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The road is indeed long and winding,
especially out west in the United States!
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When I thought about this blog post on road travel, The Hollies’ iconic song He Ain’t Heavy He’s My Brother immediately came to mind:
“The road is long,
With many a winding turn…”
Camping with Kids or even travelling with kids, the road is always long. And loud. And complicated.
Case in point:
It was my son who first coined the expression in our family. He was looking out the window at yet another long and winding road on one of our camping trips.
“Mom,” he called to me.
I turned around in my seat.
He shook his head, pointing out the window to the many construction signs popping up along the roadway. “Road destruction,” he said in his innocence.
Actually, he is correct. More often than not, it seems the construction workers first destroy the road completely before building it back up. Oh, and this always takes a long, long, long time to complete. Or maybe it’s just where I live. What do you think?
[Rest assured. I understand that road maintenance is an ongoing battle.]
Travelling across the country with five children, especially when there was a lot of road construction, we stopped in the late afternoon, well before dinnertime, to set up camp. Some of the campgrounds along major highways seemed more like overnight parking lots than full-fledge camps. However, we always tried to find a campground with a pool and playground, the only concession I could offer my travel-weary children after they assisted with camp setup.
One particular campground in Iowa proffered the only tree in what seemed like a hundred mile radius. And we camped next to it.
What luck! I thought. And no one else seemed to be camping near it either!
…Then I learned why no one wanted to camp near the tree.
Every bird in that hundred mile radius knew of this heavenly tree and settled there each evening.
Do you realize that birds like to chatter about their day in the evening, just like humans? Hundreds of birds flew to this single, large tree as the sun went down. And hundreds of birds had much to say that evening, in hundreds of different voices, just like humans.
I could barely hear my own children squawking through the noise.
By the way, birds tend to find that elusive first shaft of sunshine in the morning, too. Well in advance of any human ever seeing it. Oh, and those same talkative birds from the night before? They like to chatter, at that time, about what they will be doing during the day.
I wanted to shroud the tree with one of our big tarps so the birds couldn’t see that confounded first shaft of light that we humans never find.
Someone should tell the birds about the “Quiet Hours” enforced on the campers by campground officials. But I guess it wouldn’t matter. Because once the birds finally quieted down, the bugs began their chorus!
I always love reading about your many travels. They make me laugh when I read them. You definitely have a way with words.
Thank you so much, Michelle, for your kind words. They mean the world to me. And thanks a lot for visiting Camping with Kids and leaving a note. Please stop by again!
My parents weren't campers. But I started camping and hiking with my husband. I love the outdoors! When our nieces were little, we took them canoe camping in the NJ Pine Barrens. What a riot! We have great memories from that trip. They are all grown up now and starting families of their own. Time flies. I enjoy your blog, Victoria. I shared the link with a friend of mine who used to camp, and she might think about taking her grandchildren on an outdoor adventure.
Hello and welcome to Camping with Kids, Gail! Thank you so much for visiting my camping blog. Ohmygosh, we've been hiking and camping in the Pine Barrens in New Jersey as well. My son and the twins love it there. Thank you so much for connecting with my Camping with Kids blog and for sharing the camping blog link with your friend. This is greatly appreciated. All the best, my dear!
If you think road repairs in the states take a long time, you wouldn't believe how long they take in the UK.
They barrier off the roadworks then disappear for months. One of our main motorways has had roadworks on it for 3 years!
Bill
http://www.walksintameside.co.uk
If you think road repairs in the states take a long time, you wouldn't believe how long they take in the UK.
They barrier off the roadworks then disappear for months. One of our main motorways has had roadworks on it for 3 years!
Bill
http://www.walksintameside.co.uk
Always a pleasure seeing you here at Camping with Kids, Bill. Now I can't vouch for the roadways when we cross the country, but here in New Jersey, roadwork takes years. At least the major construction does. They have been "redesigning" one of our major arteries for at least 3 years now. All the best to you, Bill. Thanks for leaving a note on Camping with Kids.
Thank you so much for your note on Camping with Kids, Bill. It is truly appreciated. I made a detailed comment on the second note you left. Thanks again for visiting Camping with Kids!
The wildlife is problematic when camping. They never observe the quiet hours! 😉 It's been awhile since I camped, but being an insomniac, there were tons of interesting things to listen to all night long.
Hello and welcome to Camping with Kids, Shannon! You know, I'm a bit of an insomniac too, especially when camping. I went tent camping last week with my daughters and followed the moon's journey through the night sky from the little screened tent window. So much interesting night noise to discern. Thank you so much for stopping by Camping with Kids and leaving a note. Please stop by again.
It was a nice small camp area surrounded by bushes, so it feels very private. https://kitchengearreviews.com/
Hello and welcome to Camping with Kids, Jade! Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving a note. Sometimes smaller camps can seem more intimate. All the best to you.