Quinn's Trails and Trials

 The next day, 5/22/21, began with breakfast at Cracker Barrel with the Indiana fam. We shared in conversation and learned about what we would all be doing for the summer. I even gave them a tour of the van before heading out for my first big leg of the trip. I arrived in Iowa to stay with family, just in time to see my cousin before he left for his post in the marines. A check-up on the pregnant cow was a fun outing and 9 deer were spotted as I entered the property. I gained some pointers on places to see and dreamed up what it would look like to have a camper of my own some day. The following day, 5/23/21, I took off for North Dakota after sharing breakfast with my aunt. I made it into Bismarck, the capitol of ND, and went to the capitol building for a few photos. I even facetimed dad for a few minutes and gave him a view of the capitol. I then went on to my campsite at Sweet Briar Lake, about 30 minutes outside of Bismarck. On my way there I saw a hill and did a little trespassing t

      With every great story there comes a space of waiting for the next event to occur. From the day of graduation there has been much preparation for my trek out to Montana. My mother recommended using my current twin bed frame as a base for the bed in the van and, as usual, she was right. My modifications involved cutting the support boards and attaching hinges to make the middle areas accessible.       A friends wedding was the last event I had planned before heading on my way. A quick overnight trip to the Red River Gorge for the bachelor party was filled with laughter, jokes, and stories. There was a cut finger, failed beer can shotgunning attempt, some vomit, and many interesting morning exits from the tents.      The wedding day flew by faster than any of us could have predicted. The weather was perfect, the people were amazing, and the dancing, per usual, was my favorite part. The rest of the weekend was taken as rest so that I would be prepared for the last preparations of th