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ZoominC6 · 01-19-2012, 07:34 AM

We keep old fashioned three ring binders on each and every trip complete with campsite data, photos, email stories etc. I admit that it's very "old school" but we like carrying the notebook full of printed out information while we travel and add to it as we go. Upon returning home we edit and then file away for reference if needed for future trips in the same direction or to the same locations. This system works well for us even though the books take up space on the library shelf. With eBooks, we seldom purchase books to add to the library anymore so why not add these journals?

webspinner · 01-19-2012, 09:50 AM

We keep a slim 3-ring binder that goes with us on every trip. I have a "Log" section with information from prior trips (maps, campground confirmations) that might come in handy again. At the front of that section is a form I made where I write one line for each place. It includes Dates, Number of nights (for easy tallying later), Place (park, event, etc), Details (campsite number), and Notes (so I can say "Oh, that was the year when..." or "Next time we should try for site #27 with the better view"). Having a single list makes for easy reference.

My camera is my journal. I'll take pictures of signs, of ordinary things that will help jog my memory, of things that will remind me of a story about the trip, of the people I saw or met there. I also take pictures of us and of the scenery. I don't write a journal since I tend to lose momentum with writing.

Lately, we've started a Tin Pickle Adventures blog that covers both trips and renovation projects. It's a tough call sometimes which one brings us the most pleasure. We think about our upcoming trips when planning and doing improvements and we enjoy those improvements when we travel. The blog lets us share progress and pictures with friends. Each entry can be backdated, so even though we've only been working on it a month, the blog gives the events with the dates as they would have been.

Erik Olson · 01-19-2012, 10:01 AM

We tend to write things online in blog and email form. It is an efficient and easy alternative to keeping a journal. That said, I love having a book to look at on the table and my kids, who all have their entire photo history kept on hard drives, are fascintated with the photo albums from our own childhoods.

In light of what is happening at Kodak right now, I think it is timely to recommend their excellent book creation service if you have a lot of pictures you'd like to move back into a more analog "interface".

We took the kids to France in 2005 and my wife surprised me with a scrapbook printed by the good people at Kodak. The quality of the book (and how they tuned-up my Nikon D50 images) was amazing, given the price for a one-off bespoke work. Real binding, a die-cut front cover and the highest-quality paper really showcase my photography, which can be a bit hit-or-miss. You can easily add text, captions and other things if you are feeling "scrapbooky". Save it online as a work-in-progress until you're ready to have it made. Can't say enough good about Kodak and the resulting product!

We have since created a few of these for grandparents and other important people, who we might value a bit more than our numerous Facebook photos can communicate.

TCHURCH · 01-30-2012, 06:10 AM

Hi,

We journal our trips and have designed a travel journal.

Check it out at http:/etsy.com/shop/CabanaArts (my wife's shop)

I know you will like the design!

Thanks,
Tony

redwoodguy · 01-31-2012, 07:53 AM

I scribble into a journal, and paste small pictures here and there into it. I know if I don't, the dates and places will get quickly mixed up. "Didn't we go there last January?" "No, you fool, it was March!" Me and Pidget are doing that all the time.

It's nice to have the basics recorded. And it travels easily and I don't have to plug it in or charge the batteries.

FC7039 · 01-31-2012, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redwoodguy

I scribble into a journal, and paste small pictures here and there into it. I know if I don't, the dates and places will get quickly mixed up. "Didn't we go there last January?" "No, you fool, it was March!" Me and Pidget are doing that all the time.

It's nice to have the basics recorded. And it travels easily and I don't have to plug it in or charge the batteries.

My goal too is to keep a written log. I think the blogs online are good, but I have yet to plug in the Mac when traveling (only two trips). Plus, I want to save the park brochures, winery brochures, and other phyiscal items gained while traveling.

Simple notes of events are enough, I am not a writer and the intent is for memory purposes and not entertainment.

And it's the trailer's log, so it belongs in the trailer.

wheel interested · 01-31-2012, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TCHURCH

Hi,

We journal our trips and have designed a travel journal.

Check it out at http:/etsy.com/shop/CabanaArts (my wife's shop)

I know you will like the design!

Thanks,
Tony

LOVE THE ALBUMS! Thanks for the link to the shop.

Alumaholic · 01-31-2012, 11:55 AM

My wife has been journaling since 1996 when we took our first great adventure in an Airstream upon my retirement from the Marines.
We love reading about where we've been, what we saw, and who we met along the way.
It is also a ready reference to settle disagreements about who, what, where, and when.

CrawfordGene · 01-31-2012, 12:09 PM

Gene, you may find yourself becoming more digital than you think. I now have all our photos on my new iPad2. I don't have to print them anymore and that is great.

I am attached at the hip to my Mac and got the iPad for a newspaper subscription, but it does a lot of other things too, such as providing photo storage. I use the Mac laptop and the iPad to research campgrounds ( rv park reviews - Google Search ), find restaurants and how to get to places. It is also useful in paying bills online on long trips.

After the first year or two, I started to share our trips here. It serves many purposes—helps others who plan to make similar trips, I get suggestions of places to go from other Forum members and it helps me remember where we've been and I can look at the threads later. And when we are too old to travel, we can go back and find the threads and see where we went.

You may find a computer is smaller and lighter than carrying a lot of paper. We have a lot of paper anyway—tour books, maps, brochures, etc., but a paper journal is too much.

Gene (also)

Safari Streamer · 01-31-2012, 12:48 PM

I have scrapbooked a few of our big trips (and one more trip waiting to be done). I have journaled every trip since we bought our '99 AS in "99. We now have over 200 trips. I try to only use 1 page/trip (we do lots of weekend rallies) and just track place, distance, price, site # - good or bad,and our daily activities. It is nice to look back to reference if you are going to that place again. Many happy memories.

Skater · 01-31-2012, 01:18 PM

My wife scrapbooks. She's currently working on the wedding scrapbook, for our wedding that was about a year and a half ago. She's trying to catch up this winter. Camping is included in scrapbooks as appropriate; for example our recent trip to Disney in the camper will certainly have several pages devoted to getting there, our site at Fort Wilderness, and getting home again.

TCHURCH · 02-23-2012, 02:12 PM

Hi,

We too love to journal our trips in our Sport 22 "Sylvester". We used an off the shelf smash book type journal then decided to come up with our own custom one. My wife is an avid scrapbooker and has a business selling the overflow from her work. You can check out the airstream travel journal at https://etsy.com/shop/CabanaArts.

Tried to attach a photo...go to the site to see them...

Happy travels,
Tony