Ok, well so much for trying to keep updated. However we have made it to Washington and are now living in Mukilteo. Jen has started a job at the hospital and I am still in the searching process.. here is the remainder of out Cross Country trip…
From New River Gorge we drove to Camp Creek State Forest in WV and spent the night. Below is a Picture of Campbell Falls.
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From there we drove to Greenville, SC and visited with Jen’s friend Carlena and her family. 
We had planned on stopping in Savannah, GA for a few hours on our way to Crooked River State Park, but a screw in our tire changed that plan… So, we just did a drive by and went to the park for the night. Jen saw her first live armadillo there as well.
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The next day we took a ferry over to Cumberland Island National Seashore and enjoyed the sand and surf, We found a lot of nice shells but didn’t have any space to keep them so we gave them away on the ferry back.. The kids onboard liked them a lot. Below is a picture of a few of the wild horses on the island. 
That night we stayed in Huguenot memorial Park in Jacksonville, FL. It was Jen’s first night in Florida. It reminded us of our place in NC, with all the helicopters and planes flying over, it is right next Mayport Naval Station.
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The next day we drove through Okefenokee Swamp and our journey finally turned west. Now, We would stay on US 10 most of the way to AZ.. That night we stayed in Mobile, Alabama. The next day we drove to Gulf Islands National Seashore, they are still working on repairing all the damage from the hurricanes, so the entire area still shows lots of damage. The area from Biloxi until the LA state line still shows the scars with many Foundations houseless and debris still filling the houses that remain. There are a few houses that have been refurbished from the storms but most have not…
That night we stayed With Gordon’s friend from college, Heather. She is working in Waveland, hosting teams from around the world that come to help clean up the destruction. She is now moving more towards community building and less clean up.
The next day we dove to LA, and went on the Cajun Encounters Swamp Boat Tour. The Guide was entertaining, the Mosquitoes non existent, and the Gators plentiful. They even let me play with one. 
From there we drove to New Orleans, as you can see from the picture below Jen really enjoyed her time there. She even started to look like a local… 
That night we stayed at Sam Houston Jones State Park
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The next day we drove to Austin, TX, and visited with Sandy and Chris, Jen’s friend from college and her husband.. While there we spoke about Mercy Ships at Sandy’s Church and toured TX Capital. We also went to a Longhorn, World Series Playoff Game, and had dinner at the Oasis..
From there we drove to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in TX and spent the night. The next day we Hiked around the area a little before it was too hot.
Then drove to Carlsbad Caverns in NM, and toured the massive Caves and watched thousands off bats fly out.
Before driving to Brantley Lake State Park for the night, The drive was full off bats Bunnies and birds..
The next day we drove to White Sands National Monument
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and to the White Sand Missiles Range. The first nuclear Bomb was detonated a just north of this area. .JPG)
The next day We drove to the Border of Mexico and walked across they didn’t even stop us for anything not even to say hola… But it was a good thing we took our passports because on the way back we needed them to get through border patrol. I was amazed at how easy it was to walk into Mexico… And exactly the opposite it was to come into America. So tight on security no Pictures besides the flag..
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We continued driving until we reached the Saguaro National Park. We spent the night among the “Man Cactuses” as some people call them.. The ones in the picture below are at least 150 years old… We also saw Javelinas there they are a type of wild pig… This is also one of the northern most points that Jaguars have been spotted..
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We spent the next few days in Phoenix, AZ with Gordon’s Aunt Nancy and Cousins… We drove all around the mountainous parts of AZ. Gordon really enjoyed the cool air up there… It was about 65 F. in the mountains. Luckily, We were there during a cold spell it was only 100 during the day in Pheonix. .JPG)
This is where we made our turn north… We drove through Sunset Crater National Monument( big dormant volcano) and Wupataki National Monument( Native American Ruins) Then we continued on to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, We stayed at Lone Rock Campsite.. Name is pretty self explanatory even with the water level so low..
The Next day we drove to Bryce Canyon National Park
and spent a few days exploring the hoodoos and vistas that were everywhere during the day 
From New River Gorge we drove to Camp Creek State Forest in WV and spent the night. Below is a Picture of Campbell Falls.
From there we drove to Greenville, SC and visited with Jen’s friend Carlena and her family. We had planned on stopping in Savannah, GA for a few hours on our way to Crooked River State Park, but a screw in our tire changed that plan… So, we just did a drive by and went to the park for the night. Jen saw her first live armadillo there as well. The next day we took a ferry over to Cumberland Island National Seashore and enjoyed the sand and surf, We found a lot of nice shells but didn’t have any space to keep them so we gave them away on the ferry back.. The kids onboard liked them a lot. Below is a picture of a few of the wild horses on the island. That night we stayed in Huguenot memorial Park in Jacksonville, FL. It was Jen’s first night in Florida. It reminded us of our place in NC, with all the helicopters and planes flying over, it is right next Mayport Naval Station.The next day we drove through Okefenokee Swamp and our journey finally turned west. Now, We would stay on US 10 most of the way to AZ.. That night we stayed in Mobile, Alabama. The next day we drove to Gulf Islands National Seashore, they are still working on repairing all the damage from the hurricanes, so the entire area still shows lots of damage. The area from Biloxi until the LA state line still shows the scars with many Foundations houseless and debris still filling the houses that remain. There are a few houses that have been refurbished from the storms but most have not…That night we stayed With Gordon’s friend from college, Heather. She is working in Waveland, hosting teams from around the world that come to help clean up the destruction. She is now moving more towards community building and less clean up.
The next day we dove to LA, and went on the Cajun Encounters Swamp Boat Tour. The Guide was entertaining, the Mosquitoes non existent, and the Gators plentiful. They even let me play with one. From there we drove to New Orleans, as you can see from the picture below Jen really enjoyed her time there. She even started to look like a local… That night we stayed at Sam Houston Jones State ParkThe next day we drove to Austin, TX, and visited with Sandy and Chris, Jen’s friend from college and her husband.. While there we spoke about Mercy Ships at Sandy’s Church and toured TX Capital. We also went to a Longhorn, World Series Playoff Game, and had dinner at the Oasis.. From there we drove to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in TX and spent the night. The next day we Hiked around the area a little before it was too hot.Then drove to Carlsbad Caverns in NM, and toured the massive Caves and watched thousands off bats fly out.Before driving to Brantley Lake State Park for the night, The drive was full off bats Bunnies and birds..The next day we drove to White Sands National Monumentand to the White Sand Missiles Range. The first nuclear Bomb was detonated a just north of this area. The next day We drove to the Border of Mexico and walked across they didn’t even stop us for anything not even to say hola… But it was a good thing we took our passports because on the way back we needed them to get through border patrol. I was amazed at how easy it was to walk into Mexico… And exactly the opposite it was to come into America. So tight on security no Pictures besides the flag..We continued driving until we reached the Saguaro National Park. We spent the night among the “Man Cactuses” as some people call them.. The ones in the picture below are at least 150 years old… We also saw Javelinas there they are a type of wild pig… This is also one of the northern most points that Jaguars have been spotted..We spent the next few days in Phoenix, AZ with Gordon’s Aunt Nancy and Cousins… We drove all around the mountainous parts of AZ. Gordon really enjoyed the cool air up there… It was about 65 F. in the mountains. Luckily, We were there during a cold spell it was only 100 during the day in Pheonix. This is where we made our turn north… We drove through Sunset Crater National Monument( big dormant volcano) and Wupataki National Monument( Native American Ruins) Then we continued on to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, We stayed at Lone Rock Campsite.. Name is pretty self explanatory even with the water level so low..The Next day we drove to Bryce Canyon National Parkand spent a few days exploring the hoodoos and vistas that were everywhere during the day and exploring distant galaxies at night. Bryce is one of the best National Parks to see the stars as we found out during the Astronomy presentations. We even saw Saturn and it rings through one of the mega telescopes they had set up..
From Bryce we drove through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, stopping at calf creek recreation area, for a 3+ hour round trip hike in to Calf Creek Falls. Gordon was amazed at how cold the water was, since we were in a desert and walking past cactuses everywhere. Even still how can anyone resist…
After the hike we continued on to Capitol Reef National Park. We arrived just after a flash flood had destroyed half the roads so we only saw part of the park but it was still pretty cool.
The next day we drove north to Idaho and the following day into Grand Teton National Park.. The Park Rangers were great and suggested some really cool off the beaten track campsites for us
.. And the weather cooperated as well.. We saw lots of moose, bison, pronghorn and, elk as well as the Mountains. Below are a few pictures of the park. 
From Glacier NP we drove north thru Yellowstone NP. While there we saw the three B’s (Bears, Bison & Badgers ). We also saw other animals as well but those were the best sightings…
The next day we finished our journey arriving at Jens parents house but, not before one last wildlife encounter. A mother moose and her twin calves…
From Bryce we drove through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, stopping at calf creek recreation area, for a 3+ hour round trip hike in to Calf Creek Falls. Gordon was amazed at how cold the water was, since we were in a desert and walking past cactuses everywhere. Even still how can anyone resist…After the hike we continued on to Capitol Reef National Park. We arrived just after a flash flood had destroyed half the roads so we only saw part of the park but it was still pretty cool.The next day we drove north to Idaho and the following day into Grand Teton National Park.. The Park Rangers were great and suggested some really cool off the beaten track campsites for us.. And the weather cooperated as well.. We saw lots of moose, bison, pronghorn and, elk as well as the Mountains. Below are a few pictures of the park. From Glacier NP we drove north thru Yellowstone NP. While there we saw the three B’s (Bears, Bison & Badgers ). We also saw other animals as well but those were the best sightings…The next day we finished our journey arriving at Jens parents house but, not before one last wildlife encounter. A mother moose and her twin calves…
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