Another direction...

After waiting a couple of days in Utah and realizing that we had a few more days before the storm would pass, we decided to take a trip east to visit my sister and her family outside of Denver, CO. We stopped by Arches National Park on the way and traveled some very scenic highways. Ironically, we seem to have brought the rain with us - Colorado doesn't see many fully rainy days, but it rained almost the whole trip over and the rain arrived at our destination at the same time we did (and hasn't stopped since!) oops. Still, it has been great to visit my sister and nephews! Certainly a better place to wait :) We'll be off again in a couple of days.

The sandstone at this Park is susceptible to eroding away to form arches.  They were everywhere!

This is one of the most famous arches.  You can walk up and stand under it.

Another famous arch.

The scenery was again pretty spectacular.

I liked seeing the arches and landscape from afar more than up close.

Henry mountains and Capital Reef - photo taken from 9,000 ft in the Dixie National Forest

Just as we were leaving Utah, we were admiring the rocks when a double rainbow popped up. We were quite close to the end of the rainbow!

My nephews think the car bed is pretty comfy!

Utah Hiking and Waiting

We hurried down to Utah so we could get some great hiking in right away, but as soon as we arrived, we quickly were greeted by stormy weather... some intermittent, but pretty much rain everyday.

So far, we've fit in one overnight hike in Bryce Canyon National Park and a day hike there plus one more day hike in Escalante National Monument. Bryce Canyon is full of stunning views that are accessible by driving with just short walks, so we saw a lot of that as well.

We came out of the forest up to the rim of the canyon where I took this photo after spending the night in a meadow

Logan on the overnight Bryce Canyon Trail - It was surprising to see so many trees at this elevation - 8000-9000 ft

These formations are called hoodoos and are not found in other canyons.  They are formed from the continual frost/thaw.

Check out this tiny spire! Nature is pretty amazing...

Descending into a narrow canyon on switchbacks. Busy trail!

A natural arch formed by frost heave and erosion

Just my size natural archway

The landscape reminds us how small we are.

We came to Escalante National Monument and managed a nice 6 mile day hike to a waterfall with really fantastic views.

The vertical lines on the rock are called Desert Varnish.  Scientists aren't sure how they form exactly, but they contain
manganese and iron to create the various colors.  It's like seeing paintings and sculptures everywhere out here.

Notice the hiker at the bottom of the photo - what an awesome landscape!

Lower Calf Creek Falls at the end of our day hike near Escalante (ignore my finger!)

We also have done quite a bit of driving.  Highway 12 that goes between Bryce and Escalante and then on to Boulder is one of the most beautiful scenic highways in the world! The views are truly spectacular - above, through, and adjacent to colorful and unusual canyons.

Just one view from Scenic Highway 12 in Utah

Due to flash flooding dangers, washed out dirt roads (that lead to trailheads), and potential lightening storms, we are currently in a little bit of a waiting period.  Who thought we'd come to the desert and be met with over a week of rain?

A New Home!

Ever been tired while driving along and wished you could pull over and get some shut eye? So did we :)

Instead of finding a campground or a hotel, we can now sleep in our car while we are on the road.

We just got back from our first trip trying it out.  We went across the mountains to the east side of the cascades - Okanagon County. Pretty great place... Pros: Beautiful, sunny, small towns, good community, great recreation and hiking. Cons: wildfire, lacking much water, expensive to buy fertile land, and difficulty finding work opportunities. We also have some friends that are moving there, so that makes it more enticing... it's in the running for a future place to live.

... but back to the car...  That was our tryout trip and it was excellent! Super spacious and comfy.

Here is a photo of what it looks like from the back without the mattress. Logan spent a day designing it and another day or two building it. He used mostly scrap wood, but purchased most of the slats on top for $30 and the hardware for about $20 - less than one night in a hotel!

The bed frame Logan built in the back of our 2003 Honda CRV.

Here's how it works...  

The bed still folded with the seats all the way forward.

Pull the string while unfolding the flap, then let the legs down

The bed frame folded out with the front legs down

Bed frame unfolded from the back with the curtains up

When driving we have the mattress folded across the back, which still allows for full visibility and then once we've folded the frame down, we unfold the mattress.  Easy. 

We have a queen sized wool mattress in here and those are room darkening curtains that Logan made with velcro that attach to cover the windows. They only cost about $24 inlcuding the fabric and velcro. There is also enough room underneath for 4 totes and quite a bit of other stuff.

The cord that holds the front legs in until you let it loose is an important innovation because otherwise, the legs run into the seats on the way down. Clever...

Mattress laid out on the bed frame with room darkening curtains on windows

Check that out!

A table tucked away underneath

Table underneath (there is extra space under for the tools)

The center support folds up and attaches with a magnet

Here are a few more nifty things:

Under the carpet, there is a folding table that we can pull out to cook on, etc. In order to access it, Logan made the center support hinged, so it can fold up to access the table. It has a cabinet magnet to hold it up.  Fancy.

The wood is mostly pine, which we chose for its low cost and because plywood off gases a lot. We wanted something natural that wouldn't make us sick in any way.  He had one piece of red oak and one piece of poplar, so since those are harder, he put them on the two ends for more support.

When we lay down, we can use the backs of the seats as head rests, leaning up against them while reading and we have a velcro directional LED light so we can read without using our headlamps. We're living in luxury here.

The frame if very sturdily attached, so it doesn't shift at all and will not come loose if we are in an accident, etc. The back is tied in through 2"x12" and bolted into D rings in the car frame. The front is also tied in at the middle supports with cord. The brackets keep the frame from flexing from side to side.

Because he built it over the wheel wells, when it is expanded the frame is approx. 48" wide by 76" long - not quite the size of a queen mattress, but since it's squishy, ours easily fits. The major concern was to make it long enough for Logan (he's 6'2"), but he actually could have even have made it a little longer, so nice surprise there.

Extra storage space from the side doors

I love the extra storage space from the side. We keep our clothes, shoes, and extra gear in theses areas.

Rain visors so we can get fresh air without getting wet

In order to let in some fresh air, we can either open the back window or roll down the side windows an inch or two. If there are bugs, we have a bug net to velcro onto the back window and if it's raining, we installed rain visors to keep the rain on the outside of the car...

Pretty exciting! We're off to Utah tomorrow morning. Look forward to some beautiful canyon country photos soon. Thanks for sharing the journey with us! I'd love to hear what everyone is up to... send me a note if you have a chance.

New Adventures in Life - Featuring Hiking!

Hello Friends!  It's been a couple of years... Since I last posted... During that time, Logan and I were living in New Haven, Connecticut. He received his Masters in Forestry from Yale University in May and I was working for the New Haven Land Trust, among other fun activities (auditing forestry classes, volunteering with different organizations, and meeting loads of amazing people - miss you guys already)...

Now, we've returned to the west coast and are starting some new adventures!  In a meandering search to find the perfect place to call home while enjoying our current freedom, we've decided to hike this fall and visit friends and potential places to live/work until we return to the Seattle area to celebrate Christmas with Logan's family. We're hoping by that time, we'll at least have made a decision about where to spend the winter :) This seemed like a good time to start sharing my adventures again.  Hope you enjoy... 

I joined Logan in Seattle at the end of September and we went on our first little hike shortly thereafter in Washington's North Cascade mountains. We hiked a total of 3 full days (2 half days and 2 full days) for a total of 46 miles southbound on the Pacific Crest Trail from Hart's Pass to High Bridge. Special thanks to Logan's folks for generously driving us before and after!

Where we walked: 46 miles of gorgeous mountains

Location of the hike in Washington State

We traversed breathtaking mountain country, climbing to 7,000 ft. See the glaciers in the distance?

Stopped for a stretch & lunch with mountains on all sides. Wish you had lunch here today?

If you look closely, you you can see the trail we walked on the far ridgeline and crossing the slope on the right.

I loved the side sloping! & check out that red jacket... I made it! It's ultralight and reversible.

Fall is the best time to hike among all the colors!

Our first day started out with the unexpected - SNOW! and even a little hail. This was late September and not particularly cold elsewhere, but we had warm clothes and I thought it was fun to see my first snow of the year up here. By the end of the day, we'd reached a valley, where it turned to rain and then stopped altogether. This trip also surprised us with 30 degree temps at dawn and dusk. No trouble for me though - this summer I made myself a ultralight insulated pullover (and it's reversible!)... wore it almost the whole trip!  The views of mountain ranges, valleys, rivers, and of course the fall foliage were astounding! A mule deer mama and fawns hung out for breakfast with us one morning. After we reached the end of our planned 46 miles, we rested and enjoyed a couple of fun days in the town of Stehekin (where you can only arrive by foot or boat!) In addition to devouring many delectable bakery items, we picked free apples at an organic orchard and visited a beautiful waterfall. Not a bad start to the fall :)

Mule Deer at breakfast

Apples were abundant

Logan admiring the waterfall near Stehekin

In just a few short days, we are leaving for the canyon country in Utah! Logan made some dramatic improvements to his Honda CRV which make it possible for us to live out of it for the next few months - expect the next update to include photos and details about our new temporary home on wheels!