Monthly Archives: November 2010
Tips for Single Parents »
Posted on November 27, 2010Over the past month, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Bill McLeod and reading his book: Kickin’ Butt as a Single Parent. He offers 99 tips for single parents and I found many of them to be very applicable to single AdventureDads. Personally, I spent 9 years as a single parent and will be writing a bit more on the topic now that we are in the holiday season. He also has a great website for single parents, www.singleparentstown.com.
Reflections on the Cycle of Life »
Posted on November 27, 2010In this clip, you’ll hear Philippe talk about how he and his daughter Harper’s chicken adventure helps her understand the cycle of life. He then talks about Saturdays spent with his dad. Make sure to turn the volume up as the baby was sleeping and we had to keep our voices down!
Sporting Events with Preschool Kids »
Posted on November 27, 2010Where is Alex? »
Posted on November 27, 2010If you follow the site, this one should be a piece of cake!
John is our second winner! »
Posted on November 30, 2010
The answer to this months contest was Custer State Park in South Dakota. It’s just a short drive to Mr. Rushmore and a great place for a camping adventure. You’ll feel like you are back in the 50’s!
Preschool Parenting Tips »
Posted on November 22, 2010Following our recent football game adventure, Nathaniel and I sat down to talk about how he approaches discipline and parenting. Here’s a brief clip with a view of his tips!
Chicken Adventures! »
Posted on November 27, 2010For my friend Philippe and his daughter Harper, their daily adventure happens right in their own back yard! While we’ve never spent much time around chickens, it was fun watching the two of them care for their friends, collect the eggs, and learn some deeper lessons. We hope you enjoy their adventure!
A Father and Son Go Ultra! »
Posted on November 17, 2010The adventure started in 1989. I was six years old, and my dad and I raced up and down the washboard dirt roads of Evergreen on our bikes. I was Greg LeMond, and he was Bernard Hinault. The stakes were high as we saught victory in the Tour de France, and I always seemed to edge him out at the line even though he was a formidable ultra-endurance athlete.
Over the next twenty years, I watched in awe as my dad completed the Leadville 100, Badwater 146 Ultra Marathon, and Eco Challenge Adventure Races all over the world, among other events. When I began competing in adventure races in 2003, Dad was right by my side. Always my number one fan, he has helped me numerous times as a member of the support crew, and we have raced together in races involving snowshoeing, running, mountain biking, paddling, and a number of other sports.
In 2009, we traveled together to the Rock and Ice Ultra, a 200+ mile self-supported running/snowshoeing stage race in the Canada’s Northwest Territories. Hanging out in the warm tent with my dad while the northern lights shined outside was one of the highlights of my life.
I’m looking forward to becoming a dad in January, and I can’t wait for three generations of Macy’s to hit the trails together!
Travis Macy
www.followtravismacy.blogspot.co
Baja Adventure! »
Posted on November 27, 2010Of the many adventures Alex and I have been on, our trip up the Sea of Cortez has to be one of my favorites. Not only were we venturing into a new part of the world, but also we soon found ourselves in some very remote places with rough roads and long drives between fishing villages. While we were at first worried about being robbed, we were quickly told by a local dive master that all of the thieves were down in Cabo San Lucas because that’s where all the tourists are!
We flew to Cabo San Lucas and made our way up the Sea of Cortez to La Paz. Starting out, I wanted to rent a compact car to save money. At the last minute, with a great deal of pressure from Alex, I changed to a Jeep Liberty with 4-wheel drive. As you’ll see in the video, that was a huge plus for the challenging roads in some very remote areas. Even with a jeep, however, I did manage to get it stuck in the sand on one occasion just as the tide was rolling in. It was a tense moment between Alex and I as we tried getting wood under the tires and picturing our car and possessions rolling out to sea. Fortunately for us, a fellow named Bob who had a house up the shore came to our rescue with his pickup truck and towline.
For equipment, we brought along our dome tent, snorkeling equipment, spear, a rotisserie, and some very basic camping supplies. For luggage, my golf bag worked perfect for holding all the odd shaped items. We then hit a mega store in Cabo for basic food necessities, lawn chairs, cooler, and any other items we needed and figured we could leave behind. We ended up giving most of these things to a thankful security guard at a remote road stop on our way back to the airport.
While spread out, the small towns we came upon had basic supplies in the local stores along with fresh tortillas at roadside stands. Though we had planned on scuba diving more than one time, there was only one place to get air on the entire trip. Using snorkeling gear, we were able to spear fish right off the shore every night for our dinner. The other great advantage to an adventure in Mexico is that almost all of their beaches are open to camping. We were able to find some great stretches with miles of beach, mounds of seashells; turtle prints each morning, and practically no people.
Finally, one of the highlights was spending a night on EI Espiritu Santos, a large island preserve off the shore from La Paz. We paid a fisherman to take us over to the island and he promised he’d be back to get us at 10:00 a.m. the next morning. It was an amazing evening of snorkeling in this huge bay and then camping alone under thousands of stars. The fisherman arrived on time the next morning and gave us a lift back to our car.
It was a great adventure and very doable if you have a little camping and water experience. Alex was 13 at the time and the perfect age for handling the free spirited nature of the adventure. In retrospect, the only tip I’d recommend is taking an extra spear tip. After breaking the one we brought, it took us a half-day of unsuccessful searching before having to buy a new spear.