This page contains pictures and information about camping trips and other travel within the US. It also includes visits that family members and others made to our area and home. It is arranged chronologically starting with the most recent trip/visit. Scroll down to see all the entries. One of my lifetime goals has been to visit all the national parks in the US. When Donna & I travel, we also go out of our way to visit national monuments, seashores, memorials, battlefields, preserves, parkways, recreation areas, rivers, scenic trails, lakeshores and national historic sites. So, you may wonder ‐ why have I chosen this as a goal? The answer is simple – as a citizen of this great country, I, like you, am one of the many owners of these national treasures. As such, I consider it a priority to go visit what I own and enjoy the scenic wonders, the incredible memorials, and the cherished wilderness that so many have fought and died to give us this privilege. Having said that, I dedicate this section of my website to my parents, my kids and grandkids; and the rest of my family, especially my wife, who have honored and participated in my traveling addiction over the last several decades.
I drove to Pagosa Springs, CO to join a team of people who were helping to build homes/garages for low-income families. I stayed at Mountain Landing RV Resort and worked 8-3pm on Tue., Wed., Fri & Sat. for two weeks. During my free time I went fishing, hiked various trails in the area; rode the Cumbres & Toltec railroad, and visited a mine. Great trip and nice weather.
Donna and I went for a Sunday morning walk on the El Paso Scenic Drive. As the road is blocked from automotive traffic on Sundays, we decided to take advantage of the opportunity to have a peaceful uphill walk. The view from the top of the El Paso and Juarez city areas was quite impressive. On our way home, we also stopped at Tom Lea Park for a brief walk. It was a nice way to spend the day and enjoy some quality time together.
My friend Doug Borrett and I drove to Denver, CO to visit the Rocky Mountain Train Show. We also visited the Colorado Train Museum, the Argo Mill & Mine, Buffalo Bill’s Grave site, and numerous other local sites. We drove on the Mt. Evans Scenic Loop and the Turquoise Highway. Great trip. We’re panning for gold in this photo.
This trip was Plan B. We were originally scheduled to go to Sri Lanka, however a delay in our COVID test results forced us to cancel that trip. So we packed up the camper and the dogs and drove 1,700 miles to Florida to visit Donna’s friend Sharon in Spring Hill and Donna’s cousin Patti in Naples. We stayed in RV parks and State Parks every night for the 2 weeks we were traveling.
Donna held a birthday bash for Charlie (age 90) & Barb (age 85) on Dec. 11 at our home and invited her brothers and sister, as well as several cousins from Cincinnati & Washington DC. We also had a couple of Charlie & Barb’s friends from church at the party. The relatives stayed for a week, arriving several days before the event and staying a couple days after it.
We took the camper and the dogs and headed to Colorado. We stayed at two State Parks and visited 3 others. Had a great time at Rifle Falls State Park. Hiked several miles each day and built a campfire at night. Nice relaxing vacation away from the crowds.
I drove the camper from home to Brookings, SD to join a team of 10 volunteers to help build a house as part of the Habitat for Humanity RV Care-A-Vanner’s program. We worked during the week and on the weekend, I did a tour of the area, including Sioux Falls Park, Corn Palace and other interesting places. I also stopped at several spots along the way to do more sightseeing. Great trip overall.
We took the dogs for a short walk at the Chamizal National Memorial on the border of Texas and Mexico. Nice day for a Sunday morning stroll in the park.
I drove to Alamogordo to visit their train museum. They gave me a private tour of the building and I took a lot of pictures. I learned more about different types of model trains and enjoyed seeing their various layouts.
We took the camper and the dogs and drove to Big Sky, MT where we rented a large home for the week to house 26 members of Donna’s family. We hiked, did white water rafting, went on a ski lift and had a wonderful time socializing with each other. We parked the camper in the driveway and slept there while the others stayed in the home.
