On the Road Again…

Day One

I love to drive but I’ve never driven for more than 8 hours straight, which was too much for me. Over the years I’ve figured out that 6 hours is the most that I can handle in one day. I thought it would be a great idea if I drove my new/ish car (with good gas mileage) to Seattle and the San Juan Islands from the SF Bay Area for my Birthday this year. As my usual, I’m traveling solo but this time I brought my dog Jake.

I meticulously planned out my trip a few months ago using airbnb.com for the nights I didn’t have a friend’s house to stay at. I used googlemaps to figure out how far I could drive per day (never going over 6 hours).

Jacksonville, Oregon ©KAH

Day 1

San Rafael, California to Jacksonville, Oregon

I searched on airbnb for a place close to Medford after determining that Medford was about the right amount of travel time. I ended up in Jacksonville. I’d never heard of Jacksonville and neither had any of my friends. But it’sadorable!

I checked out 7 books on CD from my local library and then downloaded another 5 from the library rental system. I’m glad I chose to bring physical CDs because there were places that my cell cut out and along with it, my Nalini Singh vampirebook L

As mentioned above I love to drive. I love listening to books, to music, talking to friends on my car phone and thinking. I love the open road. The sights of broken down barns on the side of the highway, the smells of flowers blooming, the sounds of trucks rolling by…

Mount Shasta ©KAH

Highway 5 was only marginally better looking when driving North than it is going South however traveling over Mount Shasta is beyond breathtaking.

It feels like I’m wiping the slate clean when I drive for long

periods of time. When I get to a new place, especially one like this in the country I feel like I can fill my lungs with the crisp cool air, slow down the pace a bit and everything will be okay.