travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind - seneca

Well, I've made it. 18 months later and I'm finally on the last entry to my cross country summer road trip of 2010. Though most of the posts for this journey has been out of chronological order, I've purposely saved the last post for the adventures of our last few days on the road. As we ventured back into the northeast there wasn't as much on our To Do list since this was more local to home and we'd been to the different regions before. Just as the first day and a half of travel was straight driving to get out of the northeast, the last 4 days was visiting family and friends with a couple sight seeing stops in between.

From the Great Smoky Mountains, our first stop was in Williamsburg, VA. My dad's brother and his wife live there and my cousin had come up for the evening from North Carolina to have dinner with us. It was quite nice and relaxing after spending the last few days in theme parks and campgrounds. The next morning we wanted to see historic Williamsburg since Molly had never been there before and so my aunt and uncle offered to take us to breakfast and show us around. It was funny getting their version of the tour versus one provided by the park; it was truthful and honest to say the least. And it was free so that is always a plus :)

We left around noon for Washington DC via Chincoteague Island off the coast of Maryland. I thought I had done my research fairly well but I didn't realize how much of a detour visiting would be and how little there was to do if you weren't going to the beach. We wanted to see the wild ponies as we both had memories of the books about the ponies. But as they are wild it's not guaranteed you'll see them. As we drove towards the visitors center we could see a couple in a distant field. The visitor center had that salty ocean smell to it which definitely reminded us of home.

We wanted to explore more so we opted for a short loop hike that offered a lookout to one of the common pony viewpoints. Bad decision. End of August means humidity and mosquitoes. And these were more the size of gnats so they were super super annoying. The only way to avoid being eaten alive was to run. But neither Molly of I are runners, or even in shape so it was like stop and go running with lots of panting. Wearing flip flops made it no less easier. The viewpoint was nice, but due to the attack of the biting bugs we certainly couldn't enjoy it. I don't think there are words to describe how swarmed we were and how all of them were biting. From the lookout we could see the same 2 ponies from earlier and they were just as far away; small brown and white specks in the distance. Getting a picture was no easy feat as I was forced to bounce from foot to foot to keep moving to avoid getting more bites than I already had. It was kind of like channeling Dory from Finding Nemo, "Just keep moving, just keep moving."

After running back to the car and praising our sanctuary from the bugs, we set off for Arlington, VA where Molly's sister Erin had recently moved to begin teaching at a local elementary school. Because Chincoteague ended up being a longer detour than I expected we ended up arriving a few hours later than planned. But we were still able to have a pretty good evening catching up and visiting.

We parted the next morning as Erin had to work and we had a day planned of sightseeing our nation's capital. We drove over to the National Mall and was on the lookout for parking. We pulled into the first garage that said public not realizing it was also a government building, US Agriculture or something. Anyway, the car had to be checked for weapons and/or explosives and the kind security guard discovered our camping hatchet in the trunk. We apologized and asked to be pointed in the direction of a different garage. One was just around the corner luckily. The garage fee here, plus all the tolls we paid the day before driving was the first foray back into the cost of living in the northeast. We'd been so "spoiled" for the last four weeks being in cheaper areas of the US.

As we walked towards the mall we passed by a building that's important but I can't remember the name, the front of the White House, and what I swore was the FBI building because it looked like the one on "Bones."

We officially "started" our tour of the National Mall at the Vietnam Memorial and after passing through there, the Lincoln Memorial. I had been there years ago with my family but Molly had never seen it. To be honest though, at that point I was more thankful for its public bathroom than anything else.

It was a gorgeous, albeit hot, day and we enjoyed our stroll along the reflecting pool towards the World War II memorial. I hadn't been there before so that one was really neat.

We walked by the Washington Monument, saw a small group of Amish and then took a right to get to the Holocaust Museum. The Holocaust Museum is a free museum and I had tried to go there on a college trip but they only admit a certain number of people per hour per day so they don't have overcrowding. We were able to get in this time and took the elevator to the top and began our historical education. A lot of the information and artifacts I'd either seen before or knew of but no matter what, being surrounded by all of it including video footage of the camp liberation and the American soldiers clean-up is just horrific and depressing. And unfortunately for me I tend to get really into dramatic, horrific events and feel like I need to read and learn everything possible. So I go home and invest myself for about a week until I get too depressed and have to stop. We were able to really go through all the exhibits and spent a good amount of time there, both glad we decided to come.

Late that afternoon we drove up I-95, paid all the ridiculous tolls and arrived at my college roommate's apartment where we had a very nice dinner and caught up on life before heading to bed and dropping her off at work the next morning. We then hit the road for our last driving journey together and arrived back at my house in Cohasset around 2pm. It was nice to be home of course but definitely strange in a way, especially since I in no way wanted to unpack, clean camping stuff and do laundry.

AVOID HIKING BETWEEN 10AM AND 4PM!

Visiting the Grand Canyon in the middle of August is one word: hot. I guess its more than one word as it's also grand, breathtaking, a wonder of the world and so much more. But in August, the defining feature it that it's hot. Not only do you feel it, but the warnings all around the park in regards to the heat and taking care of yourself never let you forget it. And lucky for us, we were to arrive at Grand Canyon National Park smack dab in the middle of August.

Two of the main South Rim hiking trails that dip into the canyon are the Bright Angel Trail and the South Kaibab Trail. There's also the rim trail which is a few miles long and has numerous viewpoints of the canyon. As I'm all about doing as much as possible, we did just that, portions of all three trails.

Our first day we opted for the more modest South Kaibab Trail which was listed as less difficult trail for the best views. And it would be a good warm up for the harder hike the next day. Our turn around point was to be Cedar Ridge.

As the guide had said, it ended up offering better views than the Bright Angel Trail. The hike was really nice and not too hot. Shade was always preferable to sun but we started early enough in the morning that the midday sun was never a huge problem. I really liked Cedar Ridge and sitting on either side of it offered a spectacular view. You really feel like you're a part of the canyon and not just an observer from the edge.

After lunch we headed out to walk along the Rim Trail. I think we hiked 2-3 miles before deciding we were tired enough to hop on the bus back to our car. The Rim Trail is certainly an excellent option for those who aren't able to handle the strenuous hiking of the canyon trails. You get to see multiple areas of the canyon, you can see the Colorado River at a couple points and the camera opportunities are infinite.

On day 2 we headed for the Bright Angel Trailhead. This is the main trail down to Phantom Ranch, the National Park's lodge in the center of the canyon. It is not advised to hike down to the river and back in one day, and we weren't equipped to backpack down there, spend the night and return so we opted to hike to the Indian Garden stopping point and then return.

The hike down wasn't so bad. It's steep and a little harsh on the knees but not super stressful. The worst part was having to step to the side to let the donkey groups down, and then having to walk over the donkey poop in the middle of the trail. It's hard to hike when you smell donkey poop for at least one or two switchbacks.

Indian Garden was quite nice but for an ending point it offered no views of the canyon itself, because it's IN the canyon. The walls rise up around you and it's tempting to keep going down rather than turn around. We rested in a grove of trees amongst multiple groups of donkeys and people resting up before continuing on their journey either into or out of the canyon.

In terms of the heat, it lived up to the hype that's for sure. We left early as advised by the park so you avoid hiking in the high suns of the afternoon, but apparently we didn't go early enough because it was scorching by the time we were ascending back up. It took us 3x as long to get out as it did to get down which is torturous enough before you add the beating sun to the equation. But we took it in stride, one step at a time, one switchback at a time. There was little shade to hike in so we took our rests in whatever shade could be found. 

The Three Mile Resthouse was a godsend since we could sit on benches in the shade, recuperate and refill our water bottles. The only thing bad about it was that it reminded us we still had 3 miles to go before reaching the rim again. Given the heat, and the difficulty of the trail, this hike was all about our endurance and accomplishment of making it out alive.

In total, I think it took us 6 hours to get to Indian Garden and climb back out. We got back to camp around 2pm, ate food and sat down. We read books, soaking in the gorgeous weather and the elk wandering through the campground and didn't move again until sunset. I was sore to say the least!

if delicate arch has any significance it lies, I will venture, in the power of the odd and unexpected to startle the senses and surprise the mind out of their ruts of habit - edward abbey

After completing our Grand Canyon Excursion we drove up into central west Utah to one of my favorite places of all on the trip, Arches National Park. We only spent a night and a full day there but man, I wish we'd had more time, perhaps another day or two. We did get to explore quite a bit but there was so much more I wanted to see. I really hope to go back and explore Arches more as well as the other parks in Utah that look so wonderful.

We stayed at the Devil's Garden Campground, which definitely tops my campground list. It only has 27 sites, and ours was towards the entrance so it was isolated from everyone else. And in the campground every site is super unique as it's built amongst the rocks and formations. No destruction of nature there. We got to the park around 4pm, and after seeing some of the great rocks, we arrived at the campsite just as the sun was riding close to the horizon. Experts now at putting our tent together in a flash we popped it right up, and then immediately began climbing the nearby rocks. The large sandstone rock next to our site afforded us a spectacular view of the park's surrounding lands and the arch formations in the distance. We watched the sun set and enjoyed a nice relaxing evening.

 
One thing I read multiple times in researching for this trip was that it isn't recommended you hike in the middle of the day when the sun is blazing because in arid climates such as the desert-like conditions of Arches National Park, in the middle of August it gets HOT! So we were up and at 'em bright and early to begin hiking. Our first destination was an area across the way from the campground which had multiple trails and at least a dozen different arches.

This hike was particularly fun because it was a little more free form and involved climbing up a huge rock formation as part of the trail. When we got to the top though, we couldn't find the cairn trail marker so we followed what we thought were tracks. It was really pretty and there was such a variety in the landscape. But we soon became confused about why there were no other people around when we'd seen plenty a little ways back. But since there were scattered footprints, we thought we must be going in the right direction.

We were wrong.

As we got deeper into the rocks and came to an obvious dead end we decided it was time to turn back. That was an adventure for sure; making sure we went back in the same direction and climbing rocks not really meant to be tracked upon. Shhhh, don't tell the Rangers. However, in taking the path less traveled, we got to see some great sights, such as the fourth picture below. A really spectacular place to be.

After returning to the point where we had split from the trail we finally found the cairn we'd missed, and there were all the other vacationers hiking along in that direction. Wish they had been there when we went by the first time... Cairns are extremely sensible for trail markers, as they incorporate natural elements instead of paint or plastic ties. But in a place made up of and surrounded entirely by rocks and sand, I will say they are not the easiest thing to recognize. Or, I'm just a failure.

Because we ended up exploring off trail for so long, and we were getting tired, we opted to head back and not continue the original hike to see more of the arches. I'm kind of bummed we missed out them, but we still had a blast doing our own thing. Back at camp, we  ate lunch and settled in for a bit of afternoon reading. Once the afternoon heat died down we planned to head over to the infamous Delicate Arch. Boy, were we in for a treat.

A few things to note: 1) When we visited the park center the previous afternoon I vividly recall looking at the weather report. Hot and sunny with the most minimal chance of rain. 2) The ground at our site was fairly hard and even with a hammer we could not get the tent's stakes more than a few inches into the ground. But we figured it would be fine; the weather was so nice that it didn't need to be secured.

So after lunch, we were reading and relaxing, only to feel the wind start to pick up. We looked up and saw a large, dark cloud looming in the distance. Rain was coming. As the dark gray clouds moved closer and closer, we decided to put everything, including ourselves, in the car and wait it out. Better to let it pass before going off to hike in it. It didn't take too long for it to start; the wind picked up a little more and the rain pounded down. This was no passing afternoon shower; this was a full blown rain storm.

After a little while, as the center of the storm hovered over, the tent started to shake and sway quite a bit. We kept a close watch on our poor little temporary home and I still can't believe what we saw. In the midst of the wind blowing all directions, the tent kept being smooshed together like an accordion, though it seemed to weather fairly well. Sitting in the car, we kept pondering how wet our pajamas and pillows would be once it was all over. At some points it was hard to believe there was anything inside the tent at all. As the winds intensified, one giant gust blew past and the tent went flying over on its side. Molly and I bolted from the car, pulled it back up and secured it as best we could with rocks. Weight was the only thing that was going to help us now.

As we ran back to the car a few fleeting thoughts passed through my head: 1) If we hadn't decided to take a long lunch break, we could have come home to an empty site. 2) Based upon the exterior appearance I had no hope that our belongings inside were dry. 3) Thank goodness we'd put the fly on in the middle of the previous night.

The storm didn't last much longer and no other major dilemmas arose after it almost took our tent away. Miraculously, everything except a single sweatshirt was dry. When the tent had been accordion-ing, it had pushed all our stuff to the middle and kept it away from the soaked sides. Looking back, it may have saved us the trouble if we'd packed the whole tent up with the rest of our stuff when we saw the impending storm. But then again, if we hadn't we wouldn't have had such a great time watching it all unfold.

After securing the tent as best we could, we felt confident enough to go on to Delicate Arch. And after all the hassle with the tent, the storm turned out to be a good thing. The hike to Delicate Arch is not shaded and you mainly walk across a massive, open, stone face. I remember reading at some point that it is a hike best done at sunset and it is typically a very high temperature hike. The rain, however, ended up cooling the air tremendously. It dropped from around 95 to 75-80 and the crisp, cool air smelled like rain. It was a spectacular atmosphere for a sunset hike; completely and utterly wonderful.

My words will never do Delicate Arch any justice so I won't even try. But it is truely one of nature's phenomenons and a very peaceful, serene place (even with all the visitors).

And just as we did some exploring earlier in the day, there was opportunity for a bit of climbing here as well.

As we packed up the next morning, I wished we were staying longer so we could explore the Fiery Furnace and the numerous other formations we couldn't fit in to our busy schedule. Had I known Arches would become one of our favorite places I most certainly would have.

wade in the water

Besides Graceland there wasn't anything else in Memphis that Molly or I were dying to do. We'd done a little research during our trek from the Grand Canyon but as we were trying to spend as little as possible, we wanted to find a cheap and interesting place. My aunt had recommended we go to the Slave Haven Underground Railroad Museum but there was also the Civil Rights Museum which is in the same building that Martin Luther King Jr. was shot. Decisions, decisions. Beale street was another option but that was going to be a drive-by. Neither of us cared that much to pay for parking and then walk in the scorching heat.

I think because of admission price we decided to head to the Underground Slave Museum which turned out to be a very good choice. However, as we never went to the Civil Rights Museum I can't say for sure that it was better. It took us a little while to find the museum and we were about to give up when we finally found it. There wasn't a distinct sign or anything to set it apart from the other homes in the the neighborhood but we somehow found it. Inside the back entrance was a collection of homemade trinkets and books relating to the Underground Railroad and Slavery. We purchased our ticket and was led into the front room whose walls were covered in quilts, pictures and prints. We were told to look around here and the other room while we wait for the "tour" to begin.

We ended up being the only ones on this tour so it was nice and personal. It began with our guide sitting with us and giving us a background on the house and its significance to slaves' escape during the 19th century. The house, owned by a white man whose name I can't remember, allowed passage of escape to numerous African-American slaves becoming a hero to many. He did own slaves himself but it was to maintain the image of fitting in with other white people so no one would become suspicious of his doings. Our guide was terrific. She told us stories, explained how they passed messages in quilts and songs, sang to us and made us feel quite at home. After the chat she took us down to the basement to show us the escape passage out of the house. They entered like anyone else would but then crawled through a teeny little hole in the basement and hid under the back porch until nightfall when it was safe to escape. All of the artifacts hanging up were fantastic and really added to the vibe of the museum. It was a great little non-commercial place I'd highly recommend to anyone in the Memphis area.

Afterwards we decided to drive by the Civil Rights Museum to see the iconic former hotel where King Jr. was assassinated and then do the driving tour of Beale St. The museum was nifty and they've worked to make it look frozen in the 1960s. Beale St. was a failure as it was barricaded off from driving down. Oh well, we did get a nice picture of it.

So that was the end of our day in Memphis. Before heading back to Mississippi and our wonderful hotel we stopped at the local AAA office to pick up Universal Orlando tickets with a small discount and decided to ask the attendant if she had any local food joint recommendations. She did, and it was a place only about a mile from the hotel so definitely not out of our way. It was a great recommendation and had an abundance of items you don't see on many New England menus. Fried catfish, fried green tomatoes...and plenty more. Now I'm not a big tomato person but the fried green ones were pretty tasty. And the catfish wasn't bad either.

as long as i live, i'll hear waterfalls and birds and winds sing - john muir

California is a huge state filled with a wide variety of landscapes and people. It has beaches, deserts, mountains and forests of all kind. Molly and I stayed in the northern half of the state before making our way down the east side towards Death Valley. Between visiting friends of Molly's in Berkeley and Death Valley we spent a wonderful day and a quarter in our first established National Park, Yosemite. We arrived in the south side of the park at Mariposa Grove to walk amongst the Giant Sequoia trees. These trees were probably just as tall as the grand redwoods but they were overall much larger because of their enormous girth. We opted not to hike the whole trail because it was getting late so we didn't see the tree you could drive a car under but we did see plenty of great giants.

The campsite I'd chosen was a non-reservation one up along the ridge south of the valley. It was nice, small, quiet and had some really cool boulders all around. We chose a spot, set up camp, made some quick food (which we then put away in the provided bear-proof container) and headed to bed. Like Yellowstone, Yosemite's evening temperatures are fairly low (I think it's the mountain thing) therefore we piled on a few layers before sleeping and set aside others as back-up. The only problem was keeping our faces, especially the nose, warm. In the morning we woke early, cleaned and packed up camp (something we were becoming experts in), and headed out for the overlook called Glacier Point. Here you get outstanding views of the infamous Yosemite Valley which includes the Half-Dome and Yosemite Falls. The view was amazing and I'd definitely recommend driving to the overlook if you ever get a chance. It's a little "out of the way" if you want to spend a lot of your time in the Valley where most of the tourist activities are; but it provides an overlook of one of America's most beautiful landscapes.

We then drove a little ways down the road to one of the multiple hikes within the park. It was really nice, bringing us through meadows and forests and by boulders and finishes with a climb up a rock face. We spent a bit of time at the top just enjoying the coolish weather and excellent views from the top.

We then traveled down into the valley to see if we could do one of the small, easy hikes to the bottom of Yosemite Falls, the highest measured fall in North America. The water flow wasn't super full as it was the end of summer and it tends to be much lighter at that time of year. However, the valley was PACKED! And I don't even think it was the highest tourist time of year. The valley though is very narrow so there is limited, limited parking. And its super congested. So we opted not to try and maneuver through all the people and settled for a stop by the river where Molly waded in the cool water.

Our exit out of the park to nowhere's ville camping was along the northern road to the eastern exit.  Although we drove by overlooks and stops, we opted out of them and only made one short stop at the Tuolumne Meadows. There wasn't too much to do since we weren't hiking so we didn't spend long at the ranger station. We were both fairly tired with a few more hours driving ahead of us so we popped back in the car to finish out the day.