By Yourself?

It starts with someone asking, “what are you doing this summer?” and ends with them asking, “By yourself?!”. The conversation is filled with disbelief, surprise, and probably some envy on their end. I totally get it.

Tomorrow I take a roadtrip across the country, by myself. Don’t worry, I’ve got friends and family along the way. What started as a trip out to the Bay Area to get away from the midwest humidity and hang out with family for a few weeks turned into a 7 week road trip out west. I like simplicity, but this is far from it.

At first I was just trying to get my trusty road bike out to the west coast. I couldn’t think of anything better than riding my bike through Redwoods, Yosemite, and to the beach. Maybe taking weekend trips up to northern California and down to San Diego. I could have flown my bike. But that would have been too easy. So I have ultimately decided to drive it.  Driving through cities I’ve never been (Denver) and returning to cities with friends in them (Salk Lake). I couldn’t not stop. I also couldn’t ignore that I was near all these national parks I have wanted to see all my life. How could I ignore them?! I can’t. So trips were planned-ish. (this is a little fly by the seat of my pants…) And then it evolved into a big trip to lots of places, to see lots of things, and visit lots of people.  I’m excited and nervous all the same. And that’s good. Really good.

While the 6,000 miles I expect to cover seems large, they are welcomed. This spring hasn’t been extremely kind to me. I think that this adventure will allow me a much needed escape from reality, an opportunity to recenter myself, and most of all, do the thing you’re supposed to do in the place.

So, you’re wondering what’s on tap for this trip? Well, check it out.

Omaha (a stay over on my way to Denver)

Denver (Hi, Brenna!)

Salt Lake City (Hi, KC, Mike, Brenna (again!))

Grand Teton

Yellowstone

Bay Area (Hi, Anne, Abe, Ky, and Lila!)

Yosemite

Redwoods

LA?

San Diego (Hi, Little Anne!)

Grand Canyon: North and South Rims

Flagstaff (Hey Sam and Chris!)

Albaqueque and Santa Fe

Dallas (Hi, Moretsky’s, Kelly and Kluempers!)

Memphis

Nashville (Hi, Anna and hopefully Beachy, Chris, and Justin!)

Home…in Indiana

So, you want to follow along on this crazy trip? I’ve got my bike, some minimal camping gear, and a bunch of maps and brochures from AAA.  I’m sure it will be literally and figuratively filled with bumps in the road, amazing adventures, lots of laughs, and a little soul searching. Come along for the ride. It should be interesting