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Year TWO Is In The Books! And, our top ten list!

Writer's picture: SpencerSpencer

It's hard to believe but a little over 24 months ago, we pulled up stakes in Delaware and became asphalt adventurers.

 

Us, two years ago: October 17, 2017

 

During this time, we have seen and done so much that whenever I sat to chronicle our travels, fond memories, too numerous to count, would flood my mind.

But I do know this: Our second year has been even better than the first!!

To date, we have:

(1) Visited 34 states:

...Year One Travels...

...Year Two Travels...

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Side note: We silently chuckle whenever someone asks if "we plan on visiting all 50 states".. Until they build an RV that can float, we would have to say "No"!

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(2) Stayed at 117 different campgrounds:

(3) Put almost 60,000 miles on my truck:

(4) Have not received one speeding/moving/parking violation!

5) Have had no problems with our awesome 2016 RAM truck!

(6) Faced some very interesting weather patterns:

(7) Seen many fascinating and unusual things

(8) Have come to loathe scooters and their drivers (who think they own the sidewalks):

(9) Been on hundreds of great hikes:

(10) And.. met hundreds of wonderful people and made many new and lasting friendships.

And I don't know how one can ever go back to a "normal" sedate lifestyle after having so many excellent adventures!

 

OUR FAVORITE PLACES:

Lorraine and I tried to make a list of our top five most memorable sights, but with each revision the list kept growing. So we've painfully narrowed a lengthy list to our 10 most memorable sights (in descending order). Our lists differ slightly so there may be two entries for each category:

NUMBER 10:

Lorraine's Choice: SHENANDOAH N.P.

Lorraine and her family camped here often when she was young. There are challenging and easy hikes, most culminating with beautiful views. Wildlife abounds. Visitors see bear, snakes, and deer. The drive along Skyline Drive offers amazing overlooks and breathtaking scenery. The "warm and fuzzy" memories plus the beauty of the lush mountain side and the expansive valley views made this her choice for number 10.

My Choice: DRIVING ALONG "HISTORIC ROUTE 66"

Sadly, most of Route 66, the "Main Street of America", is gone. It has been torn up, shut down or merged with other roadways. The highway that once brought easterners west and westerners east, was eventually declassified as an official "highway" in 1985. Thankfully, portions of the road that pass through Illinois, Missouri, New Mexico, and Arizona have been preserved as a National Scenic Byway and aptly named "Historic Route 66".

But there are still stretches along this mythical road that give you a glimpse into her former glory days:

It is easy to see why generations of travelers got their "kicks on Route 66"!

 

NUMBER 9:

Lorraine's Choice: BIG BEND N.P.-- TX

Big Bend, in far west Texas, is the largest, yet least visited of all National Parks and gave us our first exposure to the quiet beauty of "desert" terrain.

As you drive through this massive park --it is 25 miles from the park entrance to the park's Visitor Center-- you are treated to a variety of cactus, dry river beds, amazing rock formations and spectacular overlooks.

This park has something for everyone.

My Choice: MESA VERDE N.P. -- CO

This park contains many Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings, notably the Cliff Palace:

This is the largest cliff dwelling in North America. Puebloans made this location their home for over 700 years, from 600 to 1300 CE, before mysteriously abandoning it. There are over 600 cliff dwellings in this park and nearly 5,000 known archeological sites. When our tour guide said it took the inhabitants over twenty years to build the Cliff Palace, I nudged Lorraine and whispered: "They must have used Lowe's!" [For those unfamiliar with our Lowe's fiasco, it took them 18 months to renovate the kitchen in our former home!]

As I walked around these dwellings, I was awed at the archeological prowess of these people who had to cart building material (wood, stone and mortar) by hand, up ladders and into place. The fact that these buildings still stand fifteen hundred years later is a testament to their abilities.

Although, I have to say, even though these people were skillful and prolific builders...

They couldn't draw to save their lives!

 

NUMBER 8:

Lorraine's Choice: WEST COAST OF MICHIGAN

Whether your looking for lighthouses, hiking trails, sand dunes, charming small towns, beaches, lush orchards and vineyards, hunting, swimming, fishing boating, blueberries or tulips, you will find it in western Michigan. We spent almost two months in this part of the state and were amazed at the diversity of delightful experiences one can have in this region.

When we were in the town of Holland, our daughter and her new husband flew in to spend a few days with us!

My Choice: GRAND TETON N.P., WY

All the beauty of Yellowstone at half the size! In one day alone we saw grizzly bears, antelopes, buffalo, elk and wolves!

 

NUMBER 7:

Lorraine's Choice: SEDONA, ARIZONA

What do John Wayne, Elvis Presley, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Humphrey Bogart and Ralph Macchio have in common?? They have all starred in movies filmed in part in Sedona, Arizona! This desert town near Flagstaff is surrounded by red-rock buttes, steep canyon walls and pine forests. It truly is an enchanting place with sunsets that will leave you speechless.

While there, our son Jordan and his fiancee flew in and we had a chance to spend a few enjoyable days together.

My Choice: BREAKING BAD TOUR -- ALBUQUERQUE, NM

As a huge fan of the t.v. show, this has been on my bucket-list since I first learned of it over a year ago. It was a lot of fun and our tour guides (actual extras on the show) were very knowledgeable. The tour lasted about three hours and we saw many of the sights used in the tv show.