The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

For such a terrifying night, I sure got a good night’s sleep.  I got up just in time to make it to my morning ride.  On one of the trails at Yosemite, I noticed horseshoe tracks.  “Now, that is what I should be doing,” I thought, and vowed to find some stables at King’s Canyon. I rode this beautiful Palomino named Henry.  The only other people out on the ride were family friends of the guide/owner, a lady and her son, Brice.  She is married to someone who works for the NPS, and her son is named after the canyon.  She was telling me about all the places they’ve lived and things they’ve done, and I was like, “Can we trade lives?”  We rode along the bottom of the canyon next to the river, and it was beautiful and peaceful.  Maybe just a little bit boring; sometimes my horse would go super slow, and then run to catch up, and those were the best parts.  Regardless, I was really excited to wear my cowboy  boots for something other than dancing. After the ride, I planned to do a 9 mile

Yesterday morning, I was just grateful to wake up alive. I guess that's kind of redundant... But you know what I mean. That hotel was SO shady.  I got a late start, so I didn't get to King's Canyon until 2:00. I got good advice from a ranger about how to spend the rest of my day. My first stop was the General Grant tree, the second largest tree in the U.S. The diameter at its base is 40 feet, and it's a few thousand years old. Amazing to think that this tree was here while Jesus was out preaching the good news.  I wandered through the grove of sequoias, thinking that I hadn't thought trees could impress me, but they did.  Next, I headed up to Panoramic Point. There was a little hike to the top that involved paved switchbacks, and I know it's mean of me, but it was really satisfying to see people resting on the benches and just zoom by them. I saw this gorgeous view at the top, and a sign that pointed to a lookout station in 2.5 miles. I hadn't

Considering this is the first crackhead thing I've done on this trip, I refuse to be too embarrassed. I had planned on doing a 12 mile loop hike up to Young Lakes.  The ranger recommended doing it in a counter-clockwise direction, because there was about 2000 feet of elevation gain, and that was the easier route. But the night before, I started looking at the map and saw "Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River."  Since I am an addict, I knew I had to go there.  I consulted with a ranger before leaving, and it was the same trail you take to get to Young Lakes, but it branches off by a creek 2 miles into the hike.  It drops 2400 feet down into the canyon, but then as you hike along, there are several waterfalls.  I planned to go to the second waterfall, then turn around. The most important part of this story is that I was super tired.  And when I am that tired, I am overly emotional.  I get all irrational and overwhelmed and everything makes me want to cry.  That is

Backpacker magazine comes through again. Yesterday, I was ready to leave.  But I found an article in Backpacker about national parks' best-kept secrets and decided to do the hike to Stanford Point. I took Glacier Point Road to the McGurk Meadow trailhead.  Meadows of wildflowers: ... lead to a breathtaking view of Yosemite Valley from Dewey Point.  The view rivaled Angel's Landing.  The best part? I was completely alone. I hiked out onto this little peninsula.  I was on those rocks on the top. I hiked another .6 miles to Crocker Point, but I realized the hike was taking me away from the valley views, so I turned back.  Besides, my shins were starting to hurt and I knew it was all downhill going back.  I had a damn good panini at the Tenaya resort on the south side of the park, and then had a 2.5 hour drive back to my campsite.  Stupid windy roads.  Everything looks so much closer on the map!  But all in all, a fantastic day.  Glad I didn't give up on Yosem

My friend mike doesn't believe I am ever bitchy. "Call me the next time you're being a bitch," he said the last time we hung out.  I almost called him today. The pictures of Yosemite Valley make it look like paradise. Maybe it was, when John Muir was here. But it's hard to appreciate it now. Yosemite in the summer is not for me. Traffic. Crowds. Shuttles. You have to take a shuttle from the parking area to another shuttle that takes you around the park. And these shuttles are as crowded as the red line after a Cubs game. Everything was an enormous hassle today, and all I wanted to do was rent a bear canister and have a late lunch and a glass of wine on the patio of their nice restaurant, like I did when I was here 10 years ago.  I don't remember it being this crazy the last time I was here with Tim and Chuck.  Actually, driving through the valley brought back a lot of memories and made me miss Tim... Anyway, I don't know how long I'll last he

I got to see two of the most bad ass ladies I know in California- my biological great-aunt Deborah (who is actually younger than my mom), and my mom's cousin Beth. I forgot how terrifying the freeway in CA is.  Seriously, doesn't matter what freeway I'm on, all of a sudden things get hardcore.  I feel like I'm in that scene in Clueless.  I can handle myself, but it requires my full concentration.  The bright side is that everyone drives fast. Deborah told me I needed to be in Sacramento by 6:30 because we were going to an auction.  I had no idea what to expect.  I was worried it would be some kind of fancy charity auction and I wouldn't be appropriately dressed.  Boy, was I wrong. I don't know how to describe this place.  We were in a warehouse.  There were tons of random things being auctioned.  Most of it was furniture, but there were electronics, too, and even a box of Nilla Wafers.  No joke.  Deborah said one week they auctioned off boxes of tissues.  

Thursday morning I woke up and had no idea what I wanted to do.  All I knew was that I had to be in Sacramento by Friday night.  This is one of the things I've loved most about this trip- doing whatever I want. I decided to head to Mount Rainier. I didn't have much time there, but I'm glad I saw it.  That mountain looks wicked, all covered in glaciers.  I can't believe my friend's husband climbed it!  I pulled over for a picture and met a nice biker who had been to Escalante.  This was exciting to me, because no one's ever heard of Escalante.  We had a great conversation. I went on a little 2 mile hike that had a suspension bridge over this river. Once again, the water was a really interesting color- vivid blue/green (almost aquamarine, but with more green), but totally clear.  You could see every rock at the bottom. I wish I had more time to hike here! 

On my second day at Olympic, I wasn't feeling too energetic.  I meandered up the road to Hurricane Ridge and asked a ranger for a good easy hike.  He recommended this 3.2 mile round trip hike to the top of Hurricane Ridge that would "stretch my legs a little."  His smile was slightly diabolical, and it was a pretty steep trail to the top.  But as soon as I started climbing, I could feel my body saying "thank you."  It feels so good to zoom past other hikers and feel like I could go for miles and miles.   When I got to the top, this was my view. There were wildflowers all over this meadow (you can't tell from this angle), and over to the left, a group of marmots were playing and wrestling.  (Did you know marmots can only be found on the Olympic Peninsula?)  I left the trail, laid in the grass, and listened to my iPod.  (My current favorite song is "Map Song" by the Super Saturated Sugar Strings.)  A few other people arrived at the summit

I am utterly in love with camping.  Who would have seen this coming?  To be fair, I like camping MY way. I hike and explore during the day, and when I get tired, I pull out my map and look for the nearest campsite. I can set up camp in about ten minutes. No fire and cooking and sleeping bag and tent for me; I blow up my air mattress, make my bed (complete with fitted sheets and comforter), throw the mosquito screens up on my windows, and feast on crackers and peanut butter for dinner. I wipe down with baby wipes before bed (don't want my sheets all dirty), but beyond that, showering is not a concern. Yes, I still flat iron my hair when I do shower, and I still wear my eyeliner and hoop earrings and Fearless necklace. (I'm still a girl.) But there are days when I forget those things, and I feel myself caring less and less. My worst case scenario for this trip was that I'd be miserable camping, would blow my whole budget on hotels, and have to go home early. Instead, I

I will freely admit that I love Twilight.  I did not go to the Olympic Peninsula to see Twilight sights, but, since I was already there... I had dinner at the restaurant in Port Angeles where Edward and Bella had their first date.  I walked in looking all grungy from hiking and realized it was an upscale spot that required reservations.  I ate at the bar and was less than impressed; their food was on par with Olive Garden.  But it was still a cute spot. I drove out to La Push.  Just as I was wondering where the treaty line would be, I passed this sign: First Beach at La Push, where Bella goes cliff diving I may be the proud owner of a Spartans tee shirt.  And a La Push hoodie.  I am fully aware that I am a huge nerd.  But I could see what inspired Stephenie Meyer to have those books take place on the Olympic Peninsula.  There's definitely something mystical and mysterious about this place.

The Ozette Triangle hike invites your imagination to go wild.  The first three miles is through dense forest. I don't know if it's technically rain forest, but it looked just like the other rain forest I hiked. You hike along a rotting, uneven boardwalk, which feels like cheating at first, but then you realize it's the best way. The vegetation is so thick; green stuff is even growing on the boardwalk! I can't imagine bushwhacking through all that; it would take forever. This thought lead me to, "I wouldn't waste that on a broke-dick dog" (referring to a route through the jungle), which then had me pretending I was being stalked by Predator. Yes, I realize this is implausible because Predator only comes in the heat, and I wasn't armed, so he wouldn't be interested in me. But who cares? I was having fun. If I was in Predator, I'd be the black guy. Not Action Jackson, the good black guy. But he's pretty cool, so I don't know if I'd

Portland was quiet and relaxing, just like I'd hoped.  There's not too much to say about it other than I got to spend time with my beloved Paula, so it was wonderful.  The best part about being with Paula is that I can just be myself; it's totally stress-free.  We picked cherries for cherry limeade (which we never got around to making).  We talked.  I fed the babies (who are so stinkin' adorable) and read books to Abra.  We went to church and watched movies and sat in her backyard and drank blackberry wine. Picking cherries at a friend's house Paula lives in Forest Grove, which is this picturesque small town just outside of Portland.  It is exactly the kind of town I'd want to live in someday.  You feel like you're in a small town, but it's near a big city.  I even drove by Klickitat Street in the next town over, confirming my suspicions that it is indeed the perfect place to have kids.  (Bonus points if you know who lives on Klickitat Street.) O

After leaving my friends in Green River, I headed to Lassen Volcanic National Park, where I did the Bumpass Hell hike.  Wasn't expecting all the snow!  I was getting kind of irritated with it and thought to myself, "All right, Mother Nature, this better be worth it."  And it was. I saw fumaroles and mud pots.  It was really loud, like being at a construction site, and smelly, like rotten eggs. Looking down into Bumpass Hell: Lassen Peak: That night was my first attempt at camping alone.  I passed up a developed campsite to find something off a dirt road in the national forest, just like I was used to with Jason and Kristin.  I found a spot with a beautiful view of Lake Britton and Lassen Peak and set up camp. As I sat there eating dinner, I heard a sound in the woods.  I convinced myself I imagined it, but a little while later, I heard it again.  Meanwhile, I had an uneasy feeling about this campsite the whole time I was there.  It just didn't feel ri