Our time in Savannah began outside of the city at a sparse looking campground, strangely devoid of any trees in contrast to the lovely canopied Spanish Moss covered streets I was used to seeing in photos. Gray skies above and unseasonably chilly weather were our greeting, and the campground owner didn’t seem willing to let me back our RV into the spot on my own. While his hand reached through the window, he grasped at the wheel to steer as I gently eased the gas to align our rig, yet he was fairly friendly and in the end I chalked up the experience as a way to show patience for someone who wasn’t patient with me.

The work week began at Panera bread. We used their free wifi, I drank cups of decaf, and I munched on pastries while staring at the beautiful woman across from me. Then we explored our surroundings at the end of each day. We ventured out of the city to Tybee Island and discovered a cute shop along the way which, along with the local produce, sold bags of salty boiled peanuts which Brooke eagerly gobbled up.

Exploring the city was great fun, especially when Brooke and I walked together along the river, ducking into little shops to browse souvenirs in addition to watching taffy being made in an old fashioned candy shop. I loved watching the conveyor belts and lifts along which the taffys traveled to get from wrapping machine to sorting bin on the other side of the room. So clever. We even got to try some fresh peanut butter taffy seconds after it was made.

The chilly weather loosened its grip by the weekend, and we took advantage of this by loading our bikes in the truck to drive into the city. We managed to find some great parking, after which we explored an old cemetery while Brooke shot plenty of photos to record all the beauty we saw together. Soon we were biking along Bull Street, which intersects many of the city’s gorgeous squares – lush tree-filled parks no bigger than a block or two which interrupt the flow of traffic and create a place for people to sit and enjoy some shade in the city. Many had old statues, representing times past and important historical figures. Eventually we wound up at Forsyth Park where Brooke and I sat on the grass, talked, reminisced, and planned our future.

As the day went on we made our way to the beach on Tybee Island where we sat among the many people who came to enjoy some of the first warmth of the season – the sand covered with blankets, chairs, and American sun worship.

When hunger struck we made our way to The Crab Shack for the another visit – the first of which occurred earlier in the week and foolishly didn’t include any of their name-sake dish. We just had to eat some crab! So on that occasion we ordered a fantastic sampler platter which included just about everything that lives underwater. We feasted on two kinds of crab, crayfish, mussels, shrimp, along with their standard (but delicious) sausage, corn, and potatoes. To my extreme pleasure I happily washed down the meal with some of the most delicious sweet tea I’ve tasted since Hawthorne Florida.

Leaving all the splendid trees with their happily dancing moss was a bit sad, but like most places we’ve visited, the memories and photos will keep my heart warm long into the future.

Goodbye trees. Keep on dancing.

Ah, the state park. What I love most about them is experiencing the beauty of nature from the comfort and amenities of our RV. Like some metal beast with many mouths we open all the windows and the screen door, letting our home take a nice deep breath and simultaneously bringing Brooke and I into the crisp cool air of our environment. I love it, and you can’t beat the price which is often less expensive than staying in a private RV park.

However, staying in state parks has met with mixed internet experiences. Most of the campgrounds don’t have wifi (or maybe none of them do, I can’t recall) which means on work days I have to use the Mefi to connect to the internet. Sometimes it works perfectly, grabbing several bars of signal and pushing through data at near broadband speeds. Work is a breeze under these conditions, but at other times the signal will falter on one bar, meaning the internet crawls at dial-up speeds. Working under those kind of conditions makes me feel like I can’t give my full effort to work because I’m constantly waiting for email attachments to send or hoping Instant Messenger will stay connected so I can make it through a full conversation with my co-workers.The alternative under the slow circumstances is to find a coffee shop with free wifi.

Working from a coffee shop has its charms. There’s the smell of brewing coffee and the bustle of people all around who are working, eating, conversing, and it can make me feel like I’m working in an office. But spending an entire day can be a drag, especially when it feels like the owners and employees are watching me, waiting for my low-paying ass to leave so another paying customer can take my place. This hasn’t happened often, but I find it tough to forget about those experiences when using a shop for its internet.

I’ve found that the best solution is to stay at state parks which aren’t *too* far removed from civilization. The one in Austin was just outside the city, meaning there were plenty of cell towers in the area to provide me with a fast connection via the mefi.

The beauty of nature just outside my front door and the ability to work with a speedy internet connection. The best of both worlds.

As the temperatures dip below freezing, Brooke and I have been feeling a new kind of freedom that was unknown to us before be bought the RV. It’s the freedom to move whenever we feel too cold, like we the lock has been broken off the chain which kept us stationary only a few months ago. You can see how we take advantage of it when you trace our path, keeping south from here on out as we continue west from Texas to Florida. We’re in Houston now, which is where the temps are around 50 during the day and somewhere in the high 30’s at night. I feel bad for our poor friends getting hit hard by snow and freezing temps in both Chicago and Denver/Boulder!

The destination for most of January will be lovely Florida, including the Keys, which is where we hope to welcome warm sub-tropical breezes through our RV screen door.

Before we get there, we’ll be pause for a week to visit with our wonderful friends John and Marla in New Orleans. On the agenda is to eat all the glorious food

Our wonderful week in LA has just come to an end & we are now all set up just outside Joshua Tree Nat’l Park. How fortunate we are to have such fantastic friends to visit there. Really & truly, they are an amazing group of people. So hospitable. So kind & open. So giving & loving. I could go on & on. Everyone made time for us, making Matt & I feel completely at home in an unfamiliar city. They wined & dined us, taking us all over the place to eat delicious food. (Oh, the food!) They welcome us into their homes & seemed OK answering all my stupid questions.

I’d just like to express my thanks to all the LA crew for making our Halloween week so special. As soon as we have a home of our own, you are all welcome to visit so we may reciprocate the love. :)

• Coming from the north on the 313, drive to the visitor’s center at the Islands in the Sky District where you can park, then walk out on the slickrock past the sign to the edge of the canyon for your first breath-taking view. There’s no railing, which adds to the heart stopping nature of this introduction to the park.
• Make your way out to the trailhead for Upheaval Dome, then take the short hike up to the lookout. You’ll see what I can only describe as a gorgeous green mountain scape nestled into a giant crater (check out the aerial view below on the Google Maps insert). You’ll wonder how this geological wonder could ever have formed, and you’ll find answers on two nearby signs. If you are feeling up to it, continue your hike to the second viewpoint which will take you up and down across a wonderful slickrock trail. You’ll feel like a mountain goat and get to see a completely different view of the dome.
• Next, make your way out to the gorgeous Green River Overlook where your eyes may not believe what they see. Literally, there are canyons carved within larger canyons stretching out for miles into the distance.
• Drive to the Grand View Point Overlook at the end of the main road. Peer down 1,000 feet over the railing to the white-tipped edges of the inner canyon, carved out over many years by the Green and Colorado rivers.

Upheaval Dome via Google Maps satellite view

We’re two married people, a fuzzy cat and some plants, working from home and exploring the country in our 5th Wheel RV. There’s my little summary of what we’ve been doing for the past month, which began when we let go of a place Brooke and I loved… Denver, Colorado. It was her initial idea to take this year-long trip, and it didn’t take much to convince me it was an awesome idea.

We started with reading. Books were plentiful & helpful, though the path to actually buying our truck and RV was one that wound in many directions. At times it felt like the process might not coincide with our planned departure date, not to mention the unexpected evolution of RV shopping, but we had plenty of determination to reach our goal: we couldn’t wait to be on the road! All in all, the entire process of planning, saving, researching, storing, selling & buying took about a year, and we left right on schedule (Saturday morning, August 1st, 2009).

Our first night in the RV was tons-o-fun. En route from Denver to Wisconsin (to see my sister) we stayed in the parking lot of a Wally’s, with the permission of a neighboring hotel, of course, who owned the lot. What we loved most was the bed itself, which takes up most of the bedroom space, making it extra cozy for sleeping. The next morning, it was very surreal to step out into the world, but we knew right then that this trip was going to kick ass.

From Kenosha, we drove to Chicago, then Terra Haute & Greenfield (IN), then Hamilton (OH) and finally, the long 3-day drive all the way to Arizona, where we’ve experienced oodles of fun with the Tempe DMV. So far we’ve had the chance to visit family & friends, go to Brooke’s 10-year high school reunion and visit my old college. This was actually the only scheduled part of the trip. We’ve seen fun detours like when we blew both a rim and water tank spigot in one shot, an LP gas leak and a less than pleasant adventure into the land of repair estimates. However, learning about the ins and outs of RVing has been fun. Why, just the other day I emptied the poop tank for the first time. Good times!

We’re using several methods to record our experience—pictures, video, blogging, google-mapping, rock collecting, etc.—and we love to share it with others, hopefully to inspire them to do something crazy, too. :)

And below is our google map, which I try to update as often as possible:

click to see fullsize

Although we’ve encountered numerous delays here in Arizona, specifically with getting our vehicles registered, we’ve done well making the most of our time. We’ve been up & down the state, and plan on seeing even more. Honestly, it feels incredible to be doing this trip. It’s really starting to feel like home. I hope to update this blog more often than monthly from now on, as not to forget anything. :)