Days 2-3: The Road to Moab, UT

We’ve made it to Moab and as we cuddle into our sleeping bags, camped just outside of Arches National Park, we bristle with anticipation, because tomorrow morning we’ll finally be on the green river!

Our drive down has been an adventure on its own. We hit the road early Thursday morning. After a quick morning pit stop at in-n-out burger we headed towards the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. Our morning drive out of Berkley consisted of wonderful views of redwoods and the beautiful green pasture, but as we quickly ascended to altitudes of about 7000ft we found ourselves surrounded by snow, a sight all to familiar to us.

We then made our way onto Interstate-50, America’s loneliest highway. As we soared through the vast desert we felt the sublime euphoria and fear that embodies one when they look onto what feels like an endless flat plane of desert land.

Eventually, we had to rest and refuel. So as the son stood high in the are that afternoon we stopped in Reno, Nevada and took to the streets jort-laden. We quickly found, what we agreed must have been sight from fate, extremely cheap Reno-themed Hawaiian shirts. After all acquiring matching Reno shirts we went to a famous restaurant-casino named “The Nugget” where we ate burgers and chili that were topped with pounds of fries and beans. We earned some money at the slot machines and decided it was time to hit the road again.

Back on the loneliest highway we saw a small mound on the horizon, but as we continued driving in it’s direction we realized it was actually a giant mountain of sand! This was an something that could not be ignored. We drove up to it and learned it was naturally forming sand mountain and was frequented by dune-buggy drivers. After a surprisingly difficult summit of the mountain we  returned to the road.

As the hour rolled on, so did we. Darkness set upon us and we realized we didn’t know exactly where we were. But we weren’t afraid! With an incredible starry sky above us we drove through Toiyabe National Forest until we reached Illipah Reservoir. With all our wonderful stops and adventures it had gotten pretty late, so we set up camp as quickly as we could. At 8000 feet, the night air was pretty frigid. We shivered that night.

But the next morning we were ready to go again. We got back on the road finishing yesterday’s chili fries for breakfast. We stopped by an abandoned bullet-ridden trash can alongside I-50 for a quick jam-fest, but we were eager to get to Moab.

As we crossed from Nevada into Utah we realized that the flat desert slowly turned into GIANT CANYONSSSSSS!!!! It was awesome. Several more hours of highway brought us to Moab. We entered Arches National Park looking for a campsite but instead found love (Sarah the Park Ranger, if your out there, I love you and always will!). The wonderful Sarah directed us to a nearby campsite, which situated us just inside a canyon. We grabbed a quick Mexican dinner, stopped at the local supermarket for some last minute supplies, and now we’re ready to take on the River tomorrow!   

Canyonlands Canoe Expedition

Deep in the heart of Oakland, CA, the energy is palpable (and the body odor is real) as we make our final pre-departure preparations. Bags have partly been packed, maps and permits have partly been acquired, and all floppy sun hats are present and accounted for. We are currently rejoicing in the arrival of Toby's rhythm bones, which will accompany our chorus of instruments (guitar, banjo, harmonica, egg shaker, kalimba, ukulele) as we venture into the southwest, also known as the pancreas of America.

We will leave early tomorrow morning, driving east on Interstate 50 (also known as America's loneliest highway) toward Salt Lake City, UT. We will then drive south to Moab, UT. This is a 14-hour drive, so we will camp on the way. We're shooting for Humboldt-Toiyabe national forest in the midst of the Nevada desert for tomorrow's campsite. 

Upon arrival in Moab, we will set out to find the legendary "cratdog" which, supposedly, is a rat on top of a cat on top of a dog. Trust us, it's real. The next day, we'll set out in canoes from the mineral bottom put-in on the beautiful Green River. Our next four days will be spent basking in the natural glory of Canyonlands National Park, home to some of the most scenic flat water canoeing in the world. We will play our way down the river, with petroglyphs as our audience. 

Following our paddling, we will make our way to northern Arizona, where we will backpack through Buckskin Gulch, the longest slot canyon in the world. We will then explore the Vermilion Cliffs/Paria Canyon wilderness area. Our backpacking foray will end at Lee's Ferry, where we will pack up and drive through the night back to the land of Oak, catching a red-eye home on Sunday night and making it back to campus just in time to sleep through monday's classes. 

After a long day of travel, everyone arrived happily in San Francisco and we made our way to Tim's house. All of us (except Tim) were inculcated with wonder upon the unveiling of personalized canoe paddles, crafted by the able hands of Tim from the timbers of his domicile's former siding.

Current status:

Morale: High

Physical condition: Top-notch

Odor: a soft 5 out of 10
Hats: Floppy

Mustaches: Quivering with excitement