything is incredibly expensive; in the town's best steak house, for example,  a NY strip costs $45, plus sides, of course. We found a nice French restaurant with decent prices that offered the "real" French food, probably thanks to the Franco-Canadian influence from far-away eastern Canada.

 Who finds the McDonalds in this photo?

The main road in Banff, Alberta, Canada.

Boondocking in Glacier NP

Boondocking (or dry camping) is RV-language and means staying overnight without  hook-ups: fresh water from the tank, electricity from the battery, and all waste water goes in holding tanks. While one night usually is no problem, the three nights we had to boondock in Glacier NP have been a little bit of a challenge. In 24 hours, we consume about a quarter of the electricity that is stored in the 4 batteries of our trailer. Although we have a generator that recharges the batteries, park regulations limit the use of generators to a few hours daily – which basically is a good thing because generators are pretty noisy.

Most US national parks don’t provide hook-ups (as opposed to Canadian parks) which means, if you want to stay there, your RV needs to be prepared for boondocking. But the reward is huge: The campgrounds in national parks usually are in the middle of nature, very quiet, with camp sites that provide ample distance to neighbors and privacy. Most private RV parks are quite the opposite, providing full hook-ups for the RV, but being rather parking lots than campgrounds.

Bottom line: If boondocking is what it takes to stay in a nature as beautiful and breathtaking as the next pictures show, we’ll do it over and over again!

What a campsite!

 

Second blog about the emotional and spiritual (female) side of living in a RV fulltime

I am writing this on our 21st day on the road. Not that long yet….just a nice extended vacation time. But it does feel a bit like it has been forever.

I am sitting in Banff National Park in Canada (approx. 3000 miles away from HHI) without Internet or cell phone reception. Means I am still not sure if or when I will be able to publish this.

Ever since we made it to the Rocky Mountains we are taking it a bit slower with a bit more time in every campground to actually experience life! We figured out that we have to stay at least 3 nights in one campground to make life (homeschooling, household like laundry, grocery shopping, cooking, hiking, exploring) work. The more often we break up camp the more stressful it gets. You kind of never really arrive or settle, never get used to the place, never meet people to talk to or play (Benjamin). Three to four nights in one place seems to be the magic number. After that time you might feel like leaving again and finding another great place to stay! That is, IF your campground is great and you really feel “home”. Many of the private campgrounds are really crowded and tight with other RVs only feet away from our own which just truthfully does NOT feel good at all. The most space, privacy and beauty we find inside the National Parks. Downside there is, that we often have to boondock, means without electric power, water or sewer. For this we do have the holding tanks for fresh water, black and grey water, also 4 batteries and gas to cook and heat. You have to watch the amount of water and electricity you use, or you run dry!

The other day, after boondocking in Glacier NP we sorrow beginners woke up to the beeping of the fridge which indicated that we were out of gas (did not know that both gas bottles are used simultaneously) which meant we had no way to cook or heat! Since Manfred did not want to give up on his hot coffee in the morning, he insisted his batteries and inverter are able to run the microwave to boil some water! I was doubtful…This try actually blew the 300 Amp fuse of the batteries and we were out of battery power as well!!! As I said: bloody beginners! Now, to be able to move away our big rig to get gas and hopefully a new fuse and to make it to our new campsite we actually needed battery power in the first place: the slides only move in with battery power and to retract the jacks (we were standing on) we needed battery power as well… Now what??? Luckily my husband is very, very versatile and knowledgeable so he was able to bridge the broken fuse with another piece of cable that allowed us to pull a max. of 30 Amp, before we could potentially start a camper fire. Thank God each slide out pulled a bit under 30 Amp so we were able to pull in the slides and retract the jacks and actually made it out of the campground in one piece J.

Replacing a 300 Amp fuse is another story: we stopped at several car and RV dealers in Canada but no one could help us! So far we are still driving and camping with the broken and bridged fuse. We were able to have our gas tanks filled right outside of our Glacier campground at another RV park that did provide gas.

This funny and a bit deplorable story sidetracked me from the original challenge to find THE ONE campground where everything is just right! Where you have space, great nature, quiet, nice (not too close) neighbors, all hook-ups and possibly Internet and cell phone reception.

Finding THE ONE seems to be as challenging as meeting THE ONE Santa Claus at Christmas, possibly because they both do not exist!

But I need to admit that we are really close right now! Great spacious campsite, all hook-ups and elk sharing our campsite! Only the view of the mountains, cell phone reception and Internet are missing! But I guess we should not ask for too much!

Overall I feel much better with a bit slower pace and time for all the things that need to be done and time to sit and read, think, talk, play or write a new blog. This is what I tremendously enjoy!

Do you see how close to our RV the elk is?

There are 2 elk in the pic! One lay down just by our picnic table!

On US 287

After Rocky Mountain National Park (NP), our next major stop was Glacier NP. For the 950 mi drive (1.540 km), Google Maps suggested a route using as many interstates as possible, and this is what I wanted to take initially. Silke however found another route through much more interesting countryside and with lots of historical background:  US Highway 287. This road was built in the 1930's as a major artery for trucks, crossing the country diagonally all the way from Fort Worth, Texas to Montana. We followed that road from Ft. Collins, Colorado, over Laramie, Wyoming, Grand Teton and Yellowstone NP's, continuing over Helena, Montana, until route 287 finally ends in the little town of Choteau, Montana. We took our time - four days total, with a two-night stopover at the beautiful Colter Bay campground in Grand Teton NP. We did not stop in Yellowstone NP at this time because we had been here a few years ago, and we will be coming back in January to participate in a guided snowmobile tour across the whole park. Here are a few pics from the Colorado and Wyoming parts of the 287:

 Through a thunderstorm in Wyoming...

The following two pictures are from the small Wyoming town of Dubois, a historical mining place.

Getting closer to the Teton range, we noticed an increasing haze in the air and wondered what this was all about. Later we learned that the reason were widespread wildfires in Idaho, sending their smoke and fumes with the prevailing west wind eastwards.

One of the best places to admire the majesty of the Rocky Mountains is Grand Teton NP:

 Both photos show lake Jenny with the Teton range in the background, veiled by the wildfire smoke...

This is what you may see in a national park campground when opening the door in the morning:

The last few 100 miles of Hwy. 287 in Montana:

And the end in Choteau, Mt.

Spectacular Views .... and Incredible Wildlife

Rocky Mountain National Park is such an amazing place! The park was established in 1915, and in the almost 100 years since any hunting was prohibited, the wild animals lost all their fear of humans and don't run away when approached - but because of the vast expanse of the park you never feel as if in a zoo. You don't have to walk for many miles to have encounters like these:

We could have almost touched these guys had we wanted to.

An elk herd at 11,500 ft.

Hiking at an elevation of 12,000 ft, above the tree line

Emerald Lake, located in the Bear Lake area of the park. elevation 9,750 ft

First post about the emotional and spiritual (female) side of living in an RV fulltime

Today is Friday, August 10, 2012. We left Hilton Head Island on August 1, 2012, 9 days ago!

Since January 2012 I have known that we will go on a yearlong RV trip, will become so-called full-timers! We have no house or property to return to anymore, gave it all (voluntarily) up! And I was the one who initiated the whole thing! So naturally I have big expectations on how this trip will unfold, how I (we) will grow in personality and spiritually, on how our family will grow closer together, how we handle challenges and failures and how we enjoy a different kind of life together.

After 9 days of traveling hundreds of miles and living on 450 sqft together, let me share with you all that the DIFFERENCE is HUGE! We all knew it would not be easy, but knowing it and living it are two different pairs of shoes! I personally keep thinking (at least once a day) “when I am back home….”, only to realize seconds later that I AM HOME! This here is home! Of course we all did not expect to feel home and all settled after only one week…..it still does feel totally like a vacation that will end. But we do remind each other verbally on a daily basis; this is home, this is our life, not a vacation and chores have to be done! Ben and I have started home schooling and still are trying to find our rhythm. We get up every morning at 7 AM, have breakfast, do PE (physical education or sports for our German followers to understand) then start homeschooling at 9 AM. So far the theory…..what do you do when everybody knows that you better hike the mountains in the morning to avoid the thunderstorm in the afternoon? What do you do when your child is too exhausted after the hike to lift a pencil or concentrate on math? All things we still have to figure out!

Also, I guess all three of us had our high expectations of how it would be and feel and I dare to say, so far all three of us are disappointed on one or more levels. Before, we lived in a 5000 sqft home, Ben went to school 6 hours a day, Manfred was out of the house almost all day and I had my church job and daily routine. And most days I managed to find at least one hour for myself (my reading and spiritual studies). My biggest hope and goal for this trip was the idea of having MORE TIME for myself! I finally want to meditate, do more studies on religion, spirituality, and clarify my concept of who God is, what life is meant to be for, who am I, what do I want to accomplish with my life and how can I develop a deep friendship with God?

So far so good! That is theory again! I have had way less time for myself than I have ever imagined! Primarily this is due to the far distance we had to travel the first week and the time I have to spend on homeschooling and preparation. But also, there are dishes to be done 3 times a day, snacks to be prepared for the travel trips or hikes, laundry to be done, cabinets to be arranged and re-arranged (still trying to figure out the best and most efficient storage options), stuff (dishes, shoes, books, DVDs, papers, toothbrushes, hair dryer, creams, socks, pants, towels, groceries, lap-tops, pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, wallets, trash, charcoal, grill, back packs, chairs and little tables) all has to be put away or re-arranged several times a day due to severe space constraints. I guess no one can anticipate how much time this actually gobbles up until one has experienced it him/herself.

Also, we were told before, but did not really believe, that an RV has to have constant repairs. Guess what, it is true: door not locking, AC not working, sink not draining, truck not hitching, internet not working, printer literally crashing by falling off its designated space.

BUT: the life lessons learned in just 9 days: PRICELESS!!!

Can we live like this forever? No idea; but probably not! Can we live like this for a year? Hopefully and so God will! Do we have to work big time on our patience (problem for all three of us J) and humor? Oh yes, definitely yes! Do we have to figure out better time management and work sharing? Yes! Do we have to learn to better accept and respect the other persons in our family as they are, with all their faults? Yes, now more than ever! Are we working on it? You bet!

The “emotional thermometer” post will come approx. once a week!

Blessings to all of our followers, Silke

In the Rockies

Today, after one week, we arrived at our first major destination - Rocky Mountain National Park. After leaving the Mississippi, our next stop was a very nice campground at Clearwater Lake in the Ozarks in Missouri.

However, the extreme heat (around 100F/37C) made us leave after one night and drive across the central plains on the I70 as quickly as possible. I guess we didn't miss much, as the next picture shows, taken somewhere in Kansas.

We spent two nights in Denver in a campground located in a nice but crowded state park. We enjoyed the buzz of the big city

and took the opportunity to restock groceries and to buy some equipment for the upcoming weeks in the mountains.

Leaving Denver in northwestern direction, it was exciting to watch the fast approaching, impressive range of the Rocky Mountains.

It was only a 30 minute drive from the plains up to Estes Park, a village right next to the entrance of the national park at an elevation of about 8,000 ft (2.400m)

The cool and dry, almost arid climate here is so welcome after all this heat and humidity! We enjoyed a first trip into the national park, with Benjamin having his first rock climbing experience next to a breathtaking scenery.

Not far away from the entrance to the park, we almost stumbled across a herd of elk lazing in the grass close to a parking lot:

We are going to stay in Estes Park for five nights, until next Sunday, hiking, relaxing after 1,800 miles (2.900 km) of driving, and simply enjoying nature's grandeur.

At the Mississippi

After a bumpy start on August 1 - over two hours later because the hitch needed a last minute repair - and a stopover at a Jellystone RV park in western Georgia, we are now  in a nice campground at the banks of the Mississippi, already on the Arkansas side. And guess how many states we came through on this day: Georgia, Alabama, Misissippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas. I never have been in 5 states on the same day before.

We spent the evening in downtown Memphis walking down Beale St. - like in the song "Walking in Memphis", and had dinner in the famous Rendezvous restaurant - renowned for its ribs. And like in the song, we had pouring rain in Memphis, both in the evening and the next morning.
It was fun and interesting to watch the huge barges going up and down the Misissippi. Usually 4 of them were connected together and pushed - not pulled - by a towboat. I guessed the whole length of a tow was about 1000 ft - maybe even more, it's not easy to tell from a distance.

Today is the Day!

Unbelievable, we made it through all the last-minute unexpected curve balls, and although in the end moving out of our house was much more work than we anticipated. It is unbelievable how much stuff is collected and stored in a 5000 sf [450 qm] house! We thought we would throw away a lot of stuff and donate even more to charities, but the remaining rest was still overwhelming. The pile that was supposed to go in our RV was discouragingly big, but in the end everything did fit into it and we have still space to move about. In the underbelly storage compartement, there is even space left for the bags of the travelling companions that be expect will be with us eventually for some time.
At the end of the long, last day as we settled for our second night in the RV, Silke said, without thinking: Now let's go home, and I answered: You are already!

Today, our first overnight stop is planned to be somewhere before Birmingham, Al. We are so excited!