Earlier this summer, we set out on a two-week maiden voyage in our (now beloved) Winnebago, Bernadette, with our sights set on checking Mount Rushmore off our travel bucket lists.
At first we were like “What did we do?” Now we’re wondering, “Why didn’t we do this sooner?!” It was so much fun exploring different parts of America than we’ve seen before.
Here are some snaps from our travels.
By George, this was unexpectedly my favorite shot of Mount Rushmore. If you drive just past it, there’s a little turn-off on the road where few stop to see America’s #1.At Custer State Park in South Dakota, the views along the Iron Mountain Road and Needles Highway scenic drives are as stunning as these adorable, one-lane mini-tunnels carved through the granite.We let the kids pick what we’d do one day. They chose the Alpine-style rollercoaster at Rush Mountain Adventure Park, which we rode at least ten times. Basically, it pull you up to the top of the mountain, and then gravity brings you down. My extra poundage meant that I was the speediest. 🙂Bennie & Pippa are having a great time hanging with us.Silliness while binging Glee. The kids are obsessed with this show, and I’m there for it.
Also, did you know that the largest sand dune in North America is in Colorado of all places? Tucked in the bosom of two mountains, the wind sheds its desert sands to make it over the range…for everyone to surf, sled and climb. It’s insane.
Back in South Dakota, Sylvan Lake is a very different, equally other-worldly scene. If you’ve watched ”National Treasure 2” (I love all of those movies), you’ve seen this lake.The one above, taken by Todd, is one of my faves. Bernadette’s windshield is so big that you can see everything…and in a state like Wyoming (my favorite on this trip), you can see for what seems like 100 miles.If this isn’t the perfect ad for Winnebago, I don’t know what is!Watching family-favorite “The Devil Wears Prada” at a campsite in rural Oklahoma, as typical families do.Claire is obsessed with draining the tanks. She’s Todd’s right-hand woman when it comes to ridding our rig of…poop.We stopped at Billy The Kid’s grave in Fort Sumner, New Mexico. My advice: if you ever want to see it yourself, just look at this picture. This is about as exciting as it gets. It’s hot, dusty and down a long rough road. Consider our sacrifice your gain.Many evenings on this journey, we’ve been blessed with rainbows. This one, taken at the adorable, pint-sized Curt Gowdy State Park near Cheyenne, Wyoming, was a fave.Gone fishing – Claire especially enjoyed slowing down and casting a line. (Lake Anita State Park, Iowa)No drive through South Dakota is complete without a stop at Wall Drug. If you’re wondering where it is, you’ll know when you’re getting closer by the incessant roadside ads for it. (It’s like a Buccee’s, but with 100 rooms and shops under one roof.)Our enormous circularly route, as planned using RV Trip Wizard, included stops in Lubbock (TX), Santa Fe (NM), La Veta (CO), Cheyenne (WY), Louis & Clark Lake (SD), Lake Anita (IA), Kansas City (MO) & Broken Arrow (OK).
I'm a (gay) husband, a dad, adoption advocate, Texan, founder of two businesses (PR firm Cooper Smith Agency & online mag He Said Magazine), wannabe comedian/Martha Stewart and just generally a mess who drinks and cusses too much. Read More
Cooper
@imcoopedup on Instagram
by imcoopedup7 days ago Enjoying the sunset on our final night in beach quarantine before headed to Nana & Grandpa’s house in the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains.
by imcoopedup1 week ago Y’all, this teeny tiny state park is a jewel! If you’re in the Florida-Georgia Line/Tallahassee area, it’s a fab stop. (Apologies to the 30 other people in the entire park who have to listen to my kids talking at volumes like there’s a helicopter hovering overhead.)
by imcoopedup2 weeks ago Fall break has officially started! (And it’s Butch the Jeep’s maiden voyage.) . We’ve been in quarantine for a week so that we can safely see Nana & Grandpa next weekend. In the meantime, Lafayette, Destin, Jacksonville and Hilton Head, here we come! #rv#rvlife
by imcoopedup3 weeks ago Today is World Adoption Day and November is National Adoption Month! Did you know that the average adoption costs nearly $50k in one-time expenses? I can't imagine anyone not being able to help a child and build a family simply because they can't come up with that large lump sum, which is why I'm so passionate about the work that @helpusadopt does. I'm also proud to serve on their national Board of Directors. #worldadoptionday@worldadoptionday#nationaladoptionmonth
by imcoopedup3 weeks ago Celebrating the big day (and gorgeous weather) with an impromptu McDonald’s picnic!
by imcoopedup4 weeks ago The downside of having perfect vision (thanks, Dr. Carter!) is that I don’t get to accessorize with fun specs. That doesn’t stop me from trying though! @foodsparks turned me onto these @priverevaux ’s blue light-blocking glasses, which arrived yesterday. They supposedly reduce eye strain/headaches from staring at computer screens and keep screens from affecting your sleep patterns. What do you think? I’ve always loved a big glasses moment. #privepeople (FYI - you can find this pair in my @liketoknow .it profile; link in bio)
by imcoopedup1 month ago It’s not a tux or bow tie (and no spanx), but this is how we do @blacktiedinner this year! So proud of our community for still coming together. #blacktielive
by imcoopedup1 month ago How do you like my butch new toy? Our new RV lifestyle is getting expensive! What should we name him? (Our Winnebago is named Bernadette.)
by imcoopedup2 months ago I may have been smiling (through a mouth full of metal), but this teenage Cooper was so unhappy. Growing up in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, along the Mexican border, was brutal for what I now joke about as "the tallest, gayest, whitest thing in three counties." . Fortunately, a high school guidance counselor encouraged me to apply for a State Department scholarship to travel abroad as a student diplomat, which opened my eyes to the bigger world of possibilities and a life that I hadn't ever previously dared to dream about. But I still didn't know what to
by imcoopedup3 months ago When in doubt, choose kind.
by imcoopedup3 months ago First day of school looks and feels a little different this year. Masks, mandatory daily health surveys, temp checks at the car door, separate entrances for each of grade cluster, no parents allowed to leave cars. (Also the first day in months that any of us has gotten out of bed before 8.) . Can you believe that Mason is now in Middle School?! . #backtoschool
by imcoopedup4 months ago Our grand plan was to spend most of the summer in Paris. We still managed to get there.
by imcoopedup4 months ago It’s always Happy Hour at the lake. Put me on a slow-moving pontoon and I’m set! . Follow me in the @LIKEtoKNOW.it shopping app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content! #liketkit#LTKswim#ltkmens@liketoknow .it http://liketk.it/2U2uF
by imcoopedup4 months ago Add zip lining over the Blue Ridge Mountains and rappelling from a 75-ft high platform to the list of things I didn’t see coming in 2020! . The kids and I, along with my brother-in-law Pieter, spent half the day (over 4 hours!) zip lining above and through the trees of the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains at @thegorgezipline . It was a fun, and occasionally terrifying, adventure involving 11 zip lines, 3 rapels (one over 75 feet down) and a wobbly suspension bridge. . Now, every joint and muscle in my body hurts...but it was well-worth it. So proud of the
