newsletter - Have Children Will Travel

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H WILL TRAVEL
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jSumUMMERinter 2005 VOLol 10 #1
Fun Family AdventureS
TRAVEL IDEAS & INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES OF ALL AGES
Unique
un Away & Join...
R
Circus Smirkus, a nonprofit art
and educational organization dedicated to giving kids an opportunity
to life enhancing
adventures in the
circus arts. Introduce your kids to a
clown’s life: the science of falling down
on purpose, the
ancient art of piein-the-face, tumble
through a hoop, ride a unicycle or
walk on stilts, take to the high
wire, swing above the crowd from
a trapeze, and even juggle upside
down. Choose from programs
like the Big Top Tour, where dur-
WHAT’S
INSIDE...
Family Adventures . . .
1
Turks & Caicos. . . . . . 2
Tips Tricks Tactics . . . 4
Journey to Botswana. . 6
Travelin’ Grandma . . . 7
Jaunts & Europe . . . . . 8
Stroll Disney World. . 11
A Southwest Trek . . . 12
Utah’s Francis Peak . 16
My Toddlers & Me. . . 18
Getaways
for
the Whole
ing the summer Smirkus Troupers
(graduates of Smirkus Camp) and
ages 10-18 perform to crowds
throughout New England under a
700-seat one-ring Big Top. Train
at summer Smirkus Camps at the
Sterling College campus in Craftsbury Common, VT with Circus
Camp for beginners to intermediate;
Family Camp for adults and their
kids; Smirkling Camp for 6-8 year
olds, and Advanced Camp. Circus
Smirkus Academy in Essex, VT is a
year-round non-residential circus
arts program for all ages and skills.
802-533-7443
1 Circus Road, Greensboro, VT 05841
http://www.smirkus.org
B
With Spri ng . . .
come
baby farm animals and apple blossoms at Old Sturbridge Village,
a living museum
depicting rural
life in early 19thcentury New
England. Check
out the heritage breeds of animals
and the latest arrivals of lambs,
chicks, calves, and piglets. Watch
the Village farmers plow the fields
with oxen in preparation for this
year's crops. In bloom are varieties
of apple trees, flowering shrubs,
heirloom bulbs, and seedlings in
the kitchen gardens. Enjoy demonstrations of blacksmithing, hearth
cooking, pottery, needlework,
Family
spinning or weaving, broom making, dairying, and water-powered
mills. Step up to the batter’s
mound during the Memorial weekend festivities and see how "base
ball" was played (and spelled) differently in another era. Find seasonal and holiday celebrations all
year-round.
800-SEE-1830
1 Old Sturbridge Village,
Sturbridge, MA 01566
http://www.osv.org
BlueBells, Prickly Pear
& Giant Swallowtail at
Lady Bird Johnson’s Wildflower
Center dedicated to protecting
and preserving North America’s
native plants and natural landscapes. Located in Austin, Texas
on 279 acres, the Center has over
15 acres of gardens, 16 display
gardens, and 600 different species
of native plants. Stroll among the
gardens showcasing majestic oak
trees, evergreen mountain laurel,
wildflower meadows filled with
rainbows of color, a wetland pond
with bubbling streams, designer
courtyards, and demonstration gardens for the home
gardener. Hike the
trails through a
Savanna meadow
and along the Hill
Country. Kids will love the Butterfly
Garden, an outdoor butterfly habitat
“Adventures” continued on page 3.
“O
shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and
Gus, our cab driver, told us the
n our next vacation Mom,
shower gel. Our room in the newer
island
of
Providenciales
is
I want to learn to snorkel,”
French Village area of the resort
crime-free
and
the
islanders
are
exclaimed our eight-yearoffered garden and pool views.
fondly
called
belongers.
Most
are
old daughter Lizzy as I picked her
The large mahogany, four-poster,
descendants
of
slaves
brought
to
up at school. Her third grade class
king-size bed was soft and elegant;
the
islands
during
the
Loyalist
was studying about the Creatures
however, our daughter’s sofa/bed
settlement
of
the
Caicos
Islands.
of the Sea and some of her friends
was springy and uncomfortable.
Others
came
from
Bermuda
to
shared their snorkeling experiences
The nearby tennis courts offered
work
in
the
salt
industry.
with the class.
complimentary
lessons for all levAfter
a
few
minutes
on
Provo,
That evening, my husband Eric
els
between
8
a.m.
and 10 a.m.,
we
knew
the
islands
were
friendly
announced, “I need a vacation!”
and
a
daily
round
robin
tennis
and
laid
back.
It’s
not
St.
Thomas,
as he came through the door. So,
tournament
at
4
p.m.
I began combing through travel
Beaches Resort offers a choice
magazines and scanning the interof
international dining options.
net for a family-friendly beach
For
our first evening, we chose
resort. My husband wanted an
the continental-style,
all-inclusive resort with
Schooner Restaurant
daily activities. I wanted a
overlooking Grace Bay
beautiful beach to walk at
Beach. We ordered delecsunset, and our daughter
table all-you-can-eat
wanted to swim in warm
Alaskan King Crab Legs
water and snorkel.
piled high on our plates.
By
Jill
&
Eric
Weinlein
One island was touted
The following mornin a national travel magaing
our
breakfast at famizine as having it all. Grace
ly-friendly
Giuseppe’s
Bay Beach on the island
featured
a
huge
buffet of
of Providenciales in the
fresh
fruit,
breakfast
rolls,
British West Indies was
made-to-order
omelets,
described as one of the
cereals, pancakes, and
best beaches for diving and
delicious scones. After
snorkeling in the world.
breakfast we took a tour
On the internet, I found
for an overview of the
Beaches Resort and Spa
resort. We saw four pool
at Turks and Caicos, a
areas with swim-up bars
family oriented, all-incluand the adults-only hot
sive Sandals resort located
tub overlooking Grace
on Grace Bay. It offered
Bay. Next we ventured to
land and water sports,
the Cuda Kids Club and
children’s programs and
Find plenty of beach play at Beaches Resort,Turks and Caicos. met the nannies that baby
a great location. So we
sit newborns to five-year
booked a trip in February.
old
guests.
Beaches Resort has also
or
Nassau.
Provo
is
dry
and
rocky
Situated southeast of the
partnered
with
Sesame Street.
with
scrub
brush,
yet
the
surBahamas are about 40 islands
A
nearby
kid’s
extravaganza,
rounding
waters
are
a
brilliant
and Cays, called Turks and
Pirate’s
Island,
caters to 6 years
turquoise
blue.
Caicos. Some are inhabited, and
and
older
from
9
a.m. to 9 p.m.
Gus
delivered
us
to
our
home
others are barren. One is a sancInspired
by
the
classic
story
for
three
nights
at
Sandal’s
tuary for over 1,000 rare rock
“Robinson
Crusoe”
and
situated
Beaches
Resort
and
Spa
on
iguanas. We booked a flight to
around
a
huge
wooden
pirate
Grace
Bay.
It’s
the
largest
resort
Turks and Caicos, Providenciales,
also known as Provo. This is part property on the island catering to ship, this area for youngsters offers
multi-generational families. Many waterfalls, caves, and two waterof the Caicos western island
slides. Inside the ship is the 50’s
grandparents, with their children
chain. Turks consists of the eastdiner Bobby D’s serving pizza,
and
grandchildren,
enjoy
the
pools,
ern islands separated from Caicos
Mac n’ cheese and a soft-serve
restaurants
and
Grace
Bay’s
white
by a 22-mile long passage. Provo
ice-cream sundae bar. There is
sand
beach.
All
food,
liquor,
childis only a 65-minute flight from
also a game room with numerous
care,
land,
and
sports
activities
Miami. The weather is usually
interactive electronic games and a
are
included
in
the
lodging
fee.
sunny with an average temperaroom with air-hockey, billiards,
At
check-in
we
received
a
colorture of 83 F. English is the most
ful
bag
filled
with
bottles
of
“Turks/Caicos” continued on page 3.
common language.
TURKS CAICOS
&
2
“Turks/Caicos” continued from page 2.
“Adventures” continued from page 1.
and foosball tables.
The resort abounds with colorful butterflies fluttering near
native hibiscus plants and small
lizards sunning on warm rocks.
Complimentary snorkel and
dive boat trips are offered in the
morning and afternoon. Our
daughter was excited, yet fearful.
We all wanted to see if snorkeling
in Grace Bay is as great as the
magazine claimed. Our first trip
was a boat ride out to Pink Elephant in the Princess Alexandra
Nature Preserve. As our snorkel
guide gave instructions, Lizzy
placed a life vest over her head
and readied her mask and tube.
When the anchor was thrown
overboard, she became frightened
and begged to stay on the boat
while we jumped in. After a pep
talk from her dad and the instructor, she followed us and another
little girl into the warm water.
Holding my hand she finally put
her facemask in the water and
pointed to a sea turtle grazing
on sea grass. At first I thought
she might get scared, instead she
swam above this friendly creature
as it gave us a tour of its underwater home. Strawberry grouper
swam among parrotfish and
yellowfin. Colorful coral decorated the sea floor. It was a delightful
snorkeling experience she will
never forget.
After a buffet lunch at the
Tex-Mex Cantina, we took a
catamaran and sailed along
Grace Bay in search of a playful
bottlenose dolphin named Jo-Jo.
Our snorkel instructor had told
us that since the early 1980’s, JoJo has been seen swimming near
shore and sometimes with people
along Grace Bay. The wind and
sea were calm, but Jo-Jo the bottlenose dolphin was nowhere to
be found.
Sailing back to Beaches Resort,
we signed up for another snorkel
trip. This time we bought a disposable underwater camera at the
gift shop and went out to The
Cut, a ten-minute boat ride to
planted with some 300-plant
species to attract and sustain insects.
Discover the ingenious way the
Center collects water needed for
irrigation. The Center also offers
lectures, classes, workshops, adult
and children programs, summer
camps and a library full of resource
material. Festivals kick off the seasons with a variety of events and
activities for the whole family.
512-292-4200
“Turks/Caicos” continued on page 5.
4801 La Crosse Ave., Austin, TX 78739
http://www.wildflower.org
BLUE RIBBON excitement
It’s
at the Iowa State Fair – the
nation’s biggest, oldest, and greatest! From August 11-21 join more
than a million exhibitors and visitors
at the historic 400acre fairgrounds in
Des Moines, Iowa.
Thrill your way
through countless
midway rides and games, cheer to
the tractor pulls and rodeos, and
stomp your feet to the beat of live
rock, country, and bluegrass music.
Then pause for a stroll through the
many exhibit halls with home, garden, cooking, food, art and craft,
and agricultural and educational
displays. The kids will love the
livestock barns – getting up close
to cows, calves, pigs, sheep, and
chickens. Look for the 4-H blue
ribbon winners. Once you’ve
worked up an appetite, you’ll find
oodles of food booths with your
favorite treats for sale.
515-262-3111
POB 57130, Des Moines IA 50317-0003
www.iowastatefair.org
Take
me out . . .
to the ball game with Generations
Touring Company for a Behind
the Scenes look at America’s baseball culture. Join other families for
a 7-day adventure. Begin in New
York City with a tour of the city
and Yankee Stadium followed by a
box seat view of the Yankees taking
on the Anaheim Angels. Then, it’s
off to Cooperstown, NY with a
3
visit to Baseball’s Hall of Fame
during the celebrities’ Induction
Weekend.Your adventure continues
to Boston, home to
the World Champion
Boston Red Sox
and Fenway Park.
Learn about the
Green Monster in
left field and the "Curse of the
Bambino." From your box seats,
watch the Red Sox play the Kansas
City Royals. Generations Touring
Company provides tours throughout the world and is limited to
small groups, are family focused
and foster cultural awareness.
888-415-9100
POB 20187, Seattle, Washington 98102.
www.generationstouringcompany.com
Up, Up, and Away
...as hundreds of brightly colored,
uniquely shaped hot air balloons
take to the air at sunrise over
Telluride, Colorado. The internationally renowned balloon rally
kicks off the summer season from
June 3-5 with an impressive lineup
of featured events like the Wild
West Fest, Jazz Celebration, Telluride Mountain Challenge, Bluegrass Festival, Culinary & Art
Festival, Mushroom Fest, and the
Telluride Film Festival. In between
festivities, explore this 1870s Victorian mining town largely preserved with a National Landmark
status. Nestled in
a canyon in the
San Juan Mountains, Telluride
offers plenty of
activities for the
whole family –
depending on the
season, you can hike, bike, camp,
fish, kayak, golf, rock climb, horseback ride, whitewater raft, dog
sled, ski, snowboard, snowshoe,
and ice skate. Find a variety of
accommodations for every budget.
888-605-2578
630 W. Colorado Ave, Telluride, CO, 81435
http://www.visittelluride.com
“Adventures” continued on page 4.
TIPS TRICKS TACTICS
▲ A family vacation scrapbook
will be treasured for years to
come. During your vacation have
each member of the family jot
down in a small notebook brief
descriptions, feelings, and drawings about memorable trips and
events. Snap favorite shots using
a disposable camera. Encourage
everyone to collect small souvenirs – seashells, driftwood,
postcards, key chains, napkins.
Once home purchase a scrapbook and while each member of
the family shares their special
memories, you’ll be creating a
collage of favorite vacation experiences. Besides reliving your
vacation over and over, you can
learn from these treasured
moments to better plan your
next family adventure.
▲ Spot the historical marker!
On your next family car trip,
keep the kids busy watching for
roadside historical markers.
Reward the child who first spots
a marker with a food treat, dime
or quarter, or special privilege.
Be sure to plan extra time in
your itinerary to stop at the
marker for a brief history lesson.
▲ During a family outing,
whether it’s 2 hours or 2 weeks,
learn to spot the signs that can
turn your child’s smile into a
frown. Anticipate their basic
needs – give them a snack or
grab a meal before they’re hungry, take a nap or break before
they’re tired or worn out, introduce a new activity or offer a
distraction before they become
bored or frustrated. Always tell
your child about the outing and
what they can expect. And, likewise, share what behavior you
expect from them. Spending
time with your child… staying
attentive to the signs… and taking appropriate steps will keep
everyone smiling and actively
involved in the trip experience.
“Adventures” continued from page 3.
Make a DIFFERENCE
with Earthwatch Institute. Work
in the field side by side with scientists collecting information to save
species and their habitats and to
better understand earth and its
people. Learn ways to ensure the
future of our planet.You’ll go places
few people visit and do things few
people get to do. For example,
every spring, female sea turtles
around the world head to the
beaches to mate and lay eggs. The
mating takes place offshore, and
as one turtle researcher describes
it, “Imagine you are an inner-tube
with flippers trying to hold onto
another inner-tube.”
Awkward, yes but
this process has
been going on since
the age of dinosaurs.
With humans collecting eggs, hunting turtles, and using turtle nesting
grounds for resorts, sea turtles the
world over are struggling for survival
and need our help.You can volunteer and observe nesting sea turtle
moms on moonlit beaches, tag and
measure them, count eggs, move
unsuitably placed nests, or help
hatchlings safely scuttle to the sea.
Pick from turtle projects in Costa
Rica, Florida, Trinidad, US Virgin
Islands, Barbados, and Malaysia.
Earthwatch matches people from
all walks of life with scientific and
conservation projects worldwide.
800-776-0188
POB 75, Maynard, MA 01754-2275
www.earthwatch.org
Ahoy Mate!
The Tall Ship
Manitou is about to set sail from
Traverse City, Michigan for the
remote islands, secluded bays,
colorful anchorages, and coastal
villages of Lake Michigan. Manitou,
a replica of an 1800s cargo schooner
offers three daily (2-hr) sails, Bed
& Breakfast sails, and 2-3 day sails.
At a length of 114 ft, the windjammer has a 62-passenger capacity
and 3000 square feet of sail. For
overnight stays 12 private cabins
offer 2 bunk beds with plenty of
room and comfort. Sleeping on
4
the deck under the stars is always
a winner—don’t forget your sleeping bag. While underway, you can
lend a hand and
learn the art of
sailing or sit back
and enjoy the sea
breeze and stunning views. Explore
anchorages by sea
kayak or rowing
dinghy, visit an historical lighthouse
and fishing village, and hike and
beach comb the Manitou Islands.
Enjoy specially prepared meals
cooked on a wood burning stove.
Special events include live band
cruises and an astronomy cruise.
800-678-0383
13390 S.W. Bay Shore Dr.
Traverse City, MI 49684
www.tallshipsailing.com
Learn Spanish in the
Cloud Forest of Ecuador
. . . Italian and the art of Italian
cooking in Italy; and French and
French wine making in France
with Language Liaison.Walk away
with new skills, a new appreciation
for the culture, new friends, and a
new style of travel. Whether a family adventure, a summer camp for
your teen, or an academic program
for work or school, choose a program from over 35 countries, 22
languages, and numerous activities
that provides the perfect language
and cultural experience. The total
immersion, short-term language
programs are for learners of all
levels and
ages and can
be purely
academic or
combined with the arts, adventure,
or work experience. Study is available in a traditional school, while
living with a host family – experiencing life as a native – or for
more individualized study, living
in a teacher’s home.
800-284-4448
POB 1772, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
www.languageliaison.com
BBBBB B
food of the Caribbean.
Next, we visited Turtle Cove and
the outer reef. We jumped into
waved
to Gordon “Butch” Stewart,
an underwater fantasy of friendly
CEO
of
Sandals Resorts, as he
stingrays dancing near our feet
was
enjoying
lunch with some
and schools of at least sixty red
friends
at Banana
snapper swimming
Boat
Bar
and Grill.
alongside us. Huge
Over
a
soda,
Andryell
sea cucumbers restshared
with
us
that
ed on the shallow
Stewart
is
the
nephew
floor, next to beautiof the Prime Minister
ful coral shaped like
of Turks and Caicos.
a human brain. We
He explained that the
decided the travel
island has no income,
magazine was right!
state, property, or gasoFor dinner we enline taxes. The econorolled our daughter at
my prospers from
Pirate’s Island where
offshore finance, conshe ate with her peers
Main pool at Beaches Resort. struction, and tourism.
at Bobby Di’s Diner
Driving towards Chalk Sound
while Eric and I sampled escargot,
National
Park, we stopped at the
pate, duck ala orange and fish at the
Cheshire
Hall Plantation, where
adults-only Le Petit Chateau.
cotton
and
sugar cane were once
The next morning after breakfast
grown
at
this
historic site but, unand a Pilates class at the Temple
fortunately,
the
park and museum
of Relaxation, we toured the
were
closed
for
the
day. Lizzy
island. Since this is a British colony,
noticed
numerous
dogs
along the
we were hesitant to rent a jeep and
side
of
the
road.
“Oh,
those
are pot
drive on the left side of the road.
cakes,”
Andryell
informed
us.
He
Instead we asked the front desk
explained
these
dogs
are
named
for a guide to drive us around. Our
friendly guide Andryell drove past after the food at the bottom of a
numerous condominium develop- pot, they eat the pot cake and
scraps tossed to them after the
ments being built for East coast
family dinner. Two years ago 5,000
and Canadian buyers. As we apof these lovable beasts roamed the
proached the leeward side, he
island. Today their number is down
dropped us off at a boat marina
to about 2,000, thanks to a spaywhere tour boats take visitors to
neuter program spearheaded by
Little Water Cay or Iguana
the TCSPCA.
Island. A ten-minute boat ride
As the sun was starting to set,
took us to the latter, a barren
we
went back to our Beaches
island inhabited by thousands of
Resort
for a refreshing swim and
rock iguanas. Many of these ancient
walk
along
the beach, before our
looking creatures cocked their
final
dinner
at the Japanese-style
heads and stared at us. This particrestaurant
Kimonos.
ular species exists nowhere else on
An entertaining chef came to
earth. We wished we had brought
our
teppanyaki table and began
snorkel gear, because the water
cooking
fried rice, chicken, shrimp,
teemed with brightly colored fish
and
steak.
We could feel the heat
and looked inviting.
from
the
grill
as we watched him
After returning to the marina,
slice,
dice,
saute
and toss the
Andryell drove by the world’s only
cooked
food
onto
our plates.
Conch Farm. Islanders eat the
After
three
fun
days
at Beaches
succulent flesh of the oversized
Resort
we
three
felt
like
belongers.
mollusks in conch chowder, conch
Reluctantly,
we
placed
our
bags in
fritters, conch salad, conch burga
car
to
be
taken
to
the
small
airers, and conch sushi. The farm
port.
As
we
paid
a
$12
per
person
breeds these endangered delecairport departure fee, we waved
tables for both local and overseas
goodbye to our new Provo friends.
markets. Tours are available for
Providenciales was better than
visitors to learn about this staple
5
“Turks/Caicos” continued from page 3.
we expected. Beaches Resort
offered all the activities my husband Eric wanted. We all enjoyed
swimming in the warm waters of
Grace Bay and watching the
magenta sunsets. Our daughter
Lizzy was thrilled to swim with
many of the colorful and friendly
underwater creatures she learned
about in her snorkeling class.
Turks and Caicos is a relaxing
vacation destination that in five or
ten years, I believe will be much
more developed and sophisticated
than it is today. Now is definitely
the time to go and enjoy its pristine
white beaches, swim in unpolluted waters and meet the friendly
islanders and salt water creatures
above and below the sea.
For More Information:
Beaches Resorts
1-800-BEACHES
www.beaches.com
Airlines that fly into Provo:
American Airlines 800-433-7300
US Airways 800-428-4322
Continental 800-231-0856
Bahamas Airways 800-222-4262
Delta Airlines 800-221-1212
Jill Weinlein is a family travel
journalist. Eric Weinlein is a
travel photographer.
ildrAVE
en L
HaWIveLCLhTR
B
“Have Children,Will Travel” provides
ideas, information, advice, insights
and encouragement for traveling with
our children young and old.
P.O. Box 2766, Kamuela, HI 96743
Phone: 808-885-0333
Email: deb@havechildrenwilltravel.com
Web: http://havechildrenwilltravel.com
Publisher/Editor: Deb Cornick
Guest Editor: Myrna Oakley
Contributing Writers: Myrna Oakley,
Robin Norell, Marjorie Thorne,
Jill Weinlein, Randy Farnsworth, Alicia
Hansen, Jennifer Erchul, Tracy Pillow
Copyright ©1996-2005 Deb Cornick
All rights reserved. Have Children,
Will Travel presents information
and research believed to be current
and reliable at time of printing. The
publisher cannot be held responsible
for travel or booking problems encountered as a result of using this
information. Readers are advised
to always telephone for current
information prior to travel.
T
Winery, about 50 km from
CapeTown. My son and I had
Quail for starters, then an appetizing blend of potatoes, cabbage
D
he Kalahari in Africa
reveals itself to only those
who seek with a true heart…
I took my 13-year-old son Caleb
to the Kalahari Desert not realizing that this trip would be such
a memorable journey. The
exotic animals and plants we
went to see didn’t compare
with our encounters with
the Bushmen that call this
unspoiled arid vastness home.
In 1999 the presidents of
Botswana and South Africa
signed a formal treaty that linked
Gemsbok National Park and
the Kalahari National Park
under one unifying name, the
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park.
This created one of the largest
conservation areas in the world.
Caleb and I made our home at
the Twee Rivieren Rest Camp,
the park’s largest camp. Our
thatched-roof bungalow was one
BOTSWANA
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
by Tracy S. Pillow
D
Besides feeding on animals,
the brown Hyena will eat
ostrich eggs and fruit.
Blue Wildebeest are the
least well adapted to life in this
dry environment and need to
drink water every two or three
days in order to survive.
D
D
of several that opened to a large
common area. The camp was
located on a knoll overlooking
the banks of the dry Nossob
The Bushmen have been eking out
an existence on the subcontinent
Riverbed. We saw insects on the
for many thousands of years.
wall of our bungalow and bats flying high in the rafters, while the
and carrots. For the main meal,
hum of the air conditioning proCaleb and I devoured spicy steaks
vided a cool respite.
of ostrich, tender kudo rump, and
Traveling with an African guide
a springbok filet in a sweet herb
in our rented car out into the
marinade. For dessert, sweet red
wilds of the Kgalagadi Park,
Caleb and I saw the tall Secretary pepper ice cream.
As we got ready to turn in for
bird, the Kori bustard and
the night Caleb noticed the bats
Whitebacked and Lappetfaced
vultures. There were also magnif- flittering around the ceiling. A
icent gemsbok, ostriches, playful Gecko also heralded the sunset by
emitting a series of sharp, clicking
springbok, kudo, a big herd of
sounds. The sky was packed with
Blue wildebeest with their
stars and I sudbabies, and
Gemsbok do not need to drink as
denly
felt very
also several
they get most of their moisture
small
against
this
sly jackals.
from a wide variety of succulent
immense back
After another
plants such as tsama melons.
drop of twinkles
outing, Caleb
and the enormous bright moon.
and I put on our swimsuits and
We were awakened at sunrise
enjoyed the swimming pool.
with the sky now a canvas of colBefore dinner on the patio
ors and swirls. Animals made their
common area with other guests,
way to the watering holes and
I opened a bottle of Fleur de Cap
hunted for breakfast. Birds sang
Riesling that I bought at the
and squawked their disenchantBergkelder South African
6
ment with our intrusion. We spotted a vicious looking hyena stalking and circling a herd. The hyena’s
smaller hind legs and large muscular front legs are well designed
for dragging carcasses. As Caleb
and I watched, the brown
hyena brought down a large
gemsbok calf and consumed
at least one third of its body
weight in this single meal.
On this second trek into the
park we sat for quite a while
watching the dance of death when
a thundering dazzle of zebras
stormed past us.
Farther down the dirt path, we
saw a large herd of Blue wildebeest. These creatures are called
the junk food of the African continent because everything preys on
them. We saw a lumbering blackmaned lion, which many visitors
don’t get the opportunity to see.
On the edge of the Kgalagadi
Park, we saw Bushmen living
on small plots of land allocated to
them in 1997. These natives live
primarily in Botswana and nearby
Namibia, although archaeological
traces all over the southern parts
of the continent show that their
presence go back many thousands
of years. They speak a language
called Nama, and they were as
eager to get to know us as we were
them. Ostrich eggs serve the
Bushmen as a source of moisture
and protein and they also use the
eggs to make beautiful crafts. One
engaging woman engraved an
ostrich egg for us and used ostrich
eggshell beads and leather to make
Caleb a unique bracelet that he
wears daily.
Before these camps were established for bushmen families, they
obtained water and food from the
bush. An older man explained,
translated by a guide, that the
Bushmen knew of 20 edible insects
and 180 plants and roots. He even
remembers making quivers for his
“Botswana” continued on page 9.
I
f you can trek to Arizona
during the winter and early
spring months with family, with
friends, or, as I did, in a 27-ft.
motorhome with my 91-year-old
Mom, you’ll no doubt find a number of things to see and do on the
high desert that shouldn’t be
missed.You can not only explore
the local area but you can also
plan other not-to-miss
loops in the region.
By staying put for
awhile and getting
acquainted with the
... hits
local folks you’ll find
the best cafes, restaurants, and bakeries as well as the
best scenic drives, museums, art
galleries and shopping, parks, golf
courses, and the like.
From our spot on the high desert
in Wickenburg (2,000-ft. elevation and population about 5,000)
at Palm Drive Trailer Park we
met a number of new friends visiting from various states located due
north as well as folks from other
states who now live at the park
year round. For example, Shirley
and Clarence go to Sandpoint,
Idaho for the summer and then
return to their double wide modular home in the park in October.
Jean and Jerry moved to Arizona
from Colorado some 35 years ago
and now that Jerry is retired from
dentistry, they’ve down-sized and
last year moved into a double wide
here in the park. Friends Allen and
Rosa from Estacada have a single
wide at Cactus Ranch RV Park
located just 10 miles south of
Wickenburg where they come in
early November returning to Oregon in March or April.
From these and other new friends
here’s our current list of the best
places in the local area: circa 1950s
Screamer’s Drive In (on Wickenburg Way/Highway 60 at west end of
town) for great hamburgers, hand
cut fries, booth seating and takeout; Anita Cochina’s (57 North
Valentine, 928-684-5777, downtown)
for tasty Mexican fare, best seating
is in the smoking area; Basha’s
Grocery (downtown on Tegner/
Highway 93 just north of the traffic
light) for fresh salads and deli
items, freshly cooked potato chips,
and a good bakery as well as fresh
meat counter, fresh fruits and veggies, wide selection of liquors, and
prescription services; The Gold
Nugget Art Gallery (274 E.
Wickenburg Way, 928-684-5849),
near Anita Cochina’s) for excellent
southwestern art, pottery, and
avelin’
Tr
Gr
G andma
the road with mum in
by Myrna Oakley
20 miles northeast and at 4,000-ft.
elevation) for fabulous breakfast
and lunch fare with hefty portions
surrounded by a collection of historic license plates and colorful
kitchen memorabilia; Cornerstone Bakery (also in Yarnell at
191 Broadway Street, open Tuesday
through Saturdays) for incredible
bakery fare such as lemon scones
and huge cinnamon rolls
as well as delicious
homemade soups and
sandwiches amid a
homey atmosphere;
tow.
Houston’s Restaurant
(2425 E. Camelback in
Phoenix, 602-957-9700 and, closer
to Wickenburg, off Highway 101 at
6113 N. Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale, 480-922-7775) for melt in
your mouth hamburgers and great
desserts; Zinc Bistro (15034 N.
Scottsdale Road at the corner of
Greenway Parkway, 480-603-0922)
for elegant and delicious French
fare, outdoor dining, and superb
service.
hree Not-to-miss side trip
loops from Wickenburg:
Prescott and Sedona, (go north
on Highway 89 from Yarnell veering
onto Highway 89A from Prescott to
Sedona) for spectacular red rock
country and great restaurants and
art galleries, www.sedonachamber.
com; Grand Canyon National
Park (go north on Highway 89
from Prescott to Williams and north
on Highways 64 and 180) for awesome south rim vistas, Bright
Angel Trail, and visitor services,
www.nps.gov/grca and www.grand
canyon.org; and, travel a section of
Historic Highway Route 66
(access the scenic two lane road west
of Williams off I-40) that goes from
Seligman to Kingman. Before
returning to Wickenburg via Highway 93 stop for breakfast or lunch
at The Kingman Airport Café,
(6000 Flightline Drive, 928-7574420 open 6:00 A.M. – 2:00 P.M.
Tuesday – Sunday)
T
Take it from Myrna, Cornerstone
Bakery has the best lemon scones
and huge cinnamon rolls!
sculpture; An Antique Store
(272 E.Wickenburg Way, 928-6843357, near the art gallery) for selection of used books, used paperbacks, antiques, and collectibles;
Desert Caballeros Western
Museum (21 North Frontier Street,
928-684-2272, located at corner of
Tegner and Wickenburg Way, downtown) for splendid exhibits, western
paintings, and history about the
region; circa 1895 Santa Fe Rail
Depot, now Wickenburg Chamber and Visitor Information
Center (216 North Frontier Street,
928-684-5479, www.wickenburg
chamber.com), the best place to get
maps and current local information.
Best places outside Wickenburg:
Ranch House Restaurant (23225
Broadway Street/Highway 89, 928427-6522, in Yarnell located about
7
--Myrna Oakley just returned to Oregon
from wintering in Arizona, stay tuned for
further adventures on the road. She
authors two travel guides, Oregon: Off
the Beaten Path (7th ed.) and Washington: Off the Beaten Path (6th ed.).
O
good spot or a lounger. There’s a
restaurant next to the swimming
area, where you can get a good
sit-down meal, or a big basket of
hot frites when the children get
the munchies after a couple of
hours in the water.
The campsite has chalets, mobile
homes for rent, and a big tent area.
There is a shop on site providing
most essentials, including fresh
bread and pastries all day.
For less
inflated grocery prices,
AROUND
there’s a
Shopi in
with Marjorie Thorne
nearby St
Julien en Born,
and an Auchan in Lit et Mixe
check-in day in France), in time
to check in at the Lous-Seurrots (about 7 miles away). While you’re
at the supermarket, you might
Campground, where we had
want to fill up your gas tank, as
booked a chalet, alongside the
E ncore F r ance
chalets of friends and family (www. the prices seem significantly lower
lous-seurrots.com). The chalet, which than anywhere else. It’s important
Once again, last summer, my
husband and I, along with our two sleeps six but was very comfortable to remember that most French gas
stations are closed on
sons, opted to head over to France, for 4, cost us
Sundays (except motormostly because we have friends to Euros 784
way stops), and all autoper week
visit, but also because it’s such a
mated pumps take only
(peak-season
fascinating country with so many
French credit cards.
rate). The
different experiences. It’s also
Contis is basically a
campground
noticeably less expensive than the
surfing town, with added
was not a
UK – and we can drive there.
extras. The long, sandy
Eurocamp
This time, we chose the southbeaches are great for
ern Atlantic coast, and stayed at a full of Engflying kites, surfing, or
small seaside town, Contis-Plage, lish people,
Canoeing near Contis-Plage.
swimming – but the surf
but a French
about halfway between Bordeaux
can get pretty rough, so watch out
campground, with mostly French,
and the Spanish border. We took
for safe-bathing markers. The town
two days to drive down from Eng- Germans, and Dutch visitors. It’s
also offers canoeing (around Euros
exceptionally well run and we
land, with an almost-halfway stop
30 for a four-person canoe), bike
found continental Europeans to
to visit our French friends in La
Fleche, on the Loir river (a trib- be great campers - very respectful riding through the woods, and fishing. There’s also a miniature golf
of others.
utary of the Loire). A
The camp- course as well as rather interesting
highlight of the stop
outdoor bowling, where you pull
site provided
was an interesting disloads of activ- up your own pins with a rope. The
cussion - in our very
town also has a spectacular lightities – exerbest Franglais - about
house, which you can tour.
cise classes,
why continental EuroOn Wednesdays and Saturdays,
tai chi, tennis,
peans are so much
there’s a small market in Contis,
archery, volmore multilingual than
but if you prefer something bigleyball, basthe British (or, for that
ketball, dance ger, the market at Lit et Mixe is
matter, the Americans).
Playing chess on the porch of our
well worth a visit, and open most
I guess it goes back to chalet at Lous-Seurrots Campground. lessons, badminton, beach mornings. We also found a fabulous
that invasion thing.
soccer, table tennis, and, of course, pottery store on the main road
Le t’s G o S ur f in’N ow petanque. There were four swim- between St Julien en Born and
ming pools of varying depths, and the next big town, Mimizan –
The next morning, we left our
two full-time lifeguards. The pools really cool stuff.
La Fleche friends at noon and
Although most of our holiday
are popular in the full heat of day,
continued south. The seaside town
of Contis-Plage is in an area called so get there early if you want a
“Europe” continued on page 9.
8
ne of the few advantages
of living on the edge of
Continental Europe, rather than
in it, is that we have fewer invasions
– and we get to keep our own currency, at least for the time being.
Now that there are so many affordable ways to get across the English
Channel, however, we may be
open to more invasions, but we
are also able to get across and visit
all of those interesting countries a
lot more easily. Trains
run from
London
stations into
the middle
of Europe, airlines such as Easyjet offer cheap
flight options, and the tunnel and
ferries make driving there a breeze.
Les Landes, which has grown out
of what is essentially reclaimed
land. It’s a little-known area, and
very surprising. Although the
Landaise landscape is, like that of
western Oregon, mostly evergreen
trees, the architecture is a fascinating mix of Tudor and Disney kitsch,
with most unusual houses popping
up out of clearings in the forests.
We reached Contis-Plage at
around 6pm on Saturday (the usual
J AUNT S
E UROPE
“Europe” continued from page 8.
was spent in Contis itself, there
were plenty of day trip possibilities,
including Lourdes, an outdoor
ecomuseum at Marqueze (accessible only by special train); the
Dune du Pilat (Europe’s highest
sand dune – climb it if you have
the energy); and Zoo du Bassin
d’Arcachon (southwest of Bordeaux), a small, family-style zoo
with the biggest bearpit in Europe.
It’s also possible to drive down to
W A LE S
Spain for the day. The town of
The year 2004 was, for us, a year
Pamplona, where the bulls run,
of
revisiting. In May, we had our
is within fairly easy reach.
second
family trip to Wales – this
One lunchtime, we drove to St
time,
further
west, near the popular
Julien en Born, a couple of miles
seaside
town
of Tenby. Everyone
inland, and found a small restauexpects
the
Welsh
weather to be
rant on a lake, where you could
foul
in
May,
but
we
found it warm
hire pedalos for a couple of Euros
enough
for
a
day
on
the beach.
per half hour. We had great fun
Together
with
my
parents
and
paddling about and exploring the
an
aunt
and
lake and, in fact, we
uncle
–
all
were the only people
visiting from
on it. After our advenSouth Africa
ture, we stopped at the
– we rented a
restaurant for an al
cottage called
fresco lunch. It was
Bumblers,
very peaceful.
which we
We stayed in Contis
booked
for two weeks where we
through FBM
had friendly hosts and
Duncan holds a falcon at the
Holidays
mostly gorgeous weather Manor House Wild Animal Park.
(www.fbmholi
(apart from one all-out
days.co.uk)
for
around
£800 for the
thunder storm). Every lunch was
week.
Bumblers
is
located
in the
eaten on the chalet patio, with
sleepy
village
of
St
Florence,
less
warm bread and a cool breeze,
than
5
miles
inland
from
Tenby.
followed by a little light reading
With four good-sized bedrooms,
and a nap. Then it was off to the
two-and-a-half bathrooms, a large
beach and, on the way back, a
garden, two sitting rooms, including
stop for chocolate crepes. After a
one with a pool table and a workshower, back to town, for a plate
ing organ as well as a store just 20
of the area’s speciality, moules et
feet from the front door. Bumblers
frites (mussels and fries). It is a
is no longer available for rent, but
truly relaxing vacation spot.
FBM has plenty of other properties
A DIE U F RA NCE
in the area.
Once again, we found Wales to
On the way back home, we
be
remarkably child-friendly, and
stopped off in the northern part of
there
were more places to visit than
the Dordogne, near Nontron, to
days
in
which to visit them. These
see how our friends, the Gentrys
included
the Dinosaur Park (Tel.
were getting on with their renova01834-845272)
with a small zoo,
tions. The Gentrys are an Anglorides,
and
woodland
full of model
South African couple who sold
dinosaurs;
the
Manor
House Wild
their travel agency in Oregon and
Animal
Park
(www.manorhouseretired to rural France, where they
wildanimalpark.co.uk), situated in
bought an old farmhouse and
the wooded grounds of an 18th
barns. They are converting the
“Europe” continued on page 10.
buildings into a home for them9
“Botswana” continued from page 6.
arrows that he poisoned with the
juice of beetle larvae. But these
nomads all but vanished from the
subcontinent and the modern age
has severely affected their culture.
Even in these remote reaches of
D
selves and a gite for hire. As I write
this, they are having a pool built,
and hope to be up and running for
business by June. The farmhouse
is called Chez Gourjout and is
within easy walking distance of the
nearest town - and particularly the
bakery. If you’re interested in finding out about accommodations at
Chez Gourjout, you can contact
the Gentrys by e-mail (susanrogerg@
yahoo.com) or phone (5-53-5646 35).
Storytelling is a popular
activity with the Bushmen.
Botswana, Bushmen clans live in
settlements around waterholes –
the nomadic lifestyle is replaced
by a more sedentary existence.
Caleb and I reveled in this
unique experience meeting bushmen families and not only captured a piece of their soul
through photos, but when we
flew back home to Connecticut,
we took with us their lively spirit
in our hearts.
More Information: www.naturereserve.co.za/africa_kgalagadi.html
--Tracy S. Pillow is a freelancer living in
Connecticut with her husband and six
kids. She has authored five books and
loves email at booksbytracy@yahoo.com!
B
looking
for more
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ideas?
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Wild adventures
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lots more
vacation ideas
at
great savings!
went to Caldey on a wet, blustery
day and, as a really bad sailor, I
Century manor house and featurwas surprised to find the boat-ride
ing falconry displays; and the
more exhilarating than nauseating.
Silent World Aquarium and
It was a fascinating day’s excursion.
Reptile Collection (www.silent
world.org.uk), built inside a 19th
BRIGHTON ROCK S
century chapel and featuring local
In late October, we nipped down
and exotic sea-life as well as a
selection of reptiles and daily rep- to Brighton just for the weekend
because my sister-in-law had raved
tile-handling sessions.
so much about the
If you’re hanfun they’d had there
kering for a day
with their children.
at the beach,
We stayed in their
Saundersfoot is
favourite hotel, the
just a few miles
Royal Albion,
from Tenby and
which we found to
has cheap daily
be tired and had to
parking. There
change rooms before
is a huge, childwe found a spectacfriendly beach,
Monorbier Castle
ular view.You can
plus some great
little seaside stores. Because of the book the hotel at www.britannia
hotels.com, although you should
volume of visitors in the summer,
look at other websites for deals. We
the local police force is well prepared for lost children, with sniffer paid around £200 for the four of
us for two nights, bed and breakdogs and even helicopters at the
fast – with an excellent breakfast.
ready. Very reassuring.
If the hotel was only passable,
Wales is spilling over with castles
you may wonder why we bothered
of all shapes and sizes. We visited
two, the better-known Pembroke with it. The answer is definitely
location, the Royal Albion is locatCastle, which dates back around
1000 years, and the truly spectac- ed on the beachfront, directly opposite famous Brighton Pier (fun
ular, but well-hidden Manorbier
Castle (www.castlewales.com/manor. rides for all) and the Aquarium
(better known for its Victorian
html). The whole of the castle can
be rented and sleeps 10-12 people. architecture than its sea-life –
which the boys loved), and just a
What a treat! If you’re interested,
ten-minute walk from the lavish
look at www.manorbiercastle.co.uk.
The highlight of the week for us, Royal Pavilion (www.royalpavilion.
though, was our trip out to Caldey org.uk) and The Lanes shopping
district, which is heaving with
Island (www.caldey-island.co.uk),
boutiques
a short boat ride from
and antique
Tenby. The island is
jewelry.
privately owned by the
I wouldn’t
Reformed Cistercian
want to
Community, but can be
spend a
visited between Easter
whole vaand the end of October.
cation in
The monks make their
Brighton
own perfumes and hand(I prefer
made chocolates, when
Jumping for joy on Brighton Pier.
my beaches
they’re not attending one
sandy), but it’s a very trendy town
of seven daily church services, or
riding around on mopeds. There is and really great fun for a weekend.
a small café on the island, but otherDAY TRIP S
wise you’re on your own to wander
As usual, we’ve had day trips all
around, view the monastery from
the outside, and explore the island over the local countryside, but
and the bird and seal sanctuary on the most outstanding have been
to Longleat Safari Park and
nearby St Margaret Island. We
“Europe” continued from page 9.
10
Warwick Castle.
Longleat (www.longleat.co.uk) is
a combination of a fairly extensive
wildlife park in the vast grounds
of a manor house, which also features a bizarre mixture of mazes,
adventure playgrounds, boat and
train rides, a butterfly garden and
much more. A day ticket, which
includes almost all of these attractions, costs £16 per adult and £13
per child.
There are plenty of places to eat
at Longleat, but there are also
some lovely picnic areas – although,
once again, wasps were a big
problem this summer. We always
take our chances, though, because
it’s such fun to bite into a Marmite
sandwich while looking across
acres of glorious countryside to
a great big manor house.
Warwick Castle (www.warwickcastle.co.uk) is surely everyone’s
idea of a fairytale castle, and offers
Duncan and Morgan in the stock
at Warwick Castle.
almost everything you associate
with such a place – dungeons,
ghosts, strolling players, archery
and, during the summer, jousting
tournaments. It’s worth checking
the website to see what festivals
are on, and then booking in
advance. Prices vary according
to season. It’s a popular destination
so you’ll want to get there early.
W
ith my parents coming
to live permanently
with us this year, and with plenty
of building work to be done on
their accommodation, we’ll probably have to restrict our travel fairly
locally – but there’s always plenty
to see and do, so stay tuned…
B
W
ould you be surprised to
know that the outcome of
your family’s Disney World trip,
whether it was either a successful
vacation or a disastrous waste of
time, will largely be decided by
what you pack before you leave?
While getting ready for your trip
to Walt Disney World, for example, you have several decisions to
make, one of them being whether
or not to bring a stroller for your
youngsters. There are definite
alternatives to renting strollers in
the various parks.
Just the Facts
At 47 square miles, Walt Disney
World is more than twice the size
of New York’s Manhattan Island.
There are 4 major theme parks, 3
water parks, 4 shopping and/or
entertainment areas and 24 resorts.
Some of these resorts are so big it
can take 45 minutes to get from
one end to another. That’s a lot of
walking which makes for some
very tired legs (young and old)
and many of your activities will be
in areas where there are no stroller
rentals.
Cruising around the environs of
Walt Disney World can make kids
tired and grumpy and if you’d
rather not carry your child for miles
when a bad mood hits, seriously
consider bringing a stroller. Before
leaving home figure out your child’s
...if you’d rather not carry
your child for miles when a
bad mood hits, seriously
consider bringing a stroller.
energy level for walking long distances,their ability to handle stress
(Disney World wears out most
adults let alone our young children),
and how well they take direction
(“Sammy, you must keep walking
because the car is still five minutes
away”). Finally, don’t let your child’s
age be a deciding factor in whether
or not to bring a stroller. By the
end of the day even a six year old
would appreciate a stroller, so don’t
ever feel awkward about using one.
Would you rather get a few odd
stares for strolling your oversized
five year old or waste valuable
money and minutes trying to persuade your child to walk faster so
you’re not late to the $47 (per
person!) Hoop-dee-doo Musical
Revue? Get the funny looks. Better to have a memorably happy trip
versus a memorably horrible one.
Considering the wide variety of
activities and the massive size of
the park, Disney World provides
Strolling
through
DisneyWorld
by Alicia Hansen
minimal child transportation. There
are only four locations that rent
strollers: Magic Kingdom,
MGM Studios, Animal Kingdom, and Epcot. These strollers
are single seaters except at Animal
Kingdom which has double seaters.
The strollers are found inside the
main entrances of the parks and
also at the International Gateway
in Epcot’s World Showcase. Get
there early since supplies are limited at all locations. They are made
of hard plastic with a top shade to
protect youngsters from the blistering Florida sun. The hard plastic
also tends to get sweaty and uncomfortable after a long, humid
95 degree day). But at least it provides relief for tired legs. They cost
$8.00 for a full day, $1.00 being a
returnable deposit. If you go to
another section of the park, keep
your receipt and go to the stroller
rental.They will re-rent you another
stroller free of charge. At the end
of the day you have two options. If
you want your $1.00 deposit back,
you must wait in a long stroller
return line. If your $1.00 is dispensable, you can leave the stroller
anywhere in the park.
Disney World does its best to get
you close to where you are going
in the park environs but there are
limitations due to the amount of
11
visitors who show up daily. Be it
by boat, monorail, bus or personal
car tram, none of the park drop offs
are closer than a 5 minute walk to
any of the main gates. Add to this
time to stand in line to go through
security and then waiting in line
to get through the entrance turnstiles. This can wear out little legs,
all before 9:00 am. Remember,
strollers are not available until you
are inside the park, and the stroller
rental line is another long wait!
The Boardwalk, Disney’s
Marketplace, West Side, and
Pleasure Island all cover miles
of walking and Disney World does
not provide any stroller service in
these shopping and entertainment
areas. For these, personal strollers
are critical. Many stores have fragile
items that small hands are tempted
to touch and in addition, some
stores are so large that children
can be easily lost. In The World of
Disney (the largest Disney store
on earth), at Downtown Disney,
and at the Boardwalk, your own
stroller makes a great corral and
comfortable place for a child to sit
while the adults do some shopping.
Make sure to bring your stroller
Remember, strollers are not
available until you are inside the
park--the stroller rental line is
another long wait!
to the water parks. People are most
inclined to visit River Country,
Blizzard Beach and Typhoon
Lagoon in the afternoon, just when
our smaller folks are either falling
apart or falling asleep. Having a
comfortable place for your toddlers
to lay down will make the difference
between a relaxing soak in the sun
or having to exit the park pronto.
Plus, your stroller can carry your
towels, clothes, and all of the other
water stuff that accompanies a
family on such outings.
And possibly the best reason to
bring your own stroller from home
are the long lines and long waits
throughout the entire park, which
can reduce kids to piles of mush.
Strollers are always allowed in the
lines for hotel check in, waiting to
be seated at restaurants, lines for
“Stroller” continued on page 13.
B
A Southwest HAdventur e
By Robin Morrell
and 21% advanced. The average
dinosaur leg and tooth, and a skull
snowfall
is
210
inches
annually
and
of a predecessor of the alligator.
My husband Vic and I planned
there
are
snowmaking
facilities
on
We then drove south on State
this ski trip last August and dis52%
of
the
ski
runs.
In
addition
Route
89A through Oak Creek
cussed going to the Arizona Snow
to
downhill
skiing
and
snowboardCanyon
and into the picturesque
Bowl in Flagstaff with a stop in
ing,
activities
at
Angel
Fire
include
tourist
town
of Sedona (www.
Taos, New Mexico but we decidsnow
bikes,
cross
country
skiing,
sedonachamber.com).
The earlier
ed against going to Taos when we
snowmobiling,
tubing,
sleigh
rides,
winter
flooding
in
the
area had
realized snowboarding wasn’t
and
ice
skating.
receded.
The
red
rocks
of Sedona’s
available there. We decided to go
Angel
Fire
Resort
has
been
pursandstone
cliffs
were
breathtaking.
first to Angel Fire Resort (www.
chased by Fairfield Resorts and
We found a great place for lunch
angelfireresort.com) also in New
some
units
are
being
converted
to
with an awesome view of the redMexico, then drive to Flagstaff,
timeshare
lodging.
Renovations
dish colored cliffs, Shugrue’s
Arizona. This smaller resort,
are
currently
in
progress.
Hillside Grill in the Hillside
Angel Fire, is located in the same
Trevor
enjoyed
several
private
Sedona
Plaza. After lunch we
mountain
snowboarding
lessons
headed
south
and stopped to see
range as Taos
and
Alyx
took
a
private
the
Chapel
of
the Holy Cross
and offers
ski
lesson.
The
learning
which
was
completed
in 1956 and
snowboardcurve
for
Trevor
was
built
on
a
twin
pinnacled
spur
ing runs and
tough
but
the
instructor
about
250
ft.
high.
Catholic
services
lessons as
was
patient
and
helpful
are
held
here
on
Saturdays
and
well as downgiving
our
son
some
Sundays.
There
is
a
gift
shop
on
hill skiing.
extra
time
and
extra
tips
the
lower
level.
We flew
for tackling the slopes
We continued south on Highfrom Orlando
with
a
snowboard.
Both
way
17 to visit Montezuma’s
Alyx at Angel Fire Ski Resort.
with a stop in
kids
had
a
great
time.
Castle
National Historic Site.
Denver then
We
learned
that these high clifflanding in Albuquerque early
J
anuary
23-F
ebr
uary
2...
side
dwellings
were built around
afternoon where we picked up our
A long driving day to Arizona
1200
A.D.,
and
were used by the
rental car, a Dodge Durango fullSnowbowl (www.arizonasnowbowl. Sinagua Indians until 1450, when
size SUV. We wanted four-wheel
com; 928-779-1951), about 530 mi. they left the area for unknown
drive for road conditions along with
and 11 hrs., from Angel Fire west
reasons. Turning north from here
plenty of space for luggage storage
toward Flagstaff (www.flagstaff
we headed back to Flagstaff a
and ample seating for the three
chamber.com) in northern Arizona, distance of about 50 miles.
kids, Alyx, Trevor, and Catherine.
which took us through FarmingThe kids enjoyed more skiing at
Along the three and a half hour
ton and Shiprock
Arizona Snowroute driving to Angel Fire Resort
in northern New
bowl for the
we passed several casinos and saw
Mexico. Because of
next couple of
many pueblo style homes and busirain and minimal
days, then we
nesses, reddish brown in color and
snow conditions at
took another
with rounded edges on the outer
Snowbowl, we took a
side trip, this
walls and flat roof lines. The road
couple of side trips
time to Walnut
from Taos up to the resort was
and visited, first, the
Canyon an
narrow and winding and the temNorthern Arizona
important Sinaperature had dropped with the
Museum in Flagstaff.
gua community
Sedona’s sandstone cliffs.
elevation gain, to 39 degrees.
Interesting geologibetween
1125
Angel Fire Resort is located
cal exhibits showed that at one
and
1150
A.D.
The
site
was
placed
in the Wheeler Peak mountain
time the region was under the
under
the
protection
of
the
Nationrange, the highest in New Mexico
ocean and also how the San Franal Park Service in 1933 but vandals
with 8,600-ft. elevation at the base
cisco Mountains were formed by
and pothunters had already carried
of the ski resort and 10,677-ft. elevolcanic action. Other exhibits
away much of the cultural material
vation at the summit.
showed how the scenic Monument including earthenware pots. The
The resort offers two high speed
Valley was formed by water and
.9 mile round-trip walk includes a
quad and three double chair lifts.
wind erosion. The kids enjoyed
steep climb of 250 steps from the
You’ll find 67 ski runs – 31% of
seeing a mastodon’s tooth, a
“Southwest” continued on page 13.
them beginner, 48% intermediate,
12
January 20-23...
“Southwest” continued from page 12.
“Stroller” continued from page 11.
ranger station down to Island
Trail to see a fascinating array of
some 25 cliff dwellings. Elevation
at the canyon rim is about 7,000-ft.
The following day, Friday the
28th of January, we drove to Las
Vegas (www.lvchamber.com and
www.lasvegas.com), which takes
almost 5 hours from Flagstaff. We
checked into a two bedroom condo
at the Fairfield Resort Grand
Desert Resort around 1:30 p.m.
Located off the strip, a complimentary shuttle ferries guests to
Harrah’s Resort & Casino.
Later, we picked up Catherine at
the airport and for dinner we
boats, waiting for the monorail to
show up. Strollers are not allowed
in any of the ride lines.
Personal strollers also are safe at
Disney World, with too many of
them around for a thief to decide
to take off with yours. The only real
threat is mistaken identity. Someone might walk off with your stroller
thinking it was theirs but there are
some creative ways to avoid this.
Tie a bright red bandanna around
the handle, attach a bunch of big
shiny stickers, or hang a neon luggage tag, anything as long as it’s
bright and stands out. There is no
use tempting thieves, however, so
don’t leave anything valuable in the
stroller. Finally, people frequently
think their stroller has been stolen
when in fact it was a staff member
just tidying up the area by organizing the strollers. Look around and
you are sure to spot it close by.
Stroller Hotels
Venetian Casino’s Grand Canal
drove to the Benihana Village in
the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel. The
Japanese hibachi meal was delicious. We visited the Venetian
Casino and its Grand Canal, all
located indoors with special nighttime lighting and interesting shops
and eateries. We had hoped to see
the Pirate Show at Treasure
Island, do the roller coaster at
New York, New York, and ride to
the top of the Eiffel Tower at
Paris but heavy rains in the area
had temporarily closed these three
rides. Instead we visited Luxor and
the kids loved the pyramid and the
amazing Egyptian sculptures.
Saturday, we checked out and
departed Fairfield Resort to visit
Hoover Dam (www.usbr.gov/lc/
hooverdam), located about an hour
south of Las Vegas. Construction of
the dam began in 1931 and was
completed in 1935. President
Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated
the Hoover Dam on September
30, 1935. On this whirlwind tour
through the western states FDR
also dedicated Bonneville Dam
and Timberline Lodge both located
“Southwest” continued on page 14.
For people with strollers, certain
hotels have advantages over others.
It comes down to how many park
transportation options the hotel
offers and how large the resort is.
The more ways there are to get
from one place to another, the
easier it is for strollers. If the resort
is more contained there will be less
walking. Disney World charges for
these conveniences.
The Grand Floridian, Polynesian, and Contemporary
hotels are all part of the Magic
Kingdom Resort area. These
three hotels are on the monorail
line, a mode of transportation ideal
for strollers because you just stroll
on and off the cars (transportation
that does not require that you fold
up the stroller is to your advantage).
The monorail services both Magic
Kingdom and Epcot. If these are
the two parks you will be visiting
the most, stay at one of these monorail hotels. On the other hand, the
Wilderness Resort area which
includes Wilderness Lodge, the
Villas at the Wilderness Lodge
and Fort Wilderness Resort and
Campground offers great boat
transportation to Magic Kingdom.
All of the resorts in the Magic
13
Kingdom Resort area offer boats
to the Magic Kingdom, but unlike
the Polynesian, Grand Floridian
and Contemporary boats, the
boats servicing all 3 resorts in the
Wilderness Resort area do not require that you fold up the stroller.
Picture your stroller at the end of
the day filled with five souvenir
bags, soda in one cup holder, juice
in the other, a backpack shoved
underneath, plus a sleeping child.
Not having to unpack and fold up
your stroller is a big bonus. If the
Magic Kingdom will be your main
destination, one of the three Wilderness Resorts will serve you well.
Another favorite area to stay in
is the Boardwalk Resort area.
The transportation options from
here are exceptional to two main
parks, Epcot and MGM Studios
and to one minor park, the
Boardwalk shopping/entertainment area. The Boardwalk Resorts
include the Boardwalk Villas, the
Boardwalk Inn, Yacht Club, the
Beach Club, the Beach Club
Villas and the Swan and the
Dolphin. These hotels all have
boats, buses, and best of all, a walkway that connects all three parks.
And possibly the best reason
to bring your own stroller are
the long lines and long waits
throughout the entire park.
Each hotel has a boat launch which
picks you up at your hotel (about
a 5 minute walk from your room
to the dock, no matter which hotel
you are staying at) and goes on a
circular route stopping at the
Boardwalk Dock, Epcot’s International Gateway Dock, Yacht
and Beach Club/Villas Dock,
Swan and Dolphin Dock and
lastly, MGM Dock. These boats
allow you to just stroll on the
boat, with the stroller and no folding necessary. While staying in the
Boardwalk Resort area you will
use Epcot’s International Gateway, a good entrance to Epcot.
You don’t have to wait at the lines
at the front of the park and you are
right in the heart of the World
Showcase, the restaurant capital
of Disney World. World Showcase
“Stroller” continued on page 14.
“Stroller” continued from page 13.
doesn’t open until 11:00 am but
as you enter through the International Gateway there are ropes
guiding you toward Future
World which opens at 9:00 am.
But the best reason to stay at
one of the Boardwalk Resorts is
the wide walkway along the canals
and lake. These scenic paths lead
from MGM, around both sides of
Crescent Lake, and end at Epcot’s
International Gateway.You walk
past water birds and turtles, get to
wave as boats float along the canals,
and take a peaceful break from the
crowds. To stroll with your stroller
from the gates of MGM to Epcot’s
International Gateway takes about
half an hour.
The moderate and budget
resorts are nice on the pocketbook
but are more challenging for the
stroller. The moderate resorts include Port Orleans French
Quarter, Port Orleans Riverside, Caribbean Beach Club
and Coronado Springs. The All
Star Music, Movie and Sports
are the budget resorts. What all of
these resorts have in common is
their one transportation option, a
bus. All Disney World buses require
that you fold up your stroller. The
buses go all around the resorts
stopping at various locations, so
no matter where your room is located a bus stop is never more than a
five minute walk away. But remember, these resorts are huge. The
following scenario is reason enough
to make the decision to bring your
own stroller. Let’s say your family
is staying at the Caribbean Beach
Club. For breakfast, the family
walks the 12 minutes to get to Old
Port Royale, the main complex
housing the food service. Once
finished, trek for 12 minutes back
to your room to collect your day
bags and then you walk six minutes
to the closest bus stop. By 8:30 am
you have already walked half an
hour with nary a theme park in
sight. And the same situation
happens at the end of the day with
the only difference being everyone
is tired, with hurt feet and little
patience.You will be thankful you
Stroller” continued on page 15.
from the rim to the canyon floor
allows for great variations in tempernear Portland, Oregon. He also visature. A pleasant 75 or 80 degrees
ited the enormous Grand Coulee
Dam project in central Washington. at the rim can translate from 100
to 110 degrees at the bottom of the
Located in Black Canyon,
canyon. The canyon is 277 miles
Hoover Dam is a National Historic Landmark, National Historic long, an average of 10 miles wide,
and some 5,000-ft. deep. The park
Civil Engineering Landmark, and
encompasses 1,904 square miles
one of America’s Seven Modern
Civil Engineering Wonders. Hoover and it was given protective status
as a National Monument in 1908,
Dam is 726.4-ft. high and 660-ft.
after Theodore Roosevelt visited
wide at its base. Behind the dam
Grand Canyon in 1903. Vic and I
Lake Mead offers a shoreline of
bundled the three kids into the
some 550 miles, its length when
full extends 110 miles and reaches SUV and we headed back to I-40
and drove 70 miles east, back to
a depth of 500 feet. Vic and I and
Flagstaff and Snowbowl Resort.
the three kids enjoyed the guided
On Monday, January 31 there
tours at the dam and we also saw
were snow flurries off and on all
a model of the new Hoover Dam
morning. Trevor and I dropped Vic
Bypass route that will allow easier
off at the Flagstaff train station for
travel around the structure for
his shuttle to Phoenix Sky Harbor
automobile, truck, and RV traffic.
Airport and his flight back home
The bypass and its bridges across
to Orlando, and back to work. The
the canyon are scheduled to be
three kids and I would continue our
completed by 2008.
winter vacation until February 5th.
From here we continue south to
In addition to enjoying the ski
Kingman, Arizona and turned
east on I-40 to the Grand Canyon slopes at Arizona Snowbowl the
kids and I visited Sunset Crater
(www.nps.gov/grca; www.grand
National Monument (www.nps.
canyon.org). At Tusayan, just
gov/sucr) and the Wupatki National
before the entrance to the park,
Monument (www.nps.gov/wupa)
we stopped to take in the IMAX
both located within 50 miles of
seven-screen film about the
Flagstaff. Covering more than
canyon and its environs.
35,000 acres the Wupatki site
“Amazing!” said Trevor, Alyx,
includes about 2,700 historic strucand Catherine.
tures once home to
At Grand
ancestors of the
Canyon Village
Hopi people. We
we stopped at
walked a trail from
Bright Angel
the visitor center
Lodge to check
to see one of the
in and found our
most unusual feascenic rim view
tures of the comroom at nearby
plex, a ballcourt
Kachina Lodge
which is 78-ft.
(www. grandcanyon
A view of the Grand Canyon.
wide, 102-ft. in
lodges.com). The
grand El Tovar Lodge is currently length, and with a 6-ft. high wall.
Be sure to visit the Lowell
closed for renovation. At the canyon
Observatory (www.lowell.edu)
it was snowy and cold so we bundled up the next day and set out to near Flagstaff for a look at the
Mather Point and other lookouts. heavens through large telescopes.
The kids and I saw a slide and lecAfter much ogling at the awesome
ture presentation, The Night Sky,
canyon we shot tons of photos of
its amazing vistas, and the kids built and we learned that Flagstaff has
the distinction of being named an
a snowman at the rim. About four
International Dark Sky City. The
million people from all over the
city updated its outdoor lighting
world visit Grand Canyon every
fixtures, installed shielded fixtures,
year and in the summer months
“Southwest” continued on page 15.
the 5,000-ft. elevation difference
“Southwest” continued from page 13.
14
“Southwest” continued from page 14.
“Stroller” continued from page 14.
and voted ordinances related to
the amount of light that businesses
can have at night.
We also enjoyed another side
trip to Petrified Forest National
Monument (www.nps.gov/pefo)
located less than two hours from
Flagstaff. The area was designated
a monument in 1906. At the
Rainbow Forest Museum Alyx,
brought that familiar stroller!
The ballcourt at the Wupatki Pueblo.
Trevor, Catherine, and I saw displays showing fossils found in the
area including dinosaur skeletons
and highly polished petrified wood
samples. We explored the .6 mile
loop trail behind the museum and
saw large sections of petrified
wood that had once been tall
trees. We learned that petrified
wood weighs nearly 200 pounds
per cubic foot and its hardness is
7 on a 10-point scale. The paved
road through the monument is
28 miles in length and includes
the museum and gift shop, the
Petrified Forest, the .8 mile
paved Crystal Forest trail, News
paper Rock with its ancient pictographs, the Puerco pueblo
with ruins of its 100-room pueblo,
and views of the Painted Desert.
On Saturday, February 5th the
three kids and I packed the SUV,
checked out from Snowbowl
Resort, and headed to Phoenix to
board our flight for Orlando,
Florida. Home again and with
pleasant winter memories of
southern Nevada, northern New
Mexico, and northern Arizona.
“How about a summer visit back
to the area?” I asked the kids.
“Sure, we’ll go,” they chorused.
“But for sure let’s see about renting mountain bikes!”
HBRobin Morrell, husband Vic, and
children share a love of family travel.
Stay tuned for further adventures.
Stroller Restaurants
Disney is great about accommodating personal strollers in restaurants, but there are certain places
that lend themselves better to the
toddler’s vehicles than others. This
article distinguishes restaurants as
being wait service establishments.
All of the cafeterias and buffets can
accommodate strollers fairly well.
Remember that visiting Disney
World knocks out kids of all ages
making them sleep at the weirdest
times. And for an adult, sitting
down in a restaurant and being
waited on is the ultimate rejuvenator, a luxurious break. The solution? Into the cool restaurant goes
your personal stroller carrying
the sleeping child, while you get a
much-needed break (remember
that Disney strollers are not allowed
in the restaurants, only personal
strollers). As for meals, some kids
do better sitting in a stroller and if
Disney World provides
minimal child transportation
and rentals are limited,
so get there early.
this will make them happier, bring
it in. Try to pick your meal times
outside the usual dining times. By
doing this you will gain extra space
for your stroller and staff members
are more eager to help. All restaurants have to be wheelchair accessible, but that criterion is a little
different from what strolling parents need. The following list is
specific for stroller folk.
Magic Kingdom
The Liberty Tree Tavern has
large Colonial style tables, with
plenty of room to maneuver the
stroller. The restaurant is divided
into several different rooms, so the
noise level never gets too loud for
a sleeping child. Tony’s Town
Square, being at the entrance to
the park is the least busy sit down
eatery in Magic Kingdom. Go and
have some spaghetti with “Lady
and the Tramp.” The Plaza
Restaurant serves deli sandwiches
15
and hamburgers in an ornate Victorian setting. This centrally located eatery is extremely popular so
try to arrive in between regular
dining hours. Cinderella’s Royal
Table is also very popular “which,
unfortunately, is a real disadvantage
for strollers.’ The dining room
space is limited with the tables
being close together and they are
usually filled to capacity. Tight
spaces don’t work well for strollers,
although the royal setting is worth
asking a staff member if parking a
stroller at the table is possible.
Epcot
There are two distinct areas in
Epcot. The first area upon entering the front gates is Future
World. The Coral Reef Restaurant (located on the side of The
Living Seas pavilion and with its
own outside entrance) has lots of
space, although you may have to
carry the stroller down a tier or
two. The atmosphere is dark, soothing, and has the feeling of being
under the sea, since one mammoth
wall is a view of The Living Seas
pavilion’s aquarium. The only down
side is you will need to get a table
and not a booth. With most of the
restaurant being booth seating, you
may have a bit of a wait.
As for the other eatery in Future
World, the Garden Grill is not an
option because it is located inside
the pavilion where strollers are not
allowed. The restaurant rotates
with views of ‘Living with the Land’
ride and has three character meals
a day but strollers have to be
parked outside.
Beyond Future World is the
World Showcase, the ultimate
Disney World eating area. With
eleven countries represented, most
have their own themed restaurant.
Going clockwise around the lake,
starting at the Mexico Pavilion,
the San Angel Inn has a dark
nighttime theme, making it tempting to bring in a sleeping child.
The problem is that it’s so crowded that there is virtually no room
to get a stroller into this popular
place. Try going at off dining
hours, when fewer people allows
“Stroller” continued on page 17.
O
digital camera out and switch it to
and Bountiful Peaks, south of
ne of our family's passions
the panorama mode. Then walk
Farmington Canyon. The large
is four-wheeling out and
“B” is of weathered concrete high around the peak taking a picture
about Utah. Not the Moab or
every few feet. When you get home,
on the mountain and visible from
Rubicon style of my-vehicle-hasstitch the photos together and make
more-dents-than-yours, although I most places in the valley. We once
admit that's a lot of fun. I have the came upon a pile of bleating sheep your own Quicktime VR movie.
gouges on our Toyota Land Cruiser that turned tail and ran into an F- You've never tried that feature
before, so you might as well see if
to prove it. Our family includes my 150 coming the opposite direction.
it works, right?
wife Stephanie and our
Just behind Franfour children, Miara, 13,
cis Peak is a steep
Aarim, 11, Amiria, 6, and
trail where you’ll
Ramiar, 4. Rather, what
by Randy Farnsworth
definitely need a
we like is driving to an
4-wheel drive with
out-of-the-way place,
some good clearwhere there are few peoance and a differple, actually where there's
ential locker or
usually no people, and
two, or at least
just hanging out.
some sort of auto
Sitting on rocks. Throwtraction control.
ing rocks in the water, or
We’re talking really
off a ledge, sometimes at
steep here. Street
each other. Floating whattires aren't a good
ever we can find down
choice either, as
the river. Or falling in the
you'll shred them
river. Or driving across
A beautiful lake at about 9,000 feet, overlooking Morgan County.
before you're done.
the river. Keep in mind
I'm speaking from
that rivers in Utah, with a
Pinned between the Ford and our experience here. It's a lot of fun
few exceptions, are like creeks
going up a hill where all you can
Land Cruiser, scrub oak, and a
elsewhere. This is a high desert
steep incline the herd finally mim- see is sky and leaking window
with a lot of snow at times, and
icked their cousin goats and opted washer fluid, then coming back
some tall mountains too.
down with the seat belts cutting
A nearby haunt of ours, frequent- for the steep climb.
off your arm at the shoulder and
We've also traveled a different
ly visited by us due to its proximity
the only clear view is the dirt in
section of the road, going up
and myriad unexplored trails, is
Farmington Canyon to Francis front of you.
the Skyline Drive–Bountiful
To the east of Francis Peak is a
Peaks–Francis Peak trail that run Peak in our Saturn and in our '86
Country Squire. This part is not a short winding trail with a picturesque
high above Davis County, just
four-wheeling trail and any vehicle dead tree at the top. We must have
north of Salt Lake City, Utah. I
filled half a CF card at various
can make it. Francis Peak is
say unexplored not because we're
times taking picabout 9,500 feet elevation,
the first humans to ever travel
tures of the four
there; there is evidence that others which is over a mile above
kids posing at difAlpine Lake on an averhave arrived before us–namely a
ferent heights in
primitive but graded dirt road pep- age water year. On the
this tree.
pered with beer cans. But rather un- lake you’ll see several giant
The best part
explored previously by our family. radar balls.
of this whole trip
From Francis Peak
This particular trail in Davis
is to follow the
you can see, in clockwise
county is anything but empty. Hikrough trail north
order, Davis, Weber,
ers, bikers, ATVers, minivaners,
of Alpine Lake
Morgan, Summit, Salt
jeepers and the rest can make for
and its radar balls
Lake, and Tooele couna crowded mountain. But if you
until it drops
ties, depending on the
take the right route on the right
down to a series
pollution level. Utah and
day of the right season (avoid the
of three lakes.
smaller trails during the bow hunt Cache counties might be
glimpsed if the wind's just A great photo opportunity! Again, this is
season) then you can find it downUtah, so the lakes
right. Viewing up to eight
right empty and pleasant.
are actually ponds, but the water
One of the worst traffic jams we counties from one peak may not
still splashes and the rocks still
experienced was on Skyline Drive, seem like much, till you realize
a primitive road and the front part that one county out West is usual- skip. A couple of these lakes might
actually be dry later in the year,
ly larger than a whole state back
of the more rugged trail between
East. Here’s an idea, get your new
the Bountiful High School "B"
“Utah” continued on page 17.
UTAH’S FRANCIS PEAK
16
stop at the ponds to throw too
many rocks, and if the weather
but one at least is quite deep and
sheltered against a steep rock face. cooperates, you can catch the sun
setting behind Antelope Island
If you follow this trail all the way
in the Great Salt Lake. This is an
to the end, at the bottom of the
awesome scene, and when caught
switchback cliff, you'll see the old
with a camera, helped my son to
truck carcasses that rolled off and
win the school Reflections contest
died, as well as some beer cans.
for photography.
Mostly, only ATVs and built-up
All said, this whole area is fun
wheelers will make it to this point,
whether you're
but it's really not
taking the Rav4
that bad if you're
on its first dirt
prepared and careful.
trail or you've
Our stock Toyota
got an experiLand Cruiser didn't
enced battlesweat it. I had hoped
scarred Jeep.
to find a trail down
It's also wellinto Morgan County
frequented
here, but no such
by the ATV
A traffic jam on Skyline Drive.
luck as the trail ends
crowd. And
in a steep drop off,
since you're in or on the vehicle
so be careful here!
for most of the trip, it's also accesAnother fun trip is going back
sible to disabled patrons. The
up Farmington Canyon, then
when the road makes a sharp fork, lower parts are open by late April,
the upper parts not until Memorifollow the trail to the southwest.
This is the same trail that will take al Day at the earliest. We were up
near Bountiful Peaks this past
you back to the concrete "B" on
July and our friends from overseas
the mountain. Part way up you'll
were amazed at their first view of
come to another small lake in the
snow. It was crusty, icy,
elbow of a
and dirty but they manmountain.
aged to make small snowYou can
men out of it. The whole
park right
trail is usually open until
next to it
Halloween or even later in
and wana dry year. There are no
der up to
facilities along the trail, but
a series of
at the farthest, you're only
three or
about an hour away from
four
Sun setting behind Antelope Island.
civilization and there's a
ponds
cell tower next to Alpine Lake
that all drain into one another.
and the radar balls, so it's a safe
The top one is spring fed and be
trip. There is private property and
sure to note that the whole walkNational Forest land that is off
ing trail is quite muddy and sliplimits to vehicle travel, so be sure
pery, which can add some humor
to pay attention to the signs and
to the trek.
barricades. And be sure also to
Finally, also on the way to the
pack out your own beverage cans
concrete "B" is one of the most
and trash.
beautiful views you'll ever see, if
More Information:
you time it right. I suppose this is
www.utah.com
the actual Bountiful Peaks, but
my 1953 topo map isn’t too clear. www.travel.utah.gov
It's a rougher trail that runs along
the west face of the mountain, but --Randy Farnsworth, an avid family
traveler plus author of "A Stand Yet
easily accessible with a light duty
Taken." http://randyfarnsworth.com
SUV. We did this trail in the
lists@randyfarnsworth.com
Country Squire once, but I would
BBBBB
not recommend it. If you didn't
“Utah” continued from page 16.
“Stroller” continued from page 15.
more space to maneuver the
stroller.You might even get lucky
with a canal side table. Nine
Dragons, in China, has ample
room and familiar food. Germany’s
Biergarten, has a lively oompah
band that plays periodically
through the day. It’s fun for kids
and adults alike, but a stroller is
tricky to get in between the long
communal tables. If you ask nicely, staff members may accommodate you. In Italy, L’Originale
Alfredo di Roma is popular and
crowded making it slightly difficult
for strollers. Luckily, the tables
are wide apart and the wait staff
goes out of their way to accommodate your needs. Teppanyaki
Dining Room, Japan’s main
restaurant, is basically impossible
for a stroller.You sit on tall bar
stool chairs, surrounding a grill
table. But if sushi and sashimi are
all that you’re craving go into the
bar area, Matsu No Ma Lounge.
It has more room and is less busy.
Just don’t go during Illuminations
when the lounge becomes standing
room only. Morocco’s Marrakesh
has ethnic, somewhat unfamiliar
food, making it one of the least
crowded restaurants in the World
Showcase. It’s a great place for
strollers. In Chefs de France, if
you can convince the staff to let
you bring the stroller in, there is
plenty of room around the tables
to accommodate it. The Rose
and Crown is a favorite among
visitors but this UK restaurant is
not easy for strollers as there are
stairs and tables are close together. The upside is that cast members go so far out of their way to
help that anything may be possible. Canada’s Le Cellier Steakhouse has a wine cellar theme. It
is cool, dark and often empty.
This is a perfect place to rest your
feet and nap a sleeping child.
MGM
This park has two of the best
theme restaurants at the property.
The 50’s Prime Time Cafe is
loud, bustling and fun! Strollers
are do-able but don’t expect a
“Stroller” continued on page 18.
17
“Stroller” continued from page 17.
light sleeper to stay asleep. The
configuration of the Sci-Fi DineIn Theater Restaurant consists
of autos that face a nighttime drive
in theater. If the place is not busy
a stroller can be placed next to
your car. If the restaurant is crowded (which it is most of the time)
there are picnic tables in the back
that have plenty of room. There are
two other restaurants that work well.
Mama Melrose’s Ristorante
Italiano, a pizza joint, sits in the
back corner of MGM. This place
has plenty of space and being a bit
re-moved, tends to be less crowded.
The Hollywood Brown Derby
has a large, dignified dining room.
The most formal eatery in the park
has an elegant setting with wide
aisle, large tables and lots of space.
Animal Kingdom
There is only one wait service
restaurant located in the Animal
Kingdom, the Rainforest Cafe.
Because of this and the fact there
is a multitude of anamotronic
entertainment, the place is always
busy. The good news is the tables
can be easily moved around.Strollers can be accommodated, but
expect some frowns from the staff.
In Review...
Many travelers make the mistake
of overestimating their youngster’s
endurance and underestimating
the impact of Walt Disney World.
This magical world excites, stimulates, and exhausts like few other
places you’ll ever visit. Being prepared and knowing what to expect
is the beginning of your successful
family vacation. Know what your
feet and legs will be going through
on your daily treks. Use this information to help keep your children
comfortable, smiling, and still in
the mood to experience more of
Disney World.Your Disney World
days can be some of the most
magical memories in a lifetime,
particularly if your youngsters can
ride in a stroller most of the time
through its 47 square miles.
More Information: www.disneyworld.
disney.go.com
BBB
MY T
o t ODDLERS & ME
T
On the Road with Jennifer and her toddlers, Dakota and Piper.
he alarm went off at 4:30
am and jolted me awake. I
kissed the cat and my husband, who
both share the same side of the bed.
I gathered the courage to wake our
2 year old son, Dakota, and our
10-month-old daughter, Piper.
You see, the two children and I
were about to embark on a journey
together that labeled me as crazy,
brave, heroic and downright out
of my mind, according to those
that know and love me. My husband, Rory, the voice of reason
and logic, had suggested that I
make the trip solo because he
thought traveling with two small
children would surely result in
some historic disaster. He also reassured me, however, that if taking
both children was really important
to me then he believed that I
probably could pull it off without
so much as a stain on my shirt or
a hair out of place.
As I finished dressing Piper,
Rory asked what he could do to
help. “It would be super if you
would help Dakota get dressed
and ready for his big airplane
adventure,” I replied. As I busied
myself with other details, our 2year-old slowly took on the appearance of a toddler ready for the day.
We loaded our 53 lb. suitcase,
27 lb. carry on, collapsible stroller,
two car seats, two children and
ourselves into the car and headed
for the Pocatello, Idaho airport.
I thought about my next several
hours of travel. After unloading
our traveling circus, we checked
our baggage through. As if by cue,
the security wand detected something undesirable in the specifically packed suitcase the three of us
were sharing. It got opened and
rummaged through, though nothing illegal or damaging was found.
We passed inspection, said our
teary goodbyes, and set out to
begin the first leg of our journey
to the East Coast.
Piper was asleep in my arms
18
before we taxied to the runway.
Dakota was so excited that he
managed his own seat belt having
no thoughts of misbehavior. The
flight from Pocatello to Salt Lake
City, Utah was uneventful, just
what I'd expected.
We passed away 2 hours at the
Salt Lake City airport before the
beeping and flashing lights of
security were set off by Dakota
walking through the detector.
Once again, the three of us were
ushered to the side where we had
to remove our shoes and one by
one pass the wand test. This time
no one demanded that I remove a
child's diaper, so I thanked the
woman that cleared us and I
boarded a second plane with my
2 small children.
Again, 10-month-old Piper was
asleep before we were in the air.
Two-year-old Dakota was enthralled
with his new Leap Pad so the first
hour of our flight was quiet and
relaxing. Once Piper woke up and
the novelty of a new learning tool
wore off for Dakota, it was time
for snacks and a movie. Both children did exceptionally well during
the 4-hour flight to Philadelphia. I
walked off the plane with two
happy kids and thoughts of success
floating between thoughts of a
glass of wine, a hot bath, and a
soft bed. We were exhausted but
we had pulled it off without a hitch:
no leaky diapers, no potty accidents,
no tears, and no historic disaster!
I rented a car and we drove from
the airport to Seaford, Delaware,
where my mom lives.
W
e spent nine days with my
mother and her boyfriend,
both of whom the kids adore. The
five of us drove 3000 miles roundtrip to and from Orlando, Florida to take part in my brother's
wedding. We also enjoyed a quick
weekend in Orlando with my dad,
his wife, and my older sister. Dur“Toddlers” continued on page 19.
“Toddlers” continued from page 18.
ing this time we also survived the
three new teeth, an ear infection,
and a quick trip with dad to
Atlanta to visit old friends. Then
my tiny but mighty travel companions and I went through another
bout with airport security and
boarded the aircraft that would
take us on another airplane
adventure, this time back home.
The flights west going back
home to Idaho were just as successful as our flights east to Grandma's. Dakota and Piper entertained
themselves and the forgiving folks
surrounding us. We managed each
plane transfer with the offered
help by kind strangers.
Dakota and Piper and I enjoyed
our time in the sky with no tears,
no fussing, and with delightful
manners. Once we landed in
Pocatello and got our feet back
on solid ground, Dakota ran to
his daddy yelling," Daddy, you
missed me! Daddy, you missed
me!"
While we're glad to be home,
we're looking forward to our next
big airplane adventure. It's to a
location that's yet undecided, and
booked for dates unknown. Because
we planned and packed accordingly, we now know how easy
travel with small children can be.
T.
ips for traveling with toddlers
Stay calm and patient--toddlers will take their cue from you.
.
.
.
Pack several new toys, books,
and learning tools. Bring out a
new one frequently to engage and
hold the interest of your child.
Bring their favorite snacks and
drinks. It’s cheaper than buying
them on the go, and the familiar
food will ensure a satisfied child.
Don’t leave home without your
child’s special lovey blanket or
stuffed animal. My daughter is so
attached to her teddy that I have
two of them – one that stays with
her, and one that’s packed. If she
loses the teddy, I have a replacement
.
.
.
.
Talk with your child about the
planned trip. Let them know what
to expect on your travels.
Outline your travel rules, and
behaviors that will be acceptable.
Know your travel itinerary
and plan for delays, detours, and
diaper changes.
Dress everyone in comfortable
clothing. I will dress the toddlers
in pajamas if we’re traveling at
night. It’s a good reminder that
sleep is expected.
.
Pack bottles, pacifiers, and
sippy cups. Encourage your child
to drink during take-off and landings.You could also nurse your
infant during these times, this
helps with ear discomfort.
.
.
Remember your manners as an
adult with travel personnel and
other travelers.Your children will
follow your example.
Accept help when offered, and
don’t be afraid to ask for assistance. Many airlines will provide a
driver and cart for connecting
flights. Arrange for this help prior
to your travel dates.
.
Use a stroller with a basket
underneath.You can keep this
with you until you board the
plane. The crew will then store it
and have it waiting for you at your
destination.
.
When traveling by car, stop
frequently for potty breaks and
leg stretches. Following my children’s cues, we stop every three
hours to run and play outside
for about 15 minutes.
–– Jennifer Erchul is a freelance writer
whose focus is on family and travel. She lives
in Idaho with her husband, children, cat and
dog. Her work's been featured in several family magazines and her E-Guide, "29 Ways to
Say I Love You", will be available soon. She
can be reached at rjerchul@hotmail.com
BBB
19
HEA
LTH
WATCH
Summer heat... While playing
in the sun can be lots of fun, getting over heated and dehydrated
is not and this can even lead to
heat exhaustion (See below). When
the sun is at its hottest, between
11 am-3 pm, avoid strenuous
exertion and keep infants and
toddlers under umbrellas. Wear
brimmed hats and light colored
cotton clothing. Mist or wipe
skin areas with water to promote
evaporation and cool the body.
Hydration Break... Pack a picnic with energy snacks and plenty of water. Avoid caffeine as it
can further dehydrate; sugary
drinks makes one more thirsty.
Stop play often for a refreshment
break in a shady spot out of the
sun. Drink at least 8 ounces of
water every hour. Take this time
to reapply sunscreen.
Block the Sun... The sun’s rays
can be intense when reflecting
off water, sand, or snow–even
more so at high elevations. Protect your skin with plenty of sunblock and don’t forget the lip
block. Regularly reapply even the
waterproof sunscreen. Protect
eyes with UV approved sunglasses, especially if spending time
around water or snow.
Heat Exhaustion... Symptoms
include weakness, nausea, fainting,
lethargy, dizziness, disorientation,
and pale, clammy skin. Immediately get the child or adult out of
the sun and into a well circulated
or air conditioned area. Sponge
body with cool water and if possible, sip water. If one is delirious,
disoriented, or unconscious this
may indicate heat stroke and
requires immediate and proper
medical treatment.
Poison Control... Get prompt
and proper attention for all your
summer travel emergencies involving
snake and insect bites, poisonous
plants and medication problems
by calling the nationwide toll-free
poison center emergency number:
1-800-222-1222. For more information: www.poison.org.