I was just reflecting on this year (and parts of last). Sometimes things just don’t work out as planned and sometimes they do. Every day is a crapshoot I suppose. 

I had planned to spend half the year on the road learning about and photographing the interior of this great and diverse country. Plans change, however. 

As many of you know, the planning and preparation took place through 2014 with this year as the goal to hit the road. I really had only two firm goals. One was to find a way my dog could accompany me and the other was to see the canyons and stone formations in Utah.  Well, the dog was able to come along anyway. As for Utah, it just didn’t work out. 

But, all’s well that ends well! Although the RV (T.O.A.D.) was totaled out in Colorado, no one was injured and it was drivable so we weren’t stranded. It did bring the adventure to an abrupt end however.  We returned home, sorted out the insurance claim and proceeded to search for a replacement RV. 

Based upon my search for the first RV, I guessed it would take months to find the “right” one. Once again, good fortune smile upon me and I found one in Vermont in just a few weeks. Yay!

As I did with the T.O.A.D. I set about digging into this one to establish its condition and road worthiness. After all, I have the original trip to complete. Unlike the first one, this new one has had very little use and is in really great condition. And, it is like moving from steerage to the Captain’s sweet with respect to room, layout, comfort and bells and whistles. 

We’ve made a couple short trips just to give it a shake down and discovered some minor “opportunities” to upgrade or address issues. All in all, it is a great RV and I’m looking forward to traveling. 

Like I said, plans change. We did manage to spend more than a quarter of 2015 on the road but not as I had imagined or planned. I learned a lot and am anticipating miles of adventure and travel in 2016. 

Perhaps we’ll meet along the way. 

Paul