Half Trip-a-versary!

Today (April 28) is our ‘half-trip-aversary;’ 9 weeks down and 9 weeks to go! 

In many ways it seems like the trip has gone by quickly, while in other ways we can’t believe that half of the trip is over already. We are (and this wasn’t planned on purpose) in Las Vegas for the occasion. We arrived today and it is a huge shock to be in this crazy, decadent place after so many days spent hiking and camping. I feel like a fish out of water here, but it is sort of amazing to see what humans have built here in the desert. I told the girls it’s like Universal Studios for grownups, which is sort of true. I don’t want to talk about Las Vegas though. I’d much rather do a mid-trip check-in.

Easter in the Grand Canyon was probably the first day we all felt a little homesick. We usually see our extended family every couple of months, and we have never been away from them at Easter time. The excitement of being in the canyon definitely dulled our homesickness, but as we packed for that part of the trip and selected some dried food to carry down with us we were acutely aware that we were missing what is surely one of the best food weekends of the year. I’m sure whatever was on my sister’s table and my in-laws’ table blew our rehydrated lasagna out of the water.

In general, we are eating very well on this trip. During the cold stretches we enjoyed hot breakfast and dinner every day to help keep us warm. Our camping kitchen and pantry have almost everything we could want, except when it doesn’t! The kitchen consists of a plastic bin with dishes and utensils. Our pantry is another plastic bin with various useful things in it: cans of tomatoes and beans, a few jars with spices, oil, sugar, coffee, apples, garlic...contents vary from shop to shop, and usually it is quite full. We have a cooler that can plug into the 12V outlet in the car or the power source at some of our campsites and that has allowed us to keep a wider variety of cheese, fruit, meat, and dairy on hand. We were impressed this week when our milk stayed cool all day, even in the nearly 40C heat. At campsites with power we cook on an electric stove. If there isn’t power we use our 2-burner propane camping stove. We also have a 1-burner stove that we took into the Grand Canyon. With this setup we have made some pretty sweet suppers including burritos, spaghetti carbonara, hamburgers, delicious soups, and many decadent breakfasts. One of the keys to our cooking success is the large griddle pan that sits across both burners, a purchase inspired by our friend Joe. I miss having a big fridge. I miss cold drinking water. I miss the dishwasher, but less now that the weather is warm. I miss having a bowl of fruit on the counter. On the flip side I love eating outside in the fresh air. I love that I don’t have to sweep up crumbs. I love that we get to share all of our meals together.

Life in the car has been pretty smooth, except when we can’t all agree to listen to something (or not). We picked up some earplugs with the hope that the girls could use them to opt out of podcasts or music if they would rather read or write. This has had some success. I don’t mind driving in silence, but Rick sometimes needs some entertainment to keep him alert while driving and requests to listen to something when the girls are not interested. Miriam and I managed to play cribbage in the car one day. I’ve done lots of knitting when I’m not navigating or researching. Lucy has read lots of books. These days, a 3h drive doesn’t feel too long at all. We are also amazing at stopping for a quick lunch...we can unpack the picnic stuff, visit the washroom, make and eat some food, and be back on the road in less than 30 minutes. Our car has been evolving, and each of our seats is like its own ecosystem. The girls don’t mind terribly when we ask to store firewood, root beer, or real beer at their feet, so I ignore the fact that they have each built nests of their things to surround and entertain them. It is the closest thing they each have to personal space after all.

Some questions we have contemplated:

If it gets really dark by 8PM and you fall asleep by 9PM, is getting up at 6AM considered sleeping in?

Is there such a thing as too much hot chocolate?

Do all of the animals (squirrels, elk, deer, burros, bunnies, etc.) that visit our campsites just want food, or do they want us to pet them?

Did we invent the avocado-bacon-egg wrap or was that already a thing?

If your child asks how many marshmallows they can have and you say 9, is that really so bad?

Will the scenery just keep getting more beautiful, or has the Grand Canyon finally spoiled us for good?

Did Dr. Seuss invent Joshua trees and ALL of the varieties of cactus?

Are there therapy groups that exist that can help us integrate back into the real world?

Some interesting and random trip stats at the time I write this:

Over 15 000 km driven.

Over 160 km hiked on trails (city walking and walking to the sometimes-far-away campsite washroom not included).

3 bags of marshmallows toasted (or eaten raw).

64 nights spent in 11 states.

45 nights in a tent, the others in yurts, cabins, guest rooms, and hotels.

2 rattlesnakes spotted.

5 mornings we woke to find snow outside the tent.

7 mornings we would have roasted alive if we stayed in the tent too long.

5+ pieces of duct tape currently reinforcing our tent poles, which really took a beating in the cold weather.

7’2’’ is the approximate height of our vehicle with the storage box on top...I’ll leave it up to you to figure out how we know.

35 oz. of beef jerky consumed.