I've heard it said that we overestimate what we can accomplish in a day, and underestimate what we can accomplish in a year.

We pretty much knew what 2022 would entail. I don't think we underestimated it when we set out on this year. But looking back on it after the fact, it's hard to believe it all actually happened.

When we caught up with I-90 last fall, it was fun and fresh and a little strange to be taking this familiar highway with such an unfamiliar purpose - just visiting. This year, it’s more like a one-way trip.

Since we’re leaving about the same time of year, we’re bound to take the same route. I-84 and I-90 are too cold and snowy to be safe in December, so I-5 it is. We’re moving faster this year and sticking to the interstate, not US-101. So the destinations aren’t as grand as the coast, but we’ll get where we’re going on time.

We are about a month behind when we left a year ago, and our goal is to try once again to make it to Florida, or at least the gulf coast. Where last year we turned north in March, this year we intend to continue east and south. But first, we need to get out of Oregon, and quickly – winter is coming.

We’ve got something like a routine this season, with 3 parks we like in different regions with different activities. Mostly we’re scheduling around holidays and my medical appointments. Go to the coast when we can, come back to Silverton or Portland when there’s an appointment. It is pretty strange, this not knowing what’s next.

We’re in a season that feels a little like wandering in the desert. I’m working with medical offices in both Portland and Salem, and we’re waiting out the lead times between appointments by exploring the region. It’s easy for me to feel trapped here week after week trying to get a diagnosis, or treatment, or something that would let us get out of here again. But the reality is that may not happen for quite some time, so we’re taking it a week at a time and trying to make the most of what we have.

I’ve heard it said that the longest drive of any road trip begins when you recognize the scenery of home. We’ve been away long enough - and hope to leave soon enough - that it doesn’t feel like home. Not yet, at least.

Originally we planned to be in Portland for 3 weeks to take care of appointments, see friends and family, and check in on the house. After that we wanted to turn right around and hit the road earlier than we did last year. Florida is far away! But plans have since changed.

We weren’t even sure whether we’d be here right now, because with my foot so messed up, hiking around Yellowstone might not be a good idea. But I stayed in the boot and off the foot as much as I could, saving my energy for the park. We spent two weeks here, and I took the second week off, but in the end between my health, RV repairs, and other commitments, we spent only 3 days actually in Yellowstone. But what days they were!

If you had told me on the first day of the Salida convergence that I would be this excited to go to another one of these, I wouldn’t have believed you. To the surprise of everyone involved, however, we were looking forward to this event, especially as it formed a bright spot in our late-summer travels.

We spent two weeks in Rawlins listening to freeway noise and putting things back together. It took about a week to get the new springs, and the local RV guy came to the park and put them on without issue. Everything looked much better! Now we have extra springs we’ll have to figure out what to do with, but at least the trailer is safe to drive.

When we picked up Solomon at day’s end, the springs were indeed replaced, but they looked kind of wrong. It didn’t seem quite right, but we didn’t know enough about suspensions to dispute it. Figuring they were the experts, and it would sort itself out with a little breaking in, we took it back to camp and readied to travel the next morning.

We weren’t sure what to expect from Wyoming. Our starting point is Cheyenne, quiet as it sits on the cusp of Cheyenne Frontier Days, which more than doubles the size of the town as people flood in for the world’s largest outdoor rodeo. Sadly we’ll miss it, having not planned a year in advance to attend - the way one must if they wish to go.

We knew we needed a break after Convergence, but as we’ve discovered, Colorado is full. We bought tickets to the next Convergence, in Driggs, Idaho, before attending the last one. But Driggs really isn’t that far from Salida, so we have 5 weeks to fill.

We came into this event sunburned, exhausted, and ready to rest after two sunny weeks in the water at Jellystone. Turns out that is exactly how NOT to arrive at a Convergence event

After the relentless heat in Longmont, staying in a water park was pretty great. Full hookups, wifi, several pools and recreation areas, crafts, concerts, activities - here, the park is the destination. The kids were stunned and had no idea an RV park could be like this.

If I had known, I would’ve made other plans. RVing in extreme weather puts all your systems to the test, as we saw back in Mayhill. Now was our test of extreme heat, except this time we didn’t see it coming.

It’s hard to overstate the impact that driving up out of Moab into Colorado had on us. For the first time in 6 months we were in a place abundant with beavers, deer, and green things. Leaves! Mountains covered in green trees! Valleys of grass and cattails! Elk! For us who grew up in the Pacific Northwest, which is constantly wet and ceaselessly growing, this was a wonderful breath of fresh, (relatively) humid air.

Boondocking in Moab in late spring is hot, dusty, and bright. This is the latest in spring that I’d ever want to be here, that’s for sure. Any hotter and it would be incredibly difficult to see the parks and enjoy the space. So I’m glad we’re here now, as it’s the soonest we could get here anyway, and it’s absolutely gorgeous.