From our chair, by laura

I'm writing from our one comfy chair in our house, looking out the big living room window, watching the last bit of sunlight move up the trees as the sun goes down over the hills.

Things here are good. Here's our living room!


We bought a rug the other day, and a trashcan, and a teapot. This week we've been spending a lot of time trying to economically stock up on food and necessities to get our little home together. Jeff's been really excited to make the kitchen his own. He's been in there every night cooking up something scrumptious. I put aside my free-range meat preferences in order to eat some of his roasted chicken. He was raving about it. I just couldn't make him go without getting some positive reinforcement. haha! So we've had chicken soup, chicken nachos, chicken sandwiches (with cream cheese...quite good!), chicken tacos, and tonight I wouldn't be surprised if he uses it as a topping for a baked potato.

Last weekend was his 30th birthday! We drove to Charlotte, just about 2 hours away to go see Old Crow Medicine Show. At the end of it, Jeff said that we must go see them, everytime we get the chance! haha. It was a great, SOLD OUT, fun time. We danced, and danced and danced.




As the weekend comes, we're looking forward to checking out our first open mic in Asheville. And our new friend Jeff is going to take us on a good, long hike. The farthest we've been so far, due to rain and such, is just up to the Blue Ridge Parkway. But I'm happy to report it was lovely, and only a 10 minute drive up from our house. It's nice to have that so close. So I'm looking forward to getting out farther and experiencing some North Carolina mountain hiking!

As far as things go for me, I'm still looking for a job. I'm having a hard time. The first day I checked our new mailbox, there was a letter awaiting me from the NPR station I applied to, letting me know that I didn't get the position. BUMMER. So now, I'm entertaining all kinds of other options, feeling more desperate as the days go by. My latest application went in at the local Whole Foods. Fingers crossed! I'm thinking that could get me into a community at least, and maybe some new opportunities will sprout from that! We'll see... until next time.

Settling in Asheville, by Laura

I was looking at pictures this morning from the last 4 months. I can't believe that we've been moving around for that long. It's been a great journey! I can say that I'm excited to be settling in our own space. It's been nice to travel, but we've been staying with friends and family, taking up room in their houses, and never having a place to call our own, besides Jeff's 2 person tent...which we haven't had the pleasure of using in awhile!

We have found a home in Asheville, NC. It's nestled in the trees, in the mountains of North Carolina. It's a moderate-sized city, compared to where we came from (Nome,) but I think it will offer some exciting opportunities, hopefully. Jeff already has a job at the YMCA. He's hoping to find something in the school system, but jumped at the chance to work with kids for now, as the Wellness Coordinator of afterschool programs. Then when something opens up in the school system, he will look into that later next year. I'm still looking around, and hoping to hear back from WCQS, the local NPR station.

(This is a view from the Blue Ridge Parkway, just a 10 minute drive up the mountain from our house!)

So here we are, feeling like adults...haha. I bought a car the other day, have my first loan!, and find myself scouring craigslist for furniture.

Jeff is the one who's getting old though! His 30th birthday is coming up, and we're going to head to Charlotte, NC to catch an Old Crow Medicine Show concert. Exciting! I'll have to post some pictures once we get into the house. We're waiting for the current tenants to move out before we can get in. Just a couple more weeks, and we can call it our home.

Just to add to...by Jeff

This was a pretty amazing weekend, backpacking with some excellent company (gosh, I love this gal!), music, dancing, eating, drinking... It doesn't get any better. The connection made in just one night brought back all the feelings I missed from having nature so close and available. I wasn't kidding about the connection made over one night, the sun seemed brighter and welcoming, the air clearer, every sound more deliberate. All only confirmed my desire to homestead on a little farm and enjoy life for what it is. It was a nice reminder of all the experiences we have had together over the past couple of months, the relationships built, the acquaintances, the good times shared with beautiful people...thank you all.

Driving the east coast, by laura

We set out last week from Newport News, heading to the Shenendoah National Park to get in our first backpacking trip since we left Nome! We finally had emptied the truck of our belongings, and were able to leave it for the night, not to worry about everything being there when we returned. We camped Thursday night at a campground, and toted our banjo and ukulele out for a little fireside entertainment. Heading to the restroom to brush our teeth, the camper couple by the building complemented us on the music, and wanted to hear more! good thing. We've only heard good things about our little traveling duo so far...
The next day, we packed up our packs and set out on the trail! We took it really easy on ourselves. Jeff was nervous about getting me in too far over my head I think (although I did backpack Grand Central in Nome...come on!) Anyway, we were just relaxing, it was hot, and we traveled down to where we would camp in just a few hours. The trail description talked of 100ft. water falls and a swimming hole, which we were really excited about. But it's been so dry, we were lucky to find some small, small pools of water that were suitable to filter for drinking. No waterfalls, no swimming... But we found a place to set up camp, and relaxed for the rest of the day. Reading in the tent, as the sun was going down, we heard some rustling in the leaves not too far away. It startled me, and Jeff shot up, a black bear was less than 100 yards, digging at a rotting tree. We had just gotten back from a walk in that very direction, and there it was, checking us out. Luckily, it got a whiff of us (not pleasant,) and felt it wise to head the other direction. The next day, we woke to a pleasant fall morning. The air was cool and crisp and leaves and acorns were falling to the ground. I think the night out in the woods connected our energies somehow. Jeff was talking of be more in tuned to everything around us, the morning light filtering through the trees. It was nice. A quick breakfast, and we were off! I wasn't entirely prepared for our hike back to be completely uphill...whew! what a workout! I kept reminding myself of that, and somehow it wasn't that bad. But I'm still feeling it, and it's two days later. haha.
We came in to Luray on Saturday afternoon and spent some relaxing time with Abbey, George, and Sam, and then ventured down to Lexington yesterday to hear the Carolina Chocolate Drops. The concert was at 3pm with contra dancing afterward! I was glad to have experience from our Nome time. It was good to do that again. And we spoke to the guitarist and percussionist extraordinaire from the band, and plugged the Nome Folk Fest. I told them that they should try to get out there, and they wouldn't regret it! He said to keep trying to get them there...so I'll have to pass that on to Carol!
Next we're heading to Fredericksburg to hang out with sister Gabie, Thane, and their little Asher. We'll be heading into DC for a day to visit the city life and catch a museum or two that we missed when we were there in the winter. Then...VERMONT! I'm excited. more soon. and we'll have pictures next time.

the adventures continue

We made it to the east coast, and have had the pleasure of visiting with so many friends and family. It's been really great. The wedding was fun, and it was nice to see so many old friends all in the same place together. Our stay in Luray with Abbey, George and Sam was wonderful. It was the longest uninterrupted time we'd had together in a while. Sam might actually remember who we are! We were introduced to his near 2 year old awesomeness, dancing to Paul Simon, playing drums during music time. So much fun. We played so much music! Abbey and George have a great collection of instruments and love playing music, so we got to play with George at an open stage in downtown Luray, and we even went to their friends' house for a Nome-inspired music time. Abbey enjoyed sharing in a music night in Nome so much, that she's trying to spread the music love in Luray. On the day they both had to work, Jeff and I went out searching for a climb close to town in the Blue Ridge. After hiking all the way up to the top of the mountain, trying to find the right cliffs, we came back down a ways, and found a path over to where we wanted to be. Jeff kept being alarmed by the acorns falling from trees, expecting to see a bear close by, but we never did. sneaky acorns. The climb was hard, and we weren't able to make it up...I guess not many people come out there. So our search for good climbing over here continues.
After hanging in Luray for a long weekend, we drove south to Asheville, NC. It's awesome here. We've been staying with my college friend Jessica and her lovely husband T.J. They live in a "tree-house," a house among many trees, just minutes from the Blue Ridge Parkway. We've been eating good food, enjoying good company, and went out for a night on the town on Friday. We were introduced to some great local beers and vegetarian bbq. yum! Yesterday was a rainy, lazy day, so our plans for boating morphed into napping and reading. Today we had an amazing brunch at one of my most favorite restaurants, the Laughing Seed; gourmet vegetarian food that makes meat eaters forget they wanted meat. mmmm...mmmmm.... After a little too much shopping, we came back to the house, and have burritos as the plan for dinner. What more could you want? Jeff has been weighing the pro's of moving here, although we've spent a lot of time talking about Alaska this weekend, and both miss it, a lot. The leaves are just thinking of changing colors here, and the weather is cooling off. I can imagine the tundra is looking beautiful in reds and golds.
Tomorrow we're heading to the coast, so I can introduce Jeff to the Outer Banks. I'm so excited to show him another of my favorite east coast spots. And he'll get his first dip in the warm Atlantic seas. woo hoo! for beach time. I'm sure we'll get some good photos up from there. More soon.

...8000 Pound Prarie Dog?

We have finally left Tucson, back on the road headed for the east coast. The delay was caused by a lost title for the truck we intended to drive across the country. We stayed around Tucson longer than anticipated but it was nice to catch up with family and explore some old climbing routes that I haven't seen since college. It was the first time Laura had climbed outdoors so it was nice introduction to some long simple climbs.
We headed first for Santa Fe to meet up with Kristin and Isaac, friends from Nome, and took the day to drive from Tucson to Santa Fe. It was successful and the reunion wonderful. Kristin and Isaac live in a "passive" solar house in the mountains. It was beautiful,quiet, and peaceful. We spent three days with them, going to farmer's markets, hiking, and even river rafting. During this time we also meet up with some of Isaac's friends from back east. This was a treat as I was informed that our decision to move to Vermont was a good one...yes we are moving to Vermont, but that is a different story.
We spent a full day on the river, nothing more than class 2 but nice a relaxing.
Isaac presented a case for us to visit his family cabin in Creede, CO so we took it. This changed our direction and travel plans entirely as we were going to take the southern route across the US on I-40 but ended up going across through Kansas instead. In Creede we visited the Creede Repertory Theater (CRT) which was listed as one of the top 10 places to see plays off Broadway. We saw a play and although we appreciate the Nome Arts Council, we truly enjoyed the performance and ability of the performers as they transported us into the performance so effortlessly. Appreciatively, the words of Richard ringing in my head.
In Creede we also had the opportunity to hike one of the many alpine trails. This was beautiful as we walked along a spring fed brook, through thick aspen groves, and enjoyed views of the opposite side of the valley.
After Creede, we headed east into Kansas. Honestly western Kansas is not all that scenic, but they are very entertaining. It was here that Laura and I experienced a sight and thought that never had crossed our minds before...the land of
the 8000 pound prairie dog! Where else could such a beast of such size be grown and contained but in the vastness of the wide, wide, wide...wide spaces of Western Kansas.
After the amazement of this spectacle we continued to Eastern Kansas where we were greeted by Phil, a friend of Lorne, who truly made us feel at home as well as his many friends. We jammed together through the night (2am to be exact) with excellent food and drink. It was so nice to be greeted this way after such a long drive. Thanks Phil.
We continued east through what can only be descirbed as Banjo Heaven (think happy Deliverance) to the land of Laura, Virginia. Not Laura, VA but where Laura is from. It has been quite nice as we camp out in the cool night air behind Abbey and George's house ( Laura's sister and brother-in- law.) We look forward to more adventures and will try, once again, to be more consistent with updates.

It comes forth...The Incident

So some retro pics are up. I was finally able to download these off my camera. More to come now that I can access my card again. Laura at the base of one of the water falls at the site of, "The Incident."

Imagine all these birds going up...something has to come down.

Laura and our friend Angela.

A little hike back in to the woods to get away from the seal that was following us.

So the story goes. We went kayaking in Whittier before we got on the ship to head south. It was a pretty good day, first time the town had seen sun in a couple of weeks. We met up with Angela, suited up for our kayak trip and launched off. It was the first time Laura and I had ever been sea kayaking, some of you may have heard about the tandem river trip we took the year before but thats another story.

Angela guided us out and things were going fine and I'm looking around my boat and thinking to myself, " I'm very vulnerable right about now, I mean anything can just come right up and tip this sucker over." So I decided to ask Angela about it. She says it has never happened in Whittier but she heard of a sea lion smashing a guys boat down in the San Fran Bay. Out of the corner of my eye, a shadow begins to lurk in the water. A head pops up...it a seal, a big one. Following us. We rushed to the next cove with it following no less than 10 feet behind Laura. We later find out it was a harbor seal and doesn't really do much, just curious. Not so exciting, but a nice experience for us. We continue to paddle out to the other side of the bay to a seagull rookery. The following is what occurred, identities have been masked to protect the innocent.

Photos from the road, by laura

Our trip in photos, from Tucson to Sedona,

Slide Rock to the Grand Canyon,

and Zion to Las Vegas (of all places,)


I think that the Grand Canyon was my favorite of all our stops. It was the only time we stayed two nights camping in a row. We were able to settle a little bit, and visit the park two different times, and they were so different! The first night we got there, we caught the sunset and enjoyed a mellow stroll on the rim trail. The next morning, we got up REALLY early and hiked 3 miles down into the canyon. I was the voice of reason and kept us from going farther, although it was quite tempting...it was getting hot, and we weren't really that prepared. So the 3 miles down gave us a slightly different perspective, although in such a large place, it's amazing how little 3 miles seems! We left the canyon, and continued north, making it to Zion National Park in southern Utah. It was my first time in Utah. I highly recommend making it to Zion. It's beautiful! Talk about feeling small. And there are so many different opportunities there depending on what you want...intense hiking, mellow hiking, wading through water into the "narrows" of the canyon, climbing, ...almost anything! We went for the mellow hiking and wading through some water, and finished our evening off with sitting underneath hanging gardens. It was like it was raining! Water seeps out of the rocks, and gives life to so many plants, vines and flowers, just right on the rock. It's really amazing.
Vegas was a world in and of its own. I'm glad we went. It was interesting. I played 3 slot machines, and put an end to my gambling while I was ahead. The Elvis button was my big score! haha. $40 richer. Thank you Elvis. And thanks to college friend Mimi and her husband Matt for being so inviting and letting us crash at their house, chill with their dogs, and use their shower, after not bathing for 5 days. That was nice. :)
Our last stop was through Flagstaff. I was grateful for the opportunity to cool off after a hot few days in Vegas. We stopped in a local food joint, got some dinner, and a sweet camping tip from the owner. A 20 minute drive took us out of town and up to a lake. We saw a herd of elk, Jeff witnessed a huge shooting star, and we woke up to birds chirping from all sides. It almost sounded like Nome!

Knee Driving, Glop Foot, and Vegas (posted by jeff)

So we find our bodies in Vegas. Hmmm... Vegas, not sure its all its cracked up to be but we are going to the Strip this afternoon. So from the beginning. Laura and I got tired of the hot so our solution was to drive north to the Grand Canyon. WE FOUND IT!!! Took some side trips to get there, went through Sedona ( Slide Rock...yeah for natural water slides, Laura experienced a fall but walked away unscathed), Flagstaff, scenic drove through the forest then spent two days at the South Rim. We watched the sunset on the first night, holding each other on the rim of the Canyon watching the sky turn every shade of pink and purple, all the while Germans chatted in the back ground. Our second day found us going down the canyon on the Bright Angel Trail. We woke up around 5:30 am to reach our point before the sun cooked us. It was well worth it and had breakfast in the canyon overlooking Indian Springs. We left the next day and headed to Glenn Canyon to swim, and bathe, in the Colorado River. I think we spent more time walking through muddy water and sinking into sediment up to our ankles than any other activity. Laura appropriately named this condition " Glop Foot" as mud would cake on to our feet so thick we would gain 3 inches of height and ten pounds of glop on our feet. We made it out alive and are now in Las Vegas. After all the beauty of Zion, Grand Canyon, and Sedona I'm not sure that this city thing is for me. More to come with pictures.

A blur to Tucson, by laura

On a Ben & Jerry's quest to the grocery store tonight, as the sun was past setting at 7:45pm, I was realizing how far we have come in the past three weeks. From the Nome, Alaska summer sun, through Anchorage clam digging in the rain, bundled in goretex, trains, ferries, buses, biking and sunburning in Portland, we've finally made it to our temporary destination. And the biggest question we've been answering, is, "What's your plan?" Saying we don't have one feels equally freeing and irresponsible. But we're trying to keep our heads on our shoulders and enjoy it at the same time. Tucson has been an interesting comfort to me. The wide open sky feels reminiscent of Nome, just...hotter. But the time meeting Jeff's family has been nice, and we're planning trips as I type. First, this week, we'll be exploring the southwest, and heading to Sedona and the Grand Canyon! I'm really excited.
Our trip south was wonderful. We went clam-digging in Anchorage, kayaking in Whittier, and glacier-viewing in Juneau, all because of Nome friends for whom I'm very thankful. We met some new friends along the way too! John and Bob, a couple middle-aged English blokes joined us at our set of seats on the train ride from Anchorage to Whittier. We learned they are venturing from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica before Christmas, hopefully, assuming all goes to plan. They shared an adventurous spirit and told us of days sailing around islands in Indonesia and across the Atlantic. They turned up on our ferry from Whittier to Juneau, and invited us to stay in their cabin, as they had extra beds, to keep us from sleeping on the boat deck, as we planned. After a short deliberation, Jeff and I decided it could only make for a more interesting trip, and we took them up on it! We were sad to part with them in Juneau. Luckily we were able to hold onto a few more friends to spend some time with. The second leg of the ferry trip from Juneau to Bellingham was long, but exciting. We saw some great places in Southeast Alaska, and enjoyed the forced relaxation that ferry-riding requires. And what a luxurious place! I was impressed. We popped our tent up right out on the deck, enjoyed places to sit and enjoy some quiet, watched movies, had a drink (or two) in the bar, and even played music in there at the bartender, Tony's, request. It was a fun time for sure! The tent community was great. We met a great couple from Seattle, who spent an entire sunny afternoon out on the ferry deck, talking about great places we should move.

In Bellingham we spent the morning relaxing with some good food, enjoying a good bookstore, and taking advantage of the cupcake store! for a birthday treat. It was a glorious day. Jeff sang (quietly) to me on the bus on our way to Seattle as I sat with my cupcake in my lap, waiting to take a bite. Then we hopped on the train to Portland, and made it just in time, thanks to a really nice busdriver, to hear my friends Colin and Brian play a set downtown. She even invited me up for a song!
Portland was day after day of sunshine, biking, and amazing food. Jeff and I loved the city, and loved how accessible it is on bike. We explored downtown, went to a giant street fair, ate, and ate, and ate. Colin and Brian were the nicest of hosts, and even took us out to the Gorge on our last day. We did some hiking, and saw some amazing waterfalls, dipped our toes in some not freezing water (Jeff got all the way in!) and we ended up on a grassy bank overlooking the river, basking in the sun, watching colorful kiteboarders soar through the air.
Ever since arriving in Tucson, I've been amazed at how VAST this city is. It's not for me, but we're enjoying being here. Meeting Jeff's family has definitely been a good thing, and it's fun to see him reunited with his precious Karly dog. After realizing who he was, when we first got here, she plopped her massive Newfie body at his feet, whining and crying away, as he rubbed her down. I think she missed him.
I miss Nome a lot. We've been able to speak to a few, and have been keeping in touch through Facebook stalking. Hopefully this will help too. I sometimes can't believe we just aren't on a big vacation with intentions to return...but I guess you never know! For now, we're exploring possibilties in this lower 48 country.