Welcome to California

July 23rd - 28th

Bandon to Gold Beach, Oregon to Cresent City to Arcata to Eureka, California...193 miles.

While Blake and I were still in Bandon we rode around the neighborhoods on the moped together. We wanted to explore some of the towns we were in, and jumping on Pearl together was the quickest way to do that.
Yesterday I recalled those little trips together because we had to get something done and jumped on Pearl for the first time since our trip ended. It was rainy and moist out and we were both wearing our rain jackets that were always out while we were coming down the coast. All the memories of riding on the back of the moped with Blake came flooding in and despite riding 40mph in the rain on a cold morning, it was sentimental.

 *These logging trucks were a nightmare. They were huge, loud, fast, and frequent the entire time down the coast. I'm glad I got a picture of them because they were very much a part of the trip. 

 *Stopped for construction, this guy on his bike offering ME water... so sweet. 

In Gold Beach we stayed at a little cottage-type motel. We walked into town and grabbed dinner. In the morning I went for a run on the beach and Blake made breakfast. This day was the day we'd ride into California! The state border was about half-way down the coast.

*SUCH a stud.

I feel more emotional about the moment we got to California because after living here for now eight months (not including the month on the road) I know that I love California. I know that crossing that state line on that day in July we had no idea what was ahead of us. We didn't know if we'd even settle down in this state. We didn't know that we'd make it nearly all the way through it. NorCal could be it's own state. It's so drastically different then the south. The people, weather, buildings, roads, atmosphere, and beaches are all so different. It took us less then one month to get through Washington and Oregon and we weren't looking back!

We stayed in Crescent City for three days! The first time we stayed anywhere for that long. Blake needed to rest his body and I needed to rest my anxious brain. We set up camp at a large campground next to the water and chilled out! The fog was heavy and quiet. We saw two movies at the theater, ate sushi, grocery shopped, explored, and rested in the tent. There was nothing special in Crescent City other then the campground being decently priced and quiet and it being a home base for a quick day trip into the Redwoods. Blake rode his bike and I took the moped in, wanting to avoid getting pulled over. At one point we just locked up the bike and rode throught the giant green trees together on Pearl. With a  lunch packed and hiking trails to explore, we were happy to not be on the road travelling. This was the first time either of us had seen the Redwood trees. Talk about putting your ego into check. They were monsters. I imagined George Lucas seeing them and envisioning "Return of the Jedi." Riding on my moped felt like I was riding through the trees zipping by like they did in Star Wars. Jurassic Park was also filmed in these woods located in Northern Humbolt County, California. Being in it felt dense and dark. You feel so small in the world when you have to crank your neck all the way back just to see the tops of the trees. It was incredible.

Aracata, California...The first hippies and palm trees I saw on this trip. Before I left Santa Fe, a friend told me we would love Arcata and he was right. It's like Santa Fe, NM, Manitou, CO, and California combined. There was a farmer's market going on when we arrived. We grabbed some bakery foods and produce and explored the little town. There we saw a group of biking tourist hippies putting on a music show in the park. I got a few crafty items and sent them home. We ended up having to ride to Eureka to find a place to stay for the night.

Thanks for reading about this trip we took last summer! It's hard to believe we are one month shy of 1 year leaving everything behind in Colorado.

Dream Big Ride Far!

My Traveling Apps

I want to talk real quick (I say 'real quick' but it probably will be another long one) about the apps I got to use while traveling and why they are awesome and why they allow me to look back and remember so much more of my day to day life while on the road and why they make this blog a personal visionary journal.

I know it's hard to record things as you are traveling. What we were doing was trying to get from point A to an unknown point B at an unknown time in an unknown town. Getting breakfast and making sure socks weren't left behind in the laundromat and carrying enough water and taking pictures and not getting run off the road by campers and avoiding rain and blah blah blah all came before recording each and every thing that happened along this journey. But I TRULY BELIEVE that you will REGRET  looking back and seeing a blur of these adventures because they weren't recorded. First of all... I'm sure it took planning, and anxiaties, and determintation, and hard work to get your butt on the road for whatever kind of adventure you went on. THEN you were in it, slammed with the realities of the day to day life you were living, in a strange place with strange people. THEN you need to rest. THEN get up and do it all again.

So where can you find the time to record all these places and memories? How can you look back at those days with some kind of clearity without stumbing over the where's and the who's?

Well, there's this little thing called technology that has come around these days. I'm sure you are familiar with it. And as much as I'd love to go straight hippie on this world and unplug... the truth is I can't. My iPhone apps have helped me put this blog together in the form of some kind of order and to keep in contact with those we left at home. I'm sure there are may more apps I don't have or know about that could allow for easier ways of travel, but this is all I had/have and it's good enough for me!

Facebook

Facebook was a great way to keep the families updated on where we were and what we were up to without having to explain it individually. For this trip it kept our worried moms from calling every day (love you guys for being so good at that!) 

When you go to the places tab at the top, it will bring up the place you tagged on your status updates. I know it can be stupid annoying to see where everyone is at all the times, and think, "man, if I were a creeper you'd be a goner," and for the most part I'd agree. BUT while traveling, I could not stress enough how helpful these places tags will be in the future! If you focus closer or click on the dots, it will bring up your status update and the picture you uploaded at that time. I like it because if I were planning on visiting again, for memories sake, I'd be able to find out exactly where I was.

Instagram

Instagram... A photo-only status update app. My Instagram is more personal then my Facebook page. It feels more intimate, so I allow for that in this social network. You can tag where the picture was being taken, and again... this is such a great idea to do while traveling. Just go to the Photo Map page on your homepage and it will pull up a map, then keep clicking on your pictures and it will bring you closer to where exaclty you were, like the middle of Jedidiah State Park in Northern California. 

 iPhone Photos

I like the photos app for the iPhone because without even tagging them, they will record where the pictures were taken. So if you don't want to be part of a media group with your actions and pictures, just stick with this one. The pinpoints will group your pictures together, click on them for a closer glimps and it will bring up those photos from that area. 

Evernote Food

When travelling with a foodie, this app is important. And even though I don't include every meal (you'd be full just reading my blog if I had) we had on this trip, this app allows us to look back at the incredible places we ate at along the west coast. I know that neither of us want to forget this pizza place we were at while wondering the streets of San Francisco. I am not kidding when I say we ate like royalty. Blake's thoughts: When will we ever be back here? Let's enjoy it! ...Ok, lover, as you wish. We learned the definition of "comfort foods" on this trip. 

Editing Apps

Now, for my obvious favorite apps that puts the cherry on top... There are sooooooo many out there, it's hard to choose a select few. My top picks so far are Afterlight, Diptic, and Over. Afterlight has great filters and frames and is easy to work with. Diptic frames multiple photos in one photo in different layouts. Because I had so many pictures from our trip, combining multiple images allows for the blog posts not to be forever long, and it also breaks up the eye from one image to the other. Over allows you to put text with different fonts on top of your photos. This one's great for labeling or quotes (and right now I am so into typography.) The best way to know which ones work best for you is to just play around with them. Everyone has a little creativity inside them...why not test the waters with the photos you've been taking on your adventures!

Whether you believe in social media and smart phones or not...they are out there; easy to get and easy to use. My view is to just use what we've got while we've got it. If it keeps your families in the know half way across the globe, or entertains your creativity, or keeps things on record you can use it to your benefit, especially while traveling. I highly suggest the places tabs because you WILL look back at these adventurous days and it's so fun to get close enough on a map to remember the miles along with the images.

Dream Big Ride Far my traveling friends!!!