Harold and Everett

I am looking out the large window into the back yard at my mother’s home. She sits nearby, working on her latest puzzle that is spread out atop the dining room table. As I gaze out the window, I see a familiar pair of avian friends, strutting and picking around the yard. We affectionately know them as Harold and Everett; a couple of black birds that visit the yard daily.

You might be thinking, Ah, how cute. They named the birds. While you are correct on that, there is a deeper story behind the naming. My father’s name was Harold. He grew up on a small farm a half-hour away. By the time he graduated high school, he had decided that he did not want to spend the rest of his life farming. So, he took a job at a steel mill a half-hour’s drive from the house he built down the road from the farm.

After some years of driving the one-hour round trip to the mill, frequently working ten hours a day, six days a week, he became weary of the daily trek and decided to build a house within a few miles of his workplace. I sit today in the house he built.

My father had a good life and was a great dad to my sister and me. Sadly, he passed on Fathers Day in 2009, following a month-long hospital stay. My mother continued to live in the house he built and was very happy to be able to stay there well into her nineties, with the assistance of my wife and I.

One day at mom’s house, we observed two black birds that landed in the back yard. We would soon learn that they visit every day. Interestingly, there are black birds all around the neighborhood, but these two are the only two that seem to have made mom’s yard their daily hangout. We know that it is the same two that visit every day because one is slightly larger than the other and they have become recognizable by the three of us.

Mom said, “That’s Harold, come home to visit.” My wife asked who the other one was, and we all decided it was Everett the neighbor who had also passed several years before.

After getting to know them by name, we have come to look for them each day. Over the past month, I have made it a habit to take a scoop of seeds and peanuts out to the bird feeders each morning, then walk a little further and whistle while throwing the rest of the scoop out into the grass. Harold and Everett would eventually find their way, landing quite a distance from the tossed treat, then walking cautiously, side to side, while slowly approaching the feed. Eventually, they would gather up enough courage to peck at the food, oftentimes flying back to the safety of the tree line to eat the mouthful they collected.

Over the past few days, it seems that they have become used to my routine and maybe even expect it. Yesterday, I was in the kitchen, and I heard some cawing. I told my wife that they were hungry and promptly went out to whistle and toss. They no longer delay in flying in. They now land in the yard before I get back inside the house. They still make their first approach to the food with caution, but after that first mouthful, they just walk right up to it. I look forward to the day when they trust me enough to no longer use caution on that first approach.

Harold and Everett have become a cherished addition to our days at the house. I wonder if my dad is in heaven, looking down at us with a smile on his face and a bit of laughter in his breath.

“Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom o barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!” – Luke 12:24

-Randy

Feathers photo by Vignesh Kumar R B on Unsplash

In-flight photo by Steve Harvey on Unsplash

January 18, 2024 0

Estrella

Estrella was not her name. But to me that night, it was.

There is a band named, Brave Saint Saturn, that God used to pierce my soul one evening. Here’s what happened…

It was a dark evening, late in the year, when I received the call that a grandmother of one of our parishioners was dying. As associate pastor at our church, I responded. Setting aside whatever I was doing at the time, I got properly attired and jumped in my car for the 15-minute drive to the nursing home. On my way, I was listening to Brave Saint Saturn’s second album, The Light of Things Hoped For. There is a song on the album called, Estrella. It was written for a friend of the band that had a rare condition in which tumors were attacking his nervous system. Matt Estrella was deaf and was slowly going blind.

God hit me like a laser with the song, as I steered through the western Pennsylvania countryside. The chorus of Estrella reached deep within me as the Reese Roper-penned lyrics crossed my ears…

The angels wings

Will cover you tonight,

Hallelujah

Press your head

Against the breast of Christ,

Hallelujah

Those words echoed in my soul as I sat by the side of this precious grandmother. Although her name was not Estrella, I thought about how beautiful it would be as a grandmother’s first name. I felt God’s presence very near and I knew that she would be going home to Heaven very soon.

I read some scripture and prayed for her as I sat by her side. She was mostly non-responsive, but I knew that God was present with her.

Estrella, the song, was on repeat the whole way home that evening. I will always remember it as a moment in time when I felt the presence of God; from the first note of the song on my drive in until laying my head on my pillow in gratitude later that night. I am thankful for this experience and I know that there are two Estrellas in Heaven today.

Thank you, God, for this experience and thank you, Brave Saint Saturn, for sharing about Matt through your music. May God’s blessings be with you. Hallelujah.

-Randy

Images:

Car photo by BezeVision on Unsplash

Hand photo by Bruce Tang on Unsplash

December 2, 2023 0

Travel Journaling

I’ve never been a journal writer. It’s not that I haven’t tried. I have. My memories of journaling go back as far as high school.  My pattern would be something like this:

• I get inspired to start a journal

• I buy a new notebook

• I start writing

• About two to three days later, my interest in daily logging wanes and I give up

• I have another nearly-new notebook that I will never use again because it’s tarnished (admittedly, that’s a me-problem)

In my adulthood, two things broke my long line of journal failures:

1. Ryder Carroll developed Bullet Journaling, which has replaced my years-long use of planners for daily productivity

2. In 2014, when we purchased our travel trailer, I thought it might be good to start a camping journal.

I did start travel journaling in 2014 and have kept up through the years since. I am now in our fourth one. I’m sure they will add up more quickly when I retire in a year or so.

So far, I have labeled them “Camping Journal,” but since our travels aren’t always camping, I’ve prepared the next one to be a “Travel Journal.”

We have been aware of the various things that people collect while on the road. Travel collections come in many varieties: t-shirts, magnets, maps, attraction brochures, pins or patches, to name a few.

We settled on collecting stickers from the various places we visit. Why stickers? Well, last fall we traded our travel trailer in on a new Class B motorhome, a.k.a. camper van; a Coachmen Nova 20C. We have realized the necessity to downsize everything we take along, to accommodate the small space of a van. Stickers seemed like the obvious choice for us to collect. As I write in our journal, I can include a sticker from the various places we visit (oh, why didn’t I pick up a Buc-ee’s sticker when we stopped at the Jacksonville location in December? …LOL).

Cara at Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park, Jacksonville, FL

As I write, we are nearing the end of March and are anxious to get out there on our first full summer season with Cara (that’s what we named our van).

We hope our children, grandchildren and beyond will find our journals entertaining in the years to come.

Please leave a comment to let us know what you collect when you travel.

We’ll see you out there!

Blessings,

Randy

March 22, 2022 0

The Tale of Ranger Randy

When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up? That is a question that came up in my Facebook stream this year. Perhaps you saw it too. If so, what was your response?

I remember being asked the question in school when I was a Jr. High student. My answer then was: a Forest Ranger. I imagined myself in the neatly-pressed, green ranger uniform, patches on the sleeves, hat on my head, walkie-talkie on my belt, standing in a fire tower, looking out over the forest through giant binoculars. The picture in my mind is still as vivid today as it was then. I can see the tops of the trees all the way to the horizon, broken only by a river and some winding dirt access roads. There are birds in the air and other wildlife occasionally passing by on the ground, next to my Jeep. Yes, the forest ranger in my head drove a Jeep.

The follow-up question on social media went something like: …and are you doing that thing today?

If you know me now, you know that I am not a forest ranger. I am a pastor, serving as full-time hospice chaplain. Life takes us down many roads. Things change along the way and many of us end up doing something completely different than our childhood dreams. Ministry is my calling and I love the work I do, but there are still some elements of my childhood dream that are alive and well in my adult life.

Sharon and I have been campers the entirety of our marriage. In our early days, we would take a tent to Cook Forest, Pymatuning, or some other western Pennsylvania location. Our outdoor adventures did not let up when our children came along. We would shoe-horn all of our equipment into the trunk of the car, load the kids and head out to a woodsy site.

I may not be a ranger in the fire tower today, but we have climbed them. My uniform may not be that of the park employee, but my hiking gear does just as good a job at helping me feel connected to nature. I enjoy collecting sticks and starting a fire with my ferro rod. I enjoy a good meal, cooked over the campfire. Although we like the comforts of an RV, we are not beyond pitching a tent, and have on a few recent excursions.

God created each of us to be a one-of-a-kind treasure, molded together with interests, talents and dreams that are uniquely you. Take time to enjoy the path he has established for you. In so-doing, you will find that life is full of joy and the embers of your childhood dreams are still glowing within. They may not look like you envisioned them when you were young, but they have a way of weaving throughout the building blocks of who you have become.

My love for the outdoors converges with my faith as I ponder the origin of the trees; the feel of the ground under my feet; the crackle of the fire; the beauty of the vast night sky. Psalm 19:1 says it well: The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. All of this natural beauty draws my attention toward God.

So, getting back to the question; are you living your childhood dream? If you are, congratulations on the unwavering dedication to make your dreams come true. I suspect, however, that many of us diverged onto another path, somewhere along life’s journey. If that is the case, are there elements of your childhood dream still alive in your experience today?

May you find joy as your childhood dream gets rekindled. Fan that spark into flame and see where it takes you. Perhaps we can share a campfire someday and reminisce about the journey. I’ll bring the hot dog sticks!

Blessings,

Pastor… or should I say… Ranger Randy

August 13, 2021 0

No Resolutions!

A few years ago, I was asked to preach on a particular Sunday that just happened to fall on New Year’s Eve. Determined not to preach the same old year-end message, I turned to the Lord for guidance and inspiration. Not only did he come through with the inspiration, but he cast a vision on me that changed my outlook on New Year’s resolutions forever!

Think this through with me. On a typical year, we approach New Year’s Eve 5 to 8 pounds heavy, having just spent the last few weeks gorging ourselves on the holiday over-abundance (I admit, I usually lead the charge). As we look ahead to the new year, there is a certain amount of guilt and a general fear that we will not be able to reverse the damage that those cookies have inflicted on our mid-section.

New Year’s resolution #1 – lose 10 pounds (or 15 or 20… you fill in your own blank). All other resolutions for personal improvement, family matters, career or educational goals fall in behind that big one.

January 1 comes. We think, “I’m going to be unmovable. My goal is set. Healthy, light breakfast… check! No morning snacking… check! Healthy lunch…

check!” Then, out comes the cookie tray with all those leftover goodies. “One won’t hurt.” So, we go ahead. Maybe tomorrow will be better. It is not. By January 3, we’ve pretty-much blown it and we’re back to that old normal self we’ve always been, only this time carrying that extra weight. We feel defeated. So much for the resolution.

Wow. That was pretty depressing! What if there was a better way?

Instead of making resolutions this year, what if we were to pray about the vision God has for the year to come. What if we were to take a look at December 31, 2019 (that’s right, I said 2019) and ask ourselves, “What do I want to look like at the end of the year? What do I hope to have accomplished?” What if, rather than make year-beginning resolutions, we set some year-end goals? With the end as the goal, set-backs are not permanent failure, but rather a bump in the road on the way to success.

Child development author Maria Robinson once said, “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” That quote was the God-sent catalyst that caused my annual vision-seeking to permanently shift.

Using weight loss as an example (because that is perhaps the number one new year’s goal for most people), let’s say in the first month of the year, you were to lose 5 pounds on your way to 10, but you had a big weekend and really fell off the dietary restraint wagon. In the resolution model, all is lost. You’ve broken the resolution and you might as well give up. But in the year-end visionary goal-setting model, it’s a minor set-back. I may have gained 2 pounds over that February weekend, but I’m still 3 pounds better off than I was on January 1. Let’s start today to make that new ending. This time however, I don’t have 10 pounds to lose. This time, I only have 7 left! Hope is rekindled and we get back on track.

If we could apply the wisdom of the apostle Paul to the situation: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13b-14). But wait, there’s more! “All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained” (vv. 15-16, emphasis mine).

When we have a set-back, all is not lost. We are responsible to live up to the level we have already attained and we can now start over to press on toward that year-end goal. Forget about that mistake. It’s in the past. Start today and press on! How refreshing.

May the Lord inspire you toward a great 2019 and may you find success at meeting your year-end goals. I will be praying that my readers will find inspiration and motivation in Him.

Happy New Year!

Pastor Randy

December 30, 2018 0

A Higher Plan

Recently, I shared a post on Instagram in which I wrote: “Every once in a while, life throws us a speed bump. The key to successful navigation is to realize that there is still a road ahead on the other side. Press on! (Philippians 3:12-14).” Here is the beginning of the story behind that post.

Sharon and I had a week of vacation set in our calendars for quite some time. That week finally arrived at the end of work on April 27, 2018.

As we pondered what to do with the time, we decided to just head out – no reservations – in whatever direction felt right. We considered heading west toward Michigan, then as the weather continued to be cool up north, we decided to head south instead; perhaps toward the beaches of South Carolina.

Although we are campers, we decided to go the hotel route this time. However, camping is in our blood, so we were going to throw the tent and sleeping bags in the car, just in case the weather and location aligned for a few nights of sleeping on the ground.

As we were near the middle of our last work week before vacation, we received news that Sharon’s mother was heading to the local hospital. Over the next couple of days, it seemed that she had a touch of pneumonia and would be fine. I kept in conversation with Sharon about whether she thought we should stay home. She felt like things were going well enough that we could go. There are other family members that live close enough to stay connected to our loved one.

We were planning on heading out on Saturday morning. But then everything changed. The phone rang around midnight Friday night with the news that they were going to transport my mother-in-law to Pittsburgh by ambulance. She had a collapsed upper left lung. We knew then that we wouldn’t be heading south in the morning.

When we got up and around on Saturday, I called Bear Run Campground near Portersville, PA to see if they had a full-hook camp site available. It was still early enough in the season that finding what we wanted was no problem.

The reason for the campsite was that we are a 90-minute drive from the hospital at home, but only 35 minutes from the hospital at Bear Run Campground. Not knowing what was ahead, I booked the campsite for three nights; Saturday, Sunday and Monday with a Tuesday departure.

The next few days were spent at the hospital with nights at the campground. As Tuesday approached, it became evident that our stay needed to be extended, so I paid for two more nights.

On my in-laws 63rd wedding anniversary, my father-in-law came to visit. As the day progressed, he ended up admitted to the same hospital and the next day, was put in the same room as my mother-in-law. The hospital staff told us that they were the talk of the hospital for having spent their anniversary together there.

There were a lot of family members visiting each day, so I took one day to stay back to camp while Sharon took her sister along to the hospital. On that day, I went for a hike at McConnel’s Mill State Park, which is not far from the campground. I stopped at the Pilot station close-by to fill the truck with gas and have lunch at the Subway inside. Back at camp, I took some time just to sit in my chair, under the canopy with my feet up. It was finally barefoot weather in western Pennsylvania!

The owners and staff at Bear Run Campground were very gracious and understanding to us during the week. When our new departure date came, we found the need to continue our stay. I was going to reserve for the three more nights that would take us through to a Sunday departure, but found that our site was booked for the weekend. Thankfully, the campground had other sites available and I reserved the three nights at a different site. But then the blessing happened. When we arrived back from the hospital our last night before having to pack up and move to another site, the campground staff told us they had called the folks who had our site reserved. They explained the situation to them and asked if they would be willing to take a different site so we could stay put. They agreed and we were thankful.

IMG_20180502_211841_813 — Binx, the Camping Cat, came along

No one wants to experience a week of vacation spending every day in the hospital. But, we are family and that’s what family does. Sharon apologized to me at one point during the week, saying she was sorry that our vacation turned out like this. But I told her that this was important. We had talked many times through the last few years about what it might take to give our parents the best experience possible as they entered this phase of their life. I told her that as time moves forward, we will never look back and regret that we took this week to be with them.

God was working through the whole week. It was easy to see. First-off, consider that we didn’t have any reservations made for this vacation. We had planned to just head south and go as far, and in whatever direction felt right at the time. So, we didn’t have any backtracking to do to cancel arrangements, possibly losing deposits.

Consider that our week of vacation was this particular week. We could have chosen a week before or after, but no; we chose this week. God knew where the need was and directed our timing.

Consider the kindness of the campground to work with us as the week went on. They made our stay a stress-free part of the week; especially when they arranged for us to not have to move to a different campsite. God knew where to put us for this kindness to happen. We certainly felt genuine concern from the camp staff as they asked us daily how things were going.

Consider the fact that Sharon’s sister from Virginia needed a place to stay when she came to visit that week and we just happened to have room for a guest in our camper. God was at work for her as well.

There is far more to the story than I could ever tell here. But there were two things that stood out to me that week: 1). Family is so important and; 2). When going through tough times, God is very near. We just need to call on His name and trust His plan.

“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” – John 15:12

July 4, 2018 3

Spring… Finally!

It has been a while since The Traveling Kites have traveled, but spring is finally here. You may be quick to remind me that spring actually arrived a month ago, but we live in western Pennsylvania so trust me; spring has finally arrived!

We made an appointment several weeks ago to pick up our camper today from its winter storage home in the mine at Brady’s Bend, PA. Since the temperature in the mine is in the 50’s year-round, I don’t winterize before we take it there. Instead, we try to time it to get the camper put away before the sub-freezing temperatures set in and pick it up when we no longer have to fear freezing our pipes. Our timing today was impeccable! Last night, the temperature dipped into the upper 20’s, but beginning tonight, our low temps are to be above freezing.

We invited our two granddaughters over for a girls weekend at our house. Addison and Aly are cousins and are a little more than a month apart in age. Both are the only girl in their family, so they really enjoy getting together at our house.

Our appointment was for 8:50 AM at the mine, but we had a one hour, twenty minute drive to get there, so we left early. We arrived in good time; about five minutes before our appointment. We went into the office to settle our prorated balance and secure our place for this fall, then we went on, into the mine. One of the escorts met us and led the way to our camper. It is good that they guide you in because it’s like a maze in there and one could easily get lost.When we got to the Hideout, our escort assisted in directing us back toward the tongue of the trailer. It is rather dark in the mine, so this bit of help is appreciated. After hooking up, our guide led us back out, pausing occasionally to instruct me on how to negotiate a blind turn. It could be a bit nerve-wracking, maneuvering through such tight turns, but we have done this a few years now, so we are getting more comfortable.

We stopped in the parking area just outside the mine so I could put on our sway bars and do a walk-around to make sure everything looked good. Then, we were on our way.

I wasn’t sure how the granddaughters would feel about these dark catacombs, but it didn’t phase them a bit and Aly said she was going to tell her teacher all about it!

We stopped for a late breakfast at Bob Evans restaurant on the way home, then backed the Hideout into its place in our yard.

I spent a few hours in the afternoon doing a little maintenance to get ready for our first trip. We are excited to get this new season under-way.

“The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever” ~Psalm 121:7-8 (NIV). We have certainly felt God’s protection throughout our lives and, though our future is uncertain, we do not fear anything that is to come.

Here’s wishing you a great summer!

April 21, 2018 2

Wintering

Winter in western Pennsylvania can bring some drastic changes in a very short time. Yesterday was one of those days. I picked up my mother for lunch at Amazing Foods Catering Co. & Cafe in Franklin. In the 24 hours previous to our lunch, we saw rain and temperatures nearing 60 degrees. I loved it! But, as we were warned by the weather folks, a big change came. It happened over lunch. When we entered the restaurant, it was 52 degrees outside. When we came out afterwards it was 42. But, it was even worse than that! We dropped 20 degrees within two hours and the downward trend continued as the rain turned to sleet, then snow. When we woke up this morning, there was about nine inches of drifting snow on the ground. I spent an hour-and-a-half shoveling.

If you’ve read our introductory blog post, you know that we are working toward retiring with a Class B or C RV to travel to warm weather during the winter months. We have been following several families on YouTube that have done just that. They bring us inspiration and help us narrow our focus of what we think we would like for the journey.

Although we have not yet entered the fray as YouTube content creators, we have started this travel blog and post my photography to our Instagram page (@thetravelingkites). Things were rolling along quite nicely during the summer camping season, but then winter hit. As I write, there are 55 miles separating us from our Keystone Hideout travel trailer. It is in the mine at Bradys Bend. I wrote about storage day here.

As winter gets long, one thing that we have done the past two years to break up the frozen season is to attend the Pittsburgh and Erie RV shows. The Pittsburgh show is always in January and the Erie show is in February. It was recommended to us by some friends that we try the Ohio RV Supershow this year. Held in Cleveland, this show is proclaimed to be the country’s largest indoor RV show. We had originally planned on going to Pittsburgh today, but the Cleveland show was also this weekend, so we decided to go to Cleveland instead. Then… the big snowstorm! We thought we would rather not show up on one of those YouTube interstate pileup videos, so we called today’s trip off. Pittsburgh is about a one-and-a-half-hour drive and Cleveland two-hours-twenty-minutes. Who knows how long it would take today? So, now we wait a month for the smaller Erie show.

So, at this almost-mid-way point through the winter, I thought it appropriate to check in to let you know we’re still here and looking forward to spring. Binx, the camping cat, is as anxious as we are to get back out there. As for now, I’ll just happily sip my coffee.

A couple of weeks ago, we made reservations for Memorial and Labor Day weekends. It feels good to have a couple of trips scheduled. The planning continues as we consider our vacation travels for this summer. So, stay tuned! The 2018 camping season will kick off in a few months. In the mean-time, stay warm and healthy. We’ll see you after the Erie RV show!

January 13, 2018 1

RV Shopping

Have you ever narrowed a search down to two products and found that you oscillate back and forth between them, causing you to be powerless to make a decision? That is the case with us as we look toward our retirement RV (still a few years off… thankfully).

Over the past six months, we have watched numerous YouTube videos and scoured the magazines and websites to try to narrow our search toward the perfect solution for our traveling dreams.

Perhaps in a situation like this, it is best to start with what is important to you. Here’s our list:

Small enough to maneuver without the need of a “toad” (towed-behind car)
Small enough to park wherever we want to go
Bathroom and tanks large enough to be usable for showers, etc.
At least one extra seat belt for those occasions when we would invite a grandchild along
At least one extra convertible bed

Until yesterday, we had pretty-much narrowed in on a Class B van. We like that you can park them anywhere you can park a car. The easy driving would not necessitate a toad, nor would the towing capacity support such a venture.

One of our favorite vans has been the Winnebago Travato 59K. We like the openness of the interior with all of the windows it has to offer. We like the rear bath and the fact that it doesn’t have dualies on the back (two less tires to buy). We like that it has a gasoline engine in the Dodge ProMaster chassis.

The 59K has some pretty serious drawbacks though; at least for our wish list. For one, it doesn’t have a third seat belt and it doesn’t have an extra bed. And though we like the rear bathroom in this Travato, we do not like the way you have to snap in the shower curtain. Those are only a few things, but they are deal-breakers for us.

We looked at the Travato 59G and man, does the inside feel dark and small! It does have the extra seat belt and convertible bed, but the double bed in the back seems small and we don’t like the way it folds up with no usable seating space incorporated. Another deal-breaker.

We would like to take an in-person look at the Hymer Aktiv 2.0. It looks to have a lot of the amenities of the Travato 59G, but the bed is larger, spanning the entire width of the back of the van. The bathroom is half-way up the narrow walkway, so that may seem very small to us. We suspect that this van will also cause us concern that we will not be able to overcome. There always seems to be give-and-take when it comes to a van.

Yesterday, we took a look at a couple of Class C motor homes that were slightly larger than a van and offer so much more by way of our wish list. We took another look at one we had seen in the spring; the Winnebago Fuse 23A. Wow, is this a nice motor home for couple-travel! It has just about everything we would want: extra seat belts, extra bed, dry bath (including a separate, enclosed shower stall). This RV is nice!

There are a couple of things we do not like as much about the Fuse. For one, the size is a bit larger than a van; large enough to cause some driving and parking concerns. We hear there are National Parks and city destinations that allow a Class B van, but not a Class C motor home to park. So then what? Pull a car? We really don’t want to do that. We are currently exploring a couple of other options that people have done: 1). Occasionally rent a car, or 2). Use Uber or Lyft when we want to go where the Class C isn’t permitted. We need to look further into these options.

While we haven’t landed on the perfect solution for us yet… if it exists, we are sure having a good time looking and are thankful that we are a few years away from making a decision.

We have our calendars marked for the Pittsburgh and Erie RV shows! Will we see you there?

November 12, 2017 1

Winter Storage

We were up early yesterday to shower and get ready to depart at 6:40 AM for our trek to Bradys Bend. With sub-freezing nighttime temperatures imminent, we were at the decision point to either have to winterize for home storage or move the Hideout to a warmer location. We opted for the latter and so we made the trip to the mine for our third winter there.

Since we had such an early departure time, I hooked the camper up the evening before. So, it was sitting there ready to hop in and go. All I had to do was plug in the power cord to the truck and turn on the battery. I had previously moved the propane

tanks into our shed because they are not allowed in the mine.

In a car, I could easily make the drive from home to Bradys Bend in a little over an hour. However, the combination of the extra 7,500 pounds in tow and the hilly, winding roads that get more challenging the further you go, makes for a drive of about an hour, thirty five minutes.

Upon arrival at the mine, the process is to first check in at the office building, where you sign the lease and pay for five months of storage. Then, when the escorts are ready, you follow a truck into the mine. When you get to the areas where the corners are tight, one of the men in the escort truck gets out and follows on foot behind the camper. His purpose is to watch the tail swing of the camper when we make the sharp corners, to give a yell if I am about to scrape the wall. Thankfully, that didn’t happen.

When we got to the location they had ready for us, we followed the direction of the two men, flashlights in hand, as they guided us back into our space. Their help is a good thing to have because of the combination of darkness and damp mirrors.

After we unhooked, the escorts guided us out of the mine and we were on our way.

We went cross-country toward Harrisville to have breakfast at Family Traditions Restaurant. They have a breakfast buffet on Saturdays and Sundays that is quite good.

And so ends our 2017 camping season. Bring on spring!

October 22, 2017 1