Seattle to Orlando

Here's a look at the route. We're inside the 2 week window!
Last day surprises!

Tomorrow we set off on the grand adventure, but today was a day of sweet surprises, goodbyes and tears. It started off with the best cupcakes ever with a message that made me cry and ended with theRead more
Moving day!

Movers are here... Time to go go go! Excited to get to the road trip phase!
Finally on the Road!

It took much longer than it should have to load the truck but we're finally on the road! Sorren has eternal shotgun for the trip...at least in effigy. For those who know of my obsession, you'llRead more
Ode to THE bread pudding

Time for some pampering after our eventful day. Waygu steak with sweet potato gnocchi and a Heathman Lodge bread pudding chaser? Yes, please! Our intrepid travelers are going to have a rousing eveningRead more
First stop - Stonehenge!

We decided to wander off the path right off the bat (shh...don't tell Trini!). We detoured a bit to check out the Stonehenge Memorial - well worth the visit! Who knew we had a Stonehenge in WA?!
ItRead more
Scenic Detour to John Day Fossil Beds

We passed a sign for the John Day Fossil Beds, looked at each other, and steered Carter to our next spontaneous adventure. It added a couple of hours to today's road time, but well worth the scenicRead more
Day 2 - it's a wrap!

After our fossil trail detour, it was a long drive to Twin Falls - our destination for the night. We were chased for quite a while by the most amazing sunset...it kept getting more amazing every timeRead more
Evel Knievel & the Disappearing Falls

Day 3! Up early and off to Shoshone Falls, "The Niagara of the West", before starting the trek to Utah.
Who turned off the faucet?! It was an interesting vista nonetheless and I got a kick out offRead more
Lightning peek at Salt Lake City

The next stop on Day 3 adventures was a super fast peek into SLC to check out Temple Square. It seems to be the day of "not quite what we expected", but it was interesting even with theRead more
The Loneliest Road

After SLC, we caught up with the middle part of the Loneliest Road roadtrip that cuts across America. The drive through the Wasatch Range was beautiful and Cheryl had the opportunity to put CarterRead more
Moab rocks!

We got into Moab late afternoon, which gave us time to check into the hotel, fuel up, grab a terrific dinner at a local BBQ joint and head back out for more adventures!
Check out the view from theRead more
Holy Dark Skies, Batman!

After fueling our bodies, we headed off to Dead Horse Point State Park (henceforth known as DHP) to fuel our spirits. DHP is an international dark skies park... I've always wanted to visit one!
THIS.Read more
You can never have too many canyons!

We spent the day exploring the splendor of Canyonlands National Park. We made it to both Islands in the Sky and The Needles... it's quite the drive between the two areas but Carter is a rock star andRead more
Islands in the stream...I mean sky...

Canyonlands, part 2...even more awesomeness to explore! We zipped over to the other side of the park to explore Islands in the Sky. You know you're now humming Islands in the Stream. You can't helpRead more
Preview of the coming attraction: Arches

Since going to actual movie theaters these days is a bit risky, check out the sneak peek of tomorrow morning's feature attraction: Arches National Park.
We snuck into the park after Canyonlands toRead more
Moments in Moab

Moab is a funky little town with a couple of interesting claims to fame (other than the jumping off point for Arches and Canyonlands).
1) Gondola to Nowhere
We were intrigued that they "seemed" toRead more
Day 5: Arches - for real this time

Up before dawn to catch the sunrise at Arches National Park. We ended up taking the primitive trail to nowhere, I think, but it was a pretty cool hike...even by headlamp. No Cyns or Cheryls fell offRead more
Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Byway?!

Cheryl is the queen of not back-tracking and found us an amazing byway to connect back up to the highway on the way to our next stop. Turns out it was Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Byway...so freakingRead more
Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP

After our super fun trip along the prehistoric byway (did you figure out I just like typing that? Prehistoric byway. Prehistoric byway. Ok, I think I'm done for now), we pointed Carter at Black CanyonRead more
Million Dollar Highway

After much fighting with Google Maps over the route, we finally zeroed on the most amazing stretch of highway on the way to Durango, CO called the Million Dollar Highway. The stretch of road took usRead more
Good morning, Mesa Verde National Park!

Time to catch up on our footprints...and there have been quite a few over the past day.
We got up well before dawn again to catch the sunrise in the park. I'm loving national parks at night and inRead more
Mesa Verde NP is SO! COOL!

Famous last words, "We'll just poke our heads into Mesa Verde NP and hit the road quickly". We had a long day planned and lots of ground to cover.
So, about 4 hours later, we staggered out of MesaRead more
Carter: remember the Continental Divide?

Carter is quite the explorer and this is her 3rd trip across the country. She's met the Continental Divide before, but this trek was pretty spectacular as we followed part of the Continental DivideRead more
Great Sand Dunes, Captain!

For you Michiganders in the audience, Great Sand Dunes National Park looks a little like the great dunes at Sleeping Bear Dunes. You can probably skip this one if you're in the area.
We got a kickRead more