The Best Of!

This is my list of "The Best Of" on my trip.
Best State: South Dakota
Best Food: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Best People: Madison, Wisconsin
Best Scene: Portland, Oregon
Best Tourist Attraction: Crazy Horse, South Dakota
Best Couch Surfing Host: Arizona
Best Bar Crowd: Madison, WI
Best Micro brew: Madison, WI (Capitol Brew)
Best National Park: Glacier NP, Montana



The Number Game:

# of Couch Surfers: 19
# of Friends I stayed with: 7
# of Miles:11,173
# of Pictures: 1,560
# of Hiked miles: 25
# of Nights stayed in a motel: 3
# of National Parks: 8
# of Nights Camping: 12
# of Blog Entries: 15
# of Days Gone: 63
# of Animals I ran over: 1 Bird (not sure how long it was there under my car).
# of Nights slept in a Sheep Wagon: 1
# of CA Plates outside of CA: 2 (South Dakota & Wyoming)
# of Days without a shower: 4
# of Days bathing in a river: 2
# of States visited on trip: 23
# of States I haven't been too yet: 16
# of Speeding tickets: 0
# of Car accidents: 0 (but a few close ones [thanks for all your prayers])
# of New friends meet on this trip: 35
# of Times paid for laundry: 1

A semi accurate map of my trip.


View Ashley & Shiya Doin' America in a larger map
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=107327870903071447213.00048c4f4b9aeeafb4929&ll=39.436193,-115.048828&spn=27.119959,86.572266&z=4



I DID IT FOLKS!!!! I REALLY DID IT!!!!!! Someone told me at the beginning of my trip "I'll be amazed if you finish this." Well sucker I did finish it! so :-P

This will be my last blog entry in regards to this trip. I know many of you are sad, disappointed and maybe relived?! That I had to pain you thru my misspellings, run-on sentences and horrible grammar. Again, I apologize. But I had gotten a lot of you that did enjoy taking this journey with me. So in that I am glad. Thankful even. But I can honestly say that this blog was quite challenging for me. Most of the time it would take anywhere from 2-4 days to complete. Most of the time, it was hard to find the motivation to do it. There was so much going on that it made it difficult to actually sit down and talk to you people. ;-) But I know that it was all worth it. Like I had mentioned before in blog # 11 "Officially Halfway" that I wanted this trip to inspire or empower someone to do something like this for them. Move beyond they're comfort zone. Even restore some faith that there are good people out there. People are inherently good. I really believe that.

So, I feel like this entry has to be sentimental and somehow moving, right?! Well, all I can say is that I reflect on the past a lot so I think pictures say a lot. They will have great sentimental value to me in the future. I'm so thankful that I have them.

To finish up my last stretch California:

On my way out of Portland my next stop was to Arcata (Humbolt County). I had planned to visit a couple of friends. I had never been there the only thing I knew was Humbolt University was there and people said it was beautiful. So, I was excited to see what it had in store for me.

I was pleasantly surprised that it was a lot smaller then I had thought. For being a college town. It was summer so there wasn't many students on campus. But, the town of Arcata was really cute. Very quaint. I knew this was an awesome place when there are more co-ops's and natural foods then there are corporate grocery stores. Also when the beautiful beaches have more dogs on them then people (there were 3 dogs on the beach). Now, that's nice! I felt so comfortable in Humbolt County that I ended up staying for a whole week. The people are really awesome. Very chill and laid back. Don't take thing too seriously and have a great sense of community. Every Saturday they have a farmers market in "The Square". This farmers market is a great chance to grab produce for the week converse with old friends, bring your babies to crawl on the grass and a chance to watch some hula-hoopers and jugglers too.


After a week hiatus I drove down to St. Helena/ Yountville (Napa) to visit my girlfriend Christina to stay the night and catch up with her. She lives is this beautiful old shanty on the Kuleto Wineries property. I totally regret not having my camera for this. I left it in my car while Christina drove. It was truly a beautiful place with 100 year old olive and oak trees. It was perfectly nestled in this valley surrounded by vineyards. It was adorned with old wood floors, counter tops and fringed light fixtures. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were outdoor showers. Saaawwwweeet! I wouldn't mind living here if you didn't mind not having a phone, Internet or cable. It's very rustic. Which is okay. But the one thing that really got me is the large two bedroom shanty was home of rats and bats at night. Not cuz it's dirty it just the floor boards and walls are thin or have gaps you can hear scurrying around and chomping . Thank god I fall asleep easily and sleep hard. On the property there are sheep, bunnies, horses and chickens. It was fun feeding the horses. If I had stayed longer it would of been great to ride the horses too. :-( My time in Napa was short lived because I was egar to get home.

Fortunately, the drive to Stockton from Napa was only an hour and a half. I was ecstatic! Once I got to Rio Vista I had a very strong feeling in my chest. It just overwhelmed me with such emotion and it almost hurt. As I was driving HWY 12 seeing the huge power lines and farm fields. Which is very uniquely Central Valley. It was a sense of belonging and familiarity. It was comforting and it really made my heart feel a sense or relief. Seriously, it was so strong that I had a smile ear-to-ear that I couldn't release. And I wasn't even home yet!!! Being on the road for a little more then two months and I got to see so many different places and so many different people. This is where I belong. California. Don't get me wrong I am soooo grateful for this experience and I wouldn't take it back for anything.

Once I got home there was balloons. I was thinking who's birthday is it?!? Well my Dad's birthday is tomorrow maybe it's for him? As I get out I see signs that say "Welcome Home Ashley & Shiya!". OMG!??! What a great welcome home! I called my Dad and say what is this all about and all he says is, "I'll be right there!" What?! uuuhhh mmm okay... he speeds into the the driveway says that he's missed me and to never do that sh*t ever again! All I can do it just laugh!

After finally settling -in the next day I look at my poor poor car Stella. Guh! This is going to be fun. Actually, I lie. I really love detailing my car. I tear into it and take everything out... my whole life of 63 days lay on the driveway floor. Woah! That was some trip girl. You be hella crazy. And you did it. And survived! And loved it! Yes! Success! Well, so I thought... my mom pointed out that this trip was to find a new place to live, a career and a man. "Did you find any of those?" she asked. "No" I replied relunctly. Damn... really?! Was that what this trip was really about???? The rest of the day I really thought about that. What did I get out of this trip? What was the purpose? I had to go back to my first entry to figure it out. What was it I was really looking for?! My previous blog reads:

"Now, I'm at a point in my life where I need to find some happiness again a life of purpose and passion. I need to move outside of my comfort zone and do things I would never do. Lotsa driving, being alone and talking to strangers."

I can successfully say I have done ALOT of driving........... (11,173 miles) , ALOT of alone time........... (solo camping, solo driving, solo hiking and solo bar hops) and ALOT of talking with strangers.............. (35 new friends). As far as the happiness??? Happiness is a state of being a state of mind. Happiness to me is having all my necessary basic needs meet make a modest living and having people who love me. I have all that..... I am happy! Purpose?????? I just want to be happy and be the best version of myself............. I'm full of purpose! What about passion? I'm passionate about traveling more. My fear of traveling has since diminished and I can't wait to do more. I am passionate! I would haveta say that this has been a successful trip. With or without a career, a man and a place to live.

Thank YOU, yes you!

The Most Beautiful Place I've Been Too on this Whole Trip.... Monnnnnntana!

Bozemen, MT the Big Sky state....yeeehaw! I don't know if I totally believe that fully, cuz South Dakota's sky was pretty astonishing. But, to Montana's credit they do have Glacier National Park! Out of all my travels this has to be the MOST beautiful place I've ever seen!!! That is a true bold statement. Because I've been to the beautiful red rocks of Sedona the huge Smokey Mountains and you can't forget our beloved Yosemite. Glacier National Park is truly a mystical treasure. You know the movie Lord of the Rings it opens in an aeriel view of these crazy mountains, dramatic mist that you could only find in CG (computer graphics). Well, Glacier has it. As you can see in the picture above it's breathtaking! Granted I arrived just at the perfect time. It had just rained hence all the fog/mist. Glacier was about 6 hours North of Bozemen. Again, I was rushed to get there so I can set up my tent before dark (like Yellowstone). You'd think I'd learned my lesson. Nope. So, I arrived at the entrance and ask were the free camping was. The ranger had told me that the whole park is surrounded by Indian Reservations and there is no Federal Land. Bummer. :-( She seemed I like she knew what we was talking about). I especially didn't want to sneak on some rez and pitch a tent. So I drove into the park on The Sun Road (http://www.google.com/images?q=sun%20road%2C%20glacier&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi) which is the main road thru the park. I ended up at the Avalanche Camp site, had to pay 20 bucks for one night!!! Outrageous! BUT, I do have to say that this was the nicest hosted campsite I'd been too. It's was super lush and well layed out. It was as close to nature to back country camping I'd seen. So it was almost 9pm and the sun hadn't gone down. Weird! I was like this is crazy business.

The next day I woke up about 11am which is a miracle. You know what I mean if you've ever been camping. You start hearing all the other campers rise about 7am banging pots/ pans, opening and closing car doors. So, it's really hard to "sleep-in." But I'm telling you the layout of the campsite was good. After that restful sleep I drove out of Avalanche campsite and started my drive to the visitor center to get tips and where to go camping for the day. About 5miles out I see two guys walking along side of the road and I was like "wait! I think I know them?" I flipped a U-e, stopped and yelled out the window "Wade!" He turns. It's my couch surfing host from Sioux Falls, SD! I knew he was going to be traveling thru but we didn't coordinate any meet up. I ask them what they're doing for the day and if I can join them. They were planning on doing Avalanche Lake. Which is supposed to be the most beautiful hike in the park. It's not very difficult 4miles. I was like hella yeah! Someone to talk to! Hang out with! Yes! We had a blast and it was cool to hang out with Wade again. He works at a company in Sioux Falls who are in charge of helping place and acclimate refugees to the US. Cuz apparently Sioux Falls is a huge hub for refugees. Which in my opinion is pretty F'd in the sense those SD winters would be a bit of a shock to those people who are from tropical climates. Anyway, we spent about 4-5 hours together and then we parted ways. My next thought is where I was going to sleep for the night.

This is a reoccurring worry of mine during this whole entire trip. I realized not having a plan to have a place to lay my head def causes me much much much worry. I guess I value having a safe place, somewhere to come home too. The next couple of hours was fiddling around I decided to stay in the primitive camp (Cut Bank) about 20miles out just cuz 1. it's cheaper and 2. I usually like the kind of people who stay there (more chill). It was nothing special and the people there were super quiet and it was super infested with mosquito's! I set up camp and went to bed as soon as I could. Woke up and then headed to the farthest West point of park to check out the scene. On our way there at Logan's Pass there was snow. So, of course I had to let Shiya out and get some "snow-time" in. I cruised into West Point which is the more popular area of the park. It's like an actual town w/ shops and restaurants on a very cutsie street. I had to go in every shop and get some souvenirs. By the time I was about to go on a hike. I was looking at the lake and was thinking awwww... wouldn't it be nice to just sun-bathe on the beach and just read a book. Yes! I think I'm going to do that. I checked into the Apgar camping site (motor home city) to park our car and then head to the beach. As we were walking, I saw "Huckleyberry Ice Cream!" Wha!? I've been seeing all this huckleberry nonsense all over Wyoming and Montana. I gotta try some. Got a scoop and headed over to the beach. Spent the rest of the day just soaking up the sun and then headed to camp to get a good nights sleep.

The plan was to drive to 3hrs to Standpoint browse around and spend the night in Cour d' Alene, Idaho with some couch surfers. Standpoint and Cour d' Alene are super yuppie lake communities. It definitely, had a Huntington Beach/ So Cal feel. It was really nice and very cute. The couch surfers I stayed with were a couple that both work at the ski resort during the winter and also do some back country skiing. I was super fascinated by this. I had heard of back country skiing but I thought it was only for the few crazies. You know the ones you seen in those Warren Miller films. But these two were just normal looking kids, just like me. I inquired about this more and was really curious about the logistics and REALLY how safe is it?! They told me that a normal day would be 4hrs of hiking in 3+feet of snow in their ski boots to ski about 10min down. WHAT!$%! Who the F would do that! They described to me it's like nothing else -you won't want to go down a groomed run ever again. They also pressed the point that IT IS very dangerous. They usually go with 4+ more people that they totally trust. There is usually a test guy that goes down first to check for avalanches and to rough up the snow and get a feel for it. I told them how would I go about getting into this. They just told me that you have to get the right gear and become friends with someone who does it. Thinking back at my gear, I still have straight skis (10 +years old) Guh! I'd haveta invest in some Alpine Touring skis were talkn about $700+ for boots, bindings and new skis. Well maybe I don't want to do that. :-) At least right now. But sounds fun, huh?

The next stop Seattle! A friend of mind suggested to take HWY2 because it's more beautiful and East Washington is super ugly. Of course this suggestion would take an extra two hours on mountain roads. I made an executive decision that I'll take I-90 and bare the ugliness. I mean, how ugly could East Washington be? It can't be uglier then Indiana or Central New Mexico?! Boy, I was sooo wrong! Desert! Dry! Barron! Nothingness. I'm sure Spokane is a nice city but I didn't stop to find out (shrugs). Getting into Seattle, I again didn't have a place to stay my couch surfer bailed on me so I was yet again without bed. I figured it's Washington worse case scenario I'll just find a campsite and camp it up in Seattle. LOL. Fate must be on my side cuz I just happened to just randomly call my girlfriend Christina to see how she's doing. She told me that I could totally stay with her friend Nate. Praise Jesus! Yes! I had meet Nate before when he came to visit her so I knew he was legit. He totally took me in and had the weekend off. So he told me anything that I want to do that he's down. He had been living in Seattle two years and hadn't done any of the touristy things and was going to move to Boston in a few weeks anyway. He was game to take me around before he leaves for B-town anyway. Score! We ended up doing the Space Needle, Pikes Place w/ the Fish Toss, Experience Music Project, Science Fiction Museum. I liked Seattle. Very cool city, it's a combination of hipster/ intellectual. Not my scene but had a good time. I should of done more outdoorsy stuff but like I had mentioned in my Facebook my battery is running low.

Ultimately my observation of this trip is that there are soooo many good people out there. So many people just willing to help me out a fellow traveler. I truly believe in karma. You put good out into the world and it'll come back to you. This is a true testament to this whole crazy experience. I also would like to thank my girl Shiya for sharing this with me. We also have become a lot closer as Mommy and Daughter. We trust each other more and can almost read each others minds. I'm just happy we got to experience this together. I really don't think I could of done this with out her. Mama loves you Shiya!

Next: Portland and my trip down Cali!

Yellowstone and Tetons you were pretty......pretty big

Yellowstone is supposed to be the most beautiful, popular and go-to place of all the National Parks! Vanessa a co-worker of mind was soo envious I thought she might just get up and leave just to join me. lol. Thankfully she didn't because I felt that the park was alittle played up. I know, I know! I'm going to get sooo much crap from that statement but... having already have been to Yosemite I was thinking it would be MUCH more awesome! Don't get me wrong it was pretty cool but I think my expectations well exceeded it's delivery. Weather was perfect and big open skies... I couldn't have asked for more perfect circumstances.



The drive thru Wyoming to get to the very west corner was a long one. Wyoming, is a lot more high desert and baron then I had thought. Actually, many of my expectations of places have been shot out of the water. For the better, mostly. Out of my normal character I didn't look ahead of time to where I would been staying for the night once I got to Yellowstone. I was just going to stroll up to the entrance station and just ask the Ranger where the "free" camping was. It has worked the last three times so I figured eh... no need to pre-plan. Unfortunately, I got the grumpiest worst communicating old man ranger possible when I pulled up to the Yellowstone pearly gates! After I gave him my Pass ( it's good for a year, lets go somewhere) I politely, ask "Oh, can I ask you were is the free camping on this map?"................. (long silence)................... With such disapproval, "We don't do that." Wait.... what? I mean what are you supposed to say to that? Really? "Actually, no sir there is designated Federal Land all over this great state of Wyoming that you live in. Now, where the F is it?" But really, that's what I was thinking. I replied, "nothing? I checked on line and I know that there is Federal Land in or near Yellowstone, I just need to know where it is." He just said "the camp sites over there behind you are $15 and they are attended (which means there is a host)." Uhhhh... okay well...I wasn't going to argue with the man. I just need to find someone who knew exactly what I was asking. Oh and I forgot to mention that I just drove 40miles to get to Yellowstone from the closest town (Cody, WY). So, there was no way I was going to drive 40miles back into town to do a hotel! No!



After finding a "nice" ranger I found that the closest "free" primitive camp is 50miles North on a dirt road. Guh! It's 7pm and the sun is going to set in an hour. Jesus! By the time I get 25miles in it'll be dark... on a dirt road.... setting up my tent...prolly with no one around.... and just my packaged ramen. RRRrrrrrr. Okay, okay...just think. What do I want to do? I was stressn'. I was hungry and tired from driving and I couldn't make a decision. The only logical thing that came to my hungry mind is to drive out of Yellowstone to Cody (40miles) and get some fresh cooked food. Okay. Cody is a super cute cowboy town. Lots of boot barns and cowboy shwagger with a saloon here and there. I'm lookn' for sumthn' good... Sushi! Yes! In Cody? Eh, whatever how bad can it be? I sit down at the sushi bar and hassle the cute little white sushi chef for a Vegetarian roll saying; with this, but not this... oh and this too! Come to find out he's my age and Mormon...bahaha that's just funny. We got to chattn and I figured we'd had built a rapport. Then I had asked him where there is free or cheap camping around here. He struggles to find an answer. Let me think about it. I figure maybe he'll let me sleep in his yard or on his couch. He comes back and says...................................... "You can sleep in my families sheep wagon!" WHAAAA? WTF is a sheep wagon?!?! He laughs and says "You don't know what a sheep wagon is?" An eyebrow raised. "No!" Then he goes on to tell me he'll get off in 20min and I can follow him to his folks house and check it out. If I don't like it I don't have to stay. I was like, F I don't care if they're sheep still in it. I'm down. The picture above is the sheep wagon that they had remolded into a guest bedroom that was place in their backyard. It's cute and was super cozy. The mom Suzie totally took me in and made the sheets for me..... remember, I just meet this boy at the Sushi Restaurant. Thank God this happened because there was a gnarly thunderstorm that night. :-D The next morning I woke up to a homemade breakfast and jam with the rest of Joe's siblings. All seven of them....LOL. I thanked them kindly and washed the dishes and then head out to Yellowstone for the day.



Okay, on the Yellowstone newsletter that they give you upon arrival it states "Old Faithful erupts on the hour +/- 10min. Schweeeet! That's first on my list. After driving 2hrs. I get to Old Faithful 1:30p. 30min before eruption, so I can go to the gift shop, bathroom, mosy around. Then 10min before the show I sit and wait with everyone else... 25mins goes by....30mins.. Okay! WTF is going on! Who turned off the valve?! Then I walk around like everyone else aimlessly. Suddenly, a ranger is walking around and says that the next prediction is at 3:00p. F! Are you serious?! That's not what it said on the paper!? I'm not waiting around for this to happen. I have to pick Shiya up from Doggie Day care in Cody in 3 hrs. And it takes two hours to get the the gates and another 40mins to go to Cody. Bah! Well I took a picture of it (not erupting). Yellowstone is flippn huge is a series of two large circles. Where each circle takes 4ish hours to drive w/o stopping to look at things. It's huge! Most of the National Parks I kinda got a sense in 2-3 days of being their. Or maybe it was just that's my camping limit. Bathing in a sink, constant bug-spray and cooking with my one burning MSR (thanks Maricar). But Yellowstone, I needed more time to just even complete the circles.



After seeing Old faithful and picking up Shiya that night I was going to meet up with Alison and Rich my homies from PA that I meet in Badlands, we planned on doing to do the Tetons (south of Yellowstone) together. When they got in we decided to head to the Famous Cody Rodeo. Hell why not?! I like horse, bulls and cowboys. It was a great time and we all made sure to wear our cowboy hats to look like we knew what the hell we were doing. hahhaha..yeah right. After the show I hadn't planned on staying in the sheep wagon again since they're in town. So, I made no plans again to where I'm going to lay my head. I figured now that I'm with two other people and Rich is pretty resourceful that I need not to worry. So, I thought! We meet up about 7p and get some dinner and then head to the local bar and shoot pool. It's getting close to 10p and then I start thinkin about where the hell are we going to sleep? By this time Alison and Rich had about 3-4 beers and were not in the same mind set as me. Rich was busy playing more pool with a couple of guys he had just meet. I pulled Rich over and said "Hey, ask your friends if we can camp on their lawn?" He looks at me glossy-eyed and says " Oh, yeah that would be cool." I just laugh.... OMG. This is crazyness.... sleeping in strangers sheep wagons and now asking to sleep on some strangers lawn that we meet playing pool at a bar?!?! Rich smoothly asks the guys "Hey where u guys heading tonight?" they reply "Oh prolly just back to out hotel and then party some more, you guys like to party right?" I grab Alisons arm and just shake my head. She reassures me it's cool "we got Rich." Rich is a pretty strong guy so I guess it's cool. Our new friends tell us that "hell you can sleep in our hotel room, no prob." I perked up! Sweet! Remember, we got Rich. It turned out these guys were super cool and totally let us take a shower and sleep in their hotel room no strings attached. Wow! Gotta love the Midwest!



We got up the next morning and carpooled to The Tetons (1hr South of Yellowstone) which is a series of snow cover mountains that kinda look like the Patagonia Logo . We all fit three people, two dogs and camping gear. It was very cozy! Our first day we backpacked into Shadow Mountain (Federal Land) and set up camp. It was pretty funny cuz none of us had backpacking gear. So our Jansport paks looked like pieces of u know what. Just orange nylon string held our sleeping bags, tents and food off of our packs. A total shame. We got to the top and then set up camp and made a fire pit and gathered some wood. The night sky was just like you'd seen at museum. Complete darkness. So beautiful.



The next morning we packed out and then headed to the lodge. A co-worked of mine at REI Tres hooked me up with one of his friends that works at the Siren Mountain Lodge in the Tetons. We got to shower up, eat pizza and just hung around the lake with good conversation. Later that day we headed South to Jackson Hole WY. where were camped at Curtis Park also Federal Land so the doggies can rome free. So, we spent the evening at the Nepalese restaurant and the Virginian Saloon. This saloon was very Wyoming! All locals, chaps, animal heads on the wall and the only beer options were Bud and Bud Light. Yeeeeah! They had live music where I insisted on just watching. Eventually, an old man pulled me onto the dance floor and was dancing with me... He was prolly 70. That was fun. After three nights together we headed back to our cars and parted our separate ways. I wanted to do the Northern Circle of Yellowstone and then head to MT and they still had to do the Southern half.


New Years:

Drove into Bozemen, MT. Well I'm in the land of the people who live for fireworks apparently (I was told). I guess the festivities had started about a week ago and there are firework stands on every block. I'm staying with my couchsurfer Mary (currently mowing the lawn). By the way being around her 4 roommates really makes me feel inadequate. As an empowered women. They're attire consists of dirty jeans, messy hair and a beer. These women are no joke. But they are also very beautiful and confident. They cook, clean, mow lawns, and cut wood for the bonfires too! Jesus! I look like a frickn priss from California. But besides me standing by and watching all of this go on Bozeman is a pretty cool town. Beautiful men everywhere and you know the country kind. :-D

Glacier National Park is next... boy it was a real treat.

I now have family in the mid-west.

Chi-town (chicago)! What a place! Beautiful outdoor art, and such a cultural mecca! I was so impressed by how much diversity there is and soo many things to do. Like any city it's busy and offers lots of thing but it's a different feel. People are hard-core for sure. One night me and a fellow couch surfer were going to an outdoor concert to see Pink Martini (one of my favs) and it started to down-pour. People were still functioning and walking about like it was no big deal! Believe me if this happened in CA people would hide or duck and cover! It's just a different culture. I stayed with the brother of my other couch surfer from Flagstaff. Gabe was a spitting image of Dan but younger. Gabe took me out for my first official deep Dish Chicago pizza. I can now say, that I'm official fan of the thin New York style. He gave me full-range of his one-bedroom apt while he stayed at his girlfriends. Unfortunately, there was no AC (sigh). I didn't know that coming into the situations. Otherwise, I'd prefer not to stay there...but hey I can hang! So, the first night was soooo horrible. I slept with a wet towel between my legs, arms and neck. I can't image how shiya felt. :-( But after that the nights were pleasant. Gabe told me that I could take his bike and tour around the city. I was super stoked! Biking in Chicago?! Sweet! So I did about a 10mile trekk around the downtown and Lake Michigan. Saw Millennium Park and Navy Pier. Had a great time in Chicago and would love to stay their longer next time. On my way out of town I stopped by the Bahi Temple and checked out the beautiful stonework. Apparently it took 60 years to complete. Pretty amazing http://www.bahai.us/bahai-temple.

I remember about 4 years ago when I was coach in Craftsbury http://www.craftsbury.com/index.php?flash=no that I meet a really cool family from Madison, WI. They ranted and raved about how awesome it was. That has stuck with me on this trip so I definitely had to find out for myself if it was true. My host Terry and his roommate Matt totally took me in and showed me the town. I was really impressed by the scene and the vibe of Madison. We did the walk around downtown and strolled across some live music at the Convention Center, the music was reminiscent of a Chris Issac style which I love. While we were there we got to see the Madison water ski team practicing their tricks too. At one point they had 16 water skiers behind this triple engine boat. After that we went to a bar called the Nitty Gritty where if it's your Birthday you get all the free beer you want. So, it was Terry's sisters birthday. To honor your birthday you get a complimentary beer stein with a balloon attached to it. Image a dive bar with 15 people with balloons just wandering around. It was great! What a great marketing scheme! Bring all your friends to a bar cuz you don't have to buy your own! Noted! When I own a bar... ahhh one day! You know like the movie " Cocktails & Dreams?" Anyway, after that Terry took me to a few restaurants he use to work at. He was the talk of the town. Everyone knew who he was and they were his best friend. It was great to see all this Mid-West hospitality. Everyone was so friendly and wanted to get to know you. This is what I was looking for! The next day Terry invited me to his families bar and grill called "Wilson's" his family's name. It was total heaven, all the locals, 10+ screens, micro brews and burgers! After about an hour his grandparents showed up and sat with me. They were the coolest grandparents! We started talk about their travels, how they go on "Mystery Tours." And no, it's not like a dinner and mystery show but a travel company that takes you places without you knowing where you're going to go until you land. What a cool concept!?! After hearing about all of their adventures I spilled the beans about where I've been and where I'm going and then 3hours flew by. At the time Terry was working the bar and was just glancing over and just shaking his head about how well I got along with his grandparents. He came over a few times to attempt to rescue me but I kept giving him the eye like, "No, I'm having a great time." By the end of the night his grandparents had told me that I have to stay with them next time I'm in town and they they want to take me fishing.

After feeling so welcomed and at home I headed over on the flattest drive of my whole trip. I was dreading the flat corn fields of Wisconsin and Minnesota. BUT I found a deep appreciation for old farm houses silos and corn fields. I think their beautiful. The one time I stopped for gas in Minnesota I heard it the accent (similar the Fargo) it was sooo funny! "Don'tcha know," " Oh yahh!" LOL. Coming into my next destination Sioux Falls I was really excited to get an idea of this foreign land. About 30 miles out of Sioux Falls at around 6:30p the endless road was heading directly toward some black clouds! Oh Sh*t! I've seen these clouds before in Texas right before the tornado sirens went off. So, I quickly looked around to see what other cars were doing. They seemed unfazed. So I proceed to drive and follow other cars w/ a South Dakota plate (they should know what they're doing)... then the dark clouds started to get lower and lower like a grey/ black ceiling. This was def not good. After my GPS read 15 miles to Sioux Falls I was just praying I'd get to my destination before something went down. All of a sudden rain started to fall and then DUMPED! I can't even describe how horrible this rain was coming down. I felt like I was submerged under water. I slowed down to a 35mph and blasted my windshield wipers! I still couldn't see the car in front of me! Now, I'm starting to panic. What should I do?! What should I do?! Find an overpass, quick, quick! I get under an overpass and my car is swaying back and forth. Aw, this is worse then driving! 12 more miles to Sioux Falls! Okay, just go, go, go, go! A car passes me and I follow them on the interstate and then follow what I could make out of their break lights. 8miles, now the weather service is tellin me that the winds are reaching upward of 60-70MPH.... jesus, the water is flowing off of the interstate like a river! OMG! 3miles, com'on Stella! I finally make it to the off ramp and scurry to my couch surfers house. Getting to the door I was drenched head-to-toe. That's a no- mess around weather state for sure. "Welcome to Sioux Falls," my couch surfer said. I laugh." Thanks, glad to be here!"

After drying off the next day I scooted over to The Badlands National Park. I wasn't sure what to expect. It was in the late afternoon and I had to drive 25 miles on a dirt road to the FREE BLM campsite, which took an hour. Once I got there I was hoping to find other people my age that I can hang out with for the evening, possibly make friends. So, driving around the camp, all I see are families and RV's. Guh! Then finally, I see a dog running around. Hey! park over there, anyone who has a dog is generally pretty cool. Got Shiya out of the car put her on the leash and then walked over to the camp with the dog. This women (alison) was writing in a journal and then I ask her "Is your dog friendly?" with a little hesitation she says "yes." Instantly, the two dogs mesh and are playing and wrestling. I start talking to her and apparently her and her friend (Rich) are also on a cross-country road trip. I asked where they were headed next. They said Rapid City to see Mt. Rushmore. "Me too", I said. "Then where?" "Yellowstone!" "Me too!" Granted there are only about 20people in this campsite and I happen to find the ones who are doing my exact same trip. Then her friend Rich comes over. First thing I notice is. He's topless and he's ripped. Geeze... this shouldn't be interesting. After retelling my story to him they invite me over to camp with them and hang out for the night. I guess both of them just graduated college and just wanted to do a trip before they get jobs/ careers. Eventually, we swapped numbers and shared beers. It was friends for life after that. Just great people. We had planned to go to Mt. Rushmore the next day. then meet up in Yellowstone.

After parting ways with Alison and Rich I had planned to stay at a couchsurfers place in Rapid City before I headed to Mt. Rushmore to meet up with them. They decided to camp in a field somewhere in between. In the Morning I went to Mt. Rushmore but didn't pay $15 to get in. Just illegally parked on the road to take a picture. Then jetted over to see Crazy Horse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crazy_Horse which I did pay to see. Apparently, the size of Mt. Rushmore is smaller then the head of Crazy Horse. Just giving you a perspective on how huge this thing is. It didn't dawn on me until I went to Mt. Rushmore that it is kinda a F-U to Native Americans. It's planted into the Black Mountains where the Lakota Sioux were from and we as American's decided to chisel 4 Presidents faces into a rock on the land that was once theirs. So, the elders of the Lakota Sioux wanted to make a monument that represented them. About 12 miles from Mt. Rushmore you can find this under construction piece of history. It's taken 50 years so far to get where they are today and it's expected to take prolly 100 years to get it all done. Since it's inception, the original funds have ran out and now it's only way of financing is by paid admissions and donations which I was happy to pay. You an see in the picture that the white model is what it is supposed to look like.

Next on the travels is Yellowstone and the Tetons. Coming soon.

Offically Half Way!!!

Monday:


I would like to apologize to Andrew Brown who was a Couch Surfer from Atlanta who took me out and taught me how to sail at Lake Lenier (45 min North of Atlanta). It was one of my best experiences thru couch surfing and had a total blast. I totally forgot to mention that in my last post. So sorry brotha!

IT's my Bifffday!!! Yay! I'm officially 27 today and phew! It's been a long ride sooo far... ups, downs, trials, tribulations, pros, cons, not so wonderful and amazing experiences. I would just like to reflect that this trip so far has been so life changing as an attribute to all of you who have pushed, pulled and supported me through the years. Each and everyone one of you reading this now have had a huge impact on my life. I can't expresses how much friends and family have really been there through some pretty tough shit. As well as just being a friend to talk to... nothing is more important then just your presence and energy! This is to you. I hope some or maybe one of you can take this trip and do something like this for yourself. Move to just move do something that your scared of. I've been so empowered. I want that for you. :-D

Now, I'm in Dayton, OH with my gf Lillary from college. I haven't seen this girl since graduation (3ish years) and she is exactly the same... which is a good thing. She also majored in Sport Science and she is sooo amazing. She use to play for the Sacramento Sirens (w's football team) and she's a crazy workout guru! Fortunately, she is going to be moving to Marin later this year, so I'm hoping we can be workout buddies! yup yup! Someone to kick my ass.... (grin). So, today I am planning to head to Cincinnati to go touring around and do some hiking. The rain is coming down like crazy, I know you're sooo surprised. BUT I work at REI so I have all the rain-proof gear, so I'm set! and Shiya likes it; she has a reason to be hella muddy, it's cooler and so she can shake it all on me. What a good girl!

Saturday:

Boy am I stuffed!!! I just got done stuffing my face with a crazy awesome dinner that me and my host from LOUIE-Ville had!!! Apparently, she has all these co-workers from all over the world and we had an "International Food Making Party". She is from Porto Rico and the guests consisted of French/ Canadian, Greek and Brazilians. So it was cool to all cook together and learn some new cooking techniques. Of course I made my famous enchiladas! Yum! I just wanted to get a taste of the Bluegrass state. Man, I like this place even more then the last. And fireflies!!! OMG! Why don't they exist on the BEst Coast?! Duh, the WEST! I stayed with a surfer named Noa who is from Porto Rico who has lived her since she was 17? Currently, she is in the process of become a hand surgon. She also lives in this huge old colonial style house which is about the same cost of my room in Marin (guh). She took me took me to a few famous landmarks, the Louieville Slugger Factory, this awesome museum/ hotel with tons of modern art (some interactive) and downtown.

On Father's Day I decided to go to Churchhill Downs, it's flippn huge! I didn't get to go in but I plan to go one day with Bird (from KY) and wear a huge hat too! I strolled over to the Woodford Reserve Distillery. Which is the oldest and smallest distillery in Kentucky (8 total in the state). It's also is the official Bourbon of the Kentucky Derby! You know I never really tried Bourbon, but I liked it- on ice. I didn't know exactly what Bourbon was but apparently, all Bourbon is whiskey but not all whiskey is Bourbon. Bourbon has to at least have 51% corn in it but not all whiskey has that much corn. But, I did the tour and totally got picked on the whole time by the tour guide cuz I was from California. But in all good fun, I got to smell 140 proof, got a stolen cork w/ a nice topper (the tour guide gave me) , a shot and some Bourbon chocolate.

Before, I got here I spent one night in Charlotte, NC, Asheville, NC and Nashville, TN. Charlotte was very similar to Charleston, SC in the way the city looks but no history. Apparently, they had torn down all their old historical buildings so they pretty much have very little tourism. What I was told is that they want to be like Atlanta and have nothing but new buildings (which is dumb in my opinion). Nascar is based there but I wasn't that interested in going to see it.

Now! Asheville, it's settled just about an hour outside The Great Smokey Mountains National Park. This place was something special. It's reminded me of Auburn/ Grass Valley but with a Berkeley twist to it. Super progressive city (with some high rises) and on every corner there seemed to be a Vegan/ Vegetarian based business LOL! Every house has prayer flags on their porch, u know how it goes. But the cool thing was, I was staying with a couple of guys and one was a VEggie chef at a local restaurant and on the first night me made us an awesome super filling mashed potato, kale and tofu dinner. Then for the first time this trip I slept outside under the stars w/o a tent. I was praying and praying that I wouldn't get eatn alive ( I didn't) and it was sooo cool and nice that night. Granted I had only planned on staying one night and then camping in the Smokies but Ashley was a little to hot and too chicken to brave the storm that was heading that way. So, Shiya and I planned a day hiking trip to go see some waterfalls and do some river walking. Well that storm came in 1/2 way thru our hike (dog and cat rain status) so that really nice REI rain jacket that I bought the day before was in the car.....soooooo we ran the half back to the car.

To my relief I was heading to AJ's place my friend from HS and he had a washer and dryer in Nashville next. This was one my destinations that I was really excited about. I've heard from him that it was a really cool city and that I'd like it. Sooooo... it was pretty awesome. Huge city! First night we saw some live blues music (which he participated in). Granted he played in HS kinda but I haven't seen him play since then. He just made that guitar sing! I was sooo impressed, now this is why he moved here. He just drew all this energy from the crowd and used it. People stopped to hear him play. He out shinned everyone else in the band. The next day we toured around downtown and went to a life-sized replica of the Parathion. Apparently, it was built to be temporary to celebrate the Centennial of the city. When it became a huge success that the plaster started falling off they decided to keep it as a staple of the city and restored it. We also went to Coyote Ugly (I have never been there) but I did see the movie. Not to anyones surprise I was hella down! So, we were "watching the Lakers game" and enjoying the company of the Coyote Ladies. If you don't know what it is here: http://www.coyoteuglysaloon.com/. It's a themed bar with the bartenders who dance on the bar and embarrass you. Especially if it's your birthday. My a-hole of a friend told them it was my birthday (3 days too early) and they pulled me on the bar and a-hemmmm.... and got a shot of tequila. That was fun...

I have been requested to write more frequently. I will try my best since I am borrowing internets. :-D :-D

Saturday:

Well this portion of the trip has been flip'n awesome! I started out my trip in Atlanta and was pleasantly surprised. My expectations of the ATL was pretty much ghetto... BUT, it was wonderful! A nice mix of DC, SF and a hint of Vermont. It was a big city with lots of suburbs and business people like DC. The hipster young energy and progression of SF but with nice quaint/beachy vibe of the Northeast. I stayed with this wonderful couple (first couple of couchsurfing) in their trendy loft in the Reynoldstown. Which was originally an area that housed freed slaves from the Civil War. Then in the 50's it became the mecca for the railroad industry and now is a trendy area with an abundant amount of converted lofts and flats from the old railroad buildings. The downtown area is soo unique something I've never seen before. Two of Atlanta's biggest colleges (Georgia Tec and U of Georgia) are all downtown. So strolling thru all you see in this a super urban setting and college kids laying in the parks, sitting at cafe's and walking around among all the business people. It's a really cool vibe "young vs. old" Not to mention all the cool shops and underground mall! Fortunately, my last day in Atlanta was perfect California weather. It was 82 with hardly any humidity. Score!

Then of course Savannah! Wow! It was sooo beautiful! There are all these beautiful big droopy trees the with Spanish Moss hanging from them like you would see in a swamp. The classic big French looking houses with a real old world charm. Went down River Street and went to all the cool shops and candy stores to get free samples, woot woot! This was the most unique couch surfing experience I've had so far. I shared my space with Arthur (fellow couchsurfer and Matt my host) which the two of them were soo inspirational and amazing! My host Matt was originally from Detroit, Michigan and had moved to Savannah a couple month ago to join the Police Academy. He had the desire to do this because he had just completed a few cross-country trips and had A LOT of good- samaritan help all over the US on his journey. After doing this he felt like he wanted to do the same for others. Unfortunately, he didn't get in. Now he's just hosting travelers and finishing up this book (Highway Humanity) to hopefully give back in someway to others. Matt is the ultimate domestic traveler! He had just finished a 5000 miles walk. Yes, I said walk! During his walk across the US he had documented all all of the "good things" random people had done for him. Granted he was only carrying a backpack and had little to no money doing this. So, this experience was set up to depend on others for help (food, water and lodging). Just hearing him talk about all these people along the way. He remember all of their names and what city they lived in. It really moved me that there is sooo much humanity still in the world. People would see him walking on the side of the road and give him water and talk to him about WTF is he doing in the middle of Texas! He would knock on doors asking to stay in their backyard in his sleeping bag and most of the time they would offer him a shower and extra money to food the next day. He would also show up a churches and they would put him up in hotels. He would be sitting at a convenience stores and people offering him rides. He survived on the kindness of others for two months. And he wrote about it.... he's in the process of trying to get it published and I was lucky enough to read the first three chapters. It really brought tears to my eyes hearing all of these stories of people just helping people. Which is what couchsurfing is all about. About paying it forward.

The other guy who happen to be staying at Matt's place with me was Arthur who is from Pilly. He had just rode in from a 3-week bike trip from there to end in Savannah. He also just had a backpack, hammock and two water bottles. He averaged 120miles a day (140 being his longest) and sleeping in the woods in his hammock and surviving on Little Debbie snacks. He had decided to do this trip because he had just lost his job and just wanted to do it. He had never done a multi-day road trip ever before so he had gone into this pretty blindly. Both of these men were so amazing that I was memorized by all their stories and what's next for them. I felt so inspired and travel is just that easy. The hard part is decided to do it. Since this trip my fear of traveling has diminished and I feel totally capable of doing more. Much more!

After that inspirational couple of days. I headed over to Goose Creek, South Carolina where my girlfriend Jane and her husband Thom live. We spent and afternoon in Charles towne (Charleston) and then spent a day at Folly Beach. Got a great tan and and lotsa Vit-C. It's sooo great to see people from back home and comforting to have my peeps here! They treated me soo well... we made a crazy home-made dinner and took me to The Cracker Barrel! It was awesome it's a botique that's a resturant. So, I tried grits and friend Okra for the first time. They were both delicious! So, we had a lot of good-times and catching up.

What's next: I heading Charolette, North Carolina, Asheville and then spend a few days in the Smoky Mountains.