“Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it,” said L.M. Montgomery. Many of us got involved with RV travel in hopes of making memories. Whether we want our children to experience this great nation or to spend our retirement days living life to the fullest, RVing takes us places we never want to forget.
How can we keep these wonderful memories alive? Here are four ideas for tracking your travels.
Marking Maps
Due to the nature of RV travel, mapping your journeys is a natural choice. You can buy a simple paper road map or a high-quality one worth hanging, and use a marker to track your routes. Peel-and-stick wall decals are another option.
Fill-in maps are a popular choice. Some RVers purchase state stickers to add to a map they display on the outside of their rig. Scratch-off maps are a fun new variation. Watch the outline of the nation fill in with the states you’ve visited.
A Plethora of Postcards
Collecting postcards has long been a travel tradition. Instead of mailing them to friends and family back home, how about mailing them to yourself? Write on the back to describe your favorite memories of each location, and mail them home. This is a fun way to get the children involved; they can select their own postcards and write their own messages. When you return home, your memories will be waiting in the mailbox.
Preserving Photos
Almost everyone carries a camera in his or her pocket these days, but if those snapshots only live in the digital cloud, they are less likely to be revisited and shared. Many companies make it simple to preserve your photos in creative ways. One of the easiest is Chatbooks. Collect your digital photos from your device and/or your Instagram account, do some simple sorting if you wish, and voila, an attractive book arrives at your doorstep.
Those wanting to put more time and energy into their photo projects can make calendars, photo books, canvas prints, and more. The options are endless. Companies like Shutterfly and Snapfish have easy-to-use interfaces and appealing graphics for creating highly personalized photo memories to keep or to share.
Journaling and Blogging
Who says you have to collect physical items in order to preserve your memories? One of the best ways to track your travels is with your own words. For the easiest option, consider purchasing a travel journal (like this one) that provides spaces to jot some notes. If you have a lot to say and want to share, you might start an online blog. Friends and families can follow your journals. Plus, you’ll have them documented for you to look back on many miles down the road.
If you’ve invested in travel, the memories you make are the perfect payoff. Preserve them, revisit them, and remember them. It’s worth it!
This post was written by Jeremy and Stephanie Puglisi for the RV Family Travel Atlas syndicated blog. You can follow their adventures on their blog, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
