My Grand American Road Trip
Last August-October I took the cross country road trip I had always told myself I would take! This trip ended up being such a transformative adventure. I drove coast to coast to coast- with a quick stop to Canada too.
I had just finished my apprenticeship at the Chrysler Museum’s glass studio in Norfolk, Virginia and I had nearly a month of free time until my summer job in Washington State. My boyfriend and I had just moved into an apartment in DC for his job and after a week of moving, I flew to Florida to grab my car and start my big adventure!
Here was the itinerary I took on my way out west:
Jacksonville, Florida
New Orleans, Louisiana
Dallas, Texas
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Canyon de Chelly, Arizona (Stayed on a Navajo reservation)
Moab, Utah (to see Arches National Park)
Park City, Utah
Shoshone Falls, Idaho
Portland, Oregon
Tacoma, Washington (Saw Mount Rainier)
Seattle, Washington
Pilchuck! In Stanwood, Washington
It was the most amazing adventure. I’ll do a few blog posts highlighting my favorite things about each place I visited- because it was too much of an experience to fit into one post. Seeing how different parts of America were was incredible- and seeing how much the land, people and nature changed so drastically across the states. Driving was such a great way to experience America’s beauty- I definitely recommend.
My road trip out west led me to living in a cabin in the woods for a month working at Pilchuck Glass School. After the month of work I had made a great friend, Joanne, and we decided to drive to Canada together and see Vancouver. I put some pictures below!
That was so fun. After dropping her back near Seattle, I headed east for a show I had in Whitefish Montana. I was displaying some vases I made during my time at Pilchuck- that were inspired by my journey out there.
When I was driving I really spent so much time with myself. I made a rookie mistake of not downloading music or audiobooks- so a lot of times I was without any service on the road. I had nothing but my thoughts to listen to! I think I loved this experience so much though for all of the time I spent getting to know myself. I also got to see so many friends & family I wouldn’t have unless I'd taken this road trip which was really special.
The west is really so big. Especially living in the northeast right now- where every city is like a 2 hour train ride- its crazy the land in states like Montana, Idaho, South Dakota- even Texas- how big and open the sky is. It feels inspiring to feel so small. I made some vases that referenced the open skies I saw on my trip. See below
So the journey home went-
Vancouver, Canada
Spokane, WA
Whitefish, Montana (for the show that went great!)
West Yellowstone, Montana
Then after a 2 week stay in Yellowstone- I had planned on selling my car in Bozeman- but apparently a small car isn’t really in need out there so I didn’t get any good offers. Last minute we decided to drive it back to our new city of DC. The problem was- my boyfriend had to get back for work so we had a fast timeline to make it back. We drove from Yellowstone to DC (with our dog) in four days- so crazy! I really don’t remember the cities we stayed in- we just drove as much as we could and then spent the night in a cheap hotel. I believe we stayed in
Billings, Montana
Sioux Falls, South Dakota *made a stop at Mount Rushmore- even with the quick timeline-of course!
Sturgis, Michigan
Home (DC!)
It was such a wild adventure and time in my life. I really loved being able to experience the country in so many ways, and meeting so many new people. I wanna get back on the road again soon- it was a lovely way of life.
If you ever get the chance to see America this way- and alone- please take it! I feel like I grew so much as a young adult. I had no one else to take care of me, but me- and it really shaped how I live now.
