Joshua Tree National Park

Posted on December 2, 2013 by bottlingmoonlight | 4 Comments

Joshua Tree National Park, California

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve wanted to visit Joshua Tree National Park. The name always conjured up images of a strange desert landscape full of alien trees transplanted by fairytale characters. Naturally, I had high expectations. They were blown out of the water! This park was incredible for so many reasons that have nothing to do with the fantastical plant that gives the park its name. Although seeing forests of Joshua Trees is reason enough to visit this southern California park.

We visited at a great time of year – the very end of October (yes, that means I’m a month behind on my posts). The weather was warm enough during the day that light fleeces were all that was needed, except when they were tied around our waists while we were hiking. As soon as the sun went down, it got cold. It was in the low thirties at night, so we didn’t spend a lot of time out of our tent in the evening hours. But, when we did spend some time in the cold night air, we were rewarded with the most brilliant sky I’ve seen on this trip. We’ve been camping for eight months. Without a doubt, Joshua Tree takes the prize for the most brilliant stars and inky skies we’ve seen. It was not lost on me that the lack of moonlight added to this effect. Like the Joshua Trees themselves, the night sky is reason enough to visit.

We expected to have our choice of campsites, given that the park has a generous number of sites and we were visiting in the middle of the week in the middle of the school year. We were wrong! Yes, there were plenty of spots from which we could choose, but many of the sites were already taken. Some of the spots were filled with retired travelers, a few with families who appeared to be on long-term pilgrimages like us, but most of the campers were rock climbers. Had I known more about the camel-colored rock formations pushing up from the desert floor like large drops of liquid not subject to gravity, this would not have been a surprise. We set out to find a campsite that would protect us from the 60+ mile an hour winds that were predicted at night and found a site where we could set up our tent in a crevice between rocks and shrubs. The wind may have howled, but we were snug and warmish all night long.

Campsite Success!

Alan’s ankle was beginning to feel better, so we were able to go on a number of small nature trails and a few proper hikes. Van loves the nature trails, mainly because he loves running from sign to sign or number to number. He was a little boy in heaven. My favorite of the nature trails was our amble through the Cholla Cactus Garden. The garden is situated in a part of the park where the Colorado Desert meets the higher, Mojave Desert. There are many types of Cholla Cacti throughout the southwest, but these particular Cholla, the Teddy Bear Cholla, get their name for obvious reasons.

Teddy Bear Cholla, Johua Tree National Park

Just don’t cuddle them, or even get close to them. If you brush against one with the slightest amount of skin or clothing, spines will jump off the plant and on to you. This gives the cute but unfriendly plant its nickname, Jumping Cholla. This was a case of making sure that our little Junior Ranger really stayed on trail. Thankfully that’s the one rule about hiking in sensitive habitat that Van has really embraced. Especially since he was working on obtaining yet another Junior Ranger badge.

We also took several hikes and nature walks through the Joshua Tree forests, in and around the magnificent rock formations, to see a small dam (a remnant from when this area received twice as much rain just a short century ago), and to see hypercolor Disneyified petroglyphs. Shocking to think that this area, which receives so little rain, received twice as much a mere century ago. It makes me wonder what this area will look like in another century, after climate change has an even more significant impact on the temperatures and rainfall in this area.

The most fascinating hike we took was to 49 Palms Oasis. We hiked up and over a ridge through a dry desert landscape dotted with barrel cacti. As we headed down into a valley, in the distance was a striking site. A small cluster of green. Palm trees in the middle of the desert! Yes, I’ve seen plenty of palm trees in the middle of the desert before. Typically in straight lines along streets, golf courses, and resorts. But to see a natural palm oasis was something else. What appeared to be a tiny cluster was actually quite large once we were hiking amongst the palms. I can imagine how hikers in the hot summer must feel such relief in the shade of the fan palms. And so I repeat myself, hiking to a true palm oasis is reason enough to come to Joshua Tree National Park.

49 Palm Oasis, Joshua Tree National Park

My biggest lesson from visiting Joshua Tree is that the layperson’s view that a desert is devoid of life is categorically untrue. Joshua Tree is an incredibly diverse biological environment. Many of the plants were new to me, and I had such a blast learning about the myriad of plants we were living, hiking, and eating around and what each plant did to conserve water and thrive in this environment. More surprising to me was the richness of color found in the plants. I expected that the plants would mimic the colors of the rock and soil. Instead, many of these plants stood out for their saturated colors against the tans and browns of the desert floor.

Deep Reds of a Barrel Cactus, Joshua Tree National Park

Greens of a Fan Palm, Joshua Tree National Park

Our last day in the park coincided with Halloween. We were not about to go trick or treating in the campground, so instead we celebrated by taking Van to Skull Rock. Aptly named, indeed!

Skull Rock, Joshua Tree National Park

Given the government shut-down, this was the first national park we had visited since the Pacific Northwest. It was great to spend a few solid days in the outdoors – no traffic, smog, or crowds. And since Van is growing up before our very eyes, he’s finally at the age that he can participate in the Junior Ranger activities with more understanding. Although he had received two junior rangers badges at previous parks, this was the first park where he completed the activity booklet in order to earn a badge, bragging rights, and a fabulous book that he continues to read about Lilly the Joshua Tree. The rangers were incredibly supportive and friendly with Van, which just added to how much we enjoyed Joshua Tree. If you’re traveling to Southern California, spending a few nights camping and exploring this park should be very high on your agenda. Aside from seeing friends, Joshua Tree was my clear favorite during our time in California.

Butterflies, Pelicans, Elephant Seals, Museums, and Smog: We Must Be in California!

Posted on November 23, 2013 by bottlingmoonlight | 2 Comments

To Beautiful to Bottle It!

After a fantastic week in the San Francisco area, we slowly made our way south along the coast. Our first stop was at a truly luxurious resort-like campground just south of the city (Costanoa KOA). From there we enjoyed the beach, played lawn games, washed dishes in warm water (a true luxury), and spent a day in Palo Alto having our car serviced while we frolicked around Stanford’s campus. This was my first time seeing Stanford and…wow! What an incredible campus. I felt like I was visiting a cross between a university and a resort. I know there are a few of you Stanford grads reading this blog – what a beautiful place you called home for a few years! This is definitely a place to visit if you’re ever in the area. Unfortunately for us, the museum was closed the day we swung by, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the Rodin Garden. Van especially enjoyed posing with the sculptures.

Was Van a Muse for Rodin?

Strong Like the Sculpture

Stanford

The theme of our time on the Central California Coast was wildlife. Beautiful, sea-loving wildlife – from human wildlife to feathered and flippered friends. We spent an enjoyable afternoon watching the pelicans soar above the ocean and getting our toes sandy while we watched men and women in wetsuits fly across the water.

We also ambled through the Pacific Grove Monarch Sanctuary, spying the beautiful winged creatures hanging like dead leaves from the branches of eucalyptus trees. It reminded me of Barbara Kingsolver’s recent novel, Flight Behavior, except not quite that overwhelming.

Monarchs in Pacific Grove

From Costanoa, we headed south along the coast through Big Sur. Big Sur is the name of a town along the coast, but it’s used more commonly to refer to the entire stretch of coast between Carmel and San Simeon. The views were stunning, but my favorite was the walk to the cliff’s edge to spy a waterfall crashing into the surf below at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. McWay Falls and the horseshoe-shaped cliffs with a beautiful sandy beach tucked into its embrace was paradise. Not a paradise where you can get your toes sandy, but a view of paradise to enjoy from above. There are signs warning you not to climb down the cliff face to the beach below, and I think we’re all better for that.

McWay Falls, Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park

Big Sur, California

As beautiful as the views were, the highlight of our day was easily our stop in San Simeon. No, not Hearst Castle (we figured that Van wouldn’t appreciate it and we wouldn’t appreciate his whines on a guided tour), but the elephant seals! We were given good advice to stop and see the seals. While the smell was a little overwhelming at times, it didn’t stop us from spending a long time just watching these awkward creatures sunbathe, play, fight, and amble across the sand to the sea. None of us could get enough of it, but Van was particularly enamored by their antics. Below are a few of the dozens of photos we took while we were captivated.

After we pried ourselves away, we headed down to our lovely little motel in Morro Bay for a couple of days of errands and exploration. Unfortunately, the only decent photo I have of our time there was of Morro Rock, a very large (and very cool) rock erupting from the bay.

Morro Rock in Morro Bay, California

And from there we went south. We checked out a few towns along the way, but our main goal was Los Angeles. We spent several nights at a very over-priced and not tent-friendly KOA. I’ll save you the details except to tell you that we were the lucky attendees of two loud and competing concerts, all while in our pjs in the tent. Sigh…

I was excited to visit Los Angeles with Alan and Van since I’ve always been a fan when I’ve visited in the past. Though we had some great times on this visit, I realize that between camping far from any of the things we wanted to do (tent camping in the state parks was either booked solid or insanely priced – $45 to $60, no thank you) and the high level of smog, it was not an ideal visit.

Proof We Were In Los Angeles!

View of Los Angeles

That being said, the highlights were an afternoon in Santa Monica spent with Alan’s college friend, Tyler, and a day full of art at The Getty Center and The Getty Villa. Pro tip: if you’re planning to go to one of these and you have a full day, go to both on the same day. As long as you make reservations in advance to visit the villa (this is required for the villa, not for the center), you only pay for parking once ($15) and the fee is good for both places. There is no entrance fee, so the $15 parking fee is all that is needed to visit these gems.

The Getty Center, Los Angeles, California

The Getty Villa, Malibu, California

My favorites at The Getty Center were the architecture, the gardens, and a stunning temporary exhibit of Abelardo Morell’s photographs. From a past visit, just days after it first opened, I remembered that the views were stunning, as well. Alas, the smog got in the way of that during this visit. Van’s highlight was rolling down the hill. Over and over. He was in heaven!

These gorgeous flowers reminded me so much of dancers. Any leads on what type of flowers these are?

My parting observation about Los Angeles: there are a lot of Persians in this city! Given the current exhibition at The Getty Villa (The Cyrus Cylinder and Ancient Persia), we weren’t surprised to be in a sea of Persians, but that wasn’t the only place where I noted a high volume of my lovely husband’s kinfolk. Sadly, we didn’t partake in any kebab or ghormeh sabzi while were there. We’ll just have to wait until we get back to Colorado.

Lessons Learned v.5

Posted on November 20, 2013 by bottlingmoonlight | 1 Comment

It’s getting colder, and our thoughts turn from where to travel next to where we’d like to live. As we run through the possibilities and all of the pros and cons, I’m getting a much better sense of my priorities. Between that, and the thoughts that come as we approach a transition in our life on the road, the lessons are coming hard and fast. Here’s my latest installment of lessons learned.

1. I do not want to live in a home that is part of a Homeowner’s Association. In certain areas, this eliminates large portions of housing. So be it. I don’t want anyone telling me I must have a two car garage, can’t hang my laundry out, can’t paint my house pink and purple, can’t have chickens or bees or goats or llamas or pet tigers (ok, maybe it’s ok if they tell me I can’t have a pet tiger). Nor do I want my neighbors to be so constrained. I understand that this opens me up to more “risk” of my neighbors opening a junkyard next door. Oh well. Homeowner’s Associations are great for some people, just not me. I’m glad I’m fully aware of this before buying a house in an HOA.

2. It is easy to travel far and wide and still only associate with a certain type of people, eat in certain types of restaurants, and stay in certain types of places. I think it is more important to travel half an hour away to a place with people very unlike you and your cohorts than to travel halfway around the world to associate with similar types in a slightly different cultural context. Some of the worldliest people never hop onto a plane, but instead fully immerse themselves in all the worlds around them. After traveling to so many places but never staying in one place for very long on this journey, I’m looking forward to getting to know a new place in depth. And not just the parts of that place that immediately appeal to me, but all the parts I may first overlook or turn away from.

3. Fall feels like home. Fall is my favorite season. Fall is Alan’s favorite season. What is the one season we missed this year? Fall. In order to attempt to outrun cold nights in the tent, we missed this most magical and cozy of seasons. I hope that this is the very last fall we ever miss. I’m not sure winter will feel the same without having been welcomed by the golden hues and smokey, sweet, crisp air of autumn.

4. When the choice is more land or more house, I will (almost) always choose more land. I don’t need a big house, but I want to be able to see lots of green from my window. I also don’t need a lot of land, but nine times out of ten, more land will satisfy me better than more house. For me, a house is really just a place to take a break from the sun, the wind, the rain, and the snow. Oh, and a place to curl up in front of a fire with a good book. Can’t forget that!

5. You can’t have it all. Certainly not at once. This is fine, but it’s a myth that gets perpetuated for young people, especially young women. When we finally realize that we can’t have it all (if we ever believed that to begin with), the truth can sting a bit. I already knew this, but when you begin to prioritize all your goals, it crystallizes this truth in a new way.

6. Having a place that feels like home is almost as important as having a place to call home. I’ve had many places to call home in my life, but only some of them actually felt like home. I spent the past two years in a very nice town home in the suburbs. It was clean, safe, and nice, but it never actually felt like home. I realize that I put off so many things that I would have done had the place felt like home. I never felt invested in the place, and in turn, it only served as a place to live and not a true home. Besides becoming invested in any place I live in the future, I’d also like to prioritize finding a place that feels like home.

7. It’s hard to go wrong with green chile sauce in New Mexico. Not much I can add to this, except for the fact that I am loving New Mexico, its people, and its delicious (and inexpensive) food.

8. I scare a lot less quickly than I did eight short months ago. There are so many ways I could illustrate this, but I’ll stick with one. Coyotes. I like coyotes. They’ve never scared me and I’ve found their cries hauntingly beautiful. But that didn’t stop me from scrambling out of my tent in Kentucky when they were making a kill very near by. At that point, we still had our van, which is where the three of us spent the rest of that night. Fast forward about seven months, and we’ve heard numerous coyotes, but none as close or as constant as when we were camping in Tucson Mountain Park. There were dozens in the area around us, some near by, some far. But even when they were howling mere feet from our tent (and even when our semi-crazy camping neighbor joined in with the coyote howls), I felt warm and secure in our tent and enjoyed the evening serenades. I’ve come a long way, baby!

Flexing Our Social Butterfly Wings in San Francisco

Posted on November 15, 2013 by bottlingmoonlight | 2 Comments

Our travels have been a relatively solitary affair. While we see friends and family from time to time and speak with strangers most places we go, the vast majority of our time is spent just the three of us. Then…BAM…everything changed. But just for a week. Over the course of six days, we had plans with six different sets of friends! It was so much fun and such a great change of pace. It also gave us the opportunity to see the San Francisco area through the eyes of locals. This was, without a doubt, my favorite city of the trip thus far.

Obligatory Golden Gate Bridge Shot

Obligatory San Francisco Fog Shot

We began our visit with a visit to Napa (no wine tasting for us, just grape peeping) and a delicious dinner in Petaluma with Alan’s college friend, Dan. Thanks, Dan, for the fanciest meal we’ve eaten on the entire trip!

The next morning, Dan took us on a tour of San Francisco, complete with a visit to the roof of his office building with superb views of the city.

San Francisco on a Sunny Sunday

Not our Usual View!

Van’s favorite was clapping in the middle of the dome at the Palace of Fine Arts and listening to its amplification. Although he did also bust quite a move to some house music on the street. Budding dancer?

Clapping at the Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco

Dan and Alan

Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco

We capped off our relaxing Sunday with a delicious dinner at the Marin Brewing Company with my former colleague, Jane, and her family. We had an excellent time! So excellent, in fact, that I forgot to capture any of it on film. Van was particularly enamored by Jane’s daughter Sarah, who happens to be fantastic with younger children. I see great babysitting potential in her future… Thank you Jane, Jason, and Sarah for a great dinner out and for putting up with Van’s keyboard accompaniment to dessert!

We decided to head back into wine country on Monday and check out Sonoma. We were just about to stop and taste some wine, when Van fell fast asleep. Instead of enjoying some crushed grapes, we spent another few hours driving through the gorgeous countryside. Based on appearances alone, Sonoma has Napa beat by a long shot in my book. The area is so much more pastoral and intimate. More grit and less shine. More blue jeans, less heels. Our favorite was the area up and around Healdsburg. This would be a great place to return to when Alan and I have the chance to get away without the little one in tow.

Van woke up just in time to run around the playground in the center of Sonoma before we headed off to Santa Rosa to spend the evening with my friend Jess and her son, Brayden. The boys had some more playground fun while Jess and I caught up. We hadn’t seen each other in over five years, but it felt just like yesterday. After the boys had exhausted some of their energy, we headed out for some real California Mexican food. Much to my embarrassment, Van has been the welcome recipient of Taco Bell, which he refers to as Ding Ding, several times during this trip. As soon as he heard Jess tell him that he was going to have rice and beans for dinner, his face lit up and he said, “Ding Ding?!?!” And this, my friends, is when I knew that we had led him far astray. Jess, you’ll be happy to know that we haven’t been to a Ding Ding since we’ve seen you. We have, however, had some more terrific Mexican food. At this point, I think (or at least, I hope) Van would revolt if we took him back to Ding Ding after experiencing the real deal. Thanks, Jess and Brayden, for a fantastic night and for food that was much, much better than Ding Ding!

Brayden, Jess, and the three of us after filling up on some excellent Mexican food

Trying to set a trip record for most days in a row that we ate a meal out, we headed into San Francisco on Tuesday to have lunch with my friend, Bryna and her lovely girlfriend, Sarah. The company, the food, the atmosphere…it was all perfect. Sarah had to skip out after lunch to finish studying for an exam, but that meant we had Bryna all to ourselves that afternoon. We spent a perfect afternoon sprawled out on a blanket on the grass while Van played for hours on a playground in Golden Gate Park. Heavenly! Again, it was a case of feeling as if no time had gone by since we’d last seen each other. Now if all of these wonderful people in my life weren’t so scattered across the country… Oh well, that’s what travel is for! Thanks for a great San Francisco day, Bryna. We miss you!

Stacey, Van, and Bryna in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco

After five nights of camping in a KOA in Petaluma, which we learned is populated on the weekends mainly by people from….Petaluma (what?!?!), we packed up and headed off to spend the day and night with my friend Mahea in rural Sonoma county. We spent the day eating delicious food, drinking beer in the sun, wandering around Mahea and Alea’s lush gardens, feeding donkeys, moving mulch, and picking dinner. This is my definition of a perfect day. Spending it with Mahea made it even more magical. Alan, I hope you were taking notes! Alea, thanks for sharing Mahea with us for the day. We were sorry to miss you! Thank you, Mahea, for a truly refreshing day and night.

Mahea, Van, and Stacey

Fast Friends

My New Friend!

I think…

Mahea made a huge impact on Van. Almost a month after we had seen her, Van asked us over dinner one night if he could see Mahea and travel with her to Oregon and Washington. So cute! If you’re planning a trip up there any time soon, Mahea, your traveling companion is set.Van asking to travel with Mahea is a big deal. He rarely asks for anyone by name except for family members. There are three other exceptions to this rule – Liam (his friend from home), Radar (our friend Elizabeth’s dog), and Bobby (Elizabeth’s boyfriend). We had met Bobby when we were in Seattle, but he happens to live in San Francisco. Given that Van had not stopped asking to see him, we knew we couldn’t leave the city without seeing Bobby. If anything, spending the evening in the Mission with Bobby just cemented his super-cool status in Van’s book. He introduced Van to Delores Park and its awesome, new playground, took him (and us) to see Clarion Alley, an alley of large, brightly colored, and definitely not G-rated murals, ate lots of yummy tacos, and played “tunnel” over and over again on the darkened streets. The latter of these largely consisted of Van and Bobby being silly while Van ran through Bobby’s legs, yelling TUNNEL! Thanks, Bobby, for a perfect end to our stay in the San Francisco area! Where will we see you next?

Is There Anybody Out There?

Posted on November 12, 2013 by bottlingmoonlight | 24 Comments

Inspired by a family member’s superstar blog (thanks, Nate!), I set a few blogging goals for myself this past summer. My goals were rather modest. The first, to have 50 email subscribers, was reached quickly. My second goal, to have 10,000 page views, will be met in the next couple of days. All of this has me thinking, who out there is following along on our adventure? I’d love for you to leave a quick comment introducing yourself and letting me know how you found the blog. I’m not sure what will be more interesting, finding out which of my friends read this regularly or hearing from strangers who are following along.

Happy trails!