Well, we have begun our adventure that will take us to the Great White North and to say that our excitement levels are high would be an understatement.  So much planning went into this trip that it hardly seems possible that it is upon us.  It is no small undertaking to be gone from home for a large block of time. For Caryn and I, concerns ranged from how many clothes we must take to accommodate the varying climate changes we will encounter to easy meal plans for travel days.  For Art, worries about what could go wrong with the RV lead him to wonder if he has packed enough tools.  In the end we realize that you can only plan for so much and let the rest go.  We are all grateful for the support of our kids that we have left behind to mind the home front – that peace is one huge burden lifter!

When this trip is said and done we will have traveled over 12,000 miles throughout the Lower 48, Canada and Alaska.  We anticipate seeing beautiful landscapes, innumerable wildlife and meeting lots of new friends along the way. And, while Alaska is our ultimate destination, the roads that get us there are no less memorable.  I don’t like to fly not only because I like my feet planted on terra firma but because you miss so much along the way.  For instance, our first night was spent in Crossville, TN – a lovely little berg known as the “Golf Capital of Tennessee” situated between the bustling cities of Knoxville and Nashville.  Then there is Forrest City, AR – a small town that sprang up from a camp of railroad workers laying track between Little Rock and Memphis in the late 1800’s.  These little places would have been unrecognizable from 30,000 feet but now they have left indelible memories that I will take with me the rest of my days.  The bucolic setting of our campground in Crossville and its friendly little mule to the shopping experience at “od Giant” in Forrest City.  And, to those of you who say who cares about these small dots on a map, I say, I do, because sometimes it’s those small dots that leave the biggest impression. It is, after all, ALL about the journey!  Wait until you hear about Bentonville, AR in my next post!

Day One Along the Road:

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Crossville, TN

Day Two Along the Road:

Forrest City, AR

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