Highlights From Our Cross-Country Road Trip

Wow. What a whirlwind month it's been!

After taking 11 days to drive cross-country home to Boston, we quickly returned to our respective offices...and life has been non-stop ever since. As I write this, I am actually on a plane to Orlando for my company's customer conference. Talk about getting right back to reality!

Our trip home was nothing short of incredible, though. It was a lot of driving, but our trusty Subaru Outback stayed in great shape the whole way - we didn't even encounter so much as a flat tire. Here was our full itinerary:

Oregon ---> Redwood Forest ---> Reno, NV ---> Park City, UT ---> Denver, CO ---> Kansas City, MO ---> St. Louis, MO ---> Louisville, KY ---> Asheville, NC ---> Richmond, VA ---> Boston, MA

Along the way, we saw a ton of old and new friends, ate a lot of great food, sampled a ton of great beer, and saw #allthesights. It would take me days to recap our entire trip, so instead, here are some of the highlights from our 11-day journey across the country (in no particular order).

1.) The Redwood Forest

We hit the Redwoods on the tail-end of the typhoon that was hitting the Pacific Northwest, so a lot of the parks were closed. However, we stopped at one of the park ranger offices and got some fantastic recommendations for open parks - and frolicked through the massive trees in the rain. It was really a remarkable experience, and definitely a big highlight for both of us!

2.) Louisville, KY

We stopped in Louisville on a whim - it was a great way to cut our original ride from St. Louis to Asheville shorter - and I am so glad we did. Louisville really surprised us: the downtown was gorgeous and quaint, with Louisville Slugger baseball bats scattered throughout, recognizing famous baseball players who used them. (Z loved that part!). Against the Grain Brewery was also a fun stop for dinner and fresh beers, with plenty of vegan and vegetarian options to boot.

3.) Vegetarian Reuben from Laughing Seed Cafe in Asheville, NC

Z actually ordered this, and I had major food envy. I mean...how good does this look? It was phenomenal, and definitely a food highlight from our travels.

4.) The roadside scenery

From the Salt Flats in Utah (first photo) to the snowy mountains in Wyoming to the gorgeous views of the Pacific in California (second photo), we saw some gorgeous, ever-changing sights along the way. 

5.) The beer...obviously.

Just like our last cross-country trip, we made a ton of stops at some breweries and beer bars we were eager to check out. Some of my favorites included: Wicked Weed (they have two locations in Asheville, but we both liked the Funkatorium the best); The Answer in Richmond - great hoppy beers and stouts; Side Project in St. Louis; and Sergio's World Beers in Louisville - very unassuming place with a brash yet super friendly owner behind the bar; who will be happy to show you his extensive beer collection, if you're nice to him. This place had some great beers on tap and for sale via the bottle; really impressive options here!

Our trip back to Boston was definitely exciting and too so much fun, but I am so excited to be home - and I promise, I'll get back in the kitchen again soon, too!

Your turn! What's new with you??

The Next Chapter

On October 2, 2015, Z and I arrived in Portland, Oregon. A week before, we had left our home and families to drive cross-country to this city we had already fallen in love with.

When we came out here, we committed to a year, knowing we'd eventually want to return to our house, our loved ones, and our cubicles. (We both work remotely for Boston-based companies).

And here we are: even though we extended our time here a teeny bit, it's almost time for us to pack up the car again and make the trek home. I'm very excited for our cross-country trip - we're taking a different route this time, and double the days to see everything we can - and I am so excited to be home with our families. But I never could have guessed how hard it would be to leave our home here in Oregon.

Tumalo Falls in Bend.

Yes, the scenery, the food, the beer - it's all amazing here. Hell, even the coffee is incredible! All of these things make leaving hard, but the people - the lifelong friends we've made - make it the hardest.

And as I drench my keyboard in bittersweet tears, I am comforted to know we'll be back here. Many, many times. Portland, Oregon has officially become our second home - even if we're not rich enough [yet] to make that officially true. It's our second home in our souls, as cheesy as that sounds. We made some lasting memories and friendships in our year+ here; we have our favorite restaurants, bars, and bartenders; and our favorite day trips, such as to the Coast and hiking through the Gorge.

Multnomah Falls.

If there's one thing I learned from this crazy thing we did - you know, dropping our lives to do something totally different for a year - is that, if you can do something like this: DO IT. We almost didn't. But we were able to make it work, no matter how crazy it sounded in our minds initially. And if you really want to do something like this, you just have to do it. Life's too short not to. I would have totally regretted not doing this, but the worst part would have been not knowing just how life-changing, in the best way possible, this move actually was going to be.

Portland: Thanks for everything. We're sure going to miss you.

Crater Lake

Behold the beauty that is Crater Lake:

Last month, several friends from Boston visited us in Oregon so we could explore Crater Lake. We drove from Portland to Bend, then Crater Lake, then up to the Coast for a few days of road trippin', camping, and hiking.

Crater Lake, as you can see, is a sight to behold, and a must-visit if and when you're in Oregon. (It's a little over four hours from Portland). Mazama Village Campground was perfect for our "glamping" adventure - once you reserve a spot ahead of time, you can drive to find a vacant campsite, park your car right there, and unload accordingly. (The only odd thing is that, even though we reserved a spot, we still had to drive around to find a vacant one versus having our own spot pre-claimed).

Many hikes are within a short driving distance from Mazama, boasting gorgeous views at all angles of the mighty lake.

It was a fantastic trip - one I wish we had time to do again before we leave! (More on that soon...).

Have you taken any fun trips lately?

Exploring Astoria, Oregon

Before I had to fly back to Boston (on Labor Day) for work, Z and I took full advantage of our holiday weekend. We kicked things off Friday afternoon, first stopping at de Garde Brewing in Tillamook, and then making the gorgeous sunset ride into Astoria (about 1.5 hours away).

Astoria is a place I've wanted to check out for a while now. Z and I love the Oregon Coast, and Astoria is saturated with history (and the house from The Goonies is there, which is extra cool).

We stayed at an Airbnb Friday night, which was located right in downtown Astoria...AKA only a short walk to the breweries we wanted to visit. Astoria's downtown is located right on the water, so everywhere we went during our short stay had lovely, ship-filled views.

Some of our most noteworthy stops in Astoria included:

The Riverwalk

The Riverwalk in Astoria stretches for over 6 miles, but we enjoyed walking just a short distance of that after our breakfast (see below). The Riverwalk was a nice way to get around the downtown area on a beautiful day - right along the water, with lovely views everywhere you look.

Fort George Brewery

Inside the Taproom.

Fort George was high on our must-visit list. The brewery has two different settings, including their Public House (with an upstairs and downstairs menu) and, right next door, their Lovell Brewery & Taproom. We had dinner upstairs in the Public House Friday night, where mason jars full of beer and delicious pizzas (and a just OK tofu banh mi) hit the spot. On Saturday afternoon, we hit up the taproom, where the beer list was more "special" (i.e., featured several brewery-only beers, which the Public House lacked). Oh, and the bartender at the taproom put fresh hops in my 3-Way IPA sample (pictured above). Winning!

Buoy Beer Company

To be honest, I wasn't a big fan of the beer I tried at Buoy (their IPA). However, their taproom floor is open to the water below - where several seals were sleeping! It was really cool to drink a pint and watch the show below us. We checked out Buoy right before it closed Friday night, but I'd be open to going back during the day time to enjoy their views of the river (and more seals, obviously).

Columbian Cafe

It looks incredibly unimpressive from the outside, but this teeny little joint pushes out some incredible breakfast dishes - with plenty of vegetarian options to boot. There are only a few booths, as well as bar stools overlooking the one chef/griddle, which is where we delightfully sat and enjoyed the show. We were lucky to go here on an unusually quiet weekend, but expect some wait time (it's worth it!) if you're not as fortunate as we were.

There are many other places to visit in Astoria, but we made the most of our short trip!

How did you spend the last long weekend of summer?

Beers, Eats, and Views - The Seattle Edition

Seattle. Is. Awesome.

You've already heard a little about our trip to Washington (here and here), but these are the remaining noteworthy stops we visited during our weekend getaway.

Columbia Center - Sky View Observatory

That photo above? That was just one of 10,000 pictures I took at the top of Columbia Center. My cousin told me about it, and I am so glad she did. No lines + affordable entry price + the tallest building in Washington = better experience and better views than the Space Needle. Winning!

The Hangar Cafe

The Hangar Cafe is a small, no-frills spot in the Georgetown area of Seattle, and we lucked out with zero wait time. (An apparent rarity here!). The abundance of sandwiches as well as savory and sweet crepes and waffles on the menu was enticing, and they have several different kinds of mimosas. Oh, and plenty of vegetarian options/substitutions to boot. I went with the Hangar Crepe ($10.75), filled with egg, Swiss, cheddar, slivered red onion, Roma tomatoes, baby spinach, and Field Roast Chipotle Sausage in place of Black Forest ham. The crepe was also drizzled with housemade poblano-basil vinaigrette and creme fraiche. 

On the side: a mason jar glass of the OG mimosa (OJ + champagne).

Pike Place Market

I mean...duh.

Pike Place Market was high on my list - mainly for the "full Seattle tourist experience" - and it was definitely worth the walk-through.

The farm stands and people-watching were fantastic (as expected), but it was also fun to check out the Pike Brewery for a quick pint

Fremont Brewing

Fremont Brewing was high on our must-visit brewery list, and it did not disappoint. Their bustling Urban Beer Garden had great views of the water + boats + sunset across the street - I could have sat out there all night. 

 

At the time of our visit, Fremont also had their Ales for ALS IPA on tap, which was a delicious, borderline juicy IPA (my favorite!). Great beer for a great cause = win-win.

Holy Mountain Brewing Co.

Holy Mountain was also fun to check out, despite the lack of air conditioning in their not-so-breezy taproom. (Heads up: Few places we visited actually had A/C, so plan accordingly if you visit Seattle during the hot summer months!). I really enjoyed the Somnium saison - wonderfully thirst-quenching on such a hot day.

Elliott Bay Brewery & Pub

Elliott Bay has a few locations in and around Seattle, but we stopped into the West Seattle location before heading back to Portland. The beer, in all honesty, isn't anything too special - and the space inside is dark, loud, and overall unimpressive - but I'd go back here 500 times for the sandwich above alone. This here is the Pan-Seared Tofu Sandwich ($10.50), piled HIGH with chile garlic-marinated tofu (cooked to perfection), tomatoes, lettuce, red onions, sliced avocado, and cilantro-garlic sauce, all sandwiched between a fantastic, toasted seed bread. Served on the side were addictive fries and housemade pickles.

For being a no-frills spot, I was really impressed with this sandwich and the thought that went into all of the food overall.

Who's seen "10 Things I Hate About You"?

Other notable breweries/beer bars to visit in Seattle: Reuben's Brews, Cloudburst Brewing, Outlander Brewery & Pub (for weirder beer flavors - like Lavender!), and Toronado.

Have you done any traveling this summer? 

Georgetown Liquor Company | Seattle, WA

A full vegetarian menu in a [sunny] dive bar with plenty of old school video games. Did we find heaven?

Georgetown Liquor Company is situated just a short drive outside of downtown Seattle in the cute - yet no-frills - section of the city called...you guessed it...Georgetown. Our friends who we were staying with highly recommended this spot, and we were so glad they did.

Beers on tap are mostly local, and a Crikey IPA by Reuben's Brews did not disappoint.

The indulgent-sounding, all-vegetarian menu (that could be all-vegan, too, if you ask for no dairy, etc.) made it hard to choose what to order for lunch. (Their motto is "strong enough for a carnivore, made for an herbivore." I love that!). I ended up going with a solid choice: the Captain Nemo sandwich ($10.45) - a toasted whole wheat hoagie piled high with housemade vegan chickpea salad, provolone cheese, Romaine lettuce, and tomato. 

Served with a pickle spear and my choice of side (salad, soup, or tortilla chips and salsa - I went with the chips), this was one filling lunch. We were amazed at how such incredible food can be pushed out of a tiny kitchen. Clearly, the chefs here know what they're doing. We almost came back that night for dinner, but decided we should explore some more of downtown Seattle instead.

After lunch (and some Mario Kart on Super Nintendo), we made the short walk over to Georgetown Brewing.

We were hoping they'd have their Gusto Crema Coffee Ale that we tried at the Oregon Brewers Festival (it legit tasted like iced coffee), but they didn't have it at the brewery that day. The beers were still decent, though, and it was fun to check out the source! (FYI: they only serve samples of their beer on-site here - for free - but have plenty of growlers, etc. to-go).

Overall, we had a fantastic time exploring Georgetown, and I'm still dreaming about that chickpea salad sandwich.......