Utah- California-Ohio

Welcome to Canyonlands National Park outside of Moab, UT!

My other home <3

This trip began on a beautiful October day. Even though it was my second summer in Moab, I had not been able to see much of the attractions that bring people in from all over our World. Being a raft guide, you work about six and a half days a week and spend all those days on the river. (No complaints there!) This past summer I worked for Canyon Voyages and Paddle Moab, taking on skills and trips that I never would have imagined I could have done! When you live in a place like Moab and work that type of job, it gives you a whole new appreciation for Mother Earth. I mean, look at that view!

Our first stop was Cayonlands National Park! Meet Ocoee! (Uh-ko-ee), our lovely Aussie-doodle. She joined us for this trip. She is an amazing travel companion, but it definitely does make it harder to travel with a dog. Even a well behaved one. The most problems we ran into were the limitations when it came to parks. If you ever decide to travel with your dogs, look into the parks ahead of time to find out how dog-friendly they are. Some allow dogs on paths, while others are much stricter. Even with Ocoee as an ESA dog, we had to be very careful about bringing her places. This blog was very helpful when it came to looking into pet friendly parks and to have an idea of what we were getting ourself into!

Just hanging out at Mesa Arch.What a view, eh?

So you may be wondering, what inspired this trip? Well, let me tell you! We originally decided to take this road trip for a few reasons:

1- Noah wanted to attend a Vipassana in California.

2- There were family matters I wanted to see to in Ohio (keep reading to find out about those).

3- It was the end of the rafting season and we wanted to travel!

What a better place to start than at this lovely view? Just a little hike off of the road and you get to see this. Well worth it.

Fun fact! Ever wonder the difference between an arch and a bridge?

Especially around Moab, where Arches National Park is located, it can be a popular question,

with a seemingly overly simple answer. A bridge is formed mainly by water erosion,

while an arch can be formed by many facets of erosion.

Looking over our home. There’s the La Sal’s, Moab and Washer Woman.

Oh, the high desert… How I have come to love you.

I’ll never forget my first time in Utah. I had just graduated college from the University of Cincinnati and was traveling across the country to meet up with Noah.  I had taken a plane from Columbus to Salt Lake City, where I took a taxi to the train station at odd hours of the night. That was a fun ride where the driver kept telling me if I was in his country I would be in trouble traveling alone as a woman. Comforting for a young woman to hear who was indeed traveling alone.

I got to the train station (safely) and it was close to empty, so I decided to do some yoga and ease off some of the nervousness I was feeling. But that got cut short when some police officers approached me and asked me to go wait inside, for safety. So I did. And finally a few hours later, the train came and I boarded with a few new friends I had made while waiting at the station. When the sun rose through the train window, I was mesmerized by what I saw. I have been graced throughout my life to be able to travel, but never have I ever seen the likes of Utah. And since that day I have grown to adore Utah in a deep place in my heart. My second home.

To wrap up the story, I got off of the train in Green River, walked right down the middle of the street with my new found friend and found my way to a diner in town. If you have ever been to Green River, you may be able to picture this perfectly. The diner that has wonderful coffee AND sells bus tickets- how perfect! I got a bus ticket for Moab and was there by early afternoon. Where I hiked to the Lazy Lizard Hostel and met up with Noah.

What an adventure that has led to!

Noah & I

After driving through most of the night and morning, we made it to Yosemite National Park! And it is NOT all hype. If you ever get the chance to go here- do it. If not only for the view, then for the history. After all, it was an essential part of the development of the National Park idea.

&& an otherworldly scene awaits you.

A breathtaking view of the glacial carved Yosemite National Park.

While it took me a minute to figure it out- yes, that is haze that you are seeing in the photograph. There were wildfires in the park while we were there. Though they were controlled from what we understood.

Fun fact: fire is good for sequoia trees! It helps the trees spread their seeds and gives them the light to grow, that would otherwise be taken up by the forest and shrubs. 

That being said, wild fires are a real problem. Especially in that part of the country. Be responsible when you go out. Follow that fire laws of the area. Do your part to keep it safe, not only for you but for the wildlife. Smokey Bear would be proud!

 

Half Dome at Sunset.

We may have tried sleeping in our car and got asked to move at 1am by a very polite officer. Just so you’re aware- there’s a thing called “out of bounds camping” where you have to camp in a designated area within the park. Parking in a parking lot does not count. Which, looking back, makes sense. You don’t want to sleep where your food is due to bears (who can open car doors btw). And the park wants to keep an idea of where people are in the park so as to keep track of you and keep you safe. Things can go very wrong, very fast and if no one knows where you are, that’s on you (127 Hours is a great example here). So if you insist on car camping and/or not paying for camping (as we did) you can drive outside of the park into a national forest where there is tons of free camping, and allows dogs more freedom to roam as well.

After waking up in the Sierra National Forest outside of Yosemite, I realized that it was a perfect place for a yoga practice. With all those trees around, how could I not do tree pose?!

From Yosemite we traveled to San Francisco, up to Kelseyville and stayed in the mountains above Clear Lake, where this picture was taken. And the beginning of my night photography was born.

When we got to Kelseyville, it was decided to skip on the Vipassana at the moment. So we continued the travels together.

From Clear Lake we headed back down the coast and decided to take Highway 1. We were on a tight schedule as I was interviewing with massage therapy schools in San Fran and San Diego.

Waking up on the side of Highway 1 is not a bad view.

I will say, Highway 1 is beautiful. This sunset picture can hardly do it justice. And the experience of riding all down the coast of California is something I cannot put into words. However, be aware what you are getting into. It is a beautiful drive, but a hilly and windy one as well. While I am someone who does not generally get car sick, I came very close in some circumstances that day.

Alas, Big Sur! This view may look different than you’re used to, and that would be because most people get the shot from the other side of the bridge, but it was PACKED! So we passed it and found a little pull off right past the bridge where people have made a path up a small hill that had a steep slope with a beautiful view. After being stuck in the car all day it was a welcome breath of fresh air.

 

View from the Big Sur Hill.

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After this shot, we drove to San Diego where I left Noah to catch up with some friends and start his bike tour. I headed across the country to meet up with my family for some important news- and to surprise my little sister for her State Golf Tournament. 🙂

Driving across the country in three days really was not that bad, for me. I cannot say the same for my family. My Dad kept me laughing by texting me consistently, even after we would get off of the phone and I would tell him I do not text and drive. Most of my texts were from him at every stop. And then there was the fact that I would sleep out of my car, because

1- I had a comfy as hell set up in the back.

2- It was inexpensive and convenient.

3- I had Ocoee with me.

So after giving my family mini heart attacks each night, I finally made it to them after a lot of driving and one stop at a float tank in Oklahoma City, which I would highly recommend. (Float OKC is AWESOME.)

 

As a Sophomore in High School, my little sister Kristin is killing it at golf and went to State this year! It was awesome to watch her play. Who knew you’d get such a workout and so much anxiety from going to a golf tournament?!

What was the important news? My older sister Jordan Anne and her husband Seth are having a baby boy! Congratulations you two!

And after a summer of white water rafting on the Colorado and falling in love with stand up paddle boards, I finally got my own. Made in Telluride, CO, SOL Paddle Boards hooked me up with their 2017 SolShine! I cannot express how excited I am for the adventures to come with this bad boy. Even Ocoee was comfortable on it!

That was our Road Trip from Utah to California to Ohio. Packed into a short amount of time, we learned a lot and had so much fun. Big thanks to everyone who we met and shared their time with us. Looking forward to the many adventures ahead!