Let’s step back in time and explore Fort de Chartres, a French colonial fort in southern Illinois. This massive stone fort is now managed by the Illinois DNR as a state park. Featuring the oldest building in Illinois, the fort is an important part of the history of the French…
Our first drive as full-timer RVers would have been at least 6 ½ hours (probably more with towing) so we decided to split the drive into two days. We found a Harvest Hosts spot at almost the exact halfway point in Atlanta, Illinois on historic Rte. 66. (Read more about…
After 7 months of stationary full-time RVing, we were finally ready to actually hit the road. To start our adventures, we headed down to southern Illinois to see total eclipse and explore the Shawnee National Forest. From our home base, this is about a 6 hour drive even without towing…
We knew we had some repairs to do on the RV before hitting the road, but they were mostly pretty minor. The biggest projects we had were things like creating a built-in desk and an enclosure for Rosie. We did NOT expect to have to learn how to replace RV…
Our RV awning was in desperate need of replacement. There were a few years between the RV being used by Josh’s grandpa and us getting it where it was neglected. The arms and motor were all good- it was just the awning fabric itself that was heavily damaged. So, like many…
We did a double feature adventure day visiting both the ruins of the Lincoln Park Nursery and the burial site of the first nuclear reactor in Lemont, IL. These sites are located within Waterfall Glen preserve in DuPage County and Red Gates Woods preserve in Cook County, respectively- but only…
One of the most important spaces we renovated in our RV was the kitchen. Besides being a visually large space, it’s a space we use 3-7 times a day (I’m a snacker). When you use a space that often, you need it to be functional, especially when it’s a small…
When Josh left his previous job and we had to move out of our park ranger house, we had 60 days to go from a 2 story, 2 bedroom house with garage to a 30 foot travel trailer. Which meant a LOT of downsizing for starting RV life. We had…
Our cat, Betsey, has been travelling with us since we started taking weekend RV trips in 2020. We strongly believe in animals being secured in vehicles- both for our safety and theirs. Over the years we’ve experimented with a variety of cat travel systems. Every animal has a different personality,…
We always used LED light bulbs in our house because of electric bill savings, but are they worth it in an RV? LED lights are popular because they last longer (up to 40x as long!), are more energy efficient, perform better in the cold, and emit less heat. But we…