The final post!

So we reached redwood forest at the same time that highway hit the ocean.  Eager to get in the Pacific Ocean, we parked as soon as could and went running across the scorching hot black sand.  The waves were bigger than we had really seen before and there were several warning signs for dangerous under-toe currents.  Much to our dismay we were only able to stick our toes in the freezing water.  A little farther up the road was the Redwood National Park.  We started off by talking a walk through one the better Redwood groves.  It was unbelievable to look at these trees that were several hundreds of years old.   They towered over us at 300+ feet, almost completely shading the undergrowth.  After the short hike we went to a cliff overlooking the ocean and river outlet.  It was a spot that was supposed to be good for whale watching from September-March.  To our surprise we saw several giant whales.  There were at least 4 or 5 them out there! It was definitely something that I will never forget.  We then heading to the hike in for our campsite.  It was about 2.5 miles into our campsite that was located only 200 yards from the beach.  We arrived at low tide and were able to go explore some of the tide pools.  The tide pools were full of hermit crabs, starfish, sea anemones, and all sorts of other critters until sunset.  We made a nice dinner over a fire of drift wood and had a great nights sleep.

The next day was spent driving to Portland, Oregon.  We arrived in time for dinner and decided to try the famous food truck business.  A large burrito and gravy fries were chosen as dinner.  It didn't take long before I regretted that decision.... We topped off dinner at a beer house where we were able to play some cards and taste some of the local beer.  In the morning we ate at the famous voodoo doughnuts.  Delicious!  It was then off to Missoula, Montana to visit my cousin Travis.

The long drive out there was so gorgeous.  We crossed the rest of Oregon, Idaho, and then into Montana.  We spent the next 3 nights hanging out in Missoula and catching up on some rest.  We rafted one afternoon down the Alberton Gorge river.  Although the water was very cold, the sun was about as hot as it had been since Vegas.  It was perfect rafting weather. We also spent the next day at a local Celtic festival that Travis was working at.  It was a great 3 day experience hanging out with Travis and Katie (his girl-friend), but we were ready to hit Yellowstone Park.  We left early on the 4th day.

We drove into Yellowstone through the north entrance.  We stopped at the Mammoth Hot Springs and walked around for an hour looking at the thermal pools and their array of colors.  A little farther up the road there was a large traffic jam.  Once we got through it we realized that everyone was stopped to look at a huge grizzly bear only a few hundred yards from the road.  A little farther up the road we ran into tons of bison.  It took no time at all before we hit these huge animals in the park.  It was obvious that this park was something special.  After the first night of camping, we spent the next day driving down to Old Faithful.  It was cold and windy, and after 45 minutes we were about to give up on the geyser.  Luckily for us it began spewing the water out just as we had enough.  It was another spectacular event and we were so glad that we stuck it out. We ended up in a campsite located in a field (with possible bison pies all around).  The temperature dropped that night down into the 30s.  It was a very uncomfortable sleep (or lack of).  The next day was a drive to South Dakota.

On the drive we drove through probably my favorite drive.  Wyoming was spectacular.  The mountains were covered in snow, the waterfalls were roaring, and the scenic vistas were beyond anything I have seen before.  We stopped at a dinosaur track site where several sets of dinosaur tracks have been well preserved.  We drove to Devil's tower to see what probably is an old volcano that is standing straight up in the middle of no where.  We arrived near Mount Rushmore and spent the night.  The next day we woke up to drive to Mount Rushmore.  I was afraid it would be boring, but there was something profound about it.  The idea of saving our culture for thousands of years despite what we do was amazing.  We then went down to see the progress of Chief Crazy Horse monument.  Although only the face was completed, we could see that this will be even more of an accomplishment if it ever is finished.  From there it was a 14 hour drive to Illinois.

We made it to Champaign Illinois to stop in at the one and only Stefan aka 'Swingo Bingo' Wingo. I had a French Baby pastry for breakfast, which I was assured is a local favorite.  We got a quick tour of the Wingo household before we were to make our last drive.  That day was about 8 hours all the way back to Chattanooga.  The one pit stop was to pick up a beagle puppy for Sara's dad outside of Nashville.  She was a cute baby but was not used to car rides yet.  Along the 3 hour drive she got sic 3 times.... yuck.  We finally arrived in Chattanooga about 1am.

The next day we heading down to Georgia to see Sara's parents.  We ate an amazing home cooked dinner when we got there.  After dinner we went fishing in the pond.  Sara was the only one that caught anything and she caught 3 nice fish.  We walked through their garden and collected tons of veggies before we hit the road again.  It was about 1am when we got back to Macon but we finally made it! Home Sweet Home!

After the final count it was over 10,000 miles, over 120 hours in the car, 25 states, 1 month, and no money left.  It was a trip of a lifetime and exactly what I needed this summer.  We were able to be in a car together all month and enjoy the country.  I am sad its over yet am glad to be back.  I will always remember this trip as one of the best times of my life.

We left the state of Nevada, headed for Los Angeles. Before we could even get near the city, the smog was visible. We had hopes of seeing the famous Hollywood sign, but without doing the 45 minute hike to the top, the smog made that almost impossible. We caught a quick glimpse, and headed back down the mountain. We didn't plan to stay in LA, so we mostly drove around and took in the city. I, personally, wanted to see Rodeo Drive, so even though most of the shops were closed we walked around for a bit. Absolutely unbelievable. It was kind of funny how out of place we looked in the 4-Runner with firewood strapped to the top, when almost every car we passed was a Mercedes, Audi, or BMW. After Rodeo Drive, we left Los Angeles and headed up US 101, or the Pacific Coastal Highway. We drove up through Malibu, and found a place to get some sleep before we continued.

Our next National Park stop was to be the famous Yosemite Valley Park.  We arrived at the southern end of the park after a long day of driving through the farmland of central California.  I never realized how much farming was actually done in California.  The campsite in Yosemite, called Wawona campground, was located next to a beautiful stream at the foothills of the mountains.  I decided that this would be the first place that I tried my luck at fishing.  Unfortunately, after an afternoon and one early morning of fishing, I only had a few bites.  I saw plenty of beautiful golden colored trout jumping all around, so it wasn't all bad.  It had been a while since I have had a chance to relax as much that morning at 6:30am.  The rest of the day was spent on exploring the valley area.  The drive there was spectacular-- mountain peaks covered with snow dominated the backdrop.  When we finally dropped over the mountains into the valley, we were able to see several famous waterfalls and peaks.  El Capitan and Half Dome were plainly visible.  In the center of the valley was a flowing river that winded between gorgeous meadows.  It was almost as if stumbling across a an untouched paradise.  The only problem was that it was so crowded with people that some of the serenity was taken away.  We stayed at a campsite just below the famous El Capitan rock face that we had to share with 3 other tents.  The campsite area was the base camp for the numerous rock climbers attempting to summit El Capitan or any of the other summits.  After spending the day exploring the valley we drove to the north side of the valley and found a campsite way up in the mountains called White Wolf.  Past our campsite was the highest meadow in the Sierra Nevada range called Tuolumne Meadows.  It was amazing to drive through the snowy peaks and reach this giant meadow that had just lost its snow.  The grass and flowers had only seen the sun for 2 weeks at most!  A little further up we drove to the edge of the park to Tioga pass, the highest possible route through the mountains.  We hiked about 500 or so yards up a rocky trail to Gaylor lake.  The altitude was hard on our lungs and we had to stop every few minutes to catch our breath. At the top was one of the most spectacular panoramic views.  We were up in the snowy peaks looking down on mountain meadows littered with lakes and streams.  It was something out of a movie.  We spent the rest of the day relaxing and reading in our hammocks back at camp.  In the morning we packed up and heading toward San Francisco.  Back to the Pacific Ocean!

Since we were starting to be a little more cautious about money at this point, we decided to book the highest rated motel we could find and go from there.  Although it looked sketchy from the outside, we were excited to have a room, a bed, and a nice shower to clean up.  We were in a cool part of town with lots of restaurants around so we decided to walk to dinner.  We ended up at a cool place called Ace Wasabi Rock'N Roll Sushi.  It turned out to be a  really cool place with a bunch of different twists on sushi.  After stuffing ourselves with several rolls and some saki we walked back to our motel.  What we were't expecting was the freezing temperatures we encountered that night.  It was windy, foggy, and so cold.  Wasn't the West coast supposed to be warm and sunny?!? Hopefully the next day would be warm and sunny so we could go see the Golden Gate Bridge and all of the other touristy things.  WRONG.  Foggy, cold and windy again.  We were not prepared or a fan of this weather.  We did brave the conditions and see, Crooked Street, the bridge, Alcatraz, Haight-Ashbury street (home of the Grateful Dead), Chinatown, and the Wharf area.  Lots of driving around and seeing things. The Haight-Ashbury area was really neat and hipster-ish.  We met up with my friend Chris Wilson and his friend at the Wharf area for dinner.  It just so happened that they were traveling across the country in the opposite direction as us and San Fran was were our paths crossed.  After some seafood we headed north towards Napa Valley.

We toured several wineries in Napa and Sonoma.  It was fun learning how it actually works and all of the different types of wines.  We had a very rocky campsite that night...  Then it was off to Redwood forest.

Danny and I finally made it to wi-fi, so here's the update!

We made it to Albuquerque, New Mexico and with the advice of a friend, drove up to Sandia Crest. The elevation at the top was a little over 10,000 ft, almost 2 miles. We were able to drive to the top, and hiked around the peak for a bit. You could see all of Albuquerque, and an old volcano miles and miles away. The area was a little smoky because of the wildfires in New Mexico, but the view wasn't obstructed too much. After the hike, we met up with a friend of mine from my hometown, Ellis. He had told us about a concert in Santa Fe, so we met up at his house with a few of his friends only to find out it had been cancelled. They still wanted to go up to Santa Fe, because it was "cooler" there. I realized quickly that their definition of hot was nothing compared to Georgia's humidity. I was shivering almost anytime we were in the shade.. During the day we were in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, we managed to eat Mexican/New Mexican twice. It was delicious, but I believe I can hold off on Mexican for a while now. Santa Fe was a neat little town, all of the buildings matching each other and the desert background, with great tourist type shopping and dining. We went into a Catholic church that was built in the early 1800's and still used today. It was absolutely beautiful. The hour ride back from Santa Fe gave us a great view of the desert sunset, which is unlike anything I've ever seen. The pink and orange hues the sunset painted across the sand were amazing. Pictures almost can't do it justice. He gave us a driving tour of Albuquerque, which is lit up in neon colors everywhere at night. Even the bridges were lit in blues, greens, and purples. It was great catching up with Ellis, and we tried to get in a good night's sleep before we departed for Zion National Park in Utah.

We reserved a backcountry campsite near Angel's Landing, the only hike we really wanted to accomplish there. Angel's Landing is a 2.5 mile hike, straight up what feels like a million steep switchbacks for two miles. The last half mile is a very steep ascent up rock face, with chains installed to assist hikers. In places there are 1000+ ft drops on one or both sides of you. Reading the statistics about deaths and falls from this hike, we were both nervous and excited. Unfortunately, we didn't make it to this hike... yet. Danny's planned route to our campsite was approximately 9 miles and "relatively flat" according to the ranger, following the hour drive to the trailhead. We start at the trailhead, backpacks and hiking shoes strapped on, adrenaline pumping. We arrived late, and were prepared to hike about an hour or so in the dark. No big deal, right? After 4 hours of hiking, the "almost there's" started. We hiked an hour of "relatively flat" land, then it turned to steep ups and downs over the peaks surrounding the canyon. By hour 5, feet were hurting, it was very dark, and some of the edges of the trails were terrifying after dark, especially not knowing what kind of wildlife we could expect to run into. Around midnight, 6 hours after we started, we FINALLY made it. We quickly set up the tent and passed out from pure exhaustion. We awoke early the next morning to find a breathtaking view from our tent. We were camping right on the western rim of the canyon. Seeing this view, we decided it may have been worth the work we put into getting there. At this point, we chose to hike back to the car to drive to Angel's Landing. (If we hiked we would have either a 15 mile hike back, or have to try to find a ride back to the trailhead.) By the time we got back to the car, our legs were numb and we were both physically and mentally exhausted. We grabbed a much needed lunch and sadly decided we were too tired to attempt Angel's Landing. We set off for the Grand Canyon after lunch. 

We camped on the North Rim of the canyon, which is quite different from the more touristy South Rim. The North Rim is covered in Forest, a little cooler, and much quieter. We arrived just in time to set up our tent and get some sleep. After our little Zion adventure, we were ready to spend 3 relaxing days at the Grand Canyon, hiking to different vista points along the North Rim. At one of the sites, Monument Point, we got an absolutely unbelievable view down the Grand Canyon, instead of the usual straight across. It's hard to put it into words. If you haven't seen it, it's a must.

We left the Grand Canyon with a goal in mind, we had to hike Angel's Landing! We drove a little out of the way to go back to Zion National Park, refreshed and ready. The hike was so worth it. Once we got to the famous last half mile, we just had to keep moving. Looking down wasn't the best idea, and stopping was an even worse idea. It was difficult, just as expected, but not as terrifying as I thought it would be (thanks to the adrenaline, i'm sure). There were places with no chains that I thought really needed them, and several areas where just a bit of carelessness or the wrong placement of a foot could result in disaster. We made it to the peak and sat for a while to soak in our success. The view was incredible. We hike up 1200 ft, and could see straight down almost all around us, and had a great panoramic view of the canyon. Hiking down proved to be scarier than going up, to me at least, but the switchbacks were definitely easier going down. We were both so happy that we made it back to try out Angel's Landing, and it allowed us to laugh a little at our first hiking mishap in the park. Overall, it was an amazing park, and there were many parts of it that I would love to go back and explore someday. Filled with the success of the day, we headed for Las Vegas, NV.

We spent two nights in a resort right off the strip with Zack Rall. All I can say about this part of the trip is "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." 

Wow.  So far this has been the only time we have had enough free time and internet connection to blog.  We have been going non-stop since we left over a week ago.  I will try to catch everyone up on the adventures we have had so far.  We decided that the best move for everyone involved was to leave Maximus at home.  I think he will be happier, we will be happier, and everyone else will be (except maybe my parents...).  Most places have strict pet regulations and so far it has been the better choice.  We sure do miss him though!

First was Wakarusa, the music festival in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas.  After leaving around 6:30am from Signal Mountain, TN, we headed west for around a 10 hour ride.  The last few hours went by so slowly, especially since Arkansas might be the most boring state I have driven through in a while.  All the natives drive under the speed limit and take up both lanes of the highway. Once we finally arrived, we were relieved at the cool weather we experienced.  Being up high in the mountains helped to maintain a cool breeze everyday (way better than the scorching heat I experienced at Bonnaroo a few summers ago).  We even got a few rain showers everyday to help cool us off.  Unfortunately, the last day brought in some nasty storms and tornado warnings.  We decided to skip out on a few of the bands we really wanted to see because we had already seen them before.  With that, we packed up camp and heading down south towards our next stop in New Orleans.

After a quick nap in a Wal-Mart parking lot, we continued down to NOLA Monday morning.  We stopped in at the visitor center and got directions for looking at the beautiful garden district.  I have always heard how dirty and dangerous it was down there, but the garden district changed that.  There were huge mansions from the 1800s with perfectly manicured lawns and houses.  After the garden district tour we headed to our hotel in the French Quarter.  I loved this area with the old Spanish style streets and buildings decorated with iron fences.  We spend the rest of our time wandering around bourbon street and many of the other side streets looking for awesome cajun food.  At one place we ran into Chef Donald, one of the few contestants being selected for the next Hell's Kitchen TV show.  He was extremely nice and gave us ideas on the best places to eat.  In return, we gave him some citrine rocks from Brazil that a hippie gave us at Wakarusa.  Citrine contains powers of healing and protects against negative energy while giving good luck to those that possess it.  We hope it helps Chef Donald in auditioning for Hell's Kitchen.  NOLA had some of the friendliest and helpful people we have met so far and I definitely want to spend some more time back there.  We left early the next morning heading to Albuquerque, NM.

I will finish catching up later tonight, but for now we are off hiking the Grand Canyon!

Danny and Sara

Getting Started

So I finally graduated and have been contemplating how I will be spending my last free summer.  After much thought, I have decided to follow one of my dreams and take a long road trip out West.  I have always wanted to see how the other half of the country lives and this seems like the perfect time to make the journey.  I will be accompanied by my girlfriend Sara and my puppy Maximus.  The plan is to spend about 4-5 weeks traveling through many famous National Parks and cities.  Instead/in addition to keeping a personal journal of our adventures, I have also decided to keep this blog for friends and family to track.

As of now we have a fairly loose schedule of dates and places, but we do have some 'must see' stops.  We being at the end of May for the Wakarusa music festival.  From there we will move on down to New Orleans to get some Cajun food and culture.  From there, west on I-10 through Texas and New Mexico.  A few stops in Arizona are included, but the main attraction is the Grand Canyon.  Then off to Vegas and Southern California.  From there we will take the Pacific Coast Highway north to San Fransisco and Portland (hopefully to a Timbers MLS game).  Then start back East to Mount Rushmore and the Badlands.  Hopefully end with a stop in Illinois before we make it back home.

We have been thinking about this trip and are very excited for it to begin.  Anyone with ideas, suggestions, comments, or questions should feel free to contact one of us.  I will be updating this blog with more specific information up until we leave and will continue posting pictures/stories from the trip.  Wish us luck!