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Home » Archives for Kristin

HOW? WHAT? WHERE? WHY?! Your Deepest Curiosities Answered in our FAQ’s

November 6, 2016 by Kristin

We traveled the United States full time in an RV for over a year…needless to say we got a LOT of questions before, during and after our adventure wondering what life was like on the road. So, just in case you were curious how or why we did it…here are our most frequently asked questions!

How did you get your mail?

Funny enough, despite all our exciting plans, this might have been our number one question. (People really worry about the mail!) Okay, okay, we needed an address. So, we joined Escapees, an RV club, which also had a mail service for members traveling full time. (Believe it or not there are a LOT of people who live in their RV and travel full time!! Turns out we’re not that special, although we were definitely part of the minority in our age group, as many people wait until retirement, but there were still lots of people who are “digital nomads” traveling and working online like us.)

Anyhow, we had an address similar to a PO Box. Escapees received our mail, held it and whenever we wanted our mail we requested they ship it to wherever we were across the country. We also did as much as we could online with paperless statements and online bill payment to minimize the amount of mail we received. Easy peasy!

What did you eat/cook?

So many people asked me this question, and I always laughed because we ate and cooked essentially the same as we always had. But I think people imagined we must have eaten hot dogs and s’mores over an open fire every meal (in fact we had neither the entire trip!). We had a small fridge, freezer, microwave, two burner gas stove and even a crockpot. The only thing we didn’t have was an oven. Oatmeal, eggs, salads, soups, sandwiches, tacos, chicken…all pretty normal! We had lots of simple snacks (granola bars, fruit, sandwiches) for hiking and usually a cooler of food for long drives (you’d be surprised how quickly you can become HANGRY and say things you don’t mean…the best solution is to always have snacks on hand and get a granola bar into the mouth of anyone getting too snippy.)

We would go out to eat occasionally…mostly when there was a brewery we wanted to visit or to try the local cuisine…i.e. BBQ in Texas, Lobster in Maine, Creole in the South, Green and Red Chile in New Mexico, Pasties in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula! If your mouth is watering, join the club. I’m itching to go back to each place just to eat all the authentic, fresh, local food!!

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Matt was actually the only one who ate Maine lobster. I don’t care for the spider of the sea, however you can’t get it any fresher than at a roadside stand across the street from the lobster boats!

Did you shower?

YES! Every day!! We didn’t have our huge master bathroom anymore, but our RV had a tiny bathroom with everything we needed including a sink, toilet and shower. We didn’t always have unlimited water or unlimited hot water, but daily hygiene was never a sacrifice. Here’s a little video tour of our humble abode, including kitchen, shower and workshop!

Were your dogs (Dobie & Lucy) good travelers?

Yes! They absolutely loved it. They love car rides, long hikes, and being with us, so it was basically their dream come true. Keeping our small little trailer clean with two people and two dogs took some extra effort though. We shaved their coats regularly to minimize shedding (and despite Matt’s eye rolling, I bought them little fleece vests from the kids department at Goodwill to keep them warm when it got chilly!!). Our trailer was a toy hauler, and we used the toy hauler section as our Destination Tree workshop AND our entry and exit “mud room” to wipe wet or muddy paws and kick off our hiking boots. Fortunately, it doesn’t take much time to clean such a tiny space! We did learn that most national parks are NOT dog friendly (Acadia National Park is a big exception!), however most state parks and national forests ARE. I’d say they got their fair share of hiking adventures.

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Dobie and Lucy…excellent travelers, hikers and sleepers.
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Don’t let these faces deceive you…they didn’t care for getting their picture taken here, but I swear, they both LOVED their cozy fleece vests!

How did you plan everything, or did you just go wherever you wanted?

We had several national parks and regions within the US we wanted to visit, however, it just wasn’t possible to plan every detail of our journey or to even plan very far in advance. We had to stay flexible (something I had to learn, and be reminded of frequently!) as weather was often our biggest variable affecting our travel plans. If there were severe storms or wind we might stay somewhere longer to wait out the weather, or leave early to beat a storm system coming through.

We planned being in certain areas of the country based on the seasons (Maine at the end of Summer, Montana in Fall, The Pacific Northwest during Destination Tree’s busy holiday season, and anywhere it didn’t freeze at night during the Winter…because if your pipes freeze, you don’t get a shower!).

Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park
Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park

We found it difficult to plan too far in advance, so we focused on the short term…determining our next destination (usually a national or state park and the surrounding region), planning our route, researching things to do and see, determining where we would camp and for approximately how long, paying close attention to the weather, and staying flexible because anything could change at any time!

One fantastic aspect of a road trip is you plan a destination, but of course, the journey is just as fun. We made lots of unplanned stops along the way and often extended our stay when we found a place we loved that needed more time for exploration.

And honestly, there were places that I NEVER would have visited other than a road trip…like Mount Rushmore in South Dakota or Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, or Big Bend National Park in Texas. Usually if a place is not super accessible or is in the middle of nowhere, its likelihood of being awesome increases exponentially. I loved each of these places (and many more) and Big Bend ended up being one of our (many) favorite national parks!

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The Rio Grande cuts through and creates some dramatic canyons in Big Bend National Park with Mexico on one side and Texas on the other.

In case you missed it….I also had a blog about our Top 10 Apps on the road…I can honestly say these apps made our road trip possible! And many of them are awesome apps even if you’re not planning a big road trip.

How many states and national parks did you visit?

We visited 34 states and over FORTY national park sites. We also drove over 40,000 miles, in addition to creating and shipping HUNDREDS of custom orders all over the world. We dipped our toes in the Atlantic, the Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes, the Rio Grande, and the Mississippi. We hiked deserts, rain forests, ancient forests, coastlines, glaciers, hills, valleys, mountains and plains.

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There is absolutely nothing that can capture the magic of standing in a forest of ancient Redwoods. I’ll admit I did a lot of tree hugging.

I look back at our 13 months on the road and think about how FAST it went by, and how we only visited a fraction of the amazing destinations all across our country. But then I’m overwhelmed when I really take a moment and think back at all the memories and all the moments. And when I scroll through our blog or our THOUSANDS of pictures or our daily journal, I think, HOLY CRAP, we did so MUCH! I have an enormous amount of gratitude and appreciation for how many amazing places we did visit.

To put it in perspective, it would have taken more than 50 years of “one week vacations” from our corporate jobs to experience what we did in one year. I couldn’t possibly be more satisfied that we took the leap, left our jobs, left our house, left our stuff, and pursued adventure and entrepreneurship.

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Grand Teton National Park is one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

Our goal wasn’t to visit EVERY state or EVERY national park. Although, anyone who knows me, knows that it’s in my nature to set very aggressive and measurable goals, so it’s a bit surprising I didn’t make it our year’s ambition to hit EVERYTHING. But fortunately, we knew we wanted this endeavor to be challenging AND enjoyable. We wanted to be PRESENT…to enjoy the journey and the moments in between all the destinations. Easier said than done of course, especially since I’d be anxious about where we were going next, how were we going to get there, what would be the weather, what were the best hiking trails and scenery, where was the nearest post office for shipping orders and were we ever going to find strong WIFI?! Yeesh, calm down, right?! And so, I often reminded myself to enjoy THIS moment. And THIS day.

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Enjoying the moment and the majesty of giant sequoias in a winter wonderland at King’s Canyon National Park. Sometimes I just can’t help lifting my arms in joy, appreciation and honor of Mother Nature.

We set out wanting to travel full time for at least a year to explore and appreciate the diversity and landscape of our country. I’d say we did exactly that.

What did you DO? Did you get bored?

This always makes me laugh. We were NEVER bored. We did a LOT, as you can probably tell from the places we visited, the planning it requires, and the fact that we were also creating hundreds of custom orders at the same time! No matter what lifestyle you have, you are “busy”, it’s just important to be “busy” doing things you actually want to do. So, I guess you could break down what we “did” into a couple categories:

Fun/Adventure: We tried to spend as much time as possible outdoors in national and state parks…hiking, sightseeing, kayaking, biking and sightseeing and also fit in museums, local history sites and local food/beer/wine…and so you can probably understand we never ran out of new adventures.

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Dobie and Lucy both seem to be choosing the East Trail to head down from the summit of a hike in Oregon.

Planning: Planning and researching (campgrounds, routes, destinations, parks, weather, etc, etc) was necessary, but could also be overwhelming or all-encompassing. Keeping a sane balance took some effort to be sure.

Working: Although we didn’t consider Destination Tree work, because we love it so much, we were technically working. Customer service, follow up, creating orders, packaging orders, shipping orders, finding quality driftwood, acquiring packaging supplies in the middle of nowhere, blogging, advertising, budgeting, etc, etc. Even though travel and adventure were huge components of our new lifestyle, growing our business was also equally important.

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Mail day! It takes a lot of work to make, manage and ship all this one-of-a-kind artwork, and they usually think we’re pretty crazy when we drop all this off at the post office!

Normal Crap: Yup, believe it or not, no matter where you live or work, there’s always normal crap. Cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, meal prep/cleanup! (Unless you have a maid or chef I suppose).

Did you watch TV? Or have internet? Or read?

Our trailer had a TV and built-in DVD player, so we did occasionally watch movies (but didn’t have or want cable or satellite for TV). SOME campgrounds have WIFI, although the most reliable thing about it is that it’s almost always crappy. So, we used our phones for social media and as a hotspot for our laptop so we could email, blog and manage our Etsy shop. Despite needing to have a somewhat regular connection to maintain our Etsy shop, we made a really strong effort to disconnect from technology whenever we could (Matt was better at this than I was). And we did LOTS of reading. A lot of campgrounds have small book collections (take one, leave one), and we also used the app OverDrive to borrow and download audio and kindle books from our library.

Did you meet a lot of cool people on the road?

Yes! We met friendly, interesting people all across the country. Many times people would approach us, curious about what Destination Tree was (since they saw the decals on our truck and trailer) or asking what we were doing when they saw us outside creating or packaging orders. Even so, campers are generally very friendly and eager to share their own story, and recommendations for national parks, hiking trails and restaurants.

While there were many couples and families who were camping for a weekend or an extended vacation, we also met LOTS of people who were also traveling full time in their RV. If you’re ever thinking of doing the same thing, there are LOTS of resources available (like our Escapees RV club, and others) and lots of bloggers who share their journey and recommendations of how to do it. And while many full timers are retirees, there are also lots of people who work and live on the road (like we did) and have digital jobs/businesses or temporary jobs as they move around.

WHY did you do this?

(Specifically, WHY did you sell your house, sell your stuff, leave your careers, start your own business and travel the country full time in an RV?) I could probably do a whole blog series on our “WHY”, but I did write an initial blog post here explaining our huge life change, and why we were doing this.

Ultimately, something I’ve learned is to make intentional choices. Living a life with intention is not an easy thing…it means answering WHY you are directing your life in a certain direction and if that is actually what you WANT. Because let’s be real, it’s easy to follow an expected path, or to choose a path and never consciously decide to change or adjust it. But at least from my limited experience, when you physically stop and THINK, when you QUESTION what it is you want, you uncover your WHAT, WHY and HOW. (PS…sorry about all the caps, I know it’s awfully shouty, but I’m just trying to enunciate here!).

If anything, it is inaction or fear that prevents us from asking the tough questions and making intentional, conscious choices. Trust me, our life was good! Excellent careers, great incomes, beautiful home, healthy bodies, wonderful vacations. It seems pretty damn selfish to not be satisfied and happy with all of that, right?! Why would we even think about throwing it all away and doing something different? But we stopped. We thought. We questioned. We had always talked about traveling the country, and how one or two weeks a year wasn’t enough. We had always talked about having our own business – the freedom, challenge and satisfaction. We realized that we were in a different place than we once were and we wanted to chart a new path. And so we did. And we continue to. I guess that’s the best way to describe our WHY.

Do you have any regrets?

None. However, that doesn’t mean everything was perfect. We made mistakes. We got frustrated. We missed family and friends. We were living on a smaller budget in a tiny space. Let me tell you, living in an RV isn’t all campfires and s’mores. Remember in the movie Christmas Vacation when Cousin Eddie proclaims, “Shitter was full”? Turns out that’s a real thing and something you have to do when you live in an RV…seriously!! But despite any of these challenges, the reality is we had the opportunity of a lifetime to take a dream and make it a reality. The memories we made and adventures we had will be something we’ll hold close to our hearts for the rest of our lives, and far outweigh any obstacle we faced. We took something we love and turned it into a successful business. And ultimately, even failure wouldn’t have generated any regret. If we had hated living in an RV, or traveling full time, or leaving our house, or fell flat on our face trying to run a small business on the road, we still would have learned from it. Failure is just an opportunity to pick yourself up and make new choices and new plans. But we would never have known if we didn’t try.

Where was your favorite destination?

As you’ve probably guessed, this is an impossible question to answer! There are so many stunning places all across the country, and each of our national parks are so diverse and beautiful, neither of us could ever choose one favorite place. If I even started to list some of my “favorites” I could go on and on. Glacier, Olympic, Redwood, Yosemite, King’s Canyon, Sequoia, Big Bend, Joshua Tree and Grand Teton National Park are all INCREDIBLE…but these are just a few that pop in my head…I’ve got dozens more MUST SEE places and parks! I did do my best to share some of our favorite highlights via Instagram, and realize I have so many photos I need to continue sharing them!

However, something we discovered on the road was the value of personal recommendations… you can research endlessly online, and read all kinds of travel books, but we ALWAYS got extra insight from locals we met or other travelers we encountered. So, if we’ve been somewhere you’re interested in going, please reach out and we’ll share all the insight and recommendations we can based on our own experience on the road!

What’s next?
We briefly outlined our short term, post-road-trip plans in a recent blog post and will continue blogging as our adventures continue! We’re already on the cusp of an enormously busy holiday season for Destination Tree and are planning new world travels and adventures throughout 2017.

Hope that helps answer any questions you may have had about our year long journey (if not, just ask!)…we can’t help but have a grateful heart that we had this incredible adventure. And the best part is there’s more to come. As our “novel” continues, from one chapter to the next you can be sure it will be a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure every step of the way.

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Cheers!

Kristin

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, inspiration, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Continuing Our Adventure…What’s Next?

August 15, 2016 by Kristin

It was just a little over one year ago, that we left behind our “perfect” life for an “imperfect” future. I use quotation marks because our life looked perfect, and even felt perfect…with thriving careers and a beautiful home. But our priorities had changed. We evaluated what was important to us (spending time together, travel and the freedom to do both – how and when we wanted to) and we made huge changes to craft the new lifestyle we desired for ourselves.

We sold our house, sold or gave away most of our stuff, and implemented a one year plan to travel full time in an RV and support ourselves with our small business.

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Our home and workshop on the road.

Our Goals:

  • Travel throughout the country EXPLORING the USA, including the vast expanses of our national parks, rugged coastlines, towering mountains, green forests and arid deserts! We crave experiencing new places and creating new adventures together.
  • Grow our online business, Destination Tree! Do what makes you happy, right? Well, we’re passionate about making cool and unique custom artwork. And we believed we could do what we love, the way that we wanted to, and make a great living at it.

We had a few doubters. We had a lot of supporters. And we have no regrets. We accomplished exactly what we set out to do.

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One of our many views on the road.

Our Success:

  • We visited 34 states. We hiked and explored over 40 National Park Sites. We have an even deeper appreciation for the beauty and majesty of our planet.
  • We retrofitted a 10×10 space into a mobile workshop. We created and shipped hundreds of custom orders all around the world while traveling all across the country. We grew our business beyond our wildest expectation
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One of our many shipments from one of the many locations we created artwork across the country!

Of course, there were challenges and sacrifices along the way. But they were all part of the journey. They were learning lessons and reminders that anything worth doing isn’t always going to be easy.

So now, more than a year later, a lot of people have asked:

“WHAT’S NEXT??”

Well, we’ve confirmed two things over the last year. We love to travel and we love being entrepreneurs. Traveling for an entire year fueled our desire to continue exploring both our country and the world. And the freedom, flexibility and joy we get out of entrepreneurship is priceless.

As we enter into this next chapter of our adventures, we have NO intention of settling down. However, we ARE going to restructure how we manage our two passions. Our business has grown so much over the past year that it is physically impossible to continue managing it in a 10×10 space while simultaneously traveling.

We’ve always loved Northern Michigan, so we’re leasing a warehouse in Petoskey in order to have the space to continue growing Destination Tree over the next several months and through the holiday season. We’ve also leased an inspiring little place to live for the same time period where we’ll develop our plans for our next phase which involves an exciting balance of entrepreneurship and continuing to travel the world.

Life really is like a Choose Your Own Adventure book. And we’re going to keep living, enjoying the twists, turns and unexpected challenges along the way, but also making conscious choices to LIVE INTENTIONALLY…setting the course and steering the direction we want to go and exploring new places across the globe.

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I’ve struggled with how to close out this blog post. Because our journey isn’t over. So, I’ve decided to leave you with my recent thoughts from our 365th day on the road:

If there’s one thing I’ve learned on this journey, it is to believe in yourself. Believe in yourself and your abilities. Believe in yourself and your sense of adventure. Believe in yourself and the decisions you make. Believe in yourself and the mistakes, challenges and mishaps you learn from along the way. And believe in yourself enough to follow your dreams. It’s a big fat risk, but it’s worth it. And so are you.”

Cheers!

Kristin & Matt

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Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, Inspiration, On the Road Tagged With: adventure, choices, cross country, dare, decisions, destination tree, dream, driftwood signs, grateful, inspiration, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Our Route Across the Country – Part 15

July 24, 2016 by Kristin

Our year long road trip looped back to Michigan with several stops throughout the Upper Peninsula (UP) in Part 15  of our cross country route. Our route summary and map are below!

If you’ve missed any earlier segments catch up with links to our routes and travel highlights here:

  • Part 1 looped us from Ohio to Maine and back to Ohio.
  • Part 2 carried us across the country from Ohio to Montana and to our adventures in and around Glacier National Park.
  • Part 3 circled the Olympic Peninsula in and around Olympic National Park.
  • Part 4 took us to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon and Redwood National and State Parks in California
    • We also included our extended stay on the Oregon Coast over the holidays in Part 4, as we filled holiday orders for Destination Tree
  • Part 5 traversed us through California including Napa Valley, Yosemite, King’s Canyon and Sequoia National Parks
  • Part 6 brought us through the Southwest as we explored Joshua Tree National Park, Sedona, The Apache Trail outside of Phoenix, Tombstone and Bisbee.
  • Part 7 introduced us to the enormous size and beauty of Texas…from Big Bend National Park to San Antonio, Austin and the Gulf Coast.
  • Part 8 swung us through Sweet Home Aaaalabaaaama…
  • Part 9 reconnected us with family and friends in Florida including Fort Lauderdale, Everglades National Park, Sanibel Island and St. Augustine.
  • Part 10 backtracked us through the south with stops at Louisiana’s old plantations, New Orleans, and MORE fun in San Antonio with good friends.
  • Part 11 opened our eyes to the history and beauty in the landscape of New Mexico including Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands National Monument, Chaco Canyon and Bandelier National Monument.
  • Part 12 stunned us with an array of colors throughout Colorful Colorado including Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, Castle Rock, Horsetooth Reservoir, Estes Park, Rocky Mountain National Park and The Stanley Hotel.
  • Part 13 included some of the most stunning scenery and wildlife in America at Grand Tetons National Park and Yellowstone National Park.
  • Part 14 took us through North Dakota and Minnesota including Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Voyageurs National Park.

Next up…Michigan’s Upper Peninsula!

Part XV
July 5 – July 19, 2016

Our northern tour continued from North Dakota and Minnesota to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and hopped along the coast of Lake Superior. We spent several days in the Porcupine Mountains, collected driftwood along the shores of Lake Superior, hiked Sugarloaf Mountain in Marquette (with amazing panoramic views) and continued east to St. Ignace where we made day trips to the Soo Locks, Mackinac Island and prepared to cross the Mackinac Bridge. Being Michiganders we’ve certainly driven across the bridge before, but never with an extremely tall and long travel trailer behind us, so we timed the winds just right to make sure we didn’t blow over the edge 🙂

Our driving route through Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is below…stay tuned for pictures and highlights of the Porcupine Mountains, Houghton, and Mackinac Island!

Tips: Zoom in and out on the map, and move the map around to get a better look at the route. Or click “View Larger Map” below to get an even better view.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road, Our Route Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Top Ten Apps on our Cross Country RV Road Trip

July 17, 2016 by Kristin

It’s nice to disconnect from our phones and reconnect with nature, however technology has been an immensely important tool for us on our year long road trip.

We’ve visited dozens of national parks while crisscrossing the country with our truck and travel trailer, while simultaneously operating and growing our small business, and believe me, this was all MUCH easier with several apps on our phones.

So, if you’re planning your own road trip across the state, across the country, in your car or in your RV, hopefully you’ll find some useful recommendations from the apps we’ve relied on so heavily (and most of them are FREE!)! All of these apps are based on my personal usage recommendation…none are paid or incentivized endorsements.

Allstays Camp & RV

all stays appI never buy apps. NEVER. There are so many free apps, I have to be really, really, really, really, really, really, REALLY convinced to PAY for one. And $9.99?! Obscene.

That being said, this is probably the best money I ever spent. If you’re camping, RVing or road tripping, you NEED the AllStays app. (I should probably get some kind of referral bonus for this??? But I love it so much I’ll recommend it anyway).

Why? It maps out every campground, rest stop, truck stop and countless other resources all across the country. Zoom in and out on the map based on where you need something, filter by dozens of criteria to find exactly what you need, click and get details, location, contact info, reviews, etc… much of which is available with or without a signal.

Whether I’m planning our next camping location or looking for the nearest rest stop, this app has been a life saver.

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Chimani National Parks

chimaniWe have visited DOZENS of NPS sites including national parks, monuments, historical parks, seashores, lake shores and more on our epic year-long road trip.

Whether you plan to visit one or many NPS locales the Chimani App is super helpful for planning, plus there are additional, individual apps for each big National Park with more maps, activities and details.

And as you probably guessed, it’s unlikely you’ll have any kind of cell service while in a lot of the National Parks, but like the AllStays app, you can still access info without any service or download in advance.

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Find the things that take your breath away. I promise you, our national parks will deliver.

Overdrive

overdriveOk, no need to be on a road trip to love Overdrive. It lets you download ebooks and audiobooks from your library for FREE! I usually download several audiobooks and ebooks when we’re connected to wifi and if something we want is already checked out, I place a hold and get an alert as soon as it’s available to download.

The audiobooks have been awesome when we’re on long drives (in the middle of nowhere with no radio and no Pandora) and the ebooks are downloaded directly to my Kindle and Kindle apps.

If you’re an avid reader, or doing a lot of driving, you will love this app!

Mad Libs

mad libsDon’t laugh yourself off the road with this one, kids. I’m serious.

Remember playing Mad Libs for hours as a kid? I do. And it’s just as much fun as an adult. Plus, when you laugh hard enough and long enough, it’s as beneficial as planking or sit ups…that’s what I tell myself anyway.

The app is free, (although you can buy more Mad Lib stories if you want), and you can play over and over again and keep the laughs going. We each alternate giving nouns, verbs and adjectives and sometimes pick a theme based on our current location…I dare you to hold in the giggles.

Sell on Etsy

etsyOk, this might not be as applicable to you, but bear with me. Since we’re operating our business on the road, the Sell on Etsy app makes it possible for us to check orders and statistics, update listings, and most importantly respond quickly to inquiries from clients.

We have created and shipped custom driftwood artwork from all over the country to places all over the world by keeping a pulse on all those details in the palm of our hand with this app.

So, while you may not need this app, perhaps you can use it as an example of how you can find the right tools to help support your dreams. OR, use the regular Etsy app, to find amazingly unique, handmade and creative gifts. There are thousands of entrepreneurs, makers and artists following their dreams, just like us.

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The Weather Channel

weather channelIt’s not all fun and games on the road. It’s also really important to know what kind of weather to expect. Thunderstorms on a day hike, dangerous winds while driving through unprotected plains (with a really tall, tipsy travel trailer), or dropping temperatures on wet soon-to-be-icy mountain roads are all weather hazards we’ve had to prepare for or avoid.

I particularly like The Weather Channel app because you can set up push alerts for severe warnings, there is an hourly forecast which also includes the hourly wind speeds and there’s a summary of daily weather for the next 15 days which is super helpful for planning ahead.

Another reason it’s great for travel is because you can setup a current location, but also add several other locations. I often add several cities based on our route, and check weather and winds in each to make sure we aren’t going to encounter severe winds or weather on long drives.

jan 322Two annoyances I will warn you about with this app…when scrolling it’s easy to accidentally click on the ads, and their promoted videos are always end-of-the-world, fear-inducing headlines about earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, and general weather-related death and destruction around the world.

But if you’ve ever watched The Weather Channel, you know how they love to be over dramatic and strike fear in the hearts of man. It’s a downside I can deal with for the value of the weather information I’m looking for 🙂

The Outbound

outboundThis is another one that isn’t solely for road trips. Any adventure seeker will love The Outbound app! Hiking, kayaking, surfing, cycling, skiing, backpacking, dog-friendly, family-friendly…whatever adventure you seek and wherever you are, this app helps you find exactly what you’re looking for with countless filters, awesome pictures and helpful reviews from fellow adventurers.

We’ve used this app all across the country, but it’s also useful for planning adventures and making memories in your own backyard.

Peak colors all the way up

LastPass

lastpassThis is a good app for a road trip and for life in general.

How many passwords and logins do you have? And how many times do you use the same password for multiple logins? And how many times have you typed five passwords, and finally clicked the link to reset your password because you can’t remember it?

I was guilty of bad passwords, reusing passwords and having more logins than I could count. With LastPass (i.e. the last password you’ll ever have to remember) you create one super secure, unique password, and LastPass centrally manages all your logins. You never have to remember (or forget) another password again, and all of your different logins across social media, banking, or whatever else you do online are much more secure.

We’ve been traveling full time, living on the road, paying bills online, and this had made it SO much easier to manage all of our personal and business online logins.

Altimeter

altimeter liteThis one’s kinda just for fun, but it’s pragmatic too.

Since we’re from the Midwest, drastically changing elevation is not something we’re accustomed to. So, whether we’re driving or hiking we’ve had fun using this app to check our changing elevation.

It’s also got a handy dandy compass AND gives the exact GPS coordinates of your location (we have a love of GPS coordinates because of one of our most popular driftwood signs).

Brewery Map

brewery mapI should probably amend my previous statement that I NEVER buy apps. Because apparently, I’ve purchased two. I took a gamble on this app, but it more than earned it’s value ($3.99). You can search areas on a map for craft breweries (filter by micro brewery, macro brewery, nano brewery, brewpub, tasting room, and on and on…).

It compiles location, contact info, hours of operation, tour details and a fairly detailed brewery description. The only thing it does NOT include is reviews, so I do often pair it with Yelp.

The best feature of this app is the functionality to create a brewery tour via driving or walking (PSA: Always enjoy craft beer responsibly!). So, if you’re an avid lover of craft beer, you’ll get a lot of value out of this app.

If you’re NOT going on a road trip or creating a “beer tour”, I’d recommend using Yelp to find breweries, but this app is great when traveling.

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In addition to these top ten apps, we also use stuff like Pandora, Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, Waze, Maps, etc, etc…but these are all default-daily-life kinda apps you probably already use. I also have an addiction to Word Chums, but I’m pretty sure that helps keep my brain and vocabulary sharp, so I’m not (too) ashamed to admit it.

I hope you find some value in these apps either on the road or in your own back yard. And if you have apps you love, please share!

Cheers!
Kristin

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Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road, Top Ten Tagged With: adventure, cross country, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Early Mornings, Paddles and Pints

July 16, 2016 by Kristin

Two lesser known National Parks are up next on our year-long adventure, and they are no less spectacular than their more famous counterparts. We explored the badlands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park at dawn, paddled through the aquamarine waters of Voyageurs National Park and then toasted our travels with pints of craft brews in Duluth, Minnesota…all while keeping up with the steady stream of Destination Tree custom orders.

Early Mornings at Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Dawn is the best time of day for a national park drive or hike for a couple of reasons.

1) Fewer crowds. Trust me, I’m not a naturally early riser, and I think most people cringe at the thought of getting up before the sun while on vacation. And while technically we’re not on vacation per se, I still want to hit snooze rather than get up at 4:30. But, so does everyone else, so enjoy having normally busy trails and roads to yourself when you peel yourself out of bed early.

2) Sunrises. Epic, soul-stirring sunrises that confirm getting out of bed while it was still dark was a great idea.

3) Wildlife! They’re often up and moving early, not mid-day, so we’ve seen some of our best wildlife sightings just after dawn.

So, during our visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, early mornings were a key to success in having the entire place to ourselves with gorgeous sunrises alongside bison, deer, wild horses and prairie dogs.

We’ve been lucky with bison sightings. We saw these enormous creatures in both Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone, but our closest and only one-on-one encounter was at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I was ready to pour coffee on my eyeballs we got up so early, but I was wide awake once we drove by this herd enjoying a little sunrise breakfast with that little baby bison who pretty much stole my heart. And the wildlife viewing continued as we journeyed through the park…along with panoramic vistas of badlands…

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Hey, baby bison!
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The perks of getting up early…bison at sunrise…
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…and just after sunrise, while the moon was still in the sky, the deer scampered past!
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Oh, you know, just a wild horse having a little breakfast.
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Prairie dog! These little guys are so cute! The pop up and disappear back down their holes so quick, and listening to them chirp and talk to one another is very entertaining.
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In addition to the wildlife, the views at Theodore Roosevelt National Park are spectacular.
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The badlands landscape of Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

While exceptionally windy (which you can tell from the video!) the panoramic views are astounding.

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Not sure how we snapped a decent selfie…the wind was so strong I usually had a mohawk of stray hairs flying straight up!
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High winds create puffy pants…it’s a good look for this smiling photographer 😉

If you’re like me, you may have never even heard of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, but if you’re ever on an epic road trip, or just happen to be passing through North Dakota, you wont’ be sorry you stopped to explore the natural wonders of this off-the-beaten-path park.

Paddling Voyageurs National Park

After TRNP, we shot east straight through North Dakota to Minnesota with our hearts set on the blue waters of Voyageurs National Park.

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Our first view of Rainy Lake and Voyageurs National Park! We LOVE it and couldn’t wait to get out on the water!

Situated on the border of Minnesota and Canada, near the small border town of International Falls, the park is primarily undeveloped forests accessible only by water. And so, the best way to explore Voyageurs is by boat…our vessel of choice: kayaks.

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Say whaaa?! We got a first hand lesson on the pronunciation of “Kabetogama”. Say it with me: Kabba (like yabba dabba) Toga (like toga party) Ma (like muh). Kabba-toga-muh. Kabetogama. Say it again. Yep, you totally got this.

However, finding kayak rentals at short notice was a lot harder than I anticipated, but Northern Lights Resort came to the rescue and made a perfect port on Kabetogama Lake. It was such a beautiful setting on the water, with cabins, boats and views we wanted to stay right here and never leave! But Tracy got us all setup with our rental, gear and overview of Kabetogama Lake and all the little islands we could kayak around and explore. But before we set off she also went above and beyond giving us recommendations for hikes, breweries and even sketching a map of Minnesota’s north shore and Duluth highlights. A true kindred spirit!

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The lovely and wonderful Northern Lights Resort, on Kabetogama Lake, where we rented our kayaks.

Paddling out on the open water on Kabetogama Lake in Voyageurs National Park!

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Paddling is the BEST way to explore Voyageurs National Park!
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We paddled for hours in and around little islands in Kabetogama Lake until…
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…until the RAIN came! Although, it’s actually quite refreshing to paddle in the rain, but we kicked our paddling into HIGH GEAR as soon as we heard rumblings of thunder getting closer and CLOSER!
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Al fresco dining one evening…dockside and with blue waters and blue skies over Rainy Lake from Island View Resort.
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Seriously. This doesn’t even look REAL it’s so beautiful! But it is! Unfiltered, unaltered and unbelievably real. The waters and skies of Voyageurs National Park have stolen our hearts.

Voyageurs is actually named after the French-Canadian canoemen who traveled these waterways as part of the trade route between Montreal and the Canadian Northwest in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Being out on the water, paddle in hand, we imagined what that might have been like and were grateful the area has been preserved and protected through the national park system.

Pints in Duluth

We’ve done lots of exploring and adventuring up to this point, and by the time we made it to Duluth, Minnesota on the shores of Lake Superior for 4th of July weekend we were ready to relax and enjoy some tasty pints from some local craft brewers. Our adoration of cobalt waters continued, especially along the shore near Canal Park, an area with a boardwalk, pier and easy access to skipping stones in Lake Superior. And we found refreshing pints at Bent Paddle, Canal Park and Fitger’s Brewhouse.

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View from the boardwalk path alongside Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota.
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Beer tasting at Bend Paddle Brewing! Felt like a good way to celebrate our successful paddling at Voyageurs and the 4th of July weekend.
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Matt and Dobie at Fitger’s Brewhouse, our favorite brewery in Duluth because of the delicious food, beer and dog friendly patio. Dobie was not so happy because he didn’t get his own bowl of beer. Oh, Dobie!
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Looking up at the awesome old building that now houses Fitger’s Brewhouse.
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Um, really?! Duluth, there are other numbers besides five and three that you can use to label your roads…

Before leaving Duluth, we did get a laugh out of their highways…all numbered in 3’s and 5’s. Not confusing at all! Just another fun road trip memory. It’s kind of unreal, but we’re closing in on the end of our epic year-long road trip. But it’s not over yet, so stay tuned for adventures in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and a preview for what will follow this amazing journey.

Cheers!

Kristin

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Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, inspiration, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Our Route Across the Country – Part 14

July 12, 2016 by Kristin

Our year long road trip continues as we travel to North Dakota and Minnesota with stops at Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Voyageurs National park in Part 14 of our cross country route. Our route summary and map are below!

If you’ve missed any earlier segments catch up with links to our routes and travel highlights here:

  • Part 1 looped us from Ohio to Maine and back to Ohio.
  • Part 2 carried us across the country from Ohio to Montana and to our adventures in and around Glacier National Park.
  • Part 3 circled the Olympic Peninsula in and around Olympic National Park.
  • Part 4 took us to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon and Redwood National and State Parks in California
    • We also included our extended stay on the Oregon Coast over the holidays in Part 4, as we filled holiday orders for Destination Tree
  • Part 5 traversed us through California including Napa Valley, Yosemite, King’s Canyon and Sequoia National Parks
  • Part 6 brought us through the Southwest as we explored Joshua Tree National Park, Sedona, The Apache Trail outside of Phoenix, Tombstone and Bisbee.
  • Part 7 introduced us to the enormous size and beauty of Texas…from Big Bend National Park to San Antonio, Austin and the Gulf Coast.
  • Part 8 swung us through Sweet Home Aaaalabaaaama…
  • Part 9 reconnected us with family and friends in Florida including Fort Lauderdale, Everglades National Park, Sanibel Island and St. Augustine.
  • Part 10 backtracked us through the south with stops at Louisiana’s old plantations, New Orleans, and MORE fun in San Antonio with good friends.
  • Part 11 opened our eyes to the history and beauty in the landscape of New Mexico including Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands National Monument, Chaco Canyon and Bandelier National Monument.
  • Part 12 stunned us with an array of colors throughout Colorful Colorado including Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, Castle Rock, Horsetooth Reservoir, Estes Park, Rocky Mountain National Park and The Stanley Hotel.
  • Part 13 included some of the most stunning scenery and wildlife in America at Grand Tetons National Park and Yellowstone National Park.

Next up…North Dakota & Minnesota!

Part XIV
June 21 – July 4, 2016

I could gush on an on about Wyoming (in fact I did, with a lot of pictures as well) and as wonderful as it was, we still had more plans and more national parks on our year long road trip. So, we drove north and departed Wyoming, made an overnight pitstop in Billings, MT and then traveled east to North Dakota. We arrived in Medora, ND a teenie tiny little town, but just moments from Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

In addition to beautiful scenery, the two best things about Theodore Roosevelt National Park were 1) Wildlife and 2) Minimal Crowds. If you’re dreaming of seeing bison, elk, wild horses and prairie dogs up close and without battling traffic and crowds, then this is your place. Yellowstone was wonderful and had wildlife sightings as well, but this felt like an intimate encounter with the great outdoors.

After spending some time in Medora, we continued east, straight through North Dakota, with a stop in Fargo, where we were able to stock up on business supplies, catch up on orders, and then head north to International Falls, Minnesota. As the name implies, this border town is on the cusp of Minnesota and Canada, and an excellent gateway to Voyageurs National Park. From here we explored Voyageurs, including Rainy Lake and Lake Kabetogama.

From there we took to the country roads through Minnesota, flanked by the green trees and blue lakes of Minnesota’s state forests until we arrived in Duluth, MN right on the tip of Lake Superior.

Our driving route through North Dakota and Minnesota is below…stay tuned for pictures and highlights of Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Voyageurs National Park!

Tips: Zoom in and out on the map, and move the map around to get a better look at the route. Or click “View Larger Map” below to get an even better view.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road, Our Route Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Wyoming…Majestic, Inspiring and Wild

July 10, 2016 by Kristin

National parks have been priority destinations on our year-long road trip, and Wyoming held two biggies: Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone gets a lot of hype. After all, it was the very first National Park. And well, it’s basically an active super-volcano, so that makes it hype worthy too. But Grand Teton blew our minds with beauty. Go ahead and quote me on that, I know it’s really poetic.

Anyhow, all kinds of adjectives come to mind to attempt to describe Wyoming. Gorgeous. Beautiful. Breathtaking. All fall short. All overused (mostly by me!). Majestic seems especially fitting though. And inspiring. I don’t know how you could look at the scenery of Wyoming and not feel inspired. And wild. Definitely wild. After all, it has the aforementioned super volcano and giant herds of wild elk and bison roaming amid jaw dropping mountain vistas. So there you have it. Wyoming: Majestic. Inspiring. And Wild.

Base Camp

We situated ourselves on a beautiful ranch in the small town of Dubois, Wyoming for base camp. We had a beautiful, laid-back locale to create and ship Destination Tree artwork, and it was a perfect jumping point for taking day trips to Grand Tetons, Yellowstone and Jackson.

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Sunsets in Dubois never disappointed!

We created and shipped lots and lots of orders while we were in Wyoming…and the ranch was a great backdrop for photography!

“Nature is not a place to visit. It is home.” -Gary Snyder #destinationtree #driftwood #driftwoodart #madewithlove #handengraved #handcrafted #etsy #etsyshop #etsyseller #makersgonnamake #fishin #gonefishing #optoutside #natureishome

A photo posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 29, 2016 at 6:56am PDT

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One of our early morning drives from Dubois through the mountains…with misty pines on our way to the Tetons!

Grand Teton National Park

We’ve been all over the country and to countless national parks on our year-long road trip. And the number one question we get is: “Where is your favorite place?” Prior to beginning this epic journey I probably thought I’d be able to name a favorite, but we’ve been to too many beautiful and diverse places to choose ONE favorite place. So, while it’s impossible to narrow it down to ONE, I can say without a doubt that Grand Teton National Park ranks HIGH on the list.

We’ve seen plenty of beautiful mountains, so I can’t quite explain why the Tetons are so captivating. They just ARE. It is truly a magical place. Unlike most parks we’ve visited, we didn’t do a lot of hiking. We actually did a lot of gawking. At one point, we literally sat down in a field and stared at the mountains. And it’s one of my favorite memories from the entire year-long journey.

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One of our first glimpses of the Tetons…we couldn’t help but admire and reflect on the beauty before us.
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We already thought the Tetons were incredible…and then we saw them framing a herd of hundreds of Elk.
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The clouds teased us a bit in the morning…all wispy around the mountains…but that didn’t detract from the majesty of the Tetons.
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Pretty dreamy, huh?
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Chapel of the Transfiguration in Grand Teton National Park.
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Taking a selfie may have been the only time we turned our backs to the Tetons!
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A picture of a picture!
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An iconic barn in a line of old homesteads called “Mormon Row” with the Grand Tetons behind it. I love this simple, old barn and its majestic backdrop.
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It seemed more like the landscape of a postcard than real life!

Sometimes we hike. Sometimes we plop down in the middle of a field and just stare at the mountains. #destinationtreeontheroad #grandtetons #findyourpark #nps100 #optoutside #mountaingazing #grandtetonnationalpark

A photo posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 16, 2016 at 4:53pm PDT

Yellowstone National Park

Ah, yes. The super volcano. Yellowstone National Park is a place I’m glad we visited, but feel like we’ll probably only do it once. No need to risk it twice. (Have you SEEN the movie 2012?!) Because it seems a little crazy to walk on a boardwalk inches from exploding geysers, boiling springs and steaming sulfur. But maybe that’s just me.

Regardless, the geothermal features are fascinating and spectacular, and then of course, there’s also the roaming bison. Yellowstone is wild and wonderful, and if you tire of the geysers there’s also rivers, lakes and waterfalls.

Rise and shine! Morning drive along the Yellowstone River! #destinationtreeontheroad #yellowstonenationalpark #yellowstone #yellowstoneriver #findyourpark #nps100 #riseandshine

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 21, 2016 at 5:47am PDT

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A little nervous about that steaming hot pool of boiling water beside us!

Wait for it…wait for it…yep, it’s Old Faithful erupting boiling water and steam about 150 feet in the air! #destinationtreeontheroad #oldfaithful #hothothot #yellowstone #yellowstonenationalpark #findyourpark #nps100 #geyser

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 17, 2016 at 3:45pm PDT

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We exclaimed many times how incredible it is that these boardwalks were built over active hot springs.
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Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest hot spring in the United States.
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The air was cool, but the steam from the Grand Prismatic Spring was hot. Very strange, but beautiful!

Oh, you know, just a herd of bison crossing the road. #destinationtreeontheroad #yellowstone #yellowstonenationalpark #findyourpark #nps100 #bisoncrossing #bison

A photo posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 18, 2016 at 1:18pm PDT

Hey buddy…need a ride? #destinationtreeontheroad #bison #hitchhiking #hitchhiker #heybuddy #needaride

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 21, 2016 at 2:01pm PDT

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On a short hike to Upper Falls, and the light and the mist was magical.
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Just a little bird, hanging out by the mist of Upper Falls in Yellowstone.
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More beautiful scenery along the Yellowstone River.

Jackson Hole

In addition to the national parks, the valley within the Tetons called “Jackson Hole” contains the super cute town of Jackson, Wyoming. Known for being a ski-town in the winter, it’s a bustling little town, full of character, hikers and sightseers in the summer. We had an AMAZING breakfast at Cafe Genevieve (HIGHLY recommend!), walked all around the town square, shops and streets with the pups, and hydrated with a few tasty pints at Snake River Brewing. All in all, one of our favorite small towns!

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This arch of elk antlers is one of four arches in the town square, and were constructed in 1960. About 7,500 elk spend the winter in the nearby refuge and shed their antlers each spring. Holy Moly!
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Tasty local brews at Snake River Brewing! Matt was pretty excited about draught beer to go…he got to fill and seal his own extra large can!

Wyoming met and exceeded our expectations! And as far as national parks…we still have two remaining…stay tuned for more of our journey!

Cheers!

Kristin

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Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, inspiration, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Top Ten Wildlife Sightings

July 4, 2016 by Kristin

One of the biggest highlights of traveling across the country from state to state and coast to coast is the incredible wildlife we’ve seen. It wasn’t unusual for us to see deer, fox, coyote and turkeys in our back yard in Ohio. But after we sold our house and most of our stuff to travel full time in our RV and grow our small business, we set out to see even more wildlife in our national parks, forests and coastlines.

We’ve seen and shared many of our wildlife sightings from our year-long road trip but we thought we’d compile a top ten list of our favorite wildlife sightings. Now, depending on where you’re from, this wildlife might be as exciting and unusual to you as it was to us, or maybe it’s as common as a deer scampering through your backyard. Either way, we hope you enjoy these beautiful and wild creatures as much as we did. And so, in no particular order, here are the top ten wildlife sightings from our year-long road trip:

Sea Lions

They bark, they swim, they flip and they flop. Then they pull themselves up on the dock to sunbathe. The harbors in both Crescent City, California and Gold Beach, Oregon had dozens of sea lions who just love hopping up and out of the water to talk.

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We stayed just off the shore of Crescent City, CA and always heard the sea lions barking from the harbor.

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In Gold Beach, Oregon, the sea lions all hopped up and overtook the docks for some serious sunbathing.

Wild Horses

Horses are by no means uncommon, but WILD horses certainly are. These wild horses live in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, near Medora, North Dakota. It was an exceptionally windy day, and they seemed perfectly happy hanging out and letting the wind blow through their manes.

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Wild horses in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, near Medora, North Dakota.

Bighorn Sheep

We saw a LOT of road signs throughout our road trip warning of bighorn sheep crossings. And yet, we never seemed to catch sight of any of these famed road sign sheep. That is until we visited Carlsbad Caverns National Park in southern New Mexico. On our way out of the park an entire family of desert bighorn sheep bounded alongside and bounced across the road in front of us. They were so cute!

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Baby bighorn sheep bouncing across the road to catch up with their family outside of Carlsbad Cavern National Park in southern New Mexico.

Lucky us! Big Horn Sheep bounding across the road!! #destinationtreeontheroad #carlsbadcavernsnationalpark #carlsbadcaverns #findyourpark #bighornsheep #desertbighornsheep #newmexico #newmexicolife #desertlife

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on May 11, 2016 at 12:40pm PDT

Couldn’t believe we saw Desert Bighorn Sheep on our drive out of Carlsbad Caverns! They’re so cute! #destinationtreeontheroad #carlsbadcavernsnationalpark #carlsbadcaverns #findyourpark #bighornsheep #desertbighornsheep #newmexico #newmexicolife #desertlife

A photo posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on May 11, 2016 at 12:35pm PDT

Alligator

In Florida just about any body of water is apt to have alligators. We found this to be true even when driving down the road and seeing small bodies of water alongside with an occasional spine or head popping out of the flat, smooth waters. We got a little closer view while visiting Myakka River State Park, not far from Sarasota, Florida. In particular, while atop a boardwalk viewing deck we saw this hungry gator chomping on some minnows.

Gator says it’s snack time! #destinationtreeontheroad #alligator #snacktime #myakka #myakkastatepark #floridalife #gators

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Mar 16, 2016 at 1:39pm PDT

Bison

Bison are huge. HUGE! And so incredible to see in person. We got our closest bison encounters at Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and also in Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. We happened upon a herd in Grand Teton while driving, and pulled over to watch them graze. We were thrilled to see so many! But the very next day an even larger herd was crossing the road as we drove through Yellowstone. Wildlife jam! Everyone yields to the wildlife, so the road backed up with cars and campers, but I don’t think a single person minded one bit…we all snapped pictures and let them take their time crossing the road.

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The bison were maxin’ and relaxin’ in Grand Teton National Park.
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Wildlife jam! Bison crossing the road in Yellowstone National Park.

Hey buddy…need a ride? #destinationtreeontheroad #bison #hitchhiking #hitchhiker #heybuddy #needaride

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 21, 2016 at 2:01pm PDT

Our most “personal” experience with bison was actually at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. With far fewer visitors than Yellowstone, we got up before sunrise and got to the park just as the bison were starting their day. We were the ONLY car on the road when we encountered a herd of bison grazing as the sun came up.

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Bison grazing in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, in North Dakota, as the sun comes up.

Elk

In Humboldt County, in Northern California we crossed paths with this herd of Roosevelt Elk several times. They call the Redwood National and State Parks home, and don’t seem to be bothered by traffic or gawkers. They’re wild animals though, so we kept a safe distance and waved hello.

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Roosevelt Elk, not far from Redwood National and State Parks.

We haven’t seen Santa’s reindeer but this herd of elk are pretty cool! Merry Christmas!!!! #destinationtreeontheroad #elknotreindeer #hereelkelkelk #elkherd #merrychristmaseve

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Dec 24, 2015 at 2:31pm PST

And in Estes Park, Colorado, near the eastern entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park, we saw an enormous elk munching away on some spring blooms. The California elk were babies compared to this giant!

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In Estes Park, the small town near the entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park is famous for elk. This one in particular was enormous and had a HUGE rack. Enjoy your little snack, buddy!

Whale

There’s a lot of reasons we love the Pacific Northwest. Mossy rain forest, driftwood laden beaches, and magically rainy weather are a few. Seeing a WHALE is a new reason. Just off the coast of Cape Flattery, the northwestern most point of the contiguous United States we were enjoying the expansive views and wave clapped sea stacks when WE SAW A WHALE!!!

We saw a whale!!!!!! #destinationtreeontheroad #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #whale #whalewatching #capeflattery #unreal

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Oct 1, 2015 at 2:10pm PDT

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Antelope

“Hoooome, hooome on the raaaange! Where the deeeeer and the antelope plaaaaay!” I’d be lying if I said we haven’t sung this line several times on our road trip. How can you not when antelope are the dominant creatures covering the countryside? We’ve seen antelope a lot, especially in Montana, New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming, where they seemed more common than deer.

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Our first antelope sighting in Montana.

Roadrunners

The southwest was FULL of these speedy little birds. Roadrunners were a staple while we were in Arizona and southern New Mexico, and they’re not nearly as antagonizing as the Looney Tunes version.

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Cute, little and FAST…Roadrunners were hard to catch on camera unless you sat and waited for them. Meep meep!

Slugs and Snails

Slugs and snails? Yup. Slugs and snails. Kinda gross and slimy, but banana slugs are all over the rain forest in Olympic National Park, and one of our northern California coast trails had so many snails, in so many colors, we could hardly walk without hopping around to miss walking right on top of them.

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A HUGE banana slug in Olympic National Park.
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An albino-looking snail on a coastal trail in Northern California.
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One of the many colorful snails (and shells) on a coastal California trail.

Bear

I always joke that I’ll never see a bear as long as I’m with Matt. He’s cursed. Everywhere we SHOULD see a bear, we don’t. Every time someone ELSE sees a bear, we don’t. We booked a bear sightseeing trip in Alaska a few years ago and it was cancelled due to weather. We hike trails known to have bears, and cross paths with other hikers exclaiming how they saw bear ahead at the river, and we don’t see bears. I was beginning to think it would never happen for us. But of all the places we’ve been, we FINALLY saw a bear in the least likely place I would have ever expected. Texas. Big Bend National Park was the site of our bear sighting!

We saw a BEAR!!!! This is a huge deal for us because 1) it’s really cool to see a bear and 2) this means Matt’s bear curse has officially been lifted! Bear curse? Yes. From the Smoky Mountains to Montana to the Alaskan wilderness, we’ve come so close, but bears continued to elude us. But here in Southern Texas, in Big Bend, a little fuzzy guy crossed the road and we got a blurry video. Yippee!! And maybe it’s a blessing we were in a truck instead of on a trail. #destinationtreeontheroad #bigbendnationalpark #findyourpark #texas #chisosmountains #wesawabear #heylittlebuddy #whydidthebearcrosstheroad

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Feb 12, 2016 at 6:25pm PST

Pretty amazing wildlife, right? No matter where you are in the country, there is wildlife to witness and appreciate. So, wherever you may be, and wherever you may travel, slow down and take the time to watch and appreciate the animals we share this beautiful planet with.

Cheers!
Kristin

P.S. Did you notice? That was 11, not 10. Oops!

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road, Top Ten Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Our Route Across the Country – Part 13

July 3, 2016 by Kristin

Our year long road trip continues as we travel from Colorado to Wyoming with our sights set on Grand Teton National Park, Jackson and Yellowstone National Park in Part 13 of our cross country route. Our route summary and map are below!

If you’ve missed any earlier segments catch up with links to our routes and travel highlights here:

  • Part 1 looped us from Ohio to Maine and back to Ohio.
  • Part 2 carried us across the country from Ohio to Montana and to our adventures in and around Glacier National Park.
  • Part 3 circled the Olympic Peninsula in and around Olympic National Park.
  • Part 4 took us to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon and Redwood National and State Parks in California
    • We also included our extended stay on the Oregon Coast over the holidays in Part 4, as we filled holiday orders for Destination Tree
  • Part 5 traversed us through California including Napa Valley, Yosemite, King’s Canyon and Sequoia National Parks
  • Part 6 brought us through the Southwest as we explored Joshua Tree National Park, Sedona, The Apache Trail outside of Phoenix, Tombstone and Bisbee.
  • Part 7 introduced us to the enormous size and beauty of Texas…from Big Bend National Park to San Antonio, Austin and the Gulf Coast.
  • Part 8 swung us through Sweet Home Aaaalabaaaama…
  • Part 9 reconnected us with family and friends in Florida including Fort Lauderdale, Everglades National Park, Sanibel Island and St. Augustine.
  • Part 10 backtracked us through the south with stops at Louisiana’s old plantations, New Orleans, and MORE fun in San Antonio with good friends.
  • Part 11 opened our eyes to the history and beauty in the landscape of New Mexico including Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands National Monument, Chaco Canyon and Bandelier National Monument.
  • Part 12 stunned us with an array of colors throughout Colorful Colorado including Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, Castle Rock, Horsetooth Reservoir, Estes Park, Rocky Mountain National Park and The Stanley Hotel.

Next up…Wyoming!

Part XIII
June 11 – 20, 2016

Although we would have loved a bit more time in Colorado, we were grateful for all that we did get to see and do, and we were anxious to head north to Wyoming to visit Grand Tetons National Park and Yellowstone National Park. The reason for the anxiousness was partly because we were really looking forward to these two beautiful parks, but we had also done a lot of research and knew the parks get SUPER busy in July and August. We figured if we arrived in June we’d have good weather and fewer crowds.

So, as usual, we got a fairly early start, and as we like to call it, “Our Morning Commute” commenced. We headed north from Horsetooth Reservoir, outside of Fort Collins, on country roads. Imagine…no traffic, puffy clouds, snow capped mountains in the distance and beautiful countryside. This was a fairly accurate description of our entire drive to Dubois, Wyoming. This small, but charming, little town was our base camp for exploring the parks. We camped at a ranch alongside a river, with shady trees, surrounded by mountains and horses and wondered how the parks could be any better! From Dubois, we took day trips to Grand Tetons National Park, Jackson, Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park.

Our driving route through Wyoming is below…stay tuned for pictures and highlights of the Tetons and Yellowstone!

Tips: Zoom in and out on the map, and move the map around to get a better look at the route. Or click “View Larger Map” below to get an even better view.

Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road, Our Route Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, national parks, road trip, travel, wanderlust

Colorful Colorado

June 28, 2016 by Kristin

Welcome to Colorful Colorado! That’s what the sign said when we crossed the border from New Mexico to Colorado on our year-long road trip, and after seeing the landscapes Colorado had to offer, we now understand the fitting nickname. Just take a look at our highlights and you’ll understand too. It’s a state full of white capped peaks, purple mountains, green trees, red rocks, impossibly blue skies and flaming orange sunsets…

Garden of the Gods, Manitou Springs, CO

First stop, Garden of the Gods, just outside of Colorado Springs. These gorgeous red rock formations are dotted with greenery, framed with blue skies and as the day progresses from dawn to daylight to dusk, they present an evolving beauty with the changing light. A paved trail winds through the central “gardens” and plenty of other trails run in all directions all around the park.

Not only is this place magnificently beautiful, but it’s also free. The land was given to the state of Colorado in 1909 with the provision that it would be a free public park. We were so enthralled with the Garden of the Gods, we came back twice within the same day. If you’re ever in the Colorado Springs area, make sure to visit this stunning park. It truly does feel like a Garden of the Gods.

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The main pathway from the central gardens parking area gives you a glimpse of the beauty of The Garden of the Gods.
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Hey!! Whose big heads are those blocking the Garden of the Gods?! Oh, that’s just us taking a selfie. Excited to be here!
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Incredibly scenic hiking, but also perfectly wonderful to stop, sit and enjoy the view.
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Doing a little bird watching…yeah…scroll back up and check out those white tipped wings!
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Even Lucy loves Garden of the Gods.
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There are designated rock climbing areas for those with proper equipment and skills. And there’s also guys who don’t listen to caution signs 😉
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Blue, purple, red, green. We love all the colors of Colorful Colorado.

Pikes Peak

We left the warmth (and oxygen) in Manitou Springs and took the Pikes Peak Cog Train to the summit of Pikes Peak. Now, regarding elevation, many people visiting Colorado from lower elevations need to be cautious of altitude sickness. Denver is famous for being the “Mile High City” with an elevation of exactly one mile: 5,280 feet. And Manitou Springs is a bit higher at 6,358 feet. But, the easiest way to prevent altitude sickness is drinking lots of water. However, we had just spent several weeks in Santa Fe, which is almost 7,200 feet. So, traveling to Colorado didn’t require any extra adjustment and we were consciously staying very hydrated on an ongoing basis.

However, Pikes Peak is another story. The summit of Pikes Peak is 14,110 feet. FOURTEEN THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED AND TEN FEET! Officially, it’s the highest peak of the Southern Front range of the Rocky  Mountains. So, we over-hydrated the day before and morning of our journey. We boarded the cog train in warm, sunny Manitou Springs with full bladders and climbed nearly 8,000 feet to the cold, snowy, windy summit. Green trees transitioned to alpine tundra…the air was thinner, the skies were bluer and the scenery was out of of this world. And thank god there was a bathroom at the top.

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Part way up, at about 12,000 feet, we paused and then continued to climb to the summit.
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We made it! Super excited to reach the summit. But holy moly is it COLD!!!
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Hoods up! Not only is it cold, but the wind was really whipping at the top of Pikes Peak…can’t beat these views though!

The view from the top. 😮#destinationtreeontheroad #pikespeak #pikespeaksummit #pikespeakorbust #colorado #coloradosprings #coloradogram #fivestates #mountainsformiles

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 5, 2016 at 7:04pm PDT

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This is becoming a classic sightseeing pose of Matt’s 🙂
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We told you it was cold. And there was seriously a LOT of snow up top!! At least six to ten feet of snow! But some genius decided it would be a good idea to make homemade donuts at the top of a 14,110 foot peak, and we indulged, and agreed, GREAT idea.

Royal Gorge Bridge and Park, Canon City, CO

We had never heard of Royal Gorge before, but fortunately it was one of many great recommendations from our good friend Kelly who has lived in Colorado for several years. (She also has a bumper sticker on her fridge, “Not a native, but I got here as fast as I could!” which always makes me laugh, because she was born to live in Colorado!)

The Royal Gorge is obscenely beautiful all by itself, but the Bridge and Park gave us a birds eye view of this massive gorge. The bridge is over 1,200 feet long and it’s nearly 1,000 feet down to the Arkansas River below. You don’t have to be afraid of heights to feel a little uneasy looking over the edge of this bridge. We actually took a gondola ride across the canyon (you can also zip line across) and then we hiked along the edge and walked back across the suspension bridge. It was incredible. And windy. And exhilarating. And completely gorgeous.

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After taking a gondola from one side, we hiked along the edge of the gorge and walked back across that very bridge! Ahhhh!

Don’t watch this video if you’re afraid of heights!!! 😱 #destinationtreeontheroad #royalgorge #royalgorgebridge #lookdown #dontlookdown #colorado #coloradogram #holymoly #suspensionbridge

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 3, 2016 at 11:01am PDT

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All smiles, before clamping down a hand on his hat and glasses. We had to guess that there are a countless hats, glasses and cell phones that been swept away by the wind and down to the Arkansas River.

Castle Rock

In addition to packing in as many Colorado sights as we could, we were also slam-bammed busy with Destination Tree orders. I was fielding custom order requests and questions non-stop and Matt was furiously trying to catch up on the engraving work for a corporate order and countless Father’s Day gifts. While he caught up, it gave me an opportunity to have a girls weekend with my bestie, Kelly, in Castle Rock. And it was one of those weekends where we had so much fun talking, laughing, hiking and hanging out, we never remembered to take pictures!

We hiked the town’s namesake, Castle Rock, which was a fun hike and a short climb to a 360 degree view of the adorable town of Castle Rock and surrounding landscape. It almost looks like a fake, model city with the mountains, green grass, trees and perfect little town below. We also burned our quads at the mini-incline at Phillip S. Miller Park, hit the trails, and then did more hiking at Castlewood Canyon State Park. We absolutely earned our margaritas, sunset cupcakes and hours of laughter. We’re kindred spirits and it felt unreal to spend so much quality time together. And then I photographed, packaged and posted a LOT of orders. 🙂

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At Castlewood Canyon State Park we did stop to admire the view en route to the canyon…

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What’s better than a colorful, Colorado sunset? Sitting on the back porch, eating decadent cupcakes, with an amazing friend, laughing and talking, while watching a colorful, Colorado sunset. Boom!

Rocky Mountain National Park

I always get super hyped to visit a new National Park, since that’s been one of our primary focuses on this year-long trip. And while I was hyped about Rocky Mountain National Park and towering snow covered mountains, Matt was hyped about The Stanley Hotel, famed for being the inspiration of Stephen King’s The Shining, and infamous for being exceptionally haunted.

The drive to Estes Park, the small town at the entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park, and home of The Stanley Hotel, was more scenic than I even imagined. Once again, we were focused on our destination, but the journey proved to be just as wonderful. We took route 34 from Loveland, which hugged the Big Thompson River through twists and turns at the base of a huge rocky canyon.

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The drive along the Big Thompson River to Estes Park was unbelievably beautiful…and we hadn’t even made it to Rocky Mountain National Park yet!!
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We arrived in Estes Park and got our first full on glimpse of Rocky Mountain National Park!
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The Famous Stanley Hotel! Matt was like a kid in a candy store…only he was a ghost hunter at a paranormal hotbed! You better believe he’s got a paranormal blog post coming soon about this!!

“The mountains are calling and I must go.” -John Muir #destinationtreeontheroad #rmnp #rockymountainnationalpark #findyourpark #themountainsarecalling

A video posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 10, 2016 at 10:48am PDT

 

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SO excited to visit Rocky Mountain National Park!
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Rocky Mountain National Park did not disappoint.

After a whirlwind 2 day tour of Rocky Mountain National Park, we went back to base camp at Horsetooth Reservoir, where there was no shortage of Colorful Colorado sunsets.

Mother Nature has the best box of crayons. #destinationtreeontheroad #camplife #sunset #mothernature

A photo posted by Destination Tree (@destinationtree) on Jun 12, 2016 at 5:33pm PDT

 

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At Horsetooth Reservoir in Fort Collins we caught up on Destination tree orders, soaked in the views and got ready to head to Wyoming.

We didn’t spend a lot of time in Colorado, but we packed in as many beautiful sights as we could and enjoyed every moment. We bid farewell to Colorful Colorado with gratitude and unforgettable memories.

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Our “morning commute” leaving Colorado and heading north to Wyoming.

Next up…Wyoming! Grand Tetons and Yellowstone here we come!

Cheers!
Kristin

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Filed Under: All Blog Posts, Blogs by Kristin, On the Road Tagged With: adventure, cross country, destination tree, grateful, inspiration, national parks, paranormal, road trip, travel, wanderlust

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