I love a good bargain. Maybe that’s part of what drew me to RVing. Then, of course, after I did the math of owning, storing, gas … not such a bargain. Still, it’s my favorite way to travel! One of the many pleasures of RVing is going to places that are harder to get to by airplane. Most of the time, the places we go don’t have a luxurious resort feel. We go to places with a vacation vibe … just different from a fancy resort.
When you travel this way, souvenirs can be different, often less expensive, and sometimes quirky. Sure, when you visit someplace like a national park, there are the traditional t-shirts and such, but what is it that you bring home that really makes you remember your trip and reminds you of a fun outing on the trip or a funny story? My Windex bottle is one such treasure.
It was one of our first big trailer trips. I think my son was five and my daughter was nine. We were going to Glacier National Park. We were excited! We were also on a pretty tight budget. We were coming from the Seattle area. We dry camped a couple nights at Lake Wenatchee with the neighbors and then, made an overnight stop in Coeur D’Alene at an RV Park. That turned out to be a smart move, because a few nights in a state park with a five-year-old boy created a need to do laundry! After we had refreshed, we headed onto West Glacier, Montana.
If you’ve never done this trip, you should. It’s a beautiful drive! When we got to the Flathead Lake area, we hit a crazy can’t-see-the-car-in-front-of-your kind of rainstorm. By the time we got to West Glacier, the Suburban and trailer had mud splattered all over them! It was a mess!
We got the trailer all set up and sat down at the dinette only to notice that we couldn’t see properly out of the windows because of all of the mud. Of course, we had no Windex with which to go out and clean the windows. No problem! We were staying at the West Glacier KOA (I highly recommend it!) and they had a little camp store. I walked over and found not only a bottle of Windex, but a jar of Huckleberry Jam! Jackpot!
I came back, got some paper towel from the trailer, and went out and set about my work trying to clean it up. I decided to start with the door because I had a 5-year-old-boy who would be touching it a lot and I didn’t want to have to constantly clean up his hands. Also, the window on the door was spattered in mud. Well, I had no idea I had an audience. Yep, there were two older gentlemen sitting in their camping chairs watching the whole thing and laughing! They weren’t unlike the two guys from the balcony on the Muppet Show. They finally yelled, “Do you really think you can clean that whole trailer with that little bottle of Windex?!” I found them and the scene to be totally entertaining.
I have had the same Windex bottle for 15 years. It’s lived in three trailers. I just keep refilling it. Every time I use it, I think of those two funny old men in their chairs, the crazy mud on the trailer, and the wonderful trip we had to Glacier as a family. I think I might still have the price tag on it. I think it was $2.99. It was some of the best money I’ve ever spent on an unlikely souvenir. Not every souvenir or treasure needs to be an obvious one.
Now, some of you may be getting the false impression that I am low maintenance. My husband says, I am the worst kind “You think you’re low maintenance, but you’re really high maintenance.” That’s a quote from “When Harry Met Sally.” I get accused of being Sally pretty much every time I order in a restaurant. I like to think my standards for souvenirs are fairly low maintenance, or at least un-fancy. Here are my requirements for worthy souvenirs:
Usefulness: On one trailer trip to Crater Lake, we had money left in the vacation budget. So, we decided to splurge on a Pendelton Throw Blanket that we keep on the end of the bed in the trailer. It gets used all the time, looks lovely, and reminds us of time spent in National Parks.
Will I wear it?: I have a collection of “I-forgot-my-jacket” jackets in the trailer. These are the bargain jackets you can find in gift shops for people who forget their jackets. Since they don’t get a ton of use and won’t wear out, they make great, useful souvenirs. Now, I don’t have to remember to pack a jacket because of my collection. I’m not a big t-shirt wearer. For me, unless a t-shirt has a dual purpose (i.e. is a good hiking shirt), it’s a no-go. For my husband who wears t-shirts whenever he’s not at work, it’s a good souvenir. If you’re traveling with a five-year-old-boy, you might need a t-shirt or two right right away …
Can I use it in the trailer?: I have decorated the inside of my trailer with National Park art. I love it! I only use art from parks we’ve visited and whose art has colors that go with the trailer. Most of the “art” purchased has been greeting cards that I frame when I get home. My husband bought a Pendelton Glacier National Park mug in Glacier and uses it every morning in the trailer. I like to buy cute dishtowels from places we’ve been and keep them in the trailer.
Can it be used for a gift later?: This is where fancy-ness comes in. My husband and I (O.K. mostly me) will point out things, jewelry for instance, and remind each other that we have an anniversary coming up and that might make a nice gift. Then, we’ll make a sneaky purchase and save it for later.
Can we eat it?: Maybe not so much a souvenir but, for us, a fun tradition .. pie! We always look for a place to get a pie on our trips. Often times, we can find them at fruit stands and they’re delicious! On our last Glacier trip, we got a Huckleberry Pie from a popular Truck Stop and it was fabulous. It also came with a story that we quote often. The pie was $30 and we were a bit aghast when the girl at the counter rang it up. Her dead pan response, “Huckleberries aren’t cheap.” I dare say the pie was worth $30! We have other funny pie stories as well. We also like to find things like Huckleberry Jam that we can’t readily find at our local grocery store.
Do I want to remember this trip?: Sometimes we go places just to get away that aren’t so much vacation places. Those trips are more relaxing than memorable. Or, maybe the trip was a bust and you want to forget it.
We have gone plenty of places where we’ve come home with just memories and no souvenirs. RVing is about all the things you get to see, the people you get to be with, and the adventures you get to have. Take pictures! Scrolling through pictures is a great memory jogger! Some of my favorite trailer trip pictures are of my kids hiking and playing. In fact, in addition to my Windex bottle, my other favorite souvenir of the Glacier trip is a picture of my kids at the Continental Divide. What will spark memories for you? Think outside the t-shirt and coffee mug box. Make sure your souvenirs are worthy! Wherever you go, have fun and make memories! Don’t spend too much time in the souvenir shop!
Next Trailer Girl Blog – Things I’ve learned from Working With Kids Who Have Special Needs That Can be Applied to RVing … And Life
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