Nothing to do with Camping

Last night, i watched The Duggars... they have 16 kids. All their kids are sooo well-behaved, responsible and beautiful. I thought to myself, "Hey, maybe I can have a 4th one!!!"

NOT!

check out this incredible family! http://www.duggarfamily.com/

And We're Back!

It took a while to leave Denver due to some last minute souvenir shopping and forgetting some beer but we finally depart at around 5p with pitstops at the Colorado/ Nebraska border, a 9:30p dinner/ gas stop in Kearney, Nebraska... It's all a blur now, all those stops. I know we drove through Iowa, Illionois & Indiana(the 3 I's). We get into Chicago at around 10a but drive for an hr near lakeshore(kinda like T.O)... do some driving sightseeing... then into Indiana for lunch and on our way out, we saw an outlet mall in Michigan City and decided to do more shopping - Jerrold finally buys some clothes!

We didn't get far that night... since we didn't sleep much in Denver and drove thru the night before and drove all day, i only drove for 1 hr (after jerrold's 2 hr shift) before I stopped at a Rest Area near Flint, Michiganfor a 2-hr nap... Was on the road again around 4am... we were on Canadian soil around 5:30am!!!

It was an awesome trip! Would we do it again?! Sure, maybe we'll go for 2 months next time!

Some things that helped us survive the driving...

• - DVD player for the kids (they watched Star Wars ep.1, Small Soldiers, Veggie Tales, Star Wars 2, Star Wars 4, Three Little Pigs, Star Wars 5 and Star Wars 6)... apparently, we didnt' have Star Wars ....
• - Rest Areas were awesome! A lot of the rest areas in the States have wireless internet too... not that i was able to connect tho.

OUR FAVORITES

• Nathan : Playing LEGO Star Wars in Vancouver.
• Christian : Camping at Yoho National Park
• Nathan again : Playing LEGO Star Wars in Denver, CO.

QUICK FACTS

• We drove a total of 11321 km!
  

wandering thoughts of a camp-o-holic ...

As I finish catching up on our blog, I contemplate our trip. It's been a long vacation but in many respects, not long enough. We have seen so much beauty and so many amazing places but really only skimmed the surface - there is so much more we can do to experience the beauty of this continent. This trip has definitely opened up many possibilities, but it would take many lifetimes to accomplish it all. We had fleetingly few moments and meals with friends and family. What we have learned, is that we don't need 95% of the things we own at home - that we can survive out of our minivan with a few essentials. That the only thing really important is time spent together with family. Traveling and camping has truly brought us closer as a family, and closer to God. Experiencing the majesty of a waterfall, or the stillness of a starry night, or the variety of plant and animal life, or the towering mountains - there is a great sense of thankfulness and blessing for what God has created, for what we must preserve and keep for our children.

This trip is almost over, but the memories will last forever.

Day 19 - Boulder, Colorado

We visit Colorado Mills Outlet mall - there are three steps to survival here:
1. Open wallet.
2. Make payment.
3. Repeat.

Christian: We were in the mall for a long time. My mom shopped a lot.

Jerrold: Luckily, I'm able to pull everyone out of there after a couple hours. We spend the afternoon in Boulder, CO doing what else? bouldering! It's a fairly large town with a state college and an amazing amount of outdoor activities - climbing, biking, kayaking, tubing, etc. etc. We scramble up to the top of a small peak where you can view people living the outdoor life. I could have spent a couple more weeks out here.

Tomorrow, we start heading back to Toronto - 2400 kms to go - time to return to real-life.

Abbie : Seriously, I ONLY went into 3 stores! And I wasn't too impressed w/ the Mills... It's the exact layout as Vaughn Mills! But hey, some of the deals were pretty good and I can't get a Bath & Body Works in the T dot O... AND at this point, I've bought ZERO souveniers to bring home! Look at the above pic - Charmaine pointed out that MuyMuy is only 3 and can use the camelback! We should use them instead of bottles when they're infants...

Day 18 - The road to Denver

A crazy antler arch in Jackson, WY











On to Denver! The drive through Wyoming is fairly uneventful. We get one last look at the Grand Tetons before heading across flat farmland. We do cross over the highest point on I-80 at 8400ft - but there's not much to see.






Matt and Charmaine's century old wooden home in Denver has the warm feel of an old homestead in the Wild West. There's even stories that Billy the Kid has stayed there. Their three dogs greet us with enthusiasm. It's nice to kick up our feet and relax.

Day 17 - Grand Teton National Park

The Large Breasts (aka Grand Tetons) are a beautiful expanse of rock with excellent opportunities for mountaineering and multi-pitch rock climbing. I have all my gear - but no time planned for climbing this time - but like Arnold, "I'll be back". I would of liked to even have hiked a little, but it's raining in the afternoon and nobody else is up for it. But, at least we got to see the lake view. We setup camp and have a relaxing afternoon.

Day 16 - Yellowstone National Park

We do about 1000kms through the night - the 75mph speed limit through the mostly flat Idaho helps. The sunrise in Idaho among the potatoe fields are awesome. I watch the sun rise as the farmers wake up to water their fields and the crop dusters fly overhead doing dips and swoops. We have breakfast at a rest stop and see Mesa Falls in Idaho before continuing on to Yellowstone.


Christian: The geysers stank. They smelled like rotten eggs.

Jerrold: Seeing the first geysers is cooler than I imagined. We see all kinds of different potholes, basins, and geysers - it is an amazing natural wonder. There's also all kinds of wildlife along the highway as we make our way to the famous Old Faithful.





However, they should change the name to 'The Circus' - because it's just a great big show there with hundreds of people, large giftshops, and loads of RVs. We stay for the next showing and happily move on. The campground is not much better - there are over 400 sites and it's pratically bursting - we're lucky to get one of the few tent only sites left - no more sites for RVs. We have a relaxing evening roasting steak and sausages over the fire and making plans for heading to Grand Teton National Park tomorrow.

Day 15 - Portland Microbrews

Drive to Portland to check out a local microbrewery - Pyramid Breweries (formerly Portland Brewing Co.) - the first in Portland and home of MacTarnahans. We arrive at happy hour and get large amounts of cheap food and beer. Along with MacTarnahans ale, they have an amazing Thunderhead IPA, a selection of wheats (Honey Weizen, Apricot Weizen, Amber Weizen), and a thick Porter. One more stop through downtown Portland and the Rogue distillery to pick up some special Rogue malt liquor and barleywine before heading off for Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

Day 14 - Oregon Scenic Capes

We visit the Tillamook creamery for some excellent ice cream and tasty cheese. It's a beautiful scenic drive along the 3 capes of the Oregon coast, we stop at Cape Meares to swim in the Pacific and explore the rocks and caves at low tide. The rocks offshore are covered with puffins, pelicans & sea lions. The water at the Pacific was really cold. I was shivering a lot. We camp right off the beach at Nehalem Bay State Park.

Day 13 - Sand Lake

we spend the morning driving to Sunshine point at 6400ft to see Mt. Rainier up close - it's an awesome glacier covered mountain. There's lots of hiking trails around and we can see the zig zag of switchbacks through the snow as groups of climbers make their way up the mountain. But, we didn't do any hikes.


We then drive to the Oregon coast for some camping at Sand 'Lake' with Richard. It's quite a unique spot as the 'lake' turns out to be a giant sand dune beside the ocean. It's a haven for dune buggies, 4-wheelers, and dirt bikes.

Nathan: I liked playing in the sand at the campsite. The sand at sand 'lake' was to dangerous with the atv's. I found lots of treasure.

Day 12 - Border Crossing

It's a long day... we have a slow start with saying goodbye to family, we then spend 2 1/2 hours at the border crossing. Our car gets searched for contraband food - and the search is positive. We are illegally smuggling vegetable soup and beef jerky - both of which contain Canadian beef. We drive through downtown Seattle - a nice port city with decorated pigs everywhere. We would have liked to have fish and chips by the harbour, but it's too difficult to stop, so instead we are forced to have some 'international' fare outside a federal penitentary at IHOP. Everybody enjoys having breakfast for dinner - especially Nathan and his precious fries. We are lucky to find a campsite at 1 am at a full state park just outside Mt. Rainier. It's a scenic spot that reminds me of a rain forest.

Day 11 - Grouse Mountain

Jerrold : time to hang out with the tourists... A trip to Grouse Mountain with the family. Christian and I hike the Grouse Grind to the top while the rest of the fam takes the gondola up. It's truly a grinding 1.5km vertical hike with 1100m of elevation gain. It's mostly stone steps all the way up - there are no level sections. We meet a woman jogging up trying to beat her time last year of 43 min. I would like to try jogging it.

Christian : The hike was really long. It was really steep. It was like climbing thousands of stairs. There was lots of stairs. By the end of the hike I was really tired. I was happy to make it. We had just enough water to make it. At the top of the mountain there was a great view. On the way down we took the cable car with my family.

Abbie : I wished I got to hike up the grouse. It sounded hot & sweaty! Nathan wasn't up for it though (that lazy bum!). It was nice to catch the lumberjack show with Cuz Adrian, Nathan & Evangeline while we waited for the hikers. We had an awesome BBQ for dinner at Jerrold's Aunt & Uncle's house. Adrian was incognito, playing double header hockey games so we'll have to cut & paste his head into the pic below one day...

Day 10 - Squamish

Jerrold : Spend the day in Squamish with my cousin - we see all the road construction on the Sea to Sky Highway in preparation of the 2010 Winter Olympics. It's a beautiful sunny day with clear skies - a great day for climbing - the coming weekend is SquamishFest. I teach Adrian to belay so that we can top rope at the Neat and Cool crag at Smoke Bluffs. I climb some nice crack and slab climbs while enjoying the great view of the Chief - Adrian is happy with both feet on the ground. However, we do some nice 'adventure' hiking through the smoke bluffs. We then reload on slushies at the 7-11 before hiking to the south summit the Chief. We see two chihuhuas and a girl in flip flops before reaching the top. It's an amazing view 610m high on the Chief. Dinner is back in Vancouver with the family - a BC Burger with triple 'O' sauce at White Spot.

Day 9 - Richmond

Jerrold: in the city of Richmond - fix the car and rest. it's a nice do nothing day. Get to play Settlers of the Stone Age and Lego Star Wars with the kids.

Abbie : I get to do 4 loads of laundry! a short midnight visit to Rohan's pad down by Coal Harbour. It has a gorgeous view and is soooo bachelor-like! We all probably gain about 5 lbs as my aunt make awesome homecooked meals for us.

Christian & Nathen: We played Lego Star Wars. We had lots of fun.

Day 8 - Leaving the Rockies for Vancouver

Photo 1 : Mission Hill Family Estate Winery





Photo 2: With Lake Okanagan in the background

Jerrold : Drive to Vancouver via Kelowna and the Okanagan Valley. What a beautiful drive - but loong. A few accidents on the highway really slow down the trip. It takes a long time to get to Vancouver. We visit some beautiful wineries along the coast of Okanagan Lake - it's way more scenic than the Niagara Peninsula. The section from Penticton to Princeton looks like the Wild West - lots of ranches and gold mountains and trout-filled streams. There's a 65acre ranch with log cabin for sale. We see people on horses in the small towns. The boys say it looks like the computer game Settlers or Age of Empires. Nathan wants to build barracks everywhere. We drive through Manning Provincial Park - crazy winding highway with mule deer everywhere. stop to pee and admire the star-filled night sky.

Abbie : Driving through Manning Park was scary. Lots of deer on the shoulder andvery winding and sharp curves... took lots of concentration. We get into Richmond at 1:30am!

Christian: I was very tired when we got to Richmond. But, I was very excited.

Day 7 - Night Hike in Glacier National Park

Photo : Glacier National Park, Illecillewaet Campground.













Photo : Night Hike on the Avalanche Crest Trail. There were steep switchbacks and you might not be able to tell from the pic, it's a steep drop to the right of Abbie. The kids were amazing! They could've gone further but I don't think we'll be coming down.

Day 7- Second Shower

Photo : Canyon Hot Springs wasn't quite what Azelia expected. She thought we'd be a natural springs... Water from Albert Canyon springs is piped almost 2 miles to the pool.

Christian: It was nice and warm in Canyon Hot Springs. There were two pools. A cold pool that was 32 degrees. And a hot pool that was 42 degrees.

Day 7- July 7th

Photo : Azelia & I with Takkakaw Falls in the back. The water is gushes, from the water melting a glacier above...
Photo : GROUP PIC!



Jerrold : Pack up and head to Glacier National Park.
Spend the afternoon at Canyon Hot Springs.
Night hike up up up with all the kids - what troopers!

Day 6 - July 6th

Photo: Christian, Nathan & Evangeline with their Uncle Teddy.





Photo : we hiked along the Yoho Valley River and saw Angel Staircase Falls & Point Lace Falls. Everytime we stopped near water, the kids would take the opportunity to play in it.

Christian: It's funny how my Uncle Teddy is almost the same age as me. The family tree is funny.

Jerrold : Day hike to two waterfalls - the kids hike 4km! plus back and forth to the cars a few times(each way 400m)... Then a drive to Lake Louise - some girls in bikinis are trying to swim in the freezing water. I take a nap with muy muy in the minivan. I do a nice 7km jog to above the treeline with Azelia before dinner.

Day 5 - July 5th

Photo : we had to hike about 400 or 500 metres to our campsite. A little cart is provided to put your gear in. They had sites right by the Yoho Valley River but we chose a more remote site since we knew the kids would be loud.


Photo : It was an awesome campsite! Surround by mountains, a beautiful of the Takkakaw Falls and no cars around...

Jerrold : Drive to Yoho National Park through Calgary and Canmore. Miss the stampede in Calgary. Pickup groceries and booze, and checkout real estate in Canmore. What a great place to live in the mountains, but expensive resort like real estate only 1/2hr outside Calgary.
We drive the 13km switchback road to Takkakaw Falls - what an awesome sight! A massive amount of water pouring over the mountain. And incredible camping too! It's so beautiful with glacial river and waterfalls and mountains all around. It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever camped at - and only slightly off the beaten track - the road leaves the RVs and trailers behind, and the 400m walk-in deters all the lazy couch potatoes.
Met Yat Kowfu + family + Azelia late at night.

Abbie : It's kind of scary that Jerrold wants to move out here! Although I was elated to pay ONLY 6% tax on my purchases in Alberta! The real estate is very expensive! Canmore was outrageuously priced. Strathmore(1 hr east of Calgary) might be worth looking up. And they are hiring everywhere! Perhaps I can find a $20/ hr job at the grocery store. =)

In Yoho NP, we had some steep switchbacks and Jerrold thought our minivan can go up them just like in Tokyo Drift... The minivan started making some funny sounds after a very sharp turn... I was freaking, thinking we'll never make it back down or something! (especially if you know that Jerrold spent 2 weeks just fixing the brakes before we left T.O)... Anyway, it turned out the power steering fluid was boiling over from the stress of the switchbacks. Plymouth Voyageurs(esp 10 yr old ones) were not made for the Rockies!

Day 4 - night hike

Photo: we were eaten alive by the mosquitos!

Jerrold : See the hoodoos and fossils at Dinosaur Provincial Park.
pay $2 for a 5min shower.
Night hike with the fam to see the prickly pear cactus and hoodoos.

Abbie : it was 30 degrees --> very hot compared to Lake Superior. All the kids were so enthusiatic about the "night hike"... I was scared because the climb was steep at some parts. I thought Nathan was going to slide off the side at times... They were awesome though!

Christian: During the hike it was a good view at the top of the Hoodoos. Though it was night.

July 4th - HAPPY CANADA DAY???

Photo : This patriotic Canadian wore her Canada Shirt for 4 entire days!

July 4th - night

The Badlands - in Dinosaur Provincial Park (Brooks, AB)

Day 4 - July 4th

Photo : Jerrold cooking instant cup-a-noodles. They were pretty good! Nong Shim really makes good food - our shrimp chips were made by nong shim as well!

Jerrold : more driving...
drive thru Saskatchewan - funny little vistor centres with no washrooms.
cup-a-noodles in the car for lunch.

Abbie : we had a GAS/ washroom stop in Moosejaw, Sask. We stayed there longer than we wanted because Jerrold clogged the toilet. There was a line-up for the loo and he had to ask the attendant for a plunger.

Day 3 - July 3rd

Photo: The prairies are indeed all flat land!

Jerrold : drive. drive. drive.
drive to Thunder Bay for some supplies and dinner at the Hoito.
drive to Kenora for gas and gatorade.
drive thru Manitoba at night - flat and foggy and fast. watch out for crossing moose, deer, and fox.

Abbie : I got my FIRST speeding ticket in Upsala, ON... you probably never heard of it... It's one of those towns you drive through in 5 seconds. I slowed down to a 60 when i entered the town and i saw a sign near the end of town (not even 5 seconds later!) and started speeding up again... well, it was one of those signes that says 90km (begins ahead.) i bet they sit there all day catching ppl like that! OPP clocked me 25 over but was *ahem* nice enough to drop it to a disobeying traffic sign...

Day 2 - July 2nd

Photo : Dinner on our first night - Udon noodles with shanghai bok choy and fried fish balls.

Jerrold : The drive is tiring but uneventful and we arrive safely in Pukaskwa (finally learn how it's pronounced - Puck-a-saw) national park at about 11am. The campground is small and quiet - there are lots of BIG mosquitos and the temperature is a chilling 8 Celius. It's raining and windy in the afternoon, but we still rough it out on a short hike to the beach and rocky coast of Lake Superior. Evangeline is eager for anything while she scrambles over rocks in her raincoat and sandals. Christian and Nathan start the fire while Abbie and I nap with Evangeline in the tent. They have no trouble starting the fire in a wet firepit with damp wood. Nathan tells me they used too many matches, but when I ask how many - he says "2". What great kids...
We didn't have any marshmallows for the campfire, but that didn't prevent the kids from trying to roast the strawberry marshmallows in our care package.(thx Am, Raymond, Z & D!) Mmmmmmm.

Abbie : It was drizzling, cold & windy! We definitely didn't check the weather before we packed! Apparently, Lake Supe is like a BIG outdoor air conditioner. We didn't wear any of the shorts and tank tops and t-shirts that I packed... had to wear the winter gear that i had packed for the Rockies.

Christian: We arrived in Pukaswa around noon. It was raining when we got there. We did a hike in the middle of the rain. It was really cold at night. It was around 4 degrees at night time. Thankfully we had a nice fire and lots of blankets.

Day 1 - July 1st

Photo: Beach on Lake Superior...

Jerrold : We finally start packing. Still recovering after the partying at Jonathan and Melody's wedding last night. Too much stuff still to do, but the highlight is that I fixed the cruise control! - but not after accidentally hooking it up to the horn. ;)

After everything is packed we make a last stop at T&T and fight the Canada Day crowd there to pick up last minute chinese snacks for the ride. We're on our way by 11pm, about 5 hours behind schedule.

Abbie : We drove 12 hrs to Pukaskwa (puk-a-saw) National Park... I don't know how torontonians survived before Tim Horton's but if a town has a population < 3500, chances are there won't be a timmy's... Just a note for the future: Blind River has a Tim Horton's!

One Day Before Departure

we still haven't started packing...