Posts in the Southern U.S Cross Country Road Trip Category

Day 21, 22, 23 (Final Cross Country Post): Magic in the Grand Canyon

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We hiked 8 miles into the depths of a massive hole in the ground and fell in love with what we discovered. A vast, open, beautiful new world lie in the depths of the Grand Canyon. We saw new animals, met new friends, and liked it so much that we decided to stay longer than we originally planned. We stayed at the lone cabin system in the Canyon. The Phantom Ranch is usually only available if you book 1 full year in advance. Our motley crew rocked up and got a cabin to ourself. There was a water main break and many of the people with reservations had canceled at the last minute. We got very lucky. This luck gave birth to some of the “highlight moments” of our entire trip.

n579765782_727532_4804.jpgWhile in the Grand Canyon it felt was like we were on another planet. We were so removed from everything and everyone. It is a place where one can achieve the inner peace that so many of us are looking for by simply hiking around.

For me, I was able to reflect and personalize my experiences of the last year. I thought quite a bit about what the future will bring and how I have come to this point in my life.

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Days 19 and 20: Monument Valley,Utah

n579765782_727471_333.jpg(Pictured: Gooseneck State Park, Southern Utah)We pulled out of Lisa and Joe’s humble abode in Pagosa Springs, Colorado on Sunday morning awaiting a solid drive back into New Mexico to pick up our broken down station wagon. The wagon was located about an hour east of Albuquerque at a remote service station in “Wagon Wheel”, New Mexico. From my guess, the only thing in Wagon Wheel was that lonesome service station. We quickly snatched the car up from our very friendly mechanic (he did not screw us, which was nice). From there our goal was to shoot north west to the Four Corners region where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona meet. This part of the country is smack dab in the middle of “Navajo Nation”.

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Days 15-18: Pagosa Springs Colorado

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Pictured: The Hot Springs in the town center. There are 18 pools with temperatures ranging from 101 to 112 degrees. Ahh, Pagosa Springs Colorado. What? You have never heard of it? Well, none of us had heard of it either before this trip. Friends of mine from back home in Baltimore, Lisa and Joe, decided to move their lives to the south west and stumbled on this quaint little town (population 6000) while exploring the area. What they discovered is nothing short of a diamond in the rough.

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Days 12, 13, and 14: Carlsbad Caverns, Rozwell, and the White Sands of New Mexico

on-a-hilltop.jpgPictured: in the Hills of New Mexico

From Austin we took off west towards Carlsbad Caverns in southeast New Mexico. It took us about 9ish hours if I do remember correctly.

200px-witchs_finger_carlsbad_caverns.jpgCarlsbad Caverns are very old, very deep, and very cave like. Yes, that is right I said cave like while describing caverns. In truth, I guess I am not all that into caves. Stalagmites and stalactites just do not do it for me. We arrived too late in the season to see the nightly bat migration (2 million bats fly out of the caverns every evening). Unfortunately, the bats leave for Mexico at the end of October. While I am at it, bats suck as well. Especially, when they leave a few weeks too soon for me to see them fly out of a big boring cave.

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Days 8-10: The tattooed city of Austin, Texas

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The amount of tattoo shops and tattooed people in Austin is absolutely mind boggling. Austin is a place where it is normal for a mother to be pushing her baby down the street in a stroller while openly displaying her two arm sleeves (wrist to shoulder tattoo). The tattoos are bigger, bolder, and more daring than any other place I have been.

texas_waffle.JPGOur crew stayed at a shimmy shack of a hotel north of town, next to highway 35, and the University of Texas. It was a filthy, disgusting hole of a place. Yet, we were extremely pleased that they offered a continental breakfast complete with waffles made in the “shape of Texas”.

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