2023 stickers

On the passenger-side slide-out, we have a large sticker with the Sinclair Trails logo, a map of the US showing the states we’re visited, and stickers with the SinclairTrails.com domain name and @SinclairTrails social handle:

Map

The states sticker consists of separate stickers for each state, applied to a base sticker. Our rule used to be that we have to spend a night in a state for it to count (and only since purchasing our coach), though we’ve recently relaxed that a bit to just having done something in the state, e.g. camp, eat in a restaurant, or explore something. Not just driving through. Though we still do plan to stay in each state. Once we have done something in a new state, we add its sticker. So far, we’ve visited 23 of the 50 states:

Map

We’ll probably have to replace these stickers at some point; the earlier ones are looking very faded.

Visiting Alaska is going to be a major project. And of course we can’t take our motorhome to Hawaii, but we’ll count that when we next visit there.

On the driver-side slide-out of the coach, we have stickers for each of the National Parks we have visited, that being another of the goals in our travels. We visited 8 more parks in 2023 (plus revisited several), so have visited 35 of the 63 parks; still lots to go:

National Park stickers

Of course, we’ve also visited numerous National Monuments, National Historic Sites, and other classifications. With 428 parks of various types in the National Park System, not to mention parks administered by states, forest services, etc, we had to cap the memorializing of them somewhere! National Parks are the goal; others are gravy.

However, inside our coach we have a framed board with a wooden map of the US, around which we add stickers and pins for any kind of attraction we visit. It’s populated a bit more since last year, though still lots of space for future attractions:

Sticker board

The wooden map has pins for states we’ve visited; the pins feature the state flags:

Sticker map

2023 special posts

While most of the posts on this blog are about modifications, travel, campgrounds, and attractions, I sometimes post about other topics. This is a summary of those posts from 2023. (See also those from 2022.)

As with previous summaries, for each I include a link to the corresponding blog post, and a sample picture; see the post for details.

The two most frequently asked questions:

Switches

Where I have been:

Timezones 2023

How we work full-time in our coach:

Internet cupboard

Open Roads fuel discount card:

Open Roads app

Open Roads Freedom Pass toll transponders:

Freedom Pass coverage map

Second anniversary of buying our motorhome:

Our coach

Braking: Bad:

Brake repair

Towed from Santa Rosa to Moriarty, New Mexico:

Towed from Santa Rosa to Moriarty, New Mexico

Holiday lights in our coach:

Holiday lights

2023 attractions, part 4

Concluding the summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2023. With some sneak peeks of places we visited recently that haven’t been posted about yet!

This is part four of four, covering October through December, inclusive. Start with part one, or check out part two or part three, if you haven’t already.

October 2023

Yellowstone Lake area:

Sylvan Lake

Yellowstone Grant area:

West Thumb Geyser Basin

Yellowstone Old Faithful area:

Geyser

Yellowstone Madison area:

Grand Prismatic Spring

Yellowstone Norris area:

Norris Geyser Basin

Yellowstone Mammoth area:

Mammoth

Yellowstone Tower-Roosevelt area:

Tower Fall

Yellowstone Canyon area:

Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Yellowstone old west cookout and wagon ride:

Horses and wagons

Chief Joseph Scenic Byway:

Interesting landscape

Buffalo Bill Dam:

Dam

Buffalo Bill Center of the West:

Buffalo Bill museum

Bighorn scenic drive:

Bighorn Canyon

Crazy Woman Canyon:

Crazy Woman Canyon

Devils Tower National Monument:

View from West Road

November 2023

Theodore Roosevelt National Park North Unit:

Scenery

Theodore Roosevelt National Park South Unit:

Wild horses

Pitchfork Steak Fondue and Medora Musical:

Medora Musical

Black Hills area:

Spearfish Canyon Highway

Jewel Cave National Monument:

Cave formations

Crazy Horse Memorial:

Crazy Horse Memorial

Mount Rushmore National Memorial:

Mount Rushmore

Badlands National Park:

Badlands

Minuteman Missile National Historic Site:

Delta-01 Launch Control Center

Wall Drug:

Wall Drug

Wind Cave National Park:

Bison

Custer State Park:

Cathedral Spires Trail hike

Iron Mountain Road:

Tunnels

December 2023

Kansas rocks:

Monument Rocks

Route 66 in Tucumcari, New Mexico:

Route 66 in Tucumcari, New Mexico

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta morning sessions:

Balloons

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta evening sessions:

Balloons

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta flight:

Aerial view

Annular solar eclipse:

Eclipse

Cadillac Ranch:

Cadillac Ranch

Palo Duro Canyon State Park:

Canyon view

Hot Springs National Park (blog post coming in January):

Ozark

Garvan Woodland Gardens (post coming in January):

Anthony Chapel

Graceland (post coming in January):

Graceland mansion

Natchez Trace Parkway (post coming in February):

Laurel Hill Road

New Orleans (post coming in February):

French Quarter

New Orleans airboat swamp tour (post coming in February):

Alligator

New Orleans Oak Alley Plantation (post coming in February):

Big house

New Orleans Steamboat Natchez Sunday Brunch Jazz Cruise (post coming in February):

Steamboat Natchez

The National WWII Museum (post coming in February):

WWII museum

Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve (post coming in February):

Chalmette Battlefield

New Orleans St Louis Cemetery Number 1 (post coming in February):

Cemetery tombs

New Orleans Celebration in the Oaks:

Holiday lights

Lambert’s Cafe (post coming in February):

Fried okra

Fort Morgan State Historic Site (post coming in February):

Fort

USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park (post coming in February):

USS Alabama

Lots of fun activities!

2023 attractions, part 3

Continuing from yesterday, a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2023.

This is part three of four, covering July through September, inclusive. Start with part one, or check out part two, if you haven’t already.

July 2023

San Diego and Balboa Park:

Museum of Us

San Diego Zoo:

San Diego Zoo

Paso Robles wineries: McPrice Myers Vineyards, Calcareous Vineyard, DAOU Vineyards, Parrish Family Vineyard, Le Cuvier Winery:

View

Hearst Castle:

Castle

Bruce Munro: Light at Sensorio:

Field of Lights

Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center:

Charles M. Schulz Museum

Napa and Sonoma wineries: Domaine Carneros, Iron Horse, Korbel:

Steps

Mariners at Athletics baseball game:

Baseball

Muir Woods National Monument:

Muir Woods

Avenue of the Giants, Humboldt Redwoods State Park:

Gould Grove Nature Loop Trail

August 2023

Battery Point Lighthouse:

Battery Point Lighthouse

Redwood State and National Parks:

Grove of Titans

Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area:

Umpqua Beach

Newport, Oregon:

Newport

Oregon coast lighthouses:

Yaquina Head

Seaside, Oregon:

Seaside

Pacific coast food:

Mo's in Florence, Oregon

Ocean City beach:

Ocean City beach

September 2023

Olympic National Park beaches and rainforests:

Tree of Life

Seattle Mariners vs Chicago White Sox baseball game:

Baseball

Ferry to Seattle, Mariners team store:

Mariners Team Store

Craters of the Moon National Monument:

Old lava

Grand Teton National Park:

Grand Teton National Park

Snake River whitewater rafting:

Rafting

Stay tuned for the thrilling conclusion, tomorrow.

2023 attractions, part 2

Continuing from yesterday, a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2023.

This is part two of four, covering April through June, inclusive. Check out part one, if you haven’t already.

April 2023

Frontier Texas!

Exhibits

Tombstone, Arizona:

Tombstone

Bisbee, Arizona:

Bisbee buildings

May 2023

Mariners Spring Training:

Baseball

Grand Canyon West:

Skywalk

Kingman, Arizona:

Old police car

The Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil:

Love show

Red Rock Canyon:

Red Rock Canyon

Valley of Fire State Park:

Valley of Fire State Park

Death Valley Furnace Creek Visitor Center and The Ranch:

The Last Kind Words Saloon

Death Valley Zabriskie Point:

Zabriskie Point

Death Valley Star Wars locations driving tour:

Artists Palette

Death Valley Badwater Basin hike:

282 feet below sea level

June 2023

Death Valley Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes and Stovepipe Wells:

Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes

Calico Ghost Town:

Calico

Peggy Sue’s Diner:

Peggy Sue's Diner

Joshua Tree National Park day 1:

Dirt road, Joshua trees, mountains

Joshua Tree National Park day 2:

Arch Rock Nature Trail

Joshua Tree National Park day 3:

Barker Dam hike

Disneyland:

Rise of the Resistance ride

Disney California Adventure:

Cars Land

Cabrillo National Monument:

Lighthouse

Comic-Con Museum:

Comic-Con Museum

Japanese Friendship Garden of San Diego:

Japanese Friendship Garden

Stay tuned for part three, tomorrow.

2023 attractions, part 1

One of the main reasons for traveling the United States in a motorhome is to explore the many wonders around the country. This is a summary of some of the attractions we visited in 2023. Again, you can also see the ones from 2022, and from 2021.

We’ve seen so much, I’ve split this topic into four parts, one for each quarter of the year. This is the first part, for January through March, inclusive.

As with the previous summaries, I’ll include a link to the corresponding blog post, and a sample picture. Click or tap the link or picture to see more.

You can see all of the attraction-related blog posts via the exploring category, with the earliest posts at the top, or the latest posts at the top.

January 2023

Lockhart, Texas:

Lockhart courthouse

Austin, Texas:

Austin

Columbus, Texas:

Columbus

February 2023

Space Center Houston:

Space Shuttle

March 2023

Dr Pepper Museum:

Dr Pepper Museum

Waco Mammoth National Monument:

Fossils

US Virgin Islands sailing & snorkeling:

Sailing

US Virgin Islands: Magens Bay Beach:

Pelicans

US Virgin Islands National Park:

Nice view

US Virgin Islands power boat circle of St. John:

Swag

Check out part two, coming tomorrow!

2023 campgrounds

Another interesting summary of 2023 — the places we stayed during the year. See also the posts for 2022 and 2021.

Read to the end for some sneak peeks of places we stayed that I haven’t yet posted about!

For each location, I’ve included a link to the corresponding blog post, so you can click through to see a lot more information, and a picture of our site. Enjoy!

You can also see all of the campground-related blog posts via the campsite category, with the earliest posts at the top, or the latest posts at the top.

Lockhart State Park:

Our site

Thousand Trails Colorado River RV Campground:

Our site

Thousand Trails Lake Conroe RV & Camping Resort:

Our site

Lake Whitney State Park:

Our site

Thousand Trails Lake Texoma RV Campground:

Our site

Abilene KOA Journey:

Our site

Las Cruces KOA Journey:

Our second site

Tombstone RV Park & Campground:

Our site

NIRVC Phoenix service to fix DEF head failure and more:

Our site

Kingman KOA Journey:

Our site

Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort:

Our site

Death Valley Furnace Creek Campground:

Our site

Barstow / Calico KOA Holiday:

Our site

Thousand Trails Palm Springs:

Our site

Orangeland RV Park:

Our site

Sun Outdoors San Diego Bay:

Our site

Orange Grove RV Park:

Our site

Sun Outdoors Paso Robles:

Our site

San Francisco North / Petaluma KOA:

Our site

Giant Redwoods RV & Cabin Destination:

Our site

Crescent City / Redwoods KOA Holiday:

Our site

Thousand Trails South Jetty RV & Camping Resort:

Our site

Armitage Park Campground:

Our site

Thousand Trails Whalers Rest:

Our site

Thousand Trails Seaside:

Our site

Thousand Trails Oceana RV & Camping Resort:

Our site

Our Washington home:

Coach parked in front of the house

LL Stub Stewart State Park, Dairy Creek East:

Our site

Mt Hood Village RV & Camping Resort, again:

Our site

Grande Hot Springs Resort:

Our site

Y Knot Winery RV Park:

Our site

Alpine Valley RV Resort:

Our site

Fishing Bridge Campground, Yellowstone National Park:

Our site

Cody KOA Holiday:

Our site

Buffalo KOA Journey:

Our site

Devils Tower / Black Hills KOA Journey:

Our site

Medora Campground:

Our site

Spearfish / Black Hills KOA Holiday:

Our site

Badlands / White River KOA Holiday:

Our site

Hidden Lake Campground and Resort:

Our site

Ogallala Tri-Trails KOA Journey:

Our site

Circle Drive Campground, Lake Scott State Park:

Our site

Corral Drive-In RV Park:

Our site

Tucumcari / Route 66 KOA Journey:

Our site

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Park:

Our site

Anton Chico Rest Area:

Our coach

West Truck Services Center:

Our coach

Tucumcari KOA Journey again:

Our site

Oasis RV Resort & Cottages:

Our site

Oklahoma City East KOA Holiday:

Our site

Lake Dardanelle State Park (post coming in January):

Our site

Catherine’s Landing (post coming in January):

Our site

Graceland RV Park & Campground (post coming in January):

Our site

Red Bay Acres RV Resort (post coming in January):

Our site

Meridian East / Toomsuba KOA Journey (post coming in February):

Our site

New Orleans RV Resort & Marina (post coming in February):

Our site

Meaher State Park (post coming in February):

Our site

Ho-Hum RV Park (post coming in February):

Our site

Lots of interesting (and not so interesting) places to stay this year.