There’s no denying that after more than a year of pandemic living, we all want to get the heck out of our homes. I was definitely feeling it by September 2020. I was itching for an adventure beyond the hikes and random day trips we’d been taking. We had timeshare points screaming to be used, so it all started there.
Seth has always wanted to go to Sedona, AZ. We started doing some research and found a timeshare where we could spend a week. Enough time to see the Grand Canyon, hike, and (hopefully) a dune buggy trek through the desert. But how would we get there…
We explored travel by plane, but we weren’t sure what that would look like with Covid. We considered driving my van and staying in hotels, but that also would require a lot of interaction with other people. What can I say? We were in a pandemic so I was a little paranoid. But, in an RV we would be somewhat isolated and self contained.
I started our RV search on Outdoorsy.com where you can rent from a private owner. After lots of calls and research, we found an RV that would work for us and it was only 6 hours away in upstate NY. I’m glad we found it when we did because apparently RVs are in high demand this summer!
With the RV booked, the real planning began. A week in Sedona, AZ turned into five weeks driving around the USA in a rented RV. Ambitious, I know. I recruited my parents to come along for the adventure. Seth can’t take that much time off from work, so my dad and I will share the driving and Seth will fly out to join us for two weeks.
We’ve given ourselves 12 days to reach Sedona, AZ where we’ll spend a week, and 15 days to return the RV to the owners in NY.
I’ve spent hours upon hours planning a route and the “must see” places along the way. However, like Sam said in her Alaska planning blog, I don’t love a trip that’s to planned out. I need some spontaneity in my life. This is the beauty of having an RV – we can just pull into a Walmart or truck stop and spend the night.
I found it helpful to keep all of the details in a binder organized by date as I’ve been researching and planning. I’ve printed directions from one “must see” landmark to another so we at least have a general idea of where we’re going and how long it will take.
So where will we go? Our first stop is the Columbus Zoo in Ohio, then we’re off toward Mammoth Caves National Park. As for where we go from there, you’ll have to keep track via the blog, Instagram and Facebook! We’ll be adding photos and blogs throughout the journey. You can also follow Sam and her crew who will be on their Alaska trip during the same timeframe! It’s the post-pandemic summer of bucket list adventure!
