The Beauty of Glacier

I'm about to hate on Wyoming for a second.  That state, as it would seem from driving through it, is a vast wasteland devoid of human life.  It was pretty easy to guess that it is in fact the least populated state, but it's also the 10th largest, thus you are left with a large mass of land with no one inhabiting it.  My apologies to the half a million people currently living there, I know how it feels for people to hate on your home.  There are a butt-load of farms though.

After the endless stretch of Wyoming, Montana came through to save us.  We couldn't find a campground near where we wanted to stop so we again decided upon renting a motel room for the night, and get an early start for Glacier National Park the next day.

Lake McDonald

We were really amped up to get to the park because out of all of the pictures we've seen Glacier looked like one of the most beautiful places in the country.  I think we both wish we got to see more of the park; we stayed at the Apgar Campground on the southwest side and didn't get to see the other side.  We did drive the full length of the famous Going to the Sun road where alpine trees dotted every face of the mountain range that runs along it and throughout the park.  Our campground was situated right next to Lake McDonald, but I was, and still am, very bummed we didn't get to see St Mary Lake, Ginnell Lake, or any of the mountain goats.  I still have anxiety when I see pictures of it on Instagram.

We got settled for the night  in our cozy spot with a few neighbors, and behold, we made fire!  It didn't last very long but we were able to roast some weenies for dinner, which if you haven't have a full meal in a few days, taste like a delicacy.  We enjoyed the little time we had with the fire and relaxed to soak in the sounds of nature.  When the sounds of nature started to sound scary we piled in the tent.  Even though we were 10 feet from the bathroom (we always pick the closest spot to it) walking through the camp at night when you're a little stoned is a very terrifying experience.  When it's pitch black out and your flashlight is dimming, knowing there have been bears and mountain lions traipsing through the campground consistently, is not the time to start thinking about it.

Courtney and her weenie

In the morning, Courtney informed me that she heard a loud, wild snarling noise next to our tent just after I feel asleep that night.  If there is anything that can make you feel unsafe in a tent, it's that.  I took an hour or so to take a few photos, unfortunately for me they weren't anything stunning.

I dream about going there again one day and being able to see everything there.

Has anyone else out there been to Glacier?  How was your experience there, and what things should I know for next time?

South Dakota and American Icons

After a long night of being petrified in a tent in Wisconsin,  we left that state as quickly as possible.  From there we traveled a little south through the bottom of Minnesota (it really is the land-o-lakes), and then straight through almost all of South Dakota.  Our destination was the Badlands National Park, our first really exciting site, and it most definitely is a stop to put on the list if you're out that way.

 

Once we finally arrived after about 8 hours of driving, it starting pouring, which incidentally makes the giant rock and dirt formations that are the Badlands, one big mud pit.  We trekked out through the wall of rain, and were greeted with beautiful staggering creations that jetted out all across the kingdom.  Parts of the National Park look similar to the Grand Canyon in my opinion; water carved out deep paths for miles.

Courtney, happy as a clam.

I think we were stunned at the vastness of this place, that we didn't mind the rain at all, it just added to the adventure and excitement (we also got to test out our rain jackets!).

  

We ended up staying here for a couple hours exploring different parts of the park and just staring off.  Our plan was to camp here but after sitting in the car for so many hours on end, added with the downpour rain, we though it best to grab a quick motel for the night.  That motel was one of the best decisions we made.  We were able to make a proper juice and was the juicer completely without worry, plus we just wanted to sprawl out on a bed more than anything.

Face Mountain

The next morning we were recharged and ready to see Mount Rushmore!  Its was only about an hour from the Badlands so luckily we could get out again to walk and stretch.  National monuments are never what I think they are going to look like; Rushmore was so much higher up on the mountain than I thought it would be.  Nonetheless, I loved seeing an iconic piece of America.  Court and I made fun of poor Teddy for getting stuffed in the back, then we again got back on the road, headed for Montana, but more of that tomorrow.

Stay tuned!

The Way West

Heading out on the road is a feeling like no other.  With no destination in mind and all the time in the world to kill, it is pretty easy to get lost in the beauty of this country.  Keeping this in mind, Courtney and I hugged our mom goodbye and headed out on our trip, making our way west.

Our first stop was in Ohio at Cuyahoga National Park, and for both me and Courtney it was our first experience camping by ourselves, and also ever.  It might sound a bit ridiculous for two young girls who have never been camping before (and know almost nothing about it) to just grab a tent and head out for the road, but I firmly believe that's the best way to learn something new, and have a kick-ass adventure along the way.  So our first night in the campground was a strange and glorious experience; we couldn't start a fire, though it was one of the more hilarious times of the trip.  (Note: chips make good kindling if you dare to sacrifice it)

 

The next day after we left Ohio, we headed out for Wisconsin, this was the longest day we spent in the car, 12 hours!  However painful it was, that night was probably definitely worse.  During the car ride we researched campgrounds in the middle of Wisconsin to stay at and found one called Blackhawk.  When we arrived it was very clear that unlike the night before, when we were surrounded by colorful RV's with Christmas lights, we were now the only people in the grounds.

We drove around a bit and found a spot next to, I shit you not, Bloody Lake.  After a three second deliberation we conclusively thought not to put ourselves in a scene from a horror movie, thus we moved to the other side of the camp onto a different lake where the sun was setting.

  

Once we picked our spot, Courtney tried again at making a fire, while I set up the tent and took a few photos.  We bought Jiffy Pop to enjoy over the fire, but again it was in vain.  It was pretty clear from then on that making a fire was unlikely to happen on this trip, but it didn't stop us from trying.

For a moment, it was lovely having a colorful sunset to watch dip beyond a foggy lake, but soon as the sun set it was pretty much panic all night.  Maybe it was the fact that we've never been that alone before, or maybe we smoked too much of something, but we both agreed that we were going to wake up either inside a bear's mouth or under the knife of Micheal Myers.  Every branch cracking, every leaf falling, every time the wind blew, I was positive it would the beginning to a bloodbath. Call it paranoia.

Least to say that we left the nanosecond day broke.  Have you ever had a scary camping experience? I'd love to hear I'm not the only crazy one!

Packing for a cross-country trip

If you're planing on doing a road trip across the country, or are just planning a long camping trip, and will be living out of your car for a few days or weeks then you're going to need to be prepared.  I'll share with you all what worked for us and what we definitely should've done differently, so that you can learn from our mistakes.  Since we decided that we were going to juice the entire way, it changed what we would be bringing as far as food goes; but here is a general list of the things we brought:

• tent with rain cover
• sleeping bags (we got 0 degree ones from Eastern Mountain Sports)
• sleeping pads, spend a few extra bucks and get a good one, this is where we went wrong and got one inflatable and one pancake-type, both were horrible.
• lantern and flashlight
• extra extra batteries
• clothes (both warm weather and cold weather, no matter where you're going)
• wash-bin
• dish soap
• plastic bags (for trash)
• blankets and pillows
• toilet paper
• cutting board
• cooler
• sponge
• first aid kit (a well-stocked one)
• water bottle
• shower necessities (quick drying towel, shampoo, conditioner, face wash, soap)
• eco friendly bug spray and sunscreen
• knifes, one for cutting and one for protection
• deck of cards
• long stem lighter
• car charger

We also brought along our juicer, large amounts of fruits and vegetables, and a large black and decker batter pack/jump starter, to not only supply electricity for the juicer but would also be used to jump start the car in an emergency situation which luckily did not happen.  Here are a few things that we wish we had brought along with us:

• firewood and kindling (many campsites don't let you gather firewood and also don't supply it
• an organizational method for keeping the car clean, this was a big one.  After a while we couldn't find anything and we're ripping the car apart to find a sock, not fun.
• a tarp or tent footprint to go under the tent so the wet ground wouldn't seep through when it was raining.
• small collapsable chairs
• more entertainment like books and games
• an extra lantern, maybe a solar-powered one

We had many of times where we were driving for hundreds of miles at a time just sitting in trash because we couldn't keep the car clean.  When you're living out of your car it is going to get dirty, and it is going to start to smell, the best thing is to keep everything organized and keep a bunch of trash bags around.  Those plastic bags also come in handy as laundry bags.

If you're not juicing across America like we did, which I don't suggest by the way, there are dozens of recipes and little tricks on pinterest; it's overflowing with great ideas.  If for some crazy reason you do decide to juice the whole way, here is some advice.

• eat something of substance during the day, beef jerky was my go to at convenience stores, along with hard boiled eggs and some vegetables and fruit.  If you are hiking this is pretty much mandatory.
• drink so much water
• you'll need a cooler to keep some stuff in, which you will have to refill with ice once or twice a day, if you don't your car will stink and you'll be sorry.
• kale is the stinkiest vegetable after a few days, keep that stuff sealed tight.
• washing the juicer was a challenge every day, but you will want to do this in the bathroom sinks.  Do not do it outside at the water pump, the food smell will attract animals to your site.

Besides all of that I think the best thing you can do is be mentally prepared, and have a great travel partner.   There will be times that you'll want to bash in a window out of boredom.  All I can say for that is try to get some sleep in the passenger seat.

If anyone out there has some other good tips, please feel free to comment on what you brought or where you went!

Camping Across America

So much has been going on and I've had close to zero time to do anything, including blog.  Skipping right to the end, I'm currently in San Diego, but the story of how we ended up here is worth the read.

After we left Hawaii in September, Courtney and I went home to New Jersey to prepare for our next adventure, a cross-country camping trip!  We knew we wanted to see more of the US and since we were headed out to San Diego, we figured why not (and it saved me $1700 from having to ship my car).  As fall was starting to ascend it seemed like the ideal weather to see a good chunk of the National Parks, so we used Roadtrippers.com to plan out all of our stops.  It was perfect for finding ideas of where to go and seeing other peoples ratings on different attractions.  Here is what our final plan looked like:

As you may or may not be able to see, it starts from NJ, crosses through the northern states, goes into Canada for a bit, then zigzags down the whole west coast.  The national parks that were on our list to hit up were, in order,

Cuyahoga Valley N.P. - Ohio

Badlands N.P. - South Dakota

Glacier N.P. - Montana

Banff N.P. - Alberta, Canada

Olympic N.P. - Washington

Crater Lake N.P. - Oregon

Redwoods N.P. - California

Yosemite N.P. - California

and many other obligatory stops in between like Mount Rushmore, Vancouver, Seattle, Cannon Beach, Lake Tahoe, and Big Sur.  One thing you should really know about me and Courtney is that we change our minds and plans very quickly (short attention spans) so of course we unfortunately didn't get to go everywhere we wanted to, but we did see a great chunk of our homeland that we never would've gotten to see any other way.

After seeing a documentary, Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead, Courtney thought it would be a good idea to juice across America, to help us cleanse from Hawaii, and start us off on a healthy foot.  I'll be writing another post soon on packing for a trip like this and what specific stuff we bought to maximize efficiency.

The whole trip altogether took us about 2 and a half to 3 weeks, so I won't try and fit it all in one blog post.  Instead what I'm gonna do this week is recreate the trip and give you the highlights with plenty of photos for your visual pleasure.  I would've done it along the way but the National Parks Service doesn't have "put wifi in all the trees" on the top of their to-do list.  I'll forgive them.

So stay tuned this week to hear and see what our trip was like!

PS-Happy Halloween!

The Road to Hana

The Road to Hana is probably the most well known attraction on Maui.  It has become famous for its winding roads and sweeping coastal vistas as you drive along the mountains towards the eastern side of the island.  Naturally we had to give it a go, which we couldn't do without a rental car, so we forked up the dough and got a nice little piece of shit for the week.  We started the trek from our little town and headed east around 11am, making plenty of stops along the way.

 

Our first stop was on the side of the road to check out a field, but we ended up coming across a pasture with a bunch of rainbow eucalyptus trees.  The painterly color comes from the bark breaking off at different times during their growth, and they range in all sorts of colors but we mostly noticed the red and green hues.

 Our next stop was a 3 mile trail head, but we just wanted a quick glimpse of nature so we didn't stay too long.  The path was a bit overgrown and very lush; it had that look like it wanted to eat us.  Of course my curiosity was peaked, but we still had a long way to go to get to Hana and we both decided it would be best if we saved our energy.

A few more miles down the road we came to a spot overrun with onlookers and wanted to see what all the fuss was about.  It was a bridge overlooking a small stream that lead to a dainty waterfall, though Court's eye caught a view of a much larger falls in the back, which is what made us take to the trail.  We climbed for a while through a thicket of trees and brush, passed by two smaller waterfalls and finally found a view of the largest one, but for me that wasn't good enough.  I felt the call of Pocohontas inside me and took to the stream.  I forced Courtney to climb over rocks and through the current so I could swim around in the pool below the raging water.  Court convinced me not to actually go under the waterfall because the enormous force would have probably killed me, but I had such a peaceful moment with myself floating in the water.

After a while we hiked back to one of the smaller waterfalls where a few people were jumping in, and it only took us a second to whip off our clothes and leap off the edge.  When that was done we out back on our dirty and soaking wet clothes, and got back in the car to realize we were dead tired, and that I had lost my polarizing filter on my camera :( .  Spending all of our energy here was well worth it, but it also meant sacrificing our sanity for the next few hours.

The duration of the car ride was us two being loopy as ever and me speeding down the curvy roads to just get there.  "Are we there yet? Are we there now? Are we there yet?"  I almost drove us off a cliff.  But these wonderful views just kept me going.  When we finally got to Hana, we stopped at the Hana Bay Beach but we were too tired to do anything but whine.  We drove around a little, spotted a Thai food place, found out it was closed, got sad, drove back.

All in all, that road is kinda annoying and if you get stuck behind someone slow, you're screwed, but the beautiful views do make up for that dizzy feeling though.

Lahaina, the friendly town of West Maui.

 The other day we decided to get out of Pa'ia and venture west across the island to Lahaina.  We've pretty much done most of the things there are to do here in our little town so we thought it would be nice to see other parts of Maui, especially when you hear it's one of the nicest areas.  Thankfully, I was able to navigate us through the bus system and to our destination.

Lahaina is a town set right on the water, with tons of art galleries (my haven), souvenir shops, and small restaurants along the main strip.  Once we got there Courtney immediately sniffed out Cheeseburger in Paradise, the setting for our lunch.  Great food and a warm staff, just what we like.

 

Many of the places we went into here have a very friendly and accommodating staff, no doubt they're great salespeople, but it gives the whole town a warm and welcoming vibe.  I also found my love for Peter Lik, one of the greatest landscape photographers today, after we strolled around his gallery.  Such incredible pieces of work, I only wish I could afford one.  Although, I did end up buying a hammock!  The guy was so sweet I couldn't resist.

There are a few places to check out the history behind Lahaina, and if your nerdy side is calling it's an interesting activity, but sadly it's just not my cup of tea.

 

There's plenty of space to relax with some gelato and watch boats dock at the park.  Find some space under a tree, spread out, and just listen to the water bob against the rock wall.

All-in-all Lahaina was a wonderful way to spend our day and I highly recommend it for anyone visiting the island.