Mystical Van Ventures
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Everything Changes So Quickly
Just a few days ago I was facing houselessness. I was considering moving into my truck camper full-time, and then I woke up one bright sunny morning and everything had changed.
I had grown used to the feeling of dread I had waking up every morning and knowing I was at the end of my ten year journey with my house. I was grieving and letting go. I feared never having a home again; being a vagabond for the rest of my life. Although in part, it appealed to me to be so footloose and fancy free, the Taurus in me was really rebelling. There was a fight between the part of me that wanted to roam, and the part of me that needed roots. And it was that one bright, sunny morning in my home in Arizona that the two parts of me came to a compromise.
My truck camper had served me well for three years. I loved it! It had been my home, away from home. But it was time to let it go. Instead of letting my house go, I would let my house on wheels go and I would go back to Red Raven, my mini van, for my adventures, at least for now. I would have both roots and wings.There was an excitement about rebuilding Red Raven as my camper. She was so much sleeker, lighter and so much better on gas. She wasn’t the tiny home that my camper was. She didn’t have a kitchen and a bathroom, a queen bed, and a dinette. But she would have a bed and a makeshift kitchen.
Rather than driving off into the abyss, not knowing where I was going or where I would end up, which I have to admit, is a bit exciting, I would be renting out the upstairs of my home and moving into my downstairs space. This would allow me to still have a home base and be able to journey in the van.My Eat, Pray, Roam journey would continue as I capture the journey of eating a plant based diet, being on a spiritual path, and roaming to interesting places.
Having roots and wings really appeals to me. This is the best of both worlds I have the stability of my home and the freedom of roaming in Red Raven.
Let the journey begin!
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Family and Aliens
Columbia River at the Gorge near Hood River, Oregon Okay so family and aliens don’t really go together. Except that my family probably think I am an alien. This journey has been more about family connections then anything else. I had my time between events and visits to put my feet in the sand and listen to the ocean waves. Then headed to visit my parents for a few days. It was a nice visit. I enjoyed my time there in the Portland area.
I left on a Thursday morning and headed to the ECETI Ranch at the foot of Mt. Adams in Washington State. It is a beautiful ranch where I had the opportunity to camp, connect with others, visit the labyrinth and the medicine wheel and sky gaze in the evening.
Although we were at the tail end of a meteor shower and saw a few meteors, we were actually looking for UFO activity. James Gilliland, who owns the ranch, has had many sightings at the ranch and has some stories to tell. Curious seekers come to see if they are lucky enough to get a glimpse of something “out of this world.”
Mt. Adams in Washington State We are never disappointed as there is always something interesting going on. I visited ten years ago and learned about what to look for in the sky. I’ve been seeing unusual activity ever since. What was really mind blowing was to see the orbs in real time, through infra red goggles. Orbs are these round bubble like energies that are thought by many to be “beings.” They often show up in photographs and tend to show up more when there is music, or some kind of spiritual ceremony. You can’t see them with the naked eye, but can see them in the photographs and sometimes in videos.
I was writing a new song a couple years ago and wanted to record it so I could remember it. I set up my video camera on my phone, because the sound was best this way. I had the camera pointing out into the room and when I played it back, there were several colored orbs dancing around the room. they always make me laugh. They are such a playful, beautiful energy.
I believe our Universe is way to big to think we are the only one’s here. And we can’t begin to understand the world that is beyond our comprehension. We learn to see things a certain way, and we can be very attached to our beliefs. I’ve seen so much in my life, I am open minded. Anything is possible.One thing we saw the first evening I was at the ranch was a flash of colored light in front of the mountain. It was almost electrical, but not any kind of storm. It was a clear night and there was just a big flash of light in the sky, that had blue, green and pink hues. We all gasped when we saw it and found it quite exciting. We saw some flashes in the sky as well. Very high up, above where a plane would fly. We also would see something flying along and then flash very bright and sometimes disappear altogether.
River near ECETI Ranch There were flashes of light on the side of Mt. Adams that were going on both nights I was there. James explained that there is no trail on this side of the mountain. It is a solid rock wall that could not be climbed or hiked. People hike up one side of the Mountain but James also explained that the likely hood of seeing someone’s head-lamp from 14 miles away at the brightness we were seeing was slim to none. He had tested it with friends.
James had his explanation for what we were seeing and he believed it was ship activity. Many people who were watching wanted a more “human” explanation. James knew where the satellites and space stations were and when they tended to come by. He even pointed them out. “That’s a satellite,” he would say, or “that’s the space station.” Then he would point his laser at the sky and say “this is a ship.” We all looked up and watched the unusual activity in the sky as if we were star gazing. It was fun and interesting, but nothing landed in the field and nothing came to take me away.
Old Bridge near ECETI Ranch After two days at the ranch I headed out and checked in with myself to see where I was going next. I felt it was time to go home. The tenant renting my house and taking care of it while I was gone, moved out because she was having some issues, so my house was left empty and the yard unattended to. I decided it was time to make the long journey back to Arizona.
The next two days were wheels rolling on hot pavement, music blaring on my speakers and mind zoning out. Everywhere I went was hot. Driving through Idaho the temperatures were nearing 100 degrees and it remained pretty hot all the way home. Normally the trek from the Southwest to the Northwest is two and a half days. This time I did the journey in two days. It was too hot to stop anywhere. I slept a bit at a rest stop and a bit parked at a city park in Nephi, Utah. The temperatures dropped into the seventies in the evening and rapidly climbed back up in the morning.
Lake Powell in Arizona I pulled into my driveway early Sunday evening and even though it was 99 degrees when I arrived home, I was happy to be there. I pulled all my necessities out of the van and settle into my place. It felt good to stretch out, giving the mini-van a break. As much as I love the van, I’m thinking eventually I will get something I can stand up in.
Towards the end of the month, I may take another journey to Colorado. But for now I am settling in and getting some work done.
Sightings at ECETI Ranch
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Driving on the Beach, Long Beach, Astoria and Fort Stevens State Park
It always feels good to pack up the van and pull out to the next destination. Especially when I have no idea where that is. There is something magical about just letting myself be guided; going where the wind blows me, so to speak.I didn’t need to go far before I found myself at my next destination, Long Beach, Washington. Long Beach boasts itself as being the Worlds Longest Beach, however it is really a 28 mile long Peninsula. Yes, I drove the length of it.
What I really liked about Long Beach, was, like Westport, it just wasn’t that crowded. Not like the Oregon Coastal towns. Driving onto the beach was legal and so I took my Van right onto the beach with the back facing the ocean. When the winds got heavy, it was cold or the sun intense, I could seek shelter in the van. One couldn’t ask for a better view.
In Long Beach, I spent the majority of my time, not at the beach, but on the beach. We couldn’t camp overnight there, so I found a vacant City Lot where Van Lifers were parked for the night. Other than having a horrible nightmare that my Van was being broken into and I was being violently attacked, the night went well.In telling a friend about the nightmare, she suggested it might be more symbolic about someone in my life who really wants to hurt me and cause me pain. My friend felt my Van represented my home, or personal space and the attacker a significant person in my life who would probably love it if I was no longer on the planet. Yes, this is a real person.
I’ve learned that although some people may not like me and want me to suffer, I would give no energy to the attacks. I recognized that it is never about me, but rather about the person who is projecting their own inner demons upon me. Not my demons! You leave someone like this alone with their demons long enough, their own demons will turn against them in time. Meanwhile I get on with my life and leave them in my rear view mirror.
After my night in Long Beach, I drove on down the road to find a place where I could make my tea, kick back and write in my journal. I found a sweet little County Park on the Columbia River. The Columbia River comes down from Canada, through Washington, the Washington Gorge, Portland, Oregon and joining the Pacific Ocean at Astoria, Oregon. It is a very large river.In past trips, I noticed I was often destination oriented and didn’t take the time to stop and smell the roses, or drink the coffee. This time was different. I really wanted to take my time and really explore what the places I visited had to offer.
On my way to Long Beach I found this really cool coffee house on the River in South Bend, Washington. I hung out there, charged my electronics, and wrote a blog post. I tried their curry lentil soup which was Vegan, and they had a vegan treat to go with my decaf Americano. It is not so often I find places where I can order something that fits my diet. It is a rare find, and a great treat to find such a place.
Althou
gh I have crossed the long bridge to Astoria many times, I actually never turned left to go into the City of Astoria and check out it’s historic Downtown. This time I made the left. I’m glad I did. I browsed through a couple shops, talked to few people and enjoyed the quaint old town.The bridge from Washington to Astoria, Oregon is 4.1 miles long. It crosses the Columbia River and goes up very high so the ships going out to Sea can sail under the bridge. The Columbia River separates Washington from Oregon in many places.
My next stop was across another big draw bridge from Astoria to Warrington. Warrington had a Natural Grocers and a Starbucks in one parking lot….SCORE!Warrington is also home to Fort Stevens State Park where I spent a part of my day. At the point, at Fort Stevens, the Columbia river is on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other. There is a jetty separating the two and you can walk out quite a ways on the jetty if you want to.
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A Wedding and a Celebration of Life and a Releasing
Westport at the Washington Coast I was on my way to my son’s Wedding when I learned my beloved Aunt had passed away after a long battle with Cancer. Being that the Celebration of Life would be in the Pacific Northwest, I knew I needed to go. As it turned out the Wedding was on the 20th and the Celebration of Life on the 25th. Both events brought the family together, and it was a time of reunion, tears and celebration.
As I write this both events are in my rear view mirror. I went from the Celebration of Life to the Washington Coast, which was only a half hour away from where the memorial was.
Feet in the Sand The Ocean is a great place to release, to let go of accumulative emotional energy. It is a great place to put my feet in the sand, to ground and connect with the great power of big water.
Water represents the emotions. It is said that the sea is a great place to get in touch with your emotions and the desert a great place to “dry out.” It is beautiful to have the opportunity for both sides of the spectrum.
There is a reason people go to the sea when they are grieving. It is as if they are giving their grief to the sea; letting it go with the waves and allowing the tide to take the grief out to sea.
Ironically when I arrived at Westport, on the Washington Coast, it was still foggy and a bit gloomy. It cleared up in the late afternoon and the evening was beautiful. I made lunch out of the back of my van and as I was kicked back in my van having my Veggie wrap, when my van captured the attention of two young surfers.We got into a long conversation about what it is like to live out of a van, travel to the places my heart calls me to, and eating healthy on the road. The young man and his younger brother had the same travel bug I had and dreamed of getting a van, like mine, and taking to the road. They were still working out the details of work and money. I encouraged them, as I would encourage my own son, or my clients, to follow their heart; because, well, life is what you make it. Live big and love big.
After our conversation, I took a long walk along the beach, and just enjoyed the fresh sea air. I collected a few sand dollars with flowery designs in the center, and sat on a log, gazing out into the abyss.
Beautiful Sand-dollar from Westport Beach. Notice the flower design with the crack right in the middle. That evening I parked at the Marina on the Bayside and enjoyed the view. It was a beautiful and quiet evening.
I was awakened to the sound of monster diesel trucks driving in and parking on either side of my van, idling in the cold, foggy morning. The morning at the Marina came very early for the fisherman, who talked among themselves, as they prepared for their day at sea. Somewhere out in the line of fishing boats there was the sound of grinding.
I extracted myself from my warm bed to drive back to the State Park. The park was already bustling with surfers in their wet-suits braving the foggy coastal morning, for a chance to ride the waves. I made my tea, wrote in my journal for a while and then took another long walk. It was now time to move on down the road to the next destination.
Westport has great surfer waves and known for its kite surfing. You can barely see the kite in the sky in this pic. It is attached to a surfer. He allows the kite to pull him along the waves and can stay afloat for quite a long time, surfing back and forth along the waves. Here is a Video taken from someone Kite Surfing at Westport.
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Lucky to be Alive
Winchester State Park in Idaho One thing I learned from life on the road, is that I need to stop more and explore those “out of the way” places, that I tend to fly past on my way to somewhere. I need to be less busy going somewhere and more relaxed. Stop and smell the roses, or at least taste the coffee.
Although I no longer partake of caffeine, one of my favorite past times is to hang out in quaint little coffee houses, where I sip on a Chai Tea or a decaf Americano. Normally there is an Internet connection and I can’t check my email and catch up on my writing.
I’m a little behind today, as I’ve had over a week of experiences since I last posted. Some of the experiences that were a big deal a week ago, are all but forgotten, such as the day from hell, where I almost hit two deer at two different times and places, while going 65 miles per hour. Both times the deer came jetting out of nowhere and crossed the highway directly in front of me, causing me to slam on my brakes. This resulted in things flying all over in my van and breaking my glass tea press and mason jar, I was traveling with.
Winchester State Park in Idaho That same day I was passing two slow moving vehicles going about 75 MPH and a car came up from a side road and decided to turn right onto the lane I was passing in. So I was in route for a head on collision, before the oncoming car quickly pulled off to the side. Whew!
My destination this day was McCall, Idaho, a little town on a big lake, but by the time I arrived it was so crazy busy, on a Tuesday afternoon, that I decided to keep moving. The State Park was full and the downtown area was so crowded I couldn’t find a place to park. I wasn’t in the mood for crowds and I had clients the next morning. I needed a quieter place.
Winchester State Park in Idaho One thing I realized about myself in my travels is that I am not a crowd person. I like the remote, out of the way places, abundant with peace and quiet. I like to be where I can listen to the sounds of nature, walk in the forest and have a relatively quiet camp spot.
As I was driving through the Canyon in the Snake River recreation area the temperatures were in the high nineties. I left Arizona to get away from these kinds of temperatures, I wasn’t interested in sleeping in them. It was evening and I had been driving all day. I was tired. I wanted to stop for the night, but not with this heat. So I kept driving.
Prayer seemed like the best thing I could do at this point. Could I please have a nice ending to a long day? Could I please celebrate that I am still alive after all the near misses somewhere nice? I specifically requested cooler temperatures, quiet and Cell Phone reception where I could get a Wifi signal for work.
It wasn’t long before I descended into a valley and the temperatures dropped from the high nineties to the seventies. I then saw a sign for a State Park two miles off the highway, with camping. I made a quick turn and found myself in a beautiful quiet State Park overlooking the lake, nestled in a pine forest. I had a phone signal. My Wifi unit worked. My prayers were answered.
