Most people ask us our favorite park or part of the country. Leave it to Sue’s cousin, Joe Randolph, to ask our impression of the trip using our senses: what was our favorite sound, sight, smell and taste? He caught us off-guard with this thought-provoking question and made us consider our recent travel experience through this paradigm of four senses. We have since decided to add “touch” to Joe’s original list.

We thought it would be interesting to compare notes and independently produced lists of our favorites/most memorable:

Sound

Sue: The residents of Wolf Haven howling in unison through the woods, which was unexpected, mesmerizing and sent a chill down our spines on a cool, overcast Sunday morning. Recording available on the Wolf Haven home page by scrolling to the bottom of the left menu. Close your eyes and imagine being in a Washington forest on a cool, overcast Sunday morning.
Joe: The sound of the storm we experienced in Badlands Interior Park. The sound of the water and wind striking the van was fierce. Sue was not sure the van would stay upright.

Sight

Sue: The bright blue waters of Crater Lake in Oregon. A sight I will always treasure.

Joe: The red, yellow and brown soils of the Yellow Mounds juxtaposed with the green grasslands in Badlands National Park.

Smell

Sue: The smell of the woods and pine forests across the northwest always brings back fond memories of past camping trips with family and friends.
Joe: We are limiting our choices to good smells, right? In that case, I am in agreement with Sue regarding the smell of the pine forest near Mount Rushmore and also the Redwoods.

Taste

Sue: No question, the barbecue brisket at the Notorious Pig on Front Street in Missoula, Montana. The creamy, dreamy ice cream at Sweet Peaks down the street served as the perfect chaser. Unfortunately, no photos as we were too busy eating, which attests to how good the BBQ and ice cream were!
Joe: Breakfast bowl we enjoyed from a Mexican food truck, 9 Juan Juan, adjacent to the Badlands National Park in Wall, SD (Also known as the home of Wall Drug). This breakfast, and the BBQ Sue mentioned, was the best prepared food we purchased during the entire trip.

Touch

Sue: I would be remiss not to mention being so close to my husband, Joe. We have never been in such close quarters for this long and had so many opportunities for spontaneous hugs. Sweet! Truly, we had to work closely together living in such a small space and by the end of the trip, we became a high-functioning camping team!
Joe: Is there anything better than spontaneous hugs? 😉

Thank you, as always, for following us on our journey. More next week!