This
post represents the final installment in the series detailing the first of our
three cross country National Parks camping trips with travel trailer in tow.
As our family pulled out of the Riverview RV Park in Loveland,
Colorado, early one August morning in 2007, we could look
back at our itinerary and take great satisfaction knowing that we had achieved
our goal of visiting one National Memorial (Mount Rushmore), one National
Monument (Devil’s Tower), and five National Parks (Badlands, Glacier,
Yellowstone, Grand Tetons and Rocky Mountain) on our first cross country trip
as a family of four. Alan and I pretty much
re-created our honeymoon of more than 25 years prior, the only differences being
that a travel trailer had replaced our two person mountain tent and there were
now two kids in the previously empty back seat. The trip had been full of many “firsts” and tons
of fun but, initially, we had been extremely disappointed that we would miss a
visit with our friends Mary and Dave who live in Colorado.
If you remember me mentioning our close friends Peg and Bill who
live in Virginia, you may be interested to know that Mary is Peg’s sister. Since Peg and I have been friends since first
grade, it follows that Mary and I have known each other for quite some time, as
well. Although Mary is younger by
several years, she and her husband Dave had children before Alan and I
did. And I have to say that we have
looked upon these two incredibly warm and caring people as role models while
tripping our way through the landmines of parenthood.
