Chapter 6: The Last 40 Hours

Chapter 6

10/23/2020 - 10/30/2020

10/23

I needed one last beach moment. I headed to Pacific Beach and had breakfast while watching surfers. One day I’ll learn how to surf. Its always been an interest. I headed west towards Phoenix, Arizona. Back on the road again. Alone. I missed the alone time, I was so happy to be back at it. The desert was weird. I could see Mexico and part of the Trump wall I think hahahaha dumb. Then it got scary. I didn’t realize I was almost on empty until my gaslight turned on. Oh no. I’m in the middle of no where. Little to no service. I saw the top of a gas station in the distance, I pulled off and it was abandoned. Great. I whipped out the handy ‘GasBuddy’ app to help me find a gas station. One was a couple of miles away. I was really cutitng it omg lol Rip me. I was freaking out. Luckily I made it! I headed closer towards Phoenix and needed to find somewhere to refill my water jug. There were literally water stations all over the city. YES!!! A great idea. No single use plastic bottles. Simply just go to one of these oversized water fountains. I filled up and headed north towards Camp Verde where I camped off a dirt road in Prescott National Forest. 

10/24

Rockhounding today!I headed up a dirt road and almost flipped my car! Actually super scary. I ended up just pulling to the side and hiking up the dried river bed. I wasn’t finding anything for quite sometime and then wow. Calcite Pseudomorphs and Glauberite Pseudo Selenite crystals everywhere!!!! Crazy pieces!!

After spending the morning at the bottom of a riverbed, I ventured 45 minutes west to a historical copper-mining ghost town. Yes, a real ghost town. I traveled up the skinny heavy-trafficked road to Jerome. I walked around for a bit and checked out some super cool shops! The words largest kaleidoscope store. Crystal shops. Wineries. This was Trump nation. People waving flags on intersection corners, beeping their horns. It was so awkward. Why are you doing this on a Saturday morning like omg.

Next stop was Sedona. A spiritual epicenter. A vortex meditation site. There’s only a couple places around the world where the energy is this intense. There is 4 major vortex sites in Sedona. The Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, Boynton, and Airport Vortex. I skated around the town, bought some crystals, and held a tarantula! These two men owned an animal rescue center and were displaying so many cool pets. Snakes, reptiles, bearded dragons, spiders. I loved it. I headed outside of Sedona and camped in Coconino National Forest. Lots of energy, like LOTTTS. I meditated in my backseat with a candle and all of a sudden a huge flame bursted up (literally touching the roof.) I quickly poured water on it and boiling water started spewing all over, I burned my leg. I was in awe, like this never happened before.

10/25

I headed out early to the Airport Vortex to meditate and hike. There was a group of women on a girls trip who caught my attention. I stuck around for a bit and finally introduced myself to one of them. There was some sort of high energy feeling between us. A connection. We chitchatted, hugged and went our separate ways. I headed north towards The Grand Canyon National Park South Rim, however, something was pulling me back. I pulled to the the side and hiked around for a bit. The trees were massive. I couldn’t get enough of this place.

Grand Canyon was crazy. I walked along the cliffside and stopped at a couple of viewpoints. No words. I had no idea where I was going to camp until I found service. Such a struggle. At this point it was getting dark, so I just decided to head north on Route 66. I had no idea what to expect. No service and pitch black in a desert. THEN IT STARTED SLEETING. LIKE WHAAATTT. I couldn’t see the road. Like I was getting super super scared. I finally made it to my spot and didn’t even leave my car. It was incredibly windy (like I’m camping on the outskirts of the Grand Canyon, so the wind was crazy and cold.) 

10/26

I woke and had no idea where I was going. I haven’t had any service since I left the Grand Canyon, so I just headed east and tried to find this super cool rock formation called ‘The Wave.’ After heading west for sometime, a layer of snow accompanied the dry desert ground. It was a crazy site. I finally found people. I stopped and asked for directions.

I headed back from where I came and visited Horseshoe Bend! A big majority of national monuments were located on Native American land and typically they have it open to tourists, but Covid shut everything down. It was unfortunate. Next stop was Mesa Verde National Park. A snow covered desert. I made it to the park right before sunset. I just wanted to check out a couple of cliff dwellings. Completely empty. Not a soul in site. It was so weird. A national park with no people. I finally stumbled upon someone and we both jumped the gate that was locked to get over and see a dwelling. I don’t remember his name, but he was traveling and working from hotel to hotel. Just traveling and making money. The dream. 

I had no destination for tonight, so I decided to push my luck and see how far I could drive. The Colorado mountains. Something to never mess with, but it was the only way back east. This part of the country just got hit with its first big snow storm, so the mountains were covered. I had no knowledge of this lol. Based off of the height of the already plowed snow, I could tell it was getting bad. No one was on the road. I was driving up a steady incline through the Rio Grande National Forest when all of a sudden I lost control and spun into a snow pile. I’m on a 10,000’ mountain with no guardrail and I just crashed. It’s pitch black out and not a car in sight. I tried pushing it out but no luck. I was stuck. But then HEADLIGHTS!!! Someone found me stranded. They helped me push out, and I continued on my way. I made it to the top of the mountain to find the Wolf Creek Ski Resort. I called it quits and pulled into the parking lot to sleep for the night. I ran out of butane, so nothing to heat up my food. I was pissed. I had cold pea soup for dinner. It was 9 degrees. 

10/27

Happy birthday. October twenty-seventh. Twenty three years old. What was the plan today Nic. I woke up to a snow covered wonderland. Cars filled the parking lot (first day to ski!) I headed to Walmart, ate breakfast in the parking lot, and tried to get my oil changed. There was a 4 hour wait, so I dipped. Next stop was Crestone, Colorado. An off grid community known for its spiritual retreats and high energy.

I skated around the small town for a bit, talked to some locals, and then some man let me spray paint on his cafe wall. I headed to the snow covered woods, indulged in some psychedelics, made a wooden platform to use as a bed, played with some spiders, and just enjoyed mother nature :)

I headed back into town and two locals invited me back to have dinner, which led to me sleeping on their couch. Jodi owned DreamWeaver Sanctuary and was looking to expand and even build a community center. She turned to me and asked about my skills of a designer. I spoke to her a couple days ago on the phone, she’s doing good. Michael has been repairing the house and sleeping in a separate bedroom. They were sorta roommates. My birthday dinner was an egg and cheese sandwich and an IPA. I learned quite a bit from just a couple hours of talking with Jodi and Michael.  

10/28

We woke up early, talked some more, drank coffee, and then I headed out! Great Sand Dunes National Park was quite close, so I took the short drive to the last national park on the trip. Everything between Colorado and Philadelphia is absolute trash. Nothing to see. Nothing interesting. Just flat. Corn. 28 hours left. 2 days. I got this. I made it a priority to get my oil changed. I headed back to Walmart and THEY ENDED UP FUCKING UP MY TIRES. As soon as I left, the tire pressure light came on. It hasn’t been on since I repaired my tire last week. Great. I pulled to the side and whipped out my tire pressure measurer. They overfilled both tires on the right side to literally an unsafe amount. Kansas was quiet and dark. I slept at a rest stop.

10/29

Driving for sooo long. I drove 14 hours that day. I stopped in St. Louis to check out the Gateway Arch and picked up my last dinner at Papa Johns somewhere in Ohio. I made it to the border to Pennsylvania. I was here. 1am. Goodnight.

10/30

Today was the day. The end of something so special. A complete upgrade. I made the long 5 hour drive across Pennsylvania to finally see the Philadelphia skyline. I was home.