We stayed a few miles north of Columbia, South Carolina at a Walmart when we drove down last night from Tryon. We are headed to Charleston but we decided that Columbia would be a good place for Luka to get his 6-month immunizations.
I never thought I would be waking up next to a french broad in my lifetime but never say never. Good morning, French Broad River! What a view. And I am going to pretend that the campground is 100% perfect just like this view. What pile of trash and used mattress? I don’t see that sitting behind one of the full timing RVs across the street from us. The bathrooms are locked up for the season? I can’t hear you. The river is too loud. Haha.
For the last couple of months, we have been keeping in touch with some new friends we met at Alumafandango who are also traveling around the country. We had planned to meet up with them again when we got to Asheville. They had returned from their 4-month trip a bit earlier and came up to visit up at the campground today.
Today we checked out of the Kentucky Horse Park campground and headed southwest towards Bardstown. Even though we are traveling just a little west, it feels wrong somehow. We should be driving east until we hit the east coast, right? I know, we’re weird.
Today is our last day at Carrie’s house. We’ve been living large for the past 10 days and it is time to hit the road again. The girls are sad that they have to leave their buddy. “We just got here!”, they screamed. We told them that Carrie will join us for a few more days on the road but they know that this part of our trip is coming to an end.
Mila decided that her first day in Kentucky was worthy of a new milestone. We haven’t boondocked since before Jackson Center and this morning, we woke up in the parking lot of the Walmart in Georgetown, Kentucky. It is warm and beautiful here and we let the girls do some arts and crafts before packing up and heading to Lexington. Just as we are cleaning up, we noticed about 3 inches of baby curls on the dinette table.
There is something so liberating about waking up in the morning at a boondocking site. Whether you are in the desert, the forest or just a Walmart parking lot, boondocking represents the ultimate freedom of traveling on the road.
A lot of people ask us how we manage three kids in such a small space. And I am not ashamed to admit this. They watch TV. Especially in the mornings when things need to get done. And what do they watch? Well, the girls both need to agree on what to watch. If they do not agree, then no TV. That is that. Mila is currently in love with all things Toy Story and Ava prefers Looney Tunes.
And the reason why I am not ashamed is because the kids get to explore the country. City by city. State by state. They walk, run, skip and whine their way across America. And it is exhausting at times, for all of us. So a little downtime is necessary, especially for the grown-ups. The thing I really miss on this trip is having babysitters. We get no break. No, I am not whining. Just telling it like it is. So, for some peace and quiet, the TV works while we are in the Airstream.
And how do I get some peace and quiet from Luka? Haha, good one!
Last night at the Bay City Walmart was a cold one. Our 4-battery setup worked well the night before in Traverse City so we felt pretty good about using power pretty liberally. We still had a decent amount of juice left in the morning but the overcast skies are not really helping with replenishing our consumption.
Last night we spent the night at a Walmart in Traverse City. It is the first night of boondocking since we replaced our batteries in Grand Rapids just before we headed to Grand Haven. I also was able to charge up our pair of old batteries while we were plugged into power in Ludington and connected them via the umbilical cord for extra amp hours. They worked great. It is the first time for us to wake up in the morning after running the furnace off and on all night and still be in the green on the monitors. As we start to head south, we will be able to last much longer without having to run the furnace and get better charge from our solar panels.
Our first morning here was great although all night long, the wind blowing on the tree tops made acorns fall and crash loudly on the roof of the Airstream. It sounded like the hail we got when were in Asheville, North Carolina a couple of years ago except it was more sporadic. Every time I hear the rustling of the leaves I mentally brace for loud bangs on the roof.
I can see how Grand Haven State Park can be really crowded during the busy season. Even though the campground is essentially a beach-side parking lot and the sites are small and tight, it is right on the water and is in a quaint and unique city for a relative bargain to locals at only $27 a night. Although when it is cold, wet and windy, it is much less appealing. Our 2-night stop here will come to an end today, not because we wouldn’t like to stay longer but because we have a date to keep at another great state park north of here near the town of Ludington.
