Road Trip 2020, Part 1 (Days 1 - 3)

My plan for the summer of 2020 was to be on the coast of Italy, meeting up with some travel friends for an all girl’s trip. We came up with the idea around November 2019, but as COVID-19 hit and became all the more powerful in its influence, it was clear that the trip was off. 

I have to admit, I was quite lucky to be spending the pandemic in beautiful Hawaii. Once people were discouraged from coming to the islands, things got pretty loose. While social distancing and wearing masks were encouraged, we weren’t as restricted as other places on the mainland or other countries. I can see how I was a brat for complaining when in reality, I could still do many hikes, see friends (in groups of 10 or less), and visit the beaches I loved. Regardless, I had the summer off from work and I was hoping to go somewhere new. 

Since international travel was not likely to happen, I figured I’d take the time to see friends and family on the mainland. I ended up talking to a girlfriend in Las Vegas who was also upset about the change in her plans. Eventually, we came up with an idea to get out of town in the safest way possible: A ROAD TRIP! We could still see some beautiful places, keep our distance, and gas was crazy cheap because of the pandemic. We came up with a loose plan to spend a week traveling around the west coast/side of the United States, starting and ending in Las Vegas, Nevada. Despite over-estimating our driving ability a bit, we managed to travel 3,965 miles and through 9 states in one week. 

Day 1 - Las Vegas, Yosemite, Sacramento (10 hours, 537 miles)

So, we started our trip on July 1, 2020, which was also leading up to the 4th of July weekend. This tidbit we didn’t consider set our trip back a couple of hours because there was a shortage of rental cars. Sadly, this setback made it so we couldn’t spend much time in Yosemite, our highlight for that day. We took the time to do a quick visit near the entrance but ultimately decided we better get to Sacramento, where we had accommodations set with an old friend of mine. One I realized I hadn’t seen since 2006. We got to see some nice views along the way, but Day 1 was a bit of a bummer as far as road trips go. 

Day 2 - San Francisco, Natural Bridge OR, Portland (16 hours, 795 miles)

The second day started off much better. My friend and I were on the road by 8 am. Our plan was to pay a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge, then head up to Natural Bridges in Brookings, Oregon, and finish up the day in Portland. The friend I was traveling with told me she visited Oregon annually, so when she suggested we book a hotel in Portland while were still in San Francisco, I trusted her. 

Not too far out of Sacramento, we were surprised by a bright field of sunflowers. We managed to make our way to a sunflower farm around the Davis area. We took some pictures and continued toward San Francisco. We put “Golden State Park” into our GPS, which brought us to the general area, but wasn’t the best place to view the bridge. We got a bit closer by going to Crissy Field, where we also found free parking. We walked around the sandy area, which ended up being a nice way to stretch our legs. On a coffee stop before hitting the road again, we found a very cute Yoda statue hiding between some buildings. On our way out of San Francisco, we ended up crossing the GG Bridge to get to the 101 freeway, and there appeared to be spots to park to get the super close-up bridge pictures.

It was a long ride north for a bit. We watched the landscape change from cities to fields to gorgeous greenery. As the trees got taller and taller, I was reminded of the giant redwoods that would soon be all around us. Off the 101, there was a scenic route we couldn’t pass up which led us through the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, on the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway. I was amazed at the grandeur of the giant trees and wondered how many decades it took for them to grow so tall. There were many places to park alongside the road safely and enjoy the forest.

After our tree stop, it was just over an hour to our next planned stop, Natural Bridges in Brookings. We did one more detour to enjoy the beach when it became viewable. Living in Hawaii has spoiled me a bit when it comes to beaches, but this one was beautiful in a different way. I was amazed to see large boulders sporadically placed around that part of the Pacific. 

By the time my road buddy and I arrived at Natural Bridges, the sun was almost setting. The viewpoint for the bridges was fairly close to the parking area and the trail to get there was easy to find. There was an extended part of the trail that appeared to be one of the ways down to the bridges, but since it was getting dark, it will have to remain a mystery to me until the next time I get a chance to visit. I gazed at the glistening water, the swaying trees, and the swimming seals (or sea lions) and felt at ease. The anxiety of tension of the long drive slipped away almost instantly. Unfortunately, it would come back just as quickly when I made a discovery soon after my friend took over the drive. 

While I share partial blame for not double-checking, I was horrified when we passed a sign stating that Portland was over 350 miles away! Earlier in the day before we left San Francisco, my friend was adamant about booking a hotel for our night in Portland. I typically use hotels.com and I knew I had a free room saved up and figured Portland would be the place to use it since costs were higher than other places. My friend said she went to Oregon every year, so I trusted her judgment without question. I used my credit and couldn’t make changes since discount hotel sites are usually non-refundable if you make changes within 24-hours of the intended stay. As you can probably assume, I was in a panic, despite me driving for over 9 hours, we still had at least 5 more hours to go to reach Portland and it was quickly getting very dark.

After several calls and pleas to let us change our room for the following day, we were denied. My friend, who I’m sure was feeling very guilty by this time, said she felt okay driving. She managed to drive in the darkness for nearly 4 hours. The once beautiful trees were now haunting as they seemed to strangle any light that could be helpful to us. I attempted to get some sleep in case my friend needed a break. I ended up taking over again for the last hour. The second of many times I would do an unfair share of the driving, sadly. We made it to the hotel after 1 am and I quickly fell asleep. 

Day 3 - Portland

Due to our serious lack of attention and temporary loss of common sense, my friend and I saw absolutely nothing in Portland. My friend had places she definitely wanted to see and I had never been to the area, so I was looking forward to spending some time there. We decided to take some time off driving and spend the day exploring the area. It was July 3rd and the city just entered the re-opening phase due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Our first stop that morning was to Washington Park to visit the International Rose Test Garden (https://www.portland.gov/parks/washington-park-international-rose-test-garden). There was a great amount of metered parking areas, though some spots appeared to be quite far away from where we wanted to go. We found a decent spot and only spent a couple of dollars to park. The meter took change and credit/debit card. Near the rose garden was a Japanese Garden which had an entry fee. However, the line was long to get in so we decided to skip it. The rose garden itself was free but accepted donations. The garden had a rainbow array of gorgeous flowers in rows and arches, tons of outdoor seating, and was multi-leveled which offered amazing views. 

After the rose garden, my friend and I grabbed lunch at Elephants Delicatessen (https://www.elephantsdeli.com/) at 115 NW 22nd Ave, Portland, OR 97210. We chose this place for something light and it appeared to be one of the few locations open for dine-in. However, when we arrived, there was a long wait for seating since the number of patrons was limited. After 20 minutes or so, we decided to grab our order quickly and take it back to our hotel room. The food was perfectly adequate but I blame myself for feeling rushed and ordering a simple soup and sandwich. There were so many options, I’m certain if I was more prepared, I could find something amazing. 

My friend and I returned to the room to nap or a least rest a bit before figuring out plans for the evening. When searching for places for dinner, I was excited to see so many craft beer bars in the area, many that carried brands I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, several places were closed. A few calls around and we settled for a place called Kells Irish Pub (http://www.kellsirish.com/). We decided to walk there in order to get a look at the city. My friend told me the streets were way emptier than they have been on her previous visits. Along the way, we stopped for a beer at different places, creating our own little bar crawl. A lot of establishments were overly thankful and reported an extreme loss in business for several weeks. 

The further we walked, the more dismal the streets became. We started to see the leftovers of protests. Destruction and graffiti-covered a lot of the downtown area and it was strange to see up close and in person. We could hear a low roar of people in the distance, perhaps the beginning of a march or demonstration? 

Despite the odd feel of the city, my friend and I wanted to enjoy the night. It was a full day of relaxing and we were set to leave the next morning. We went to four or five bars/restaurants trying local beers, ending the evening with champagne, oysters, and dancing.

What I learned

It's important to be grateful for what you have, even if you feel your current situation isn't the most ideal. I had to remember to appreciate I was living in Hawaii and I was lucky to have more freedoms that a lot of other people had at the time.

Be flexible and come up with alternatives when you can't change what's going on. Yes, my trip to Italy was canceled, but instead of focusing on what I couldn't do, I focused on what I could do.

Take action! I didn't mope around and spend the summer miserable, I did something about it.

Be empathetic. When my friend made the hotel mistake, I was very annoyed. However, I had to think about how I would feel if I did something similar. I could have kept being annoyed with her and all that would have done would make her upset and probably ruin the rest of our trip. 

Let it go. It was easier for me to forgive and move on, so try to be quick to let anger, frustration, and anything not serving you go. Also, let go! Have fun and be spontaneous because it can lead to great adventures.