Being one with the cold...

Arches was under the cover of darkness when we arrived however the moon was a stunning pink and orange, full and on the horizon peeking through the monoliths. We set up our camp again without too much fuss and settled on a cheese and crackers dinner and washed it down with a beer Caleb had been toting with him since San Diego from Ballast Point Brewery, so good. Sleeping turned out to be much more successful with insulation encasing you from head to toes. Even though mine were frozen the rest of me stayed relatively warm and when we woke to a raven approaching our tent, we started moving about to keep us warm outside of our cocoons. We spent the day hiking Devils Garden, a total of 7.2 miles but as to be expected we took detours and side routes to get the best views that was closer to 8 and an exhausting well spent 8 at that. It was breathtaking. The arches are what remains of the cracked sediment resting on an ancient salt bed being worn by water and wind over thousands of years. The arches themselves are the where the wind and water wore right through. Standing next to and under some of the structures makes one feel very small, not only in size but in a lifetime. I will never see the a sizable difference in mine but over time these walls will change shape, new arches formed and old ones will collapse with a likely deafening and terrifying snap. It was Caleb's birthday so we went into town for dinner at the Moab Brewery, with a great selection of beer and assorted gelato flavors. A hot dinner hit the spot after a day's hike and the chill of the night setting in. We decided to get a stove and something to cook with so that maybe in one or some of our camping adventures we can make something hot for ourselves. The general store in Moab offered us a few good components for some moderate camp style cooking supplies and a kit kat bar I just couldn't resist. The next morning we woke up to frost on the tent, making folding it more of a pain then putting it together. We stopped by some of the other pulloffs and sites on our way out of the winding road to catch some other photo ops and then headed into town for a bit before we got on the road. In town I ate my delicious BLT with avocado sandwich at my leisure since a UPS truck had double parked me into our spot.  At dinner the night before we reviewed what it would take to get us to Yosemite. 16.5 hours... so on to plan b...or to making a plan b. Part of the plan we were keeping was heading to Reno to visit a good friend of my family's.  We picked Great Basin NP, right after the Nevada border because it was on the way and this way we could get in our fill of nature. Plus they have caves, something new and exciting for less then any other park we've stayed in. So that's the plan, as far as we can tell. That and spend less money...oye.

Just a little homesick, for what home I'm still not sure...

We left Cottonwood and the warm RV we've called home for the last couple days. We have been very lucky to have the hospitality of Caleb's grandparents as they took us around sightseeing to what central AZ has to to offer. We've seen now Prescott and Jerome, Montezuma Castle and a bit of Sedona in addition to hiking around to Tuzigoot National Monument and Walnut Creek Canyon. These two along with Montezuma were areas inhabited by the Sinagua Native Americans who after a couple hundred years of living in the flourishing Verde Valley mysteriously left or migrated leaving behind ruins of homes etched out on the sides of canyon walls. In Tuzigoot they left a series of square apartments, all accessible from roof tops. The past couple days have been a history lesson and a half, I've learned so much and seen some of the most unique geography the United States has to offer. I have also been very lucky to have such wonderful and giving people to watch over us for these last couple days. The RV resort they stay at is home to some of the nicest, most rugged road warriors you've seen. We got to play WII bowling and SuperBowl Sunday, we watched the Giants take a big win in the lodge with a few other family's. People were rooting for either side but all of us were snacking on communal chips, cheeses and wings and having a good time. Our last night there we took advantage of the mini golf course, unfortunately I lost so it's not really even worth writing about. We got in a couple of good hikes while we were there also, once in Sedona, climbing as high as our nerves could take us and once at Walnut Creek, down into the canyon and back. At least it would balance out all the Denny's and pizza we were eating:) After a couple days of good rest, investing in some laundry washing and sleeping bags and seeing what central AZ has to offer we headed north towards Arches National Park to camp out for a couple days. The plan from there was onto Yosemite and through to San Francisco by the weekend.

I learned how to play rummy at Jamie's...

It is not everyday you have someone in your life you can spend every good, bad and cranky moment of 12 days together, and still think they are awesome at the end. Alysha and I did and we are better for it. I learned a whole other kind of patience, with myself and I have grown an even deeper appreciation for Alysha and her ability to take things as they come and to be happy with little. I admire that about her, so if you are reading, thank you for being awesome and making the trek out west what it was, a none stop (except Kansas and Oklahoma) adventure full to the brim with stories :) Now I have Caleb, how lucky am I to have two friends willing to do this sort of thing with me? From this point on our destinations change on a daily basis but we started in San Diego. The night before Alysha departed, we went out to SD's historical Gaslamp district, full of restaurants, bars and breweries. We met up with Lily, my roommate from my first AC year, who came all the way from Orange County to reunite with us. We hopped around from the Local to Rock Bottom Brewery. Both were good, but rendered Lily's car unfindable. After a sleepover with us at Jamie's house we ventured to a Trader Joe's to get local fruits for Alysha to take home and a coffee for the ride as well. Sadly, the time came and we had to drop off both Alysha and Lily at their respective places where they'd be going home and Jamie and Caleb and I, well we drove around a bit but then Jamie, inevitably had to go to work. Caleb and I head east again, to Tucson, AZ. We had an old AC friend with beers and laughs waiting for us by the name of Rob Delong. We showed up after eating some Del Taco (way better then T- Bell btdubs) and hit the town and the neighborhood gay bar for some spastic interpretive dance off, with ourselves. Tucson is a quirky little city. It has big city elements like a downtown and a homeless population but it had a small town feel and by that I mean it's almost all bikeable. There were a couple schools nearby which made it a younger city, an artsy skinny tire driving, hipster town. Still the murals, giant 13 foot monkey statue, and copper art sculptures made it a neat place to drive around. The next day we had bagels for breakfast and an oil change for brunch. Rob took us out west to hike Tucson's highest peak for lunch. Unfortunately I can not read a map and Rob is about as good at making decisions as me, so him and I didn't make it all the way up, but Caleb did on his run. As if I didn't feel out of shape enough here comes Caleb showing me up. Rob had work later so we reconvened and dropped him off at home. Cottonwood, AZ was in our sights, after a stop at Del Taco, seriously you can eat so much for like $2. Caleb's grandparents were kind enough to put us up indefinitely at their place in Cottonwood. We checked out Prescott College, Caleb's school of choice and poked around the area sightseeing and spending quality time with family. It was a good place to rest before we headed north, into the cold, into the unknown. Prescott College, a genius campus with a lot to offer the outdoorsy soul. Students are barely at campus because so much of their education is real life practicum, so for class they go skiing in Idaho studying avalanche movement... or rock climbing to learn about geology... it was ridiculous how awesome this school was, not to mention how the earthy crunchy vibe presented itself in a green campus. Arizona it self, is beautiful, the sky is a magnificent shade of blue, the terrain of red rock country, high desert, snow-capped mountains, canyons, and ruins of native Americans on canyon cliff side are all here, also mountain towns with Haunted Hamburgers are here. I was adopted for all intents and purposes for a day when we ventured out to Montezuma Castle and the well, both National Monuments. We headed towards home a drove straight through Sedona in red rock country and caught a gorgeous sunset with dinner. In Sedona, we also stopped to get Prickly Pear icecream, not as prickly but way more delicious then it probably sounds. We stayed for a couple days and I see now it wasn't just my grandparents who tried to fatten me up :)

Everyday we're hustlin'

From New Mexico, Alysha and I had nothing but new experiences on the horizon. Driving away from Taos, we drove passed Earthships, this area of land devoted to homes made out of recycled building materials and themed to look like miniature water parks with solar panels growing out of their roofs and gardens on terraces. It was crazy and smack in the middle of nowhere, it was its own little oasis of color and creativity. Driving up through a mountain pass in northern New Mexico provided us with amazing views as well as 8 foot snowplow banks and even a little part of road that iced back over. We persevered by pulling over to take pictures on top of snow plow piles while hoping we didn't fall in over our heads. The air is thinner, the skies seem bluer and you can see for miles ahead in any direction. The terrain even changes so much in what seems a short period of time. We drove through school bus graveyards and into the desert and through canyon lands. We drove into the Grand Canyon itself just after night fall and on the verge of peeing our pants, maybe it was just me. The sign on the ranger post before entering basically said, if you're reading this, keep driving, enjoy your stay. We found out camp ground, popped up our tent with just a little fuss. We layered up because there was snow on the ground and we were going to be sleeping on it. Unfortunately even after 3-4 layers of sweaters and jackets and socks and heavy blanket, our body heat was no match for the frozen ground and it sucked that and about 6 hours of good sleep from us. Which is why we cracked open a couple of Great Divide's as a rewarding night cap before the long night ahead. Our plan was to wake and watch the sunrise, but who are we kidding, we were already awake. 5:30 am turning into 7:30 am with little to no difference in the sky. Alysha was hell bent on finding the best lookout spot possible and so we found it, perfect perch and sat there for an hour and a half, looking homeless in our sweatpants and multiple layers of sweaters and a blanket across our laps. As we sat, I felt peace, the kind of peace that only a sunrise can bring, before people start moving about and stirring up the air around you with noise and distractions. It was beautiful. Then we encountered the Korean hostile take over, and by that I mean, a bus load of tourists came through the area from their nice warm cabins to take pictures of the mental image I already had. So we stole back to my car, turned on the heat and took a solid two hour nap which we counted as our sleep for the day. When we woke up, nice and toasty, we took down the tent, and did a couple miles worth of hiking the southern rim trail. It was a mesmerizing view that induced a bit of vertigo just looking down. Back in the car, ready for a drive we headed to LA, via Las Vegas. It was only about 40 minutes out of our way and by the time we drove through all the lights were already sinfully glittery and bright as day. We took a couple touristy pictures as we drove down the main drag. Fun Fact, the famous Strip is actually located in the city of Paradise just outside metro Las Vegas...but no one really cares. We got into LA and to my cousins place around 9 or so. By this time I had discovered my tooth had something severely wrong with it and it was decided that I should make a run to an urgent care, yet another trip down the AmeriCorps memory lane. The next day, we slept in a bit then headed out after our continental breakfast from Starbucks. We picked up Mare from work, and drove to the docs. 2 hours and too much money later, I had the fix in my reach and I could soon smile without cringing. We got some foods then went on a tour de Los Angeles. We went out to the art museum and watched the sunset with European impressionism. We got all dolled up for some steam punk underground 1920's themed bar downtown. The wait was bordering ridiculous at just under 2 hours but it the absinthe fairy and seeing an almost famous Disney star was worth seeing. We danced and scoped for more recent famous people but came up empty. The next day we gorged on delicious pancakes that were stacked three high and the size of the plate. We then headed out to the Santa Monica Pier and played skee ball at the arcade and gave away our tickets to a much more deserving 5 year old girl. We then took a drive up to the Observatory and saw the Hollywood sign, no longer lit up and smaller then you'd think but still there and still California's. Its free and is home to the most looked through telescope in the world. It was so neat to see the moon that close and interesting to say the least to walk around deep space being educated on the history of our universe while children jump off marble benches onto marble floors, eventually ending up in an ambulance. Don't worry he is alright, just a broken arm. Our time in LA ended too soon but on to San Diego, where Alysha would catch her flight and switch off with Caleb...

From a mile up

These posts seem to be getting longer and longer, but I'm really trying to keep it short and sweet. I can;t help that there are So Many Activities! In order to shave off some time, our route took us north through Oklahoma and west through Kansas. We got some postcards, as we would probably never come back, but at least it took us along semi major highways instead of back roads through Amarillo. We drove as long as we could. In Austin we stopped by a vitamin shoppe and got schooled on B12, multivitamins and probiotics, taking the healthier approach to staying awake the B12 got us through close to 2 am and to travel plaza a few miles short of the Kansas border. We utilized bungee cords and towels for makeshift privacy that reminded us of being 5 and throwing sheets and blanket over couches to make forts. The next morning we woke up to a couple frozen toes but a decent nights rest. The farms in the middle of this great country, with the exception of the 8,000 pound prairie dog and $2 postcards, were about as uneventful as they seem but this tacked on two additional states to our adventure. We made it into Denver around 4:30 pm and paid for our stay by helping our hosts move in some furniture that would eventually benefit us since a couch was part of the load. George, a corps member from my most recent year, and his roommate were our hosts and entertainment as they we pretty funny. George's family that lived near by had us over for pork chops, cabbage and some Green Planet education. We got to check out a local bar which was pretty empty but it had cheap drinks and it was close to homebase. The next day we stole Jesse and met up with Ethan, another AC flashback from year one who happened to be passing through town on his way to Tucson and day tripped to Lookout Mountain and Buffalo Bill's grave. Just west outside the city and into the foothills of the Rockies was a beautiful drive and on our way back we stopped at Red Rocks Park/ Ampitheatre. To say we just walked around wouldn't be fair. At 6,400 feet, 100 extra feet up will put a roadtripped, Austin food binging, resting heart rate into overload. But we made it, top to bottom and back up. By the time we were on our way back George was out of work and we decided dinner was a must. Since both George and Jesse were new transplants we all explored this new city together. We parked downtown and started hoofing it about the city. We came across a restaurant with “Food Network” and “ Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” painted on most of the windows. Sam's No. 3 turned out to be a pretty sweet stop for dinner. All of us had what we had been told was a Denver classic, a breakfast burrito, with eggy, chessy, potoatoey goodness as big as your head. Keeping up with staying as authentic to each city as possible, we took our togo boxes to a Denver original brewery, the Great Divide and made it just in time for their happy hour and brewery tour, both were favorable. We bought a couple six packs and headed back to the car before rush hour. Ethan came back out to play in the evening when we hit up another local bar, Stoney's around Capitol hill where we ended up loosing terribly in a couple games of cornhole, or bags as I like to call it. I got to drive George's car home, this is fun because it was a manual transmission and would make the most god awful noise when you put it into second, but George was asleep so he wouldn't have minded if the transmission fell out anyway. The next day we loaded up the car once more to head south to New Mexico but not before we detoured through the Garden of the Gods and saw the kissing camels and some rock climbers on top of a rock enjoying a picnic. Since our drive to our next post was a short one we took advantage of the natural wonders of the area. We stopped at a closed Seven Falls but found Helen Hunt's falls around the corner. Mantiou Springs was a cute touristy city we drove through before NM also, and although there were no springs, we got to drop off some more postcards. As far as weather is concerned, we have been pretty lucky. Even though Denver was a little overcast and it snowed our first morning, it was nothing a scarf and sweater couldn't handle. New Mexico was just as pleasant. Whether its the dry air or the night we spent in Hotel Corolla that readjusted our body's internal temps, but a scarf and long sleeves took us through most of the Southwest. Unfortunately it was dark by the time we got to Taos New Mexico but pulling up to “Hotel Pascual” we were still giddy at the sight of the pueblo that would keep us warm that night. Alysha's friend who had made Tampa his home for school then returned home to Taos. He took us out to the “local favorite” which was actually there catch phrase which made dinner an easy choice. There is something about a XX's, a chicken enchilada and sopapilla with honey that put a smile across my whole face. On the list of things I've noticed, right behind how Oregon Trail did not prepare me for how big the wild west is, is that the southwest keeps their food spicy. It's delicious don't get me wrong, but as the south appreciates their sauces the Southwest appreciates the food itself being spicy. Pascual, our accomodating host had the world's most awesome house. On a dirt road, lined with unmatched skinny wood rails and neighborhood dogs about, his house was adobe made with a decorative clay tile floor, rounded doorways and an upstair accessible by what resembles an attic ladder but that opened up to his patio in which you could see every single star in the sky. He lived next to his grandparents in a house his great grandfather used to live in and the street address was his very own last name. Taos as a city itself was incredibly self sustaining and rather preferred family owned and operated businesses. Pascual told us it was a habit that when commercial and chain business try to settle in the town gets involved in boycotting the big business and driving through the downtown their Christmas lights and family named store fronts are the proof, that a little town can survive.