Or: Katherine goes on a road trip. is this really going to happen? and dose someone want to clean up this page a bit, so it makes more sence? New Developments: (Jan. 22)The starting date will be somewhere between Mid-May and Mid-June. The MM will probably be heading northeast first, from Tennessee to Maine and beyond. Information on the journey from session two of camp to session three is further down on the page. The Idea: For the past year or so, I've been scheming about going on a long road trip with a bunch of unschoolers. I wanted to borrow my parents' RV, make a few modifications (modifications which would make camping without electricity and water more of an option), pick a direction, and drive. This would allow me to wander around the continent and see all the neat stuff there is to see without itineraries or schedules looming over me. Sounds fun, eh? So I've slowly been thinking and planning and dreaming, and this formerly not-possible idea has turned into something doable. The Mode of Transportation: The Muffin Mobile is a thirty-one foot long Winnebago Class C (the kind that normally has a bed over the cab, except this one doesn't) RV, complete with bike racks on the back. Not the most ecologically friendly way to travel, but it's what's avaible. It has a five person sleeping capacity (which leads to a different part of the plan, which we will come to later), and (once I stick solar panels on the roof) will function in self-contained mode for two or three days at a time. Traveling in one of these things is sort of like bringing a reeeally small apartment with you when you drive down the highway. Planned Places to Go: At this point, I have no idea. I do know that I'll end up in Eugene for camp in August/September, and that I'll be going from Oregon to West Virginia for the East Coast session. This means that if anyone wants a cheap-ish way to get to or from camp (or from one session to another), we might be able to help out (it will be an entertaining, if slow, way to travel). Who wants to come along? This is where you guys are involved. I would love to have unschoolers come with me, whether for the whole trip or just for a few days. I think we can fit four, maybe five people in the MM without pushing the weight factor when chugging down the road. When stopped, we can squish people in until no one can move. The MM can comfortably sleep five normal people, seven unschoolers who are willing to squish, and nine unschoolers if two are willing to sleep on the carpeted areas of the floor. People traveling for more than a few days will have to help pay for gas and food, but the amount shouldn't be extreme. We'll go interesting places, seeing interesting things, meet interesting people, and scare everyone else. Interested? Stick your name below and sell your self, for a spot or email me at kitkat4208 at aol.com (or both)!
Who wants to be invaded? Would you be willing to have a Muffin Mobile sit in your driveway for a night or two? Just want us to come to your town so you can visit us? Want to lure us to your place of residence and capture us for your unschooler collection? Speak up! Please be sure to note your location, as I'm not entirely sure where everyone lives.
From NBTSC session 2 to session 3 There are five spots available for people who want to have an interesting trip to the third session of camp. After session 2, the Muffin Mobile will hang around in Portland for a bit, then will spend two weeks working toward Tennessee, where it will get a well deserved rest. Any extra time before camp can be spent at my house, which is interesting, large, and has my very cool mother living in it (who has given this plan the okay; Yay Mom!). From there we'll take a car to camp (it's a four-and-a-half hour drive). The reason for this is that it saves me from having to find a place to stick the MM during session 3, and it gives me an excuse to go home for a few days. The cost to people riding along the entire way (From OR to TN to WV) will be somewhere between $130-150 , maybe a touch more if gas prices go up. Keep in mind that's for three weeks of food, gas, and campground fees. Sorry, I don't think I can get it much lower than that. The journey from OR to TN will take us through ID, WY, NE, MI, IL and KY, so we can pick up people who're along our route. If you're interested in getting a ride for this specific part of the trip, stick your name below:
Hey. I don't want to jump on your parade but I'm kinda planing to do the same thing only on a much smaller scale. So See RuthsTravelingTruck and check that out too!
By the way that sounds like a WAY amount of fun Muffin! General comments and/or encouragement also appreciated. :)
Questions: Sounds like a great idea Katherine, I just have a couple questions: 1. How would drivers work out, and how long can somebody ride along before they get kicked off? Driver rotation sounds like a good idea to me. Basically if I feel safe and you feel safe (and everyone else in the MM feels safe) with the driver's driving, then the driver can keep driving (does that look like a tongue twister to anyone else?). Anyone with a license and driving experience can try driving the MM on a suitably quiet stretch of highway to get a feel for it. It's no harder than driving a car, just different. If someone riding starts to feel uncomfortable with the way the MM's being driven, then we pull over and change drivers or figure it out some other way. I haven't figured out a 'system' for working out when/if to kick people off yet, and for now I think I'll leave it on a case-by-case basis. It all depends on how many people we have, where we're headed, and how many other people want on. 2. Would we be pulling over at rest stops for the nights or going to campgrounds or driving non-stop *g*? I suspect it'll be some combination of modern campgrounds (the kind with picnic tables, electrical hookups and a phone line for laptop modem use in the office), primitive campgrounds (the cheap and often free type where you're allowed to park on a level patch of dirt), and the occasional overnight stay in a well-lit, safe looking parking lot of a big 24 hour business (like 3. How much of a reality is this? is the muffin mobile your's or your parents? or someone else's? and if it is not yours, has the owner of it, agreed to this whole idea? and if we do have free use of this (by free, I meen, the vehicle is paied for, and all we have to do, is keep it full of gas, and make sure nothing goes wrong on it) how long could we use it for? could this be like the idea for UnschoolerFreeTransit? could this be the start? I would love to hear about this idea more, so I can know if it will come to life or not. The MM is legally owned by my mother, since I've been told I can't hold the title to it (being a minor and all). She has agreed to this whole thing, and I suspect she'll be happy to get it out of the carport. It is fully paid for now, and we can use it until everyone gets sick of the whole idea or until I run out of money. Whichever comes first. I hesitate to compare it to UnschoolerFreeTransit, because I'm not totally comfortable with the idea of passing the MM off to someone else to keep it going when I'm finished driving around. As of now, when the Muffin Goddess says it's time to go home, the Muffin Mobile comes with her. That might change eventually ('eventually' being the key word). -Katherine [1]I'm not going to three sessions. To much money and I don't have enough time. Sorry. But you should still visit me! Hey. I don't want to jump on your parade but I'm kinda planing to do the same thing only on a much smaller scale. So See RuthsTravelingTruck and check that out too!
By the way that sounds like a WAY amount of fun Muffin! NBTSWikiWiki | Recent Changes Edited 42 times, last edited on March 25, 2002 by 144.13.106.157. © 2000 NBTSC Webmasters |
Jadzia would love to go, maybe she'll take her car & join you for a few days...
