lovin' summer; had me a blast.

this has been a long time coming. my posts have been nearly non-existent this summer but i can explain. i was taking a break.

i actually only worked the 20 hours a week at my assistantship. i kept up on current education events but did not write a single paper. i traveled the country. i nearly drowned. i rediscovered

a passion. i experienced an unforgettable summer.

here is a summary, of sorts, of the many places visited during my summer adventures.

WYOMING.

i rafted the snake river with a group of new friends. que near drowning scenario. the water was high. so high there were holes and eddys and rapids that rarely exist. as much as i want you to read this story i doubt i can blog it justice. it is much better heard in the inflections of my voice, seen on the looks of my face so just ask. i love telling it.

un-winding from the stress of our accident was made possible by a night out, in my stunning new cowboy boots, in jackson. country dancing to 'chicken fried' and laughing about our follies on the saddle bar stools was the perfect remedy.

MOAB.

a big thank you to the genius that is groupon for river rafting, round 2. the rapids of the colorado were so tame our beer-bellied, straw hat-wearing river guide let us float through the white water. we shared a raft with a father and son visiting from germany and a family striving

to stay connected with all their kids away at college. quite a far cry from the snake river, which was just the weekend before.

we hiked to delicate arch in arches national park at sunset. that curved block of rock always takes my breath away, just a little. sunset was a first and by far my new favorite time to visit.

ROAD TRIP.

crater lake.

a friend's parents warned us; they told us the water at crater lake is almost too blue. i still wasn't prepared for how vastly remarkable this gem of a national park is. we camped in the park, nearly got eaten by mosquitos and could not hike half the trails because the snow was still too deep and despite all that, crater lake was my favorite stop of the trip. i am going to go back and hike all the way to the fire look-out on mount (great) scott. i am going to go back and swim, scratch that, doggie paddle off the coast of wizard island.

lava cave.

not following an itinerary made random stops easy. our first was an adventure into a lava cave that was over a mile long. it was like nothing i had ever seen. there were no stalagtites or mites, just a tube of black, volcanic rock. before we even walked into the cave we could see our breath; the cave is below 50 degrees in the middle of a july afternoon.

oregon coast.

cape blanco lighthouse is in spectacular condition and still operates today. it is the oregon coast's oldest lighthouse on the [almost most] western point of the state. when you look into one of the large lenses just right you can see the shore reflected back, upside down.

redwoods.

there are no trees like these. cruising down an old highway, now called the 'avenue of the giants', the windows of the car just weren't big enough. we stayed at a KOA campground, sleeping in a grove of redwoods and sequoias. if it weren't for setting alarm the sun would have never peered through the trees to wake us up. it was a wonderful campground with fantastic staff. highly recommended for tenting or trailer-ing.

highway one.

we drove the coast of california on highway one. it winded down the rocky shores; there was little to no shoulder, just cliffs leading down to the pacific ocean. the drive was a whole mind & body experience. the twists and turns made me sore all over but every corner presented new million-dollar views.

san francisco.

our campsite was at a state park just outside of san fran. we spent hours searching for a spot that night, taking a few risks by passing on a number of campgrounds. our spot turned out to be a gem. not because the ground was extra soft or the bathrooms were really nice: neither of these were true. our camping neighbors, however, were a family of three that had never been camping. the plethora of quotes we gleaned from that night were priceless. the son really wanted a campfire but the parents had only brought a few coals... while making s'mores, the parents had to consult one another to be sure the marshmallow was supposed to be melty in the middle... we woke up to the mother gasping about last night as the worst night of sleep in her entire life....

breakfast on the san francisco wharf was idyllic. our drive over the golden gate bridge was sightless as the bridge was almost entirely covered by fog. the view to alcatraz and our drive down the hilly streets of the city was just a glimpse of an obviously vibrant city.

yosemite.

we spent two days exploring yosemite but we needed two weeks to really explore yosemite. we visited bridal veil falls and hiked 3 miles of switchbacks to the park's namesake falls. the top of hike provided views of the valley carved by the Merced river. half dome and el capitan looked at each other in their grandeur; they've inspired countless artists and photographers like ansel adams for years.

our feet stomped on some of thee most beautiful granite, the kind people hope to be the capstone of a beautiful kitchen. at the base of the falls i fell in Merced river and was completely soaked but the park was so hot it was only a matter of minutes and i was dry.

our campgrounds were to the east of the park, just beyond the highly under-rated tioga pass. the first night we stayed at june lake and fell asleep with an incredible sunset in sight. the second night we had dinner on glassy lake at the end of the tioga pass, feet sunk in the granite sand.

a lightning storm greeted us over and beyond mono lake on the way out of the park. the bolts threw light across the valley and reflected off the lake's vast water. rainbows formed in the clouds just beyond mono. it was a lovely goodbye.

that night we stayed at the RV park Paradise Shores. since making our reservation the night before we had been joking about our upcoming visit to paradise. the campground was, surprisingly, paradise-like. if you're in this neck of the woods be sure to stop in and visit Alan and his wife. their kitchy campground is on the shores of bridgeport lake and the company isn't bad. Alan reminded us that life is too short... he spent a few years on wall-street but traded in the stocks for a life of leisure, running a quaint campground in between all kinds of exploring. thanks, Alan, for the kind words and a few comforts of home. i know i'll be back to bridgeport soon.

lake tahoe.

it is hard not to fall in love with this big beautiful very blue lake. despite the late night bear scare, use of first aid skills and botched night out on the town, tahoe was a vacation from our vacation. the pace slowed down. i waded waist deep and could still still my toes in the sand through the lake's clear water. accidental naps on the beach carried an extra punch of rejuvenation.

we drove [almost] straight home from tahoe after 3 wonderful days. after a dinner stop in thrilling elko we pulled into salt lake city, the awful smell of our salty lake welcoming us back.

this was a trip of a lifetime. i am grateful for jess embarking on such an adventure with me. never before have i planned so little yet felt so stressless. there are hundreds more pictures, some of which you can find on my Facebook.

now i am back in school, back at work, back in the swing of things and hopefully the normalcy will allow me to post here more because i have a lot more to say.

adieu,

R.