Promise You PA State Parks are Incredible

Friday, August 5, 2022 - Saturday, August 6, 2022

And just like that, we were back in Pennsylvania at Promised Land State Park. Our 2022 road trip was coming to a close.

We pulled into Promised Land State Park in the early afternoon, but we could sense some rain on the way. We were fortunate enough to not only have a lakefront camp spot, but we also got the camper popped up in time before the downpour.

Pickerel Point campground, which is a part of Promised Land State Park, is on this thin piece of land that juts out into the lake. At the end is a beach. We were only a few sites from that beach, but we still had a lake-view site.

We were only here for one night, and it was our last full day on this trip, so we knew we were taking it easy.

So, naturally, we did some puddle jumping.

Dark and Stark

Thursday, August 4, 2022 - Friday, August 5, 2022

Our second-to-last stop on the 2022 road trip would keep us in Vermont. Because of our decision to spend an extra night in Burlington, it meant that we'd spend one less night at this Vermont State Park in the southwest corner of the state: Molly Stark State Park.

The decision to stay at this park was one of convenience. We knew our limits of traveling and camping with the girls, so we weren't looking to drive too far. And with us only spending one night here, we were glad we weren't driving much.

We knew nothing about this park other than checking out some campground maps and local hikes on AllTrails. Coincidently, I did stumble upon this Reddit post just before leaving., which gave us some interesting background on who Molly Stark was and why there's a park named after her.

Burlington: The Town, Not The Coat Store

Tuesday, August 2, 2022 - Wednesday, August 3, 2022 - Thursday, August 4, 2022

When we planned this trip, we originally scheduled ourselves to spend only one night in Burlington. Part of the reasoning behind this was that getting from Schroon Lake to Burlington was a two-hour drive at most (I think we did it in just under two hours). The other reason being that we couldn't find a campsite that would allow us to spend two nights in the same spot. We figured that if we were going to have to pack up the campsite anyway, then we'd be fine making our way to our next stop.

That said, as the dates above suggest, we changed our minds.

The North Beach Campground was unique in that it was situated directly in the town of Burlington. It was as if you were driving through a city with a camper, making a couple of turns, driving by a school, and finding yourself at the entrance to a campground on the shores of Lake Champlain.

While our campsite wasn't on the shore itself, it was a 5-minute walk to the beach, which was wide open and huge. It included a playground and tons of space for games, playing, and finding a spot away from others, which was a good thing with a dog.

So, naturally, the first thing we did after unhitching and unpacking a few things was to change and head down to the water.

"I've got my swim trunks and my flippy floppies"

Sunday, July 31, 2022 - Tuesday, August 2, 2022

In what seems to be a running theme during summer road trips with two young kids, updates are not as frequent as I'd like. And like in times before, I'm hoping that as the girls get older, I'll find myself with a little more time to update frequently or in real time.

For now, I'm going to take you back almost two years and continue our 2022 road trip through New York and into Vermont. Updates for this trip will be shorter in length for a couple of reasons.

The first reason being the time since the trip (and we've had another one in between this one and spring 2024).

The second has more to do with the emotional aspect of having to type these memorable trips with the family knowing that Lily - truly the greatest family dog in the world - is no longer with us. She ended up showing signs of cancer in the early summer of 2023 and crossed that poetic rainbow bridge in the fall of 2023. As tough as this may be to walk you through these trips, I'm hoping that it is also somewhat cathartic for me to think back on the best of the best with her.