Resources

Way back when this trip was years in the future, I started purchasing RV books.  Books such as RV for Dummies, Road Trip USA, a National Parks Guide and anything else that caught my eye as I hung out in the travel section of Barnes and Noble.

I joined a couple of Yahoo groups.  Families on the Road is a great group to join if you are interested in RVing for extended periods.  While many of the families who post are full time RVers, I learned a TON just by lurking.  I’ve been a member of this group for well over a year and it’s been my initial go to when questions arise.  The archives are a wealth of knowledge.

Initially I wanted a Class C motorhome, but the more we researched, the more I gravitated to the Class A.  Keith lobbied for a bit for a 5^th wheel (I think he just wanted a bigger truck), but I quickly disabused him of the notion of 8 weeks with the kids in the cab of a truck.

Having Keith work out of state was actually a blessing in disguise.  It forced us to purchase a RV for Keith to live in, thus giving us time to figure out how to work and maintain the RV before leaving for our trip.  Keith was able to fix some minor issues and work out the kinks.  

I purchased a RV Road Atlas.  Invaluable.  This atlas shows where campgrounds and RV service centers are located.  I also bought a Next Exit book.  This book tells you what services are located off of every exit of every interstate.  Another great resource.  I have two RV campground directories.  One is Frommers and the other is from Good Sam.  Ah, Good Sam.  Good Sam offers roadside RV assistance, but they also offer a membership for RVers that gives you access to their website which includes forums and handy checklists.  I wrote to AAA and asked for maps—boy did I get maps! 

I then purchased an annual National Parks permit and bought some National Parks Passport books.  Apparently, each National Park has a stamp that you can get and collect.  It’ll be fun.  I hope. 

Once I had all of my books, I started a notebook with tabs for various lists—stuff to bring, people to see, campgrounds, to do lists, etc.  I printed up a blank calendar to fill out with our planned itinerary.  I printed out helpful emails from people and reservation confirmations.  I have a list of all the bills that need to be paid while we’re gone.  All of this goes into a magazine holder so that there is one central place for everything.

So far, that’s everything I’ve used.  Oh, and Google.  Where would we be without Google????

Name Changes and Calendars

Keith didn't really like the title of the blog, so I've changed the name of the blog from Bounder Beast to Bounder Bus.  Just for him.  

He managed a short visit home for the weekend and I can’t wait to sit down and plan out some of our trip together!  The plan for the weekend is to sit down with some checklists.  From there, we’ll head out to Camping World for some of the supplies we’ll need.   B.o.r.i.n.g., but necessary. 

Next, I plan on pulling all the maps back out and going over the itinerary I’ve worked up.  I printed up a couple of blank calendars and have penciled the stops in.  I figure we’ll travel between 6 and 7 hours a day on our travel days.

I’ll share what I’ve done so far….

3/23            Leave Home and arrive in Caldwell, ID

3/24            Arrive Provo, UT

3/25            Arrive Zion National Park, UT

3/26            Spend the day exploring the Park

3/27            Leave Zion and arrive at The Grand Canyon

3/30            Leave the Grand Canyon/arrive aroundWilcox, AZ

3/31            Arrive Carlsbad, NM

4/1              Explore the Carlsbad Caverns

4/2              Leave head to Fort Stockton, TX (here’s some wiggle room)

4/5              Arrive Corpus Cristi, TX and hang out at the Gulf

4/8              Leave CC, TX (more wiggle room as we make our way to FL)

4/13            Arrive at Fort Wilderness at Disney in Orlando, FL

4/17            Leave Orlando

4/18            Arrive Atlanta, GA

4/19            Georgia Aquarium

4/20            Leave GA and head North.

4/21            South Carolina stop- maybe?

4/22            Arrive Williamsburg, VA

4/23            Explore Colonial Williamsburg (another bit of wiggle room)

4/25            Arrive MD to visit my best friend, Jennifer

4/26            Spend a couple of days with Jen  while exploring DC

4/29            Leave MD and arrive in PA to spend some time with family
5/1              Spend the week exploring PA and NYC-Statue of Liberty!

5/6              Leave PA and head west

From here we may head to Springfield, IL to see Lincoln’s childhood home or just head NW to WI to visit Yerkes Observatory and hopefully visit with my stepsister and her family.

We’ll then make our way to Mt. Rushmore, SD and head on to Yellowstone and possibly the Grand Tetons.

We need to be back at home before Monday, May 30.

Please feel free to comment with any and all suggestions you might have!

WOW!

A very kind and generous internet friend is helping us obtain Disney tickets for our stay in April, saving us, literally, hundreds of dollars.

Today was a great planning day--I made our reservations for Fort Wilderness and even secured our reservation for Teppan Edo, the Japanese restaurant in Epcot.  Disney is going to be really busy, unfortunately, due to the Easter holiday, but I still think we'll have a wonderful time.  I've already subscribed to Tour Guide Mike and will follow his recommendations so that we can enjoy our stay all the more.

Can't wait!

Maps and Reservations--Progress!

I sat down this afternoon at the dining room table with the computer, a calculator, a stack of maps, two monstrous RV campground guides and my notebook.

It was time to figure out what dates we will be at Fort Wilderness and start looking for campgrounds to stay at along the way.

It looks like we’ll be camping at the Grand Canyon late March and will be at Disney World in mid April. 

Reservations for the campground at the Grand Canyon have been made and inquires sent out for Fort Wilderness. 

I wish we didn’t have to stick to any sort of schedule—it would be so nice to just get in the RV and go—stopping wherever we want and taking however long we want to.  

8600 Miles

Yikes!  That’s a whole lot of driving! 

Today’s mail saw the arrival of a fat envelope of maps from AAA, the National Parks Pass and the Good Sam RV campground guide. 

I sat down and plotted the trip on Bing maps.  Now that I have an estimate of the amount of miles between each currently planned stop, I can figure out when we’ll be arriving at each.  Then, I can use my guide to determine which campgrounds are at each site.  

I need to make reservations for Fort Wilderness at DisneyWorld, so my goal is to have this trip plotted and charted and organized before next week. 

Once that’s done, it’s on to figuring out exactly what we want/need to bring and making sure we have everything!

Finally--- a Little Excitement?

I mentioned that the kids aren’t all that excited about our trip.  I really want them to look forward to the trip, so, since they are homeschooled, I’ve added some new assignments. 

Initially the kids groaned. 

“You mean we have do MORE school work because we are  going on the RV trip?”

“I knew I didn’t want to go.”

However,  I did see a faint glimmer of excitement today…..

I gave the kids the list of places that we are going to visit, along with a list of ‘maybes’.  I told each of them to pick a place, research it, write a paragraph about it, find and print a picture of it and submit it to me. 

I received a report today on The Grand Canyon and The Georgia Aquarium. 

:::the oldest is getting ready to take the SAT this Saturday, so I exempted her:::

This might work….

The Animals

The gecko?  The local pet store boards reptiles.  Score.

The flippin’ goldfish that just.will.not.die?  The neighbor will take the tank and feed him.  Stupid fish.

The cats?  Ah, the cats.  What to do with the cats? In theory, I could hire someone to house sit.  I could also ask my neighbors and my Mom to take turns coming over to the house. 

Eight weeks is a loooonnnnng time to have someone coming into your home every other day.  I know that I wouldn’t want to take care of someone’s cats for that length of time.  After much angst, mostly on my part, Keith and I decided to :::gulp::: board them.

Did you know that it’s not so easy to board cats?  You have a dog?  No problem—there’s a kennel around every corner.  Not so with cats. 

It seems that there are two extremes—the $50- a- day premium kitty hotel or the cage at the local vet.  The first is obviously too expensive, the second --  too mean.  We are going to be gone too long for them to be in a little cage 24/7. 

Unlike the stupid.just.won’t.die. fish, I like my cats.   

See, aren’t they cute?

So, is there a middle ground?

Well, after much searching, I’ve found it.  Kitty Condos.  A great little place about 40 minutes away that offers a variety of set ups and rooms to board your cat.  There is even a vet right next door.

I paid them a visit and it’s perfect.  Clean, reputable and the kitties are allowed out every day.   I’m not springing for the Mickey themed Grande Condo or the Luxury Suite, but they will be in a Cozy Room that is definitely better than a little cage at the local vet.

I wrote a check and reserved the room.  Best of all, they offer a discount due to the extended stay! 

Planning, Planning and more Planning.

Resolution:  Make daily planning progress.

Annual National Parks permit: Purchased and on its way!  

Next on the list---making arrangements for the animals.  The gecko, the fish and the cats. 

The Map is On the Wall!!

I pinned the map of the USA on the wall tonight.

So far I have push pins for….

Yellowstone

Mt Rushmore

Yerkes Observatory

Grand Canyon

D.C. - Library of Congress

Statue of Liberty

Gettysburg

Colonial Williamsburg

Lincoln’s Childhood Home in Springfield

Zion National Park

Disneyworld- Fort Wilderness

The Gulf of Mexico is on the list—just not sure where exactly we’ll be stopping.  The Georgia Aquarium and the Mall of America are maybes.

Now, I just need to figure out distances and approximate timelines.

Making a List

I have officially started a planning notebook so that I have a central location for all of my notes. I am in the process of consolidating all my little notes to myself---places to see, people to visit, things to do, stuff to pack, calls to make.  Maybe I should have grabbed the 5 subject notebook?

A Wrinkled Life

Wrinkles. I hate them. I hate them when they happen on my clothes, my face and I hate them when they happen to my carefully orchestrated plans.

As everyone knows, times are tough right now for many, many people. With this in mind, when the opportunity to work presents itself, it is prudent to embrace it.

Such is wrinkled life here at the house of Gs. The Big G himself, Dad, is off to work out of state for the next two months.

So, how does this affect our trip? Thankfully, the timeline stays intact. He will be home exactly ONE WEEK prior to departure.

What it does mean is that virtually all of the planning will fall to me. <-----here is where I insert a big sigh.

Guess it’s a good thing I’m the one family member excited about going, huh?