Pack Mule

The first stage of any expedition is planning. And boy, did we plan. As I mentioned before, we had a whole binder of maps, Park Quest instructions, REI checklists and recipes. We made spreadsheets outlining our tentative itinerary and menu. We started piling our equipment in the garage.

That's when I began to worry just a little. Planning is the easy part. As in past trips, the hard part would be fitting all our gear...

into our tiny car.

Luckily, I have two boys who are wicked good with puzzles. We wedged every last bungee cord, sleeping bag and marshmallow into our car.

I even remembered to take pictures from various angles (perhaps they'll come in handy when I wonder how we'll accomplish this miracle next year).

backseat

frontseat

rear

Hmm. There may even be room for that sleeping pad I want from REI.