May 2022 Canlife Correspondence, Our Almost Monthly Newsletter
Feeling the Vintage Love!
What can be said of people who fall for a quirky camping esthetic that was established years before they were born? Vintage camper fanatics are a quirky bunch who love quirky things, and Shari and I fit right in! The variety of vintage trailers present at our first-ever vintage camper rally, ran the spectrum as much as the people; Fireballs, Terrys, Jewels, Boles-Aeros, Shastas and even Airstreams all met to bask in the collective kitsch of our own creativity. It’s not just loving and traveling in these blasts from the past, but bringing them back to life and preserving them for years to come that makes this gathering so special.
While we’ve lived and traveled with our vintage camper for nearly 10 years, we’ve never actually spent much time with other vintage camper folks. It’s not that we were avoiding gathering, it just never seemed to work out in our travel schedule. In 2020, we had finally planned to attend 2 rallies, and then well, you know that story. But this year, we were determined, and the Mount St. Helen’s Vintage Trailer Rally in Centralia, Washington lay right along our path to Alaska!
“Tips & Tricks for Exploring America’s National Parks” (Part 2) – Article of the Month
Did you know that 5 of the 10 LEAST visited National Parks lie in Alaska, and all but 1 of those will require a boat or plane ride in order to see it? The least visited park in the National Park Service system, Gates of the Arctic, hosts around 3000 people PER YEAR. Compare that to the nearly 30,000 PER DAY who visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park which straddles the NC/TN border! Over the past decade, we’ve had the pleasure of exploring and adventuring through all but 2 of America’s National Parks in the lower 48, and we plan to experience as many as possible this summer in Alaska.
Learn more about our tips and secrets for visiting any of our nation’s treasures – when to go, where to camp, what to bring, and how to make the most of your visit in this month’s featured article in Northwest RVing’s online magazine!
Thanks to the many people we meet, our “bucket list” just keeps getting longer. How many times have we talked to other travelers about where we hope to go, and what we plan to see, only for them to say, “Have you been to…”? Not only are we rewarded with the amazing discoveries of the place, but also a deeper connection to the recommender. We think about that person when we're there, and wonder what their experience was like. Even though we may lose touch with that person, our memories of the place, and passing the good word along to other travelers keeps us connected. And if that isn’t the work of a higher power, we don’t know what is. Thanks to Joe, our CPA, for sharing this great quote!
Old Colleagues, New Friends!
Perhaps it's all a part of the new normal working situation that we could have enjoyed a professional relationship with Sarah Smith and Kevin Long since the fall of 2016, but had never met them in person until this month. This fun Portland-based couple founded The Dyrt, America’s #1 camping app, almost 10 years ago. We finally caught up with them on the same side of the country and with a weekend to spare. They were excellent tour guides of the city, surrounding wine country, and took us on the muddiest hike this side of Kaua’i. Thanks for the great weekend and looking forward to a camping trip in the near future. Start your summer camping season off with 30 days FREE of The Dyrt PRO
Good News for the Environment!
We could all use some good news! While we recognize that we, as inhabitants of planet Earth. have a whole lotta work to do to get things onto a more sustainable path for our continued existence, there are some bright spots in the narrative that we rarely hear about on the evening news. We’re choosing to highlight one per month, so we can all enjoy a small break from the terrible.
California Condors have returned to the Redwood Forest Ecosystem. After 100 years of absence from a historical part of their range, this iconic bird now soars over some of the tallest trees on the continent again thanks to the Yurok Tribe Wildlife Management Program! Check out this article - for more details. Some great places to see these spectacular birds in action include Redwood, Pinnacles, Grand Canyon, and Zion National Parks.
Product Review - AirSkirts Insulation
If you’ve hung around RVs long enough, you start to see some products that claim to make your life in an RV better. Many are gimmicky and only a few deliver the goods every now and again. Like, the Anderson Leveler which has hands-down “saved our marriage” more than once by simplifying our camp set up process. If you know, you know. We simply couldn’t function without it! But, I digress…
If you want to extend your camping season to include all four, AirSkirts are a great way to keep you cozy. These insulative tubes are simple to set-up, easily adjustable, robust, and pure genius. When we first saw this product, we immediately knew it was something we needed to add to our bag of winter RV living tricks. If you plan to spend some time in cold or hot climates, and want to save some money on your heating or cooling – these babies should be part of your set up. See our product review video that we shot over the winter while in Michigan. Take advantage of their pre-order sale going on through May, June, and July – providing a substantial discount if you can take delivery in October. Help extend your camping season well beyond the crowded times of year and do good for the environment, too!
Old Friends & New Rivers
People often ask when we might settle down again and give up this road life, and we always reply, “When it isn’t so much fun anymore!” You know that feeling when you are on vacation, it’s only day 3, and it feels like you’ve been gone a month because you are not in your normal routine? For us, 3 months often feel like a full year as we’ve always seen and done so much.
Over the past weeks in the PNW, we’ve been able to catch up with so many old friends, while also making new ones. Connections with people and making new experiences are really what this travel lifestyle is all about. Hutch got the chance to do some whitewater paddling with one of our “kids” – the now adults who were our students back when we worked at Appalachian State University.
The White Salmon is a destination river for any whitewater paddler, and Hutch was simply blown away by the world class scenery from the seat in his boat! The following day, we even did a somewhat impromptu Solar 101 Demonstration & Hamlet Open House for a 9th grade Physics course that his wife teaches. If you know any high school or college Physics teachers who would be interested in such an event, give us a holler as we’d love to connect with them!
We are lucky enough to have “our kids” scattered all over the country and often entice us to visit by saying, “We have a good parking space for Hamlet!” In addition to catching up on each other’s lives, they get to share what they love about their new home and life they’re creating for themselves. It’s been a real joy to watch them grow beyond their college years.
Wish us luck as we head toward our 50th state…Alaska Here Comes Hamlet! We’ll be crossing the border as you are reading this newsletter. Stay tuned for updates as we make our way through British Columbia, the Yukon, and as many Alaskan National Parks as we can fit into our summer travel schedule.
Did you know that 5 of the 10 LEAST visited National Parks lie in Alaska, and all but 1 of those will require a boat or plane ride in order to see it? The least visited park in the National Park Service system, Gates of the Arctic, hosts around 3000 people PER YEAR. Compare that to the nearly 30,000 PER DAY who visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park which straddles the NC/TN border! Over the past decade, we’ve had the pleasure of exploring and adventuring through all but 2 of America’s National Parks in the lower 48, and we plan to experience as many as possible this summer in Alaska.
Learn more about our tips and secrets for visiting any of our nation’s treasures – when to go, where to camp, what to bring, and how to make the most of your visit in this month’s featured article in Northwest RVing’s online magazine!
“Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from god.”
~ Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Thanks to the many people we meet, our “bucket list” just keeps getting longer. How many times have we talked to other travelers about where we hope to go, and what we plan to see, only for them to say, “Have you been to…”? Not only are we rewarded with the amazing discoveries of the place, but also a deeper connection to the recommender. We think about that person when we're there, and wonder what their experience was like. Even though we may lose touch with that person, our memories of the place, and passing the good word along to other travelers keeps us connected. And if that isn’t the work of a higher power, we don’t know what is. Thanks to Joe, our CPA, for sharing this great quote!
Old Colleagues, New Friends!
Perhaps it's all a part of the new normal working situation that we could have enjoyed a professional relationship with Sarah Smith and Kevin Long since the fall of 2016, but had never met them in person until this month. This fun Portland-based couple founded The Dyrt, America’s #1 camping app, almost 10 years ago. We finally caught up with them on the same side of the country and with a weekend to spare. They were excellent tour guides of the city, surrounding wine country, and took us on the muddiest hike this side of Kaua’i. Thanks for the great weekend and looking forward to a camping trip in the near future. Start your summer camping season off with 30 days FREE of The Dyrt PRO
Good News for the Environment!
We could all use some good news! While we recognize that we, as inhabitants of planet Earth. have a whole lotta work to do to get things onto a more sustainable path for our continued existence, there are some bright spots in the narrative that we rarely hear about on the evening news. We’re choosing to highlight one per month, so we can all enjoy a small break from the terrible.
California Condors have returned to the Redwood Forest Ecosystem. After 100 years of absence from a historical part of their range, this iconic bird now soars over some of the tallest trees on the continent again thanks to the Yurok Tribe Wildlife Management Program! Check out this article - for more details. Some great places to see these spectacular birds in action include Redwood, Pinnacles, Grand Canyon, and Zion National Parks.
Product Review - AirSkirts Insulation
If you’ve hung around RVs long enough, you start to see some products that claim to make your life in an RV better. Many are gimmicky and only a few deliver the goods every now and again. Like, the Anderson Leveler which has hands-down “saved our marriage” more than once by simplifying our camp set up process. If you know, you know. We simply couldn’t function without it! But, I digress…
If you want to extend your camping season to include all four, AirSkirts are a great way to keep you cozy. These insulative tubes are simple to set-up, easily adjustable, robust, and pure genius. When we first saw this product, we immediately knew it was something we needed to add to our bag of winter RV living tricks. If you plan to spend some time in cold or hot climates, and want to save some money on your heating or cooling – these babies should be part of your set up. See our product review video that we shot over the winter while in Michigan. Take advantage of their pre-order sale going on through May, June, and July – providing a substantial discount if you can take delivery in October. Help extend your camping season well beyond the crowded times of year and do good for the environment, too!
Old Friends & New Rivers
People often ask when we might settle down again and give up this road life, and we always reply, “When it isn’t so much fun anymore!” You know that feeling when you are on vacation, it’s only day 3, and it feels like you’ve been gone a month because you are not in your normal routine? For us, 3 months often feel like a full year as we’ve always seen and done so much.
Over the past weeks in the PNW, we’ve been able to catch up with so many old friends, while also making new ones. Connections with people and making new experiences are really what this travel lifestyle is all about. Hutch got the chance to do some whitewater paddling with one of our “kids” – the now adults who were our students back when we worked at Appalachian State University.
The White Salmon is a destination river for any whitewater paddler, and Hutch was simply blown away by the world class scenery from the seat in his boat! The following day, we even did a somewhat impromptu Solar 101 Demonstration & Hamlet Open House for a 9th grade Physics course that his wife teaches. If you know any high school or college Physics teachers who would be interested in such an event, give us a holler as we’d love to connect with them!
We are lucky enough to have “our kids” scattered all over the country and often entice us to visit by saying, “We have a good parking space for Hamlet!” In addition to catching up on each other’s lives, they get to share what they love about their new home and life they’re creating for themselves. It’s been a real joy to watch them grow beyond their college years.
Wish us luck as we head toward our 50th state…Alaska Here Comes Hamlet! We’ll be crossing the border as you are reading this newsletter. Stay tuned for updates as we make our way through British Columbia, the Yukon, and as many Alaskan National Parks as we can fit into our summer travel schedule.
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See you on the road, and be sure to honk if you see Hamlet rolling through your town!
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