homeward-hound

Seattleites for a Month: From Ballard to Cascades

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Sun, 02 Feb 2025 05:03:23 GMT

At the end of August 2024, we ended our time in Bend and we had a full schedule ahead. We loaded up and struck out to Nehalem/Manzanita, Oregon – our first time at the Oregon Coast. We met up with Annie’s family for a weekend stop on the way up to Seattle for the month of September.

On the way to the coast, we stopped off in Newport at the brewery that produces one of my all time favorite brews - Rogue Dead Guy Ale. We bought a palette of beer (practically) and took the pups for a stroll on the pier, catching harbor seals - the pups of the sea - as they floated beneath us. Copper and Bennett caught whiffs of their sea brethren but couldn’t quite put their noses on the scent–one they were well acquainted with from our time in Pacific Grove and the abundant marine life there.

In Nehalem/Manzanita, we celebrated Annie’s birthday with a homemade vegan Biscoff cake and spent time with baby Fiona, the newest and most potato-like member of the Elliott family. When the potato slept, we explored the town and enjoyed the beach, marked by amazing beachside cliffs, crested by sunset rays flashing through the coastal fog. The trip was too fast as it was only a few nights before we were off again as we crept our way up through the PNW forests to Astoria, OR and then on to Portland for an overnight hotel stay–one of Bennett’s favorite stops on the road. Bennett loves hotels for some reason.

An overnight stop in Portland meant one thing: McMenamins. This iconic spot served as the perfect gathering place to meet up with friends and coworkers. Breweries, a cigar bar, apple trees, and sprawling outdoor spaces—what more could we need? Shoutout to Jax and Nick, Dave, and Becka for coming out to join us. After a couple of pints and plenty of laughs, we hit the road again, Seattle-bound.

Spirits high after getting to catch up with some old and new friends, it was time to get serious – next up was Seattle, WA and the dance card was booked solid.

After settling into our new house–a small one-level, 2 bedroom Airbnb with a spacious yard, dwarfed on all sides by multi-level townhomes, we kicked things off with more Elliott family time. First up, we all reconnected at a brewery on the water to bring in Annie’s younger sisters to the crew. During their visit, we spent plenty of time at Catherine’s (Annie’s older sister) home in the Magnolia neighborhood. Everyone braved a vegan tasting menu ( vegan tartare, anyone? ) for an extended birthday celebration, explored the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPoP) and took plenty of photos-especially of the new addition to the ranks of the fierce Elliott women.

From there, Seattle went hard. Somehow an Isle paddleboard arrived at our doorstep - not sure how. But we figured we might as well take it for a spin and see how well Bennett could manage. You could say it went swimmingly. Though we do think a seal was becoming very interested as it followed Annie and Bennett into shore at Golden Gardens. The paddleboard plan was short-lived however. We only got in a few spins before the cold came in. At least we’re set up for next summer!

We continued to explore and experience the wonderful city of Seattle. Here are a few of our most memorable moments:

Annie Family Time and Fiona

Since Fiona had been born in April, this was the first long stretch of time we were able to spend with her. Annie had flown out for a quick overnight stay to meet her at just a couple of weeks old, but five months in and things had changed quite a bit! We loved getting to play with the little lemon, watching her explore her new world, enraptured by lights and leaves. We ended up as a very proud aunty and uncle and are loving the brave curiosity with which she approaches her existence. We are looking forward to more time when the crew comes to visit us in Breckenridge (just a few weeks away!).

Annie and Catherine were able to get out for a couple of girls’ nights, one just the two of them and one with Catherine’s local crew ( Lacey, Rachel, Jenny, Holland) –her first full gal outing since Fiona was born! Drinks were had, information was overshared, and fond memories were made.

We also loved being able to join in on some of the Ross family traditions with them. Ian has most of his extended family in the area, and we were able to get some fun time in with his mom, Leslie. A spunky, down to earth adventurer, she brings ease and openness into every interaction. We are always thrilled to have time with her.

Lastly, we were able to tag along to one of the Barich (Ian’s family) get-togethers in Edmonds, Washington. About a 45 minute drive from our place in the heart of the city. We spend some wonderful time chatting with the cousins, aunts and uncles of Ian, and doting over Fiona as the centerpiece once she arrived. We also were able to take advantage of the location and stop into Kuzman’s fish market (IYKYK) and some Bibimbap in Lynnewood (see previous).

Ballard Locks

The Ballard Locks was a great walking trip with the pups. There were many different viewpoints, from railings right alongside the ships, to under the surface, with viewing windows and a bonafide salmon ladder. We got to see salmon run as they worked their way inland from the Pacific. The harbor seals and sea lions lay in wait for the fish and we saw some massacres as they breached the surface and left a bloody churn of waves in their wake. Not for the faint of heart!

Whidbey Island

We joked throughout the trip as every time Annie visits Seattle, she can’t avoid a trip to Bainbridge. It turns out this was the first time she managed to do so. Instead, we took a cruise out to Whidbey, riding the ferry (another favorite dog activity) and exploring. There were tons of little shops, craft stores, sandwich shops, coffee shops, etc. It felt very laid back and made for a good casual cruise. We got a nice little hike in with cliffside views and PNW terrain. Annie still has dreams of the vegan breakfast sandwich she found there. I was able to get some amazing seafood tacos last minute as I had less luck finding a GF breakfast sandwich on the way in. As we drove back to the ferry we were able to catch some stunning sunset views. We were cutting it close but ended up with a mantra - miss the ferry, catch the sunset. Maybe a new country hit?

Ballard.

One of our favorite parts of the trip was just our little Ballard BnB. The location was pretty ideal. We had space away from the street due to the size of the yard/lot. We were off the main street and didn’t see too much activity, but we were very easily within walking distance of nice restaurants, bars, grocery stores, farmer’s markets, and essentially anything we’d need. We definitely took advantage of this to work remote from coffee shops, get a haircut, or go for a snack/walk break.

We also had a memorable night going for a bar crawl and hitting up some of the well known breweries in the area in the brewery district during Oktoberfest season.

However, in terms of neighborhood outings, nothing beat the weekly Ballard Farmer’s Market, with vendors galore-from vegan treats to flowers to produce and all kinds of fare, it was a sensory delight for both humans and dogs.

It may be a pretty standard city experience, but we did love having the option to avoid driving and stretch our legs, popping out to little cafes right from our front door. We also loved having colorful neighbors, such as the nosy elderly lady who also walked straight down the middle of a drug deal. As Annie likes to say, “culture.”

Sailing Date Night

So we're in Seattle and, as you do, you have to get out in the bay somehow. We thought sailing would be appropriate. We wrapped up work on a Friday and rushed out to grab our boat. The clouds were gathering however and the rain started to spit. We lined up for our tour and watched as a huge group was drinking beers from a large cooler they had carried. We were sure if they were coming or going. The rain continued to increase and it seems the group was bailing on the sailing trip. We got on the boat and we nearly had it to ourselves. Fortunately that gave us lots of extra space to spread out and we got underway. Unfortunately, as soon as we took off we heard the sailing crew chatting – 0 knots they said. In spite of the weather, wind was not part of it. This meant, no sailing.

That didn’t kill the vibe however. The clouds eventually peeled back and we had a quiet cruise with great views of the skyline, harbor seals playing along the rocks, and clinking glasses as we enjoyed our charcuterie and champagne anniversary picnic.

As we got back to the dock, we ended the evening by grabbing some amazing tiki drinks at Navy Strength.

Social Distortion

Another fun anecdote. With baby Fiona now joining the family, Catherine and Ian’s concert plans were slightly disrupted. I ended up accepting an extra ticket (Catherine’s) to see Social Distortion with Ian at the Show Box. I had maybe heard one of their popular songs in the past, but I was not very familiar with their tracks. As I met up with Ian, the bar was practically handing out drinks and we couldn’t refuse. The show was great. The music felt appropriate, like what I’d listen to while working the docks, slinging halibut onto the ice and waiting to clock out, get a round, and maybe another tattoo.

When I woke up the next morning, I think I still heard their music, or some ringing in my ears:

Turn around
They'll try to keep you down
Turn around
Turn around
Don't drag me down

Grant’s Local Crew

While in town, we were also grateful to be able to see some local friends and folks. I was able to visit one of my OG home boys, Dustin, seeing his great house and getting out for tiki drinks at Inside Passage (a bit pricey but highly recommended). We also swung by for Lady Yum macarons which is increasingly a go-to dessert for me (do they ship?). We barely missed being able to see the Amazon Spheres, but we’ll save that one for our next visit (along with Chihuly–how did we miss these?!)

I popped out for a lunch with local product managers, peers of mine at GitLab. That was my first time out to the UW area and would say - parking is not great, but the shopping area was. I brought back some gluten free and vegan cookies and the acclaimed “handcrafted” Rachel’s Ginger Beer .

We had a super nice hike, dinner and brews with coworker Jocelyn and her boyfriend at Snoqualmie Falls.

We were able to catch up with Lacy (Grant’s cousin), her husband Phil and their two children in Snoqualmie, visiting the local distillery Westland and some pizza for lunch. Another day, we made it out to a wonderful dinner with coworker Sarah and her husband, Chris, at Ciudad . Great tapas, cocktails, and conversation as we learned about Chris’ new product plans for Safe House .

The Views

Washington is well known for its natural beauty, lush with greenery, the Cascade Mountain Range and Pacific beaches. We were determined to explore as much of it as we could, while still taking in the city. Our first stop to do so was Kerry Park, the best views in Seattle. The skyline views here are unmatched, particularly when Mt. Rainier is “out.”

We also took advantage of our jumping off point to explore some of the Cascades, with a nice Sunday spent driving a scenic byway for most of the day (and getting through some sort of cold). During the day mostly spent on the road, we made some pit stops for photos at Diablo Lake and got some stunning shots of Ross Dam along the way. Grant skipped rocks at the lake and attempted to lift Copper in his exuberance. We’ll let you figure out which one was more successful.

We also explored as many parks as we could, although we did skip Discovery Park, the largest park in Seattle. Since Catherine and Ian live so close, we had already been several times, and wanted to explore new dimensions. We saw paragliders at Gas Works Park, stopped at the dog park at Woodland Park, and took a leisurely stroll through the Rose Garden before passing through the Sensory Garden.

One last note on the views: a couple of weeks in, a season began. What is locally referred to as "spider season," spiders were popping up around every corner. It was equal parts terrifying and fascinating.

Starbucks and Space Needle

It goes without saying, you can’t visit Seattle without the most touristy of touristy days. So yes, we did it. We went to the original Starbucks, the Reserve Roastery. We had perhaps the best espresso martinis we’ve ever had - a trio of martinis with different flavors including orange, classic w/ a lemon wedge, and mexican chocolate.

Following martinis, we got as quickly as we could to the Space Needle for our ticket time. We planned to do the needle at sunset, then Chihuly at night. Our planning was not ideal. In spite of the time for our ticket, there was a huge line and wait to go up. We waited forever and accepted that we would not make sunset, nor would we make Chihuly. As we got up to the top, the space was packed and there was an equally long line to return back down. I was also met with the surprise that almost all of the flooring was completely see-through glass that had an effect of paralysis when attempting to walk across it. While I enjoy sliding down some steep snow-covered mountains, looking in between my toes at a 600 foot drop does not do much for me. Annie must not have appreciated the finer details of this architectural achievement and therefore (somehow) did not experience the paralysis effect.

The Roads

Ok, so. Here’s the thing about Seattle drivers. They are actually very polite and well-equipped. However. The roads. There are stop signs at intersections with stop lights (when do you have the right of way??). There are stop signs at every block (safer than not but maybe just pick a direction?). . There are steep, steep hills (make sure your tires have traction and Lord help you if it’s icy or wet). The roads are narrow, trafficky at times ( only one shall pass at a time) , and often lacking a grid layout or obvious rules of the road. The five way intersection requires a PhD level of calculus to determine whose turn it is. Sneaky highway entrances without any signage... I suppose it hones the driving skills? Drivers are great, planners….we have some notes.

A few more outings:

Seattle Kraken: Loved watching the Kraken display as the game starts with the effect of the Kraken surfacing through the ice.... RELEASE THE KRACKEN!!!
Kasey Musgraves: Amazing production value and an incredible show, but Annie feels she’s lost her roots. However, wonderful time with Catherine and Ian--the longest amount of time they'd both been away from Fiona at that point! She was in good hands with Gigi (Ian's mom).
Fly Fishing at Middle Fork: Ian and I joined up for a guided trip on the Snoqualmie, scoring a few rainbows and somehow avoiding splitting our heads open on the slippiest of rocks.
Live Love Spa: Annie got to get in some business while in Seattle, attending a local spa industry conference. She ended up winning a laser device, and gathering great local market insights. Every experience builds on the next on this wild ride.
Din Tai Fung Returns: While visiting just after Fiona’s birth, Annie was delighted to discover that the LA dim sum spot (with excellent vegan options) had additional locations, including a couple in Seattle. She was counting down the days until she was able to visit again, and it did not disappoint.

An update on Copper toes

If you’ve been following along, in Bend, Copper rubbed his nose into a pulp, like a shredded pencil eraser. He lost 10 pounds from his 4-a-day sniff workouts. But also, he seemed to have split his toenail. Things were not improving (even after several epsom baths and wraps), so it was time to take him in for a deeper exam. We found an amazing vet in Seattle who gave him such great care and were very sympathetic and thoughtful to our experience (getting pet care while on the road).

It’s here in Seattle we learned Copper had squamous cell carcinoma in the toe. He got a biopsy and we learned that fortunately the cancer was contained to his toe. But it explained how his toenail split and just not healing. The vet in Seattle tried to line us up with a surgery but it didn’t pan out as there was risk to have him healing on the drive to Montana. In the meantime, we began our fated dance with trying to keep him away from his toes – from stacking a donut onto a flexible cone to graduating to a sturdy XL length unit. So for poor Copper, his story picks up again in Columbia Falls, MT (with a happy outcome).

Leavenworth

Somehow, we ended up in Leavenworth (a Bavarian-style village) as we were heading from Seattle to Montana…. during Oktoberfest. What a cool place and fortuitous timing for us. We loved the Bavarian theme, the mountains with trees turning golden. We made a few friends over pints of Oktoberfest brews, had some great brats, the dogs found ground snacks a-plenty and we tried to steer Copper away from the horse drawn carriages for everyone’s sake.

As a fun aside, as we were leaving the area the next morning from Wenatchee, we felt like we had entered a time/space continuum, with the Sav-Mart store across the street looking like something from the Jetsons era of the 1960’s.

Holy smokes. I don’t know how we packed in so much. Next up - Columbia Falls, MT!

** notes in Italics are Catherine voiceovers

More pics

We ran out of room--here are the rest!

Brilliant Bounty of Bend

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 02:47:49 GMT

Flashback to 2021 - Annie and I are walking along a gorgeous river, with Copper and Bennett leading the way. Assorted breweries and restaurants were strewn across the riverside. The sun was shining, the people friendly. We had some beers at a brewery, while another next door celebrated a grand opening. We spent only a quick night in a quaint AirBnB, right alongside the Old Mill District - what that meant we didn’t really understand. We woke up in the morning, had this amazing breakfast and set our targets homeward to Colorado. In 2021, we roadtripped to Seattle for a few weeks (dogs in tow) and we picked a few overnight locations to stop at on the way to and from, and Bend was one of those locations that really stood out. After that short stay, we were hooked and knew right then we’d have to come back.

Not long after arriving back in Colorado that year, we celebrated Christmas at home then visited Little Rock to celebrate with Annie’s grandparents–another short road trip with the whole family. And on our return home, I recall doing some work with my laptop spread out in the back of the Jeep, with Annie driving. I’m uber-focused on my work, going through a lot of prep materials as I was still gradually onboarding for GitLab at that time. That’s when Annie interrupted me from the front, saying “your..brother is calling me?”. He was wondering if we were okay, that mom was frantic, that something could be wrong. That’s how we learned that Colorado was on fire, and it was seemingly very close to our house. I recall a lot of emotions as we considered if our house could be in danger, if we could be homeless, or how many others would be impacted. We learned as we got closer that our concerns may have been a bit over the top. The wildfire was not that close, though it wasn’t a complete non-risk. We did have close friends who had it much worse and friends of friends who lost homes. It was a scary time and definitely shook us a bit.

It’s with this backdrop we flash forward again to 2024. On our travel north from the California redwoods to the Oregon pines, we skirted the Park fire in northern California (the fifth largest in California’s modern history). We stopped in Redding and saw a number of firefighters passing through, staying at our hotel to help with the nearby fire. We continued on past Mt. Shasta (and the portal-IYKYK), past Klamath Falls, and on to the winding Deschutes River. As we drove through the pines, the skies were thick with smoke coming from the west. It felt like there were fires everywhere around us. We started to unload and take in our new abode for the month, near Tumalo in the north part of Bend. Two days later, another spark took light 2 miles away from us. We could see the smoke plume and we monitored the FireWatch app to see if we’d just have to pack up and go after all. Fortunately, as time passed and water bombers passed directly above our heads, the summer heat dissipated, rain came, and the fire was contained. We could finally breathe a sigh of relief and actually settle in!

The location - stellar. The yard was huge (and securely fenced). We had a lovely pergola, hot tub, outdoor couch, hammock, and some other hammock-chair thing. An outdoor table, firepit (which we decided not to use). We were inspired that we must take some of this back into our own yard space one day and took copious notes.

Copper's Playground

This is where Copper enters the story. This goober, god bless’em. He loved that dang yard. He started every day like it was a job . As soon as we were up to let him out, he’d clock in and would work to drag his nose across every square inch of that yard. It was like 2 acres. He’d come in and crash from exhaustion or we’d force him to come in. It was still fairly hot in Bend at that point as well, so he’d be panting and beat. He’d then pop up later, and clock back in for another shift, as long as we’d let him. After a few days of this, we started to notice this addiction was not wearing off. Instead, like a crack fiend, he started to develop rashes! His nose was literally being rubbed off . We had not seen this before in his life, so we weren’t sure what to do and started trying different tactics. We tried limiting yard time, but and finally broke down and bought a muzzle. This actually worked to protect his snoot, but he looked ridiculous. I couldn’t help but compare him to Bane from the Dark Knight. “You merely adopted the sniffs. I was born in it.”

You’d think that’s where the Copper stories end, but no. We soon discovered the source of the pure passion he displayed at his job. As I worked my own job, sitting in the office overlooking the front entrance through the window, I’m sitting on a Zoom call - as I do - and trying to be professional, when I look up and see a huge rack, sitting atop a giant mule deer. This deer works his way along the fence and beside my Jeep, about 50 yards through the window. I continue to attempt to focus when he hops the fence and beds down under an apple tree, possibly 20-30 yards from me through the window. This became a common occurrence, sometimes just the one, but other times there were 3 or 4 of them. Over the course of our stay, the deer would pass through, drop some scents, and Copper would diligently analyze every inch of yard. As we closed out our time in Bend, there was an epic climax to this plot line. Picture Copper out in the yard, 20 yards away from a mule deer, barking his head off. The deer bowing his head and all 12 points of his antlers towards him. Annie is running towards him with pinecones, and I’m running towards the deer looking for a rock. We finally startled him off, but this deer was territorial.

Ok, you’d think that would be all from Copper, right? Wrong. He also manages to split one of his toenails vertically, all the way up and down. We took him to a vet, we tried to put him in booties to contain it. We struggled to treat this guy and contain his energy in spite of it all. This particular thread we’ll pick back up on in the Seattle post, but Copper was and is… special. He’s always been high maintenance, but good grief, this was another level.

So what about Bend? Did we ever leave our deer sanctuary of a yard? Indeed.

The River

If it’s not already known and obvious, the Deschutes River is a major defining characteristic of the city. It stretches across the entirety of the city and is the perfect lazy river. It spans wide and rolls past parks, the concert venue, the shops and restaurants of the Old Mill District (including the Confluence fly shop where we occasionally popped in to enjoy their small bar with beer on draft), and flows all the way to the Columbia River, which then continues through Portland and out to the Pacific. The Deschutes is split into the Upper, Middle, and Lower sections, coming from the Cascade Lakes region, the Middle coming through the city, and the Lower being north of the city up to the Columbia.

We spent time enjoying multiple parts of this river, the first and primary activity being floating in the Middle Deschutes. We bought tubes and found it so easy to drop in from a park, float down right by the “Old Mill” which was converted into this amazing REI (which we visited and became formal members), and pass by the handful of murals decorating the greenway running across the river and through town. You could see the concert venue from the water (no tickets necessary), and then encounter the whitewater park. There are some small “rapids” to roll over, and to the right as you pass through a man-made wave zone where many surfers would practice surfing in a manufactured wave. With more time, I would definitely try this out. After the whitewater section, which was a mid-way point, you float calmly down to the put out zone where you can hop a shuttle back and do it again ($4 for unlimited rides!).

I also made several trips to view the water from a different vantage point, with a fly rod in hand. The Upper Deschutes has the Fall River tributary, which has a Trout hatchery. I tried my hand there with no real luck as a first attempt. This led us down some real backroads and Annie joined for the nature aspect, while I gave the fly fishing an attempt. In spite of my lack of success that day, it was the first day out all year for me and I was itching for more.

I then decided to set up a guided trip on the Crooked River. This river was about an hour away from Bend, further east. It had a different vibe as well. More western, not nearly as many trees. But I had a lot of success. I ended up with probably 10 mountain white fish. Not so much luck with the trout.

And then towards the end of our stay, Annie’s Mom, Susan, and her partner Luis came to Bend to visit and they were interested in a guided trip as well. On this occasion we got to experience more of the Upper Deschutes, visiting Sheep Bridge right below the Wickiup Reservoir. This was an awesome fishery, as the flows depend on time of year and with more flow from the spring melt, it is generally filled up. It’s essentially a lake. At the end of the summer, however, it had drained and was a meandering river with giant fish. We hit it at a really interesting time of year, we soon found out.

We were starting out and Susan pretty quickly had a hit and pulled in the first rainbow trout. Luis then snagged a fish and it jumped in the air as it came off the hook, and the colors we saw had the guide and I confused - it didn’t seem like the typical or expected rainbow trout, brown trout, or mountain white fish expected there at the time of year. There was this flash of deep red, some green, and some yellow.

As we looked closer through at the water, especially from the right vantage points above the water, we could see there were tons of Kokanee salmon, which are “landlocked Sockeye salmon”. They fight their way upstream to spawn and lay eggs but they were early this year . Their entire body changes colors to bright red, yellow, and greens, and you could see them easily the more we paid attention. They’d span 20 inches or more and really stand out. While they typically don’t eat during the spawn, they were early and we were excited to get lines in the water and see if they’d hit it. After a few trout and whitefish, I finally got a hit, fought and let the Kokanee take the line, worried it would slip off the line as they apparently are known to rub the hooks off against the actual “sheep bridge” along the water - this wooden structure that was no longer in use. After some time, I finally pulled in my first Kokanee. All of us managed to have a good day with maybe 20 or so that we brought into our net (all catch and release).

Another tributary was Tumalo Creek. It was practically in our backyard from our AirBnB, with a great park just down the road. We noticed many people using this river to float and we visited a few times to hike and explore it.

There are many other times we spent admiring the amazing Deschutes river and its tributaries, from overlooking the river from Deschutes brewery with live music, or from our bikes, or crossing over it to do one thing or another. It has to be said, I love this river!

Mountain Biking

Another gre at highlight in Bend is the access to mountain biking. To be honest, we didn’t take as much advantage as we hoped to, but we definitely got out a good number of times. There’s “Phil’s Trail”, a popular system of mountain bike trails of varying difficulties. We got out to the Deschutes river trail and explored a few routes there. The first time there and the section we chose was so perfect - not too difficult, great workout, and it gave us great views of the river all along the way. Several fast and flowy descents, and some challenging but manageable uphill climbs. We also visited Shevlin Park a few times which has some nice trails for both biking and hiking.

The pinnacle of our biking experience in Bend, however, would have to be our visit to Mt. Bachelor. Ski resort by winter, bike park by summer, we could send our bikes up the lifts and enjoy the amazing downhill terrain. Our experience with downhill has not been extensive - we’ve done downhill at Breckenridge and Trestle bike park (Winter park ski area). That said, Mt. Bachelor had some interesting characteristics. It’s essentially a dormant volcano and is covered in lava rock. Not quite like Hawaii with dark black crust from recent flows, but a grayish-black rock that was just piled up in random areas, not only at Mt. Bachelor but all around Bend. There’s also Newberry National Volcanic Monument right outside of Bend (did not visit this time around), but the entire area is very “volcanic” once you dig down below the pines.

Mt. Bachelor bike park had some amazing flowy trails. And I thought it was interesting to see this cement latticework that was used in parts of the trails, which seemed to help contain some of the loose dusty dirt around some of the corners. Riding over it at first was unusual but it built up some confidence in the control it afforded. If you’ve ridden some loosely packed dirt around a corner, you’ll know what I mean.

The Food and Drink Scene

When I think about our experience at Bend, another thing that stands out is how they approached restaurants, bars, and breweries. I’ve seen plenty of food trucks and I’ve seen cities that have a handful of breweries – Colorado of course is known for breweries as well. But Bend has a vibe. They have food truck parks galore. Some stable, some floating. They have festivals and pop-ups and food trucks just flock everywhere you go. The food truck parks, like Midtown Yacht Club, were especially interesting, with a stable address, picnic tables set up, a stable bar, but then multiple food truck options where you can just relax outside and choose from the many options (including vegan!).

The breweries were also great. We visited Deschutes Brewing on our first day, and Worthy Brewing was a standout option (I finally found another golden stout there, which is a favorite). And if you recall our 2021 experience, we got to revisit the now-years-open Immersion Brewing, which was having their grand opening when we passed through. It was crazy experiencing the city years later and remembering those fun times.

While we’re on the brewery topic, there was another theme or trend we noticed at breweries……. birds. There were multiple times we experienced people coming to breweries with their pet birds . Multiple times. At Worthy, there was a majestic white Cockatoo that was dancing with the music. At Sunriver Brewery, this dark black bird managed to exist feet away from us while we tried to distract Copper and Bennett.

And, lastly, if we are talking about food and drink, we have to make note of McMeniman’s. It’s apparently a whole thing in the PNW. There are more than 50 McMeniman locations and many of them are converted historic buildings or locations. The one in Bend we visited was previously a historic schoolhouse, the Old St. Francis School. Now, it’s converted into a mix of hotel, bar, cigar bar, and restaurant. Oh, and there’s a unique indoor pool. We visited a few times there but what stands out most was the speakeasy. You go into the hotel, up the elevator, and find the “broom closet”. You go into a room that literally looks like somewhere you shouldn’t be, with brooms on the wall, then you enter into a hidden bar. We enjoyed some memorable cocktails there and our first introduction to the McMeniman’s concept, which we’d continue on to find again in Portland (on the way to Seattle).

We did fit in a few other notable stops in this category as well:

Ponch’s Place
The Bite at Tumalo-another brewery/food truck spot
Stoller Vineyard tasting room
Fix & Repeat – Great little breakfast/lunch spot that we enjoyed on a Saturday workday

More Nature & Outdoors

There was truly a plethora of outdoor activities right outside our door, and we had many memorable experiences, while getting out a little bit every day. Some for hiking, some for exploring, and some literally in our own backyard:

Riley Ranch hike (Annie hopped out after work one day on her own, and hit a local, decent spot for some steps)
Cascade Lakes Scenic Byway (a 66-mile long stretch connecting many small lakes in the region. We made a couple of stops on this before Copper’s pain due to his nail issue had us turning back home :/).
Smith Rock State Park (stunning WestWorld-style landscape, right off the parking lot. Hiking down into a canyon with incredible views)
Annie Blue Lake hike (Grant went fly fishing one day, so Annie went hiking! A moderate hike through a classic PNW fairy-forest vibe, out to a heart-shaped small blue lake. Was treated to a cliff-jumper plunging into the 37 degree water)
Exploring the town of Sisters (this is a fun one because every building, sign, gas station, etc. is in a Western-style. Even the Les Schwab tires was on theme!)
Meteor shower (we were lucky enough to experience a meteor shower one night while in Bend-we drug our lawn chairs out into the middle of the 2+ acre yard and craned our necks upward to take in the show)
GoodDog! (a huge-but dry this time of year-dog park with lots of hiking trails and off leash space, dedicated for the dogs. We didn’t spend too much time here because there wasn’t much to see and it was pretty dusty)
Discovery Park (a lovely housing area with a dog park and a small community of businesses close by)
Annie also made a couple of stops at local spas–nothing particularly notable, but solid experiences (Earth Body Spa and Spa W)

It was here that we turned the TV back on, having been fully cut off since we left on our trip (with the exception of F1, of course). We piggybacked on a Peacock account to watch the Olympics and of course, had to watch the UK Love is Blind season. We have since sparingly used TV, and are challenging ourselves to very sparingly tune in.

Finally, Annie had a house nemesis from early on in our stay. There was a light in the kitchen that mysteriously would be on and off, seemingly on a timer. It had no switch that we could find, and there was no clear reason as to why it would be on or off at any given time. Come to learn, longer into the stay than we’d like to admit–it was a shaded skylight.

That’s a wrap on Bend! In our next post, we'll share our journey to Nehalem on the Oregon Coast, our brief stopover in Portland, and our stint in Seattle. We have fallen woefully behind in our blog duties, as we've moved on from Seattle to Columbia Falls, MT, and we'll soon be in Sedona, AZ. We hope to get caught up soon!

Coastal Cruise to Pacific Grove

annie.s.elliott@gmail.com (Annie Elliott) — Sun, 11 Aug 2024 03:43:04 GMT

So with our time in Los Angeles at an end, we set off up the 101-North, with stops planned in Ventura and Santa Barbara before arriving at our next base in Pacific Grove. At this point, we’ve designated Grant’s Jeep as the cargo car, due to its boxy and broad nature. This leaves Annie with the dubious advantage of transporting the pups – an advantage due to them being pups, the dubious part being the requirement of contending with Copper’s car demeanor at various intervals.

Our stop in Ventura was brief but lovely, grabbing a bit of brunch with an old college roommate of Annie’s and her husband. One of our favorite parts of this trip has been the opportunity to reconnect and rekindle old friendships that haven’t had face to face connections in up to a decade. After this, we forged onward to Santa Barbara, where we would encounter pier-side uni (sea urchin), the rosegarden at the Santa Barbara Mission, and the masses. Being graduation weekend for many nearby colleges, the town was flooded with tourists (tehrists, as we fondly refer to them), and it was HOT! We meandered around the pier and a few streets for a few hours before loading back up and homing in on our destination.

Arriving in Pacific Grove after dark, we weren’t quite sure how things would go. We had a pleasant arrival without issue, with ample street parking and a very sleepy town all around us, both of which were a bit of a shock coming from LA. We were in for a further adjustment upon entering the house, which ended up being three times the size of our San Pedro cottage. We unloaded what we needed, and crashed for the evening.

The next morning, the town of Pacific Grove emerged from the fog, a Brigadoon-esque idyllic village with storybook-looking homes and cottages. We remarked many a time about picturing Belle reading from a balcony here, or Hansel emerging from a cottage there.

As we explored and discovered new locales, some multiple times, a few became fast favorites:

Carmel-by-the-sea

Carmel is another, perhaps even more picturesque storybook town, just a short 15 minute drive away from PG. Quite a few dog friendly spots, such as Brad’s Barkery and a sushi place called Toro with their own dog menu (our pups opted for the salmon option). It was here that Copper’s eyes became cartoonish and saucer-like before he attempted to gobble down both his and Bennett’s portions.

It has several dog friendly beaches, our favorite being Carmel River State Beach. Not too far from this is Clint Eastwood’s Mission Ranch hotel, which has a lovely little restaurant where one can (and we did) pass some time overlooking fields extending to the ocean, where sheep and deer roam at will.

Big Sur

This was far and away our favorite section of the Monterey Peninsula. Stretching along wild and craggy coastline, when the weather is cloudy, it is dangerous and mysterious, holding space for moody and broody ponderings. When the weather is sunny, it is nothing short of overwhelming and breathtaking. Words come up short, and it is impossible to fully process the extremity of the beauty that surrounds. Blues of varying shades, from very light to deep and dark, are contained in the crashing waves, which themselves contain all manner of sea life. Absolutely spectacularly incredible doesn’t begin to cover it - though it’s a good start. Our favorite spots in this area were Garrapata Beach (which one can access by hiking in about ¾ mile down a trail from the road), the famed Big Sur River Inn , where one can sit in Adirondack chairs placed directly in the river while listening to a band play on the lawn above and Nepenthe , an eclectic eatery where you can sit on the balcony above the clouds and enjoy any manner of standard American fare. We also visited Pfeiffer State Park and Pfeiffer Beach (one being a state park and one being a state forest jurisdiction and thus both requiring separate passes). Both presented a unique landscape-the park with redwoods and riverbeds, and the beach with an extreme foggy/misty vista. Annie also spent a day at the famed Esalen retreat, where you can exchange a few hours work in lieu of paying a massive entry fee. She spent three hours peeling and destemming kale. She also built some character.

We could have spent many more hours simply driving up and down the Highway 1 coastline in Big Sur, from our home base in PG down to where the road is blocked due to a slide (just before the town of Lucia). There is no cell service in most of the area, and it feels wild and free and other-worldly. Point Sur in particular held for us a curiosity, as it was only visible on some days, and completely hidden in the mist on others. Accessible only by appointment, it was one elusive experience we have kept on our list to try on our next visit.

Local Beaches

We visited many beaches in the area, and a few stand out to mention in particular. As mentioned above, Carmel River State Beach was our favorite. We ended up there a few times, but our first encounter was the most memorable by far. After a long day of work, we loaded up the dogs to explore a new location on our list, and were pleasantly surprised by the lack of crowds, the wide stretch of sand, and the abundance of wildlife–particularly pelicans. It was a couple of hours before sunset and as a result, dinner time. We stood still and watched, awestruck, as hundreds of pelicans flew overhead from a river eddy that emptied to the ocean, out over our heads to scan the ocean and dive for fish, before flying back to regroup for the next volley. In fact we were so awestruck that we had to cross back out through the aforementioned river, which had risen up to Copper’s chest as the tide had come in.

Garrapata Beach was another favorite of ours, but slightly less accessible, as it was further out and required a (short) hike. The day we visited started out very cloudy but the sun eventually broke through, and we had the beach virtually to ourselves to explore and enjoy. Here there were unique rock formations and caves to explore-another striking experience of the Big Sur region. It was on this day that we encountered a life guard who commented to Grant about his Colorado Avalanche hat, and we ended up seeing him again at the Carmel River beach a few weeks later. Carmel beach is also very dog friendly, but a bit smaller and more crowded than the Carmel River beach, which is just around the corner. We were able to walk from our house to Asilomar beach out to Spanish Bay , which Annie and Copper did once or twice-it took a couple of hours round trip.

Santa Cruz

We were lucky enough to make it up for the day here, hiking Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park (where Copper bravely marched past horses relatively without incident), exploring the downtown area, and walking along the pier. It was another crowded day at the pier, but it provided an opportunity to get a feel for the town, and it was certainly unique. From music blasting, peace promoting, trailer toting characters, to roller coasters on the boardwalk, it was certainly a shift from our little town of Pacific Grove. We were also lucky enough to observe an otter just feet away from us, floating and cracking open oysters with a rock, all on it's belly while it floated on it's back.

Point Lobos

We made a couple of stops to a local state park-Point Lobos. We had received a recommendation for the spot from Grant’s friend in Orange County, and while we expected to find beautiful views, we were happily surprised to find a high concentration of wildlife here as well. From “sea lion point” to “bird rock” we saw both of the former, along with the otters dotting the water, and birds a plenty. We saw seals beached fourteen across on the sand, occasionally jostling each other for a bit more room. It doesn’t allow dogs, but that allowed us a bit more freedom with hiking along the trails at our own pace. It felt like Big Sur-wild, free and stunningly beautiful.

Pacific Grove and Monterey

While being a small, quiet town, PG also had plenty to offer.

Farmer’s Market and The 4:30 Club

The Monday afternoon Farmer’s Market was a staple of ours, where we often purchased sourdough, blueberries, strawberries, and a variety of produce. As mentioned in our previous PG post, we happily stumbled upon a welcoming group dubbed the “4:30 Club" . Most of our Mondays, about 4:30 pm, after hitting up the Farmer’s Market, we’d join our new friends, Terry and Kerry at Pepper’s for some Mexican fare. While the best margarita on offer was debated, the food was always good and the conversation better. Longtime residents of PG, they had plenty to offer in the way of advice, local tips, and stories. Kerry grew up in the area and spent most of one summer either in the pool or backseat of Joan Baez’s convertible. We still have some places we didn't make it to (like the secret hot springs off Little Sur River), but enjoyed immensely our conversations and their welcoming spirit. The last Monday of our trip, they organized their children and grandchildren to join us for a big send-off style dinner. We had a great time.

A few other gems in the area:

Big Little Lies - the Bixby Bridge
Lover’s Point - Otters everywhere
Seussical plants
Jack’s Peak hiking
Monterey Pride
Dust Bowl Brewing
The local deer herd and little family sightings on every walk
Hula’s Island Grill - the tiki drinks were a hit
Monarch British Pub

Memorable Experiences

We also had the opportunity to have many one-off unique experiences that we wouldn’t find many other spots, and in some cases, any other time:

Third Eye Blind at Henry Miller Library

In Big Sur, there is a tiny artist’s cottage just off Highway 1 named after Henry Miller, a literary innovator based in Big Sur for a large portion of his life. There, we had the opportunity to attend a Third Eye Blind concert, an unofficial stop on their “Summer gods” tour. Allegedly recording an acoustic, unplugged record, we were able to interact with them and listen in the most intimate setting for a concert hosting such a big name.

Laguna Seca

We were also lucky to arrive (unplanned) just the weekend before the Indycar Monterey Grand Prix , hosted at the Laguna Seca racetrack. Being the closest cousin in motorsport to Formula 1, we were thrilled to discover the coincidence and immediately bought tickets. Having attended an F1 race last year, it felt very similar, but more relaxed and laid back, and much less crowded. We were able to post ourselves up on the hill of the famous “corkscrew” turn to observe the first half of the race, and finished it down on the main grandstands, where we had a prime view of pit stops and the grand finale finish. In contrast to our F1 experience, the weather was perfect, the crowds were enthusiastic, and we had plenty of space to make ourselves comfortable.

Whale Watching at Monterey Bay

A unique highlight of our tour was the morning spent whale watching. The Monterey sub-marine canyon is highly unique as it's as deep as the Grand Canyon (if it was submersed), alongside it's ideal temperatures inviting rich nutrition for marine life. This attracts an abundance and variety of critters and while once almost extinct, the local sea otters have come back in force. It was seemingly impossible to gaze out at the coastline without seeing at least a few otters floating with the swells, having purposefully tangled themselves in the kelp. We saw several otters on this outing, in addition to harbor seals, a sea lion, and of course, a whale.

After departing from our port of call in Moss Landing, just about 20 minutes up the road from PG, we hit the open ocean in search of whales. Many people immediately hit the sick bags. Thankfully, we had come prepared with Dramamine to stave off the (surprisingly likely and widespread) risk of sea sickness. Even the most experienced sea farers often get seasick on these expeditions, due to the small size of the boat against the vastness of the ocean.

Our guide shared whale and marine life facts along the whole ride, and eventually helped us spot the whale along the side of the boat. We had passed another boat that tipped us off to the direction of the whales spotted that morning, and were in luck. Over the course of about 25 minutes, we watched as the whale spouted for air, dove for food, and our boat adjusted course every few sightings, in order to keep up. On our way back in, we saw a strange, stagnant fin sticking up out of the water. It stayed up briefly, before dipping down below the surface–our guide promptly announcing that we had just seen a salmon shark, a cousin and look alike of the great white.

Moss Landing/Castroville

After riding the high of the sea monsters we had encountered, we headed back in from Moss Landing, stopping in Castroville - the artichoke capital of the world. It is also home to Phil’s Fish Market , a superb establishment where one can purchase fish from fresh off the docks to fully seasoned and cooked. Grant opted for both, while Annie popped over to a vegan taco truck and both had a lovely lunch (with a side of artichokes).

Pebble Beach, Spanish Bay, and 17-mile Drive

The famous 17-Mile Drive was accessible from our home base in PG, but a bit further down the road was Pebble Beach Resort and the Inn at Spanish Bay . We spent a day exploring this area by car with the dogs, hopping from one “dog-friendly” spot to the next. Driving down the length and stopping at various intervals, we were surprised to find many fenced off areas and overall were a bit underwhelmed by the experience. Given it’s fame, we felt it might be more exciting–however, we had stunning vistas, with no access restrictions at Point Lobos, in Carmel, down Big Sur, and all around PG/Monterey.

Unless you are a big golf fan, your time is probably better spent elsewhere. It is all purportedly dog-friendly, and we had no issues with any access points. We stopped at Roy’s at the Inn for an experience recommended to us by Terry – the bagpiper. We settled ourselves about half an hour before the start, grabbing some blankets for our party, as it had become a bit chilly. It was quite a cozy setting, with warm cocktails, a wild, hilly ocean vista, and cozy blankets next to a heat lamp. At one point, we did have a resort employee quietly approach us and mention that the blankets were not, in fact, for dogs, and that he would have to remove it. Our bad-oops. Poor Bennett. The bagpiper was lovely, and the experience a bit cheesy, but it was a comfortable, cozy setting and together with the weather, evoked a sense of being transported to Scotland–Brigadoon indeed.

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Our hosts were generous enough to provide free passes to the aquarium, and after some research, we decided to stop in during “member’s night,” which we believed we’d have access to, as guests of members. We arrived during regular hours, just before closing, and had to make ourselves scarce for the hour turnaround between normal hours and member’s night. We ended up popping into a local vegan Mexican spot just a few blocks away, and passed the time easily. Grant was recognized as a doppelganger for a mix of Brendan Gleeson (it’s in the eyes) and Matt Damon (?). We’re not so sure.

We finished up and headed back down Cannery Row to the aquarium. However, as we approached the line for entry, we noticed many people also scanning QR codes and realized we had missed a step. While consulting with an employee who thought it would probably be fine, we were overhead by a member couple in line, who offered their extra tickets to us-they always get a couple extra and hand them out for free. We graciously accepted, made ourselves acquainted, and then went our separate ways, while being serenaded by a local Mariachi band that had been conscripted for the evening. We had a great time exploring the range of exhibits offered by the aquarium, focused on conservation and education. Our favorite was “Into the Deep,” although we did get to peek in to the penguin enclosure and that was a close second.

This act of generosity was one of a string of many we encountered during our stay. We often were stopped on the street to engage in brief chats with locals, trading dog pets, and little niceties. It was lovely. At one point, we even encountered a woman who hands out dog treats from a fanny pack on her walks, and bags of them from her car. The town had a friendly, open and welcoming spirit that we look forward to bringing back more of to our little corner of Colorado.

Overall, we loved our stay. Abundant wildlife, proximity to the Bay Area (Annie was even able to meet up with an old colleague), stunning vistas, and friendly people. We’d come back, we’d stay longer, but we’re comfortable moving onto our next stop. As we packed up and drove away, PG receded back into the fog ... .hopefully we’ll make it back before a century.

Final Call in City of Angels

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 05:12:19 GMT

The sands trickle through the hourglass as our time in L.A. comes to a close. The flames flicker in the corner of our cozy San Pedro cottage - the sounds of raccoons chattering, tires screeching, and gunshots (or fireworks) popping lightly in the distance. We’re pretty sure they’re fireworks.

While we blew through the bulk of activities in the first month, we were able to shoehorn a few more points of interest into our final weeks in L.A.

San Clemente and Dana Point

Nestled among some strange dune-like spires among the foggy (marine-layered) coast, the San Clemente beach was starkly different from many of the beaches we’d visited so far. Annie’s dad came out from Irvine to take a stroll and catch up.

After walking up and down the beach we then made our way into the town, which was lovely. We parked and strolled by the pier as we watched the surfers. It felt like a perfect weekend getaway spot with a surf vibe. The town was strewn with shops and we walked the streets and through a few neighborhoods getting a feel for it. There were tons of kids with e-bikes going to and from the beach, ice cream shops, and we found a nice dog friendly Mexican restaurant to pop into.

We parted ways after lunch with Señor Elliott and forded our way back through L.A. traffic towards SP. We were able to cruise first through Dana Point, which seemed like a nice town as well. We went to the point but discovered dogs are not welcome there - it happens sometimes in California. Bummer, but we were able to look over the harbor there and enjoyed exploring.

Huntington Dog Beach

Huntington stood out as probably one of our favorite beaches (that we visited) on this leg. Super dog-friendly, the beach was super clean - even as a dog beach, great sand, plenty of space. It was really worth the drive down from San Pedro. It looked to stretch on forever and reminded me more of beaches I grew up visiting in Florida. Lots of surfers and other ocean activities. The dogs were loving it.

On our way out, we stopped by a mobile pet store. The owner had spoken to us as we entered and we made a point to stop on our way back. Not a bad business model as there are of course tons of dogs at the dog beach. We also discovered a really great dog treat - Yak Chews. They have kept Copper and Bennett entertained for hours, and apparently you can also soak them in water and zap them in the microwave for a softer treat (haven’t tried this yet, but keeping this one on the list for future purchase). We later discovered you can also find them at your local Trader Joe’s…

After the dogs were thoroughly matted in sand and just becoming caked in who-knows-what from our travels, Annie persuaded me/us to go to a dog washing station. I don’t even know the last time we washed Copper, or Bennett for that matter. It was well overdue. Copper was a drama queen as usual, and Bennett took it alright I think.

Annie’s Spa & Vegan Tour

With all of our outings and activities, we managed to squeeze in a few stops to vegan restaurants, and I (Annie) managed a few more on my own. A big day was spent (literally and figuratively) in Beverly Hills, starting with the Tomoko Spa . A Japanese-style location, it was a high touch service from start to finish, with custom-made teas, a foot service ahead of each session, and a full suite for each guest to relax for an extra hour. This was my top spa on the LA-stop, although my assessment was certainly non-exhaustive. We’ll save that for another time.

Additional spas visited:

EN Head Spa: another Japanese style spa, but with very different focus. If anyone is familiar with the Japanese head spa trend, this is pretty much the same thing. I received a scalp analysis, a head treatment service and then we reviewed the results. I will say I was a bit underwhelmed and would probably only try this type of service again in an ultra-luxe environment or if I was having specific scalp issues necessitating treatment.
Surya Spa: popularized by Gweneth Paltro and her “Goop” universe, it is an Ayurvedic spa–the “spa” being less focused on relaxation and pampering and more focused on Eastern medicinal treatments. While each set of services is “customized” based on an analysis of a picture of your tongue (yes, I said tongue) sent the day before. A more in depth assessment can be done for an additional $350, which I opted to decline. I ended up receiving a massage, steam, and head oil treatment (shirodhara). A benefit of this is that you can eat meals while on-site for your services, so I was sent home with dinner and lunch for the next day. I have realized Ayurvedic spas are not usually the type of experience I’m seeking, given that when I go, I’m typically looking for a pampering/super relaxing experience, vs. treating specific symptoms or conditions. Let me know what I’m missing if you disagree!
Raven Spa: a spa in LA famous for it’s Thai massage, it was a popular suggestion in many LA forums for the best massage around. However, my experience left a fair amount to be desired. I found the overall experience fairly brusque and was unimpressed by the treatment itself.

Overall, Tomoko is the only location I’d return to on my next trip-I’ll refresh the list and try some newer, more relaxing options.

After my Surya trip, I hopped over to a vegan restaurant in Brentwood and refilled my toxins with some cocktails, crispy rice and 1000 layer potatoes.

I made it a bit of a theme to stop in vegan spots after spas, hitting up Pops Bagel Shop for a vegan bagel and cream cheese and Chaumont Vegan Bakery (and got a killer ube croissant).

Another spot was a vegan sushi restaurant in West LA - Kusaki . We had awesome sake and crispy rice again was a feature-we just can’t get enough of it.

Ever since viewing Bravo’s “Shah’s of Sunset” years and years ago (we all have our trash tv), I’ve wanted to visit “Tehrangeles,” a neighborhood of Persian eateries, groceries and stores. It was a bit smaller than I had thought it might be, and not extremely easy to navigate like the other cultural centers we visited (Little Tokyo and Little India). I did meet some very nice old men in a grocery who advised me on the best products to purchase and that most of the goods I had already selected were actually Turkish.

One other activity I did on my own was to “get my colors done.” House of Colour is a style consultancy and one I decided to explore by finding a local consultant to walk through the process. Through a series of scarves and comparisons, along with providing information about my coloring over the years, I was determined to be a “leaf autumn.” This immediately brought me back to my college days when Zoe would describe various outfits of mine as a “fall leaf.” Who knew she had it nailed all along?

Best views in L.A. – Waldorf Astoria, The Rooftop by JG

It’s also an energy vortex. Pro tip: double check the minimum spend before booking.

Long Beach Thrifting

So we had this great idea of going thrifting and finding local “looks” at each location we visit. We’d then go and do something of a photoshoot. Goofy? Yes. Did we do it? Yes (photoshoot pending). But okay we hit up Long Beach’s “Retro row” which was perfect. They had literally back to back antique and thrift shops down multiple blocks. I (Grant) found a Levi’s denim jacket, which I’ve learned is super Ell-ayyy right now. The cashier informed me this particular jacket was minted in the U.S. and apparently after around 2002 the San Francisco Valencia Street plant closed and the denim is now imported (or something along these lines), so it’s more rare to find? Anyway, I got a jacket.

I also decided that a black hoodie with a graphic tee and flat-billed sports cap was also Ell-ayyy.

Annie’s look is more like… chola-chique? Red sports cap, large golden hoop earrings, flannel, distressed denim and some rizzy kicks.

We ran out of time, but the ideal was to get a shot in front of the “cans” down at the pier. We’ll work something out.

In any case, our hope is to keep the threads light as we travel, so grab what we need for where we are, and ditch/donate as needed.

Running out of steam and a few local stops

In the last few weeks, we could feel our batteries draining. While keeping up the pace at work, we were also managing logistics - where should we go this week, what about tonight? How can we be sure to get the dogs (mostly Copper) out and zapped so we can work through the day? What are we not able to do and what must we do before we leave? How do we make sure we see friends/family before time is up?

We did our best and made note that if there's anything we miss, we’ll just have to keep a list for the future.

A few local spots we got out to over the last few weeks:

Swan Thai RPV – I will say, we really enjoyed all RPV had to offer. It felt generally more our speed and had nice restaurants, parks, nature, and felt quieter. Swan Thai was a quaint eatery benefiting from the bluff-side situating of RPV and as a result, had sweeping views of the coast.
Rancho Canitos Dog Park (RPV) - a nice little neighborhood dog park where one can watch the sun set over the ocean from a quiet hill
Laduree - Annie brought me macarons, which are one of the few treats I can eat (GF, thankfully)
Terranea dinner - Such a great spot, overlooking Point Vicente, in RPV, fun time with the Jerry crew (Natalia and co), with fancy smokey cocktails
Point Fermin and Sunken City - the dogs went nuts over some ground squirrels that were literally everywhere along this walk. It was not a very relaxing outing.
Long Beach (Rosie’s) Dog Beach - That day was poppin off the day we went, ran into what must have been a Basset Hound meetup (probably 30 Bassets)
Recreation Park in Long Beach - So random, they had fly fishing tutorials over some man-made lake there, and a complex specifically for lawn bowling? We also found a little dog park and the dogs made all the friends.
F1 watch party in Long Beach (Canadian GP) - held at a local brewery and a nice, (somewhat) familiar setting for watching races-with raucous fans gathering at odd hours to cheer on their favorite drivers and teams.
Drop by to visit our AirBnB host, Giselle, at Brouwerij West - This was a pretty cool brewery with much better spelling. Super open, apparently tons of events, good beer. Great company as well as we learned about Giselle’s non-profit, Los Courage Camps , helping underprivileged folks discover her passion of surfing! Giselle was our AirBnB host.
Temescal Canyon hike w/ Mia - Lovely hike and awesome visit with Mia! It totally felt like Jurassic park towards the end, as some nice blokes passed us by, they noted that Life, uh, finds a way…

Special Mention: Hug Life

Flossin' but have caution: we collide with other crews

Famous because we throw grams

Worldwide, let them recognize from Long Beach to Rosecrans

Bumpin' and grindin' like a slow jam

Tupac Shakur

Encountered early on in our trip and a staple that lasted us to the end, Hug Life stuck by our side, through thick and thin. While many may not fully understand the struggle, for the gluten and dairy-free, the lack of actually decent ice cream can be oppressive.

Inspired apparently by Tupac’s Thug Life crew (There’s literally a mural of Tupac on the walls inside), this was a great standout vegan/df/gf option for us. We generally just avoid ice cream, so it was a nice little treat and an excuse to pop out down to Long Beach.

What to get: Hug Life’s Reese’s Pieces (Tupac’s favorite)

Another Special Mention: Our little San Pedro Cottage

As we move on to Pacific Grove (and catch up on our blog posts as we are falling behind), the last note I’ll share here is that we really loved our cozy cottage. The comfy corner with our firepit, a bottle of sake, the hammock, and our little family. We enjoyed our time, seeing friends/family, and having a comfortable oasis in the city filled with greenery and flowers.

We'll see you in the blog and our instagram posts from Pacific Grove, then Bend, Oregon! ��

Los Angeles: A Diverse and Eclectic Tapestry

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Sat, 29 Jun 2024 05:24:12 GMT

So where did we leave off in our last post? Ah, yes - Yamashiro… crispy rice cakes and gorgeous views of Hollywood ��

What we discovered over the next few weeks is that L.A. not only has a lot to offer, but it also provides access to a wide range of activities. It’s not that surprising, but it’s different being able to experience and take advantage of it. We’ve pulled together a few highlights from mid-May to June. Disregard the fact that we’ve fallen behind in documenting our adventures as we’re now in Pacific Grove. We’ll have to catch you up.

L.A. Renaissance Faire

We coordinated to meet up with my college pal, Thor (save your jokes, he's heard them all), and his friends at the L.A. Renaissance Pleasure Faire (the “Ren Faire”). Apparently one of, if not THE first of the Ren Faires, originally started in Malibu, and later moved to Irwindale. They boast that more than five million attendees have visited the faire and average 20,000 people per weekend.

We rolled up, somewhat unsure what exactly to expect. We did not have costumes… we felt like plebeians. Thor had given us the tip that you can also rent once you get there. So we went that route. We went through the gates and immediately found the costume shop. I was a bit underwhelmed... I had imagined being a Viking with black leather, a drinking horn, and ruggedly handsome. The best I could pull off with the options was more of a ruggedly handsome poor merchant. Annie had similar aspirations. She was planning to go for a shadowy assassin with a cowl, but ended up more as a tomboy pirate (less rugged, more handsome).

Once you pick your items, you can grab a hat and a pouch you could tie to your belt. There were also no boots, which was unfortunate. So we ended up with tennis shoes that did not complete our look. When you are pure “noobs”, you don’t get to skip levels. I like to think of it as if we were starting a new video game. We were Level 0, no perks, no credits to buy fancy garb. But hey - at least we’re in the game! We did see a few people dressed as normies and they were the ones who stood out. We felt like we could at least blend in. I’ll also note - the pouch came in very handy, as it became the only place to actually store things - like your phone, wallet, potions, and rupees.

And so we commenced with our day, going past the many shops and stalls. There were drinking horns and costume shops where you could purchase the legit costumes for wayyy too much. Jewelry shops, trinkets, face-painting, beer, food stands - you name it. We also passed by a few shows that were ongoing: an old bearded man telling stories by a wood-burning stove, falconers holding owls and hawks on their gloved hands, and others trying to draw you in for some paid attraction. We probably spent the most we’ve spent anywhere for a basic beer... I think it was $17 for a tall boy.

We met up with Thor and his crew and had a blast! Annie had her hair done up at “Braids for Maids”, we watched a joust, stopped by a hookah joint, and took in the environment. It became more and more packed as the day wore on. We ended our day by watching a “Dungeons and Shakespeare” live show, where the host pulled some folks from the audience, rolled a giant d20 die (dice?) on the stage, and crafted a story based on the audience's choices and the dice roll. We parted ways with Thor and crew and made it back to our pups who were waiting (patiently, I’m sure) for us to return.

Escondido Falls and Calabasas

The next day we had planned to visit Malibu again - we visited Escondido Falls. This is where we came across the tent guy who posted up his tent directly in front of the main attraction ( see post ). Afterwards, we stopped by Malibu Seafood (an amazing beachside restaurant with fresh seafood, one of the must-do stops I recalled from my college days). We also stopped by Malibu Yogurt again, probably. Because how could we have skipped it anytime we’re within 10 miles?

From there we drove down Malibu Canyon Road and into Calabasas, looking for a few more old haunts – we looked for my old apartment at the “MCAs” or Malibu Canyon Apartments. I think we found it? We drove down to the Agoura’s Famous Deli, which was well known for curing hangovers the day after a long night. And we made a stop by the Erewhon grocery, so Annie could see what could be higher tier luxury than a Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods. Apparently they have amazing smoothies and great vegan options. But she also came back with a Sea Moss water? That’s when we bumped into Kim Kardashian…

J/k…obligatory Calabasas Kardashian reference

Local San Pedro, Long Beach, and Rancho Palos Verdes (RPV)

The next few days we were pretty consumed with work but we were able to venture around the local areas within our bubble.

A few local stops we made:

Redondo Beach
Averill Park (which we promptly aptly renamed Avril Lavigne park)
Naples - a little island with tiny beach and a nice walkway through some nice waterfront homes right by Long Beach
Hangar at LBX - lots of good food options in an open Hangar, lots of people hanging out outside with a local market set up
Botanic Gardens in RPV for dog day!
Annie visited Hart House for some great vegan fast food on her way back in from Seattle
Ocean Trails Reserve, by the Trump Golf Course (the very, very best golf course, better than any other course, many have told me)

We learned that when considering places within our bubble, we really like Ranchos Palos Verdes (RPV), Redondo, and Torrance has some nice shops and cafes. Long Beach has also been close and fairly easy to get to for a nice stroll or beach walk.

Annie also took a quick flight to Seattle to meet her new baby niece, Fiona (��). We'll see you again soon, Fiona! And Catherine and Ian and Baker...

Catalina Island

Next up was Catalina. We got a ferry to take us across from San Pedro pier to the island we’ve been gazing at across the water since we arrived. I recall Catalina from college and it was also popularized by the “Catalina Wine Mixer” in the movie Step Brothers. We found that they did create an event based on the movie (it did not previously exist, to our surprise), but we were just a week or so shy from the event. We met up with a local GitLabber (a coworker of mine and a member of my team, woo!). It was awesome being able to take advantage of my travels and meet up with someone from the team and get off of Zoom meetings. Alexander met us at our place, we got to the ferry and made our way to the island. The water was very choppy - we tried standing at times and taking pictures but we definitely had to sit down until the water smoothed out.

As we got in closer, the weather improved, the marine layer parted, and the city of Avalon was sparkling as we arrived. We only had 3 hours to spend before our ferry back, so we stopped for a bite, visited some shops, walked the coast and chatted. We took some shots of Alexander to fill out his online dating profile and strategized how to get him the most swipes. (Alexander, let us know if you’ve had any bites ;-) ). We also snagged a tiki drink in a little dive with the best lighting for pictures before catching our ferry back. As our ferry arrived back in San Pedro, we were able to see an aircraft carrier pulling out from “Fleet Week”, and the Battleship Iowa, which is a permanent fixture there as a WWII museum. We also got some nice shots of a “pirate ship” style sailboat and a few dolphins. The water was much more pleasant on the return. All in all, we learned that 3 hours was not enough. Catalina has a ton of hiking and water sports, so we’ve put a pin in it and we’ll have to return and do more one day!

And, couldn't resist this clip of the aircraft carrier...

The Getty Center

On every L.A. list you’ll find the Getty and I think leading up to this it felt something like a check-the-box type of stop. I recalled visiting during college and loving it but was hoping it held up for Annie’s sake. Some years later, I’d say the Getty’s still got it! Annie and I both found it stunning, with an amazing garden and sleek white marble architecture that perfectly captured the lighting during the golden hour. The views here, similar to Yamashiro, are grandiose.

We were unaware but it was music night, they had a cocktail/wine table and boxes of macarons (my favorite). We grabbed a drink (and macrons) and perused around the grounds and galleries in the time we had before a dinner reservation. We enjoyed some classics like Monet’s and Van Gogh’s, as well as an interesting sculpture exhibit from Camille Claudel. Due to our schedule, the stop was short, but I expect it would be a regular activity if we lived here full-time, especially to catch rotating exhibits and events!

Little Tokyo

Another step out of our typical cultural environs, we felt we had to visit one out of only three official “Japantowns” (the other locations in West L.A. and New York City). We met up again with Thor and family and learned this was a regular spot for them (or had been in the past). We might have helped them bring it back in rotation.

As we worked our way through DTLA, found parking, and took to the streets, it felt like any other city block. But as we got closer, the vibe changed quickly as we discovered the center of Little Tokyo. It was busy, there were red lanterns and lights strewn across a promenade, and there were hums reverberating from a koto a street vendor that was playing.

We browsed all of the pastry shops with unusual milk breads and donuts filled with matcha, yuzu and other fun flavors. We perused the gift shops filled with kimonos, tea/sake sets, and I ended up with a few shirts from a graphic tee shop, Popkiller.

We grabbed some food from one of Thor and Lyndsi’s favorite spots, dropped by for Taiyaki at Somi Somi, and then split ways with Thor’s crew. If you ever remember going for an ice cream cone as a child, this is the Japanese equivalent core memory-it's ice cream in a fish shaped waffle and simply delightful.

Annie and I continued on for some Japanese whiskies at Wolf & Crane, another cocktail in the alley of Far Bar (great recommendation, Thor), and we rounded it out with a stop at a Japanese bookstore and grocery store. So we ended up taking home a graphic novel (that’s a first), some bottles of sake (too many), fresh sushi, and some other Japanese delicacies you can’t find just anywhere.

That rounds out the last few weeks for us in L.A. since last post! I think this was literally only two weeks total (��), so we’ll split out the last 2 weeks in a separate post so we don’t exhaust you, dear reader, as exhausted we certainly were.

-Lord Thistlebrown

A (Work) Day in the Life

annie.s.elliott@gmail.com (Annie Elliott) — Mon, 24 Jun 2024 19:10:27 GMT

Saturday, June 22, was a perfect encapsulation of the workdays on the Monterey Peninsula. Since before we left, our work week has been Tuesday-Saturday, originally intended to take advantage of the smaller Monday crowds on the mountain during ski/snowboard season. We haven’t changed it since hitting the road, and it’s continued to be a great setup to explore more popular areas on less crowded days. At any rate, here are the mundane details of our workday should they be of interest.

Annie has been feeling pretty sick the past few days (Covid? Flu? Bad cold? You know the drill), so Grant gets up with dogs and lets them out in the yard (making sure to keep a close eye on Bennett in particular, who has decided we do in fact live here now and that this is her new neighborhood to terrorize). He makes his tea and heads upstairs to the office–our new place is a 3 bed/2 bath, which is quite the expansion from the 1 bedroom bungalow in LA.

Eventually Annie gets up as well, makes her mate (IYKYK), and eases into her workday. Dogs get breakfast and around noon we decide to go on a W.A.L.K. It’s a gorgeous day with lots of blooming flowers this time of year, and clear blue skies. We stroll around the neighborhood blocks, still exploring our area, and feeling thankful to be able to just pop out the front door and walk anywhere we want-a luxury we didn’t fully appreciate until we didn’t have it.

On the walk, we stop to smell the blooms, and pop into a local coffee shop for a London Fog-having a very peaceful moment sitting at a table outside. Fifteen seconds later, another dog comes into Copper’s space and we move on to avoid the extra stress. Copper can be a bit of pain when there are dogs in his space, especially when he hasn’t worked off some of his energy. The moment was nice while it lasted!

We head back to the house for work round #2, and Annie digs through the bags until she finds some DayQuil that she insisted Grant toss rather than pack and is glad he didn’t listen. It’s back to work for a few hours until we decide to get the dogs out again around 5, at which point the weather has shifted dramatically-as it happens most days, we are finding. Our first walk was shorts and t-shirt weather. The second is sweats and jackets–the mist has rolled in. Or rather, the marine layer.

We set out nonetheless, and the town has been transformed. It is misty and magical, with little storybook houses and moments in fauna, like a bench just there under a bough of flowers. This walk is more spent dodging wildlife than the first. A couple of deer families share our neighborhood, and while the fawns are so cute, they would not appreciate two misguided but enthusiastic hounds.

Along the w ay, we notice that there are such interesting, Seuss-like plants growing in this area, adding to the feeling that this really is the perfect writer’s town. It’s very quiet, yet near everything you need, and with abundant nature and moments of beauty to be found. Beauty which is completely lost on Bennett, who has taken to stalking the coastal birds any chance she gets.

Last stop of the day is a local sushi place in town that we’ve wanted to get into ever since we made our first attempt after the Farmer’s Market on Monday. A Farmer’s Market which has the best strawberries we’ve had in a VERY long time (insert concession that we have not had Tennessee strawberries for years), and was the perfect welcome for us the day after our nighttime arrival in town (and a long but beautiful drive from LA to PG). We wanted to go to the sushi place, but the owners got stuck in traffic (driving in from the Bay Area apparently), and it wasn’t open on time. Instead, we had the happy fortune of diverting to a Mexican restaurant just a block away, and meeting the 4:30 Club, with Terry, Kerry and the party co.

At dinner, they are running a bit behind (the food was worth the wait!) and so we are given a small sake to compensate. Grant recently downloaded Google Translate to analyze some of the teas we received from Annie’s family who recently visited Japan, so he takes the opportunity to have fun with it here, too. We also take some of the time while we wait to plan our activities for our Monday morning, since our afternoon will be taken up by the Farmer’s Market and 4:30 Club. This involves finding trails and hikes that are dog friendly and long enough with good sniffs for the pups to wear them out. Dogs are sadly not allowed at the Market, but it’s honestly better for everyone that way. We also find a few new eateries to add to our “To Eat” list, which involves an extra layer of vetting for vegan and gluten-free options. (Sidenote: we’re actually not finding this too challenging and just had some DELICIOUS pizza last night after Laguna Seca).

Today is hiking at Jack’s Peak, and the Farmer’s Market/4:30 routine. Terry and Kerry have given us some great suggestions–we’ll be sure to stay close.

Observations: L.A.

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Sun, 09 Jun 2024 23:07:09 GMT

Throughout the course of our time here in Los Angeles, we've spent the time comparing to our lives back at home in Colorado, absorbing the culture, and trying to get a feel for what it really feels like to live here. Some of the things we've seen, heard, or unfortunately smelled may stand out but don't fit squarely into a post of their own. So we're collecting some of our random observations here...

#1 - The skyline of San Pedro is filled with AT-ATs, or brachiosauruses.

#2 - Bikers (of the motorcycling variety) have a true deathwish out here.

#3 - It's important to define your "bubble" - where you can realistically get out and explore during the work week. There are so many things out here to do and they aren't FAR, but if you think it's easy to get to them you would be so wrong. The bubble for us has been 20-30 minutes of drive time and for San Pedro that puts us as far as Ranch Palos Verdes, Palos Verdes Estates, Torrance, or Long Beach at the most. Malibu, Santa Monica, DTLA, Hollywood, Laguna, Irvine... fuggettaboutit.. that's gonna be an easy 1 hr drive or more each way. Out of bubble - you need prep time to make it happen or plan it for the weekend, and account for traffic. So much time in the car!

#4 - Don't fret though... on every corner you will find a burger joint, an ice cream shop, and a donut shop.

#5 - We need to spend more time back at home on our backdoor area - pergola, firepit, some types of greenery and lighting, a hammock. The after hours hangout sessions outside of the house in a quaint backyard has been hard to beat.

#6 - You will smell a dead seal well before you see it.

#7 - We've never seen the actual end of so many freeways. In one day you could get to the "End of the freeway" sign for the 110, then later end the 10 and the 405 on your way up the coast. Is this where freeways come to die?

#8 - Folks here are super friendly and approachable, but if you meet them on the road, they won't hesitate to kill you and your entire family in cold blood.

#9 - But for real, we've had complete strangers strike up conversations much more easily it seems as we go about our day than expected, very genuine people. More authentic, or at least different, than at home in Colorado. It's like people will go out of their way, unprompted, to strike up conversation. Different even from what I recall from living in Tennessee.

#10 - On the other hand, there are some oddballs... we watched a guy in Malibu walk down the middle of a lane on PCH as he walked to the bus stop, unconcerned by traffic. When cars came to a halt behind him, they of course would honk at him to move to the shoulder. His response, of course, is to turn around flip them them off with both barrels.

#11 - On a different day in Malibu, we visited Escondido Falls - a #1 destination waterfall hike near L.A.. It was a fairly short stroll through a lush forest. A creek meandering alongside the trail. We get to the waterfall - it's super nice, great waterfall. Perfect spot for... you guessed it, posting up a tent right smack dab in front of it. Bro sat in his tent while people filtered in to get there Insta-perfect shots right in front of his tent. He decides to mosey out and take a splash in the waterfall, dipping his head in the fall and shaking his long locks like it's Maybelline. Then he returned, satisfied, to his private personal viewing location.

#12 - For our dietary restrictions, it's easier to find vegan than gluten-free. The food scene is remarkable - you'll find experiences here you'll never find back in Colorado. Back home, we can find good food experiences, but you have to seek it out. Here, you can stumble upon something new without a plan.

#13 - We're overstimulated... sights and sounds and smells. Working normal work weeks, while planning where to go tonight, this weekend, 6 months from now. Who can we see while we're here, who should we be coordinating with for 2 weeks from now? What do we need to fix now with the house for tenants back home? Did I just hear gunshots or fireworks? (narrator: it was gunshots). TAMALES! Hot TAMALES! .. coming from our back alley. Is that Christmas music? No it's an ice cream truck. Is there someone breaking through our front gate? No it's the electric company coming to check the meter at our AirBnB. Can we finally rest? No, time to take Copper and Bennett out to get some energy out. Who DDT'd my bank account?

#14 - Speaking of dog walks... no open spaces here. Walkability is nowhere near the same. If you want to go for a stretch, your options are limited and you'll have to get in the car (at least that's the case from our place in San Pedro). That has been a challenge for us and our standard routine.

#15 - Vanity plates are everywhere.

#16 - TV is overrated. We made it a goal to lean into "No TV", especially with our first AirBnB having no TV. We have monitors and laptops, but we've been intentional about fully experiencing where we are. Some days, especially towards the end of our first month, we've felt the nonstop schedule catching up with us, but resting in the backyard, reading, taking the dogs for a stroll, picking up the guitar... there's plenty else to do. It's easy to fall into the routine of TV but we hope to take this learning back with us.

#17 - It is "vibrant" here. We've enjoyed the fact that there are many different types of people here. And the city life has a different speed, it's louder, and there's just a lot going on all the time. There's colorful artwork and graffiti throughout the city (often very well done). But we've joked at times when things are also "vibrant" in less appealing ways. When overhearing the couples arguing, cars backfiring, fireworks(?) going off at 4 am, or when a neighbor's gutter is being replaced like 5 ft away while trying to work.

#18 - We miss our king bed. We have had better sleep.

#19 - It's actually been pretty cold here, at least in May. We've learned a lot about the "May gray", the marine layer that keeps the coast covered most of the mornings in May. The temperature can change quite quickly from overcast, cool, and windy, to very warm, sunny, and humid.

#20 - We miss the crispness of the Colorado morning air. There's something more refreshing about the air in Colorado. We miss the ease of getting out for an amazing hike, and to get out and not have to sit in an hour of traffic to get somewhere (at least generally speaking). Maybe it's possible here but much harder from San Pedro.

#21 - It's been awesome being close enough to some long-time friends I haven't been able to see in forever, and near Annie's family. Getting out to see people we know and getting to spend quality time is a great perk of this experience. There's less pressure than if we were just out on vacation for a week and trying to fit it in. It's much easier to meet up for a casual hike or bite and catch up!

#22 - We are still adapting to the mindset of traveling for vacation to traveling for a year. There's plenty of tension to take advantage of where we are and fit in all the things and to see all the people, but we know we have to build in some rest time. We know it. We will do that... we will, right?

Settling in and #deinfluencing

annie.s.elliott@gmail.com (Annie Elliott) — Wed, 22 May 2024 05:02:35 GMT

We are a full two weeks into our travels, and have begun to resume some semblance of old habits and routines. For our first week, we were still in vacation mode and with very particular goals around adventures and eating out. I was determined to take advantage of LA’s legendary food scene by mapping out the best vegan stops and picking up any vegan option available at coffee shops and bakeries along the way. I quickly became overwhelmed and had to filter my standards even further. Grant has still yet to achieve mercury poisoning from eating seafood, but he still has time to achieve his goal. We have also discovered that he can have sourdough bread, so that has taken on a large portion of our coffeeshop criteria and filters.

The first week, we took advantage of all LA had to offer, driving from Laguna Beach to Malibu and back over several days, watching beach sunsets, hiking along bluffs, and checking stops off our “LA Eats” google list. We hiked up to the Hollywood sign, saw old friends of Grant’s from his college days, visited said college and even took some pics in front of his freshman dorm. We found Dole Whip at “BuYo” (Malibu Yogurt for the uninitiated), and lived in a dream world where jobs, money and dietary restrictions were only concepts, not really tangible structures with potential consequences for carelessness. Here are many of the things we got up to over that first week:

Point Vicente hike (near our AirBnB and will likely become a staple)
LA Zoo with friends
Magic Castle with family
Malibu: Lily’s (IYKYK), Zuma Beach / Point Dume/Pirate’s Cove , Pepperdine, BuYo
Santa Monica pier, beach and promenade
Laguna Beach- Nick’s and The Deck with family
Brentwood and Alisa Viejo to hang with friends
Korean Friendship Bell
Rosie’s Dog Beach
Notable eats: Din Tai Fung , Pura Vita , Erin McKenna’s Bakery , HiroNori Craft Ramen , Hug Life , San Pedro Fish Market

Then, we had to get serious again. After all, this isn’t a year-long vacation. It is a year of travel, but also of work and pursuing life goals while exploring new geographies. So, we returned to the routine, sort of. Our workweek goes from Tuesday-Saturday so that we can have a weekday weekend to explore fun things without the crowds. That started before the winter so that Grant could get out and snowboard for a day without sitting in three hours of traffic each way. He is lucky enough that his employer allows for this level of flexibility (one of the reasons we decided to jump on the opportunity to do this year now). So, Tuesday came around, we set our alarms, and blearily began the workweek. I decided to start making chai from scratch to distract myself from having to work. We’ve had to observe ourselves a bit more closely than usual, since we may need different/new things in this different/new life, to ensure we feel balanced and capable. I am certainly a creature of habit and thrive in routine, so I will be working through trial and error to figure out the best routine for myself as our travels unfold.

Even with the full workdays this week, we haven’t forgotten that we are in a new place, and can explore. Every day after work, we’ve aimed to get out and do something, even if it’s just a walk in a new park. Bennett has especially enjoyed chasing the tiny critters around here, from birds to squirrels. Here is what week 2 has looked like (nightly fire pits not included).

Bogdanovich Recreation Center
Hiked to the Hollywood sign
The Beachcomber and Crystal Cove with family
Long Beach Recreation Park
White Point Beach/Park
Yamashiro Japanese Restaurant

And before you think I’m brushing over the challenges we’ve encountered along the way, and the not-so-glamorous experiences we’ve had, here are just a few:

Copper sneakily eating horse poop on the Hollywood sign hike, and then losing his mind when he found the horses, given his lifelong quest to transform into a horse and join a herd.
Annie’s hard re-entry into training after attempting to drown herself in dumplings (the first run did not go well)
Unwillingly discovering the unforgettable, exceptionally recognizable smell of a dead seal on the beach….and then immediately experiencing a sense of dread when smelling it again a few days later on a separate beach hike
Grant having to stick to a diet of rice and chicken for 24 hours to continue with his GI tests
Annie thinking she lost her wallet for a full 24 hour period and freezing all credit cards, having to figure out how to get her license mailed to her in time for her flight to Seattle next week (yay Fiona!)
Fielding emails and calls from our property manager while on the Hollywood hike, as they finalized the property for handover to our new tenants, and a very tense discussion about window blinds
Bennett had a flare up of joint pain or arthritis, and Annie had to make two trips to the vet locally to get her some anti-inflammatories. Thankfully, they worked like a charm and she feels 2 years old again, frolicking on beaches in and in fields.
Traffic…at one point, it took us over an hour to go all of 10 miles

We are also settling into our AirBnb quite nicely. Aside from the adjustment from a king bed at home to a queen on the road, the house couldn’t be better. We are finding our work spaces, the tamale guy comes by the back alley on Wednesdays (wheels his cooler through, shouting “tamale!” every 10-15 seconds, in case you didn’t hear). The dogs have finally discovered that another dog lives on the other side of the fence. They have also learned that since the house has a door both in the front and back of the house, when they are scolded and brought in for barking, they can simply make a dash to the other side. We’ve got to stop keeping both doors open….We have transitioned from making our morning tea with an electric kettle at home to a pot over a stove (on an antique, gas stove, might I add), and canceled all of our streaming subscriptions, since our AirBnB doesn’t have a TV. It’s certainly had highs, not so highs, adjustments and challenges. We’ve seen fun, unique sights, had new experiences, and gotten pretty uncomfortable at times–but that’s the whole point anyway.

“You either go one way [forward] or the other [backwards]-you might as well be the one deciding the direction.”

Check out our Instagram for more pics along the way!

Leaving Colorful Colorado

grant.hickman33@gmail.com (Grant Hickman) — Tue, 07 May 2024 12:19:18 GMT

Seven years ago, we took a leap. We left Nashville, TN to move across country, bringing our jobs with us and hoping for the best, never looking back. We've missed all the friends and family we left behind, but the adventures we've had and memories we've made are irreplaceable. If nothing else, adventure and wanderlust are shared components in the DNA of our relationship (among many others). The new and the novel are the spice of life and something we love to share together.

While we may revisit old adventures here, the main subject is that of new adventures. While we love our home and the life we've been building in Colorado, when the opportunity came up to trade "stayin' put" with a richer experience of, ...well, not - we took it!

Follow along as we take a year (or more?) and take our jobs and lives on the road. Ten (or more?) locations across the upcoming year - two thirty-somethings, working and experiencing day-to-day life with our two pups, trekking across the Western United States and getting a dose of the different cultures and all there is to offer.

Ok, so I know you've got questions... let's get into it!

What exactly are you doing again?

A minimum of one year, 10 AirBnB locations / 10 cities. Two dogs, two laptops, two cars, the two of us, and probably too much extraneous shit we're dragging around with us. We've rented out our home in Colorado and we'll be working remotely and experiencing the local cultures - not a year of vacation, but a year of life - likely dealing with common day-to-day stressors, trying to fit in exercise, making dinner, walking the dogs, and getting up early for last minute meetings. But, when we pop out to the grocery store or go for a neighborhood stroll, the scenery will be slightly different each time we go!

Umm, but why?

It may require unnecessary logistics, lots of additional planning, as well as cost. It has meant emptying all our belongings from our house and letting many things go. It has required dealing with multiple contractors to get our house "rental ready". And all of this before we even stepped foot in a new city. Why not just take a typical two week vacation somewhere nice and leave the hassle behind?

Good question... it IS a lot, but at the moment, our jobs/careers are more flexible than they've been in the past and this grants us an opportunity we may never have again. There's something refreshing about shaking things up, trying something new, living multiple new lives in new destinations. Meeting up with old friends and hopefully many new ones. Connecting with distant network connections in new cities and seeing their city through their eyes. Embedding ourselves into these new communities and experiencing it along with the stress, not just seeing the detached pristine beach pics, but lounging on the beach after a stressful work day. Accessing a local bike trail to blow off steam. Coworking from a different coffee shop alongside faces I'd never see otherwise (not to mention I may never otherwise look up to notice).

So essentially, it's an experience. One that I think we're unlikely to forget and may even build us towards more unexpected opportunities.

How did you decide to do this? How do you plan something like this?

This idea has been percolating for a while now. For one, as a Product Manager of a fully remote company (GitLab), I've seen many other peers shape their work schedules and lives to better suite their interests. For me, my interests include snowboarding, mountain biking, fly fishing, hiking -- many activities that happen to take place near mountains. We've entertained the idea for a while of moving more into the mountains, exploring an investment property, or somehow finding more creative approaches to enjoy mountain activities more easily, without breaking the bank. We started exploring the idea of a small "PoC"... a proof of concept to see what it's like to live in the mountains. Could we rent a place for a month? Three months? Well, that blossomed into this grander idea... if we are leaving our house vacant, why not rent it out? Why not experience more than just three months somewhere new? And so, here we are...

From ideation to execution, we're probably looking at roughly 2 years of knocking the idea around and a good hard 3-6 months of practical hands-on preparations to make it happen. We contacted a local property management company, which was a really important step to take on early in the process. There are factors like timing the market to get the best rent for your home, and in a time when there is more activity... more renters looking for a rental home. They walked through our home and identified improvements we'd likely need to make and the pricing structure for our agreement. It's common to see a 10% property management fee per month, along with costs to get the home listed and upfront fees.

Another key step, and one I'd recommend starting right away if you have any designs to do something like this... Marie Kando ya shit. If you are anything like us, it will take multiple rounds of letting go. We got really well acquainted with our local Goodwills, "buy nothing" groups, as well as landfills. Stuff we've accumulated, stuff we've built, stuff we've been asked to "hold onto"... lots of choices had to be made. We also rented a storage unit for the remaining things we decided to retain. It's safe to say we could likely let go of a lot more, but we did our best!

One potential travel hack we came up with, as our plan consisted of booking primarily AirBnBs, it's known that you can get discounts on AirBnBs when you stay longer. "Long-term stays" which typically start after 28 days provide the deepest discounts. Seeing as how our plan included booking multiple AirBnBs upfront and in advance of our travel, that requires capital to put down deposits prior to us receiving any income from our home rental. To handle this more smoothly, we looked around for 0% APR credit cards and tried to find a card that also provided some benefits aligned with our travel plans (e.g. gas, groceries, travel insurance). We ended up going with the Chase Freedom Unlimited card but there were a few potential options. We didn't luck out and find any that paid additional points on AirBnB bookings but there are different perks out there and I'd suggest doing your own research based on your specific circumstances. In our case, we could put down deposits on around 6 of our bookings, and plan to have rental income to pay it back down well in advance of the terms.

Planning the route

Planning the route took a few rounds of ideation and thoughtful discussion. We identified the activities and locations that sparked our interest, as well as the constraints. I wanted more mountains. Annie wanted more beach. We both wanted locations with nice (enough) yards and space for our dogs. We wanted space for an office setup, to be able to work full days as needed. We wanted places we could get out easily to hike/walk and experience the sights, but we also have a budget. The goal was to try to find locations that kept us as close as possible to break-even - keeping costs as close to the rent intake from our home as possible. There are likely ways to keep the budget lower, but for all we were looking for, rent has been more of an approach to subsidize our experience. There's no additional savings from this plan. Many have asked if we're taking an RV, but to be able to live/work, the RV concept felt a bit cramped for all four of us. For others, this may work perfectly for you! AirBnBs could also be much cheaper if not looking for dog-friendly stays with more than a small strip of yard and an extra room for an office (which we still didn't find for all of our stays).

So for us, we landed on locations across the Western United States. We mapped a plan to take two vehicles with dogs and travel point to point, keeping each leg of our drive as minimal as possible. We also considered which seasons we'd want to be where and had to make some concessions and decisions to narrow it down. Ultimately, we landed on the following map:

It's not all roses...

It would be inauthentic to only share the filtered view of the experience. We've been working towards this for some time and the reality is that of course that there are occasional challenges. We had many long days of working, then spending time filtering through our stuff to store, donate, or trash it. We were lucky to fit what we wanted to keep in the storage unit we had rented without having to make any last minute adjustments to buy more space or ditch some furniture. We dealt with plumbing leaks. I grappled with extra responsibility and pressure at work. I even made a few unexpected trips to the E.R. which I thought may interfere with our plans altogether. Annie took on lots of responsibilities to make donation trips, keep us on track with our property manager, and coordinate contractors. And the home repairs have certainly been more costly than planned. But alas! We pushed through and I write this now from our cozy San Pedro cottage, with a cool breeze flowing through the room, pups snoozing beside me on the couch, ambient city noises... a man hacking up a lung, children screaming gleefully (painfully?), garbage trucks possibly transforming raucously into autobots with the decibels they are hitting... we're in the city alright, and excited for what's to come!