Each year, tens of thousands of Monarch butterflies migrate to Pismo Beach, California, to escape the harsh winters of the great white north. We came upon Pismo Beach entirely by fluke (or fate, depending on how you see things).
But first, let me tell you about the butterflies… (more…)
Our first major milestone was to get our van to Los Osos, California, by Jan 5. That’s the date that Lucky was scheduled for a mechanical makeover at GoWesty, a highly regarded Volkswagen restoration and sales shop whose mission is to keep the old VW hippy busses and camper vans alive and healthy.
Lucky needed to travel 2500 km through below-freezing temperatures, snowy mountain passes, and interstate highways with speed limits that are impossibly high for a Westy van (80 mph or 128 km/h). We were concerned about how our van would perform in this marathon, since she doesn’t typically go above 100 km/h AND this is her first winter road trip. (more…)
Gregor and I left Calgary on New Year’s Eve day to begin the road trip of a lifetime. Our goal is to drive our 1987 Volkswagon camper van to the southern tip of Argentina and back. We’re giving ourselves a year or so to get to Ushuaia (the farthest south you can drive in the Americas), visiting every Latin American country and camping in the van for most of the way.
In the last three months, we have been selling, donating, or trashing anything we felt we didn’t need. (more…)
This past weekend, Gregor decided that we should pretend to be fugitives running from the law – you know, to keep things interesting. He is clearly having another “van fever” attack – a mere two weeks away from completing our epic summer journey (we return to Calgary on Sept 1!). Given our fugitive status, Gregor insisted that we pay for everything in cash, wear sunglasses as much as possible, and take on fake identities. My alias is Sandy Beech. Gregor’s is Justin Thyme (I managed to talk him out of using “Saddam Gudlukin” to avoid attention from the US authorities).
Volcanic rocks on the beach.
Gregor and I did a great hike in Gros Morne National Park called Green Gardens. It’s a 15.5 km loop that starts in barren alpine terrain and descends through swamp and forest, dropping 250 m to a rocky beach lined with volcanic sea stacks. It then takes you back up to lovely meadows with views of coastline cliffs along the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The loop is surprisingly strenuous. You gain and lose elevation several times on paths lined with steep stairs, wet roots, and slippery mud. You also have to ford a river twice. This hike is more challenging than the steep climb up to Gros Morne Mountain, but it’s much more scenic. I don’t think we’ve ever been on a hike with such a diverse range of natural features. Highly recommended!