valle – SALVI NOMAD

VALLEY OF THE GODS

June 7, 2019June 6, 2019Posted in hiking, travel, utahTagged 2019, dirtroad, hike, hiking, Moki Dugway, monument valley, nps, outdoors, road trip, salvinomad, trail, travel, utah, valle, valley of the gods, walking, wanderlust, wild, wildernessLeave a comment

GPS: 37.236771, -109.815529

LENGTH: 17 MILES ONE WAY

DATE: APRIL 28, 2019

While researching for my trip to the southwest I read all about the limitations monument valley has regarding hiking. How there’s only one hike you can do unaccompanied and everything else must be hiked with a Navajo guide. I think guides are important to meet the locals and learn things not otherwise noted. However, I’m an advocate for also being able to explore at my own pace. So I came across Valley of the Gods and was pleasantly surprised to see you could walk right up to buttes and not need a guide. Just make sure when traveling to Valley of the Gods that you’re prepared. There are no facilities and no source of drinking water. And remember to carry out your trash.

We turned onto the 17 mile-long dirt road just north of Mexican hat. It’s a bumpy ride and we were in an SUV. I saw sedans on the road as well so I don’t think an SUV is necessary. But online it states that when wet the area is impassable, even in an SUV. So check the weather and enter at your own risk!

There were tents at the base of some of the buttes. I’m sure people who had stayed the night had an awesome experience there. It’s so peaceful and quiet.

The buttes have names and it’s fun guessing which ones are on the list. We found a very informative map Here. The one that struck me as the easiest to see was the lady in the tub. I couldn’t unsee her in that tub! It totally personified the butte for me.

After we drove the 17 miles we headed over to Moki (Mokee) Dugway. It’s also a dirt road and there are warning signs at the base before entering. Impassable during rain and 10% grades made for an interesting ride in the passenger seat.

But so worth it. The views were a bit hazy and the pictures don’t do it justice. Atop the dugway you can see the Valley of the Gods below. Can you spot the lady in the bath tub? On clearer days you can even see monument valley from there.

Overall Valley of the Gods and Moki Dugway are areas for people to explore with less crowds. You can have a real personal experience here in solitude if you wish. And that’s hard to come by in the ever growingly popular south west.

“Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.”
Jennifer Lee

OLYMPIC PENINSULA – DAY 1

March 7, 2019June 14, 2019Posted in family, travel, washingtonTagged 2019, beach, creek, dirtroad, family, fog, hike, hiking, hole in the wall, jfk, lagoon, love, mountains, ny, outdoors, pacific northwest, palladiums, pnw, rain, rialto, rialto beach, sand, seatac, siblings, storm waves, streams, sun, travel, valle, washington, waves, west coast, wild, wilderness7 Comments

This post is one of four. It’s about my sister and I setting out to see the Pacific North West. Well, as much as we could in the time we had. She had school and I had work come Monday morning BUT THE LONG WEEKEND WAS OURS TO CONQUER!!! [insert fun, evil, maybe not so evil but slightly delusional from lack of sleep laugh here]

For those of you who came here in search of information for your own trip, or simply don’t care for the somewhat mundane fluffy stuff. I’m providing you with an out. Below you will find links to all the posts directly relating to the things Diana and I did in and around the city of Seattle. If upon reading this they’re not all updated, I promise I’m working diligently to get it all on here ASAP. As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask 🙂

Now, where were we? Ah, yes! How were two girls who had never been to the state of Washington going to pull off covering 20 hours worth of distance and still make it back to the airport in time? (Say that out loud with one breath!)

I planned vigorously!

We also knew it was important to sleep on the flight because we were going into road trip mode the minute we landed. So we took a selfie and assumed the position. I had window and was propped up by all the sweaters/scarves. And Diana was middle and leaned on my shoulder/back. And before we knew it we were at SEA-TAC.

We rented a car from E-Z and I couldn’t have been happier. FYI, you have to take a shuttle from the terminals to get to the rental counters. There are signs everywhere for the bus stop to get there.

Once at the rental are, all the other companies had long lines. However, we walked right up to the counter. After signing the contracts we took the elevator down to be greeted by two lovely women. They gave us keys and had us on our way.

Side Note: I used to work in rental many years ago. When you get a vehicle that has damage but you don’t want to risk being delayed an hour, take ALL THE PICTURES. Our car had a broken license plate and marks all over the rear side. This is more of a precautionary thing I do to avoid issues upon return.

We were so excited to be on the road! First stop: Jack in the Box. My sister and I had never had it before. Wouldn’t you know it, the cook is out and they can’t prepare anything but fries and nuggets. So, reluctantly that’s what we ate. Whatever, excitement kept us going because we couldn’t believe it. We were in SEATTLE!!!

It was also sunny and the warmth of the sun felt amazing!

That is until we got further west as we headed to Port Angeles.

During our first hours in Washington we experienced sunshine, rain, sunshine again, and then sleet. I would say that was a pretty appropriate welcoming.

We were staying at the Super 8 in Port Washington. Few things to note regarding our stay. They were very cost-effective, free breakfast started at 6am, and the receptionist that checked us in was extremely knowledgable about Olympic National Park and the surrounding areas. She gave us a bunch of maps and answered some important questions I had. The rooms may not be the newest, but we got a great deal and we really just needed a place to shower and sleep.

Like I said, we had a lot of ground to cover and very limited time. We dumped our luggage in the hotel room, changed into hiking gear, and headed over to the Safeway supermarket to grab essentials for our two days in the peninsula.

Our first stop was Lake Crescent. There is a great pull off viewpoint you can’t miss due to its massive sign. But in case you do, here are the coordinates: 48.073554, -123.773199 It’s right before sledge hammer point and 28 minutes from the Super 8. There are a few pull off points to enjoy some decent views.

From this point it’s another 3 minutes to the Storm King Ranger station where the trails for the Lake Crescent pier, Marymere Falls, and Storm King begin. We parked in front of the sign ready to brave the cold. The station itself was closed, but the bathrooms to the left of this sign were open.

We hiked in mud, snow and ice to Marymere Falls. I have a post about it HERE. Let’s just say it was interesting to see how fast it got dark out.

Afterwards we headed to Sergio’s Hacienda where we devoured a veggie burrito and chicken en crema dishes.

“It is easier to change a man’s religion than to change his diet.”

― Margaret Mead

GRADUATION PROMISE

March 4, 2019June 14, 2019Posted in family, hiking, travelTagged family, love, promise, siblings, travel, valleLeave a comment

When my now 19-year-old sister Diana was younger, I made a promise to her. She was so saddened by my departure to College, where I dormed for four years. She would sleep in my room and wait for my return during winter and summer breaks.

So I made a promise to her that when she graduated high school that we would travel somewhere just her and I. There was no specific destination in mind or itinerary to keep. Just a promise to go, see and conquer a small corner of the world.

I’m the oldest of 5 siblings and have shared many trips with my brother, Alberto. He is the second oldest of us five. We grew up together in the same household and so we’ve been to Orlando, Lake George, El Salvador, Montreal, etc. together.

Soon after I made the same promise to Andres and Daniella, currently ages 14 and 6. So I’ll be prepping for those graduation gifts for years to come.

Please don’t mistake this action for being overly generous… I selfishly want them to see more of the world so I can share that with them, hence the Pacific North West trip I’ve always wanted to do. If I do nothing else in this world but inspire my family and friends to travel and learn as much as they can about the world, I would die a happy woman.

“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.”

– Gustav Flaubert