There’s some contention in our camper about how to count the days of this trip. I thought that leaving Maryland in our camper on Tuesday, June 18th, marked Day 1 of our cross-country road trip. Mike counts Thursday, June 13th, the day we left Pennsylvania and began the phase one “Vegas/cousin camp” portion of our trip as Day 1. I have conceded. So this “days 6-10” post marks our first five days and four nights of the camping portion of our trip!
Where We Stayed
We left Maryland on Tuesday, June 18th for a seven-hour drive to Sandusky, Ohio, where we checked in for two nights at the Sandusky/Cedar Point KOA. We got there in time for the boys to jump on the inflated pillow and play on the playground while Mike and I set up camp, and for all of us to go for a swim. In addition to our full day of roller coaster-ing at Cedar Point Amusement Park next door, we all got a lot of use out of the playground, jump pad, and two pools during our stay. Especially the pools. There was a heat wave across the northeast during our stay, and it was melting hot in Sandusky.
Leaving Sandusky on June 20th, we had two days of driving ahead of us before reaching our next booked campsite in Fargo, North Dakota. With 14 1/2 hours of travel to cover in two days, our goal for the first day was Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 9 hours from Sandusky. Due to a SUPER fun unplanned adventure en route, we didn’t quite make our goal, and pulled over to boondock for the night at a Flying J 50 miles east of Eau Claire in Black River Falls, WI.
Up and at ’em bright and early on June 21st, we headed west for a 5 1/2 hour drive to Fargo, North Dakota. After a brief delay for a blown-out camper tire (oof), we checked into our one-night stay at Lindenwood Campground. Our site there was beautiful with big trees for shade and a river view. In our short stay there the boys found three beautiful playgrounds, and Mike and our oldest enjoyed a run bike ride on a scenic river path.
We would have all enjoyed exploring all the park had to offer for a little longer, but with Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Medora, ND calling, we packed up camp and hit the road early after one good night’s sleep in Fargo.
What We’ve Seen and Done
Cedar Point Amusement Park exceeded all of our expectations. Encouraged by a roller coaster attendant, our youngest went to guest services where he officially measured in at 54″ and was given a wristband to prove it. 54″ makes you a king at most amusement parks – there was nothing in Cedar Point that was off limits with that bracelet.
We rode eight different roller coasters, and all but two of them we rode numerous times. A one-and-done due to the wait time, but the favorite of all four of us, was Millenium Force. A 300′ drop, speeds of 93 mph – all four of us rode (even our motion-sick Mike who usually acts as our bag holder while the rest of us ride!) it is impossible to explain. Just….whoa. Awesome.
It was so hot while we were at Cedar Point that we were spent by 6:30 and left to go back to the campsite, eat dinner, and swim. Two of us were in pajamas when the decision to use our re-entry passes was made. It was 9 pm when we walked back through the park gates, and by closing at 10 pm we had all gotten in at least four more coaster rides. Score! it was a 23,000 step, hot, sweaty, exhilarating day.
June 20th was just supposed to be a travel day, but just before we reached Gary, Indianna on 94 West, we saw a sign for “Indianna Dunes National Park”. Umm…what?! Chanting “Indiana Dunes” (even though we had no idea what Indiana Dunes was…other than a National Park that we were wholly unaware existed until we saw the brown road sign), we pulled off the exit and made our way to the visitors center.
Just granted National Park status in 2019, Indiana Dunes National Park borders Lake Michigan. We went to West Lake and hiked the mile-long “Dune Succession” trail that led us to the shore of Lake Michigan. Though we’ve all seen Lake Erie, we were still mesmerized at the ocean-like size of Lake Michigan. We read all of the informational signs about Alice Mabel Gray (“Diana of the Dunes”) who played an integral role in the conservation of the dunes, and when we reached the shore of Lake Michigan the boys didn’t pass up their opportunity to swim, hopping right in fully clothed.
Walking out of the park we found an ice cream truck in the parking lot. Gelato in hand, we continued down the road, stopping for dinner, and driving until midnight when we pulled off for our Flying J slumber.
Our stop at Indiana Dunes put us a little behind schedule and left us with 5 1/2 hours of driving on Friday, June 21st to reach Lindenwood Campground in Fargo, North Dakota. Our biggest adventure of the day put us even further behind schedule when we had a camper tire blowout on 94 West in Maple Grove, Minnesota.
We limped to the shoulder and made it off the next exit and into a large parking lot. I called Coach Net (our RV roadside assistance provider that I will NEVER take road trips without!) in case we ran into trouble with the change or our spare (this was our first camper tire flat rodeo), Mike got to work fixing the situation, and the boys and I set up chairs and the propane grill and made brunch. A nice woman drove by and asked, jokingly, if she could join our picnic. She reminisced about traveling with her family when her own children were young. We chatted for a bit, before I had to get to the business of frying up bacon and eggs and assembling road-side brunch.
Mike had the spare on in a flash, and we were back on the road, but now with the stress of no spare camper tire. After SO. MANY. PHONE. CALLS. we FINALLY found a tire retailer (in Fargo!) with an ST205 75 R15 in stock. Excited as we were to cross the border into North Dakota and roll into Fargo, our first stop was at Tires Plus, where they had our tire waiting for us and had it on a rim in just about 10 minutes, for which we are so grateful!
By the time we got checked into Lindenwood Campground, I think most of us were running on close to empty. Our oldest biked alongside Mike as he ran a few miles on a scenic river trail in the park while our youngest and I stayed back at the camper to put dinner on and create a fantastic campfire if I may say so myself.
I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed spaghetti, salad, s’mores, and campfire sitting in all my camping days. Then the rain came, and forced us under the awning for a game of Uno, and finally inside for a much-needed early bedtime.
The next morning we were up and packing early for our 4 1/2 hour drive to Medora, North Dakota. The boys and I fit in a little playground time while Mike emptied the camper tanks, and we were off for ALLLLL kinds of adventures en route to the home of Theodore Roosevelt National Park that I will detail in my next post!
Things We’d Do Next Time
I love our camper trips and never have regrets, but I do always like to keep a running list of things that we’d like to explore or places we’d like to spend more time should we ever venture this way again. These are just a few things that we either had to pass by, or simply couldn’t dedicate enough time to on this stretch of travel.
Cedar Point and Sandusky: I’m really not at all a fan of amusement parks, and after a really terrifying experience getting stuck on a ride while chaperoning a senior class trip nearly twenty years ago, I swore off ALL amusement rides for a looooong time. Oh the things a mother will do for her children. Because Mike gets violently motion-sick very easily, I have, by default, become the coaster-riding parent. I love the rides when they’re actively in motion. And I love how much the boys love the rides. But that time frame after you’re buckled in, but before the ride has departed. And that time frame when the ride has ended, but you haven’t been released from what is essentially a large, mechanical straight-jacket yet. Shudder.
But my mental stability is not really the point here – the boys LOVE Amusement parks, and Cedar Point wildly exceeded our expectations. The staff were all super friendly, the park was clean and spacious, and the wait lines were negligible. After such a great experience there, I’d love to stay at their on-site campground on “the point” for our next stop there with the camper. I’d also love to give our family an extra day in Sandusky to visit the water park and beach on Lake Erie.
Indiana Dunes National Park: The park is expansive, and with more time we would have loved to explore more of the beaches and trails. We’re really grateful to the ranger who pointed us to West Beach and the Dune Succession trail. It was the absolute perfect stop on our westward driving day.
The Flight 93 Memorial: We passed signs as we made our way through southwestern, Pa on our first day for the memorial in Stonycreek, Pa. I’m not sure how far off our path we would have had to travel to get to the site, and we were past the exit before I could research the distance. Being Pennsylvania residents, I’d like to make sure we get there one day.
Leinenkugel’s Brewery Tour: Nestled between Black River Falls and Eau Claire, Wisconsin, brewery tours were advertised road-side. I always love a good food/beverage tour. 7:30 am probably wasn’t the ideal time though, ha.
Cabela’s! We’ve passed FOUR of them between Sandusky and Fargo – FOUR! We’re big Cabela’s fans. Cabela’s makes for a great family field trip even if we don’t need to buy anything. The fish, the mounted animals, all the things that make you want to fill up a backpack, grab a fishing pole, and head into the wilderness to find adventure. Our adventure is currently major roadway based – but I’m keeping my eye out, and we may stop at one before this trip ends.
