So we’re almost two weeks into this new lifestyle of leisure and relaxation and I’m going to say that I think I’ll be okay with this transition. We still do some of the everyday things that we have always done: wake up, let the dogs out, make fresh cup of hot coffee…

It’s just nice to not be rushed in doing any of those things, thinking that there is something else I have to be doing.

The hikes have been awesome!!! It’s a real neat feeling to walk outside your house and just walk into the woods…walk in any direction you like, for as long as you like, usually until you feel the taste of a cold beer coming on and then you realize that there are two door prizes on the door of the fridge from last night. YES!!!

We both spend a lot of our days planning our next meal, looking for new things to try and new ways of cooking on the smoldering coals of a hot fire that has been building up fuel for the past two days

Highlights so far: being able to stay in Shenandoah National Park when we were one of five other campers in the city of a campground that we stayed in (real nice CG but there were at least 160 sites and on Saturday night a majority of them were taken), Seneca Rocks in WVa (I had no idea that this even existed in WVa), baking fresh muffins with berries we picked on a hike, scenic highway 150 through W Va

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I’d have to say that the biggest and best difference between this trip and the other cross country trips we’ve taken together is the extra space in the vehicle, not feeling cramped and the simplicity of setting up camp. Not that setting up a 5x7 tent is really all that complicated or time-consuming but compared to just pulling the porch awning off the side of the rig, well, it is more complicated. There are always those other things, though, that we now have think about that we never had to think about before, the most basic one being whether or not the vehicle fits in a spot at all. Or is the parking area just too slanted to even try to make it slightly level at all. We still have our good ol’ reliable tent that has served us so well that we can set up in that situation if need be. And no matter where or how we sleep, it’s still not too bad of a lifestyle to be fortunate enough to experience.

Of course, there are lots of things we have yet to learn about the UltraStar. As with buying anything that has a lot of mechanical and electrical intracasies, there is always a learning curve if how to maintain it or just flat out trying to figure out how to work it. There’s whole panels of buttons, knobs, and lights that, I’m sure, all do something but we just haven’t figured them all out yet. Who knows, maybe some of them just don’t work.

It takes time and getting used to all the cracks, pings, rattles and pops that you hear and not overthinking the severity of the sounds.

It’s just like the paranoia I felt the first winter we owned our house when I thought our 15 year old furnace would either not work or just explode every time I turned on the heat. It only took a month or so to get used to the initial clunk of the furnace when it turned on and the heavy, deep exhale it seemed to exude when the hot air began to circulate through the house. The point of all this is that there’s always something that can go wrong, whether it’s the furnace not starting or the house batteries not keeping a charge and the generator not turning over. But most garages, especially in a small town in the middle of West Virginia, are closed on Sunday’s so there’s nothing you can do but wait…and enjoy the scenery of camping in a beautiful eastern deciduous forest beside a smooth flowing stream. Maybe take a hike to the top of the mountain of which this stream is a valley of. And stop. And breathe. And watch. And listen.

And sit on the bank of the creek beside your campsite and watch small trout scurry around feeding on the multitudes of flies swarming just above the waters brim while larger trout idle lazily with mouth’s open waiting for food floating downstream to unsuspectingly veer into its mouth. And embrace the warm morning breeze that creates layers of prismatic ripples on the waters surface. This is Tea Creek CG within Monongahela National Forest in WV at the junction of Tea Creek and the Williams River. Absolutely beautiful country here. The creek sits at about 3200 feet with the ridges of the mountains on either side raising another 1000 feet. And the wildlife. Fish and birds and red squirrels that seem to, very purposefully, taunt the dogs, especially Nola. Oh and don’t forget about the black bears. We didn’t get a chance to snap a picture but we did see a black bear (decent size, about 200 pounds) cross through the campground last night. Right about dusk. The CG host didn’t think it was the same one that has been seen there for the past two weeks rooting through campers coolers (why are the coolers out in the first place, I don’t know). Maybe work caught in the bear community that there are some good eats over in Tea Creek. I can’t say I blame them very much. Opening a cooler to get raw hamburger and pork loins sounds a lot easier that hunting berries and such in a vast forest. The shame of this is that these bears are tagged as “nuisance bears” and will have to be shot for this reason. Although it was real cool to see a bear of that size so close I would have to say that I do enjoy the prospect of seeing them from a distance rather than within my site. That, personally, is my motivation in not leaving any food (even dirty dishes) out in the open, but hey, some people like the excitement!