RVentures with Doug and Chris: Our Eighth RVenturous Year On The Road

''The best trips are the ones where you don't make any plans and just see where the wind takes you.''

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One would think that after eight years of traveling full-time, we would become at least a little proficient at pre-planning. But, especially this year, we are grateful for the flexibility of our lifestyle. The most treasured destinations were often found by chance. As always, we are grateful for the places that God leads us to.

A Quick Recap of our 2023 Travels

January started out with a two week Habitat for Humanity build in Dade City, Florida. At the end of the month we parked our van near the Orlando Airport and flew to Medellin, Colombia. We were so happy to settle down once again in the vibrant city of Sabaneta.

February, March, and the first part of April were spent meeting up with old friends and making new friends as volunteer English teachers in Medellin. Evenings were filled with attending language exchanges as we continue to try to improve our Spanish. We also got to discover more beautiful pueblos with trips to Bucamaranga, Santa Marta, and Jericó.

April and May - After spending Easter week in Colombia, we flew back to Florida to help Doug's parents with some difficult health issues. We are ever grateful to be able to spend time with family and support each other.

June - As we traveled up the East Coast, we enjoyed the colorful spring flowers, bustling large cities, and the beautiful hikes that we found on the coast of the United States and in the Maritime Provinces of eastern Canada.

July - Once again, we put Baby Beest on a ferry and made our way to the island of Newfoundland. We learned our lesson when we first visited two years ago ... one needs at least five weeks to thoroughly enjoy all the beauty that can be found on ''The Rock''.

August - Plenty of sunshine and warm summer temps greeted us as we spent time in New Hampshire, Vermont, New York and back into Canada for a Lake Ontario circle tour.

September - It's always good to be back home in Minnesota when the trees start to display their brilliant autumn colors. Special thanks to all our family and friends who warmly welcomed us back.

October - We headed west hoping to visit a few more national parks, but Baby Beest had a different plan when she developed a coolant leak. We're always grateful to be ''flexible'', as we were still able to see the annular eclipse in Great Basin National Park and spend time with friends on the California coast.

November - Sorry, Baby Beest, but we're leaving you again. This time our flight took us to our 50th state of Hawaii ... so beautiful!

December - After our five weeks in Hawaii, we explored a little more of California (and got the final fix for our coolant leak ... fingers crossed) before heading to Tucson, Arizona to spend the holidays with our RV buddies, Joanne and Gary.

By the Numbers

Miles

Number of miles traveled in Baby Beest: 19,000
Started the year at 75,000 miles and ended 2023 at 94,000

The highs and lows of gas prices:
High $6.39 (California)
Low 2.89 (Arizona)

Oh, the places our credit card will take us!

Our Nightly Hangouts

Number of nights in an AirBnB - 124

Number of nights in a paid campgrounds - 88

Number of free boondocking nights - 72

Number of Harvest Host nights - 23

Number of nights ''mooch-docking'' - 58

Heartfelt thanks for welcoming us

💕

Mom & Dad

Sue & John

Cheryl & Levi

Tom & Jen

Gillian and Karren

Barb & Rodger

Laura & Dave

Shannon & Adam

Mary

Marybeth & Gary

Kay & Paul

💕

We spent approximately .... 35% of nights this year in an Airbnb apartment/hotel

.... 25% of nights in a paid campground

.... 40% of nights in a ''free'' campsite

Our camping costs averaged about $15/night.

Adding in our Airbnb stays, our nightly costs were quite a bit higher ...

We love when we find resting spots like this for ''free''!

Travel Bucket List Accomplishments

Number of states visited for the first time: 1

Hawaii

We have now visited all 50 states and ...

✅ Joint ''travel bucket list'' item is complete ✅

Number of new state capitol buildings visited: 3

Columbia, South Carolina

Frankfort, Kentucky

Honolulu, Hawaii

✅ Chris' ''travel bucket list'' item is complete ✅

Number of craft breweries visited: quite a few,

but the important thing to note is that along with visiting every state in the US, Doug has visited at least one craft brewery in every state.

✅ Doug's ''travel bucket list'' item is complete ✅

Number of countries visited: 4

United States

Canada

Colombia

St Pierre, France (a small island off the coast of Newfoundland which is a territory of France)

Number of US National Parks visited: 9 for a grand total of 48.

Congaree

Acadia

Badlands

Wind Cave

Great Basin

Pinnacles

Channel Islands

Hawaii Volcanoes

Haleakala

Always good to have ''travel bucket list'' goals, so Doug has suggested that we look into visiting all 63 US National Parks. I'm not as convinced, since it'll be a bit more challenging to get to the national parks of American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, Dry Tortugas, or the five in Alaska that are accesible only by boat or sea plane.

For now, we will enjoy the ones Baby Beest can get us to.

Our Favorites:

And the winner is ....

Favorite Campground:

Far Horizons; Tucson, Arizona

What JOY to spend the holidays with dear RVing buddies and their community of friends at Far Horizons RV Resort in Tucson, Arizona. Walks, gab sessions, game nights, and happy hours by the pool ... it doesn't get much better than this!

Favorite Boondocking Spot:

Sea Breeze Park; Twillingate, Newfoundland

Our two day stay in Twillingate turned into a week when we found a very scenic boondocking spot overlooking the water ... perfect for spotting whales and icebergs and enjoying colorful sunsets.

Favorite Harvest Host Location:

Any of the California Vineyards

We continue to enjoy being members of Harvest Host in that it allows us to spend the night at many unique places. One of my new favorites ... the many California wineries that allow us to park alongside their grapevines and enjoy a glass of wine in a peaceful garden-like setting.

Favorite State Capital City:

Honolulu, Hawaii

Big City meets Tropical Paradise ... what's not to like? And the fact that Honolulu is the location of my 50th state capitol building ... WIN-WIN!

Favorite Craft Brewery:

Dildo Brewing Company; Dildo, Newfoundland

According to my craft beer expert, Dildo Brewing had some solid IPAs. And the addition of fabulous crab legs and fish & chips made this Doug's 2023 winner!

Favorite City:

New York City

Just a few blocks off the busy business districts, we enjoyed walks through the sleepy neighborhoods along with the ''mom & pop'' restaurants selling New York pizza slices for under $4 ... what's not to love?

Favorite cute little town:

Barichara, Colombia

Cobblestone streets, colorful houses and cozy cafes welcomed us to sit a while and enjoy our visit in this quiet Colombian pueblo with timeless charm.

Favorite Restaurant:

Dan's Clam Shack; Crystal River, Florida

While it's hard to beat Newfoundland fish & chips, Dan's kept us coming back for more when we were hanging out in Ocala. It was bonus that Doug's mom's eyes would light up when we brought her home some of Dan's famous clam chowder!

Favorite Natural Area:

Ha'ena (Shipman) Beach; Big Island, Hawaii

Can you see him?

Doug almost stepped right on a resting sea turtle as we reach Ha'ena Beach at the end of the Puma Historic Trail. There, at least sixteen green sea turtles were hanging out on the sand and rocks of this secluded beach.

Favorite Historical Park:

Pearl Harbor Historic Sites

We all know the history, but to see the harbor, read the heroic stories, and step upon the Arizona Memorial is something sacred.

Favorite Bike Ride:

Rochester City Trails With Dave

''Home'' is where the best biking trails and the best biking buddies are ... and we always feel like we're back home when cruising the Rochester, Minnesota trails with good friend, Dave.

Favorite Hike:

Whale watching on French Beach Trail; Twillingate, Newfoundland

We found a series of hiking trails just outside of Twillingate, Newfoundland. These trails not only gave us great views of the cliffs below, but we were also able to watch a number of whales frolicking in the water.

Favorite ''this could be a fun new hobby'':

Cod Fishing in Newfoundland

A chance conversation with an acquaintance turned into an hour of sheer delight as we were able to go cod fishing in the North Atlantic waters off Newfoundland. It was all pretty easy, except for lifting the almost 40 pound cod into the boat.

Favorite Food to Cook in my Van Kitchen:

''Just off the hook'' Cod dinner

Following my cod fishing success, I loved cooking up the fillets in a little butter and garlic ... the perfect meal for my tiny kitchen. Just wish I had freezer space to fit 40 pounds of cod fillets!

Favorite Outdoor Adventure:

Paragliding over the Chicamocha Canyon, Colombia

I'm glad that there are some bucket list activities that we don't both have to share. Doug was all smiles when he got to go paragliding over the scenic Chicamocha Canyon, and I was more that happy to watch him from the ground.

Favorite Tourist Attraction:

Hamilton on Broadway

There's a reason it's hugely popular ... It's. Just. That. Good.

Most ''over-rated'' tourist attraction:

Hershey, Pennsylvania

There's a lot of crowds to contend with in order to get a tiny ''free'' chocolate bar when one tours Hershey's Chocolate World in Hershey, Pennsylvania. We recommend you avoid the throngs of tourists and just buy your loved one his Hershey chocolate stash at your local store.

Favorite Tree:

Banyan

Many people are still trying to recover from the devastating fire that destroyed the town of Lahaina, Hawaii in August. But there is hope with the reports that the beloved burned banyan tree in the middle of the town is starting to show some signs of new growth. Every time we saw a banyan tree, we were struck by how strong and resilient they are ... giving hope to the people of Maui.

Favorite Bird Viewing:

Colombia parrots

These friendly chaps greeted us every morning when we stayed at a resort on the shore of the Colombian Caribbean Sea. I'm thinking that they should give Hawaii's obnoxious roosters some lessons on early-morning politeness.

Favorite ''random'' stop:

Vasquez Rocks, California

On travel days, it's always nice to find an interesting place to stop for a short hike and lunch. So glad that my ''Star Trek loving'' husband found this filming location for us to explore just northeast of Los Angeles.

Favorite ''once in a lifetime'' opportunity:

Snorkeling with sea turtles in Hawaii

We weren't expecting to meet eye-to-eye ... and we're so glad that we did!

Favorite wildlife expressions:

Puffins

We can't help not loving these funny sea birds of Newfoundland ... as we get up early in the morning and sit for hours watching them.

Favorite Random Art:

Presidential Sculptures; Rapid City, South Dakota

It was interesting to walk around downtown Rapid City, South Dakota to find the sculptures of the presidents of the United States ... although we should probably take that scarf to be a warning sign and think about heading south sooner rather than later!

Favorite home improvement:

New Lithium Batteries

It's been an expensive year for RV repairs and improvements. After new lithium batteries, new tires, new windshield, and an improved coolant system, we have our fingers crossed that Baby Beest will be working well and keeping our batteries charged and wheels rolling for a few more years.

Favorite Photo of the Year:

The Turtle Whisperer

This photo just speaks to the wonder and the joy of all the small unexpected treasures that we have encountered during this past year.

We are grateful for another RVenturous year of ...

Warm Alohas,

Languages Freely Shared,

All the places we can go,

In Baby Beest ... Repaired!

What will 2024 have in store for us?

During our extended trips to Colombia and Hawaii, we enjoyed more of the airplane/Airbnb type of travel. And with some of the ''aging'' issues that have been popping up with Baby Beest, we are starting to think about our life post-van. But for now, we plan to return to Colombia for two months this winter, and spend the spring and early summer with family in Minnesota. It's a challenge to ''get out of our comfort zone'', but exploring other Central and South American countries does sound intriguing. Where should RVentures lead us next?

So many choices and no wrong answers, because ...

''When you stop and look around, this life is pretty amazing.''

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