Fargo to Medora: Kind of a Weird Day

Kelly and I are parked in the Routan, drinking beer and eating pretzels. Our tent is pitched, our beds made, and we’d hoped to take a walk through “downtown” Medora to find out about the famous musical and the pitchfork fondue, but it’s raining, raining, raining. Hard. With thunder and lightning for extra flavor.

Earlier today, we drove down the Enchanted Highway — which was cool, indeed — in a massive hail storm, stopping at the end of the wacky, sculpture punctuated stretch in a Regent cafe.

“Oh NO! The crops!” said the nice lady behind the espresso counter, and then, “What can I get for you?” The manic tone of this conversation continued, “Oh dear, oh my, the hail!The crops!” following such mundanities as “What size drink?” and “Separate checks, dear?” She’d relocated three years ago back to her home town, but she’d been living just down the road from me in Burien, where, it turns out, she loved to go eat at my favorite Mexican joint. Twenty to thirty thousand people take the Enchanted Highway each year, we learned, and we also learned that the crops around us were sunflowers, canola, and soybeans, and wheat.

While we’re sticking to our routine of talking to strangers and bringing wacky sense of humor to our adventures, we do miss our third. Peter left us in Chicago to head off to Australia and now, pitching the tent is sound track free, as are a number of other events. I never would have guessed that three is a magic road trip number, but it is better than two because you’ve got one person in the back, minding their own business, napping away or thinking big thoughts, one person up front helping the driver with, well, everything including staying awake, and a driver. I’m absolutely comfortable enough to doze off while Kelly is at the wheel, but I feel like I’m shirking my co-driver duties when I do. Peter, we miss you.

Fargo was a terrible bust for camping, we caved and booked a hotel while perched in an absurdly named coffee house on Main Street. We hauled ourselves across North Dakota in a day, dulled into lethargy by the flatness of the eastern regions, pounded awake by pellets of hail in the afternoon. It was a long day with a lot of weird intervals. A Twilight Zone gas station in an abandoned town, a giant metal farm family, a campground serenade by a creaky duet in spectacular matching cowboy shirts. The fact that now, we’ve made the minivan into our happy hour cocktail room, complete with cold beer and snacks, well, that doesn’t seem so weird at all.

The Day Before The Big Trip

Packing and more packing.  As you can see from the picture at left, I’m lost without a list and it’s what kept me sane at midnight last night.  I hope I have it all, at this point it’s kind of late as I’ve left the house, nary to return for weeks on end. 

The TBEX Road Trip officially gets under way tomorrow and today we are getting together to test pack the vehicle.  At this point, we’re actually not sure just which vehicle we are taking!  But that’s a minor thing, really.  The technology is all in place, our route is plotted (and we’re still looking for diversions! ), all that is left is to make sure it all fits and then hit the road.

While we had grand dreams to hit the North Cascades highway, we have instead opted to take the direct Interstate 5 path to Sandpoint, Idaho.  This way we have more time to hang out and enjoy the hospitality of Lisa Gerber has lined up for us.  After about, oh, let’s say 9am tomorrow, check out the Wonder Map to follow along!  And look for a post coming soon from Austin on how he built the Wonder Map in case you’re curious.

Camping for Dummies

I have a confession, I haven’t been in a tent since I was ten. And I hated it. But, I was young and in an uninspiring park in an uninspiring part of the country (Maryland.) But the great outdoors, it’s really one of the most beautiful parts of the United States and I haven’t seen nearly enough of it. I’ve spent my adult life as a city girl, immersed in art museums, cafes and architecture. I hadn’t given it much thought until I picked myself up and moved to the Pacific Northwest. And now, smack in my face, is really, beautiful stuff. Mt. Rainier, Olympic Peninsula, San Juan Islands to just name a few. So, this roadtrip is an educational trip of sorts, to beef up on my outdoorsy skills and hopefully not drive Pam and Peter crazy with my inane questions.

So, in attempt to not drive them crazy before we leave, I’m asking you, internets, what does one pack when they go camping? I’m not talking about basic gear like tents, sleeping bags, etc (REI has got us covered) but what about those personal items that keep you sane on a trip? And what the heck should I be leaving at home? (*Disclaimer* I’m a light packer, I just spent three weeks in Italy with only a backpack that I carried on the plane. So, no worries, I won’t be packing high heels, multiple changes of clothes or obscene amounts of makeup.)