Day 13, 14 - Homecoming

In real time, I just got back from Brazil. So this almost feels anticlimatic.

On a side note, hearing and seeing how devastating the storms have been this past week across the states, I'm intensely relieved that weather didn't come one week earlier. Otherwise, I'd most likely not be just getting back from Brazil. My off-road mishap seems eerily fortunate now. Funny how life turns.

To the Delorean...

Doc Brown's view

From Vail, it was time for a 10 hour drive to Vegas. I stopped through Grand Junction for gas and food. That´s a television market that´s comparable to Casper, WY. No disrespect to my WY roots, but I was surprised by the prevalance of chain restaurants and stores in GJ, especially burrito joints like Chipotle and Qdoba. I would´ve killed for those in Casper. In fact, I stabbed a guy for one.

Couldn't help but think of Pixar's "Cars"

Driving west, it never dawned on me how scenic Utah is. Unfortunately the entire state has no reception. Seeing as how I was making good time and was slated to arrive in Vegas around 6pm, I started debating on visiting one of the state´s national parks, Bryce or Zion. Bryce was closer, but still about 110 miles out of the way and possibly a 3 hour detour. As I came upon the I-15 exit for Bryce Canyon, I called a late audible and took the exit. When was I going to be driving around here again? Live in the now right? The main concern I had was that it was around 3:30, and I didn´t want to go all the way to the park when it was dark.

Natural Bridge



I've lost my mind



Canyonero (Simpsons what?)



No worries. Made it with an hour to spare. Bryce is gorgeous. Since it was late and the winter, many of the trails were closed or seemed closed because of snow. I should note, my boy Stu McCann gave me the audiobook for "127 Hours", the autobiography of Aron Ralston, a climber who got stuck in Utah and had to cut off his own arm for survival (recently made into a James Franco movie). Couldn´t help but think of the irony; yet it was also a determining factor in me going. Anyway, I decided to freestyle the shit out of Bryce, but no photos were post-worthy. I spent about an hour-and-a-half absorbing the natural beauty of Agua Canyon, Natural Bridge, Rainbow Point, and more. The thought of climbing through the canyon makes me believe that I'll return to the area one day.

 

Looking for my contact.



I got into Vegas around 9:30, and met my buddy Jon Castagnino at the Fox station. He had to work, so naturally I took the time to start blogging. It was good to see how well he's been doing, especially since he recently got engaged. To celebrate, I thought I´d help him pay for the wedding via craps. We headed to the Orleans and ended up losing a collective $200. Whoops. We made an uber late night visit to see our friend Amy Carabba at the station, as well. Initially, I thought it might get a good night´s sleep and have a chill time in Vegas, but ended up going to bed around 4am... once again.



Sin City? More like Dim City! Hey-yo!

Come Monday, I left Sin City around noon, and it´s amazing how short a 3 hour and 15 minute drive seems after several days of double digit driving. I made it back to my mom´s house in Orange County around 3:30. Did some light unpacking, solely to pack for my 9-day jaunt to Brazil. As much fun as it´s been on the road, it was an incredible relief to reach a final destination (of sorts).

Here are some quick road trip stats:

Days: 8

States: 11

Miles: 3,000

Friends Visited: 13

Brazil escapades to follow next.

I leave you with this.