You know that feeling of unwinding that comes from a leisurely, restorative trip—the sense that something within you has ratcheted down a few notches? Well, I’m happily cradled in that feeling right now, as I sit in Ochoco National Forest, surrounded by the long-limbed trees of central Oregon.
My sister—one of my favorite travel companions—and I are nearly at the end of a short road trip, which started in Denver and will end tomorrow in Eugene, Oregon. She has a bright blue VW van (I think of the color as psychedelic blueberry) that she’s outfitted as a camper van, complete with bed, solar charger, and all the supplies you need to live off the grid for a few days at a time.
It’s the first time I’ve ever done dispersed camping, also known as boondocking, where you camp on public lands, rather than in a campground. And it has gifted total freedom. Instead of following an itinerary or chasing a reservation, we’ve followed our whims. On our first night, those whims took us to the Bonneville Salt Flats in northwestern Utah, where we camped in the shadow of the hills, with a view of the iconic white landscape.
(L) My sister’s blue VW van. (R) My sister wandering the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.
Since then, we’ve discovered the Punjabi restaurants known as dhabas, aimed at feeding long-haul truckers healthy food; we’ve cooled off at southern Idaho’s Dierkes Lake, near Shoshone Falls; and we’ve adulted (i.e., worked remotely) at a riverfront park in Bend, Oregon.
It has felt like the perfect time for such a discovery, as Afar ramps up for America’s 250th birthday, a celebration of the years since 1775, when our founders signed the Declaration of Independence. It’s been thrilling to discover pockets of the country that I’ve never before explored and that have surprised and delighted me as much as any trip abroad.
And it’s inspired me for all that’s to come: interviews at IPW with the tourism board CEOs who steward U.S. cities like Chicago, New York, and St. Louis (you’ll hear more about that next week), and our Unpacked Minis: America 250 (launching in July), which will touch on everything from Go-Go music in D.C. to sauna culture in Minnesota, and so much more.
This next episode is brought to you by the power of the sun.
“I thought, Why don’t we have this coming-of-age journey that essentially transitions you from childhood to adulthood?... and I [said] Well, since we don’t have one, I’m gonna make one up for myself.” —Mario Rigby, eco-explorer.
I am obsessed with these Pehuea slip-on shoes from Olukai, which I bought for a recent trip to South Australia. They have a mesh outer layer, making them super breathable, and Olukai’s iconic fold-down heel, which transforms them into slipperlike shoes perfect for a long plane ride.
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