Moving Map

The chronicle of a young man with freedom at hand.

Category Archives: Journey West

Across the Country – 2009

May 12th, 2010

The Shuttle
This post is about 6 months late, sorry. The greatest roadtrip of my life was quite a success and the fantastic little car that made it all possible is to be commended, old Honda’s are the best!

In total I was gone for over 7 weeks and drove over 7,500 miles! I saw parts of the United States I had never been to before and came to appreciate the places I have been all my life. Traveling, especially alone is something I think everyone should experience at least once in their lives. You gain confidence, helps you become a better problem solver, and learn alot about who you really are.


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Of course the trip began with the flight to North Carolina where I bought a 1986 Honda Civic Wagon with about 180,000 miles on it. My first car was a 1987 Civic and so I was familiar and confident in these old cars. After making a loop in the North East seeing friends and checking out awesome places like the New River Gorge I drove home to Texas and took about a month to plan the next leg of the trip.

My goal for the entire thing was to stay on the road however long felt right and always choose the scenic route. I drove through many desserts, high mountain passes, forests, and amazing coastal roads. It was wonderful to see alot of family and friends that I had not seen in years, and I made more new friends than I can count! Every hostel I stayed in was a fantastic experience, one I wish more American’s would take advantage of.

I got to experience the horrible city of Las Vegas, the healthy and vibrant city of San Francisco and everything in between. One of my favorite some towns was Cambria, California. There is a small and charming hostel there, the scenery is breathtaking and the beaches are great, not to mention Big Sur is directly north. I had always heard about how amazing California is, yet I was skeptical it could live up to the hype. By far California was one of the most beauitful places I have ever been. From the beauty of Big Sur to the majesty of the Redwoods, everything was amazing in California.

By the time I got to Portland, one of my main destinations, winter was settling in and I was becoming home sick. So after a great week in Portland I set off with Texas as my destination. I made a few stops, but ultimately drove home as fast as I could. As many amazing places are out there, it all made me appreciate even more the diversity and uniqueness of Texas. I chose the settle down in Fort Worth because it is a city that still has a small town feel while still offering everything you could want in a city. Fort Worth is also on the verge of becoming a really amazing city, if things continue as they are it will be able to rival places with reputations as high as Austin and Portland.

I want to travel more now than I did before and I hope that my trip will inspire you to do one of your own. Come visit me in Fort Worth!
Champagne

Big Sur Beauty

December 15th, 2009

I woke up early in beautiful Cambria, CA so I could get on the road and see Big Sur. This is a famous section of Highway 1 that follows a spectacular and desolate section of the California coast.


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I could have stayed much longer in Cambria, it was a lovely little town and had a perfect hostel. It is tucked behind some hills, guarded from the ocean, and had some beautiful beaches around. Maybe I will get back there one day…

The drive was just as nice as it is said to be, and I am sure even more spectacular when the hills are green. You can drive very fast because you have a sheer rock wall inches from one side of your car and a cliff leading down into the ocean on the other side. I have a feeling it would be a better drive going south because you would be on the ocean side of the road. It was a beautiful day with some fog in the morning and low clouds hanging around the hills all day. I stopped to take pictures whenever I could but you can only stop so much and make any distance.

DSC_0844 My destination was Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Most of the park is closed because of fires in  recent years but McWay Waterfall is still there and absolutely beautiful. I was stopping to stay at a secret section of the park, two environmental hike-in campsites. I say secret because the park has no camping signs all over the place and so you have to have read about them before hand to know about them.  The sites are just behind the waterfall under a grouping of trees. It was lovely weather to camp, just chilly enough to need a fire and sleeping bag. My only complaint was the stream of tourist that would meander down the trail and walk around my camp, especially the creepy photographers that stayed for hours!

Because of my short drive I got there rather early and setup camp, did some hiking, and read for a while perched on a rock above the ocean. It was a long evening alone out in the woods. At one point in the night I was dancing around the fire when I turned around to see a small fox sitting on the hill watching me, I returned the favor and watched him for a little while. I slept great and was able to pack up and get on the road fairly early. I ended up in San Francisco on this day!

A block from the beach

December 10th, 2009

DSC_0663 I really enjoyed my time in Santa Barbara. It was my first stop in California and my first real taste of the Pacific ocean.

I had planned on camping at one of the nice state parks on the beach in the area but that turned out much harder than you would hope. Turns out getting a spot in a California state park is like winning the lottery. rant/ The state has given all reservation responsibilities to Reserve America, which reminds me of the horrible Ticketmaster.Every season they open reservations on a certain date for California and what happens is that every spot gets booked immediately for the whole year. California state parks are not very conducive to a random last minute traveler like myself.  One last note about a Reserve America policy that is idiotic is that you have to book a spot at least 48 hours in advance, after that there is no way to get a spot even if the park is empty. \rant

So when I realized I wasn’t going to be camping I headed for the hostel in Santa Barbara. I had already done research on it and had it as my backup plan. Turned out to be a nice backup because it was cheaper than a tent site at a park and was a very fun experience. The hostel was only a block from the beach and was centrally located in Santa Barbara. I stayed for two nights and was able to check out the city. I met alot of awesome people at the hostel including a guy from China riding a $150 bike from San Francisco to New York! After my Sunday morning plan was changed because everyone was at the assembly I rented a bike and rode around the city. The highlight of the visit was the Santa Barbara Art Museum. There was a fascinating exhibit on an ancient tomb found in China and the artifacts that revealed what life was like back then. The permanent collection was nice but not outstanding. I mostly just loved that it was a nice museum that wasnt to big or to small. My favorite piece was a collaborative piece made of clay that encouraged you to sculpt something to add to the piece. In the afternoon I rode my bike along the beach and wanted to try and get in to swim but it was just way to cold so I just watched the surfers for a while and took pictures.

When it was time to leave I headed north on Highway 1 towards Cambria, CA as a stopping point before driving Big Sur. On the way I stopped at Pismo Beach to look around and have lunch. Got to eat some delicious clam chowder and see the amazing beaches there. Again, wish it were summer.

Moving Map

The chronicle of a young man with freedom at hand.

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