Day 6 - Vernal to Reno, NV

Last night we decided that San Francisco was a good idea, so we hauled ass through Utah and Nevada in order to spend some time in the city. We left around 10am and made it to Salt Lake City in a few hours. Before we got there though, I received a speeding ticket. Unfortunately, Utahans don’t like to post speed limit signs frequently. I got pulled over for 44 in a 30. Ugh. Once we got to SLC we hit up the Gateway Shopping Center, a huge outdoor mall. The people there were weird though. I kept getting the feeling that everyone was giving us dirty looks. Like they didn’t want us in their state or something. Whatever.

On the way out of SLC we listened to Band of Horses “Great Salt Lake” as we passed…you guessed it… the Great Salt Lake. We then ran into a massive rainstorm, much like the one that we hit on the way out of Kansas. Once the weather cleared up, the terrain became a barren wasteland. I swear, Utah has every kind of scenery possible. On our trek through the state we came across pine-tree-covered mountains, rolling hills, wetlands, lakes, and desert. We came across the Bonneville Salt Flats and spent some time walking around on the salt. We left and soon crossed the state line into Nevada, which so far is empty fields, huge hills, and mountains. We stopped for some Burger King and grocery shopping. Hunter wanted to buy an action figure to fly out the window, but I wouldn’t let him. He then threw a temper tantrum in the checkout aisle of Albertson’s. I let him get a 50-cent figure instead. It has been flying out the window ever since, AKA 250 miles.

Fraser ended up getting tired so I took over the wheel again. I didn't mind driving, but driving through pitch-black Nevada countryside is rough, man. Depth perception gets thrown waayyy off. But lo and behold, Reno appeared out of nowhere, its casino lights drawing us in. Our hotel room reeks of weed, but whatever. We're exhausted. Time for sleep.

Day 5 - Winter Park to Vernal, UT

Left around 10 or 11 this morning. I was really bummed that I didn’t get the chance to hang out with another one of my friends from Thailand, Cam. We passed his camp twice and it was really frustrating that I couldn’t at least say hello.

The drive through western Colorado and eastern Utah is spectacular, in a weird way. It’s so bare and deserted, but there are mountains and cliffs everywhere. We stopped on the side of the highway at one point to take it all in and frolic in a field. Fraser decided he wanted some keepsake barbed wire so he ripped some out of the ground, cutting his finger in the process. I now have rust and dirt all over my trunk.

We arrived in Vernal, Utah where we found a hotel. We discovered that it had a creepy attic and a creaky shower, then decided to go out exploring. We walked down the street and discovered that it was a lammeee town. 90% of the people there drove either an SUV or a pickup truck. We found a random store that sold Mormon clothes as well as Billabong clothes and hiking boots. I was pretty excited to get out.

Day 4 - Boulder to Winter Park, CO

We slept in a bit this morning and checked out of the hotel around 11. We decided to walk around the pedestrian mall on Pearl Avenue, where we found a ton of really cool shops and really good food. Fraser attempted to give blood on the blood bus but they wouldn’t let him, so we decided to grab some sandwiches and make our way to Rocky Mountain National Park. The drive from Boulder to the park was gorgeous enough, but the ride through the park was breathtaking. The mountain range made me feel like I was in Lord of the Rings or something. On the way down I switched places with Fraser because I felt like I was going to fall asleep. I found out later that Dramamine (which I took to prevent motion sickness) causes drowsiness. Oops.

We made it to Granby, where I bought a 6-month expired double shot espresso. Five minutes later we discovered at least 850 coffee shops. FML.

We then decided to go to Fraser, Colorado to that Fraser could feel at home.

Otherwise, it’s been a pretty uneventful day. We found a motel in Winter Park which is about 10 minutes away from Granby. Hunter dumped honey in the shower. We fell asleep.

Day 3 - Topeka to Boulder

I hate Kansas.

So we left Topeka around 10:30am after getting some Panera and hitting up Wal-Mart. At first the scenery was actually really pretty, until we got to the middle of the state. Then wheat fields abounded. Luckily, we passed the time playing the cow game. If you have never played the cow game before, the point of the game is to locate the most cows. If you see a group of cows, you yell “COW!” and estimate how many cows are there, which are your points. If you pass a cemetery, someone yells “DEAD COW!” and everyone else’s points are erased. We also passed the time by locating hilarious signs throughout the state, such as the “Pornography kills families” billboard right next to the adult megastore.

We also got distracted by several roadside attractions. Hunter and Fraser decided to set off fireworks in some random abandoned farm. We then decided to go to Lucas, KS where we saw the Garden of Eden (www.garden-of-eden-lucas-kansas.net) and the Worlds Largest Collection of the Worlds Smallest Versions of the World’s Largest Things. I don’t understand how people aspire to do these things. Anyway, on the way there we had a little run-in with the po-po. So we’ve ben driving 85-90mph pretty much the entire trip. As we’re driving on a 65mph road, I say “you know, I’m really surprised we haven’t been pulled over yet.” LITERALLY a second later, we pass a sheriff. He turned around. Fraser got a ticket.

We also decided to stop at Prarie Dog World. There we found a huge cage of rattlesnakes and a field full of prarie dogs, goats, raccoons, coyotes, peacocks, boars, baby pigs, sheep, and cows. They had 2 6-legged cows and a 5-legged cow. It was strange.

We hit a storm on the way out of Kansas. It started pouring, and it was so windy that my windshield wipers were pulling off of my windshield, thereby not wiping water away. The sky looked like something you would see on a storm chasers show. I booked it to try to get the hell out of the state, because I hated it so much. The storm clouds literally ended at the state line. As soon as we saw the “Welcome to Colorful Colorado” sign, it was sunny and clear. I HATE KANSAS.

It took a few hours to get to Boulder, and eastern Colorado is completely empty. We reached Denver and it seemed to kind of appear out of nowhere. We checked into our hotel and met up with Stevie, who I went to Thailand with last summer. We hit up a sweet bakery then went up a mountain, where we could see the whole city. Much cooler than anything you could do in Cincinnati.

Day 2 - St. Louis to Topeka

Pretty eventful morning. After waking up and making Charlie’s flower tea, we headed out to find a Panera (which in STL is called St. Louis Bread Co). My GPS took us to a dough distribution center so we headed downtown to the Arch. I almost killed everyone when I ran a red light…oops. But we survived. Yaaaayy!!

Missouri is as interesting as you would assume it to be. I drove about 5 hours, and we ended up making stops in Nostalgia Ville and Ozarkland. I’m serious.

We made our way to Kansas City, where we visited the Tide Dry Cleaning store that my dad has been working on for a while. We tried to find some good KC BBQ but it didn’t work out too well. We hit the road again for Topeka, where we stayed in a Super 8 motel, which exceeded my expectations a little bit. After crowding around my laptop to watch Dead at a Funeral (hilarious), we passed out. On Sunday we will be driving 8 hours+ to Boulder, Colorado. We just want to get the hell out of Kansas.

Day 1 - Cincinnati to St. Louis

We left around 1ish on Friday, June 5th. I had to say goodbye to my mom while I was half asleep, since she had to work. Saying goodbye to my dad and Kaitlin was incredibly hard. My parents are both my best friends, and it’ll be so weird to not see them every day. Kaitlin has also been a huge part of my life for the last four years, and I have no idea what I’m going to do without her living right down the street.

The drive isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. After about 2 hours or so, we stopped at a rest stop and Fraser and I switched places. We then decided that we HAD to see the worlds largest bottle of catsup located in Collinsville, IL. So worth it.

We arrived at our hotel then decided to make our way down to “The Loop,” where we got dinner. We explored a store then went to find a movie theater, where we saw Land of the Lost. Funniest. Movie. Ever. Seriously, go see it. Right now.

Spreading My Wings...

As many of you may know, I am moving to Seattle, Washington to establish residency so I can pay in-state tuition at the University of Washington in the fall. I decided to take my car out there, so I’m driving across the country with my brother, Hunter and a long-time friend, Fraser.

It’s such a strange feeling, leaving home. It still hasn’t quite registered in my mind that I will never be living with my parents again. While packing, I had to figure out how to fit the contents of the rest of my life into the trunk of my Toyota Corolla. Easier said than done, especially when you don’t really feel like you’re leaving for good.

I’m really excited for this trip. I can’t wait to see the rest of the United States, and I’m sure there’ll be plenty of crazy adventures along the way.