“Like all great travelers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen.”

-Benjamin Disraeli

This is Magic, writing my last RV travel blog entry for my humans. Even though we didn’t know at the time, we ended our RV adventure after this stay as camp hosts and handsome traveling canine. Since I am finishing these words in March of 2024, I guess I experienced writer’s block! This is a long post covering almost seven months, so enjoy. And except for my Happy Howlidays letter, my days of writing are coming to end, as I will be celebrating my 12th birthday in July 2024.

We arrived at High Falls State Park on May 1, 2022 and left in early October.

My humans were loaned a golf cart, tools and given a quick orientation and they started their volunteer gig in exchange for a “free”campsite the very next morning. Their duties included cleaning campsites, maintaining one bathroom building, checking in late arriving campers, yurt cleaning, and reminding other humans about the rules.

High Falls State Park is a beautiful setting about 45 minutes south of Atlanta, Georgia along I-75.

One of the first projects for our site was a garden planted in a felt-type garden structure that could be folded up. We watched our beautiful plants grow and develop and then be invaded by many Carolina Sphynx moths that ate our garden!

Our first human visitors arrived a week after we arrived and I was glad Winston and Bob, my canine friends came along.

There was also a flower garden next to our site that had something continually blooming, so we watered and weeded and enjoyed.

My humans also saw some lovely Georgia sunsets over High Falls Lake.

We kept busy as camp hosts, and enjoyed our “job.” It was frustrating at times when camping humans did not follow the rules and created unnecessary messes.

Father’s Day weekend was our weekend off so we went to Atlanta, to celebrate.

There was so much beauty all in our “front yard.” We enjoyed hiking throughout the park and many strolls through the campground.

One of the best parts of this gig was our direct supervisor, Ranger Sami. She was a ray of sunshine!

During June we were able to leave High Falls State Park and attend a family reunion in Garden City, Kansas.

After returning to High Falls State Park, we visited The Whistle Stop Cafe in Juliet, Georgia where the movie Fried Green Tomatoes was filmed. And yes, my humans had a large plate of fried green tomatoes.

We also made a visit to Don Carter State Park to see friends we had met in Florida while volunteering. They were also being state park camp hosts-so we swapped stories.

Another day trip was to Dauset Trails Nature Center, a wildlife sanctuary for animals native to Georgia. On our drive there, we saw a “circle of life” moment.

We learned about the mushroom season as well as different insects appearing at different times throughout the seasons.

Jennie, Steve and Annie visited for July 4, and we went swimming in the High Falls Pool.

Another day trip was to Ocmulgee Mounds National Historic Park.

And then it was October and we left High Falls. We enjoyed the office staff and rangers. We worked hard and enjoyed our visits to see our family throughout our five months of volunteering.

As we left the park our motorhome bumped a gate and caused damage to us and the gate. Since we were heading for some maintenance on the motorhome we had the bumps fixed and decided to sell our home on wheels. This was not an easy decision but we all felt it was time for a change due to health issues, anxiety and our desire to be near our family.

By the end of November 2022 and the 40th wedding anniversary of my humans, we moved into a 55+ community in Duluth, Georgia.

Thanks for reading my blog entries over the last 3 1/2 years of RV travel. We have made so many great memories, met so many fascinating people and dogs, seen many interesting places, learned much about full-time RV life, and do not regret this once in a lifetime experience. It has been an adventure!

Woof woof!

Magic

“To move, to breathe, to fly, to float

To gain all while you give,

To roam the roads of lands remote,

To travel is to live.”

I am Magic, the author of this travel blog which describes full-time RV life for me and my humans, Momma Dog and Big Dog. We have been living in our 39 foot Class A motorhome since May 2019.

In early April, 2022, after saying goodbye to Warren Willis United Methodist Camp and Conference Center, our first stop was Cumberland Island National Seashore. Well, the humans were allowed on this beautiful island, while I stayed in the motorhome to rest-as no dogs were allowed.

Then we moved on to A. H. Stephens State Park, which is west of Atlanta. Our site was in the equestrian area, so we again were surrounded by animals.

My humans learned about A.H. Stephens who was the vice president of the Confederacy. It was interesting but troubling.

And on a lighter note, we enjoyed early spring sights of beauty.

Then we headed for an Easter visit to Stone Mountain Park. My humans had stayed here before and do not really liked the narrow, poorly kept roads-but I like it there!

Well we soon were visiting with the family and Joanna and Jennie took Momma Dog to a fancy tea house in Atlanta on Good Friday.

Then we enjoyed lamb kabobs, an Easter tradition for us. I tried a bite of lamb and gave my full approval. Momma Dog also made bunny salad and jelly bean nests.

We told the family goodbye and headed to the north Georgia mountains. The humans met up with RV folks in Dillard at River Vista RV Resort.

Momma Dog and Big Dog love this part of Georgia and visited Clayton and Dillard.

And Momma Dog had a shopping and tea sipping day with RV friends.

The humans spent a day at Tallaluh Gorge State Park, while I stayed home and gazed at the mountains.

The next day my humans had a large and yummy breakfast at The Dillard House (no doggy bags allowed!) and visited Black Top Mountain State Park and Fox Fire.

Our next adventure was The Great Smokey Mountains National Park-and I went along to this beautiful place! And here is the blurry photo to prove it!

We spent the day hiking and driving around seeing beauty and learning about the history of the area. And we took a stroll on the Appalachian Trail!

A hike to see Minehaha Falls Trail was also on our list. This hike was a bit muddy and treacherous, but beautiful.

And our last adventure was to the Big Foot Museum in Blue Ridge, GA to “believe” he exists.

These adventures in the north Georgia Mountains ended and we drove to our first camp host gig in a state park. We arrived on a Sunday and began volunteering on Monday at High Falls State Park, which is between Atlanta and Macon. And we stayed here from May through October, 2022-which will be covered in a future blog.

Thanks for reading this travel blog! I send woofs your way and need to rest my paws before I share the rest of the story. LOVE-MAGIC

This is Magic, canine travel blog writer, who had been traveling and living in a class A motorhome for over three years with my humans, Big Dog and Momma Dog. I really am quite the well-traveled hound dog and have sniffed and walked in many states! This blog covers October 2021 to April 2022.

“I like Florida. Everything is in the ‘80s. The temperatures, the ages and the IQs.”—George Carlin

I hope the above quote by George Carlin does not offend you humans. My Momma Dog found it funny!

“Okay, very important question. On one hand, Florida has beaches, but on the other hand, Georgia has peaches. So it’s beach versus peaches. See my predicament?”Erica from The Goldbergs

Warning to my travel blog readers: this covers five months of living with my humans, so I hope this holds your interest. Feel free to scroll quickly through with your paws, I mean fingers.

We landed in Georgia in October, 2021 so I feel it is time again to share about our adventures. My humans continue to live and travel in Tana, our 10 year old motorhome. Tana had some repairs completed (finally our mirror was reattached) while we stayed in the Sankey home in Norcross, Georgia. I, Magic, the American Fox Hound (previously identified as a Treeing Walker Coonhound) enjoyed my visit there with canines Bob and Athena. My humans loved their time with granddaughter, Annie and her parents.

We all were excited about Annie’s baptism on October17, 2021. Canines did not attend the actual baptism-but I heard the sacred event was amazing!

Steve, Reverend Jody Andrade, Annie, Jennie

The family time was great, but soon we had to move on. Before we left, Momma Dog (Julie) created beautiful blue starry night Advent stoles for the pastors at Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church. Our next stop was a camping trip with the Georgia Azaleas in Alabama.

As you can tell we were Florida bound. Our first stay in the sunshine state was in Citra, Florida.

Our next stay in late October, was Sumter Oaks RV Park in Bushnell, Florida. We enjoyed seeing Sandhill Cranes and feeling the FL sunshine. Unfortunately we encountered a rock that scratched a bay door as we entered the campground.

We drove a short distance to our new home for the winter in Fruitland Park, Florida. The humans were volunteering as work campers at Warren Willis Camp and Conference Center, along with about 50 other retired folks. This 300 acre camp is sponsored by the United Methodist Church, and is truly a beautiful and sacred space. I met lots of other dogs and found Florida to be a very nice change!

After the humans completed their weekly 12 hours of volunteer/work (mostly in housekeeping and the dining hall) we took trips within Florida or returned to Georgia to see our family. We had the week before Thanksgiving off and went to Atlanta and visited St. Augustine on our way back, celebrating 39 years of marriage for my humans.

St. Augustine is known as the oldest city in Florida. We stayed at a dog friendly hotel-complete with a dog bed, water dish, dog treats and a huge dog park. The humans and I loved our beach time and a visit to The Fountain of Youth.

My humans had Thanksgiving dinner at Cracker Barrel along with many others, and Momma Dog brought me a delicious doggie bag. We returned to Warren Willis Camp and Conference Center and started our Christmas decorating and preparations for Christmas in Atlanta.

One of the first adventures for my humans was Homosassa Springs, on the Gulf coast.

The next December adventure was Silver Springs State Park, also on the Gulf Coast.

Then in mid-December we had a week off at Warren Willis and we traveled to Atlanta for family Christmas fun. The first activity was Jazz Night at the High Museum of Art in downtown Atlanta and experiencing beautiful lights.

We celebrated Christmas early because Joanna and Zach were headed to Wisconsin. And I had to wear a Christmas outfit!

Then Christmas Eve arrived with much excitement for the church service and more family fun. I stayed with fellow canines, Bob and Athena.

On December 26 the humans and I headed back to Florida. Our first stop was Tallahassee to see the capitol building. I actually took a nice nap in the car while the humans walked about.

We returned to Warren Willis Camp and Conference Center to continue our work camping gig along with an adventure to Weeki Wachee for Kendall’s birthday.

We drove to Daytona Beach on January 7, 2022. The humans and I found the beach VERY COLD AND WINDY!

The following week we headed north to Georgia to celebrate Annie’s second birthday!

And we all met the new canine family member-Winston! It was one of his first public outings, and he was instantly loved by all the humans. He wanted to play with me constantly.

There was a bit of snow in Atlanta on January 16, 2022 and then we were back in Florida.

We visited the Citrus tower in January, located in Clermont, Florida.

In February we returned to Atlanta to celebrate Jennie’s birthday and view the Obama portraits at the High Museum of Art in downtown Atlanta. Well the humans left me behind, but there was not a dog portrait to view so I just napped. I heard there was much excitement and a few happy tears shed!

We also celebrated Valentines Day!

A fun event for the humans back in Florida was a concert by a fellow work camper with an amazing voice. His name is Doug and the concert was named, “Love and Doug.”

The humans took me to Venetian Gardens in Leesburg, FL for an afternoon outing. We saw lots of beauty!

Mount Dora was another day trip for the humans. They had delicious Thai food, ate yummy ice cream, learned about harvesting oranges at a museum and viewed the Van Gogh House.

Tavares, Florida the Sea Plane Capital, was our next stop. And seeing the planes take off and land kept my tail wagging!

The next day was a trip to a beach for dogs! It truly was amazing! Woof, woof!

And we took a drive to see the Canaveral National Sea Shore, although no dogs and glass were allowed on the beach. However, the humans did view some nude humans lying on the sand!

Our next adventure found us in Melbourne, Florida visiting Joyce and Jim Sankey in their beautiful home. I enjoyed seeing their little canine, Jamie. My humans experienced the Kennedy Space Center while I napped In Melbourne. They learned much and are ready to blast off!

We loved loved our time in Melbourne-touring the downtown, eating delicious food, and enjoying time in the pool and hot tub at the Sankey home (actually, I did not participate in those activities-except for my dog food.) My humans also hiked through the Turkey Creek Sanctuary and found more Florida beauty.

A few weeks later we experienced Ash Wednesday at Warren Willis Camp and Conference Center. And another amazing sunrise!

Momma Dog went on a work camper field trip on an old school bus to the Strawberry Festival in Plant City, Florida. And she attended a Beach Boys concert while she was there!

Although there are no photos to prove it, Momma Dog met up with her friend, Julie Rising Ward, in The Villages, Florida. They had not seen each other for about 39 years! These two friends who met and worked together in Garden City and Wichita, Kansas-had much to talk about!

Our first winter in Florida was coming to an end, as work campers began to return to their homes or continue full-time travel. We were sad to learn our volunteer coordinator, Shawn, was resigning-because he had become a dear friend. We enjoyed almost every day there, and hope to return!

Well that seems to be more than enough travel information. We rolled out of Florida in early April with new adventures waiting. Thanks for reading to the end.

Love and Woof to my readers,

MAGIC

“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.“

Susan Sontag

This is Magic, the handsome American Foxhound, writing another travel blog for my humans. We have been living full-time in our Class A motorhome, named Tana, since 2019 and continue to see the U.S. We left hot Sacramento headed for Sparks Marina in Nevada as our first stop. Well I do not recall a Marina, and the dog park was full of gravel. We moved on the next day to Elko, Nevada and enjoyed some grass and trees. Momma Dog even practiced yoga outside before the day heated up.

So we hired an RV technician, and stayed an extra night to get this fixed. And it seemed tight again although the glass was still missing.

The humans chose to park in the parking lot of the Idaho Potato Museum in Blackfoot, Idaho. This is a Harvest Host location, and guests are invited to buy admission to the museum and my humans also enjoyed baked potatoes and potato huckleberry ice cream.We were there with two other RV’s-but no canine friends for me.

We left Idaho in rain and headed to Livingston, Montana. Our route took us through the west entrance of Yellowstone National Park and Momma Dog was very nervous about the curvy roads, many with pot holes and rugged shoulders. We stopped at a pull-off for lunch and I romped through the grass. It is very long drive through YNP and near the end, Tana’s tire went into a big pothole and our driver side got scratched by a guard rail. This was a sad and scary moment for all of us. We made it to our KOA in Livingston/Paradise Valley in Montana with plans to return to YNP in a smaller vehicle-which turned out to be another U-Haul pickup.

The day in Yellowstone was very rainy for the humans. However that did not seem to stop the crowds.

Back in Livingston at our KOA, we waited for our new piece of mirror glass to arrive and it never did. Well actually it did arrive a few days after we left. We enjoyed this KOA, and attended an ice cream social and shopped in the gift store.

Our next destination was Miles City, Montana. I don’t really remember much about this place but on the way there the humans had to use lots of duct tape to fix the mirror again. There was lots of rain and the humans walked to the Montana Bar for dinner.

Our next stop was Bismarck, North Dakota. The humans and I had stayed at this park in 2019. Happily, we received our glass for the mirror at this location. We hired another RV technician to work on mounting the mirror for us. He put even longer screws in and we all prayed the mirror would stay attached. Big Dog and Momma Dog successfully affixed the mirror glass and they even changed out a broken headlight bulb. I wanted to give them a high five with my paw but they didn’t pay any attention to me. It always makes their tails wag when they know how to fix something that breaks in the RV.

My humans found an Uber and explored the state capital of North Dakota in Bismarck. The Uber driver was originally from Kansas and had gone to their alma mater, Wichita State University.

After touring the beautiful Art Deco capital the humans checked out an amazing museum on the grounds. Momma Dog took these pictures to teach me about not being greedy.

We left North Dakota and traveled to Ashby, Minnesota. We stayed at a small campground called Prairie Cove on Pelican Lake. And it rained again.

Then we headed for Wisconsin and our first stop was Chippewa Falls. The humans enjoyed a visit to the Leinenkugel Brewery. They took a tour and sampled beer and had a nice taxi ride home.

Our next stop was Milton, Wisconsin at a beautiful, award-winning KOA. I really liked it because of the dog park.

The human spent a day touring the capital of Wisconsin in Madison.

While we were traveling through Illinois, Big Dog noticed the mirror tilting and this quickly happened.

So we found some tape and the soft hammer and put it back together.

We had a Harvest Host night in Edwards, Illinois at Kickapoo Creek Winery. We were one of two RVs there and enjoyed a winetasting and beautiful walk through their property. Well I actually did not have any wine, but the humans did and they bought a few bottles to use in the future. There was a lake and fields full of grapevines and some fun places to sniff and do my business.

Then we were headed to St. Peters, Missouri. The plan was to meet up with Joanna, Zach, Jennie, Steve and Annie. My humans were invited to the lovely wedding of Hannah and Khye-friends of Joanna from St. Louis. Joanna was a beautiful bridesmaid and Jennie was the amazing wedding officiant. My humans and Steve were Annie keepers during the ceremony and reception.

We loved being at Lakeside Park in St. Peters, Missouri. It was a new city park with an RV park within it. My humans took me to a nice dog park and I loved being lakeside. They even rode a double recumbent bike around the lake.

Indiana called us next and we tried a Harvest Host called Steckler Grassfed Farm. We saw chickens, turkeys, sheep and cows.

The humans enjoyed meeting the friendly farmer and enjoyed his cheese and purchased some beef. The farmers dog befriended me and this little fellow would not leave me alone.

And the next day we were off to Kentucky for our first “Boondockers Welcome” experience. To boondock means you park and stay somewhere that does not have utility hookups. Boondockers Welcome consists of places across the country for free RV stays and we stayed in a Baptist church parking lot. We forgot to take a photo, but enjoyed walking all around the church campus and seeing the youth group playing outside. We received a warm welcome from Dan, one of the pastors, who said he ministered to boondockers.

The next day we took a short drive to Tennessee and the humans visited the Museum of Appalachia.

We stayed at the North Knoxville KOA and Momma Dog had enough points for a free stay! Woof woof! And a grassy dog park for me. We liked this KOA and the weather was beautiful. There was a diesel gas station right outside of the entrance and the humans were amazed the price was $2.99 per gallon! In California in August, they paid $4.11 per gallon.

Our last stop before returning to Georgia was Spartanburg, South Carolina. The road construction was extreme but we made it safe and sound. We had a free night again complete with a gas grill, round table with umbrella and chairs-and even a swing where the humans could sit next to each other. There were two dog parks and abundant grass for canines. We enjoyed some relaxation and then unfortunately they gave me a bath on our last day there. I heard them say something about the smell of a hound dog…

Now we were finally bound for Georgia.

Our one night stay before taking Tana in for repair work was in Fort Yargo State Park.

So our trip has ended for now. Our travels to the west coast and back were memorable and we are glad to be back with our family again. As always, here is a big thank you bark for reading my travel blog. I will continue to write it because it sure helps Big Dog and Momma Dog remember where they have been.

So we will be in Georgia for a month to be with family, celebrate Annie’s baptism and enjoy some non-travel time. The humans have a camping trip planned in Alabama with the Georgia Azaleas in late October and then we will be at a new work camping gig in Florida for five months.

Magic

“You must go on adventures to find out where you truly belong.“ –

Sue Fitzmaurice

I am Magic, the American Fox Hound, writing another entry in my travel blog. My humans, Big Dog and Momma Dog are taking me on a long trip and I hope you enjoy going along with us. Our first stop on June 27, 2021 was the National Indoor RV Center in Lawrenceville, Georgia to have some service on Tana, our 39 foot Newmar Ventana LE. Tana is a 2012 model, so we are trying to take good care of her.

Our first stop was in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. We had stayed at this RV park before, and it’s nothing to really bark about. But it was fine for one night and we moved on to Vicksburg, Mississippi. We stayed at the Ameristar RV park which is next to the casino. We had stayed here before also and again nothing to bark about but it worked great for one night. Our third night on the road took us to Shreveport, Louisiana. This was a KOA and Momma Dog said we would not go back here again. It was very muddy and the sites were very close together and our next-door neighbor had pulled his pick up camper in between his RV and our RV. It was just a bit too cozy for us!

Finally we made it to Arlington, Texas. This stop was a KOA that we had stayed at before also. We did go to a s’more party and had giant pancakes for breakfast on the Fourth of July there. I actually did not get to eat any of these treats at the KOA, but the humans seemed to like them a lot.

The humans were invited to the Cleworth home on the Fourth of July. I stayed home to guard the RV and generally speaking I do not like to be out in the fireworks. Momma Dog gave me half of a trazodone and I had a really nice long nap. When they came home I was forced to go outside and felt like I was in a war zone with fireworks popping in the sky all around me. I quickly finished my “business”and dragged Momma Dog back to our home.

On July 5 the humans went to their 10 x 10 storage space. It was very hot and not very fun but they found a few items that they had been looking for. That evening they were invited to the Nus family home for another delicious meal.

We left Texas and headed to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Since this is our return tour, we again stayed in a familiar RV park. This park had been destroyed by a tornado a few years ago so there are no trees but they do have tornado shelters. Unfortunately dogs are not allowed inside the below ground shelters!

In Amarillo, Texas we stayed at the BigTexan RV Ranch which was recommended by a fellow RV friend. The first thing that Big Dog and Momma Dog noticed were the Longhorns on the front of the escort golf cart. And no we did not go to the big Texan Steak House although my humans said they have been there in the past.

After just a one night stay in Amarillo, we were off to New Mexico. We saw lots of people visiting the Cadillac Ranch west of Amarillo.

We drove into New Mexico with beautiful scenery and mountains. I had a great nap and we arrived at the home of Carolyn and Gordon Berry in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. They do not have any dogs, but their backyard was full of bunnies and quail and doves and even a road runner. The humans had a wonderful time eating and chatting and enjoying the lovely home of Carolyn and Gordon. Carolyn‘s mother and Big Dog’s father were siblings. And we really enjoyed seeing all of Carolyn‘s artwork.

We left beautiful Rio Rancho, New Mexico and headed to Raton, New Mexico. We stayed at a small KOA and it was adequate for our needs. We all took a nap and worked on eating all the food in our refrigerator. We are going to be parking Tana for one week and staying in a sticks and bricks vacation home in the YMCA Camp Of The Rockies in Estes Park.

We left Tana in Laporte and rode with our new friend Zara to pick up our minivan rental in Estes Park. The humans dropped me and their stuff at the Smith cabin and I enjoyed a nap on their couch!

After a drive in the new minivan to Arvada, we picked everyone up and headed back to Estes Park. The Kansas City Smiths provided a delicious dinner for us that night. And Annie loved beets for the first time!

Two of the four days during the visit the humans ventured into Rocky Mountain National Park. they had to obtain a timed entry pass and joined in with lots of other humans to see all the beauty. I stayed behind to guard the cabin and catch up on my sleep.

Life at the cabin was filled with meals, games, naps and excursions.

The humans enjoyed activities in Estes Park and at the YMCA Camp of the Rockies, such as a night walk, a massage for Momma Dog, horseback riding, a Harry Potter escape room, white water rafting, frisbee golf, a concert, crafts, a farmer’s market and probably some I cannot remember! I went on daily walks, snatched food when I could, and enjoyed seeing deer and birds. And of course-napping there was so nice.

The humans loved their time together. And yes, Life Is Good! Even for me, as the family dog, life seems pretty sweet as I try to blend in with the humans.

Goodbye Estes Park! It was great to meet up with the Kansas City Smith Family and be with Joanna, Zach, Jennie, Steve and little Annie (who loves to pet me)! We will see our family again in September.

The next time the RV door was opened I learned we were in Wyoming at the Escapees national gathering known as Escapade. There were were about 700+ RVs in attendance along with their humans and dogs.

After almost a week in Wyoming, we packed up and headed for the Great Salt Lake in Magna, Utah. The first thing we noticed was a not so pleasant smell and many small flying bugs. We learned that brine shrimp, brine fly larvae and algae thrive in the lake. Also, many migratory birds love to visit and they eat the brine shrimp. We also saw many large spiders moving on thick white string-like webs all over the rocks.???

The next day I stayed home while the humans went to investigate Salt Lake City, Utah. They experienced Temple Square with a guided tour by young ministry sisters and an organ concert in the place where the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings.

Next stop on our trip was Hagerman, Idaho.

On our last night in Hagerman, Idaho, Big Dog read all about the fossils that had been found there. If you notice in the left-hand corner of the sign there is a small dinosaur, known as the Hagerman horse (Equus simplicidens)-which is also the state fossil of Idaho. I wish I could run with him!

We crossed into Oregon the next day and landed in Baker City. Gold was discovered here in 1861. The humans explored the downtown.

We left Oregon and headed to Stevenson, Washington.

We went back to Oregon to stay in Roseburg.

Our next stop was Coos Bay, Oregon. We were on the water at Bay Landing Campground and had lots of sandy walks at both low and high tides. Most of the days were pretty hazy and gray except for one beautiful clear day with the blue sky!

The humans rented a U-Haul pick up and traveled to see a beautiful lighthouse. The humans had work camping friends (Cindy and Al Miller) who had worked at this lighthouse so it was extra fun to see where they had been.

Even though I wasn’t invited on this field trip I can appreciate that the humans found some delicious seafood in Coos Bay and also visited an interesting museum.

While in Coos Bay the humans discovered lots of water on the floor and ended up having a repair on the mid bath toilet. our next stop was Yreka, California.

Our final stop on this leg of the trip out west was in Sacramento, California. Kendall entered a research study at the Mind Institute on the University of California at the Davis campus. On our last exit off the freeway a truck hit our driver side mirror and broke it.

Probably the best part of the week was having lunch with Big Dog’s cousin, David Troup, who lives in San Francisco, California. Well, I didn’t really get to go to lunch with the humans but I did get a lot of pets from David. And the humans thought it was pretty fun to ride in his hydrogen powered Hyundai Nexo.

After having a new mirror shipped to them and trying their human best to install it-unfortunately within about 10 minutes of leaving Sacramento it fell off and broke. So we taped on a mirror we had and moved on.

This is the end of our travel blog for now. This leg of the trip began on June 27 and ended on September 2, 2021. Thank you for reading to the end. We have more adventures to come and I will show you our future route.

Much love and sniffs and pats to all of you readers from Magic, your canine blogger.

Where are we going Pooh? Home Piglet. We’re going home, because that’s the best thing to do right now. -A. A. Milne

Hello everyone. This is Magic, the Treeing Walker Coon Hound who is living full-time with his humans, Big Dog and Momma Dog in our motorhome. I have taken a writing break since 2020 began, but felt a need to share some news and bark about our recent travel to Livingston, Texas from Stone Mountain, Georgia.

After the Christmas and New Year holidays with our family, we all waited for the new arrival. Jennie and Steve Sankey were expecting their first little puppy for Bob and Athena to take care of.

In January the humans had fun visiting the state capital building in Atlanta, but the dogs were not invited.

On January 14 at 8:28 am, our family welcomed Annie Ruth Sankey into our pack with lots of howling and tail wagging. Momma Dog had the best experience because she helped Jennie and Steve during the labor and birth. She told me that Jennie was so strong and patient and Steve was attentive and loving through a long and intense experience. And when Jennie told Momma Dog the name “Annie Ruth”, she literally stopped in her tracks and jumped for joy!

As you can imagine, me and my humans spent time with Annie and her family in the first few weeks. She loved being in Big Dog’s lap and Momma Dog read her books and showed her toys to gaze at. And they helped change lots of diapers, cooked some meals, and tried to give Steve and Jennie time to nap in-between feedings.

Joanna invited Momma Dog and Big Dog to International Night at her middle school. No dogs were allowed, but the humans enjoyed authentic food from around the world and watching Joanna be an amazing emcee for the talent show.

The humans loved a March visit with Jim and Glenna Cleworth, dear friends from Texas. They cooked and ate delicious food, bowled, laughed, drank delicious Atlanta beer, and consumed some wonderful tacos and sandwiches. And of course-enjoyed being together and hanging out with Annie.

On Friday, March 13 the humans and I left Georgia for a trip to Livingston, Texas. Our Texas vehicle safety inspection and registration was expiring on March 30 so we journeyed to our domicile/legal address/mail service location to accomplish these tasks.

We felt safe inside our motorhome and Momma Dog provided me a canvas crate to keep me and my anxiety contained. Along with my “chill pills,” my thunder jacket and splat mat filled with peanut butter for licking as the engine starts-I am doing better with traveling as a happy camper.

Our first stop was Sunset RV Park in Cottondale, Alabama, which is near Tuscaloosa. I saw several things that said, “Roll Tide,” but did not understand what this meant.

On our way to the Ameristar Casino RV Park, we spotted some interesting things in Mississippi.

Our next stop was Martin Dies, Jr. State Park-near Jasper, Texas. Our one night stay was very nice and although the posted signs talked of alligators-fortunately we did not encounter any!

And the next morning we were off to Livingston, Texas. On our third attempt to find an inspector we found a man out in the country and waited behind two other class A motorhomes for basically a non-inspection.

Then, after a short drive we landed at Lake Livingston State Park.

On Tuesday, we rented a car and Momma Dog was questioned about her health status regarding Covid-19. The humans drove through Jack in the Box for food (only drive through food available at restaurants in Texas) and had a picnic, and found the tax office and took care of business to complete our vehicle registration for 2020. They entered one store, used hand gel there, and came home with groceries. They described very little produce and no paper products at the store-and reassured me of an ample dog food supply.

We took some hikes at Lake Livingston State Park-but my favorite was the hike that resulted in a spoonful of Blue Bell ice cream!

On our last night we had a fire, and had s’mores with miniature marshmallows.

Although there are no photos, when I barked my humans awake at 6 am on our departure day, rain had soaked the outside rug and chairs. I think they learned to stow their equipment away on the night before departing as a good idea. And they were grateful for good rain jackets and beach towels for drying off.

After a few hours of rainy driving on I-20 east we arrived in Ruston, Louisiana at Lincoln Parish Park. This was a beautiful park within the city and we were grateful for a pull-through site among the trees and across from a lake.

We drove to Mississippi and stayed at the Meridian/Toomsooba KOA. We had been there once before on a cold November night, so it was nice to see it in the spring. The new owner was cleaning door handles as we arrived and Momma Dog learned that many RV places were closing due to health concerns related to Covid-19.

The humans kept hearing that camping areas were closing because of something they called Covid-19-which is apparently something they want to avoid. Big Dog reassured me that I would be safe-so I went to sleep.

We arrived back in Stone Mountain, Georgia on March 23 and I was delighted to find blooming azaleas in our yard. It felt nice to be back “home” and the humans felt grateful to have a stationary site for Tana, our motorhome. We kept hearing more scary things about Covid-19 and that our county would be declaring a “shelter in place” order. Momma Dog and Big Dog learned this as they were sitting outside looking up at the stars. Their oldest pup Jennie suggested we all come to her house so we could help care for little pup Annie. After thinking it over we decided to go and packed our things the next day.

As Covid-19 continues to threaten life as we know it, me and my humans are grateful to be alive and well. It has been a beautiful spring in the Atlanta area, especially the azaleas.We stay busy, love our time with Annie and her parents-and really miss the fun times with Joanna since she is sheltering in place in her apartment. I particularly miss her pats and invitations to sit with her on the couch.

We hope to travel again when it is safe. The humans study their atlas and think about their next trip. Thank you for reading my blog.

Pats, Woofs and Scratches, LOVE, MAGIC

Christmas doesn’t come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps, means a little bit more…

Dr. Seuss

I am Magic, the travel blogger and Treeing Walker Coon Hound. My humans and I are traveling in our Class A motor home, and I am documenting these adventures. We are currently on our way from Arizona to Georgia, and it is December, 2019.

Momma Dog and Big Dog and I have been on the road since May 31, 2019 and have stayed in 19 states, experienced four time zones and Tana has put about 10,000 miles on the odometer. We have lots of photos and memories, and for the most part, life is good. We do about the same thing we would do in our previous life-cooking, exercise, laundry, naps, shopping-and we get to see some beautiful things along the way.

After we cried (missing Ashley and Tyler) our way out of Lake Havasu City, Arizona we landed in Catalina State Park on December 2, which is north of Tucson. Momma Dog loved the Saguaro cactus, and made me stand by many of these for photos. We also saw a beautiful early morning sunrise, and would have liked to stay here for a few more days to explore the trails.

Big Dog parked Tana in a parking lot at D. H. Lescombs Winery and Bistro in Deming, New Mexico for our next home. This was a “free” overnight stop through Harvest Hosts, although the humans spent some dollars on wine tasting, a nosh plate, and other goodies including some green hatch chili wine and jerky. After the humans wined and dined, they took a long nap. Later we went out to explore and I saw several bunnies. The next morning, we experienced a stunning sunrise.

On Wednesday, we finally crossed into Texas.

We returned to one of the places we had been before-Fort Stockton RV Park. The humans liked the restaurant here (delicious meatloaf) and I liked the dog park. After we arrived, the humans did lots of laundry-and even found two missing socks from our trip here on November 17. And, we saw a beautiful Texas sunrise. Momma Dog hired an Uber (the one and only in town) and went into Fort Stockton to mail her Christmas cards and some packages. Did you know I also write the annual Smith Christmas letter?

The next stop was South Llano River State Park-another fun place. As we pulled into the ranger headquarters, we were greeted by an armadillo, and saw several more in and around our campground.

It was a beautiful day, and I even had my dinner outside-like a dog picnic. We hiked to the Scenic Overlook Trail and saw a gorgeous sunset. It felt good to the humans to be back in Texas. This state park boasted of their turkey roosting area. We saw the area-but no turkeys were spotted. Momma Dog made some friends with some humans who will be staying at the same place we are in Georgia-so she was kind of excited.

We traveled through Fredericksburg, Texas and were greeted by this “Merry Christmas” sign.

To continue our Texas State Park trail, we stopped in Buescher State Park the next night. Also a pretty state park, we hiked and enjoyed a campfire and thought about Christmas. This park had lots of Spanish moss in the trees, and we spotted about 10-12 deer on the first night there. It felt good to have two nights in one place, and the humans and I had some good relaxation here, a pretty moon and lots of children for our camping neighbors.

Lafayette, Louisiana was the next home on the trip back to Georgia for Christmas. We had a lake view at the KOA, enjoyed a pretty sunset and the next day my humans experienced Louisiana boudin balls and cracklins. They gave one paw up for the boudin balls and were not excited about cracklins. Big Dog also bought sausage and a bacon wrapped pork tenderloin. I think pork is big here…

Our day of driving to Gulf Shores, Alabama was filled with rain. Momma Dog and I were a bit stressed by the weather, so I joined her in the seat behind the passenger seat, where one is not forced to look out the gigantic windshield and imagine terrifying crashes. We are thankful that Big Dog is a confident driver!

After a long day of driving we arrived at Gulf Shores, Alabama. It continued to rain and the humans wore their rain jackets. We walked to the water as it was getting dark, and I was happy to get back to Tana-where it was warm and dry. And it was time for my dinner and a nice coon hound nap.

We arrived in Prattsville, Alabama on a cold but sunny Wednesday. The owner drove his backhoe to show us our site, which was next to the woods. And later he gave me a delicious dog treat.

Momma Dog is looking forward to Christmas this year. She has done a bit of decorating in our home and today she hung our stockings. Mine is the small stocking in the middle. I hope it holds some meaty treats.

On Friday, December 13 we arrived in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Momma Dog and Big Dog hosted a dinner for Steve, Jennie and Joanna. And we are so glad to be with them again!

We are enjoying our time with Steve, Jennie and Joanna in Georgia and I will be taking a blog break. We are all waiting for Baby Girl Sankey to arrive in January 2020 and will resume travel later in the year. I have developed some extra anxiety when we are traveling in the RV, so being in one place keeps my tail wagging.

Thanks for reading my blog!

Kind regards and sniffs and woofs-

MAGIC

When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.

Willie Nelson

I am Magic, the Treeing Walker Coon Hound and travel blogger. My two humans, Big Dog and Momma Dog are taking me on the adventure of my life in our 39 foot class A motorhome (2012 Ventana LE, named Tana.) We left Plano, Texas on May 31, 2019-and I have been sharing our travels since then.

To catch you up to our current adventures, read the following chronicle of the trip from Stone Mountain, Georgia to Lake Havasu City, Arizona. On November 11, 2019 we left our family in Georgia and headed west for parts unknown to this canine. Big Dog and Momma Dog kept mentioning a trip to Arizona for Thanksgiving-and our route was along I-10. And they said we will return to Georgia in mid-December.

Our first stop was Tomsuba, Mississippi for one night. On the way there, we heard a loud sound, and thought one of the tires was flat, which turned out to be false. However, after a second stop and a trucker pointing to our roof we discovered our air conditioning shroud was loose, cracked and missing some screws. Momma Dog crawled on top of the roof and did some minor repair to get us down the road. We soon heard the loud sound again, stopped the coach, and as we exited through the door, the air-conditioning shroud hit the road-even more cracked than before.

We moved onto Baton Rogue, Louisiana where the night temperatures dropped into the low 20’s. Big Dog did some duct tape repair on the ac shroud and my humans went to Home Depot, bought some screws, climbed on top, and fixed our problem-at least until we can get a new shroud.

See Rim State Park, near Sabin Pass, Texas was our next stop, along the Gulf of Mexico-just over the border between Texas and Louisiana. Mama Dog always loves the beach, and she was smiling frequently during our stay. We found seashells, shore birds, beautiful yellow flowers and we even had a campfire! Our site was next to an amazing boardwalk to the beach and even though it was rainy we kind of hated to leave this beautiful place.

Seguin, Texas was our home for the next night, and I met Lou Dagel, a friend of the Smith family from way back. Lou was a high school friend of Big Dog’s mom, Abbie, and she is a big fan of this travel blog. She visited our home in her electric car, showed the humans her sticks and bricks home, shared tales of her RV days with her late husband Gene, and took the humans out to a local place called Johnny’s Barbeque for a delicious dinner-including lemon meringue pie. Our RV park was on the bank of the Guadalupe River, surrounded by majestic pecan trees. On the morning we left Seguin, a rock hit the windshield and caused a small chip on the passenger side. Geico is going to know us too well!

The Caverns of Sonora was a two-night stop-and the humans really enjoyed being in the same location for 48 hours. This place was a real west Texas ranch complete with cactus, clean air, lots of dust, a large flock of peacocks-and an amazing cave. Dogs were not allowed in the cave, but the humans were gone for over 2 hours exploring this beautiful spot.

Fort Stockton, Texas was a nice rest stop. We did laundry, the humans ate breakfast in the rustic restaurant (I had some bacon in a doggy bag), and unfortunately our shower hose on the outside of our rig (used for dog bathing) sprung a leak and we had to order new handles-which will be delivered to us once we reach Arizona. As the humans, say-it is always something. This was our last stop in Texas, which took us several days to get across.

Las Cruces, New Mexico served as a nice stop-complete with a mountain view from atop a bluff where we viewed the city lights. The humans used an Uber to travel into the city to eat some delicious Mexican food at La Posta-an 80 year old restaurant.

We did lots of walking in this location, and I even escaped from the dog park and ran across the highway-just to stress out my humans. Sometimes, a Treeing Walker Coon Hound just needs to stretch his legs!

Finally, we crossed the border into Arizona, and Momma Dog and Big Dog were happy, because this trip has been a bit long. Unfortunately, about an hour before Tucson, we got into some heavy rain. Now Momma Dog gets a bit nervous driving our big rig in the rain-but she managed to survive the trip. And within 10 miles of our stop, we had a warning light that said “Check Engine” and “Water in Fuel.” So after a call to the manufacturer of Tana’s engine, Freightliner, we were told the sensor probably just got wet and not to worry. I heard a big sigh of relief from my humans after this information was shared!

Lazy Days KOA Resort in Tucson, Arizona was the fanciest place we have ever stayed. This place was huge with three dog parks, a dog bath house, swimming pools, a gym, restaurant, large gift store, laundry, a pond to walk around, and lots of trees full of lemons, grapefruit and limes. Again there was lots of rain and clouds-and one of the dog parks was flooded. I found it a challenge to do my bathroom business in the rocks.

We left Tucson and slept in Yuma the next night at a quaint place along the Colorado River.

Finally, we turned north on 95 toward Lake Havasu City, AZ. We had a bit of rain and wind, and were so happy to arrive at Havasu State Park.

After six nights at the state park we moved to the driveway of Lisa Krueger. It was a tight squeeze, but Big Dog backed in successfully.

We enjoyed visiting inside the “sticks and bricks” house of Lisa Krueger, Momma Dog’s sister. And it was great to go to our house on wheels, parked in the driveway. Although there is not photo, on our first morning there, I walked into the swimming pool-thinking it was just blue land. Well, I panicked and Momma Dog pulled me out. Needless to say, that only happened once.

We drove to Las Vegas on the day after Thanksgiving so Tana could get her new air conditioning shroud installed. She also had two vent covers on the roof replaced. Tana spent the night at the National Indoor RV Center and all six humans and three canines spent the night in the Krueger condo.

Then on Monday, December 2 it was time to start our journey back to Georgia for Christmas with Joanna, Jennie and Steve. Big Dog and Momma Dog and I loved our trip to Arizona, and we sure do love Lisa, Kim, Tyler and Ashley.

The humans and I are heading east on I-10 again. They have planned an eleven day journey.

Thanks for reading my blog. We are thankful for our many blessings!

Kind regards-sniffs and a woof

MAGIC

I sustain myself with the love of family.

Mary Angelou

After leaving Hot Springs, Arkansas on September 25, we arrived back in Texas. Our home was the KOA in Arlington, Texas. Big Dog and Momma Dog had doctor appointments, some adjustments on Tana’s body work and some friends to see. After about 10 days in Texas we were on the road again with memories of a campfire with melting s’mores, seeing sweet Braxton and Michelle Lykins, Karen DeSimone and grilled chicken, Jim and Glenna Cleworth and BBQ, Nicci Kennedy and Vietnamese food, Holly Brown and Schlotsky’s and Sarah Stringer and a cheese board. I guess you can tell the humans like tasty food-and sometimes I get a few bites.

Our next stop was the Chennault Aviation and Military Museum in Monroe, Louisiana. Our tour guide was a Vietnam veteran and he invited me inside the museum, which was a canine first!

The next morning we set out for the Birmingham, Alabama area. We visited and spent the night at Corbin Farms Winery. The humans tasted and purchased Alabama wine and I posed for photos. I do enjoy sniffing in a vineyard, though.

Finally on Monday, October 7 we arrived in Georgia and Jennie picked us up at the National Indoor RV Center. Momma Dog was so happy to be with her offspring again.

Tana was scheduled for her window replacement and repair of the leveling jacks-so we stayed at the Sankey home with Jennie and Steve and their dogs, Bob and Athena. Athena is their foster dog, and I quickly noticed that her and Bob were very close canine companions. I mostly watched their escapades, but did enjoy eating the bag of meatballs and loaf of bread that conveniently “fell off” the kitchen counter for the three of us to enjoy!

We are back in Tana and staying near Stone Mountain, Georgia. Our “home” is about 10 miles from Steve and Jennie and about 20 miles from Joanna.

The humans stayed busy preparing for a baby shower for Jennie and Steve Sankey on November 9. I stayed home on house watch.

The nursery theme is moon and stars and I think I could teach this baby to howl at the moon. Momma Dog and Big Dog also did a bit of painting in the closet and staining a bookcase to help. We loved our October to early November visit in Georgia. The leaves were lovely and the humans were wagging their tails a lot, probably because they spent lots of time with their pups-who are now grown up.

Then on November 11, it was time to travel again. We are going to Arizona for Thanksgiving via Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and New Mexico, with our final stop in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. I am told there will be a family feline and two canines there!

Thanks for reading my travel blog!

Kind regards and sniffs and woofs-

Magic