Long Winter Journey To The West - Part 1

This is part 1 of this trip. For other parts use these links:

Part 2: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-2.html

Part 3: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-3.html

Part 4: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-4.html

Part 5: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-5.html

Part 6: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-6.html

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June 2023

Note: This is the short report of a road trip that I took between December 2, 2022 and January 6, 2023. I primarily focused on video and the phot quality is not very good but serves the purpose. One day I may get a chance to put them together and put out a video as well, but until then I hope you enjoy this summarized photo report. I will eventually add more text. Thanks for reading.

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December 2022

 It was end of the semester and people had already left the town. To be honest I wasn't ready for any trip as I had so many unknown going on in my life. After a few days I realized staying at home and waiting for something to happen is not a good idea. There are two types of people in this world, those who do what they want to do and those who can't and I was in the latter category those days. So I decided to leave the old devil at home and hit the road, after all we have the right (or at least we should) to choose how to end if we have no control on how to continue. For some other reasons that I may explain one day, this was also a crucial trip to make some really serious decisions. 

I packed all gears and put it on the back of White Dwarf. I tried to be lightweight as a camper but I had much more gears than a backpacker. At the end of the trip I was very happy with the choices I made and I didn't ask for anything more than I had and never felt I wish I had brought something more.

The plan was unknown, as it has been for the last few years. I have abandoned that meticulous planning mind many years ago. I left at sunset and found myself on Natchez parkway and good old Busby campsite.

Inside the camper was unorganized and a big mess as I haven't planned this trip. I removed all extra shelving and attachments. There were only two rows of narrow and simple two layer shelves on both sides on top of wheel rim. The main upgrade was a new power system. many people go solar but after giving a lot of thoughts and comparing efficiency and cost, I installed a DC to DC charger and a simple AGM battery. It was more than I needed for the lights and my electronics. It worked just perfect.

I was feeling tired and a good sleep after driving for a few hours in dark was most needed.

After breakfast and coffee we continued westward the next day.

Twyla reminds of my early day excitement's. She is always curious. 

Twyla enjoyed rest stops, especially those with a lake! This one in Arkansas has always been windy when we were there. I was feeling the cold winter.

We continued to Louisiana. Weather was nice and rainy but finding a nice campsite was more challenging than I expected. I checked a few campsites that were ranked very high but they were Walmart camper kind of folks, camping on a paved road, closest to the bathroom so they don't walk a lot and they didn't suit us well. I continued looking for a better campsite and we found a perfect place just before the sunset.

My experiment with kitchen configuration continued. It is getting better but I am note quite happy yet.

This was a very nice and improved campsite. Despite a paved road and very nice and clean bathrooms it wasn't filled with Walmart campers. It was popular with fishermen.

I mastered the art of buttered tortilla (it works great with mayo too).

We continued to Texas and a nice and warm campsite, next to lake was our next stop for a couple of days.

We have an interruption in our journey as I receive an interview opportunity and I had to show more civilized lifestyle. So we spent a night in motel, and I did my interview over zoom.

Right after the interview we were on road again, heading west to one of my favorite campsites. It brought back so many good memories from a few years ago I camped here.

I enjoyed making crispy toast and jam and butter breakfast.

After another couple of days here, it was time to move on. West Texas is a challenging place for camping and most people end up camping in city parks or Walmart or casino parking lots but this time I was lucky to find a nice semi-wild campsite.

My next leg of journey is New Mexico and Arizona. I think these are more serious states for outdoor adventures and very unique and wonderful geography to explore around.

Continue reading part 2: http://www.barefootwalk.net/2023/06/long-winter-journey-to-west-part-2.html