6 years later

WOW!! I cannot believe it has been SIX YEARS since our epic cross-country trip. A lot has happened since then!! The boys are now just a few months short of 10 years old and in the 4th grade. They have two little sisters - Emma, who is 4, and Abby, who is 2. The boys do remember a few vague things about our cross-country trip, but, sadly, not a lot of it. Don and I, however, remember it and talk about it often. We long for the day we can venture out again and explore more national parks and sites around our country.

For now, though, the twins and I are working on plans for our next adventure. Way back in high school and college I hiked the Appalachian Trail in Virginia through a series of weekends with some Girl Scout and Adventurers friends. My goal was to one day be able to say I had hiked every mile of the Appalachian trail, from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine. Although I managed to get in some miles in other states - NH, ME, NY, PA, WV, NC and TN - I have not done long sections of the trail like I did in VA for a very long time.

Another change in our family was that we recently moved from Staten Island, NY to Knoxville, TN. Big adjustment for my NYC-boys (including my husband). But for me - I finally feel I am HOME again. The near proximity of the Smokies has been calling out to me. As has the Appalachian Trail and the nearby rivers I once paddled. I cannot get enough of my beloved mountains and rivers.

The long-forgotten dream of hiking the AT resurfaced not too long ago. I decided to talk to the boys about it. At first they were like "yeah, cool". Then it was "I don't want to. Too much work. Too much walking." My husband of course freaked out. He's never been as much of an outdoors person as I have, though he does enjoy hiking and skiing. As we sorted through our camping gear I was reminded once again just how very different our views of camping are. I'm a wilderness, back- country, bare necessities kind of camper. He's a take-it-all and park nearby kind of camper. And I do mean ALL. He is terrified the boys and I would be robbed or murdered on the trail. He is convinced it's just a highway for bad people to hide out on, waiting on their next hiker prey. Oh - and then the bears and bobcats. I was quite amused but decided the tales of survival and near-encounters from past trips probably wouldn't help my case, so I just kept saying "we'll be fine." His fears I could deal with.

The boys' reluctance, however, became a challenge for me. I really want them to get comfortable in the outdoors, just as I began doing at a very young age. I want them to experience trail life. I want to drag them away from their iPads, Wii and TV, and get them in touch with their natural surroundings. I want them to gain the same confidence and skill as I did - out there in the wilderness. I hyped up as much as I could, but realistically and honestly. Yes, it's a lot of walking, and there is some work to it, but the benefits and rewards are so worth it. After much persuading, they agreed to TRY it.

So, plans have been made and we will be heading to the AT. First stop - Springer Mountain, GA. We are trying to time it to avoid the onslaught of thru-hikers beginning their trek, but also trying to avoid the oppressive southern heat. So still unsure of a starting day, but sometime in the spring. For now.

Now, noting that my boys are not as keen on this idea as I am, I plan to make it kid-friendlier and geared towards them. If it were just me, myself and I, I'd head out and do week-long stretches of the trail at a time, as many weeks as I could get away for. However, we are going to start with a short weekend trip. Just a few miles a day for a couple of days. An introduction of sorts. Then we are going to keep going on short to longer weekend treks throughout the spring, summer and fall, at least one weekend a month. My goal for 2015 is to at least finish all of GA, as well as a good chunk of NC/TN. I want to reach that VA line so badly, but not if it means making my kids miserable. We are going to take baby steps and see if the trail fever catches them and inspires them to want more. I would love to be able to take them for an entire week on the trail during the summer, but that all depends on how they adapt to trail life. So though the gears are turning and initial plans set in place, there is much flexibility and patience required when thinking long-term. And who knows, after our first couple of weekends away, maybe we'll be able to convince Daddy and the girls to join us for a few miles.

Final Trip Blog

I CANNOT believe this is my LAST blog for our cross-country trip!! In a way it's flown by. In other ways it has been SO long!!

As I am typing we are on the New Jersey Turnpike. I NEVER thought I'd be happy to see it - but I'm thrilled! Especially since there is no traffic. It's STILL raining - three days now - but I'm just glad it's not ice or snow (sorry Jessica).

So our decision to leave OK City early and bypass Little Rock and Memphis seems to have been a GREAT plan. We heard that OK City got slammed with snow, Little Rock got slammed with ice, and the weather got bad in Memphis and Nashville after we left there. The weather was relatively good at Dad's and we got there just in time for dinner! I cannot even begin to describe HOW good it was to have a nice, homecooked meal. I slept like a ROCK last night in my old bed. Don kept the boys downstairs with him, so I had a restful night. I woke up feeling ready for the drive home.

We decided to alter our path one more time. Instead of going I-81 north and I-78 east, we decided to get on I-66 in northern VA and then take 95 north/New Jersey Turnpike. What a smart move!!! All of the snow and ice has STAYED to the northwest of our travels for the past 3 days. Other than the bit we hit in OK City, we've avoided all but the rain. We got to northern VA in no time at all and had some dry weather most of the way. We hit I-66 and hit some more dry spots. The closer we got to DC the more it rained. As we traveled the rain got heavier and heavier, but we saw no snow or ice.

In Baltimore we saw a sign that said I-95 north was completely closed at exit 51. We saw the flashing warning lights telling us to listen to the AM info station. We decided to get to 895 and bypass Baltimore. Another smart move. When we got to the Delaware bridge we heard on the radio that all lanes of 95 were closed in that area from a horrific accident with a car fire. By then we'd reached Jersey and breathed a BIG sigh of relief. We are currently about 45 minutes from home. The closer we get - the more excited we're all getting. We already called ahead and made plans for dinner with Don's parents. There is no way we'd want to cook tonight and absolutely NO chance of us getting take-out from somewhere (Other than a NYC pizza). We made really good time on the way home despite the rain and I am SO thankful this journey is ending safely.

Someone asked me to make a list of things that I learned from this trip. I'll try:
1 - NEVER rely solely on your GPS. USE A MAP!
2 - Kids come up with the funniest and sometimes smartest things to say.
3 - You can't expect your kids to eat when you take them to a restaurant that has a train going around on an overhead track.
4 - Ravens are not scary. They are very smart, funny and awesome birds.
5 - The Grand Canyon is a very scary place to take young children.
6 - Always have a backup plan when you are traveling.
7 - National Parks are best when visited in the off-season. No crowds. No traffic. Lots of friendly workers who are thrilled to see you.
8 - Eating out is not a great thing after all. Homecooked meals are always best.
9 - Moab, UT is one of the only other places in the world (other than NYC) that has a great Italian restaurant. REAL Italian.
10 - 4 and 5 star hotels are not necessarily better than 2 and 3 star ones. Some of our favorite hotels were only listed as 3 star but were FAR better than the couple of 4 & 5 star ones we stayed in.
11 - I am not meant to be a wanderer. Living out of a car/suitcase is not fun. I think I really liked the OB philosophy of "everything you need you can carry on your back" after all.
12 - Kids can be true road warriors. They REALLY enjoy the adventure.
13 - Bald eagles are incredible no matter how many times you see them.
14 - 8 hours a day is the most you should try to drive with toddlers.
15 - Just because a hotel says it has an indoor HEATED pool does NOT mean it will be warm to swim in!!

I'm sure I'll come up with more later, but that's a pretty good start.

THANK YOU - for reading my blogs and making comments; for the calls, emails, texts and messages that you have sent along my journey; for pushing me and pulling me across that finish line; for just being the best friends and family in the world. You are all priceless. Love you all. As I end this journey I am more and more thankful for each and every one of you who helped make it even more special. Until the next journey....

catching up on the last few days

So the last time I blogged we were in Santa Fe. We loved it there. We had breakfast at the same little hotspot and headed to Oklahoma City.

We stopped in Amarillo, TX for lunch. Wasn't that great and the service stunk - but it was a meal. I had told Don "welcome to North Texas - there ain't nuthin here." Then we got to Oklahoma. "Welcome to Oklahoma - there ain't nuthin here either." LOL We made it to Oklahoma City and the boys & I tried to go swimming while Don did laundry. Well - the pool was green, cold and there was an intense chemical smell in the room. Pass on the swimming.

When we went to bed we found out that there was a major ice storm coming. Didn't think too much of it - til we woke up and saw the news. We got out of there as fast as we could. It was just starting to ice as we left. The roads were a little slick but not bad. Tell that to those crazy OK drivers though (sorry Beth - I don't mean you - I'm sure you were smart enough to stay home yesterday morning!). NO ONE knew how to drive. It was insane. We finally got out of Oklahoma and into Arkansas. We ran out of the ice - but it was still rainy and cold - so everything on our car was covered in ice. We'd stop for gas or a potty break and Don would break all of the ice off of the car. It looked like we'd come directly from the Ice Age.

We finally got to Tennessee. By this time it was only raining a little - and only in spots. We were doing great. We decided that we were far enough ahead of the storm that we could stop to eat a BBQ dinner in Memphis. We found what was supposed to be the #1 BBQ place in Memphis and went in. It didn't look like much from the outside - or even inside - but the food - YUMMMMM!!!!! It was fantastic. I think I actually cleaned my plate - which is really unusual.

We came outside after eating and it was raining. Don said "it caught us - let's go." So we drove the extra hour and a half to Jackson, TN. It was clear - no rain - no nothing. We got there and everyone crashed. It was about 10:15 and all of us were sound asleep.

We got up this morning and I dared to look outside. It was POURING down rain. So I turned on the news. Every school in the area was closed. One of my friends in VA said "apparently they don't want my son to get wet in the rain." Since when do schools close because it MIGHT get bad out? Oh well. Turns out the ice was all northwest of us. They said the bridges and overpasses might be icy. We got up, dressed and out the door. We started our rainy drive to Roanoke. So far there have been no icy conditions whatsoever. Keep your fingers crossed! We are hoping to make it to Dad's by about 6:30 this evening. It's supposed to be bad overnight again tonight - but we're hoping we can drive home to NY on Wednesday. All I know is I am looking forward to a REAL homecooked meal and a REAL bed. I'm so tired of living out of a car and sleeping in hotels.

Ok - off to find a place to stop for breakfast. More later!!

Day 20 - Santa Fe

If you are ever in Albuquerque - DON'T eat at Casa de Rosita. I'll leave it at that.

After we ate dinner in Albuquerque last night we drove the 45 minutes to our hotel in Santa Fe. The boys were asleep within seconds and by the time we got checked in all we wanted to do was sleep. It was a pretty early night.

We got up this morning and headed to breakfast at Tecolote Cafe in Santa Fe. AWESOME!! It was SO good!! We're actually going back there tomorrow for breakfast! After breakfast we shopped in a next-door native store and headed to Bandalier National Monument in Los Alamos/White Rock. We REALLY enjoyed Bandy. The boys loved climbing up into the cliff dwellings and I was looking everywhere for the pictographs. It was a great morning.

On the way back to the hotel from Bandy we saw an incredible rainbow. I actually managed to get a picture of it. We decided to go to the Plaza area of Santa Fe and shop. That was really cool. Don has fallen in love with Santa Fe. I've always liked it - but I don't know if I like it enough to live here.

Oh - we stopped at Buffalo Thunder - a casino in the Santa Fe area. We did a lot better there than we did in Vegas. :) I told Don that I liked the name of the place - which is why we stopped there. I told him afterwards "See - with a name like that it had to be good!"

We went to Olive Garden for dinner (we'd had enough Mexican for this month) and the boys fell asleep by the time we finished eating. Those ladders into the cliff dwellings must have worn them out really well!! We came back to the hotel and put the boys in bed and Don & I tried to clean out the car a little bit. We'd been doing well with keeping it clean & organized until we got to the Grand Canyon Railway. We plan to do laundry and finish the organizing in Oklahoma City so that the rest of the trip home goes smoothly.

Speaking of the trip home - we have decided to go to OK City tomorrow, Little Rock on Monday, Nashville on Tuesday, Roanoke on Wednesday and home to NYC on Thursday. Bad part - it means we have limited time in Roanoke and no side trip for 2 days to Black Mountain. Good part - I'm SO ready to be home!!!

Now that the car is clean, the boys are asleep and my blog is done - it's time to hit the jacuzzi!! Good night!!

Day 19 -- Arizona and New Mexico

We all slept extremely well last night. Guess we were all worn out from all of the walking we did at the Grand Canyon. We woke up this morning, went to breakfast, loaded the car and headed out. We ran into the couple who we'd met on the train (the lady who'd also done the Phoenix half-marathon) and we exchanged email addresses. We headed towards Santa Fe - with a stop planned for the Meteor Crater landmark. We made it to the crater and went on the guided tour. We grabbed a sub from Subway (yuck) to eat in the car and headed back to the interstate. As we were driving along I-40 eastbound Don saw the sign for the Petrified Forest and decided to stop. We went into the visitor center for the stamp (all 4 of them) and did a quick loop of the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest. Our raven friend was waiting for us at the entrance. Awesome!! He even posed for some more pictures!! The desert was pretty cool - the "forest" - not so much. It started POURING down rain in spots (desert?!) and we decided we'd been there long enough. So we headed back to I-40 east and on to Santa Fe. We are in New Mexico now and a little less than 2 hours from our hotel. We knew today would be a long drive but we also know we have an extra night in Santa Fe - so limited driving tomorrow. I can't believe we'll be home in a week. I'm so exhausted and ready to rest & relax. Unfortunately when I get home I get to unpack, repack and according to a call today - host a super bowl party Sunday. Luckily it's a small party and the only thing anyone asked me to fix was my chili & baked potatoes. Easy enough. For those of you in LA - SORRY! I TOLD you I was taking the beautiful weather back east with me. I know Elizabeth was enjoying the rain in LA - but not sure about the rest of you! For those of you in Virginia - I sent the weather on ahead of me! Hope you enjoyed the spring-like day!! New York - I heard you had a heat wave in the 40s today!! I promise I'm doing my best to bring 50s with me - if not 60s!!! :) Okay - off to find a place to eat some dinner. It's MEXICAN night!! YIPPEE!!!!!

Meteor Crater:






Petrified Forest:

Day 18 -- Grand Canyon and back to Williams, AZ

OW. Basically - that sums up my day. I'm tired, I'm getting cranky, and I'm starting to feel muscles and joints I never knew existed. I'm assuming it's a combination of the half-marathon after effects and the amount of walking/hiking we did in the past 2 days - wearing hiking boots.

So this morning started off very cool - but also very early. We woke up early and when we looked out our window, the sun was just starting to lighten the sky and all we could see outside was the trees, snow and open spaces. Our room was like a camping cabin - and there wasn't much else around. Very out of the way - with an isolated feel. We went to eat breakfast - and ended up walking there instead of waiting on the shuttle. It felt great to be out and walking with it so quiet and peaceful out. However, for the first time on our journey, the weather wasn't the greatest. It was overcast, damp and cool. It did not rain on us today as forecast - and it could have been a lot colder - so we weren't complaining.

After a not-so-spectacular breakfast we went back to our room and got our day pack ready for the day and our overnight gear ready to be picked up and put back on the train. Then we headed out for another jam-packed day in the park.

We decided to get on the shuttle and get off at each stop that offered any type of view or activity. We went to the visitor's center and caught the green route bus to a couple of neat view points. Then we headed back to the blue route and a few more stops. We made it to the train depot an hour early and went to get the boys some lunch to eat before getting on the train. We sat at the depot and let the boys eat while we talked with some of the other passengers.

I forgot to mention this in yesterday's blog - but when we got off the train and onto the bus for the tour - we sat with a couple in from St Louis (I believe). The man was originally from Queens - so he & Don began talking. At our 2nd stop I overheard the woman talking about "at mile 8". So I looked at her and said "did you just run the half-marathon in Phoenix?" She said YES - You too?! And we both cracked up. So much for resting after the big race!! We talked a lot about our experiences at the race. It was a good debriefing for me. When we got to the train depot, she & I caught up some more and compared notes on our time in the Grand Canyon. Seems we both started feeling the after effects of the run. We saw them at dinner tonight too and she was saying she was off to bed at 7:30!!! I'm just as exhausted and sore - but I had to get some sorting & packing done and get this blog in before I forget anything!!!

During the train ride back to Williams, both Daniel & Patrick were wound up. They had earned their Junior Ranger badges at the park and several people kept commenting on them. Later in the train ride we had a staged "robbery" and the marshall was so great about getting the boys involved as his deputies - since they were Junior Rangers and all! LOL We also had a good laugh when the guy playing the banjo for us played some songs that had both boys up in the aisle dancing along. I'm not sure why - but we were the ONLY people left in our car by that time - besides an elderly couple from CT who were doting on the boys. They even videotaped the boys dancing to the banjo - and offered to email it to me. There were some very nice people on this trip!

I am SO glad we head to Santa Fe tomorrow. In about a week we should be home - and I am SO ready!!!

Since I'm about to fall asleep typing, I'm going to call it a night. Back to the road we go tomorrow - and time to wrap up the journey! Stay tuned...