August 2009 Have Fun Out There crosses the USA

Hey eveybody,

It's been a long time since we put in a post, but that is all about to change. We had a GREAT trip across Canada, drove over 15,000 km and are now planning our next expedition: A trip across the USA! I know, I know, we said it would be Australia, but that will have to wait until summer 2010.

We have a new trailer for you to check out at http://www.havefunoutthere.ca/trailer.html where you can also see some of our press pics and hear our one of our radio interviews. We've got a couple of pictures up compliments of John Bonnor photography, be sure to check out his website at http://www.bonnorphotography.com

More to come friends, another great adventure in the works!

Cheers.

West, Lesley, Lucas, & Arwyn
Hosts/Have Fun Out There

Road Weary

On our last day in Vancouver Lesley and Lucas went to the Aquarium while Arwyn and I napped in the Jeep. Lucas came out of there pretty grumpy, saying he was bumped, pushed and jostled too much. It was real, real busy. We then went to Granville Island and checked out the "Kids Only Market" and any grumpy feelings quickly were replaced with sheer joy. I love how quickly kids can move in and out of moods. We adults could learn a few lessons.

Thanks to the rock slide we didn't get to go Sturgeon Fishing or sleep in the Yurt. It is a good lesson, you don't always get things the way your plan them. But that is life on the road, come as it may, at it's own pace, mile by mile, giving you exactly what you need. No more, no less. Perfect.

The voyage from Vancouver to Calgary was pretty exciting. We took Highway 3 through the south of the province, a route we've never driven before, and it was beautiful.

We made it to Osoyose (I know I spelled that wrong, I'm pretty tired right now)and were frankly not happy about being there on a long weekend. The campgrounds were bursting with RVs so close together you might as well have rolled out your sleeping bag in a suburb someplace. We decided to NOT stay there, and were tickled pink to discover a gorgeous Guest Ranch not too far out of the main town. The place is called the Arosa Guest Ranch, and I highly recommend a stay there. Vast plains, practically a desert, wide open camping spots and even some wild horses that trot on by every night at about the same time.

From Osoyose we drove to Waterton National Park. We got in pretty late and spent the night sleeping in Chez Jeep (Lesley and Lucas were not pleased with this, let me tell you.) The next day we woke early and checked out the town. But the real gem in Waterton is Lake Cameron, about 20 km out of town. We saw some bears, deer, mountain goats, you name it! Such a rich area for wild life.

Tomorrow morning we have a couple of slots on CityTV Breakfast TV which we're excited about. They actually gave us two slots, which is super-wicked-awesome-cool. Then after that we're off to the Calgary Zoo, something I'm really stoked about. We love Zoos as a rule, and the Calgary Zoo is one of the best.

How are we feeling? Pretty tired, a little grotty, a little grumpy, a little home sick, and a whole-lot satisfied. We've done everything we said we would, accomplished all of our goals so far and have grown closer as a family. We spend every day together and I swear I've seen my kids grow from this trip. Lucas and Arwyn both seem older, not the kids we left with. And Lesley and I both feel so proud of our kids for being so great on the road.

Of Rockslides and Oceans

We spent the day in Vancouver yesterday exploring Stanley Park. We were struck with awe at the devastation of the forest in the park. So many downed trees from some past wind storms. The hollow tree, famous for tourist photo ops, is in bad shape, held up by some wood pylons and closed to the public. Our trip to Paradise Valley in Squamish fell victim to natural disaster as well. A rock slide on the sea-to-sky highway has closed the only route there for at least 5 days.



We finally reached ocean number two and we celebrated by mingling water from the Atlantic with the Pacific. It was a good moment for us as we achieved our ocean to ocean goal. 2 oceans in one trip, nearly 9,000 km, what a heady thing. And we're feeling it a bit too, pretty road weary. But we had an incredible sleep at the Westin Bayshore, what a hotel! Our view is right onto the ocean and Stanley Park, almost too good to believe.

We had a 20 minute radio interview yesterday on CKNW 980 Talk Radio in Vancouver. That was awesome and our website saw a lot of hits after that. Our next scheduled interview is CityTV in Calgary on Wednesday August 6th. We hope you'll check us out if you are in the Calgary area!






The Festival of Lights happened last night, and we got to see fireworks reflected in the glass of the downtown highrises. Quite the sight.

We are getting ready for a day on Granville Island and are certain to hit the Vancouver Aquarium. What a city this is! Ocean, Mountain, and Metropolitan decadence all in one place. Pretty cool.

We've arrived in Vancouver!

Here we are, 8,600 kms later, and we've arrived in Vancouver! It is raining here today, but only mildly, and we're excited to begin checking things out here. Tomorrow we are going to deposit some Atlantic water into the Pacific to celebrate our successful journey of two oceans. And we have a spot on the Vancouver Talk Radio program, CKNW 970am, tomorrow at 11:30am.

We spent the last few days in Banff, campiing at Tunnel Mountain. What a wonderful place Banff is! We dropped Lesley off downtown so she could have lunch/coffee/time to herself. The kids and I toured around and got some great footage of lots of critters.

Before that we finished a great stay in the Badlands. As you can see from the pictures, the Stettler Train Ride was a hoot.



Driving yesterday between Banff and Vancouver we all felt pretty tired. We've all had moments where we wondered what we were doing, but usually at different times. Yesterday we had the "moment of doubt" all at the same time, which was a bummer. But once we arrived in Vancouver that all melted away. So good to have reached the other ocean!


We stayed with friends last night and will do so again tonight. Warm beds, hot showers, no tent to pack up, what a treat!

The Peg & The Bone Lands

Hard to believe that we have driven over 7,500 kms to date. We are currently in the badlands in Alberta. This is the longest we've stayed in one place, 3 days, and I could stay for weeks. We toured the Royal Tyrell Museum yesterday, a must if you pass through these parts, and then spent some hours hiking in the badlands. I think they should rename them the "good lands" or the "bone lands" because they are a treasure. We found some petrified wood and fossilized oysters. Amazing to think how much history this land holds.

We are camping at the "Hoodoos Campground", a fairly new campground and if you are in the Drumheller area make sure to stay here. Lots of room between sites, and the nicest grounds manager I've met on the trip. The kids like it here, and my twin-brother and sister-in-law were here with us, a real added bonus. Nice for the kids to have other people to play with than mom and dad. I'm sure they love us, but come on, 5 weeks is a long time.




We had a fantastic stay in Winnipeg. Destination Winnipeg was kind enough to put us up at The Inn at The Forks, a wonderful hotel. We used their bathroom sink to do some dishes! You'd be amazed what you'll do to keep things clean on the road for as long as we are.

Winnipeg, also known as "The Peg", really surprised us with how gorgeous the downtown is. The Forks area in particular is just incredible. The kids loved the Childrens Museum, and we loved everything else. A great city, so friendly.

While in The Peg we did an interview on CityTV Breakfast Television. That was very, very cool. Arwyn behaved herself and I think Lucas really enjoyed the "behind the scenes" stuff like seeing the cameras and meeting the hosts. We're trying to get on Calary BT and Vancouver BT as well. We'll keep you posted.



Today we are off to Stettler to enjoy the afternoon on a Steam Train. I love historical stuff and can't wait to see the ol' Steam engine.

Everybody has maintained their sanity so far, which is a miracle considering the time spent in close quarters. I think it's because we've seen so many things, met such wonderful people. Travel is a great way to expand your view of the world, 7,500 KMS into this wonderful trip and we're loving every click more than the last.

Mosquitos the size of cars

After a couple of days in Northern Ontario, we finally have some wireless internet access! What a whirlwind it's been. We've been on the road for just over a week, have traveled over 4,700km, and are taking turns having showers at the hotel. You have no idea how good a shower feels until you've slept in your car for 2 nights wondering if bears are going to come through the rag-top to have a go at your cooler (which you are sleeping next to). Good times.

We had the most fantastic time in New Brunswick. The absolute highlight was the day we spent on Glacier Lake on the most Western tip of New Brunswick. We spent the day canoeing with Eve and Guy, two of the most wonderful people you could ever meet. Eve is a doctor but spends a lot of his spare time showing people the wonders of glacier lake. He is an excellent guide with a quick wit and a kind heart. We learned a lot on the water that day, like the day he saw an eagle fly-fishing (you'll have to email for that great story).



We had a full-on steak dinner on "were wolf island" and that is where we met Guy, who looks like a woodsman from the books of history. He is also the town blacksmith and gave all of us the most amazing dinner-triangles. We'll always remember Guy, what a guy! One of the kindest yet burliest folks you'll ever have the honour to meet (and we hope you do!).




We were really sad to have to leave New Brunswick. It's not a place we ever took the time to explore before, but after this trip we won't make that mistake again. Such friendly people, such wonderful landscapes. Wow.



Northern Ontario has been mixed for us. The trip has been a bit of a push, likely trying to get in too many kilometers in too short a time. Timmons rubbed us the wrong way, Wawa corrected it with some great people, and Thunder Bay has been take-it-or-leave-it. Again, some of this is simply us pushing too hard and not having planned enough activities. If we had time to take a bush plane and go fishing I'm sure we'd love it. Or if a single moose had met us on the road to say hello. Or if the mosquitos weren't so mind-numbingly plentiful. But at this point, tired as I am, I'm just looking forward to Winnipeg. Which happens tomorrow! Better catch some zzzzzzzzzzsss.

Nova Scotia Complete, New Brunswick Here We Come!

Not too much time as we're about to tour New Brunswick for the day, but wanted to update you on our trip through Nova Scotia.

Peggy's Cove was awesome, as always. We tend to do a lot of hiking and rock scrambling there. Once you get away from the lighthouse there are zero tourists so you feel completely alone with the sea. Awesome! And Lesley got to save somebody who fell down on the rocks near the lighthouse which was cool.

Then the rain came, and came hard. We couldn't go whale watching in Lunenburg because of it. But our stay in Digby was awesome! I love the Mountain Gap Inn, great way to journey into the past. Seems to be a theme as we've just spent the night at the Fairmont Algonquin.



Ferry ride from Digby to St. John was waaaaayyyy cool. Driving into the belly of the beast was neat, and they have the most amazing kids program there. Also got to meet the Captain and Lucas got to steer the ferry. And we lived!



We're off to Kingsbrae gardens and a full day in New Brunswick. Woo Hoo!

Made it to Halifax

Well, we're finally in Halifax after 2 days of driving. On Friday we left at 9am and drove pretty much through the whole night. We covered 1,500 km on our first day. It really, really hurt by 3am. The kids were so awesome about the whole thing!



After sleeping in the Jeep for 3 hours at a gas station just inside the New Brunswick border we drove to Magnetic Hill. It is the oddest of all places. For some reason when you put your car in neutral it seems to roll up hill. Pretty cool, but not $20 cool or what ever they charge. I remember going there as a kid for free. There was nothing there. But now there is a whole theme park! Strange. But at least it's giving some kids summer jobs.

And finally we arrived in Nova Scotia! We were giddy, likely from lack of sleep, but getting to the border really made the whole trip feel worth it. It's our start, our place to begin this crazy journey.



We've spent a great evening with family, a lovely bar-b-que and walk by the ocean. My family here on the coast is awesome, so we love to see them when we can. We're on a schedule so we can't see as much of them as we'd like, but better than nothing.

How good can a shower feel? I'll tell you, like heaven! Sleeping on the side of the road and driving 2,000 km really makes you feel like of grody. And we did some laundry here too. Yippee! We're clean and so are our duds!

Tomorrow we get up early and head into Halifax. A lovely day on the Harbour Hopper, Theodore Tugboat, and an evening at the Westin hotel. We can hardly wait.

An episode should be out early next week. Stay tuned and thanks for watching!

24 Hours To Go

I'm having my first cup of coffee and very excited about the fact that in less than a day we begin our journey. I can hardly believe it.

Yesterday I spent quite a bit of my day at Rose City Chrysler . They were kind enough to sponsor our trip by making sure our girl (the Jeep) had a new pair of shoes for her big walk-about. A shiny set of BF Goodrich MTs all around. I bought the Jeep there a couple of years ago and they've done nothing but exceed my expectations again and again. Yesterday the Dealer principal, Nick Sebastian, even had the lads give the Jeep a full cleaning and polish, just wanted her to look good for the start of our trip.

We had a few more papers cover our story. And we're trying to get CHCH news to cover our launch tomorrow, but nothing back from them yet.

Today we pack the Jeep. Tomorrow we begin our adventure. Don't forget to check in often at http://www.havefunoutthere.ca
as well be posting new episodes every couple of days.

Halifax, Vancouver, and every stop in between, here we come!

Rose City Chrysler joins as a Lead Sponsor

Yesterday I got a call from the owner of Rose City Chrysler (http://www.rosecitychrysler.com)and they are supplying our Jeep with a brand-new set of shoes: A set of BF Goodrich MT radials, which will come in handy in our 12,000 kilometer journey.

We also got a call from CHCH news, and we'll be doing a morning show segment with them on the day we leave on our journey, Friday, July 11th. Hard to believe that date is less than a week away. Wow.

We've tested the Sony BlueTooth wireless microphone and it is unbelievable. We couldn't be happier with the 5.1 surround sound (you can also select it as center channel only which is what I've used it for most).

Articles came out in the Welland Tribune and the Port Colborne Leader, talking about our home-grown show. Since then we've had people stopping us on the street to let us know how cool they think this journey is. Travel inspires people, we knew that, it inspired us after all. But we didn't know just how much it would inspire others, enough to stop us and tell us how much they want to follow the show. Wow. One person shaking your hand, smiling all the while, telling you that they are going to watch every episode, well that is what it is all about, why we've put the effort in that we have.

I'm in Orlando Florida right now and all I can think about is getting home so we can get this show on the road.

Less than 10 days before we launch!

In less than 10 days the Have Fun Out There cross-Canada tour will begin. We're getting closer and many things are finally coming together.

We would like to thank ThermaRest


and Eureka for joining our show as sponsors. Thanks to them we'll have comfy mats and a dry tent to sleep under. Space is a at a premium in the Jeep, and the ThermaRest (www.thermarest.com) matts are comfy beyond belief (as are their pillows!) and they pack up into unbelievably small little packages.

Eureka Tents Canada has sorted us out with a wicked tent! The Copper Canyon 1610 (http://www.eurekatentscanada.com/products/tents/product.php?lang=en&menu=3&cat=123&type=1&prod=356) is the coolest old-school-meets-futurama-family-tent I've ever seen.

We've finally settled on the HD camera for our trip. A Sony HD unit. Awesome camera and we're exceptionally tickled with the video quality. We're producing a Blue Ray DVD in the fall so quality was very important. Wait till you see some of the footage. All I can say is WOW. I just picked up a bluetooth microphone for the unit as well, full 5.1 surround! Can't wait to see how it works.

CityTV in Winnipeg has confirmed a morning show spot for us. Cool! And several newspapers have called us to cover our story. It's the first time media has called us instead of the other way around, so the word is getting out.

Thanks for following our adventure, and make sure you continue to check for updates. Staring July 11th you'll have a new episode every 2 days.

Some cool new B.C. activities

I got in from a trip last night at about 1am, so I'm bagged. But HAPPY and badded. We were having some trouble nailing down activities in the Whistler area. The upcoming Olympics are ensuring that people aren't giving thing away. But thanks to the generosity of Fraser Canyon River Tours, we have the most awesome agenda for Whistler now! We'll be sleepin in a "Yurt" on the banks of the Fraser river, and the next morning we'll be fishing for Sturgeon! How do you like that?



Also heard back from the Royal Tyrell Museum, they are on board. We're nearly booked solid for activities on the trip now. And as tired as I feel, need to get cracking on writing some voice over segments so we can "check off" yet another item on the endless sea of things we have left to prepare.

Have Fun Out There "Down Under"

Well everybody, our Australian adventures are now posted on our site! And you can also see it below:



A ton of thanks to Matt at Sorge for his efforts here, we love the episode. We learned a few things along the way, like how to label clips so Matt-doesn't-go-mad (thanks Man!)and that we need to get our High-def gear going pronto.

Spent oodles of time tonight trying to get some more activity sponsors on board. It's a full time job! And I already have a full time job! So needless to say I'm burning the candle at both ends right now. I remind myself that in less than 4 weeks we'll be on our way, it renews me.

Gotta go, sponsor requests beckon...

Our first voice recording session is in the can!

The McDonald family spent some time at Sorge Studios today doing some voice over work for our Aussie episode, and one we're working on for a Chrysler contest called "Where Do You Sit?"  Lucas and Lesley were both amazing!  I can't wait to see the finished video episodes.

We also got our theme music today from Dave Walton Music!  Go to http://www.davewaltonmusic.com if you want to hear some of his work.  He's done stuff for Oprah, so we feel pretty honoured.

In other news, we tested 2 tents this evening, and both of them were total crap.  Bad quality.  Our neighbor saw us and asked "Why does it have to be such a great tent, you going up North or something?"  We said "No, just have to live in it for 5 weeks."  She agreed, we need to get a solid tent. *smile*

That's it for now, stay tuned for 2 new episodes coming soon!

Have Fun Out There SlideShow MySpace

Here are some pictures of us from MySpace Enjoy

West Coast Families article now out

The second article covering our summer journey is now out! Go to http://www.westcoastfamilies.com/ and download the pdf version of the issue, we're on page 27. Really impressed with the article and have to remember to ask friends in Vancouver to get me a printed copy or two.

I just got back from Australia, and while I was there I did some filming for an episode. I know, I know, we're touring Canada, not Australia, but I thought it would be funny to interview some Australians and see what they thought of our show. The family is going to do some Voice Over work this afternoon for the episode and it should go live in about a week. Australia! I'm starting to think that "Have Fun Out There" might do a family adventure through the outback next summer.

I am off to Toronto right now to meet with a potential camcorder sponsor. We need some more HD gear, seems that is the way most of the TV networks are going, and filming in HD is important. It's also pretty affordable and the camera line we'll be hoping to snag today brings the technology to within the reach of average families.

We have almost exactly 1 month before we pack up and hit the road. We're getting nervous, excited, and every emotion in between.

What's Up Kids Magazine Feature now out

I was reminded today in the parking lot that our magazine feature-story in "What's Up Kids Magazine: is now out. You can also go to http://www.whatsupkids.com to check out their online content. A Mom and her kids drove up and said "Hey, I read about your show last night!" It's the first time somebody went out of their way to let us know they saw us in the magazine. She mentioned that she and her family had also crossed Canada and it was the experience of a lifetime.

You can pick up "What's Up Kids" at a lot of McDonald's restaurants and at Walmart. We're in the summer addition, lots of information on the trip. We're also being featured in "West Coast Families" magazine in Vancouver for those on the coast.

We spent some time today chasing some more sponsors for places to stay and for things to do as we cross the country. If you think of any family-friendly things to do and places to stay, let us know, we'll check 'em out.

Check Have Fun Out There out on the Travel Channel:

Crazy Family driving from Halifax to Vancouver, summer 2008

This video is the commercial for a new family adventure program called "Have Fun Out There". Starting July 11th they're driving across Canada and posting new videos every couple of days. So be sure to check it out. http://www.havefunoutthere.ca

read more | digg story

Check out the Have Fun Out There Video section on YouTube.



Have Fun Out There!

The Beginning of Have Fun Out There

May, 15th. 2008

"I can't tell you exactly when "Have Fun Out There" began. It could have
been two years ago when my family and I packed up the car and kids and drove
out to Nova Scotia. It was the first time that the entire family (sans
Arwyn who was yet to be even an idea in our heads). It could have been
nearly a year ago when my son Lucas, inspired by a kids travel program
called "Are We There Yet", said that he would like to have his own
television travel show. It could have been six months before our first-ever
cross-Canada expedition in the summer of 2008, a time when my wife and I
were busy chasing sponsors for money and gear, editors for features in their
magazines, and production companies for the television series. The idea
could have begun when I was only a child on one of the many road trips my
Mom and Dad dragged us kids on. It could have been a combination of all the
above. Upon reflection my entire life has been one road trip after another.

Thanks for taking the time to check out our site. Be sure to check our
"video log" page for new Webisodes, especially in July/August as we'll be
posting new ones every couple of days. I can hardly wait for the journey to
begin!"

West