We went on a road trip in a camper van during a pandemic for our honeymoon. We lived to tell the tale… and we’re still married!

I’ve gotten a lot of questions about our honeymoon, so here are some of my favorite photos from the road.

Did you rent the camper?

Yes! There’s a website called RV Share, and we rented a Casita from a lovely couple in Bristol, Virginia.

Where did you go?

We picked up the camper in Bristol, Virginia, and then we spent our first days in Pickett CCC Memorial Park. (There was exactly a zero percent chance of us backing the camper into our originally assigned spot at that one, and thankfully a lovely ranger named Cameron took pity on us and let us stay at the old host’s campsite, which was no longer in use and featured some beautiful fall foliage and a derelict cabin we lovingly called “The murder house.”)

Then it was off to Fall Creek Falls State Park (our favorite) and Tim’s Ford State Park after a detour through Cumberland Mountain State Park.

We ended at a funky little spot outside of Chattanooga called Raccoon Mountain that had some really cool caves.

Did you take the dogs?

Heck, no. That camper did not have room for two humans and two needy floofs!

What was the best part?

We did a hike outside of Fall Creek Falls called Hemlock Falls, and it felt like a secret waterfall. This was a sparsely traveled trail, and the photos I took barely do justice to the beauty of this spot and how clear the water was.

We also drank Dom Perignon, a wedding present, on a cliff over a gorge with 180 sunset views of the foliage. Life doesn’t really get better than that.

Any parts that weren’t exactly Instagram-worthy?

Ooooh, yeah. I managed to accidentally stab myself in the hand with a kitchen knife trying to peel off a safety seal, and I got a personal tour of the Pineville ER and three stitches as a party favor. I’m all healed up now, though.

Did you take your gear with you?

Surprise: no, I didn’t. I realized that part of why I haven’t photographed for fun as much in recent years is that the idea of damaging a camera on one of my adventures in the woods stresses me out. Photo gear is absurdly expensive, y’all. Soooooo, I bought a tiny crush-proof, waterproof, and drop-proof travel cam named Barb… because she is literally Barbie-sized. When I opened the box, I actually thought the camera was a battery for a normal camera, that’s how small this thing is, and it’s so easy to slip it in your jeans or shirt pocket and go.