On the Road

DAY 1: Canandaigua → Weston, West Virginia.

We were finishing the build right up to the last minute.  Scott was putting the final touches on the shelves and closet, and I was mapping things out a bit further.  The gear and supplies were organized and staged in the studio.  And while I thought I had it planned out correctly, I quickly realized that I had more than fit in the van. An unfortunate discovery the morning of departure… so the first big challenge was to quickly pare things down and reload the van.  Everything fit in like a jigsaw puzzle.  This would prove to be a problem, but more on that later….

We hit the road late in the morning on a dreary, gray, and cold March day, heading towards Weston, WV, by way of Pittsburgh, PA.  I had booked a spot to park the van at a winery through Harvest Hosts.  

My Harvest Hosts membership plays an important role in the whole trip, so let me explain.  It opens you up to stay at thousands of wineries, breweries, museums for no charge.  There is an expectation that you support the business. 

It’s not a surprise that on this first day of travel I was running a wee bit late, but I called the good people at Lambert’s Winery, and they said “no problem… we’ve got a fire going on the patio.” Enjoy!  

After taking beautiful winding roads to get to the winery, I found the owner still there.  I bought a bottle of wine, and Zeke and I settled in by the fire.  It was a lovely old stone fireplace that he stoked for his Harvest Host guests, and the beautiful setting and his graciousness really made me feel safe and excited on this first night of travel.  What a perfect start.  

And then it got better, this lovely family from Syracuse rolled in in a big RV and joined me by the fire.  They were coming off a three-month trip, and the four kids shared all their favorite spots with me and helped to reshape my trip. They were also playing real games and engaging with each other… no electronics in sight.  It reminded me of another era, and provided some of the inspiration for minimizing technology on the road and forgoing social media.  

I returned to the van on this rainy evening and cooked myself a hot dinner… a spiced-up ramen with chicken and vegetables added. I think it may be the only night of the trip that I actually cooked in the van.  Zeke and I snuggled in for the night and had a great first sleep in the van.

We wouldn’t see more rain for almost two months.