The Sites We See

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Picacho Coffee Roasters!

There will be a full New Mexico Post towards the end of our visit. In the meantime, check out the quick video of Celine and I lending a hand over at Picacho Coffee Roasters.

We are having an amazing time here. :) Some well needed R&R

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Colossal Canyons

Life in the desert has been quite good to us so far! After leaving Vegas we headed for the Grand Canyon!

---------------------- Arizona ----------------------

We arrived in the late afternoon to the southern rim of the canyon. We decided it would be a perfect opportunity to stay and watch the sunset. The colors of the rocks were truly breathtaking, especially since they seemed to change as the sun sunk below the canyon rim. The executive decision was made to stay into the nighttime in order to see the stars and to take some cool night shots and we also agreed to cook dinner on the cliffside. It was an unreal experience.

Once we were finished eating, we packed up our things and headed back to the van. Our plan was to sleep in Kaibab National Forest right outside Grand Canyon National Park boundaries, but when we arrived we found that the forest was on fire and that camping was temporarily banned due to the hazards caused by the wildfire. Instead of sleeping close by, we chose to drive 2 hours north and make way towards our next stop, Bryce Canyon. We slept for the night in a Walmart parking lot (as there is NOTHING else in the area for miles and miles) before continuing on to Bryce the next day.

---------------------- Utah ----------------------

Bryce Canyon National park is quite remarkable. The hoodoo formations are like something from another planet! Driving into the park felt like we were driving the mars rover far out on the red planet. The colors are so vibrant and the patterns in the rocks are super intricate. Seeing the canyon from above was great and all, but as soon as we saw the hiking paths down amongst the formations we HAD to get down there. We did a small hike down into the canyon and around a ridge where we navigated the labyrinth of hoodoos and cracks in the canyon. One of the things that stood out to me the most was the trees that grew out of the canyon. The green lively plants really popped in the midst of the sharp orange canyon walls. We spent the night in the park at one of the campgrounds so we could take our time exploring and didn't have to travel far back to camp.

After a chilly nights sleep we were up and ready for our 10 hour drive back south to see Celine's cousins Julie and Alex in Albuquerque, New Mexico!

Sin City Secrets.

Had some good times in Las Vegas...Wont say much as the saying goes...

Thank you again Ana for the Hotel!!!

Sunday, August 31, 2014

The Great Golden State

Officially made it from coast to coast! After leaving crater lake we hopped on the 101 and headed into California! Our first stop in The Golden State was the famous Redwood National Park! Walking through this forest was immensely humbling. You feel so small standing next to these thousand year old giants. While walking through, you notice the old battle scars from past forest fires that swept through the area. However, these massive trees still survive and continue growing despite the flames. We even did the cliche (but necessary) drive through the Chandelier Tree.

Eager to hit the Pacific Coast Highway, we trucked on from the redwoods and headed south down the coast. The drive was beautiful but visibility was slim for a while due to the heavy fog rolling in off the coast. We stopped at College Cove and hiked down to the beach to watch the sunset from the shoreline. It was so scenic and peaceful. We stayed a little longer than expected and had to walk back up through the woods in the dark…( the flashlights on our phones certainly came in handy!) That night, we found an RV parking lot at a Casino that offered free overnight parking which was really convenient. Once we were all rested up, we hit the road yet again to head to San Francisco to meet up with our good friends.

Celine’s old roommate Chris was flying in on the 23rd to hang out in the bay and it just worked out perfect that we were in the area. We all stayed at our friend Connor’s house for a few days and got to explore San Francisco which was a lot of fun. Of course we did all the touristy things like drive the Golden Gate, check out Fisherman’s Wharf, Chinatown, hit the beach for a day, and even paid a visit to Haight and Ashbury.

While sleeping one night in the Sullivan household, the Bay area got hit with a 6.1 scale earthquake! The news was saying that it’s the biggest quake to hit the area in over 20 years! I would be able to describe what it was like in more detail..however..I slept right through it. Haha! Celine tried to wake me as the house and bed was shaking, but I just didn’t budge. Go figure.

Once we got our fill of San Francisco city life, we headed back into the wilderness to Yosemite National Park for the National Park Services 98th birthday!!

Yosemite was absolutely amazing. The views, the wildlife, and the people we met all collectively made for the perfect Yosemite experience. Night one in the park we stayed outside the valley and got a spot in White Wolf campground. That night, we met these two dudes from California, Nick and Bill, that were super awesome. We had a great time drinking around the fire. The next day, we headed down into the valley for some day hikes!! We decided on hiking a steep and strenuous 7 miles to see both Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. The hike was extremely hot but the end result was beyond rewarding. I got to jump in the pool under Vernal falls and then Soak in the pools above Nevada falls. The hike up gained a little over 2,000ft in elevation!

That night after our hike, we texted our new friends Nick and Bill about hanging out. They actually invited us to stay at the cabin with them that they had rented right in the valley!! (which was beyond generous of them.) We had a great time swapping stories and showing pictures and videos of the trip. Even got to head down to the beach really late and take some star pics with the other Nick while everyone else went to bed.

Lets stop here for a moment and say a really well deserved thank you.

Heading out of Yosemite Valley we had to part ways and say goodbye to a huge part of our road trip, Alyssa. She has been with us since day one. When we broke down, she helped us and stuck it out the entire time. We couldn't be more thankful. She was such a great addition to #thesiteswesee and her contributions will not go unforgotten. We wish her all the luck in the world on her endeavors in Denver. She was a kick ass road trip partner and we were lucky enough to have her along for our ride. It has certainly been a great run from Massachusetts to Yosemite California. We will certainly be missing you going forth. <3

Soo...

Back to the City Life!

We left the Yosemite Valley and headed south again to good 'ol Los Angeles! We were headed to Celine's cousins Mike and Cupid's house in East Hollywood. We've been having a lot of fun hanging out with them and exploring the area; they are really good tour guides! We got to walk around Santa Monica and see the pier, Hollywood walk of fame, the Hollywood sign, and simply chill out near Sunset Blvd. While on the pier me and Micheal had to stop and battle our skills out in a best two out of three game of air hockey. They were intense matches but in the end Micheal was victorious.