inspiration for a road trip

do you know how hard it is to find a friend/couple that you can travel with?

no?

well, let me tell you: it's incredibly difficult.

it's so easy to say, i'm such good friends with _____, surely we will have a blast together on a trip and we won't get on each other's nerves and everything will be just dandy. well in reality, traveling brings out both the best and the worst in people (at least in my cynical eyes). when you get a combination of a person or people who are super laid back and not really all that concerned about itineraries or flight times or anything really, and put them on a plane or in a hotel room with a person or couple who needs to make sure that things go exactly. as. planned. - well, you can see that things could go sour very quickly.

 

all of that to say, i'm so lucky to know several people that i can travel with. and not just travel with, but successfully travel with. the kinds of trips where i say, yes. that was glorious and i could do that 10 more times!  let's start planning our next trip right now!

well one of those couples is made up of 2 people that we love (they came to lost maples with us and also krause springs recently). we just love them, and are now planning a road trip to destin, florida together (way too far in advance because we're so excited!). and we're throwing in a one-night stop in new orleans for good measure. because, why not?
 

here's my inspiration for that trip since it is goal #26 on my 30before30 list.

 

austin -- new orleans -- destin, fl

 

 

we all look that cute when we travel in a car for 12 hours, right?

 

replace that cute van with some sort of large suv and we can recreate this.

 

my pictures from our trip to new orleans for our 1 year anniversary in 2012

 

 

destin, florida pictures 1, 2 & 3

 

 

(psst: see other road trip inspired posts here and here.)

 

what is the best road trip you've ever been on? or your dream road trip?

 

 

 

 



images that inspire: {road trippin'}

goal #26 on my 30before30 list is to go on a road trip - a real road trip, like driving more than just a few hours. so a few months ago, i posted about a road trip from austin to marfa, tx. this time around, my dream road trip will take me further...a lot further. 

technically, this would only be half a road trip, though...stay with me.

i'm thinking a flight from austin to san francisco - i know it's starting off with a flight, but there's still a car involved later. my ideal trip would be:

austin, tx - san francisco, ca (flight)
san francisco, ca - redwood forest, ca
redwood forest - portland, or
portland, or - seattle, wa
seattle, wa- austin, tx (flight)


this would be a time consuming road trip, but i definitely think it's worth the time. here's what i'm picturing:

spending a few days in san francisco - biking across golden gate bridge, visiting the ferry building for amazing food, wandering and thrifting through haight-ashbury, driving out to tony's for oysters & beer, and snacking at tartine.

 

 

to start my trip north, i'd rent a car in san francisco and head to the redwoods to camp- no plans here other than taking in the sheer size of the trees.

from muir woods, a long drive north will get me to portland, oregon. a few days here would be filled with taste testing at local breweries, resting our heads at the ace hotel, eating a must-eat voodoo donut, and visiting the japanese gardens.

  

when it's time to finally head to seattle, i'll skip the big tourist spots (space needle, the experience music project, etc) since i've already been there. instead, i'd hike at heather lake, have drinks at the super hip zig zag cafe, visit their amazing central library, & eat at lowell's (since it is, afterall, a staple).

 

ideally, i'd add vancouver canada to this trip too, but really...who has that much time off of work?! 

even without vancouver in the mix, though, i'd say this would be one hell of a trip. anyone in??

(see my full 30before30 list here)

images that inspire: {road trippin'}

several months ago, i mentioned that i hadn't gone on a (legitimate) road trip in over 10 years. and since that's goal #26 on my 30before30 list, i've put a lot of thought in to my ideal trip while on my runs...(i've found that if i focus on one thing while running, i won't realize how tired i am until later!).

so i've put together a visual of my dream road trip. i'm not exactly sure when this trip will happen, since we've got busy weekends and trips planned already, but i know we'll get there eventually.

here is our path:

austin, tx - marfa, tx - big bend national park - austin, tx

after the 7.5 hr drive from austin to marfa, we'll settle in at the simplistic thunderbird hotel...

1/ 2/ 3

or maybe el cosmico if we're feeling a tad more rustic...

1&2/ 3

we'll spend the days in marfa searching for the mysterious and eerie marfa lights,

visiting art galleries,

checking out the famous prada store,

& eating/drinking until we just can't eat & drink anymore

1/ 2/ 3/ 4

after we venture out on the 2 hr drive to big bend national park, we'll spend our days taking in some beautiful sights, snapping pictures, hiking & camping...

1&2/ 3

i'm hoping this trip comes sooner than later...searching for all these images definitely got the wanderlust rollin' in me.

what's your dream road trip?

(see my full 30before30 list here)

motivated monday: road trip edition

Happy Monday! I'm really excited to put together this Motivated Monday post because it is my 'Road Trip Edition' post. I had lunch with a friend yesterday and we started discussing my road trip goal (#26 on my 30before30 list). I haven't been on a road trip as an adult. The last one I went on was an amazing 2 week trip with my dad, brother and 2 sisters when I was 13. We went from the tip of Texas all the way to the tip of Mexico; we took our time, ate so much amazing food, saw amazing things and spent time at the beach. Naturally, I have a little soft spot in my heart for road trips. So why haven't I ventured out on a trip like that in 10 years?!

Have you gone on a road trip? Ever?

So this friend that I was lunching with - she would like to do a road trip for her 25th birthday in November, which means that it's perfect timing for some road trip ideas.

1. This is one of the trips was discussed yesterday over lunch: Austin, TX  to Tennessee, with a couple of stops in between on the way there & the way back. The idea is for us to get to see both Graceland & Dollywood in TN and then stop in Baton Rouge on the way back. So naturally, there will be lots of making fun of Dolly Parton (while secretly loving her), BBQ, sweet tea, and fried peanut butter & jelly sandwiches.

2. The second option we discussed is: Austin, TX to Taos, NM. I'm a little nervous because I hear that this drive consists of several dirt roads and unmarked highways, but hey - that's what road trippin' is about, right?

So this trip would be completely different than trip #1. I'm guessing this one would consist more of scarves and boots, amazing Mexican food, picturesque mountains and spiked hot cocoa and apple cider!

You really can't go wrong with either one.

Any suggestions out there?

(original 30before30 list here)