Cross Country Road Trip
A conversation at work made me think about a cross country road trip Jennifer and I took a few years ago. The entire trip was in a little two seat convertible. I documented the whole thing with over 50 rolls of film and a journal that I would write in every night before bed. We only had a few rules: never drive at night because you miss too much scenery and never eat at the same place twice so we would be forced to find the local joints. The top was down every day of the 28 day road trip! If we were on the road when the sun would start to set, no matter where we were, that’s where we were going to stay.
We started the journey in Seattle, Washington. From there we drove south into Oregon. On the way to Crater Lake National Park, we stopped off at Clearwater Falls. After the lake, we continued south into California passing through the Redwood National Park on our way down the coast. We crossed over the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco. We stayed there for a couple of days, and then headed east to Yosemite National Park. Our next stop was Death Valley and onto Las Vegas where we stayed at the Luxor for a couple of days. Then it was onto the Hoover Dam and Utah. We went to every national park in southern Utah. First we explored Zion, Bryce Canyon and then Capital Reef. We stayed in Moab, Utah a couple of days nestled between Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park. We then went south through Monument Valley into Arizona. We toured the Grand Canyon in a helicopter. Then we headed south and further east to see the Petrified Forest National Park. The trip took us though St. Louis and eventually to Saratoga Springs, New York.
The few sentences I have written to briefly summarize the trip does it no justice. Every single day was an incredible adventure. Whether it was seeing another natural wonder, finding a hidden local treasure, or meeting someone new, every moment of the journey seemed to be better than the last.
Jumping the Oregon Dunes Part 2
I got a few requests to post this photo. Here is Jennifer jumping over the dunes at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. Sometimes you can find a good dune where you can fall over 20 feet! Landing in the sand is like landing on a bed of pillows.
Jumping the Oregon Dunes
Here I am jumping over one of the dunes at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. This is the largest expanse of coastal dunes in North America. Some of these dunes can grow over 500 feet above sea level.
Clearwater Falls
I took this picture on the way the Crater Lake National Park. This waterfall was just off the main road. Earlier that day, I bought a new tripod. I thought some waterfall pictures would be a good test.
Oregon Dunes
I took this at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. Here, the ocean currents deposit large amounts of sand. With the help of the wind, the dunes here can grow to 500 feet above sea level. I wanted to capture how strange the day was. It seemed as though the sun and the clouds were fighting it out all day.
