6 States in 6 Days
A summer road trip across the Wild West
What was I thinking when I decided to invite my mother to road trip across the country with me…
I’m pretty sure I was emotionally a little unstable at the time. Perhaps it was also almost 7 years of little to no communication that was making me feel a bit guilty. At the time I felt like my plan to exit California after 5 years, with everything I owned stuffed in to my small 4-door sedan while driving across the west back to Texas, was the perfect opportunity to reconnect.
This of course was only the beginning…or wait, maybe the second beginning of a year long travel excursion. I had already been traveling for almost two months by the time I met up with her in San Francisco at her brothers apartment. After 12 days in Colombia, my adventure in the wild city of Bogotá.
Since I knew that I was going to be leaving the country again for an extended period of time, I saw this trip as kind of a now or never event with the woman that birthed me. Spending the better part of 5 years pissed off at her for leaving my father and abandoning my younger brothers, then 2 years in awkward limbo trying to figure out how to have a relationship with her after coming to terms with the whole event, it just needed to be done. So we met up in San Francisco and began our journey.
First destination on our travels was a camping site just south of Big Sur. We were coming from San Francisco and the drive was absolutely breath taking. The winding road that followed the coastline was littered with scenic stops to take pictures and absorb the view.
After living in southern California, where flat land meets the ocean with beautiful beaches, the sheer rocks along this stretch that dove into the ocean brought a new beauty to my idea of the western coast. Anyone that is passing this way, I highly recommend taking the long route and going along the 1 Highway.
I was a little disappointed when I found out that the actual Big Sur parks were all booked for camping, but was amazed by the place we ended up pitching our tent. It was tucked behind the mountains we had been driving beside, off a winding road that took us up and over.
On our way back up through Monterrey, before heading out east, we stopped to do one of the recommended hikes. We went out to this stunning waterfall that ran into a secluded cove. Such a beautiful little hike to a spectacular scene.
We had to make this a quick stop, as our next destination was Grand Canyon National Park…at the South Rim. Heading east, we covered as much ground as we could with the daylight we had left, until we landed in a shitty Barstow motel for the night.
What I hadn’t realized until we crossed the wide stretch of highway that ran through the Mojave Desert, was just how much I missed the yearly road trips we used to take as a family every year. With the sun setting in our rearview mirrors, all I could think about was the many adventures that started with a long stretch of highway out of Texas.
The next morning we managed to take off early and get to the Grand Canyon in time to check into our camp site and then go for a 2.5 mile walk around the rim. As a photo enthusiast, I love hitting beautiful places at dusk. Anytime I go back through photos, those are the ones that make me long for that place.
As usual, the view was breathtaking. The Grand Canyon is something that MUST be experienced in person at least once in your life. My recommendation: bring bug spray. While camping, I got eaten alive by mosquitos. It was a painful reminder that yes…outside of California there are hostile flying creatures that want to suck your blood. I’d almost forgotten about them in the five years that I had been hiding in perfect Southern California.
After our one night camping at a great site, I looked like I had been in a violent paintball match…for hours…naked. They got me EVERYWHERE.
We left and headed out east on the 64, a great way to drive along the rim to exit the park. Our next destination was Durango, Colorado, but not before driving through Utah and the impressive Monument Valley.
This was a must for me and I really wish we had more time to explore other stunning landforms. The U.S. has some amazing geography and one of my personal favorite scenes is flat desert with large rocks bursting from the lanscape. I know many people who prefer wooded areas, my mom in particular, but I guess growing up in Texas I have a sense of endearment towards flat nothingness.
I was definitely in no rush to get to Colorado…
Eventually we landed in Durango, Colorado, a destination that wasn’t unfamiliar to me. One year when I was younger, we had attended a family reunion in this quaint little town tucked in the mountains. Being that it was summer, the place was gorgeous, but I couldn’t imagine being stuck in the small town of 16,000 during the freezing winter.
In the spirit of remembering good times, my mom decided we should stay the night and sign up to go river rafting the next morning, just like we had done when traveling with my family many years ago. It was a blast, and something that rekindled my amazement for the outdoor sports to be found in cool little places like Colorado.
There was a family in the boat with a couple of kids joining us. Going on this little adventure was hilarious to see what it must have been like to do this with me and my brothers when we were just little kids. Screaming, wanting more white water, and getting scared when it finally came.
When we got done, we packed it up and headed out towards New Mexico. Instead of taking the shortest route, we decided to go a longer way that took us through a national park. Best decision of the trip. I had to take back my preference for the vast desert terrain we had previously survived.
But despite the luscious rolling green hills as we drove past lightning storms and sunlight breaking through the clouds…I was deep down still ready for more flat desert. I didn’t have to wait long, because we were headed straight for Taos, New Mexico.
On the way to Taos, we watched rain fall in the distance since the highway stretched miles ahead of us with no break in sight. Giant storm clouds moved across the barren scene. At one point we were chasing a lightning storm, with the sun going down and illuminating the bright pink clouds that carried the flashing bolts.
It wasn’t completely barren…we did happen to stop at an entirely sustainable collection of buildings called Earthship Biotecture. Strange Willy Wonka-esque homes made from recycled materials. But I was mostly interested in an old truck that was sitting on the side of the road…
It wasn’t long before the rain we had been chasing started to get a little too close. I’m not a fan of driving in the rain…but it made for the prettiest rainbow and exquisite views as the sun began to finally dip below the edge of the earth…
Whilst in the midst of this wild weather, the large pink clouds in the distance were lighting up like giant illuminated jellyfish in the sky. It only picked up as the night covered us in a blanket of pitch black, every few seconds split by far off flashes of lightning.
We had to stop and rest in Albuquerque after almost 10 hours of driving and stressful weather conditions. But we woke up early for the home stretch of the trip.
My mom had this thing with aliens and we made a quick pit stop in Roswell, NM. Not my favorite place…a little bizarre and desolate. Of course there were tourists traps on every corner and before long we found ourselves in the back of a large gift shop in the exclusive “Area 51” (a dimly lit back room full of compartments with fake aliens doing weird stuff for photo ops). It was okay, we made it out alive, no abductions occurred.
As we entered Texas, the 6th state on the 6th day, I was filled with memories of driving across west Texas with my family after long road trips and vacations. The trip was coming to a close and I was finally home after years of keeping to myself on the west coast and focusing on the new and exciting opportunities. Those new and exciting opportunities had me all caught up…and I was missing out on some beautiful Stateside adventures right here at home.
Every place we hit, was nothing new to me. We had driven through and visited every stop at some point in my childhood. The thing was that I had a great opportunity to view all of these great american landmarks with fresh eyes and a new appreciation. This was much needed before leaving the U.S. to explore the wonders that other countries have to offer.
For anyone looking to hit some of these spots, or recommendations on anything that I missed but would have liked to add to the trip, feel free to contact me.
If you like what you read, don’t be afraid to hit the Recommend button. You can follow my adventures through IG: @_MaggieHicks and connect with me on Twitter: @Maggie_Duh. Fresh Snapchat stories daily as well at maggie.hicks.
