Category Road Trip Adventures

We have zig-zagged across the country and, boy-oh-boy, do we have some gems to share! Browse campsites, off-road trails, scenic outlooks, oddities, museums, hiking trails, and more.

Time Travel Mart

The Mar Vista Time Travel Mart stands apart from its neighboring stores along Venice Blvd. Perhaps it is the pacifist robot in the shop window. Perhaps it is the reassuring gold window dressing reminding you that "Whenever you are, we're already then." Perhaps it is the robot toupee and dinosaur eggs for sale. Regardless, it's the place to go to outfit your pre-adults with "future adult" t-shirts with the warm knowledge that profits from this time travel themed market go to support an educational program for local children.

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The Getty

I remember visiting the Getty Center around 2004 and being blown away by the gardens. Certainly, the collection of art works inside the Getty represent noteworthy landmarks in art history. Yet, the garden was such a beautiful and deliberate journey that I couldn't help but be drawn outside.

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The Museum of Jurassic Technology

It is a maze of twilight truths. Darkened, mysterious rooms hold strange oddities that might have been picked out of the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford or have been designed by an artist inspired by history and the occult. Rooms delve into ancient medical traditions, a tragic actress, trailer parks, early space travel, and a monk's studies into magnetism to explain the divine's intangible but powerful influence in the world.

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Elk Crossing

After a delightful night in the Redwood Forest, we figured the rest of our return journey would be rather rote. It was time to dig in and get to our friend's house outside of Sacramento where we could take a break from traveling and get some work done. But little did we know what a truly beautiful remainder of a trip we had left. Well, we did rather know. I made a point to route us along the coast for a while before heading inland for a mountain pass. So I knew there would be beaches and sea side views. What I didn't expect was an elk crossing.

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Jedediah Smith Campground

In keeping with our tradition of shoehorning additional stops into an already busy schedule, we extended our trip by a day to camp in Redwood National and State Parks. Parts of it are national. Parts of it are state. As far as we can determine, there aren't any drive in camping spots in the National park, so we found an ideal spot at the State Park. The site is flanked by massive redwood trees, within hearing distance of a sonorous river, and a hop skip an a jump from bathrooms that don't stink. To me, the perfect spot.

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Willamette Valley

Barn in the Vineyards of Willamette Valley

I'm not sure if Willamette Valley pinot just appeals to a different taste than mine or if the people of Oregon are getting ripped off. We've spent the last few days touring vineyards and tasting rooms across the Willamette Valley and expected more than what we experienced.

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Mount Hood

Spiked cocoa from Timberline Lodge along the Fruit Loop of Mount Hood

Nearing the conclusion of our trip to Portland, we couldn't help but draw it out a little longer by taking the "fruit loop" around Mount Hood. As 84 got busier, we diverged onto 35 where produce stands sell fruit, nuts, vegetables, and other locally grown produce from the side of the road.

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