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Exactly a year ago today, I set off on my journey to Oregon. I loaded up my little Subaru and headed for the coast. It was both exciting and incredibly hard. I had to leave Pat behind while he finished up work and things with the house. At that moment we didn't know when exactly we'd see each other again. I cried so hard from Pocatello, Idaho to Burns, Oregon that my chest hurt for days. But I'm so glad that I did it. Now that Pat and the pups are here and we're moved into our new house and a whole year has gone by since I set off on my own, we are so happy. Since we moved here we've spent more time at the beach than we probably have in our whole lives. We've started to learn how to sail and to surf, and we rejoice when there are still flowers blooming in December. Oregon is an absolutely amazing place. So, in honor of Oregon and our 1 year anniversary of beginning this new adventure I wanted to introduce you to The 7 Wonders of Oregon. Travel Oregon has put this list of wonders together and if you visit their site, you can find additional details on what to see and do while you're here. You're going to want to bookmark this and start planning your trip. Oregon as a whole is amazing, so to be one of the top 7, means it's extra special. Which one will you see first? Need some help, here's an suggested route: 1. Mt. Hood I remember when I first saw Mt. Hood. I was driving to Portland and it seemed like it just exploded out of the green valley in all it's snowy Majesty. I remember thinking "where the eff did that come from?!"Mt. Hood is home to 6 six areas, beautiful alpine lakes, and gorgeous hikes and camping. 2. The Oregon Coast So, I'm a little biased, but I think the Oregon Coast is the best of the 7 wonders, but I'll let you be the judge of that. If you want a constant reminder of how awesome the coast is, be sure to follow us on Instagram. I can't get enough of sharing this beautiful place. The picture above was taken at the beach down the road from our house. We feel so lucky every time we're there. On the coast you can go crab fishing, surfing, hiking, camping, see whales and dolphins, and sea lions. All the beaches in Oregon are public which is incredible! You can sand board, ride dune buggies...really your imagination is all that is limiting you from having an incredible time on the coast. 3. The Columbia River Gorge This is one we haven't visited yet, but is high on our list to see next. I have to see this waterfall! It's just a short drive from Portland and not only hosts beautiful scenery but also great wine. So, go for a hike, and then go for a drink afterwards. It sounds like a pretty great idea to me. 4. Smith Rock Smith Rock is a rock climber's paradise. It boasts 300 days of sunshine and endless options for adventure. Not sure that you want to be hanging from a rope from a cliff? Well there's also plenty of options for hikes, paddle boarding and mountain biking and caving. You can also visit Newberry Crater National Volcanic Monument, where astronauts trained to walk on the moon. 5. The Painted Hills This place doesn't even look real. It looks like the surface of a far off planet. You can visit and dig for fossils and visit ghost towns and imagine what the world was like millions of years ago. There are few places like this in the world. 6. The Wallowas Take a gondola ride up 3,700 feet from Wallowa Lake Village to the peak of Mt. Howard and see this amazing place from the top of the world. This land has changed very little since pioneers crossed it by wagon. Relive your childhood Oregon Trail dreams and see it for yourself...don't forget an extra oxen! 7. Crater Lake Last but not least, we have Crater Lake. Crater Lake is surrounded by nearly 2,000 ft cliffs and is the deepest lake in America and one of the deepest in the world. Famous for it's deep blue color and beauty, this is definitely a place you need to see. In addition to towering cliffs, Crater Lake is also surrounded by delicious wine, cheese, and chocolate makers. How can it get better than that? If I haven't convinced you yet, check out this video from Travel Oregon! How many of the 7 Wonders of Oregon have you seen? Seen them all? What's your favorite? Haven't seen any? Well hop in the car and get going! Let us know in the comments which wonders you're checking off the list! I'm going to be on the road a lot myself this week, so I might be a little MIA. But, I'll be back next week with more. What are your travel plans this summer? Wherever you're going, don't forget to travel happy! Skeeter
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Finding time to travel is right up there on the difficulty scale with trying to trick yourself that you really love asparagus more than cake. But anything is possible. I wanted to give you a few ideas to make the most of your vacation days easier than giving up carbs. Say, you are fairly average and have 2 weeks of paid vacation a year. Due to family obligations, you already know that you're going to have to take off at least a day or two at thanksgiving and at Christmas. Well that leaves you the better part of 1 of those weeks gone. Now you have 1 week of vacation that's all up to you. Thinking about only having 1 week off to see all the places you want to is bleak. Don't get discouraged, it's all about stategery...yes, I'm using that as a word here! Take advantage of long weeknds Long weekends are the perfect time to take an extra day or two off because 1) people are anticipating that fewer people will be in the office so 2) you'll miss less work and 3) have less to catch up on when you get back. Plus you're getting 3 essentially free days off that you're not stealing from your precious few days left. So, let's use July 3rd as our example since it's our next long weekend. If you book an evening flight on the 1st and take the 2nd and the 6th off, you'll have 5 full days of vacation. With that much time, you could spend it touring castles and pubs in Ireland, sipping coffee under the Eiffel Tower, or catching a Broadway show. 5 days is without a doubt a quick trip, but that also means you're not spending as much on hotels and food, which means, you'll save some for your next long weekend, because you still have 3 days of vacation left, HUZZAH! See if you can work a flex schedule More and more employers are willing to be flexible with schedules to recruit and retain good employees. If you're a good employee, you might be able to approach your boss about working 4, 10 hour days on occasion so you can have a 3 or 4 day weekend. Work Monday-Thursday this week and Tuesday-Friday next week, and you all of a sudden have 4 days to fly off to San Diego for some much needed beach time. Use work travel to your advantage Do you have to travel a lot for your job? Why not tack on a vacation on the end? Say your job is flying you to NYC for a week of meetings, extend your trip a few days and you've got a cheap little vacation. Your employer would have paid for the flight and your hotel during your meetings, now you just have to pay for the last days of your hotel and incidentals. Make sure you're being upfront about this arrangement with your employer so it doesn't look like you're ripping anybody off. If the flight is more expensive to fly out at the end of your vacation than it was at the end of the meetings, offer to pay the difference. Better yet, try and pick a day to fly out that would be a savings to your employer. Work hard when you're not playing So, you've got this sweet set up with paid vacation, and benefits and a boss that's cool with letting you switch up your schedule so you can travel. Don't screw it up! Make sure while you are in the office that you're making yourself irreplaceable. The workplace is as competitive as ever and if you're lucky enough to find yourself in a position to have a job you love that allows you to travel too, make sure you're giving as much as you get.
Not all of us can become permanent nomads. As much as I loved the time that Pat and I set off to live that life, it wasn't our long term plan. Just because you're invested in the life you have now, (good job, mortgage, family) doesn't mean you have to put your dream of travel on the self until you're retired. What if you get hit by a bus a before then?! I really hope you don't, but live life for today so if that bus ever does come, you won't have any regrets. And don't forget to travel happy! Skeeter If you're a regular reader of this blog, it's probably because you love travel. But even for those who love travel, sometimes it's not always in the cards when you're hankering for a trip. There are lots or reasons you might not be able to take a 2 week vacation right now: money is tight, you've already used all your vacation days, you've got family/work/life commitments that are keeping you from escaping...whatever it is, it's life and it happens to us all. A staycation isn't a new concept, but it is something that takes a bit of creativity to make it feel like a real vacation. Most staycation tips I've seen are things like "go to a movie" "go for a bike ride". And while those things are fun, and affordable, they're not what I would call an out of the box fun thing to do. So, I wanted to give you a few ideas for a fun staycation this summer if you're still saving up for your dream trip. Here they are! 1. Learn something new: I know what you're thinking. It's summer, everyone is out of school and that means no more studying. Well, learning something new can be fun too. For example, take sailing lessons. You might be surprised how affordable they are. I know I was. For only $75 we got 4 classroom lessons and 2 full days of sailing. If you live relatively close to a large body of water, chances are there's a group of sailors. From my experience, they're super nice and love to help people learn the sport of sailing. Sailing not for you? How about taking a cooking class, a surf lesson, or a flight lesson? I went for what they call a 'Discovery Flight'. It's a chance for you to see if learning to fly is for you. It was around $50 and tons of fun. There's probably something in your community that you've never done before. Give it a try and have a mini adventure. 2. Become a connoisseur: Is your idea of a vacation a bit more laid back? How about going for a pub crawl or wine tasting? Most breweries and wine bars have an option for a taster flight. Here in Bandon, there's even a place that does taster flights of hot chocolate. Pat and I really like to get to know our local restaurants so we know where to find the best tacos, pizza, Chinese food etc. Pick your favorite food and make a trip around hitting each place until you know without a shred of a doubt who has the best cheesecake in town. Go with a friend and split your orders so that you have room to hit up the next place, and it will save you a few bucks too. 3. Have a spa day: Pick up a book at the library, and get ready to pamper yourself. Here are 13 ideas for an at home spa day. Start by making some DIY face masks, soak your feet, add in a good book, and you've got the makings of a luxury spa retreat. You can invite a few friends over, make some mojitos and turn on some ocean wave sounds and have a nice relaxing day. The more I think about it, I might just want to start doing this every weekend. You bring the rum, I'll provide the hammock! If you've decided that you're going to take a staycation this year, make it something spectacular. Do something you've never done before. Just because you can't travel somewhere new, doesn't mean you can't discover something new and fun right in your backyard.
I hope you all are having a happy Friday! Go out and do something fun this weekend, and don't forget to travel happy! Skeeter |
Skeeter
Hi there! I'm Skeeter. I grew up moving a lot and that makes me a bit restless for travel and exploration. I started this blog with my husband Pat when we decided to backpack New Zealand for a year. We are always looking for the next adventure and are loving life. We're just your average couple with two sassy dogs and a love for travel. We're sharing our travels and the tips we pick up along the way. LIZHello! I'm Liz. Blogging is very new to me, but I'm so excited to finally write as much as I talk! Archives
December 2016
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