Stretching between Carmel-by-the-Sea and Hearst Castle, the roughly 90-mile-long stretch of rugged coastline known as Big Sur is nothing short of magical. With sweeping ocean views at every turn, it’s no wonder Highway 1 is one of the most iconic roads in America. Big Sur is located an approximately 2.5 hr drive south from San Francisco and an approximately 6 hr drive north from Los Angeles. We’ve driven it from both directions and enjoyed everything from camping and hiking to surfing and elephant seal viewing. If you’re looking for an epic place to take a road trip, look no further.
Read moreWhy You Should Visit Yosemite Next Fall
This November we had the pleasure of taking a weekend trip to Yosemite National Park. As one of our favorite places to backpack, we’ve visited a number of times, but this was our first time visiting in the fall and we were totally blown away. Here are my top reasons why you too should plan a visit to Yosemite in the fall.
Read moreAlaskan Motorbike Adventure: Part 1
This Monday Justin and his dad launched off on a 7,000+ motorbike trip from California/Washington up to the Arctic Circle in Alaska and back again. This trip has been a long time in the making. Justin and his dad love to ride and have been planning on doing an epic motorbike trip together for years. When they first started talking about it his parents were living in Africa and so they were going to ride Cape Town to Cairo. When they moved back to the US a few years ago, Justin and his dad decided to ride to Alaska instead due to logistics.
Read moreA Visit to the San Juan Islands
Just got back from a much needed trip to the San Juan Islands. I say much needed because a) we're always antsy to travel and b) this trip was the first vacation Justin's gotten in the six months since he started his residency program. Bummer that it was just one week, but we'll take that over no break at all! A week is too short for an international trip (at least in our opinion) and so we looked closer to home and chose the San Juan Islands, located off the coast of Washington.
Read moreBackpacking Yosemite
Shortly after we moved to California for Justin to attend medical school, we found ourselves on the cusp of a highly coveted long weekend with no plans. As we sat on the bed discussing what a crime it would be to waste the weekend without having any adventure, a plan began to emerge. We would go to Yosemite to backpack. That night. It was already evening and the drive would be six hours so there was no time to hesitate.
Read moreA Day in Zion
We have two days off... where should we go? Zion National Park is only six hours away. Sweet, we should go there. We can drive for half a day and then have a full afternoon and morning of adventure. Okay, let's start packing. And that's how we ended up on a short but exhilarating trip to Zion last fall. How we convinced two friends to accompany us for twelve hours of driving for a day of fun I don't now, but we did. I guess we have some pretty cool friends.
Read moreTips for Visiting Joshua Tree
We've been fortunate enough to live just an hour from Joshua Tree National Park for the last three years. Even if you're not into the desert the draw of Joshua Tree is magnetic with its bizarre rock formations that form a million passageways and nooks to scramble up, over, and through. And of course if you climb then it's rather legendary.
Read more