Dinosaur World-Cave City, KY --June 25

Mammoth Caves, National Park-KY---June 24 & 25

Before we left on the trip when asked what he was most looking forward to, Henry said, “Mammoth Caves”. Well, it did not disappoint. Before setting off on our tour, the rangers issued several warnings: people with claustrophobia, fear of heights, heart issues, etc. should reconsider their choice. Despite the fact that it was in the high 90’s outside, we put on long pants and carried a sweatshirt to enter the cave where the temperature was to be 54 degrees. For large portions of the tour, we needed to walk single file, there wasn’t room to pass. It was during these portions that I completely understood the claustrophobia concern. At one point the lights were turned off. We were warned this would happen and instructed to put away any watches or anything else that would emit light. We experienced complete darkness for two minutes. Then the ranger lit a lighter. It was amazing to how much a little light could illuminate.

We hit another cave that afternoon: “Lost River Cave.” It offered a boat ride on a river in a cave. How could we pass that up? In the 30’s this cave was a dance club. The tour guide also bragged that Jesse James hid out here. (This and every other cave claims to have had Jesse James hiding out.) Before we left Lost River Cave the kids mined for gems. They loved it. We paid for a bag of dirt that the kids poured into a mining pan and filtered. Eureka! Gems! The next morning we returned to Mammoth Cave Nat’l Park to get our National Parks Passport stamped with our first stamp and for the kids to be awarded Junior Ranger certificates and badges. On our first day in the park the kids were given books by the ranger. The books are filled with information and activities. Depending on the kid’s age, they have to complete a certain number of activities to earn a badge.

Cincinnati

The Engels were fabulous hosts in Cincinnati. It was great to catch up with them and see their spot. They live in a great neighborhood with lots of kids nearby. If their house isn’t already the most popular in the neighborhood, it will be by the end of the summer when their pool is completed.

John and the kids toured us around the Cincinnati Zoo the first day. The highlight, especially for me, was being able to pet a wallaby. I have a thing for Australian animals, so this fulfilled a lifelong dream.

We also saw a demonstration of the speed of a cheetah and how the zoo keepers wash the elephants with fire hoses. It was EXTREMEMLY hot both our days in Cincinnati. The zoo has water misters, which offered a nice reprieve from the heat. In one place you can walk through a passageway of misters. The mist is so intense you can’t see anything. It was difficult not to take the opportunity to scare the pants off a little kid by roaring or making some other disturbing animal noise simulating an escaped animal waiting to pounce.

The next day Robin toured us around the city. She took us to the waterfront and the Cincinnati Museum Center. The museum complex is housed in a former train station and includes an IMAX theater, a natural history museum, a children’s museum and a museum of Cincinnati history. We focused on the Cincinnati history and children’s museum. Both were big hits. The history museum has a steam boat you can walk through, a colonial town, miniature reproductions of the city with moving trains, cranes lifting things, lit trolleys, etc. that show the way Cincinnati used to look. The children’s museum had the best tree house/playhouse I have ever seen: tunnels, slides, ladders. It was filled with camp groups and total chaos. But “very cool” and “fun” according to the kids.


Of course we had to sample the chili. It doesn’t even seem like chili to us. There are no beans and it’s strangely sweet with cinnamon or chocolate; a unique flavor.

OH-Moreland Hills/Cleveland

We had a great visit with Andy’s sister and her family in Cleveland (Moreland Hills). The cousins had a blast together: biking swimming, fishing, just being silly.

The grownups also loved being together. Highlights for the adults included a great meal at Greenhouse Tavern. We enjoyed a yummy appetizer called “devils on horseback”: dates wrapped in bacon with almonds, chocolate and chili pepper. One of the entrees was chicken cooked in brioche. There was a note on the menu that this item would require additional time to cook. It came out looking like something Fred Flintstone would receive: more dinosaur leg than chicken. The server presented it and offered to cut it for us. So it was whisked away and returned in a more manageable presentation.

We all loved going to the cousins’ pool club, which had a slide and trampoline on the water. Brian spoiled us with delicious meals including a kitchen clambake and beautiful breakfast buffet.

Day One: Detour

The “plan” was to spend the first night of our journey in the Finger Lakes in NY before continuing on the next morning to Andy’s sister and her family in OH. You can see where this is headed: the plan changed. We received a call the night before we were to depart that Joan, Andy’s mom, was taken to the hospital. So day 1 was spent driving to the suburbs of Philadelphia. It was good to give Joan and the dogs hugs and make sure that she is getting the best care possible. The weather was beautiful and the kids and I had fun walking the trails of Pennypack Watershed, exploring the “secret garden” at Joan’s and catching fireflies.  Henry took this picture of a frog in the secret garden. 

The Plan: 7756 miles; 138 drive hours; 51 nights away from home

The plan is to travel from our home in VT to CA and back via a northern route. We are pulling a pop-up tent trailer behind our Honda Pilot. Planned highlights include:

•  visiting friends and family in OH, MI, WY, CA, NV
• spending nights in a covered wagon, a train car and a B & B shaped like a dog
• exploring Yellowstone, Mount Rushmore, Glacier and Mammoth Caves Nat’l Parks
• biking, hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, maybe hot air ballooning
• exploring a cave, driving though a tree and looking at a crater lake
• celebrating a BIG birthday for Margi

 

 

 

Test Run

Our trial run with the camper was a huge success! It started off kind of shaky, but only improved. We drove through Jamaica State Park and had plenty of spots to pick from. We all weighed in on the options and all agreed on our choice: private, but not too far from the bathroom.

Then it was time to erect the camper for the first time of the season. It’s a fairly complicated process and I could tell from Andy’s face that it would be better if Emma, Henry and I all went AWAY instead of “helping”. So we biked off and had a great time. There was a beautiful shady path along a river. Every so often was an informational sign telling us about the history of the area (we were biking on a former train track) and the native animals and plants. The kids seemed to enjoy stopping to read the information and then enjoyed playing in the playground. After what seemed like plenty of time to get the camper all set up and the campfire going for dinner, we headed back to the site. The camper looked fine, but there was no fire and it was definitely dinner time. As we approached I could see Andy inside the camper reading. Hmm. Then came the hilarious discovery that poor Andy will not live down, that he was locked in the camper! He insists that he was not “locked in”. He could get out if he wanted to. It was just a “procedural error”. What was funny was it appeared that someone had locked him in; the latch is on the outside of the door up high. Apparently it comes into play when the camper is collapsed; it holds things in place. But otherwise, it looks ridiculous because it’s only purpose would be to lock someone inside the camper.

So we let Andy out and started dinner. Dinner was a success: grilled lemon chicken, guacamole, beans, etc. that we rolled into tortillas. Of course this was followed by s’mores. Clean up was interesting. I think the few times we camped last year, I brought the dirty dishes home and threw them in the dishwasher. I was tempted to do the same, but thought we should practice what it will really be like. Emma and Henry made multiple trips to get water, which we heated on the fire. We took turns washing and drying. Getting the water the right temperature was tricky. As I was rinsing some sloshed on Henry and it was quite hot.

Breakfast also went well: bacon, pancakes, coffee. We forgot maple syrup, so Andy made a trip to the general store. We took a nice bike ride together along the same path I took with the kids the day before. Breaking down the camper seemed to go well.

The one night in the camper made me consider a number of things we will face this summer:

-Being really clean with food. How clean do we need to be? I’m sure we left crumbs etc. The end of the dishwashing was in the dark. Will our messiness attract unwanted critters? Pre-kids, Andy and I once left Montana’s dog food out while camping in Maine. We were woken up in the middle of the night by what sounded like a LARGE animal eating her food. We were brave enough to take a peak with a flashlight while trying to keep Montana quiet. It wasn’t a bear as I thought, but a skunk. A skunk that was awfully close to our little tent filled with a growling dog and the two of us. All ended well.

-Dishwashing. I like my dishwasher. Emma and Henry were eager to help for this one night of “Let’s do it the way the Ingalls did” experience. Will their enthusiasm for dishwashing continue?

-Sleeping. I was reminded of what a light sleeper I am. Maybe it’s just my family-but people can be noisy when they sleep. Not to mention all of the potential noises of other campers if the sites are close or wildlife. The kids are sharing a double bed at one end of the camper and Andy and I are in a double bed at the other end. In the middle of the night Henry made it over the table and into our double sleeping bed. I was pinned between Andy and Henry unable to turn. I finally decided to make my way across the camper and sleep in Henry’s empty sleeping bag; his “junior size” sleeping bag. I felt like I was cocooned; not in a good way. The up-side: I think Emma is the quietest sleeper of the group and moves around the least.