2006 ~ Zuni, New Mexico

Zuni, New Mexico

This was the first year we took the Dart Vacation as a married couple.  Believing this was our last trip before having children, we really lived it up.  We started off in San Diego for the annual National Athletic Director's conference, drove to Zuni, NM and stayed in a Bed & Breakfast, drove through Sedona, AZ, Winslow, Arizona and went to the Grand Canyon (Bob's first time).  We then went to Vegas and Hoover Dam before flying home.  It was a wonderful trip.  Here is what we learned about Zuni before we went:

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 6,367 people, 1,488 households, and 1,334 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 720.0 people per square mile (278.1/km²). There were 1,622 housing units at an average density of 183.4 per square mile (70.8/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.03% Native American, 2.12% White, 0.03% African American, 0.03% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.01% of the population. 

We stayed at this Bed & Breakfast in Zuni.

We stayed up late listening to the story of how this couple met and later opened a B & B.  You'd have to hear it to believe it.

Bob's first view of the Grand Canyon ~ breathtaking sunset!

2005 ~ Happy, Texas

We decided that there was a good chance that we would want to have enough time to plan our next Dart Vacation in case we wanted to travel there in January. We began the tradition to throw the dart on January 1st for the following calendar year. This would give us an entire year or more to plan the trip.

We bought at 2005 Winnebago Journey that year and this was our first road trip with the "bus".  We stopped in Ft Worth for an Athletic Conference and then met a good friend and his family who live there, The Ducics.  On our way home, we stopped in Garden City, KS to see family.  During that journey, we came across Hooker, Oklahoma.  Home of the "Horny Toads".  This mascot made it's way to David Letterman.  We then paid a visit to our beloved vendors at the Power Ad Company in Salina, Kansas.

Our dart for 2005 landed in Happy, Texas. I recognized the name because there was a movie by that name.

Here is what we first learned about Happy, Texas:

Happy is a town in Randall and Swisher counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 647 at the 2000 census. The Randall County portion of Happy is part of the Amarillo, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area.

A 1999 movie named Happy, Texas starring Jeremy Northam, Steve Zahn, Ally Walker, Ileana Douglas and William H. Macy was named for but not shot in the town.

The Happy State Bank and Trust Company, based in Amarillo, serves fourteen communities in the Texas Panhandle, including Happy.

We saw these camels on the side of the road.  This is a favorite photo of mine as we have it hanging up framed in our home.  I just think even the camels look happy!  Doesn't it look like they are glad to see us and laughing at something funny?  Maybe they are looking in a mirror?

We ate at a little restaurant in Happy that I believe was only open for a couple hours each afternoon.  This gentleman worked at the feed lot and gave us some insight into it.  We decided to drive over and once cleared by security, we got the full tour.  Believe it or not ~ I still eat cow even though some of them are so, to use Bob's words, "pretty".

We stopped at the local high school, home of the Happy Cowboys.  They gave us t-shirts and hats and then we went out to find a place for "the" Dart Vacation photo.  

We went horseback riding which was a lot of fun in the Texas sun!

In January 2005, we purchased a Winnebago Journey from Lazy Days in Seffner, FL. This location would give us the perfect opportunity to take our first major road trip in the "bus" and we would be able to justify the expense by attending the Texas High School Coaches show. Our business, Side Effects, Inc. (www.sideeffectsinc.com) gives equipment and cash to high schools through sponsorship fundraising that we secure. Attending trade shows for high school coaches, athletic directors and school administration something we do several times a year. How perfect that there was a summer show in San Antonio. We also got to visit my aunt and uncle in Garden City, Kansas on our trek home.

Highlights of Happy:

~ getting a tour of a feed lot with thousands of head of cattle after passing "security"

~ visiting the Palo Duro Canyon

~ having our meal paid for by strangers in a town nearby to Happy

~ getting a tour of the bank in Happy

~ visiting the high school in Happy and getting "Cowboy" school t-shirts

~ visiting the little restaurant where folks would gather to play cards and eat: only open a few hours a day.

2004 ~ Marsh Island, Louisiana

When the first dart landed on Marsh Island, LA, we immediately went to the internet to learn more. This is what we first learned:

Marsh Island (French: Grosse-Île-du-Vermillion^[2]) is an islandoff the coast of southernLouisiana in the United States.

Marsh Island is an uninhabited low-lying marshy island inIberia Parish, south coastal Louisiana, lying betweenVermilion Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. It is bordered on the south by the Gulf of Mexico and is separated from mainland Louisiana by East Cote Blanche Bay to its east, West Cote Blanche Bay to its north, Vermilion Bay to its northwest, and Southwest Pass to its west.^[3]

Vegetation is primarily of themarshy types, and the island is almost treeless. On the island is the Marsh Island Wildlife Refuge, a wild bird sanctuaryfor species such as the snow goose. Other animals which inhabit the island includealligators,ducks and otherwaterfowl, crabs, and shrimp. The island is popular for recreational fishing.

The island has a land area of 258.95 square kilometers (99.98 sq mi) and had no population as of the 2000 census.

A wildlife refuge??? Not exactly the island we were first thinking it would be. I was less than excited for our first vacation as a couple to be visiting a wildlife refuge. We had planned the trip around my birthday and I went to Bob with the idea that we could take a 7-day cruise out of New Orleans and drive over to the refuge one afternoon before or after the cruise. Bob said, I think we could spend a week exploring that area. Still, I was not a fan. We compromised by making it a 12-day trip. We spent the first 5 days in the Marsh Island, LA area and the rest of the trip aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise. To date, this is one of our most memorable and favorite vacations.

Highlights:

~ New Iberia Bed & Breakfast

~ Clementine's in New Iberia

~ Avery Island's Tabasco Factory

~ Jake Delhomme's home town

~ Eating Crawfish

Tobasco Factory is in Avery Island, LA


People danced and drank early morning on Saturday!


My sister lived in Charlotte, NC at the time, so being in Jake Delhomme's home town was a big deal then.


On our swamp boat tour!

The Dart Vacation

Back when Bob and I started dating, we would talk on the phone for hours as he lived in Ohio and I was living in Florida at the time. During one of our conversations, we were asking each other, "If you could go anywhere, where would you go on vacation?" Bob made the comment, "I'm happy wherever I go". In fact, he stated, "some day, I'd like to take a map and spin it, throw a dart and go wherever it lands."

A few months later I went to work constructing a spinning map by taking a trip to Home Depot on Alafaya Tr in Orlando. I walked up and down the isles until I had cork, a lazy susan apparatus, and adhesive. For Christmas in 2003, I surprised Bob with the gift. He was confused at first and then I reminded him of the conversation. That year we hung the map, and he threw the first dart ....landing in Marsh Island, LA.

Since then we have taken turns and then as our memory began to fail us, we eventually chose to flip a coin to determine who would throw the dart. We decided to make a few rules:

1) If it landed in our home state of Ohio, we would re-throw.

2) If it landed on a state that we have already been to for a Dart Vacation, we would re-throw.

3) In 2011, we determined that we would aim to make a difference where we went, putting our faith in action.

The Dart Vacation was just a quirky idea in the beginning followed by a fun Christmas present. It has become a very special tradition for our family. Our country is full of diverse beauty and places that we may never know existed if it wasn't for this method of traveling. We are really excited to see where the Dart will take us...

Do we recommend this way of traveling to others?

Absolutely ~ if you are spontaneous and especially if you enjoy history. There is always something fascinating to learn about each place you'll go.

About us: We live in Waynesville, Ohio with our 3 young children and 1 on the way (due 11/2012).  Bob has two grown children; a daughter in Tampa, FL and a son in Centerville, OH.  We own and operate Side Effects, Inc. (www.sideeffectsinc.com) a mid-sized sports marketing company.  Our company and personal mission is to develop and nourish relationships within communities while making a difference, serving Christ and positively impact the lives of others.

Above is Matt Westerfield with significant other, Katie Vieira and her two children Jake & Ava.  Matt & Katie are expecting their first child together in August 2012. (Aubree Rose was born 8/8/12)

Above is Michelle (Westerfield) Hudock with her husband, Andrew, and their daughter, Kyla.  In this photo, Michelle was pregnant with Kellen, their son born 12/7/11.

Above are Ben & Boyd Westerfield ~ twins born 9/22/07  I was pregnant with the boys on our Dart Vacation to Two Buttes, Colorado.

Above is Elle Marie Westerfied, born 5/1/10.  I was pregnant with Elle both on the Circle, MT dart vacation and the Soda Springs, Idaho dart vacation.

This is a photo of Bob and I taken in Miami, FL in April 2011 while celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary