Open Road.

For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. 
I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move.
[ Robert Louis Stevenson ] 

There is a wonderfully freeing feeling to having everything packed in your car, maps in hand and the open road ahead.  I am finding myself again in complete awe of the beauty of the roads out West, and it is amazing to take note of how drastically the landscape often changes. Winding roads through the mountains lead to tree-lined paths through National Forests, soon to open desert before signs for a city or two. The few small towns that dot the vast land along the Interstate, the ever-present McDonalds, the patches of farmland, and the wildflowers that border the road are becoming familiar sights along the way. 

My brother has joined me as the easy-going travel buddy, and we are excited to hit the road and get to a lot of places that are new to us (camping in Arches National Park outside of Moab is looking to be the highest anticipation, for sure). We are staying with friends, couch-surfing, and camping as we go along the planned ten-day journey across the country. Having taken a more northern route through Chicago and to Yellowstone on the trip to Oregon last year, I am excited to see more of the beautiful parts of the country via a different course. 

 (on-the-road dinner of champions :)