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Hi there! We are the Curren Family. We traveled full time in our Airstream from 2013-2017 and now split our time between our small condo in Teton Valley, ID and the road.

As avid, outdoor, travel and adventure enthusiasts we are here to provide tips, advice, and inspiration to help you develop healthier and stronger family relationships.

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Category Archives: Backpacking

Join Me at REI’s Outessa Summit This Summer!

In the last two years of traveling we really haven’t made an effort to attend any conferences or workshops. Pre-travel I would attend at least one photography workshop a year, and Sam would often have 2-3 tech conferences he attended. All part of keeping up our skills, networking, and getting inspiration for new projects or…

Family Camping in Dry Tortugas National Park

Dinner seemed to be running late, but since no one was paying any attention to the time, I’m not sure that it mattered. The kids and I were gathered around the picnic table reminiscing about our incredible day as Sam loosely monitored our sizzles sausages on the BBQ. “Mom! Do you remember that really cool…

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  • Amazing shots! Makes me think I should become a beach person. The canon shot is gorgeous! I miss camping it has been almost a year. Yikes. I am still dreaming that one day we can do some serious traveling like this.ReplyCancel

    • Jess

      Start small!! Explore the places close to you and I’ll keep my fingers crossed a way opens up for you to travel farther in the future!ReplyCancel

  • Any idea when tourist season begins? We are putting our house on the market in a month so we could be hitting the road by April but would definitely like to avoid the crowds as we are traveling the country in our RV.ReplyCancel

    • Jess

      Tourist season on the Tortugas? They said their busiest season is in April when the birds are migrating. Second to that is the holidays. The ranger said it doesn’t get crazy hot in the summer so that’s also a good time to visit!ReplyCancel

  • […] soon as we booked our tickets to the Dry Tortugas, we started looking online for reservations at Bahia Honda State Park. Unfortunately, the state […]ReplyCancel

    • Jenn Barry

      Thank you for this awesome post! I love all the helpful tips you have given. I am planning our trip for this December. I have a question for you guys…did you stay 2 nights? I am trying to decide between 2 and 3 nights. My kids will be 10, 11 and 13. Any advice on how long to stay? Thanks!ReplyCancel

      • Jess

        Hey Jenn! You are welcome! I think it depends on your family. When we booked, they only allowed 2 nights but if we had been able to I think we would have stayed 3! You really can’t get bored and its SO gorgeous. I think I mentioned we didn’t have time to explore out onto the other Key where the Conch Shells were. Your kids are old enough they’d probably spend quite a bit of time snorkeling out away from the fort as well!ReplyCancel

  • Jennifer Barry

    Thank you for this awesome post! I love all the helpful tips you have given. I am planning our trip for this December. I have a question for you guys…did you stay 2 nights? I am trying to decide between 2 and 3 nights. My kids will be 10, 11 and 13. Any advice on how long to stay? Thanks!ReplyCancel

  • Amra Boyd

    Amazing post about Dry Tortugas, and a great blog – thanks much for sharing! Btw, we are fellow campers from GA, and we too were at the FDR State Park this past Thanksgiving. We have a t@b trailer and dream of long-timing one day like you. Happy travels!ReplyCancel

    • Jess

      We were there at the same time! How fun!! T@b trailers are super awesome – hooray for getting out any way we can! 😉ReplyCancel

  • […] Camping on the Dry Tortugas. Definitely number one. Its expensive to get there, but cheap to camp so definitely stay at least […]ReplyCancel

  • […] border. Although we could do just a day trip, we kind of have a thing for camping on islands (see here and here) and it sounded like […]ReplyCancel

  • […] weren’t even supposed to be at Long Key State Park. After the Dry Tortugas, we originally had planned to stay at Bahia Honda for another five days to decompress. We knew […]ReplyCancel

  • […] Or if you have enough time, plan on camping on the Dry Tortugas! We didn’t get a chance to do it but it is on our list to go back and stay for a few nights. Here is a post from a family of 5, Currently Wandering, who spent a few days on the Tortugas (lucky!): Family Camping In Dry Tortugas National Park […]ReplyCancel

  • […] She seemed excited to have mom and dad all to herself and dove in like a champ. The kids all learned to snorkel on the Dry Tortugas last year, and apparently Cara liked it enough to go again. This time we had kelp beds instead of […]ReplyCancel

  • […] border. Although we could do just a day trip, we kind of have a thing for camping on islands (see here and here) and it sounded like […]ReplyCancel

Backpacking with Kids: The Gear List

Last Thanksgiving we went backpacking in Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park in Georgia. Andrew is working on his Wolf rank in Cub Scouts, and needed to create and use a gear list for a hike or backpacking trip. He did an excellent job, and the trip was great, so I thought I’d share the gear…

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  • […] We put everything else into black garbage bags inside our backpacking bags so if they got splashed we wouldn’t end up with wet sleeping gear. For a full list of our backpacking gear see our list here. […]ReplyCancel

  • Did you use any hiking backpacks when your kids were a little younger? My youngest will be about 15 months when we hit the road, so I’m trying to figure what to carry her in. I use Ergo and Lilliebaby soft structured carriers for now, but wondering if it’s worth it to invest in a hiking backpack carrier such as a Kelty for all our hiking adventures on our RV trip. Any insight appreciated!ReplyCancel

    • Jess

      Haley – Yes! We absolutely did. We had a Deuter Kid Comfort III. While there are other brands (Kelty for once) that make kid carriers, no one makes them like Deuter. It lasted through all three kids and still looked brand new. We passed it on to a friend and they’ve been using it every since. Definitely worth having a kid carrier! Just be warned that its easy for little kids to get bored. We’d always hand back snacks one at a time and sing songs. Also letting they get out walk a bit occasionally helps mix things up!! https://currentlywandering.com/2013/06/07/best-seat-on-the-trail/ReplyCancel

  • […] Between the two of us, we carry most of the gear. From the tent to the sleeping bags, cooking gear, and the food, most of it is packed into our two larger bags. Over time we’ve been able to make adjustments and swap not-so-light gear out for less weight as we gradually increase our distance, but start with what you have. At short distances, ultra-light gear is not as important. Let your four year old wear her Winnie-the-Pooh backpack and bring her stuffed animal. You can see our gear list here. […]ReplyCancel

  • […] we took all our backpacking gear. We’ve worked hard to make sure its small and lightweight (not really a concern in a canoe […]ReplyCancel

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