6 Weeks in a Tin Can

Paula & Steve's Cross Country RV adventure

I’m Paula & this is my husband, Steve. Follow along with us as we make our way across the country in our RV, visiting national parks, historical sites, museums and botanical gardens!

I’ll share some RVing tips, recipes for the road, and some of our favorite places!

Leaf peeping in Quechee and Woodstock Vermont

by Paula Peterson | October 12, 2018 | Quechee, RVing, Vermont, Woodstock | 0 Comments

It's Columbus Day, the Monday of the three-day holiday weekend, and it’s cool with rain showers and fog as we drive through the mountains of western Massachusetts heading toward Vermont. We hopped off of Interstate Rte. 91 at Exit 8 in Vermont and followed...

Golden Colorado

by Paula Peterson | May 19, 2018 | Colorado, RV Parks, RVing | 0 Comments

We woke to drizzly rain and cool temps which persisted all day, so we slept late and recovered from yesterday’s hair-raising drive. Then off to find a bank, gas and a brewery, which turned out to be Toad Mountain Brewery. We enjoyed a couple of 5 oz. pours and...

Glenwood Springs, Colorado

by Paula Peterson | May 17, 2018 | Colorado, RVing | 0 Comments

Today’s long drive takes us through many miles of flat, flat desert with distant mountains…finally Colorado! Reviews were all over the place for our selected campground, “Ami’s Acres” and I can see why. It should more properly be called primitive camping except...

Rafting the Colorado and Exploring Moab

by Paula Peterson | May 16, 2018 | National Parks, RVing, Utah | 0 Comments

Booked in with MOAB Adventures today and we enjoyed a very lovely, peaceful and scenic few hours on the Colorado River. Steve was disappointed because it was pretty tame, only three actual rapids on this section of the river, all Class 1-2, but a nice take...

Moab, Utah

by Paula Peterson | May 14, 2018 | National Parks, RVing, Utah | 0 Comments

After a good night’s sleep and breakfast at Ruby’s we fueled up, washed our windows and headed out toward Moab. We drive on Scenic Byway 12 – an “All American Highway” – the highest designation of US scenic byway system and soon enter The Grand Staircase-Escalante...

Off to Bryce Canyon!

by Paula Peterson | May 13, 2018 | National Parks, RVing, Utah | 0 Comments

Started our day as we headed out to Bryce by stopping at the River Rock Roasting Company in La Verkin, Utah for coffee, smoothies, and quiche, everything was so good! It’s a cool place with big outdoor deck overlooking an awesome view of the Virgin River. River Rock...

Zion National Park

by Paula Peterson | May 10, 2018 | National Parks, RVing, Utah | 0 Comments

This is a very popular and busy park and I can see why. Because of its small size and popularity, access to this national park is limited and is through the town of Springdale Utah, a really lovely town that has sprung up as the gateway to Zion. It is chock full of...

The road to Hurricane

by Paula Peterson | May 9, 2018 | Arizona, National Parks, RVing | 0 Comments

Heading out of Williams, Arizona we take Route 89N (through Flagstaff) towards Page, passing by beautiful painted desert scenery bordered on the east by a huge Navajo reservation. We’re heading to Hurricane, Utah and eventually to Zion National Park. Photo by...

Riding the rails to The Grand Canyon

by Paula Peterson | May 7, 2018 | Arizona, RVing | 0 Comments

We are done driving for a bit, and have opted to take the train - The Grand Canyon Railroad – from Williams, Arizona to the South Rim of the canyon for 63 lovely, relaxing miles. The wonderful views, Dennis, the sweet conductor, and the cowboys who serenaded us made...

A cowboy breakfast to start off the day . . .

by Paula Peterson | May 6, 2018 | Arizona, RVing | 0 Comments

. . . before we hit the road and headed out towards Williams Arizona. Our KOA campground had a (literal) chuckwagon setup and we took advantage to grab a hearty breakfast before taking off. Stopping off at a roadside gas station with a great view we met a friendly...

Traveling the Turquoise Trail from Santa Fe to Albuquerque

by Paula Peterson | May 5, 2018 | Arizona, New Mexico, RVing, Travel | 0 Comments

The Turquoise Trail is an old mining trail, complete with “Antelope Crossing” signs on the road. Over 100 movies have been filmed on just two private ranches out here. The area is so evocative of the ‘Ol West that you can just imagine shootouts and cattle...

Santa Fe Plaza and Museums

by Paula Peterson | May 4, 2018 | Museums, New Mexico, RVing | 0 Comments

Today is our day to tour historic downtown Santa Fe so we stepped onto a city bus outside the RV Park for a 30-minute ride into the city. Our first stop was the Georgia O’Keefe Museum, a lovely, intimate museum which was just the right size to give us a nice overview...

A Visit to the Taos Pueblo

by Paula Peterson | May 3, 2018 | New Mexico, RVing | 0 Comments

We made the drive to Taos today to the Taos Pueblo, an otherworldly visit and experience at this UNESCO World Heritage site. No cameras or cell phones were allowed, and this was strictly enforced. A few of the Native Americans opened their homes with small shops...

Tucumcari to Santa Fe, New Mexico

by Paula Peterson | May 2, 2018 | New Mexico, RVing | 0 Comments

Gorgeous ride! Beautiful blue skies! Tiny, low-growing purple flowers covering the hillsides! It’s still very windy when we stopped at Clines Corner, a travel rest center who amusingly bills themselves as having the “world’s largest bathrooms.” After...

Red Flag Warnings: Oklahoma to New Mexico

by Paula Peterson | May 1, 2018 | New Mexico, Oklahoma, RVing | 0 Comments

Red flag warnings are posted all the way from Oklahoma through Texas. High Winds, Possible Fires! We drove from the campground in Tulsa towards Oklahoma City and over the Arkansas River. You can see the skyline of Tulsa to the right, a big and...

Oklahoma and the Cherokee Casino

by Paula Peterson | April 30, 2018 | Oklahoma, RVing | 0 Comments

We drove all day today, through Missouri into Oklahoma trying to make up a day for an extra day we plan in Santa Fe. Parts of Missouri are beautiful but it is the land of millions of billboards. Tonight, we’ll stay at the Tulsa NE/Cherokee...

Ohio to Stanton, Missouri

by Paula Peterson | April 29, 2018 | RVing | 0 Comments

Time to leave Ohio and we have a new plan. We’ll try to drive as far as possible the next few days in order to arrive in Santa Fe a day earlier. Indiana rolls by looking much like Ohio – flat as far as the eye can see. Farms and huge factory complexes like...

Hauling steel in a dump bucket

by Paula Peterson | April 26, 2018 | RVing | 0 Comments

I’m riding the truck with Matt this morning and we’re hauling scrap metal to Butler Indiana. He operates a MACK 18 wheel “dump bucket” for B & K Trucking of Delphos, and he’s taking me on his regular route. We are crossing the farmlands of...

Hanging out in the heartland: Delphos, Ohio

by Paula Peterson | April 25, 2018 | Ohio, RVing | 0 Comments

We've arrived in Delphos, Ohio to visit my step-son (Steve's son) Matt, who moved out here eight years ago for college and never came home. He recently purchased an old brick farmhouse on the original Lincoln Highway, one of the earliest...

Driving the ‘ol Tin Can

by Paula Peterson | April 24, 2018 | RVing | 0 Comments

Heading out early we spent the day crossing Pennsylvania and heading to Ohio, and I got my first chance to drive the ‘ol tin can during this trip. My two hours behind the wheel were a pretty good experience for me. Although I had driven this RV before, a 24' Thor...

Cleveland Rocks!

by Paula Peterson | April 24, 2018 | Museums, Ohio, RVing | 0 Comments

Fog, fog, fog. Lake Erie always has fog, I was later told. But today is really foggy as we drive into Cleveland and search for a parking lot on the waterfront that takes RVs and buses. A short walk to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, next...

Day One . . . we’re off!

by Paula Peterson | April 23, 2018 | RVing | 0 Comments

We are OFF finally, after what seems like months of planning. Lists checked, provisions in place, nothing left to chance. Oh, except maybe weather, moods, choices and serendipity! Head down in my books or on my phone most of the way down 95 till I could feel...

Getting Organized For The Trip

by Paula Peterson | April 19, 2018 | RVing | 0 Comments

So many lists, so much to do. Planning for a cross country RV trip is a full time job. But a fun one! I'm planning to share my lists with you, with the hope that maybe, some day, someone will find them useful. But first I'll be posting about our travels and then I'll...