Redwoods

10/22/17

Redwood trees

Nick:

Yesterday we drove all day again. We stopped on the way to go shopping. When we were done shopping we kept driving for a long time. When we were almost to our site we got into the Redwoods. (Redwoods are a type of tree). They were huge. From the car, because of the roof, you couldn’t see the tops of them. The biggest one we’ve seen had a base that was about 10 feet in diameter. It was pretty awesome. When we go to our site we ate dinner and went to bed.

10/23/17

Nick:

Yesterday we drove around the Redwoods for a while looking for a site. We didn’t find any that were better than the one we had so we came back to the camper and ate lunch. Then we drove to the Visitor Center. The drive there was really pretty. There were lots of giant Redwoods. When we got there we asked the people at the desk what some good hikes were. They gave us a few suggestions and then we came home and had dinner.

Banana Slugs are endemic to the coastal area

10/24/17

Nick: 

Boy Scout Tree

Yesterday we did a really pretty drive through the middle of the Redwood forest. That is where all the biggest trees are. The trees were really cool. Some of them had to be 10 feet in diameter. When we were done with the drive we went into town because there was something wrong with the truck. They said it was safe to drive but we had to get it fixed soon. Next we came back into the Redwoods and did a five mile hike. The hike was called Boy Scout Hike and it also went into the middle of the Redwoods. The trees we saw on that hike were even bigger than the ones we saw on the road. The tree this hike went to was called Boy Scout Tree. It was at least twice as big as any of the other trees we had seen. My Dad estimated that it was 25 feet in diameter. When we were done with the hike we moved campsites quick and then had dinner. Andi and I also rode bikes.

Andi:

Yesterday we started driving in the Redwoods but our truck was having problems. We got DEF from Walmart and went on a hike in the Redwoods. There were fallen trees that we had to duck under. Some have grown to 26 feet in diameter. We saw Boy Scout Tree which was 26 feet in diameter. Then we went back and moved campsites. Then we rode bikes.

"Big Tree" Height - 226 feet
Diameter 23.7 feet

Many of the Redwoods were hollow inside

10/25/17

Nick: 

Yesterday we did laundry at the laundromat in the morning. It took a long time but we got our homework done. When we were done with that we came back to the camper and ate lunch. After lunch we went to a beach on the Pacific Ocean. Andi and I played around in the water and the sand. I dug a hole that I could stand in and it was up to my waist. The water was freezing and the waves were huge.  After we were done at the beach we came back to the camper and ate dinner.

Andi:

Yesterday we dropped the truck off at a shop to get fixed. Then we did laundry. Then we came home and had lunch. Then we went to the beach. It was so fun. I made a sand castle with just my hands. No bucket.

Playing on the Pacific beach

10/26/17

Nick:

Yesterday Dad took the truck to the repair shop because something was wrong. Mom, Andi, and I had nothing to do all day. We did homework which took a while. After homework we just sat around until lunch because we couldn’t go anywhere. After lunch Dad got back so we went down to a river near our site and walked down the river for a while. When we got back we had dinner and watched a movie.

More Utah - Andi

Bryce Canyon

Oct. 7, 2017

Bryce Canyon

Yesterday we walked in the hoodoos. We did a steep incline down. It changed suddenly. It changed from no plants at all to nothing but trees. It did that over and over again. The trail had views of the other side, funny hoodoos, cool hoodoos and different colors in the rock. We went right down into the canyon. We even touched a hoodoo. Some hoodoos looked like they shouldn’t have been standing. Then we very gradually started going up. We walked to the rim, but it was covered in trees so we couldn’t see over. Then we went home, had dinner, and watched a movie.

Slot Canyon in Willis Creek

Oct. 8, 2017

Yesterday we went on a hike in Willis Creek. We played “who can keep their feet the driest?” I got 2^nd place, Dad got 3^rd place, and nick and Mom tied in 1^st place. We saw a waterfall that looked like a waterslide that was when I lost. Nick and I put our muddy handprints on the wall. I kept making ice cream cones out of rocks for the cone, mud for the ice cream, broken twigs for the sprinkles and tiny rocks for cherries. Then we went home for lunch. Then we moved to a new campsite. Nick and I played. Then we had dinner and I cross stitched.

Goblin State Park

Oct. 9, 2017

Yesterday we drove to Goblin Canyon. We saw, climbed, and went through really weird hoodoos. We climbed a couple of gnarly hoodoos. On some hoodoos, the top looked like a saddle. Then we went to Zak’s for the Packer game. Then we went home and played clue. Nick won for his first time.

Oct. 10, 2017

Yesterday we had a lazy day. I cross stitched, Nick and Dad worked on a bike motor, and worked and helped me. We ran out to the store and bought stuff. Then we came home and kept doing what we were doing.

Arches National Psrk

Oct. 11, 2017
Yesterday we had breakfast. We went to Arches National Park and Preserve. We went on a loop that looked over a valley. I fell into a pothole and got my foot wet. We ate lunch at an arch we thought was private arch but it wasn’t. Then we went climbing on a flat cliff. It was fun and absolutely terrifying. Then we saw the real private Arch but it wasn’t private at all. It was swarming with people. Then we saw Dark Angel. It was not an arch, but it was disappointing. Then we saw Landscape Arch, which is the main arch. Then we went home.

All of us at Arches National Park

Today we went to Canyonlands National Park. We went on a hike and looked over the valley. We saw a couple roads and cars in the valley. We saw the needles in the distance. We saw the mazes in the distance. Then we went on a hike called Whale’s Back. We saw more of the valley and cliff faces. We went on the White Domes hike and saw white rock in the middle of the red rock. Then we came home and went to bed.

Oct.13, 2017

Hibachi for birthday dinner

Yesterday was my birthday! We had omelets, hasbrowns, sausage, bacon, and toast for breakfast. Then I took a shower. Nick gave me a card and a weaving kit. Then we started driving and stopped for lunch. We had hot dogs. Then we kept driving and did laundry. By then I turned 8 years old. Then we had hibachi at a restaurant. It was a great birthday. I shared ice cream with Nick.

Oct. 14, 2017

Yesterday Dad fixed the generator while Mom, Nick, and I played at home. We had lunch, stayed home alone, and played our tablets. Then we dropped Mom off at the airport. Then we watched a movie and went to bed.

Oct. 15, 2017

Yesterday I played my tablet while Nick and Dad worked on the bike motor. Then I tried to go on my Boolean Girl computer but I didn’t know the new password. Then we had pizza and a movie.

Oct. 16, 2017

Yesterday we played in the morning. Then we went to BW3 to watch the Packers game. Then we went home, collected firewood, and had a fire.

Oct. 17, 2017

Yesterday Nick and I climbed on a big 880 foot high rock pile. Then we did some errands. Our 5 gallon plastic water jug broke. Then I played solitaire for a while and Nick and Dad worked on the bike motor. Then we played Wii.

Oct. 18, 2017

Yesterday we drove. The drive was pretty. We were driving to Reno, Nevada. We didn’t get to Reno, but we got close. We stopped to eat and sleep. We played Wii.

Oct. 19, 2017

Yesterday we cleaned. Then we went to the Reno Automobile Museum. They had a NASA space program for kids. It had simulators and games about space. There were also lots of old and really old cars. I got bored quick and went to the simulators again. Then right when we were leaving we found a Gerarri. A Gerrari is a Jeep with a Ferrari engine. Then we came home, had pizza, and played Wii.

Oct. 20, 2017

Yesterday we picked Mom up. Then we came home. We rode bikes and had lunch. Then we tried to work on my Boolean Girl but it wasn’t working. Then I played my tablet. We had dinner, read Harry Potter, and went to bed.

Oct. 21, 2017 

Yesterday we drove all day. We hit a deer. Dad was upset the rest of the day. We parked and went to bed.

More Utah - Nick

Bryce Canyon - Fairyland Trail Hike

10/7/17

Yesterday we had a big breakfast and then we drove to Bryce Canyon to do a hike. We decided on a hike called Fairyland Trail. It was an 8 mile trail. We got to go down in the canyon and walk among the hoodoos. (Hoodoos are a rock formation.) The hike was really cool. We also got to walk along the rim of the canyon. We saw a really cool formation that was really cool. It was two hoodoos with a thin horizontal slab of rock connecting them. When we finished the hike we came home, had dinner, and watched a movie.

10/8/17

Yesterday we went to the Visitor’s Center to find out what hike we wanted to do. We decided on a hike that was in the slot canyon. The hike was four miles long. The river we were hiking along was called Willis Creek. It was a small creek but it carved a really deep canyon that we were hiking in. the canyon was really deep, but really narrow, so it looked kind of weird, but cool. There was a really cool waterfall we saw in the trail. When we were done with the hike, Mom and I were the only ones with dry feet. After the hike we went back to the camper and hooked up. Next we drove to our next site. When we got to our site Andi and I played outside for a while. Finally we had dinner and went to bed.

Goblin Park

10/9/17
Yesterday we packed up camp in the morning and started driving to Goblin National Park. The drive was really long. I did my homework in the car. When we got to Goblin we did a hike. Goblin is called Goblin because in the park there are hoodoos that look really weird like goblins. The reason they looked so weird was because on the hoodoos some layers of rock erode faster than others, so you end up with a really weird looking formation. We got to hike in the goblins. Sometimes when you got in a big cluster of goblins, it was like a maze inside of them. We also got to climb on top of some of them.

The hoodoos look like goblins

We didn’t hike very far, but we saw a ton of cool goblin formations. When we finished the hike we dropped our camper in a parking lot, about 20 minutes from Goblin. Next we went to a bar, got some pizza and watched the Packers game. They beat the Cowboys. When the game was over we found a camping site, played a game of Clue and went to bed.

10/10/17

Yesterday we were all kind of tired for some reason so we decided not to do much all day. We stayed home for a while. Dad and I worked on my bike motor and almost finished. When we were almost done, I accidentally snapped a screw. We went to a hardware store and got a new screw. We also got groceries. When we got back to the camper Dad and I kept working on the motor and almost finished. Then we ate dinner and went to bed.

10/11/17

Yesterday we went to the Arches National Park Visitor Center in the morning. We looked around for a while and then went on a hike. During our hike we saw lots of cool rock formations and arches. At one spot we had to go across a big pool of water by walking on logs, which was fun. We ate lunch under a really big arch and it was nice because we were the only ones there. We thought that the arch we ate at was the arch called Private Arch because no one was there. We actually saw the real Private Arch a little while later but there were lots of people there. There was one spot on the trail where we had to climb up a rock formation that was at a 45 degree angle. We saw a few big arches but my favorite one was Landscape Arch. It was a really long, skinny arch. When we were done with the hike Dad and Andi went to get water while Mom and I did a short hike. We saw Double Arch, which is two arches with the same base. When we were done with that hike we all came home and ate dinner.

Double Arch

Today we went to Canyonlands National Park. We did a pretty drive and a few small hikes. The hikes went out to viewpoints overlooking the canyon. We got to go out on some cliffs overlooking the main canyon which was huge. On one of the hikes we got to climb up on the top of a huge rock that looked like a whale. On another hike we saw a giant crater that scientists thought was formed by a giant asteroid. When we were done we came home and had dinner.

10/13/17

Yesterday was Andi’s birthday, so on her request, we had a huge breakfast of omelets. I made her a card and gave her a basket weaving kit Mom and I bought the day before. When we were done with breakfast and cards and presents, we drove to our next site. It was a really long drive. We stopped on the way and for Andi’s birthday lunch (she is turning 8) we had hot dogs. When we got to our site we set up the camper and then did laundry. After laundry we went to a hibachi place for dinner. It was really fun and the food was good.

10/14/17

Yesterday in the morning there was something wrong with the generator so we fixed that in the morning. When we were done with that, we dropped Mom off at the airport so she could go home. When we got back dad worked on the generator some more. Then we had dinner and watched a movie.

10/15/17

Yesterday we slept in and then ate breakfast. Then we went into town and went grocery shopping. That took a really long time. When we got back, Dad and I worked on my bike motor. We think if we work on it one more time it will be done. When we were done with that we had pizza for dinner and watched Karate Kid. After that we had a campfire.

10/16/17

Yesterday we tried all morning to get the Fox channel on our TV to watch the Packer game but the antenna couldn’t pick it up so we gave up and went to a Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the game. We lost big time. When we got back we gathered wood for a campfire. It took a really long time. Then we had dinner. Once it got dark we had our fire. It was the hottest fire I’ve ever seen. After the fire we went to bed.

10/17/17

Yesterday Andi and I climbed a small 880 foot tall mountain in the morning. We had to climb up a lot of huge rock faces to get to the top. When we got to the top we sat there for a while and then we came down. Once we got down we had some lunch. After that we went into town to run some errands.  When we got back to the camper Dad and I worked on my bike motor and finished it, but we didn’t have time to start it. It looked really cool though. Then we had dinner and Andi and I played Wii.

10/18/17

Yesterday we drove all day. We were going to Reno, Nevada because that’s where we’re picking Mom up. The drive was kind of pretty. When we got to our site, we ate dinner and Andi and I played Wii.

10/18/17

Yesterday we cleaned the entire camper. When we were done cleaning the camper we went to the Reno Automotive Museum. It was a museum with a ton of really old cars. Some of the cars from the 1800s were steam powered and looked like if you flicked them they would fall apart. There was also a DMC Delorean that was plated in gold. There were some old race cars which were cool. One was so low to the ground that it looked like you would not be able to slide a piece of paper under it. After the museum we came home, had pizza, and Andi and I played Wii.

10/20/17

Yesterday in the morning we went to pick Mom up from the airport. After we picked Mom up we came back to the camper and Andi and I rode bikes for a while. When we were done we ate lunch. Then we kind of did nothing until dinner. After dinner we read Harry Potter and went to bed.

10/21/17

Yesterday we drove pretty much all day. We got going pretty early and didn’t stop until dinner time. It was really boring. When we got to our site we read until bed. I forgot to mention that when we were driving we hit a deer and got a big dent.

Zion - Andi

Valley of Fire White Domes Trail

Sep. 30, 2017

Yesterday we dropped Grandma and Grandpa off at the airport. Then we swam for a while. Then we had lunch. I didn’t like it. Then we went to the Valley of Fire Visitor Center. We watched two videos that were interesting. One video had a gecko doing yoga! Then we picked up the camper and parked in a pull off and went to bed.

Oct. 1, 2017

Yesterday we went to Valley of Fire National Park. We did the White Domes Trail. We went through the hot sun, shady canyons to climbing to shady holes in the walls. Then we ate lunch under a shaded picnic area. Then we continued driving to Utah. We stopped at Walmart and shopped. We went off-roading and popped a tire! Then we came home, had dinner, and went to bed.

Learning to code

Oct. 2, 2017

Yesterday we cleaned most of the day. We also painted the parts on the RV that looked nasty. Then we drove to a new campsite and watched a movie. We also had ice cream.

Oct. 3, 2017

Yesterday Mom and I played on my Boolean Girl computer. I was getting really good but then Mom told me we had to go register for 2 more nights. Then Nick and Dad came home and we had lunch. Then we went to the nature preserve visitor center. We saw two desert tortoises, one tarantula, one scorpion, and 1 Gila monster. We also saw 2 snakes. Then we went on a hike. We got our car washed and then went home. We played hearts.

Oct. 4, 2017

Yesterday we slept in late and had cinnamon rolls. Then we drove to Zion Visitor Center. It was so busy we barely got a spot. Then we went on the Pa’rus Trail. We saw the museum. It had cool pictures that people painted. We watched a video and did the geology talk. Then Mom did laundry while Nick, Dad, and I stayed home. Dad and Nick worked on a bike motor while I played on my Boolean Girl computer. Then we played hearts.

Hiking in the Virgin River through
the Narrows in Zion Park

Oct. 5, 2017

Yesterday we went to Zion. We hiked in the Narrows. The Narrows is a hike in the Virgin River. The water was cold for the first part but then we got used to it. There were some spots that were up to my waist and some that were up to my ankles. We ate lunch in a sunny spot. Most of the trail was shady which made the water super cold. The sun warmed it a little. Then we went upstream a little more. Then we got up to the part where the Overton met the Virgin River. My food was hurting so we went back. Then we went home and went to bed.

Oct. 6, 2017

Yesterday we moved campsites. We dropped our camper in a parking lot and unhitched. Then we went to the longest tunnel in Zion. It was also the longest tunnel in the world when it was build. It had openings so you could see out. We drove back through it and went home. We had dinner, ice cream, played hearts, and read.

Zion - Nick

10/1/17

Valley of Fire

Yesterday we packed up the camper in the morning and started driving to our next site. We stopped on the way at Valley of Fire State Park. We did a short hike there and the rocks were really cool. It looked like someone ran a giant paint brush over all of it. There were red, purple, white, orange, and all sorts of other colors. After the hike we kept driving to our next site. We stopped at a Walmart to do some shopping. It took a really long time. When we were done we finished the drive. We were looking for a spot but we popped a tire so we decided to stay where we were.

Valley of Fire

10/2/17

Yesterday we cleaned the camper until lunch time. Then we ate lunch and drove to our next site. It was a two hour drive. When we got to our site I rode my bike for a while. When I got back Dad and I started working on my bike motor, which I got for my birthday. I got 5 steps in. Next we ate dinner and watched a movie.

10/3/17

Yesterday Dad and I went into town to get new tires for the truck because the ones we had were really old. It took forever. We had to sit in the waiting room for 4 hours. When we got back to the camper we ate lunch. Then we went to the Visitor’s Center for the area we’re in. We are kind of in the desert. They had some live animals in the Visitor’s Center. Two snakes, two turtles, one huge spider, a giant lizard called a Gila Monster, and a scorpion. We also went on a small hike and saw a few little lizards. When we got back to the camper we ate dinner and played a card game called Hearts.

Zion National Park

10/4/17

Yesterday we went to Zion National Park in the morning and went to the Visitor’s Center. There wasn’t much to see there so we went on a short hike. The hike looked over some pretty canyons and rock formations. After the hike we went to the Zion Museum. We went to a Ranger talk at the museum. It was about the geology of Zion. Then we came back to the camper and Mom went to a laundromat. Dad and I worked on my bike motor. We got pretty far. When Mom got back we ate dinner and played hearts.

10/5/17

Yesterday we went back to Zion and did another hike. The hike we did was really cool. There was no trail, and you just hiked in a river. It was the Virgin River. The river was in the bottom of a really narrow, deep canyon. The hike was called the Narrows. At one point the canyon was only about 15 feet wide. The water we were walking in was freezing. You were about knee deep in water most of the time. In the beginning you were cold but then your legs went numb and you couldn’t feel anything. When we were done with the Narrows hike, we drove to our campsite, ate dinner, and went to bed.

Hiking in the Narrows at Zion

The Virgin River in the Narrows

10/6/17

Yesterday we started driving to our next site. We dropped our camper when we were about half way through the drive. Then, with just the truck, we did a really pretty drive through Zion. There were views of the sandstone cliffs, and there was a mile long tunnel that was really cool. When it was built it was the longest tunnel in the world. Then we got our camper, picked out a site, and had dinner.