Sedona AZ & Cloudcroft NM July 2007

July 2007 was the second road trip for this Dynamic Duo. We were off at sunset to our first destination, "Oak Creek Campground" in Sedona AZ. I have to admit, I was very nervous. This was our first road trip together alone, and as a new couple. I thought for sure that there would be awkward moments, and that we would run out of things to say to each other. I was wrong! The night was packed with laughs, Pringles & Salsa, and great conversation. We got to our campsite around 4 in the morning and set up the tent. We left the rain tarp off of the tent and watched the stars shine, until we both fell asleep in each other’s arms. The next day, we blasted a “U2” compellation CD in the Fj Cruiser and drove around the “vortex capitol of the world” Sedona. The day was (pardon the cheesiness) magical. We had our auras photographed at a local New Age shop, ate horrible Thai food from “Dara Thai restaurant, and towards the end of the day, we made it to our hike to Cathedral Rock Vortex. The hike was surprisingly difficult. Of course we blame the difficulty on the food-induced coma from the bad Thai food…. This hike was an adventure within its self. We were chased by Vienna sausage sized hornets, barricaded by a pack of Javelinas, and cut off by a hairy tarantula. To top it off, the rain clouds covered the sunset and we walked back in the dark. Good times! That night, we were off to Cloud croft New Mexico. It was a beautiful drive. We stayed there for two days and participated in a Lakota adulthood and Changing ceremony. 12 hours later, we were home in beautiful OC California.

The Best Yosemite Back Packing Trip Ever

June 2007...Talk about the perfect trip...this was it. We left late in the evening and the celebration of our friend Jesse's birthday was under way. Eating birthday cake in the FJ with chopsticks and off-roading in crazy high speed winds at midnight was the prelude for our slam packed trip. Arriving at Yosemite when the sun was rising, listening to The Cranberries "Linger" over and over again was memorable to say the least. That song still conjures such strong memories of that time. We backpacked the next morning for 7 miles to Ostrander Lake with ZERO hours of sleep but our energy and spirits were soaring. The 3 of us, Emily, Joseph and Jesse had great conversation and bonded as friends to create this memory that will be with us until the end. The road was tough but none of us let on that we were tired. In fact, the guys were on some sort of testosterone high as they would stop every mile or so and want to do pushups off of tree stumps and pull ups onto thick tree branches. I had my limits at some point but didn't shy away from attempting to keep up. It was on the running that I left them in the dust. We were like little children let outside to play for the first time after a long winter. I must lower my head and say that I was trying my hand at the blowgun and was trying to hit innocent little chipmunks on the trip up. Needless to say that I was unable to tag the 3" moving targets. After a night of toasting with Jesse's secret birthday tequila stash, and sleeping with our tents side by side (my tent in the middle in case of a bear attack), we woke the next morning and created our own fishing spears and tried to fish in the frigid waters of Ostrander Lake. We caught nothing and soon realized that we must head back down to the car because we hadn't brough any food and we were also unable to make a kill with the blow gun (or fish-spears for that matter). So, we headed down through the swarms of mosquitos and made it to the lodge area of Yosemite National Park. After filling our bellies with exquisite tasting beer and pizza, we crashed out at our new "home" (campsite) and slept soundly. I'll never forget listening to "Kung Fu Fighting..." while we pretend battled with our Pokey Sticks after eating a scrumptious Thai lunch at Samnualong (sp?) Thai restaurant in L.A.