Tag Archives: Family

Bike Touring, Cycling, Hiking, Travel, XC 2015

XC Tour Follow Up

3 Comments

With 5,600 miles, 16 states, and too many donuts to count behind us, the trip is over, and we are now trying to re-acclimate to the routine of normal life.  Rachel was back at work only a week or so later, and I am realizing that my immediate job will be as an assistant wedding planner.  Hopefully I’ll find time for a new engineering job on the side soon, though!

A big thank you to everyone who followed us for this journey; your support always helped us continue on.  Another big thanks to the people we met along the way who were so generous.  We were so pleased to experience so much kindness from so many strangers; it was truly incredible.  For everyone that took us into their homes, gave us meals, and even those that cheered for us as they passed in a car along the way: thank you SO much! You made our trip amazing; you lifted our spirits, and you kept us going!

DSC07957

Continue reading XC Tour Follow Up →

Bike Touring, Cycling, Hiking, XC 2015

Vikingsholm (93)

1 Comment

We had another slow morning today, which always feels great after so many early ones throughout the trip.  The plan for today was to go for a hike, but, first, Rachel needed to find a dress for her brother Wes’ rehearsal dinner, which will happen a few days after we make it to Bozeman.

She found the needle in the haystack at Ross’, and then we made our way to D.L. Bliss State Park, where we would start hiking.  Our plan was to follow the Rubicon Trail along the perimeter of the lake to Vikingsholm, in Emerald Bay.

DSC03342
Not sure where they got the idea for this pose…

Continue reading Vikingsholm (93) →

Bike Touring, Cycling, XC 2015

Getting Our Feet Wet (92)

Leave a comment

This morning, Jim and Jeanette treated us to a fantastic breakfast of french toast, bacon, and coffee.  It was a slow, relaxing morning, but we put together a list of things we wanted to do while were at Lake Tahoe so that we wouldn’t be too lazy!

The first item we checked off was to drive up to Heavenly, a ski resort that Jim and Jeanette and Jim’s family went to before Rachel even existed.  On our way up there, we got our first views of the lake and  all of the casinos on the Nevada side.  Up at Heavenly, though, we got the best views of the lake yet.

Group photo from up at Heavenly.
Group photo from up at Heavenly.

Continue reading Getting Our Feet Wet (92) →

Bike Touring, Cycling, XC 2015

The End of the Alphabet (56)

8 Comments

Today is a very special day, because I was born 26 years ago. Additionally, Chris asked me to be his girlfriend five years ago (as a friend once pointed out, this combination makes remembering dates and giving gifts much easier for Chris). Accordingly, we woke up late, and I pulled out the leftover desserts to eat for breakfast.

Izzy and his Rachel then made us a more traditional breakfast of sweet potato home fries, eggs, ground turkey, and fresh guacamole.

Chris finally cut his hair and trimmed his neck; even with his beard still in tact, the transformation is very apparent, to say the least.

We were excited to find that a birthday card from my granny, a piece for the GoPro helmet mount from Chris’ mom, Linda, and some awesome new Clean Bottles had all arrived in Izzy’s mail for us.


Continue reading The End of the Alphabet (56) →

Bike Touring, Cycling, XC 2015

Take a Breather (54)

Leave a comment

After a luxurious night in real beds, we followed the smell of fresh brewed coffee down to the kitchen then enjoyed breakfast in front of the TV.  We spent a few hours trying to catch up on blog posts before I sent Chris away on the light rail to visit our friend Tyler (“Izzy”) downtown. After 53 days with minimal separation, I figured we could handle a few hours apart.

I hung back to have dinner again with family.  This time, there were 15 in attendance, and it was a blast!  After a scrumptious meal and a finger-licking dessert, Charlie set up the badminton net for some friendly competition. The boys sure know how to work up a sweat!


Continue reading Take a Breather (54) →