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Continue reading →: Full Circle in Door County: The Final Stop of Our First Airstream Season
As the leaves turned and the air grew crisp, we found ourselves on our last Airstream trip of the season. It felt fitting to end where it all began—in Door County—bringing our first season of adventures full circle. Looking back, it’s hard to believe how much we’ve learned in just…
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Continue reading →: Hartman Creek State Park: Seeing Things Clearly (Or Not)
Sometimes travel reminds us that what we “see” isn’t always what’s really there. At Hartman Creek State Park, my eyes played tricks on me right from the start. Mistaken Eyes I thought I had everything planned perfectly: reservations made months in advance, campsite number written neatly in our family calendar.…
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Continue reading →: A Cloudy Start, Old Fashioneds, and a Deer Surprise at Mirror Lake
When we pulled into Mirror Lake State Park, the skies were gray and heavy, almost like fall had arrived early. The lake itself was a surprise too—green with algae, far from the crisp “mirror” reflection it’s named for. Later I learned this is typical at the end of summer. Because…
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Continue reading →: The Joy in the Shuffle (From a Mom’s View)
This post isn’t really an Airstream travel story. It’s about moving in all its forms—college moves, life transitions, and the way parents are always moving right alongside their kids. Sometimes it’s packing up boxes for a dorm or apartment, sometimes it’s helping them shift into a new chapter. And lately,…
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Continue reading →: Parks Like People: Two Door County Campgrounds, a Cherry Pie Hunt, and a Whole Lot of Heart
We didn’t plan on turning Door County into a summer therapy session—and no, this isn’t in the order that we traveled. Potawatomie came first, but it wasn’t until our later trip to Peninsula that I started noticing just how different these two neighboring parks really are. Their contrasting personalities stuck…
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Continue reading →: Waterfalls, Blisters, and Bonded Friendships: 11 Years of Camping Together
Our Annual Tradition Lives On We just wrapped up a four-day camping trip to Willow River State Park in Hudson, Wisconsin and I’m still riding the high (and limping a little from our 20,000+ step day). We chose this park for its magnificent waterfall, and it absolutely delivered. But what…
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Continue reading →: Progress, Panic, and Painted Faces: A Devil’s Lake Adventure
A rainy campsite setup, a surprise fear of heights, a classic camp store, and an unexpected circus museum—our trip to Devil’s Lake was a mix of flashbacks, laughter, teamwork, and a reminder that progress (and ice cream) beats perfection any day. Progress, Not Perfection Back in my working days, one…
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Continue reading →: From the Lot to the Dunes: Our First Day with Stargazer
We pulled into the dealer lot like two kids arriving at a candy store—but instead of grabbing gummies, we were here to take home something shiny, silver, and full of dreams. There she was—Stargazer—sitting there polished and perfect, waiting for us to hitch her up and roll into this next…
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Continue reading →: Picking Up Stargazer: A Dream, a Detour, and a Dear Friend
Our dream of owning an Airstream came true on a road trip to Michigan—but before picking her up, a spontaneous stop in Paw Paw stirred up warm memories of a dear friend and reminded me that some detours are meant to be taken. Turning a Dream into Today Getting an…
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Continue reading →: Welcome to Modern Stargazer: Our Journal of Slow Travel and Exploration
I’m writing this from a camp chair just outside our Airstream—coffee in hand, birds chirping, and the faint sound of my husband Chris “fine-tuning” something on the hitch (he says it’s necessary; I think it’s part of his relaxation ritual). The morning smells like pine and sunscreen, and my hair…
Hello,
I’m Melissa
The voice behind Modern Stargazer—a midlife journal of travel, reflection, and slow adventures in our Airstream, one starry stop at a time.
Modern Stargazer Life 