More of our plans for traveling this summer.
As we travel cross country to visit family our first layover will be at Anthony and Rebecca's house in Mountain Home, Arkansas. We have visited them several times since they moved there and we are excited to get back there and see them all again this summer. We suspect that we should be there prior to the 4th of July and we are planning to spend at least several weeks there. We had a number of things we were planning to do in the area if we had moved there for the house sitting experience so we will attempt to get in at least some of those while we are there this summer. A side trip to Branson, MO comes to mind as it is only about an hour away.
We will be departing Arkansas towards the end of July and heading further down South to Tim & Stephanie's house in Villa Rica, Ga to arrive somewhere around the first week of August. All of our travel plans when visiting the kids are highly flexible as we have no set deadlines or specific dates we have to be anywhere. So our intent is to take our time moving from one place to another. Again we plan on spending several weeks or more in Georgia visiting the family there and exploring more of that area. While in Georgia we plan on making a side trip up to East Tennessee to visit my "brother from another mother" Brian and his wife Becky Finnegan.
From Georgia we will be traveling down to Tampa Bay, FL to visit Troy and Claudia. We still haven't decided if we will take the trailer down there or leave it at Tim's. But, if we are going to be there for several weeks we will probably be taking the trailer. If we are only going down for a week or so then we may utilize our timeshare down there or do a hotel stay. We will begin heading North around the end of August. Our plan is to head up through Virginia and into Maryland hopefully visiting some friends along the way and arrive in Hagerstown, MD somewhere around Labor Day.
In Hagerstown we will be visiting Debra's sister and her family in the area. From there we are also planning to make some side trips up to PA to visit family there during the time that we wait for Fall colors to come into their full beauty up in New England. We may move the trailer up to PA for a couple weeks or we may just make individual trips up there. That part is still up in the air.
When the time is right we plan to head up into New England for our Fall foliage trip. We are looking at a couple options for this and haven't fully decided if we will leave the trailer in Maryland or PA and just take the truck or if we will take our whole rig up there and spend a little more time. Debra has not visited several of the New England states so in addition to see the Fall colors we need to make sure that we hit those states as well. Plus we are both big seafood fans and we definitely want to make sure we get some good lobster dinners up there.
Once we complete the Fall foliage trip to New England we will begin heading West again. I am referring to this as Phase 3 of our travel for 2018. A lot of this won't be planned until we are close to completing Phase 2 but we will be keeping and eye on things as we try to decide how to handle it. Depending on the weather and how worn out we may be we have to hit a couple of the upper Mid-West states. Debra hasn't been to Michigan or Minnesota and possibly Wisconsin so we need some good weather and continued energy to hit those three states on the way back to "somewhere".
The thought of where we end up after all this travel will be with us constantly as we will not have a home to return to after our summer adventures. We have been looking at homes for sale in Arkansas and there appears to be quite a few nice homes available in a comfortable price range and with the features we would like. We may well decide that our "This is the Place" proclamation may well occur somewhere near Anthony and Rebecca's town in Arkansas. Of course most of everything we own will be in storage here in Utah so that will be another consideration. Time will tell and many adventures lie ahead before we make that decision.
Friday, April 27, 2018
Thursday, April 26, 2018
Outline of Alaska Itinerary
The following is an outline of our itinerary for the trip to Alaska. You will notice a HUGE amount of driving in this. We love road trips and are anticipating the many sites and vistas that we will encounter traveling through Canada and Alaska. Is this too much? We don't know but we are up for the adventure. All hotels have been reserved and all the ones one the way up have been pre-paid. If a change of any of the major dates change below everything after that will have to be cancelled and we will have to book new hotels for the new dates. Hopefully we will be able to keep to this schedule and not have to hassle with re-booking hotels.
June 2 - Depart Eagle Mountain, Utah and travel to Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. 780 miles.
June 3 - Depart Lethbridge and travel to Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. 617 miles.
June 4 - Depart Prince George and travel to Fort Nelson, BC, Canada. 503 miles.
June 5 - Depart Fort Nelson and travel to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. 592 miles.
June 6 - Depart Whitehorse and travel to Fairbanks, AK 580 miles.
June 6 - June 10 - Fairbanks and surrounding area.
June 7 - Visit the town of North Pole and local attractions in Fairbanks.
June 8 - Travel to the Arctic Circle via Dalton Highway. 194 miles on mostly gravel road.
June 9 - Travel to Denali National Park and back to Fairbanks. 275 miles.
June 10 - Depart Fairbanks and travel to Anchorage, AK with possible stops on the way. 360 miles.
June 11 - Anchorage area.
June 12 - Wasilla, Palmer, and local area. Possible King Salmon fishing.
June 13 - More of Anchorage area or alternate day for King Salmon fishing.
June 14 - Depart Anchorage and travel to Soldotna, AK 146 miles. Then on to Homer, AK.
June 15 - Depart Soldotna and travel to Palmer, AK 188 miles.
June 16 - Depart Palmer and travel to Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada. 385 miles.
June 17 - Depart Beaver Creek and travel to Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, Canada. 548 miles.
June 18 - Depart Watson Lake and travel to Fort St John, BC, Canada. 555 miles.
June 19 - Depart Fort St John and travel to Calgary AB, Canada 569 miles.
June 20 - Depart Calgary and travel to Helena, MT. 404 miles
June 21 - Depart Helena and travel to Eagle Mountain, UT 516 miles.
June 2 - Depart Eagle Mountain, Utah and travel to Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. 780 miles.
June 3 - Depart Lethbridge and travel to Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. 617 miles.
June 4 - Depart Prince George and travel to Fort Nelson, BC, Canada. 503 miles.
June 5 - Depart Fort Nelson and travel to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. 592 miles.
June 6 - Depart Whitehorse and travel to Fairbanks, AK 580 miles.
June 6 - June 10 - Fairbanks and surrounding area.
June 7 - Visit the town of North Pole and local attractions in Fairbanks.
June 8 - Travel to the Arctic Circle via Dalton Highway. 194 miles on mostly gravel road.
June 9 - Travel to Denali National Park and back to Fairbanks. 275 miles.
June 10 - Depart Fairbanks and travel to Anchorage, AK with possible stops on the way. 360 miles.
June 11 - Anchorage area.
June 12 - Wasilla, Palmer, and local area. Possible King Salmon fishing.
June 13 - More of Anchorage area or alternate day for King Salmon fishing.
June 14 - Depart Anchorage and travel to Soldotna, AK 146 miles. Then on to Homer, AK.
June 15 - Depart Soldotna and travel to Palmer, AK 188 miles.
June 16 - Depart Palmer and travel to Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada. 385 miles.
June 17 - Depart Beaver Creek and travel to Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, Canada. 548 miles.
June 18 - Depart Watson Lake and travel to Fort St John, BC, Canada. 555 miles.
June 19 - Depart Fort St John and travel to Calgary AB, Canada 569 miles.
June 20 - Depart Calgary and travel to Helena, MT. 404 miles
June 21 - Depart Helena and travel to Eagle Mountain, UT 516 miles.
Preparations Continue
37 days now until departure. We continue to prepare for the Alaska trip and simultaneously for the 2nd phase of our travels this summer. I got the car's transmission serviced yesterday and purchased a number of the supplies I needed to make minor repairs on the travel trailer.
I should back up a bit and give everyone the bigger picture here. As some of you will recall we were expecting to house sit for some folks back in Arkansas for the next 18 months. That was our Plan A for 2018 and into 2019. Sadly that adventure fell through as one of the prospective missionaries had a major health issue which has prevented them from going on the mission. Thus our house sitting services were not required. We had a long lead time waiting for the mission to be finalized and we tried not to get too excited about the move to Arkansas until we actually knew it was going to happen. However, Debra and I both became quite invested in that trip and were making all kinds of plans in our heads as to what we would do and where we would go while we lived there. The missionaries were planning to leave on March 9th and I had said we wouldn't finalize our plans until at least March 1st just in case something came up. Well on February 28th we got the call from the missionaries saying their mission had be put on indefinite hold due to a health issue. Since that time it has been determined that they will not be able to serve the mission until extensive treatment is completed and it is highly likely that they will not go at all.
By the time that the Arkansas move was cancelled we had already notified our landlady that we were moving at the end of this lease and she had made plans to sell the townhouse. We could have probably gone back to her and said we wanted to stay and she would have leased it to us for another year. But at that point we decided that we wanted to hit the road anyway while our health is still reasonably good and we have the means and motivation to see the rest of the U.S. So Plan B was now in effect.
Plan B has several phases to it. Phase 1 is the Alaska trip. Neither Debra nor I have been to Alaska and I have been hoping, planning, wishing to go for quite a few years. At one time I had hoped to have all 50 states visited by the time I turned 50 but Alaska just never worked out. So for the last 16+ years I've been looking at various options to visit Alaska and take in the "Last Frontier". Yes, I watch many of the Alaska themed TV shows and really enjoy the scenery and the lifestyle of those who choose the subsistence way of life in Alaska. So when the Arkansas move fell through we made the decision to hit the road starting with this trip to Alaska.
We are in the process of moving everything out of our current home and into a storage unit. We have 20 X 20 storage unit about a mile from here and we have been busy packing up the house and moving our stuff little by little in the unit. We expect to be out of here by the 26th of May and we will be living in our trailer for about a week before we hit the road to Alaska.
The Alaska trip will last from June 2nd to about June 21 but when we return we will be homeless and need to find another place to live. Since we will initially be living in our trailer we decided that we might as well go visit our kids down south and then swing up to New England for the Fall foliage in late September or early October. I've been to all the New England states but Debra still has several of them to visit and we love the Fall colors. So Phase 2 this year is the cross country trip in our travel trailer. Once we return from Alaska we will spend a week or two here in Utah recuperating from Alaska and then we will head out on the road to Arkansas to spend some time with our son Anthony and his family. We know we can make that drive in 2 days by car but with our trailer in tow we plan to take our time and perhaps stop off along the way. We will probably be taking about 5 days to get there depending on how worn out I am from the Alaska trip.
I will continue this tomorrow as it is getting quite lengthy. I now need to find out how to share this with our friends and family so that you can start checking it out and let me know who is interested in it.
I should back up a bit and give everyone the bigger picture here. As some of you will recall we were expecting to house sit for some folks back in Arkansas for the next 18 months. That was our Plan A for 2018 and into 2019. Sadly that adventure fell through as one of the prospective missionaries had a major health issue which has prevented them from going on the mission. Thus our house sitting services were not required. We had a long lead time waiting for the mission to be finalized and we tried not to get too excited about the move to Arkansas until we actually knew it was going to happen. However, Debra and I both became quite invested in that trip and were making all kinds of plans in our heads as to what we would do and where we would go while we lived there. The missionaries were planning to leave on March 9th and I had said we wouldn't finalize our plans until at least March 1st just in case something came up. Well on February 28th we got the call from the missionaries saying their mission had be put on indefinite hold due to a health issue. Since that time it has been determined that they will not be able to serve the mission until extensive treatment is completed and it is highly likely that they will not go at all.
By the time that the Arkansas move was cancelled we had already notified our landlady that we were moving at the end of this lease and she had made plans to sell the townhouse. We could have probably gone back to her and said we wanted to stay and she would have leased it to us for another year. But at that point we decided that we wanted to hit the road anyway while our health is still reasonably good and we have the means and motivation to see the rest of the U.S. So Plan B was now in effect.
Plan B has several phases to it. Phase 1 is the Alaska trip. Neither Debra nor I have been to Alaska and I have been hoping, planning, wishing to go for quite a few years. At one time I had hoped to have all 50 states visited by the time I turned 50 but Alaska just never worked out. So for the last 16+ years I've been looking at various options to visit Alaska and take in the "Last Frontier". Yes, I watch many of the Alaska themed TV shows and really enjoy the scenery and the lifestyle of those who choose the subsistence way of life in Alaska. So when the Arkansas move fell through we made the decision to hit the road starting with this trip to Alaska.
We are in the process of moving everything out of our current home and into a storage unit. We have 20 X 20 storage unit about a mile from here and we have been busy packing up the house and moving our stuff little by little in the unit. We expect to be out of here by the 26th of May and we will be living in our trailer for about a week before we hit the road to Alaska.
The Alaska trip will last from June 2nd to about June 21 but when we return we will be homeless and need to find another place to live. Since we will initially be living in our trailer we decided that we might as well go visit our kids down south and then swing up to New England for the Fall foliage in late September or early October. I've been to all the New England states but Debra still has several of them to visit and we love the Fall colors. So Phase 2 this year is the cross country trip in our travel trailer. Once we return from Alaska we will spend a week or two here in Utah recuperating from Alaska and then we will head out on the road to Arkansas to spend some time with our son Anthony and his family. We know we can make that drive in 2 days by car but with our trailer in tow we plan to take our time and perhaps stop off along the way. We will probably be taking about 5 days to get there depending on how worn out I am from the Alaska trip.
I will continue this tomorrow as it is getting quite lengthy. I now need to find out how to share this with our friends and family so that you can start checking it out and let me know who is interested in it.
Monday, April 23, 2018
40 DAYS!!!
We depart for Alaska in 40 days. Preparations are well underway and excitement is running high. We are currently packing up our house and moving everything into storage as our lease on this town home is up at the end of May. We will be moving out of here Memorial Day weekend and living in our travel trailer until we depart for Alaska on June 2nd.
First Cross Country Trip.
Saturday, April 21, 2018
WELCOME!!!
Debra and I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel extensively throughout our lives. We have seen many parts of this wonderful world and have enjoyed our travels immensely. Much of our travels have been work related but we have also had many adventures just for recreation and pleasure. Now that we are retired our travel is strictly for enjoyment and we are starting this blog to share our adventures with our family and friends.
Our first adventure of 2018 will be an amazing and long anticipated trip to Alaska. We will be driving the ALCAN highway and hope to share our travels with you via this blog. Once we return to Utah we will be departing on a cross country trip to visit family down south and back east.
As time permits we will also begin posting photos and notes from previous travels over the years both as a means for us to relive those fun times as well as show you some of this wonderful world that you may not have experienced in person.
Thank you for visiting us and we hope that you will enjoy The Stephens Travel Log as much as we enjoy the adventures ahead.
Tom & Debra Stephens
Our first adventure of 2018 will be an amazing and long anticipated trip to Alaska. We will be driving the ALCAN highway and hope to share our travels with you via this blog. Once we return to Utah we will be departing on a cross country trip to visit family down south and back east.
As time permits we will also begin posting photos and notes from previous travels over the years both as a means for us to relive those fun times as well as show you some of this wonderful world that you may not have experienced in person.
Thank you for visiting us and we hope that you will enjoy The Stephens Travel Log as much as we enjoy the adventures ahead.
Tom & Debra Stephens
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