Maiden Voyage, Day 4: The Peak
Our stay at Cracker Barrel delivered us one final rite of passage as we left the parking lot. Despite a nearly empty lot behind the building, vehicles were crammed in out front. Our 56 feet of combined length isn’t easy to maneuver, especially for newbies who are only 250 miles into RV life. So when we came across another truck and trailer, parked in the middle of the front parking lot, and obstructing a curve we needed to round on our way out, we were pretty nervous. My nerves were temporarily squelched when I got out to direct Anthony and noticed that there were two alpacas in the trailer, but I quickly got back to the task at hand, which was ensuring that Anthony could round the curve without damage to the curb, Buggy, or the alpaca trailer. We took our time and successfully squeezed our way out of the parking lot.
Driving north, we traveled through West Virginia, Maryland, and into Pennsylvania. Now officially halfway through our maiden voyage, we needed a break from the stress of this massive leap of faith. We knew we’d be passing right by Hershey, PA, and although the amusement park is closed for the season, we had heard about a nearby botanical garden that was supposed to be beautiful. So I put my travel planning skills to good use and found us a HipCamp spot, boondocking on a Christmas tree farm about 20 minutes outside Hershey. HipCamp is like Airbnb but for camping spots. Many locations allow both tent and RV camping, and you pay a fee to stay on the land. Being that it was a holiday weekend and we were making last-minute plans, it was refreshing to see really cool, quirky options available for a night’s stay. And so, we made our way toward Hershey, looking forward to an afternoon among the flowers and a night among the pine trees.
We kept things as simple as possible, backing into the open lot at the front of the Christmas tree farm. It was the most unlevel ground we had leveled on to date, but that’s not saying much considering we had only leveled once before! It took us a while to get situated, but we were proud of how well we handled our approach to the farm on a small, uphill road, and our successful backing-in job onto the grassy lot.
We couldn’t wait to cash in on our reward for a job well done so far, heading over to take a peaceful walk through the paths of the Hershey Botanical Garden.
The botanical garden was filled with seasonal fall blooms, pumpkins, a flourishing rose garden, and a bonsai exhibit. The garden also houses a butterfly atrium, where you can walk among the butterflies and learn about the different varieties. The atrium brought us back to one of our first dates 9 years ago, when we visited a butterfly sanctuary up in MA. It’s amazing to see so many of these beautiful insects at once, up close and personal.
Slowing down for the afternoon was exactly what we needed. We love taking walks in nature and had gotten sick of constant highway driving, day after day. Spending more time in nature reminded us of why we’re choosing the RV life. We want to be able to relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings that our country offers us. We brought that mindset back to the Christmas Tree Farm, where we lowered the ramp door and set up our patio for the first time. Sitting on the patio, drinking tea, and watching the horses was our first real glimpse into what this lifestyle could mean for us.
And then, as though the Universe was giving us a thumb’s up for our choices, the night sky lit up with distant fireworks, which we watched through the trees from our own mobile viewing platform.
The serenity of the evening couldn’t even be dampened by the crazy amount of bugs that flew into our rig during our patio time. We made a mental note to very quickly lower our screen the next time we lower our ramp door. Camping is fun, but I could definitely do without mosquitoes biting me in my own home. Nevertheless, we went to bed feeling great. We saw our vision of RV life come true for one night, and that was a pivotal moment.
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Nicole Anderson