We leave for Colorado Thursday. We'll pick up the Airstream and head up to Summit County for a week where we can get familiar with it in an area familiar to us. I've reserved a campsite on Lake Dillon. It has no hook-ups, but the few camps that do are either booked or closed due to work related to the pine beetle infestation (that's another story for another time.)I'm having a difficult time sorting what to pack when it comes to clothes. We will be in several different climates and seasons over the next few months, so we need appropriate clothing for each. And we'll be enjoying many diverse activities from hiking and fishing to site-seeing though cities and visiting friends. God forbid, I allow us to look like dirty, crumpled yahoos when we finally get a night out at a nice restaurant in Vancouver or San Francisco. There are no dressers in the trailer, and only one small closet. We need to plan and pack wisely. This is probably, for me, the most stressful aspect of planning this trip, because, as everyone knows, I like my life to make sense. If it's cold I want a sweater; if it's colder I want a jacket. If I'm hiking I want my hiking shoes and my backpack--oh, and maybe a windbreaker. Oh, and then there's the shoe conundrum. Can hiking boots go with a black dress? Can I justify the cowboy boots if I only wear them with the jeans and not the tennis skirt? This logic only confounds me further as I imagine every scenario in which we may find ourselves and the necessary attire and gear that it calls for. Where to stow all this crap I don't know.
However, I seem to have no problem deciding what electronic, photographic, and communication equipment to take. All my toys get to come: two laptops and printer, two cameras with extra lenses and a tripod, a camcorder, two Ipods, a projector, cell phones, a data card, binoculars, and of course all the respective cables, wires and adapters, and software. Obnoxious, isn't it? But I cannot imagine this adventure without the materials and equipment I "need" to document it. We may need a trailer to pull behind the trailer for my techie gear.
I am making a sacrifice to weight limit by not bringing a lot of reading material. (Books are heavy.) I understand that by camping we will be "roughing it" (as much as you can in a new Airstream International CCD with audio package and queen bed.) And I'll keep the weight down by skimping on the kitchen stuff. Once, William-Sonoma was my toy store back when I thought I could buy my way into becoming a good cook. But I'm prepared now to eat on paper plates and cook with inferior-grade cookware. I've packed a whisk and a wooden spoon. The rest we'll buy as needed.
My heart will not be troubled. I will learn to adapt and appreciate--two things I am good at. This adventure is self-inflicted and I intend to enjoy every minute of it.
1 comment:
Well, here I am again, making an additional comment about stocking your Airstream. You don't want to cook with aluminum cookware. I suggest you watch for an outlet mall with kitchen stores. They often carry Revere Ware, wich is lightweight, but it is stainless steel. I cooked with Revere for many, many years. It served me well. You obviously can't take along your All Clad :-(, so try finding a few basic pieces of the Revere Ware, like 10" skillet, a couple of saucepans and a dutch oven. Being the true southerner I am, I did take along a small iron skillet for cornbread. Yum! Also, you can find lightweight dishes, check at places like Wal-Mart or Fred's, or perhaps the Dollar Tree. I found the old melmac type dishes that worked well in our trailer. You can find plastic glasses that look like the real thing, you just can't put them in the dishwasher--it will crack them. I had plastic mixing bowls. We did have real flatware, no plastic spoons and forks for us. :-) Just remember the manual appliances, like can opener, knife sharpener, hand-held mixer, etc. lightens the load as well. Sounds "skimpy", but we had a fully equipped kitchen. The Glad storage containers work well, they are lightweight and durable. Don't take a lot of food with you, shop along the way as you need items, the food just adds more weight. We never traveled with water in the holding tank, we would fill it after we arrived at our destination and then empty it before we traveled. Water is heavy and costs you more in gasoline.
I'm really excited for you, makes us want another Airstream. Believe me, my husband is very interested in your adventure.
Post a Comment