Days 58- 60 - Trip America comes to an end

Friday morning we woke up to daylight and our first opportunity to see the beautiful farm that was a mystery in the dark of the previous night.

Day 56 - 57 - 3 States in 2 Days

Today we left Glacier Park (and Montana) to start our journey back home.  We decided to break up the drive by stopping for the night in a town neither of us had been to before, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Days 53-55 Bigfork to Glacier

After a fun and relaxing few days of stationary living we packed up the Subaru once again and hit the road, this time, northbound to Bigfork Campground at Flathead Lake.

Day 51 - 52 - Helena - Part 2

We started the day by taking a short hike in the hills behind my mom's house before spending the rest of the day eating.

Day 49 - 50 - My hometown, Helena, MT

Today was an exciting day for me, as we were driving to my hometown of Helena, MT to spend the next 4 days.  Dan would get to meet my parents and see where I grew up. 

Day 48 - Our last day in Yellowstone :(

Lauren and I had big plans for day 48. It was our last full day in Yellowstone, and we still had loads of things we wanted to do and see.

Days 47: Still no sign of Yogi Bear

Day 47 was a big one... Equipped with loads of tips and suggestions from our stop at one of the parks half-dozen ranger station Lauren and I had mapped out an ambitious and fun day that would help us at least make a dent in our "to do in Yellowstone" list.

Day 46: Searching for Yogi Bear

Waking up in Grand Teton NP and knowing that in just hours you'd be entering Yellowstone NP was definitely one of the many "pinch me so I know I'm not dreaming" moments on Trip America. we could have spent the whole day in disbelief but then we might not get as good a camping site!

Day 44 & 45 - Grand Tetons

We woke up early to leave SLC en route to Grand Teton National Park.  We decided to take a slightly longer route and drive through Park City, Utah, since we had heard it was a cool town.

Day 42 & 43 - Hanging out in Salt Lake City

While our stay at Kodachrome State Park was short, we were glad we made the short detour.  It was beautiful and was a much needed break from the crowds of Zion and Bryce Canyon.  With a long drive ahead of us, we packed up camp early, and hit the road for Salt Lake City.

Day 41 - Goodbye National Park, Hello State Park (July 23rd)

After a thoroughly enjoyable few days in Bryce it was time to break camp and move on to the next destination. We had originally planned on driving from Bryce to the Eastern Utah parks (Canyonlands, Arches, etc.) but a couple of factors made us change course.

Day 39-40 - Bryce Canyon

After an amazing first day in Bryce Canyon, we couldn't wait to spend two more days here.

Day 38 - 1st Day at Bryce Canyon

We were not sad to leave our little "cabin" at the Bryce Canyon resort.  It was by far the worst value for our money so far on the trip.  We got up early and headed straight for the park entrance to get the pick of the litter and the campgrounds.

Day 37 - Angel's Landing: People have died here (July 19th)

If Lauren's death-cheating post about The Narrows threatened the stability of your nerves, you may want to skip this post. If not, read on...

Day 36 - A Flash Flood is 'Probably' going to happen

A good friend had recommended a Zion hike called The Narrows - named for the fact that the hike is in a narrow slot canyon through a river.  It sounded amazing so we made sure to save time for it. 

Day 35 - Good morning Zion! (July 17th)

Each national park is unique and carries it's own superlatives. One could argue that Zion was the most beautiful but when it comes to organization, there is no debate, Zion takes the cake.

Day 34 - Hello Southwest Utah

Our plan of staying nearby to the entrance of Zion worked out great.  We were able to leave Mesquite at a reasonable hour, stock up on groceries and get to the park in time to secure a campsite.

Day 33 – Mesquite, NV AKA "Sin Village" (July 15th)

Joshua Tree was beautiful but I'd be lying if I said we weren't ready to leave the morning after we arrived! Here's why:

Day 32 - From the City to the Desert

Even though we only spent 2 nights in LA, we woke up feeling like we had spent a week in the city and were itching to get back to some nature.

Day 31 – No More! (July 13th)

Lauren and I woke up feeling surprisingly spry considering what we'd put our bodies through the night before.

Day 30 – downtown LA in a day (July 12th)

The next morning Lauren and I got some exercise paddle boarding in the harbor (so much fun!) and afterwards headed north to LA to stay for a couple of nights with my good buddy Gerald at his loft downtown.

Day 29 – Newport Calfornia! (July 11th)

Doug and Katy headed off early to their big-kid jobs. Lauren and I woke up late and headed to the beach.

Day 28 – July 10th

From Santa Barbara we were headed south to Newport Beach to visit my good buddy Doug and his wife Katy.

Day 27 – Second day in beautiful Santa Barbara (July 9th)

Tuesday morning Lauren and I dressed and hoped in the car. Lauren had been highly recommended a visit to Carpenteria, just a few miles south of SB. Not knowing exactly where in Carpenteria we should go we got off at the first exit that had a sign advertising "Beach Access".

Day 26 – On to Santa Barbara (July 8th)

We were slow to get moving Monday morning. Lazily enjoying our last few hours on the vineyard seemed too good to pass up (even if that meant we'd never make it to the Firestone Brewery in Paso-dang!) We stopped at an amazing multi-generational deli before heading south and picked up a couple fresh-made cold cuts for the road.

Day 24 and 25 - Into Wine Country (Again)

We got an early start out of Kings Canyon and headed West back towards Fresno.  As much as we were hoping to avoid going through Fresno again, it was the most direct route to get us back towards the coast.

Day 23 - Exploring Sequoia National Park

Thursday morning Dan took over breakfast duty and made delicious egg sandwiches.

Day 22 - Happy 4th of July! (Day 2 at Kings Canyon)

The next morning we woke up early to drive to Cedar Grove.  After the debauchery of the previous night, we decided to go check out the campgrounds over there and consider moving if they were good.  We had only paid for one night so we had until noon before we had to commit to another night.

Day 21 - One Campground to Another (Yosemite to Kings Canyon)

We woke up a little sad knowing it was our last day in Yosemite.  We had so much more of the park we wanted to see and our campsite at Crane Flat was one of our favorites.  But we were also looking forward to visiting nearby Sequoia and Kings Canyon Parks and doing some more camping.

Day 20 - You-So-Mighty! (YNP 3 of 3)

Lauren and I got up early as planed on July 2nd, ate a quick breakfast, packed a lunch, and headed back into the valley. We whizzed past the pull out point where tourists catching their first glimpse of Half Dome recklessly yanked the wheel to the side of the road, and arrived at the the Vernal Falls Trail Head in no time!

Day 19 - Yosemite National (Amusement) Park (YNP 2 of 3)

Before I jump into day two of Yosemite I want to throw a little disclaimer out there...

Day 18 - Arriving at Yosemite National Park (YNP 1 of 3)

On Sunday June 30th Lauren and I enjoyed a delish breakfast at Panera with the Stockton Haire's and hit the road. With Yosemite on the horizon the excitement was palpable!

Day 16 (June 28th) - The Drive from Hell but then fun times with the family!

Dan and I decided to check out downtown San Francisco before leaving for Stockton, so we woke up early and took the BART in with Anna. She headed to her office and we headed for Chinatown. Apparently we woke up too early because nothing was open yet but we still got a feeling of what the area was like.

Day 15 - Another beautiful day in the Bay!

Anna and Neil both had to work on Thursday but being the great host that she is, Anna made sure to load up or Thursday "must do" list for the day! We started with

Day 14 - Hello San Francisco!

Lauren and I woke up (relatively) early the morning of June 26th, packed up the trusty Subaru, and headed south for San Francisco.

Day 13-14 Wine Country to the San Francisco Bay

On June 25th Lauren and I woke up, well rested at the Fairfield Inn and Suites in beautiful Napa Valley (well, technically we were in American Canyon but who's counting!)

Day 9-12 (June 21-24) - The Redwoods - Where the slugs are the size of trees and the trees are the size of skyscrapers

We spent the weekend in Redwood National Park so I am combining Days 9-12 into one post (you didn't think we were going to be able to keep up with a post every day, did you?)

Day 8 - "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players" -William Shakespeare

We started day eight with some 'straight from the french press' coffee on the patio attached to the back of Larry and Gingers house. The patio overlooks golden hills dotted with occasional trees and grazing horses.

Day 7 - 150-years, and 6 days later...

Day seven was a travel day. We'd start the day in Bend and end the day in Ashland. The most direct route between the two cities is under 200-miles and takes approximately 4-hours. As you might assume, we did not take the most direct route...

Insta-post

I have a confession to make... I'm kind of obsessed with Instagram.

Day 6 - Beer City USA (aka Bend, OR)

Little did we know when we arrived in Bend that they have more breweries per capita than any other city.  Since we had already visited four breweries in as many days, we figured we might as well keep the trend going.  Before hitting the breweries however we took a recommendation from our host and set out for the Cascades Lake Highway.

Day 5: Inland Bound

We started day five by leisurely breaking down camp and packing up the car. Aside from the rain fly which was definitely going to have to be packed wet, the light rain from the previous night didn't dampen the packing experience.

Day 4 - First Injury of the Trip

Waking up in a tent, with the sun shining in and the birds chirping outside, has to be one of my favorite things.  But I can only savor it for  a few minutes until I realize that I am close to heat exhaustion as the three layers of clothing I put on in the freezing moments of the previous night are no longer necessary.

Day 3 - Sandcastles, Cheese and Camping!

After spending 2 nights in the sleepy town of Warrenton at the ShiIo Inn that was definitely still stuck in the ‘80’s, we were more than ready to move on to our next destination. We made a quick pit stop to fuel and food up, and headed south on 101.

Day 2: June 14 - Flag Day (AKA the day I hummed "Proud to be anAmerican" all day long)

 Lauren and I started day two bright and early with mediocre (that's being generous) continental breakfast at the Warrenton Shilo Inn. After we fueled up we took care of some business (Yosemite campground = Booked--Yay!) and head south on the 101 towards Seaside.

Day 1 - In the Books!

The morning of June 13th was the "official" start of Trip America. Lauren and I packed the last of our things into her trusty Subaru, popped our Road Trip Mix in the CD player and headed south on I-5 towards Portland.

Hi, I'm Dan

I'm Dan and I'm involuntary unemployed.

Involuntary unemployed... what a pleasant way of saying "I got laid off."

Meet Squirrelly

If you're going to follow this blog, you should get to know Squirrelly!

Hi, I'm Lauren

I'm Lauren and I'm looking for a career change...and what better way to do that than to put things aside for awhile and take a two-month road trip!

It's hard to believe...

It's hard to believe, of all the genius ideas scribbled drunkenly onto Bar-Nap's throughout the years, that this one is actually coming to fruition!

Trip America Begins…And I Turn 30!

This weekend marked the unofficial beginning of Trip America! Unofficial, because we’re popping back to Seattle for a few days, but for all intents and purposes Trip America has begun. And I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the big 3-0!