The question for many modern knitters is not whether to knit while traveling, but what to knit along the way. A project should be small, not require more than a skein or two of yarn, not require complicated shaping or extensive charts. Some choose hats, or scarves, or baby items of one type or another (though baby blankets may be approaching the unwieldy limit) - I generally choose socks. My simple, broken ribbed sock pattern is so predictable I can nearly knit it in my sleep now. It works with both solid and variegated yarn colors so it's easy to grab a skein or two from the stash and a circular needle, stick them in a project bag, and go.
However... that's not what I did on this last trip. I was in the midst of designing a lace sock, one in which no stitch is particularly complex but with a combination of lace and cables that made keeping track of row and stitch count essential. I decided that the drive from home (Indianapolis, IN) to our campground destination (Grand Haven, MI) would be long and uneventful enough for me to get some quality knitting time as David drove. Alas, I did not take the quality of US Hwy 31 into account - the highway we were on for all but 20 minutes of the entire drive!
Now I'm a pretty good knitter, and experienced with knitting on bad roads. This was ridiculous, however. Eventually I gave up and set my knitting aside, having exhausted my willingness to pick up dropped stitches every third pothole. We stopped near the halfway point and spent the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot in South Bend, giving me time to repair the errors I'd made as I struggled with the bumpy road.
This is our second season in our travel trailer, and we love it! As one of the perks of buying (nearly) new from a local dealership, we were given access to a couple of private campground groups - one for 21 free days access and the other for 30. We won't have time to use all of that before the passes expire because they aren't really close enough for weekend trips and our opportunities to take longer vacations are limited, but we scheduled some time off and made the trek north. I have to say, it was worth the drive, even with nothing to keep my hands busy on the road!
The campground (Outdoor Adventures of Grand Haven) was gorgeous; heavily wooded, but cleared enough not to look weedy. It's near Lake Michigan - not close enough to have a view, but close enough for the daytime temperatures to be mitigated by cool breezes coming off the water. The campground had lots of activities for families (most of which didn't interest these two curmudgeons), including organized events, a huge playground, swimming pool, mini gold course, basketball, shuffleboard, and go cart racing. All except the go carts were free to members.
Memberships are expensive and include not only the buy-in but annual maintenance fees, much like a time-share association. I don't know what availability is like as a member, but online reviews are mixed. We have decided not to buy in for a number of reasons, the most compelling being the ongoing expense of membership. Since our hope is to one day be able to retire into the camper and travel for several years, any long-term financial commitments are best avoided when possible to do so. If it were a more affordable membership like Good Sam or Passport America, we might consider it.
I did get in quite a bit of knitting time and finished my sock design; here's a quick preview:
This is my second foray into a "real" published pattern. I've given instructions here for a couple designs in the past, but they were more of a recipe than a true pattern. This one will be published for sale on Ravelry after being tech edited and test knit for accuracy.
My previously published pattern is also available for purchase on Ravelry:
I have my next project on the needles now... and surprise! It's not another sock! (Stay tuned...)
