Thanksgiving weekend in the SoCal Desert

Hard to believe but it has already been 5 months. We have no idea how, or where the time went, but that’s what the calendar says.

To be honest, we know where the time has gone. We have been camping.

We normally take advantage of the long Thanksgiving weekend to head out, and this year it was out to Death Valley with a few of our friends from American Adventurist.

The initial plan was to meet at the Trona Pinnacles on Friday, giving everyone a chance to enjoy the holiday with their families. Then, break camp on Saturday morning and move through Jawbone Canyon to Lake Isabella. Though the weather was perfect at the Pinnacles there was a threat of a winter storm in the mountains we would need to pass through, so a group decision was made to change directions and spend a night in Death Valley National Park. A good trip is all about being flexible.

Green Water Valley – Death Valley National Park

This was a great decision. We had some heavy winds Saturday evening and even got a few minutes of sprinkles but all in all, the weather was beautiful. Baby W had a few minutes of cold, but she and Paige spent the windy, rainy part of the evening in a friends warm camper. By the time everyone was ready for bed, the weather had settled enough for people to get some sleep. The wind howled through the night, but no one was any worse for the wear.

Getting breakfast going on the Tembo Tusk Skottle

The sun was up high the next morning, and Cris pulled out the Skottle to make our typical camp breakfast of sausage, potatoes and eggs. (We eat better when we are camping than we do at home)

Hanging out in the trailer like a professional camper

We also made a big decision this weekend. Long trips are harder when only one of us can sleep in the camper with the baby. She’s awesome when we travel, but she does have some fussiness in the evenings and at night, so to have both of us in there would be really helpful.

So, in light of this issue, we’ve decided to transition back to a tent while we search for a used cab-over or something of that sort. While we absolutely love our trailer, and really thought we could make it work by doing some light remodeling, we have come to the conclusion that three bodies, even little ones, do not fit in there.