Roadtrip 2018 – Portfolio of Maggie Nancarrow
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Date: 2019-05-08T02:40:53+00:00

# Road Trip 2018

> In August of 2018, I took my first solo road trip across the United States. I tent camped in National Parks and National Forest campgrounds the whole way. I visited places that I had been fascinated with since I was a child, looking at glossy photos in too-old text books: Mesa Verde, the Grand Canyon, and the alpine meadows of the Rockies. I wasn't prepared, though, for the way the desert captured my heart. Capitol Reef, Zion, and the Colorado National Monument left their marks on me.

Photo: Capitol Reef as seen from the scenic drive, August 2018

## The Route

I didn't really stop going in Rocky Mountain, but that was the last real stop, and Google couldn't handle any more stops.

## Where I Went

### Below is a brief overview of where I went, stayed, and what I did.

Sutherland Reservoir - NE

This was a quick overnight stay at a Nebraska State Recreation Area. The camping fee was minor (cash envelopes only, no staff). I drove for nearly 12 hours on the first day to get as far as I could. I met a nice couple ending a grand trailer tour after their retirement.

Dhillon Reservoir / Frisco & Breckenridge

Frisco and Breckenridge are most known for ski resorts, but there is also an extensive paved bike path system. I stayed at the Prospector Campground on the far side of the reservoir for two nights and enjoyed the mountains on two wheels.

Mesa Verde National Park

Staying at the National Park Campground for three nights, I explored the ruins of the Ancestral Puebloan people and satisfied a childhood dream: to see these miracles of architecture from long ago. I enjoyed a guided tour at Wetherill Mesa first, and then the more popular tour on Chapin Mesa of Balcony House.

Grand Canyon North Rim

Opting to view the Grand Canyon from the quieter, less busy north side, I drove from Mesa Verde along US89A through page and along the Vermillion Cliffs. This drive was a highlight of the trip and totally unexpected. The North Rim had perhaps the best campsites of all the places I stayed. (Pictured right.)

While at the Canyon, I couldn't go on a bike ride I had planned because of a fire on the Cape Royal Road, but I took incredible hikes to Widforss Point and down the Kaibab Trail to the Supai Tunnel. Climbing back up was just as hard as they said it would be.

Detour: Zion

I didn't really know Zion was as close to my route as I had planned, so I detoured and traveled the Mt. Carmel Highway on a whim. The park was so busy that I couldn't find parking, and so I didn't stay long--but the drive was spectacular and now I desperately want to return!

Capitol Reef National Park

I stayed for two nights at Fruita Campground in Capitol Reef National Park. A less known park, it is named for its enormous reef-like shelf of red rock that rises out of the desert. I biked the scenic drive and hiked along into the water pocket fold. This part of the trip really stole my heart away.

Colorado National Monument

On my way to Rocky Mountain, I stopped at the Colorado National Monument for one night. I heard that the scenic drive here was a cyclist's dream. It was amazing indeed--despite my relative lack of strength and physical ability. I chugged along at 8mph but loved every minute of it. The campground had the most amazing view, and I also realized that pitching a tent on the side of a mountain can lead to blown-in tents in the middle of the night.

Rocky Mountain National Park

After being in mostly desolate places, I crossed upper Colorado on dirt roads and back highways to go to Granby, CO. Entering the park on the West side, I drove across the Trail Ridge Road, up through the highest peaks of the mountains. It was cold and foggy, and I discovered a bit to late that I was indeed quite afraid of heights whilst in a motor vehicle. I stayed at the Glacier Basin Campground for one night, and took a stroll around Bear Lake--which seemed to be everybody's idea of a nice afternoon. After being out in the middle of nowhere for so long, Rocky Mountain felt like a crowded return to society, and a bit disorienting. The incredible alpine lakes, though, seemed indifferent to how many people took selfies in front of them, and for that I was grateful.

After Rocky Mountain, I hit the road and returned again via I-70 through Nebraska. I ran into a catastrophic rainstorm while listening to Obama's first book, and even his calm intellectual voice couldn't calm my nerves when I ran into a semi-truck induced pile up. I stopped for the night at a KOA and got a cabin. It rained for the next 24 hours--maybe even the next week, but I returned home safe and sound.

View from Navajo Bridge en Route to Grand Canyon on US89A

## What I Did

### Best Campsites of the Trip

May 8, 2019/0 Comments
Campsites of the TripWhere I Stayed and What I Loved Traveling as a solo woman can be daunting, and camping as a solo woman can frighten a lot of people into avoiding it. But, I
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### Roadtrip 2018: Bike Rides

May 7, 2019/0 Comments
The Best (and Hardest) Rides I've Ever TakenRides from my 2018 Road Trip to the South West Around Lake Dillon &Summit Co. Rec PathThis was my first encounter with real mountains, and it was probably
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Lone mountains on UT-24 on the way from Capitol Reef to Colorado National Monument

My Tent at the North Rim Campground

###

#### Camping Solo: An Unexpected Joy

I've done a lot of solo travel in my life: across the world, across countries, and to hallowed places in my childhood. But I hadn't started camping until just recently. Camping alone for two weeks was a completely different solo travel experience. The loneliness that comes with returning to an empty hotel room was gone. The awkwardness of eating in a restaurant alone--also gone. There's always so much to do at a campsite: cook, clean, wash up, tend a fire and stare into it for ages. Exploring alone in the woods felt natural, not strange. National Park campgrounds are family campgrounds, so I never felt unsafe as a single woman, in fact, I never even felt noticed at all.

Somehow, everything about this solo trip was not awkward or lonely, but freeing and incredible. The long hours behind the wheel were calming as I listened to podcasts and audio books. The hikes alone were pensive, and the biking trips were beautiful.

On My Campsites

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