We anticipated this day to be a fun and exciting start to our adventure, but it turned out to be a day filled with stress and frustration.We finally picked up our teardrop camper in Buffalo, NY after being delayed a week. The weather was downright miserable as we waited at the Cabela’s for our trailer to arrive. We watched as each car drove by, hoping that this would be the one that had our baby tethered to it. But time came and went, then another 10 minutes, then 10 more. Each call came back with another pushed out ETA. The rain was picking up again.
Finally, she arrived.
Finally, she arrived. The rain pelted down on us as we got a rush tutorial on where we could find everything how it all worked. We got this trailer for a song compared to most other teardrops, and it’s definitely a handmade camper which is something we expected. The paint smell was fresh, and a few of the sliding elements we sticking a little. Still, we think she’s a beaut and it’s exactly what we needed for this journey.
Our first stop was to the DMV to get it street legal but after a 30 minute wait, we were told we needed to come back with a customs document we were missing and wouldn’t have for a few days. We were bummed we wouldn’t be moving on as quickly as we hoped, especially as we watch temps quickly drop in the northern U.S.
Feeling a little defeated, we found ourselves a free campsite in East Otto State Forest about 50 minutes from Buffalo. We’d been hoping to find some more affordable dispersed camping options to the State Park alternatives which can charge up to $30/night – a big expense when you’re doing this for three months.
It was out there. And I mean, out there.
It was out there. And I mean, out there. We drove for miles, through farmlands and wooded areas to a long dirt road with a handful of “primitive” campsites. We looked at the first one, and quickly calculated that we wouldn’t be able to maneuver our camper in there. Then we attempted to park in the second one, but quickly aborted it. Finally, we realized the third one would be our best bet.
We were excited to set up our camper and site for the night. The camper came with several sets of keys and we fumbled for a bit trying to figure out which one worked with which lock. Things came to a head when I snapped off one of the keys in what was supposed to be the correct lock. But, the lock was broken. After a few curse words, we let it go.
It all seemed like the beginning of a horror movie.
Night began to fall and as we set up our fire it was obvious the wood we picked up wasn’t going to last us long. As we sank deeper and deeper into the darkness, my nervousness grew. Had I never camped that remotely before? Are there animals here? What if we have an emergency? How do you scare off a bear? It all seemed like the beginning of a horror movie. Sam easily brushed these worries aside, but my anxiety was growing.
Meanwhile, Kiwi was having none of it. After the fire went out, and the Jiffy Pop was gone, we quickly retreated to the camper. The paint smell still lingered, but we got settled and kept the windows open hoping some fresh air would circulate. Then we turned off the light.
“Should we maybe keep a night light on? It’s just so dark.”
We left a small LED lantern on. Every noise made me jump a little. We had a moment of panic, worrying that every little step of the journey would be this hard. But after settling down a bit we realized our emotions and anxieties were heightened by the stress and frustration the day had presented earlier. We know this trip will be as much fun and excitement as we hoped it would be, and there is beauty in the breakdown.
Going Over There 
Great story. Great attitude!!! 😘
LikeLike