We arrived in Camden, Maine after a long drive. For whatever reason (bathroom breaks, hunger riots, etc) a five hour drive typically takes us eight. We’re staying at Camden Hills State Park. When we checked in the ranger took one look at our (small) camper and said she was pretty sure it wouldn’t fit in the site we’d reserved. After scoping it out for ourselves, we agreed. Thankfully they were able to move us to a huge site they set aside and don’t put up for reservation, presumably for when this inevitably happens. With no hookups, it’s taking some adjusting from the relative luxury of our last few full hookup sites.

When we woke up for our first full day in Camden it was raining and freezing. After a few hours everyone was getting grumpy and our camper was feeling claustrophobic, so we decided to head out for lunch, shopping and a movie.

When he was 4 or so Phineas was OBSESSED with Toy Story and especially Buzz Lightyear. He had all the toys, the action figures, and even dressed up as Buzz for Halloween 2013. We’d been seeing ads for Buzz’s feature film, Lightyear, so it was a no brainer to see it. The movie was awesome. Very meta for original Toy Story fans. Almost as awesome was the quarter pusher arcade machine at the theatre.

When we got back to camp it was dark and even colder. Our camper battery has kicked the bucket, so we can’t use the furnace unless the generator is on. It was a very cold night. Next stop: Walmart for a new battery and more blankets.

After spending just two nights each at our first two stops, we’re spending four nights in Provincetown, MA and it finally feels like we can settle in a little. Two nights is a quick turnaround for camping, especially if there’s a long drive between stops since it means just one full day in a location before packing up and moving on.

Provincetown is an artsy, LQBTQ+ friendly beach hamlet that’s extremely bike and kid friendly. There’s no denying that it’s touristy, but it still feels quaint and authentic. On our first full day we packed sandwiches and set out early to bike the Province Lands Bike Trail to Race Point Beach and back. Unlike the relatively flat rails to trails biking we did in Falmouth, this trail was hilly and challenging. Jake and Phineas both have electric bikes with both pedal assist and a throttle option (Penelope rides on the back of Jake’s bike like a motorcycle). My bike just has pedal assist. After completing 13 miles round trip from our campsite, I was jelly. Race Point Beach is on the ocean side of Provincetown instead of the more protected Bay, so it had bigger waves. We saw seals swimming by occasionally and the kids had a blast playing in the surf. Apparently there are great white sharks off the coast, so we didn’t let them venture too far. Everyone agreed that the calm, clear Bay water was the winner.

Today we played tourist and started out by walking downtown to have breakfast out. We hit up Liz’s Cafe for fantastic pancakes and other breakfast goodies. I’m on a mission to eat as much lobster as possible in Cape Cod and Maine, so I splurged on Lobster Benedict. Afterwards we climbed to the top of The Pilgrim Monument, a tower and museum celebrating the spot where the Mayflower first hit shore, before deciding to move on to Plymouth to settle. After the biking the previous day, the many, many steps felt like a LOT. Phineas has developed a fear of heights, but was a trooper and climbed anyway. Later we did some shopping and Penelope bought some earrings now that she can change out her original piercing earrings.

Today we drove to Provincetown, MA, all the way at the very tip of Cape Cod. We’re spending several days at Coastal Acres campground. It’s a small campground less than half a mile from the beach and downtown. First impression is that we absolutely love the area. The small downtown is filled with quaint houses, restaurants and shops. The protected water in the Bay of Provincetown is calm and crystal clear. We arrived late afternoon, quickly set up camp and then biked to the beach to explore. The tide was coming in fast; we all had fun racing to islands of sand before the water covered them. More to come the next few days!

We spent an incredible day biking through the Cape Cod, MA towns of Falmouth and Woods Hole. We rode an 8 mile round trip section of the Shining Sea Bikeway. It’s a rails to trail paved bikeway that hugs the coast with views of Martha’s Vineyard. It’s a total of 10 miles (20 round trip) which was more of a commitment than we wanted to embark on today, but the option to park and start mid-way was perfect.

In Woods Hole we hit up Pie in the Sky for coffee and delicious slices of pie. On our way back to the truck we stopped along the trail to sit on the rocky beach and watch the waves. There is a section where a rock carin garden has organically sprung up. I find rock carins inspiring; I love how they embody restraint and balance. Penelope built a carin to add to the collection.

Phineas was all about biking ahead of us. The problem was that he didn’t always know where we were going. Twice he way overshot our stopping point and Jake had to speed down the trail to find him.

We’re staying at the Boston/Cape Cod KOA Holiday. Before this trip I was dubious of KOA’s; we’re more state park-type campers. But I have to admit the full hookups, kids play area (including bounce park) and site patio are pretty luxurious. I almost forget we’re camping!

On the way to our first camping stop, Jake scoped out a MTG store so Phineas could play some Friday Night Magic. The plan was good: Jake dropped Phineas and I off at the game store so he could play and I could work on my computer a little. He dropped us off a little before 7pm and headed to the campground with Penelope to get set up. Around 8:30pm I called to check in and arrange for him to pick us up. Penelope answered Jake’s phone and told me, in a conspiring whisper, “Between you and and me, I’d get here as soon as you can. Dad is cleaning up all the eggs and is in a really bad mood. He could use some help.” Uhh ohhhhh. Turns out that we must have hit some really bad roads on the 4+ hour drive to Lancaster. When Jake parked the camper and opened it up to start setting up, apparently it looked like a bomb had gone off. The fridge had opened, all off the food was room temperature, and there were broken eggs everywhere. Pans had fallen out of the cabinet and were covered in egg. Thankfully the board game cabinet didn’t open. Jake said that if the board games had fallen out and the pieces were covered in broken egg, he would have actually cried. One of our first stops the next day was Lowe’s for a whole array of rope and fasteners to secure the fridge and cabinets.

We spent a day exploring Amish county in Lancaster, PA. The Amish arrived in Pennsylvania in the 18th century to escape religious persecution. Since settling in Lancaster they have been able to maintain a community separate from the rest of society with a strict set of religious and cultural rules, traditions and beliefs. I’ve always been interested in the Amish lifestyle, and was excited to learn first hand. On our way to and from the campground we passed multiple horse drawn buggies. The parking lot at Lowe’s even had horse poop in front of it, presumably from someone driving a buggy to pick up some home improvement supplies. We drove by peaceful farmland being worked by a “6 horse power” farm implement.

We visited The Amish Village to tour the farmhouse and property. On the guided tour of the farmhouse, we saw traditional clothing, church room, bedrooms, and the kitchen. I was surprised by the kitchen. While I knew that Amish don’t use electricity, I didn’t realize that they do use other forms of power such as propane, natural gas and even compressed air. The farmhouse had a compressed air powered mixer and a gas powered washing machine. We also learned that the Amish don’t have Church buildings, but instead rotate house to house to hold Church each Sunday. The tour was interesting but I would have preferred more background information. The tour didn’t cover the “whys” of some of the religious rules or discuss trickier issues like the role of women in the family and culture. After the tour we walked around the farm and checked out the schoolhouse, blacksmith shop and the animals.

I asked the kids what they found most interesting:

Phineas: I thought it was interesting what technology they could use and what they couldn’t. I was curious so I asked the tour guide if there were any rules about getting vaccinated. It turns out the Amish in Lancaster are not allowed to get COVID vaccines.

Penelope: it’s cool how they are not allowed to use electricity in their house. And they have to decide if they want to stay on the Amish community or leave when they become an adult officially. Also they make the best food. I met little baby ducklings and I named them. They were so cute. I picked one up without the mom trying to peck on me. Also I named the chicks quacky, ducky, floppy and flappy.

To close out our trip to Lancaster, we took a 6pm ride on the Strasburg Railroad. It’s a restored coal-fired steam engine train from the 1850s. We elected to ride the open-air car for the best views, and because the weather was perfect. The ride was about 45 minutes through rolling fields and Amish farms. It was surprisingly fun for everyone.

It’s finally here! We woke up early, packed up the last few things, hooked up the camper and began our journey. But we’re slow, so despite our 6am wake-up call it’s 10am and we’re just now actually leaving Charlottesville.

We are at T minus one week before we head out on the Great Migration of 2022. Jake has been repairing and replacing parts of the camper tirelessly for the last several weeks. Sewer lines, roof leak, new storage and drawers, a new table… I have been working around the clock to get as much work-work done as possible to clear my to-do list. The closer we get, the more excited – and stressed – we get. Mostly excited, but our lists are a mile long and I’m pretty confident that we’ll forget something big. Or something will go wrong, break, or we’ll get sick…

Over the weekend Phineas’ electric bike stopped working. No warning. He rode to the park in our neighborhood, listened to music for a while on the swings, and then decided to head home. The power button did nothing; the screen didn’t even turn on. He called Jake for a pickup and no amount of troubleshooting could get that bike to start. It was Saturday and Monday was Memorial Day. We had to wait until Tuesday to reach Lectric Bikes to even open a support ticket. To put this in context, while not the end of the world, Phineas’ electric bike is his second most prized possession, behind only his magic cards. The freedom and independence that his bike provides is huge. If he’s bored, or anxious, or just wanting to explore, he can zoom away.

Looking at the calendar and realizing the short number of business days between then and our departure, I began to panic a little. I scoped out the (very few) new electric bikes I could get on Amazon that MAY be able to be delivered before we leave. The couple of bikes I would actually want to buy only sell directly from their website and have a 10-14 business day shipping window. I started calling them to see if I could arrange shipping to a FedEx holding location somewhere along our route. In short, I went down the rabbit hole. Jake was finally able to reach the company late on Tuesday and they have already shipped out a part that maybe, hopefully, will hopefully fix his current bike. Fingers crossed…

Update: we received the part and it fixed the problem. We have a working bike!