Why a National Parks Trip

I know that some of you are probably thinking we are crazy to spend so much money on a camper and a new truck just to go on vacation.  But let me try to explain to you our thinking....

1. I am an educator for a reason.  I love to learn.  I am an Environmental Science teacher because I have a passion for our planet.  I once had a student call me a "liberal hippy," I said, "Thank You."  I recently had a student tell me that he can tell I have a passion for what I teach.  Well, I couldn't teach anything I am not passionate about.

"It is my job to lead to you a point of understanding about our planet.  That every action you do can have an impact on it.  Everything you eat, buy, plant, build and drive leaves an ever lasting footprint."  ~Mrs. Cook

2. I have 2 sons that I am trying to raise in a way that will allow them to grow up to be contributing members of society.  I feel that it is my responsibility to show them this beautiful planet of ours so they can see there is a bigger world then the house or neighborhood they live in.  I tell my students at the beginning of the year, "It is my job to lead to you a point of understanding about our planet.  That every action you do can have an impact on it.  Everything you eat, buy, plant, build and drive leaves an ever lasting footprint."  And if I didn't share this truth with my own kids then I would be failing them as a parent.

3. Our National Parks are a gift to every American and to every visitor who comes here to see them. In 2016, we celebrated 100 years of our National Park System.  They are working, living, breathing, conservation classrooms.  Scientists everyday study and struggle to maintain the balance in these ever fragile ecosystems.   I am only going to get political for 1 second and say that Teddy Roosevelt looked upon our country and realized that if someone didn't do something to protect, preserve, and fight for these lands there would be nothing left for anyone to enjoy in the future.  So, it makes me very angry that 1 person and his followers think in any way that it is ok to drill or mine in a National Park (land that is my land, your land, my children's land) is beyond me.

4. Doug and I feel that the only way to really get to see this country is to immerse ourselves in it.  The theme of education today is student centered learning.  Well, I am the student and the country is my classroom, you can't get much more student centered than that!!  Plus, my kids will be learning. my husband will be learning, and I can bring back to my classroom a practical knowledge of what I am teaching them.

Here are some facts I have learned while lesson planning my summer vacation:

The National Park Service falls under the Department of the Interior, which is responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It is run by the Secretary of the Interior, which is a member of the President's cabinet. (no comment on this...)

Not every park is a National Park.  The National Park System is a collection of physical properties owned by the National Parks Service.  There are 417 official units, of which 59 are National Parks. Other units are National Monuments, like Mount Rushmore, and National Battlefields, like Gettysburg, just to name a few units.  Guess What??  I have NEVER been to a NATIONAL PARK!

If you want to see if you have ever been to a National Park follow this link.  National Parks List

We will be visiting 10 National Parks and 2 National Monuments this summer (In order of visit):

Mount Rushmore National Monument
Badlands National Park
Wind Cave National Park
Devil's Tower National Monument
Glacier National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Grand Teton National Park
Arches National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
Canyonlands National Park
Grand Canyon National Park (Both North and South Rim)
Petrified Forest National Park

So, there you have it.  Why are we doing this?  I need to do this for myself, for my husband, for my children, for my students.  The camper and the truck are just giving us the means -the country is giving us unforgettable, priceless memories and learning forever!!

Camper shopping 101

Thank you for reading my first post.  This summer, 2017, my family and I will be taking off for a 5.5 week trip cross country to visit 18 states and at least 10 National Parks.  I have planned big family vacations before, an example is our 3 week, 1600 miles trip across England, Wales, and Scotland in 2013.  This trip is much more complicated than that.

In order to do this we ordered a 32 foot camper and bought a new truck.  So, for the past 6 months all I have done is research campers. What I have learned so far...

All camper companies are similar but some are more well made than others.  There are also different levels of campers; economy, mid-grade, and luxury.  There are also travel trailers, 5th wheels, and class A or B campers, which have the vehicle built in. We chose a mid-grad travel trailer with some amenities but nothing like what a rock star would live in.  We also chose Jayco as the manufacturer because we have family and friends who all have Jayco brand campers, loved the dealer we found, and it had the layout that we wanted.  The name of our camper is a Whitehawk and it comes with 2 slides, one in the living room and one in the master bedroom.   Because we have 2 teenage boys, one that is 6 foot so far, we also needed a camper that had full size bunks for them; twin bunks were too short and too narrow.  Our camper will have double over double bunks in the front of the camper, a queen sleeper sofa, and a master bedroom with a queen size bed.  One of things that helped me most in my research, besides going online, was going to an RV show to see all the different brands, and get an idea of the size I wanted, could afford, and the different layouts.  You can also go to RV dealers and look at the campers but be aware, most dealers only carry 1 or 2 brands of campers.  And there are a lot of brands out there.  None of the Jayco dealers had the layout we wanted in stock, so we ordered ours.  We were able to see all the different features, like the u-shaped dinette, the double bunks, the bathroom layout, etc, within several different campers so we are confident in our decision. 

The top things you need to decide on when camper shopping are:

1. Know you budget but be aware that camper prices are highly inflated.  What the MSRP for the camper we ordered and what we are actually paying for it is about a $12k difference.  So shop around, get quotes from several different dealers. (That's what we did) That way you know you are getting the best price. 

2. What are your needs? After camping in a tent or at church camps (cabins with bare basics), I knew if I was going to do this for 5-6 weeks at a time, I needed some basic necessities, like A/C.  Also, I have these 2 sons, a husband, and a 15 lb dog- (love my Loki), and I was going to need some space! 

Each kid has to have his own area (hence the bunks described above) and I wanted a bedroom that I could retreat too.  The main reason we chose this layout is because the bunks are in the front of the camper where the front wall curves.  Campers that have the master in the front tend to make me feel claustrophobic. I wanted large windows in the master and a slide to give us walking room around the bed.  Plus we have a large dresser and a closet for lots of storage.  I also wanted the master bedroom close to the bath.  My boys like to sleep, so I didn't want the bathroom next to their bunks since I am most likely going to be getting ready 1st in the morning. 

3. Know your towing capacity.  The more your camper weighs the bigger the truck you are going to need.  The dry weight (weight with empty storage tanks and empty water tanks and minimal items inside) for our camper is 7150lbs, loaded it is 8950lbs.  We went with a 3/4 ton truck to make sure that we wouldn't have any issues hauling the camper loaded or unloaded and over steep mountains. We literally bought the cart before the horse.  We went camper shopping and ordered our camper then we truck shopped after.  Now we know we got the vehicle that has the ability to tow our camper no matter how full we pack it. 

4. It is a second/vacation home.  This is our vacation home on wheels.  We decided that with my husband and I both being teachers we needed to take advantage of our time off together before the kids go to college.  For us, this is an investment in our family.  Time to get away, unplug (to an extent) and hopefully be closer and still like each other when we come home.