"So, what's it like to live in an Airstream?" The answer to that question changes about every two weeks. The short answer is, "It's magical." We just released a short documentary about living in Beauty, pursuing moments that add up to dreams. The post A Day in Beauty appeared first on Living In Beauty.

Merging onto The Blues Trail from the Civil Rights Trail and the Emmett Till Memorial was effortless, and necessary. We've heard that when life gets heavy, The Blues can soothe woes. It was almost Opening Day of the annual Clarksdale Juke Joint Festival, and we needed to blow off some steam. The post Civil Rights Trail – Chapter Three: Juke Joint Festival – Clarksdale, Mississippi appeared first on Living In Beauty.

Our Civil Rights Trail tour began with the Emmett Till Memorial – a good place to start, for several reasons. First, the murder of Emmett Till launched the Civil Rights movement. Second, our destination for the night, The Emmett Till Intrepid Center was a scenic Sunday drive from Dad's house in Decatur, Mississippi. Third, it was Spring – the most beautiful season in Mississippi – when it is customary to reflect on new beginnings, redemption, and reconciliation – these are ideal conditions...

Every year of Living in Beauty is memorable and different. Some years are spectacular and adventurous from start to finish. Other years are simply focused on relaxing color and scenery, or romance and celebration. Spring, Summer, and Autumn '23 on The Civil Rights Trail with side trips through The Great Smoky Mountains and The Blue Ridge was definitely our happiest year on the road. I understand if you think I misspoke. How on earth can nine months of immersion into the story of a people's...

Pitching a tent on Christmas Eve under the stars is an old tradition we picked up from a family of refugees. You’ve heard the story. In a time of war and occupation – a man and his pregnant wife – are forced to travel long-distance on foot to register. Arriving to their destination the woman falls into labor and every room in the city is occupied. Giving birth in the street is not an option because cars haven’t been invented yet. Seeing their distress, a lovely hotel manager says, “Don’t...

"When we first started out, it was a very good beer. It was a very good beer for nomadic types On soft summer nights. We’d try specialty flights paired with pub food bites, In our very First Year." - Adapted from Frank Sinatra's "It was a Very Good Year" We brake for microbreweries. Locally owned breweries are a safe place to enjoy the ancient elixir and make new friends. The neighborhood brewery is an unofficial visitor information center. Most are owned and operated by long-term residents...

When passing through, some places are too beautiful to leave ... so, sometimes we stay. Thanks to Harvest Hosts – a membership club for complimentary overnight camping based on a European model – RV travel is experiencing a resurgence of hospitality not seen since the bygone era of the American Auto Park of the 1920's-to-50's. Resourceful Americans are catching onto the advantage of mobility, prying loose from residential stagnation and the housing crisis to reclaim the open road. That's why...

There are two campgrounds near downtown San Diego where we love to stay. One is the private luxury resort, Sun Outdoors San Diego Bay, and the other is an inland county campground, Sweetwater Summit Regional Park. These two RV parks are as different as Cape Cod and Big Bend. That's largely due to the chameleonic character of San Diego where the scenery changes about every five miles. One park is on San Diego Bay and the other is inland, at the foot of Mother Miguel Mountain on The Sweetwater...

Most tourists take two weeks to see Alaska. That's a mind-bender for we slow travel enthusiasts. From down here in the lower 48 – as we look back on our 246 day trek with two-months in Alaska – it all seems like a whirlwind two-week expedition. Where did the time go? Is Alaska's mysterious energy threshold a portal to another dimension? Or was it all a dream? Of course, Alaska is really up there, I know ... because I found the notes we we took, the notes I wish someone had shared with us...

Our Alaska overland adventure, beginning in San Diego, had finally come to an end - but endings don't come fast in Alaska. The adventure isn't really over until you reach the lower 48, almost 2,000 miles away. It's like that time you hiked up to Half Dome and looked down into the valley from the summit and realized you were only halfway home and it was getting dark. It felt like the finish line kept moving farther and farther away. This part of the trip would be a push. Weather predictions of...

Hi, this is Jim with the annual report. I will be brief and to the point. Today, we wrap up our 7th year of full-time travel. Tomorrow we enter our 8th year on the road. It's been an amazing 7 years. You, our 8,535 followers, guide us, discover and rediscover with us. So, we want to say thank you for being a part of this journey. Click "Read more this post" for the details. The post Launching Year 8! appeared first on Living In Beauty.

If we were young, we'd probably sugar-sprinkle our Alaska exit saying, "We'll be back." But as we pulled out of Chena Hot Springs we weren't whipping up any comeback sauce. We knew the score. There would be no reprise of our Alaska overland tour. We had a wonderful adventure, but the floods, fires, rain, and bad roads wore us out. We were tired. The time had come to find a dignified exit while dealing with the fact that Alaska won't miss us at all. The scenery on our four-day, 686-mile...

Alaska's growing season may be short, but the flowers are worth the wait. Fanciful late summer plumage soothed our nerves as our frontal lobes surged with executive processes. We were playing Russian roulette with the weather. It was almost September, and we had yet to complete our sightseeing goals. Cooler weather had chased off the bugs, but every morning we cautiously inspected the mountains for signs of Termination Dust. We were lonely tourists. Daylight hours had shortened and...

We are all born with a mountain in our heart. Call it passion, ambition or soul – this mountain compels us to rise. Even before taking first steps, your tiny arms stretch toward something in the far distance. This mountain of longing is not in your imagination. It's bigger than that. You can't always see it but you know it's there. You see the signs. The mountain is a comfort. It's your pivot point, your base camp. Read more about our visit to the highest mountain in North America......

After a full year of preparation and months of travel, Alaska was almost finished. For us, at least. In Victoria, we left summer comforts behind for a solo North Country expedition. Due to our age and the physical demands of the journey, we knew this would be our first and last road trip to this latitude. If you're following our story you know this journey is not a piece o'cake. Nevertheless, the pullouts are full of Olive Garden patrons – some on motorcycles, some with walkers – and they're...

Atmosphere is way over our heads. We can't tell a cirrocumulus from a stratus, but we know what we like. A good cloud show is a thing to behold. I was hooked from the moment Mama first laid me down outside on a blanket, face up. In Alaska, the sky is the Greatest Show on Earth, and clouds are the elephant parade, dominating every scene.  Beauty and The Beast is like a cloud passing through, trailing a silver lining. In Alaska, the drive is the destination. The post Airstreaming to Alaska –...

It was time to come clean. Pulling out of Valdez, heading toward Anchorage (in the rain, as always) my sore tooth throbbed to the rhythm of the windshield wipers. “I have a toothache.” The rig swerved slightly on the wet road as Jim turned to look at me. “How bad?” he asked. “Pretty bad. Root canal bad, feels like.” “Since when?” “I almost told you in Dawson City so we could turn around and go back to Whitehorse, but then I remembered the fires closed the road.” “So, you’re in pain all this...

She always said it in threes, with a soft Italian accent, “Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.” First, she’d gasp, Ah!,” and then slowly, “Bee-yoo-tee-fuuul, …" with a little squeak on the yoo part. Forty years ago, I figured her for a centenarian, but looking back from the mature side of my life, she was probably an healthy seventy-five to eighty-year-old. She wore sturdy shoes and a thick black coat which even on hot days was buttoned up to the neck. Her corneas ran low on blue, yet her...

Alaska, land of myth and mystery. It's Shangri–la, Xanadu and Tír na nÓg. It's Through the Looking Glass ... Where The Crawdads Sing, The Fortress of Solitude, and Beyond The Wall. Before the cruise ships found it, getting to Alaska was a heroes journey of purpose and destiny – a trek that required talent, experience and superior genes. Getting there and back is like dancing on stairs. Romanticize Alaska and she will break your heart. Idealize her and she will out you as a fool. The post...

"You are a catastrophist." Ruth, my editor friend, wearing a "I am silently correcting your grammar" T-shirt, captured and labeled me with the benign efficiency of a seasoned naturalist before tightening the lid on a killing jar. She's good! Touché, shoe-fits, call'm-like-ya-see 'em. I accept the characterization. In fact it's my favorite emoji 😱 If you're dead set on eating sushi from a food truck, walking and texting while crossing the road, or planning a drive to Alaska, I will pray for...

Long dusty roads. Midnight sun. Thick wildfire smoke. Rivers rising to the breaking point. Cell signal outages. Moose crash hot zones. Every morning we untangled our weary bones from the mosquito net ... to resume the ongoing discussion, "Should we turn back?" The post Airstreaming to Alaska – Chapter 11: Yukon appeared first on Living In Beauty.

Overwhelmed with after-school hunger, I stuck my finger into the contents of the electric mixer and landed on the other side of the kitchen, suffering shock by mashed potatoes. Stunned, I lay on the floor, hoping the surge from the ungrounded mixer would manifest my body with super powers. Fifty-five years later a similar thing happened when our investment advisor pitched the idea of early retirement in an RV. The jolt of enlightenment didn’t send me flying across the room, but every nerve...

The Alaska Highway was born to be a military supply route but it grew up to be a story-teller. This unforeseen attribute – like an E-ticket ride at Disneyland – had us riveted from Mile-0. Built for war, this 1,187 mile (1,910 km) road opened to the public in 1948. Since then, driving to Alaska is a surefire epochal adventure for any traveller who is up for a dense narrative with beaucoup twists and turns. Every overlander comes away with a unique life-altering experience, but not always the...

Pop! We both heard it, the sound of someone opening a bottle of bubbly in the next hotel room. But we were not in a hotel. We were driving the Beast up a scorched highway in the Mojave desert with Beauty in tow. "Blowout! Pull over!," I shouted. Jim slowed down, activated the emergency lights and showed back, “There’s no room!” The post Blips and Bubbles appeared first on Living In Beauty.