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Feeling Footloose

August 7th, 2012

Humans are among the most footloose of species. Pilgrimages seem to be almost instinctive, or at least derived from behaviors now so ingrained in our species that it’s difficult to distinguish between genetic and social origins. Of all the animals that migrate, we are surely among the most restless. But humans retain the influence of the geophysical habitat in which they pass their formative years. And often, it seems, we are drawn back to our childhood homes–if not physically, then mentally; if not out of love, then out of curiosity; if not by necessity, then by desire. Through such ramblings we find out who we are.

John Janovy, Jr in Vermillion Sea found in A Year In The Maine Woods by Bernd Herinrich

In late July I started to long for a camping trip to the mountains. Perhaps it’s a response to all the busyness in my life at the moment. Whatever it is, the need to get away and disconnect is quite strong at the moment.

There’s no time in my life for such a journey, instead time was spent looking through all of my images from a few of our previous trips.



Mr Chiots and I have been talking about where we will end up on our next trip. A journey to the Southwest is in our future, as well as a long trip to Alaska. Hawaii is also on our travel bucket list, not so much for the tropical aspect but there are a few national parks on the islands.

With the big move this year, we’re not sure any of these are going to be feasible this coming year. Good thing the Catskills are right in the middle of our new home and my parent’s house here in Ohio. Perhaps a couple nights there on our trips to/from will cure our travel fever.

What locations are on your travel bucket list?

17 Comments to “Feeling Footloose”
  1. Randy on August 7, 2012 at 7:59 am

    We visited Maine this year, dividing time between Portland, Brunswick and Camden. The lighthouse on Cape Elizabeth and Bald Rock Mountain were a couple of our favorite spots.

    Coming back to 95+ degrees in Central Illinois was tough.

    Next year will most likely be Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands.

    Reply to Randy's comment

  2. Mich on August 7, 2012 at 8:26 am

    Having landed at Alaska airport in various seasons on route to Japan I have always wanted to see more of the country! So Alaska is on my list & having never been to the USA…would love to see New England in the autumn…and experience cowboy country & see a rodeo!
    Norway & Sweden & long haul New Zealand are also on the list… Tho currently have an out of date passport. Lol.

    Reply to Mich's comment

  3. daisy on August 7, 2012 at 8:34 am

    So many places I’d love to see or revisit. The Sequoias are definitely one of my favorite places on the planet.
    I know how you feel needing to be out in nature. We need that type of stillness to recharge.
    Beautiful photos.

    Reply to daisy's comment

  4. Bethany on August 7, 2012 at 8:46 am

    I have serious cabin fever right now too. Hopefully after the twins are born we will take a trip back to New Mexico. If the in-laws come to visit, we might make it to the Balloon Fiesta. They’ve never seen it before, but I’d rather go to the badlands., and time wise it’d be pushing it to get there by early October. I ache for an open sky, mountains, the feel of the desert air.

    Our bucket list is huge, so hopefully we have kids that like to travel. In the states I want to go to more national parks, including Yellowstone and Glacier National Monument. I haven’t even made it to Acadia yet! We have an international list too, but other than trips to see family in Germany, it’s on hold. We both want to see Peru, New Zealand, Thailand, among many, many other places.

    When you have an international family, all of vacation is often spent visiting family. We will go to Germany over Christmas to introduce the babies to my husbands 99 year old grandmother. It will be great, but that will be about it for travel for a while I think.

    Reply to Bethany's comment

  5. whit on August 7, 2012 at 10:47 am

    Maine will cure those cabin fever blues for sure! It’s how we feel about our new place too. Every trip to our old house yields anxiety with every little noise and the roar of traffic, airplanes and sirens. I can’t believe we lived like that for 10 years.

    Out at the new place: yesterday while picking blueberries the size of dimes, i saw a blue heron fly overhead. While put away canning jars in the shed, i found a green tree frog’s cool spot in the shade of a window box. We have a family with baby skunks living in a drainage ditch out front. The swallows like playing bombaderes with our cats out back. On sunny days, Mt. Rainier looms overhead. Sometimes i wonder why i’d want to leave for vacation.

    I would love to see the South though. Islands off GA, the Everglades before they vanish. I already missed seeing NOLA. Nova Scotia is my end all, be all trip i’d love to do. My daughter and i want to drive from one end to the other of I-90 and I-5 someday. This summer i get to scratch one off…on the way east, we’re heading over Chinook Pass through Mt. Rainier Nat’l Park…we’ll have used every hwy over the Cascades in NWestern WA. :)

    Reply to whit's comment

  6. harper on August 7, 2012 at 11:01 am

    I love southern Utah and the red rocks. The southern Utah National Parks are like none other. I’m exciting that I’ll be able to show them to my husband for the first time on our way to Nevada to visit family. I would also hope that we can get to Jasper and Banff sometime.

    Reply to harper's comment

  7. Jamie Woodside on August 7, 2012 at 11:28 am

    If you ever do make it to Alaska, let me know! I feel so fortunate to have spent my whole life here, and I can give you some insider’s tips on where to go and what to see!

    Reply to Jamie Woodside's comment

    • Susy on August 7, 2012 at 11:34 am

      Will do – we love getting inside tips!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. Kathi on August 7, 2012 at 12:12 pm

    I am reading A Year in the Maine Woods right now and am loving it. There are many quotes iin it I want to underline. I also loved the last quote about the greeness of life. I would love to go to Yosemite and may next year.

    Reply to Kathi's comment

    • Susy on August 7, 2012 at 12:21 pm

      Yosemite is on my list too, one of the few National Parks I haven’t been to.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  9. Deb on August 7, 2012 at 1:59 pm

    Thanks for sharing. I love the Nat’l Parks also, but have been to very few.
    As for the lady hoping to have kids that like to travel, you just go and they go,they’ll learn to like it and aren’t given a choice. Most kids like seeing things when they’re old enough to remember it. But wait till they’re past toddler age to go faraway places as you want them to remember the places. I don’t get folks taking babies and toddlers expensive places like Disney and such as they’ll never have a memory of it except for pictures. I would love to see Alaska sometime too as I love wilderness.

    Reply to Deb's comment

    • Joan on August 7, 2012 at 9:56 pm

      I wish it worked that way for us. My husband and I both love to travel, but our 14 year old son really doesn’t. He’d flown seven times by the time he was a year old, spent a good part of his early life tent camping in the wilderness (or near wilderness) when he was younger… His favorite thing to do is to stay home though. Give him a good book and he’d never leave.

      Reply to Joan's comment

  10. judym on August 7, 2012 at 5:00 pm

    We want to travel back to Thailand. Our Alaska trip is one we want to take absolutely for sure – been talking about this since before our 2nd child was born ____years ago!

    So glad our annual campout in the fall is coming soon – it’s not far but it’s a quiet getaway!

    Reply to judym's comment

  11. Maybelline on August 7, 2012 at 6:58 pm

    I’m not much of a traveler. Hope you enjoy Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii. I loved it. The Grand Tetons just can’t be beat. I would, however, like to travel the Rockies from Canada south.

    Reply to Maybelline's comment

    • Maybelline on August 7, 2012 at 6:59 pm

      …and I would like to see New England, the Great Lakes, and Washington DC.

      Reply to Maybelline's comment

  12. jennifer fisk on August 7, 2012 at 8:21 pm

    I hope to see Newfoundland one of these days.

    Reply to jennifer fisk's comment

  13. tj on August 7, 2012 at 8:52 pm

    …That 3rd photo is priceless! As well as the last one – you two are too cute! :o)

    …As you know, I want to see Maine. And Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, California, Alaska, Montana, Oregon, Wisconsin, Wyoming and South Dakota for some reason. Oh, and Ireland. That’s it. ;o)

    …I never really have traveled and now my husband and I are talking about traveling now that he has taken early retirement. So I’m rather looking forward to it.

    …Have a lovely evening!

    …Blessings :o)

    Reply to tj's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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