Posts from the ‘National Forest’ Category

Jul 25

Ahhh …

On Friday we pulled-up anchor from the Bay Area and hauled-ass as quickly as we could … our destination being a rendezvous with friends in a rather non-Bay Area like location. About 4.5 hours later and we arrived to a national forest campground outside of Portola, CA (about an hour NW of Reno, NV) with plans to spend the week with friends.

Away from the hustle and bustle of the Bay Area, and nestled in at just under 6,000 feet of elevation, we are back in our happy place. With friends and surrounded by a massive mountain lake, clean alpine air, and lots of tall pine trees, this spot is just the first of what will be a long string of national forest campgrounds we will be visiting over the next three months.

Just perfect.

Sep 4

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Loving the Yeti

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When I was in college (a really long time ago) I used to mountain bike quite a bit. Then, I began flirting with road bikes … which eventually led to a full-on love affair with skinny wheels.

For the next 12 years I covered thousands of miles, but all of them via blacktop. But, every so often I caught myself dreaming about a day when I would once again ride the trails with a huge grin locked across my face, and enjoying every minute.

As we were preparing for life on the road, I sold my road and triathlon bikes, and in the process closed a chapter on an aspect of my life I will always look back upon fondly.

Recently, I bought a new mountain bike (Yeti SB95) and lucky for me our current boondocking spot happens to be about 20 feet from a trailhead.

The downhills are awesome.

Sep 4

Waking-Up To Perfect

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Generally we try to avoid driving at night – especially when venturing into unfamiliar locations like a mountainous national forest. But today, knowing that we would be venturing into a first come – first serve destination ahead of a what is sure to be a busy holiday weekend, we decide to go it.

Waking up this morning, it was clear that this boondocking spot about 90 minutes west of Denver is going to be awesome. Clearly, I have a weekend full of mountain biking and trail running in my future.

Thanks @sethkhughes for the recommendation!

May 14

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Retreating to Flagstaff

Kelly and I left the Bay Area six weeks ago, but due to various family and work commitments, it wasn’t until last week that we really began our lives on the road. Escaping southern Arizona, we retreated into the elevation and cooler temperatures to the north.

For years I have heard good things about the town of Flagstaff and was excited to visit, and especially happy to be joining our pals Brian & Leigh for 10 days of dispersed camping at Walnut Canyon, located in the Coconino National Forest. Much of the forest is at high altitude (averaging 7,000 feet) and is home to the largest contiguous ponderosa pine forest in North America. Even better, our campsite was only about 15 minutes from super cool downtown Flagstaff – everything about this set-up was perfect.

Last night (Wednesday) I left the cozy campground in Flagstaff to return to San Francisco for a few days of face-time in the office. Now here I sit typing, reflecting on a great 10 days – mainly, that despite long work days, Kelly and I managed to pack a lot into our visit …

met a number of (new to us) fellow full-timers (Horton’s Travels, 2Wanderaway, Finding Marshall, & Jen)
wandered through a national monument site
got lost amongst the various forest service roads
helped Brian & Leigh complete much need repairs to their Airstream
explored Flagstaff while eating good food, enjoying locally brewed beers, and sipping delicious espresso

I think this life on the road will be just fine.