Day 9: Yosemite

Since Joel and I decided we were staying another night in Madesto we decided to head to Sanoma, another cowboy town in the area. However on our drive to Sanoma we decided that we really should do Yosemite National Park. We had skirted the area because we heard you needed chains on your tires, which we didn't have.

But we decided to brave the two hour drive to see the park even if we couldn't go into it. The drive itself was gorgeous, lots of trees and even some snow. We finally got to the park and luckily it was gorgeous weather with very little snow. The park ranger informed us all the roads were r0 meaning no snow chains needed!

We headed into the park and it was magnificent! Love the mountains!!!! We drove around and stopped plenty to take lots of pictures. So amazing. We even took a couple walks out through the trees, into a meadow, and by a river. But we then decided to take a real hike.

We parked the car on the side of the road and filled a backpack with snacks, water, and books. We headed up through the trees towards El Capitain. We decided we wanted to get to the base of this incredibly large rock face. After a good 45 to an hour of climbing and rock jumping we made it. And the view was fantastic, breathing in the fresh air and realizing we had come to a place where so few humans had ever been. And the sun was out as well! We soaked in the beauty and the suns rays before heading back to the car.

After that, with a quick stop at the Yosemite sign to take a picture we headed back to Madesto. Back through the trees and away from the stunning mountains. Joel and I both agree that the Rockies were much prettier. For me those mountains will always hold a special place in my heart.

Rammy Excited to Explore!

When we headed to Madesto Joel ad I decide to stop for another snow cone. Unfortunately we had no idea where it was and after a failed attempt at didn't it we simply headed back to the home base

We spent the night solidifying, once again, out new friendship with our hosts. It was a night filled with cupcakes and Heineken. What more could I possibly want? Unfortunately tomorrow we head off, we do need to be in Vegas by Sunday. I am definitely going to miss it here, it was so much fun!

Day 8: Madesto

Joel and I were in invited by our hosts to stay another night and so we decided why not? This is what this trip is all about anyway right? Making friends and meeting people as well as traveling and eating lots of food! So we woke up late, had a shower, and decided to spend the day in the area. After some helpful hints from our newly acquired friends we headed to Oakland, the "cowboy capital of the world". I am not sure what Calgary would say about that but ok.

The town itself was fairly nice, small and easy to walk around. We parked near a museum and moseyed around the town. After taking a quick look around we went to the Cowboy Museam where they had lots of information about rodeo, the areas country history, and saddle making. It was a small very nice museum and only cost us a dollar a piece. Definitely worth the hour we spent poking around!

From there we went on to Knights Ferry an old town with a beautiful river. We spent the afternoon lazily soaking up the sun and listening to the river. Lots of reading in the book occasionally interrupted by discussions about what we were reading about and even more frequently by me asking Joel what kind of bird was flying overhead.

After a couple hours spent lazing about we drove through the old town of Knight Ferry on our way back to Madesto. When we got back we had a little relaxing time before we whisked of to a night of culinary heaven.

We started at George's Burgers where Joel had a 15oz burger and I had a gyros burger. And they were delicious and huge! Joel not only finished his whole burger but half of mine! After that we were taken to Pura Vida, which is a shaved ice store . We both got a small one which was huge!! Mine was watermelon, cotton candy and orange flavored. And Joel had a tigers blood, guava, and Georgia peach with sweet cream on top. We spent some time here talking and goofing around with the two workers. This involved a "official" first time snow cone cup on your head initiation. Even the workers joined us for this fun initiation. But man, I was so full! But we weren't done yet, after this we were taken to the best donut shop in Madesto, Mr.T. After being treated to even more food we went back home felling very full and satisfied.

We then spent a couple hours talking about our cultures and histories. It was tons of fun and we spent a lot of it laughing. Through the course of the night is was decided we would stay another night! But this was the final one because we needed to head to Vegas! So we went back to our nice. Comfy bed for another great sleep!

Day 7: San Fransisco

Day 7: San Francisco 

Joel and I woke up this morning feeling refreshed and invigorated. After a nice free breakfast where I ate two waffles and Joel had lots of bred, eggs, and waffles, we indulged in some more showers and down time. Out checkout was not till 12 and we were going to enjoy every second of it! 

But eventually we did check out and headed into San Francisco. We took the metro which was remarkably similar to the one in DC, made me feel right at home! We got off at a stop near the Pier and walked all the way from Pier 1 to the fisherman warf. We made a couple stops along the way including a quick look at the ships to Alcatraz and a longer stop watching the sea lions play.  After those stops we also took a chance to look at the historic battleships that were parked at one of the Piers.  While looking around here I was reminded of several scenes from the Princes Diaries. I had totally forgotten that was filmed in San Fran!  When we got to the end we headed up a hill to get a better view of the Golden Gate Bridge which was quite beautiful indeed! 

From there we headed into the city using a large pyramid shaped building as our guide. We were getting kinda tired so we stopped to look at a candy shop. Luckily we chose the candy shop that gave free saltwater taffy samples and so we left feeling much better! From the large pyramid we headed back to the metro and our hotel and our car.

Getting back to the car we heard via email that our first couch surfing experience would be that night! This was great news since Joel and I were not quiet ready to head back into the world of sleeping in cars with no Internet. We had gotten a taste of civilization and it was hard to leave it again! So with a pit stop at in-n-out we headed to Madesto. 

Couch surfing was amazing! The people who welcomed us were friendly and entertaining. Not only were we provided Internet, showers, a bed, and great company, but they fed us as well! They brought us some Taco Bell! Joel's first time at In-N-Out and Taco Bell in one day! Wow :)

After spending a couple hours chatting about traveling and travel plans we headed to our very comfy bed feeling clean and well fed for the second day in a row! Lucky us!! I foresee much more couch surfing in our future!!! Especially if all the hosts are as friendly and fun as these first ones were! What a great way to be introduced to this concept! I will definitely open my couch up for travelers when I get home!

Day 6: Our First Relaxing Day

After the long day we had yesterday Joel and I decided to take it a little slower today. Waking up in the car we headed to a nearby Target to use the bathrooms and brush our teeth, as well as figure out where we were going to stay for the night.  We decided to splurge on a hotel and get a hot shower.  So we used a combination of Hotwire/Expedia/and Priceline we found a nice place outside San Francisco in Oakland.

So we decided to head to a national park and spend the day there and do San Francisco tomorrow.  After putting in a random location in the GPS we veered of the highway into some very nice rolling farmlands.  As I commented to Joel during the drive, it was what I always pictured Scotland would look like in the summer.  It was a beautiful day out, as the sun was shinning and the weather was warm.  We were originally heading to a place in the National Park, but the GPS turned us down a non-paved road we thought that might be wrong and decided on a whim to take the next right into a barn/hiking trail.  We parked the car and took a look around.

Indeed there was a barn and Joel and I both looked wishfully at the horses, wishing we could go for a ride...It really has been WAY to long.  But after a cat and dog came sniffing our way we decided we had watched long enough. We headed back to the parking lot and up the trail.  We hiked around for a bit in the beautiful forest.  It was everything we needed, peaceful, quiet, and remote.  So nice to unwind after such a long day.  After the hiking we went back to the car and sat in the sun.  We must have hung out for two hours or so.  Simply reading and basking in the sun.

After finally getting back in the car, we headed to our hotel which was about an hour drive.  After going back down the winding road it was quiet a shock to hit civilization again.  Major civilization, it was four/five/six lanes with cars as far as the eye could see.  This was a whole different world from where we were only yesterday.

We got to our hotel really early checked in and had a long hot SHOWER!!!! First time in the road trip.  And it was glorious!  Then we latched on to the wifi and spent some time emailing and facebooking.  It was nice to feel somewhat human again.  I worked on learning Spanish today as that is one of my goals for this trip.  Hoping that goes well!

After some research about food in the area Joel and I headed to Chubby Freeze for some All-American Fastfood.  Burgers and Shakes.  Although it was a little pricey, it was right down the street from where we are staying and absolutly delicious! And after all that is what this trip is about, trying new food from all over North America....that means A LOT OF BURGERS :)

Now we are hanging out watching the Oscars, in California, not quite LA, but close enough!

Day 5: Our First LONG Day

Day 5: Our first LONG day!

Joel and I woke up thinking the rain was still coming down. But the moment we stepped out of the car we realized it was only the trees dropping on the car. Our prayers had been answered there was no rain, although the clouds looked pretty angry. 

After some hot tea and a granola bar we hopped in the car and headed to California. Before the border we stopped a couple to get some last minute shots of the slightly less stormy Oregon coast. 

After passing the Welcome to California sign we made a quick u-turn so Joel could take some pictures with the sign... Typical! Before we crossed the border we stopped for our last tax free gas and groceries. I am going to miss that!! But magically when we crossed the border the clouds began to clear. It was as if, as Joel put it, California was rich enough to buy the good weather. 

The first thing we encountered when we crossed the border was the majesty of the redwoods. Huge trees! And beautiful driving all day long! As soon as a turnoff for a beach came up we both hopped out of the car to frolic in the sun  (although the wind was sill quiet cold!) On one of these occasions  I was playing in the waves and Joel was trying to take a picture of me. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to him a huge wave was sneaking up behind him. I was well aware of this and ran away. And turned around just in time to watch him  get soaked from the knees down! Probably the hardest I have laughed on this trip to date and the loudest Joel has screamed! 

Rammy meeting a new friend!

After the waves we turned our sights back to the redwoods and a giant statue of Paul Banyon and his big cow (bull?). We took a quick pit stop and jumped out to take pictures! From there it was on to the National Forest where we went for a quick hike. It was nice to get outside again, although I was getting grumpy since we hadn't eaten yet. Despite this I made some pretty great dinosaur sounds, because this was the forest where parts of Jurassic Park was filmed. Joel's dinosaur noises were scary but soft. 

After that we drove for a long time. Making a couple stops including a cute little indie town called Arcata. It was a small college with a really cute centre square that had lots of little shops and cafes. After this town I put my foot down and we stopped in Eureka to get subway.

We then decided to find a library with wifi to solidify our plans for the night. Unfortunate the world had other plans but we did detour at probably the cutest little town ever. And I know I use cute a lot, but this was the definition of cute. Ferndale was very Midwestern looking, and in the middle of California! Who would have thought?! 

We then tried a couple libraries, with no luck... So we simply kept driving... And driving... And driving. We eventually stopped at Willits where we found the first easily accessible  wifi in 100miles. At this point we had already nixed our campsite for the night and needed a new place to sleep. Nothing really came up so we decided to head to San Fran. Joel and I switched and he started to drive.  We eventually stopped about 50 miles outside of San Fran in the Ranhert Park. We found a safe place to park for the night and immediately I fell asleep! What a long day!!! But worth it, and tomorrow is out first big city! San Francisco here we come!

Day 4: Torrential Rain and Gale Force Winds

Day 4: High Winds and Lots of Rain 

We woke up this morning to rain and wind. After a quick stop at the casino for some tea and a teeth brushing we were off again! This time the end goal was Winchester Bay. Our first stop of the day was boiler bay to take some pictures and check the tire pressure, which was fine! Good. Then we drove through some small towns and stopped at the Devils Punchbowl and nice spot to once again take some quick pictures while being battered by wind, rain, and sea.

We drove for a bit more along the highway until we decided to stop for some breakfast in Yahata at Leroy's Blue Whale. I had a huge heaping of chocolate chip pancakes smothered in whipped cream and Joel had 4 buttercream pancakes with some eggs. Delicious! And only 7 bucks a piece! Not too bad!!! We hung out there for a while planning the trip, making a couple changes to the California plans. We were also hoping that the weather would die down... It did not. 

Back to the torrential downpour and gale force winds we went. We stopped often to take a look at the ocean and the powerful waves crashing onto the shore. 

We wanted to stop at the westernmost point of the continental Untied States but somehow missed the turnoff. Both of us were looking for it and suddenly we found ourselves in the next town! Well I guess that stop was not meant to be! Anyway we got out at the next town which was close to Battle Rock, a beautiful big rock in the middle of the ocean. Apparently it was a site that had once had a battle between the natives in the area and the American soldiers. 

The final leg of our journey led us to Gold Beach where we stopped to have a cheap dinner/ late lunch at subway! Long live the 5 dollar footlong with no tax. It actually cost me 5 dollars! This was quite novel to me! 

Joel and I then decided for some down time in the library. Cozy chairs, wifi, and connection to plug in the computers! Perfect!! When the library closed we headed to our campsite a couple more outside of town. A lobster creek campsite. For a couple bucks we had a site and a bathroom. We even had an outlet to boil some water and make tea! Tomorrow is California! We are hoping that this state brings some sunshine and hopefully our first showers of the trip as some of us are getting pretty smelly!

Day 3:I love papasans!!

Day 3: 

I love papasans! Seriously that was probably the best money we have spent on the road trip to date! Sleeping in the car was much comfier! And we also shifter some more things around so we had more room! That made a huge difference. I actually slept through the night!

Today we headed to the oldest town west of the Rockies! Astoria. Our first stop was the visitors centre where a nice lady gave us lots of helpful hints. Apparently Astoria is famous for the Goonies. We skipped all that though and headed back into Washington State over an enormous bridge that crossed the Columbia River. We poked around Cape Disappointment and then headed back across the bridge to the Wet Dog in Astoria. Joel and I shared fish and chips and a Hip Hop Burger. The fish and chips was exactly what was needed on a raining day like that! The Wet Dog was a very open restaurant with very friendly staff, I would love to go back there again! The bar that was western themed was just icing on the cake! And it was here that Joel and I discovered that Oregon has no state tax! What a big change from the 12% in BC!!

Felling full and refreshed we headed to Louis and Clark National Park and Fort Clatsop. We spent more than two hours looking through the information here as well as watching some very informative movies and seeing a replica of the fort that Lewis and Clark made when they made it this far west. The park rangers were once again very helpful and friendly ( I am starting to see a theme here) and helped us purchase out national parks annual pass. Guess Joel and I will be spending lots of time in National Parks! 

From Lewis and Clark we headed down the coast to Lincoln. However we made an important pit stop at the Tilamook Cheese Factory. Where Joel I enjoyed a sticky bun ice cream with a sugar cone and a large supply of free cheese samples. Joel liked the chili pepper cheese , while I preferred the cheddar :) 

After Tillamook we took a very rough Highway on the coast through torrential downpour. It was dark and very rainy, not the best combination! But we went slowly and eventually got to Lincoln. 

Using a website we found that you could park for free in the Casino parking lot. So we headed to the Chinook Winds Casino to see if this was true.  When we got there we saw plenty of RV and decided to sleep there. We hopped out of the car and went to take a look at the casino. Although we got free hot water, bathrooms, and free pop, the overall atmosphere was a little too lethargic and too many people were smoking so we left. Back to the car where we watched a movie and had some dinner. Once again I cannot say enough how much I love that  papasan pillow!!!

Day 2: A Day of Firsts

Day 2: 

Well sleeping in the car was certainly an experience! After several wake-ups in the middle of the night we finally got up at about 7 30 and headed to a Walmart for some hygienic necessities. While we were there we also decided to buy Joel his very first peeps! Something he thoroughly enjoyed, and how could you not when they are simply marshmallow covered in sugar! 

From there we headed to Mount St Helen's, but stopped a couple times on the way. Our first small town American experience came from the quaint town of Taledo. They had a small Main Street with about four shops and a gas station. Very different from downtown Vancouver! 

Once we got to the park we saw how beautiful it really was. Although most of the stops along the way seemed in different states of disrepair, we chalked that up to the fact that it was winter... And fair enough we only saw three other cars! The drive through the park was amazing and seeing the destruction from the volcano was a reminder of the power of nature. Once we got high enough the snow started to show. Joel did a great job of driving in the snow! We got as far as we could in the weather and ended up at a stunning lake. We hopped out of the car and walked around for a bit... That is until the snow started to fall and we made a hasty retreat back down the mountain... We were not ready to get snowed in yet! 

After Mount St. Helen's we went in search of heat and gas. After stopping along the way for the latter we retreat to target for the prior. That is, only after a misguided attempt to find a non-existent bagel restaurant. Using the wifi at target we planned the next ten days! We decided that our car needed some extra comfort and went to Pier 1 for a fuzzy papasan cushion. 

Safety stowed in the car our new cushion accompanied us across our first state border. Over a bridge. In the pouring rain. Behind a truck. Well goodbye Washington state! 

We found a small park in the town of Clatskaine where camping was allowed. Unfortunately it was still raining so Joel and I headed to the library for some nice quiet down time. When the library closed at 7 we headed to the car and our nice new bed. After watching a movie in bed we both fell asleep to the sound of rain on the roof! Tomorrow we head to the ocean :)

Day 1

Day 1
Well day one sure was a jump right into the road trip. We left in the morning around 930 to some tears and lots of final hugs and first pictures. The weather was gorgeous, a beautiful day to head out on the road. After a quick stop to throw in some gas we headed to the Canadian- American to start our adventure. Unfortunately the border patrol had other plans, after a fairly extensive wait in line, we got flag down for secondary search. Fine, out the car we get and we go stand in another line. After many questions and a quick search of a car we left the border, missing one chicken instant noodle.
From the border we went on to Bellingham where we stopped at all the major stores, target, Walmart, and best buy. We bought some essentials like a GPS, a pan, and some plates. Our GPS ended up being a TomTom. We are still trying to figure out what to name her...
Once she was programmed and ready to go we decided to head over to Tacoma. That was quite a drive! We went through Seattle pretty quick only taking a snapshot of the space needle. Although there was a little bit of traffic we wized through the area and on to Tacoma.
Stopping at McDonald's we borrowed the wifi to find a place to stay for the night. After looking into several campgrounds we settled on one in Capitol State Forest. So back in the car and on the road we went.
After a couple detours into small town America we ended up at the campground only to find out that we needed a discover pass! Which you had to buy in a town about 20 min away! So back to the car and off we went to the IGA in Rochester. We spoke to a very friendly manager who gave us the low down on state versus federal parks and informed us that the Discovery Pass was 35 and only valid in Washington state! Well, he gave us some hints on places to sleep and so we took his advice. Finding a safe cheap place was easy after that! Once we parked , there was a lot of moving stuff around and unrolling sleeping bags until we go nice and cozy. Then it was a quick tv show and off to sleep we went. Overall the night was warm and not as uncomfortable as expected. It will take some time and so e maneuvering before the car is fully comfy to sleep in, but all in all not too bad! And tomorrow it is Mount St Helen's, can't wait!

One More Day

So the day had finally come where the road trip has become something real, no longer a dream dancing in my head, but a concrete concept that is slowly becoming concrete. The car we needed has been bough... A 2008 Chevy Uplander. Back seats have been removed, in case we end up sleeping in the back of the car, bags are mostly packed, although I am sure I will sneak some non-essential clothing in at the last minute, and a grocery trip had been made. Tomorrow is the last day before we head out on this amazing adventure! One final day in Vancouver and then off to travel the world... Or you know... North America :) our first stop across the border will be shopping for supplies and filling up on gas :) thank god for cheap American prices and lower taxes! That sure is one thing I won't miss in Vancouver.

So the plan for tomorrow is a final parking and double checking, making sure all the important stuff is coming with, a final goodbye dinner with my parents and the last night sleep in my nice cozy bed. Did I mention several hot showers with great water pressure? Who knows when I will be getting that again? And of course lots of snuggling with my dog who I am truly going to miss. One final day left between me and what seems to be the start of the greatest adventure I have yet to embark upon.

Wish me luck!