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 my traveling addiction over the last several decades.
I went to this conference in Corpus Christi, TX; having been newly elected as Board Chair for Habitat for Humanity – El Paso (HFHEP). Dave Driscoll – Executive Director and John Venezuela – ReStore Manager also attended the conference.
This was an RV trip to attend the annual RVF rally in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. We took Donna’s parents with us, dropped them off at her brother Steve’s home, then drove to Toronto. After that we toured the Bruce Peninsula, including Flowerpot Island. We then drove north skirting the US/Canada border, arriving in Michigan, where we camped near the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. After that we drove back to PA, stopping at Cuyoga Valley National Park in Ohio. We returned home on the traditional route (Interstate 81, 40, 30, 20, 10). The total trip covered 7,000 miles over a 4-week period.
A team of 9 Russian Rotarians visited El Paso in March. There were 5 host families for the event and the visit lasted 5 days. There were different activities each day, including visits to mfg plants, the Habitat ReStore, White Sands NM, the New Mexico Museum of Space History, Lanes Ranch and the home of our District Governor, Linda Woodward. The last day the team gave a presentation at the meeting of the Rotary Club of West El Paso and we finished the day with a farewell party at the home of Doug & Sally Borrett. Carey was the event organizer.
This was a trip that Donna took with her sister Jan to visit her cousin Patti in Naples, Florida. All the female Mannino cousin’s were invited and most showed up. Donna said she had a great time because it was her 60th birthday celebration as well.
We celebrated Thanksgiving with Steve, Dana, Kira, Laura, Anna, & Julia. They spent 5 days with us and we enjoyed playing ping pong, riding horses, hiking at Mt. Cristo Rey, doing fun things at Bob-O’s and eating a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner that Donna prepared for all of us, including Barb & Charlie.
We co-hosted the RVF Rally at the 2017 Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta with Bob & Betty Traister & Bill & Linda Jo Hendron. What an incredible adventure – we witnessed the mass ascension of over 500 balloons on two separate days. We camped at the Enchanted Trails campground near the event and had great fellowship with our other 29 RVF campers.
We took Keith & Lindsay and their two kids (Kade & Bexley) on a trip to Disneyworld in Florida. We spent 7 days at the Shades of Green resort and visited all 4 Disney parks within Disneyworld. We walked a lot, ate a lot and had a great time with the kids and grandkids on the rides at the parks, and swimming & hot tubbing at the resort.
I recently joined the Habitat for Humanity El Paso affiliate. This trip was to the Lone Star Summit in San Marcos, TX. I traveled with Dave Driscoll (Board President, and Geronimo Garcia, HFHEP Executive Director.) The conference was very informative and I came back with some ideas to help our affiliate. We traveled and stayed in my camper during the conference.
We took our new camper and traveled to the Atlanta Rotary Convention & RVF Rally. Keith & Lindsey and their kids visited us at the Stone Mountain RV Campground. From there we headed to Shawnee National Forest to meet Kevin & Steph and their kids, who then traveled with us to St. Louis. We visited several national monuments along the way, including Poverty Point, LA, Waco Mammoth, St. Louis Arch, Grant NHS and many others. It was a combination Rotary and family trip, which turned out well and we look forward to travel with everyone again.
We drove to Dennison, TX to attend the wedding of Donna’s niece (Rachael Penn). On the way we stopped at Monahans Hills State Park. This was the first campground we stayed at, after buying the new truck and camper. We went fishing on Lake Texohma one day while we were in Dennison.
