I had no definite plans for new employment.. and in discussions with Nina, who was not yet working outside of the home, we decided (since the end of my employment at the office would coincide with the start of the kid's summer vacation), to take a two month tent camping trip... east across the US.. as far as we could go in one month.. then return a different route (still camping) for the remaining month, to be back in time for the fall school session.
The management at Airsteam Trailers (the main client at the office for the whole time I worked there), were surprised at my resignation... and they asked what my plans were.. (I knew they would have liked me to work for them directly in their headquarters in Ohio) ... I told them of our family plan to go camping across the US for the two months of the school vacation..
The manager of operations for Airstream in Los Angeles asked me if I would like to borrow an Airstream for the trip !!. Since our family vehicle (an International Travelall) was already fully equipped for towing, I didn't hesitate, and accepted the offer.
The trip started June 30, 1969 with, of course, many hours and weeks of pre-planning.. Nina and I were in our 30's, and with us were our three sons, Michael, 10.. Benjamin, 8.. and Daniel, 6. Marea was not yet born. I stopped working approximately June 15.. and picked up a brand new 26ft Airstream travel trailer from the Santa Fe Springs factory about June 23. We had much food, clothing and bedding...(and all the miscellaneous item we guessed we might need for the 2 month trip) to load into the trailer and Travelall.. and by June 29, boys were out of school, house sitting arranged for and everything (we hoped) packed.. The Travelall-Airstream towing checked out.. WE WERE READY !!
What follows is a diary of the trip, usually written at the end of the day by Nina Barsky. It will be accompanied by photos we took, or photos of the areas taken from the internet, and whatever else we accumulated (that is printable). I produced the maps while creating this blog to show the extent of our travels.. ENJOY.
Remember , this trip was made in 1969, when availability of campsites and access to parks was much easier. .. Also, it was illegal for anyone to be in the trailer while moving, so we were all together, all the time !!, while driving.
(ALL NOTES IN ITALICS in the following text are notes added by Howard recently.. not in Nina's daily diary)
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