10/20/2013 thru 10/20/2014 - One Year on the Road

ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF BEING ON THE ROAD!!

It's hard to believe that we've been on the road for one whole year!  It went by so fast and we still have so much to see but here are some highlights from the past year and some of our "lessons learned".

First night on the road and first "boondocking" experience - Walmart in Greenberg, IN - 10/20/2013

First time using power tools - Habitat for Humanity in West Liberty, KY - Ocbober 23, 2013

Biggest Surprise - Sue, Tom, Megan & Sarah surprised us in Louisiana - December, 2013

First Frost - January, 2014 in Lockhart, TX (we thought we were done with that stuff)
 

Darkest Sky - City of Rocks State Park in New Mexico - February, 2015

Southernmost Spot Visited - Puerto Palomas, Mexico - February, 2014

Most Interesting Visitor - Flat Stanley in Arizona - March, 2014

Westernmost Spot Visited - Pacific Ocean in Carlsbad, CA - April, 2014

Northernmost Spot Visited - Brooklyn, WI - August, 2014

Easternmost Spot Visited - Tallin, Estonia - August, 2014

Lowest Point - Queen Bee Mine in Bisbee, AZ - 1500 feet underground - February, 2014

Highest Point - Rocky Mountain National Park in Estes Park, CO - 5/3/2014, we were about 11,000 feet high

Stormiest/Scariest Night - Hanover, IL - 6/30/2014

LESSONS LEARNED

10/9/13 - Always make sure all the valves are closed before starting a dump or you will be doing the "black water dance" (luckily, this has not happened to us yet!)

10/19/13 - Always make sure you hear TWO clicks and a CLUNK before pulling the truck out with the trailer attached!  We almost didn't make it out of the driveway in Elgin heading out because the trailer wasn't attached properly and landed on the bed of the truck - Yikes!

TWO CLUNKS!

11/02/13 - Always make sure you put your steps up if you go back in a the rig for anything!  After pulling into an empty lot so I could run into the rig to use the bathroom we forgot but luckily heard the scraping noise and stopped right before we got to a high curb that would have ripped the stairs right off.

11/02/13 - Always check the map to see where you are going.  Hurricane Mills is not just outside of Nashville (more like 1 1/2 hours away).  We had planned on visiting Marty's cousin, Mary Jo,

but ended up too far away.

11/02/13 - Always check electric before settling in -  its no fun to pack back up especially after a long day of driving.   Once we did get to Hurricane Mills and finally backed into our spot we discovered that the electric wasn't working.   It was after 5:00 and the office was closed so we stayed at that spot and froze until the next morning when they let us plug in to the spot next to us.

11/18/13 - Always bring bug spray, keep it in the car!  The bugs by the Mississippi River were horrendous!

1/19/14 - Always check tree branch height before backing into new spot (or prepare to do some patching).

4/17/14 - Always make sure you are clear of all barricades before turning (or you might scrape the rear drivers side of your rig).

Uh-Oh!

This has been an exciting first year and we've learned a lot! (notice that our first 6 lessons learned were all during the first month of travel).  We've had so many memorable experiences that I really can't think of just one as a favorite (although the surprise visit from my family in Louisiana was pretty amazing). The best part of the year was reconnecting with far-flung family and friends and making new friends; we look forward to more of the same in Year #2..