Into the West:: A #roadtrip to Remember {Part 1}

“Hey Mom, you want to come with me?” Are you kidding? When my youngest invited me to accompany her on her cross country drive to Washington state, it took about a millisecond for me to answer. “When do we leave?” Then she added, “There’s one stipulation, though, nothing controversial until Utah. It’s a long drive.”

Right. I can do that.

She graduated medical school the first week of May. As per her agreement with the Army, they would pay to ship her belongings, but she had to get her car to Washington on her own. She’d be reimbursed for the equivalent of a four-day trip straight out, and since she didn’t have to report until June first, she decided to make it into a road trip and stop in National Parks along the way to camp and hike, with a few AirBNB’s thrown in for fun.

We left early on a Monday morning and swapped out driving until we got to Dallas. She said she’d seen most everything between Alabama and western Texas and if we could get that far the first couple of days, we could take our time after that.

Our first night was an AirBNB that was actually an extra bedroom in a guy’s apartment. I’ve done VRBO’s before, but I’ve never actually boarded in someone’s residence while they were at home. Whatever. This was her trip and we were on an adventure! He was a great host. He appeared to be an architect and his apartment was clean and nicely decorated. We checked in and asked SIRI for restaurants nearby.

Food is part of the travel experience for our family, and we wanted to try Texas BBQ. Turned out there was a local place with good reviews within a half mile of our place. As we parked, we saw a police car and a sheriff car pulled in backwards and a table full of law enforcement officers inside. We figured they have to eat out a lot and if they like the place it must be good. It was.

Let the record show, she brought up the first controversial topic on the way back from dinner. No worries. We laughed, moved on, and turned in for the night, sleeping like we’d been on the road for ten and a half hours. Next morning, we were up at six and moving.

Swapping out driving again, we headed toward New Mexico, planning a detour through Oklahoma just to say we’d been there, and in case you’re wondering, the wind really does go, “sweeping down the plains.” We intended to eat lunch in Davidson to make the stop valid, but Apple Maps needs an update because the Davidson Diner died long ago. We had to be content with a photo stop, our hair and clothes whipping around us as we watched the huge white windmills turn.

Albuquerque’s AirBNB was a room in a beautiful old white two story house with a porch swing, a picket fence, shelves full of old books, and a Great Dane named Clive. Clive’s owners said he could stay in his crate if we’d rather he do so, but we’re dog people so Clive lavished lots of liquid happiness all over our shirts and faces. My only regret is that I didn’t get his picture.

Wednesday morning, since we’d been driving for two days straight, we took time for a run. Albuquerque’s dry air and forty-eight degrees felt wonderful compared to the low nineties and ninety-eight percent humidity of south Alabama, where we’d started. Running hills at elevation brought us both back to life.

Packing for this trip was a challenge. I needed clothes and shoes for hiking, camping, running, an evening or two in a nice restaurant, weather ranging from twenty-seven degrees and snow to eighty-five degrees and sun, sleeping bag, work computer, and oh, did I mention the enamel coffee pot, plate, and coffee cups she asked me to bring for camping? Plus, for back country hiking in unpredictable weather you’re gonna need three layers-one for wicking, one for warmth, and one for wind and rain. All this and I had to fly home at the end of our trip-without checking a bag. Not gonna happen. I realized pretty quickly when we reached the cooler weather on Wednesday, that I needed a couple more warmth items. So, we made a fast trip to a clearance rack at the mall and the hiking section at a sporting goods store where I picked up two seven dollar sweaters and a nice sweatshirt to add to my already bulging luggage. She had us on a tight schedule, but was patient with my less than stellar planning, and the fact that I had to search through EVERYTHING EVERY time I needed something, because packing efficiently doesn’t necessarily mean you know where things are located, especially when you’re living out of a suitcase and moving every day.

My breakfast in Albuquerque was Huevos Rancheros at a legit Route 66 Diner and I got a flashback to my childhood when we realized you had to go outside the building to get the restrooms. My youngest was incredulous as I explained that “when I was little” you had to get the key from the attendant to go to the bathrooms because they were outside and they kept them locked.

It was my turn to drive and when I asked, “right or left?” she said, “Straight. To Page, Arizona,” which I had never heard of, but our itinerary said “see Horseshoe Bend.” When we got to Page, our AirBNB turned out to be a small storefront that had been turned into an efficiency apartment and christened, “The Bungalow.” As we unloaded our luggage, the kayak rental/adventure store owner from next door came over to warn us that the sanitation truck would be there at dawn the next day to collect the trash bin directly under our window, so we should be prepared.

 We thanked him and hurried to the parking area for the short walk to the top of Glenn Canyon overlooking the Colorado River. Horseshoe Bend was gorgeous and even though there was an angry-looking storm approaching, we stayed until sunset and found ourselves looking at the most brilliant rainbow I have ever seen-and a double one at that. I highly recommend making the effort to stop and see the view if you’re ever close to that area. When it got dark, we hunted up something to eat and retired for the night. The Bungalow was cute, comfortable, and yes, we did get jarred awake at 6 A.M., but we needed to get an early start so it was all good. 

From then on, the countryside began to change drastically from one moment to the next. I had taken a book to read, as suggested, because, “It’s a long time in the car. We’ll need a break from each other,” but neither of us could take our eyes off the landscape. Every scene was like a different version of an old western movie, AND we played the car tag game, so we both had to pay attention to keep up. We drove, we talked, we listened to her music, and it was great. The conversation was lively, the company was excellent, and it was so much fun.

Next stop-Zion National Park. BTW, did I mention it’s in Utah?