On my way, all alone ~ My Tiny House Tour USA (2)

• Posted on Frieda Bakker
• in My Tiny House Tour USA
• on August 4, 2015
• 2 Comments.

July 29 – August 3

And then the somewhat anxious part of my journey starts: all alone, in my rental car, up North to the Tiny House Jamboree. From El Paso, Texas to Santa Fe, New Mexico to Golden, Colorado via US Highway 285. Driving, driving and more driving. And camping in the wild (yep, I spotted a rattle snake). This is part two.

3,2,1… start

Oh, thank God, the car is working. All the existing scratches, dents and stains are noted and I’m good to go. Leaving El Paso behind and heading towards the Guadalupe Mountains National Park, the biggest fossil reef of its kind in the world. Ooh, I have some jitters in my belly. From the warmth of the first few days of my stay to just me, out in the open. In this foreign, unknown, vast country. Oops… And I thought about camping right there… somewhere…

Lonesome

Oh no, this is supposed to be fun, right? Living my once so big dream, right? And camping on my own isn’t that big of a deal, right? To be honest, I have this hollow, empty feeling inside and I’m totally thrown back to myself. I walk around like a Jack Rabbit on edge in an open field. The urge to run away is severe (but, where to…?). I knew, beforehand, that I would feel this way. I know the feeling. And maybe you’ve already noticed but I like to experience. That includes stuff like this too. Not much fun at the moment, but still, it feels good to go through this right now. I have wanted to put my finger on it for quite some time now, so I better start investigating the feeling by just letting it be what it is. Walking alongside an annoyed rattle snake, a coyote who passes me quickly on my way back from the restroom at night, and the owls with their long and deep conversations about life. The contrast could not be larger. And all of a sudden, I get it. What’s going on is that I just miss something familiar around me. It’s all very strange to me. After two still reasonable nights of sleep and less jitters in my belly, I can honestly say: it was good – camping on my own in the wilderness. The raging search for something familiar, for a connection, like an ever spinning radio button, comes to a stand still. Even better phrased, the radio is off. I’m here. I’m in the US. I have a car under my bottom and I’m ready to hit the road! Pfff… finally… I’m able to breath again!

Enjoy!

And that’s what I do! From the Guadalupe Mountains I continue my journey up to Carlsbad, NM where I visited Carlsbad Caverns (also deep but in a different way). I travel through Roswell and then to Santa Fe. 356 Miles (570 km) that is. Man oh man, what a blast! The plains, the looooong roads, the vastness. I got some music with me and I take it all in! JJ Cale serves me well out here!

Warm and dry

Yep, let’s do it. I will camp some more. Why not! It’s cheap, it’s lovely to stay outdoors and I’ve got the hang of it now. BAM… A huge dark grey front shows up and almost washes me off the road. There is lighting, literaly everywhere. Right, left, in front of me, behind me. All at the same time. And I LOVE it! Ha ha! But to camp in this sort of weather… ? Uhm… no. So in Santa Fe, I pass the National Forest and her lovely camping spot and decide to find myself a nice warm dry place to stay for the night. I deserve that and I treat myself with a lovely stay in a quaint Inn. The dear man behind the desk looks at me and decides to give me discount. Yay, that’s what I thought!
After a day in Santa Fe with her beautiful Adobe style architecture, I treat myself again. A dry, cute cabin, almost a Tiny Home, this time.

Whaaaaaaah!!!!

And then! The long journey to Golden, Colorado to visit some other friends. Close to where the Tiny House Jamboree will take place. Even though I enjoyed the treats I gave myself, searching for a place to stay can be exhausting and time consuming. I wish to go through my photos, I want to prepare myself and I want to write! No more searching and no more camping for me at this very moment. There’s enough time to do that later on. It’s because of this that I e-mailed my friends in Golden to ask them if it’s okay to stay a bit longer, starting now. Yes! You are more than welcome!
I thought that I already had the best drive ever, earlier that week. Oh no! It’s nothing compared to what I’m about to face. The road to Golden is almost 400 miles (640 km) and it takes me from the dry and hot mountain deserts to the pines in the Rocky Mountains. It’s amazing to see these changes in the landscape. Cacti are getting smaller and turn into shrubs. Trees enter the scenery and turn into huge spruce. Hills grow up and become giants.  WHAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH. It is so BEAUTIFUL! I’ve cried, laughed and even screamed in the car. Because of the gorgeous plains, the ridiculous and enormous RV’s, the oh so bad coffee, the traffic jam on a Sunday afternoon in the Rockies and the sight of my very first Tiny House on my way (guess what, no one lives there, it’s a coffee house. It’s very cool anyways). You’ll find more pictures of this trip down below. What a BLAST!

Arrivée

On arrival I find myself entering a nice home and dinner just got served. Join in! You’re right on time! There’s a lovely meal on the table. Sigh… And a relief. I’m now able to prepare myself in a nice pace. I enjoy the hospitality of my hosts and I enjoy the space they provide me (THANK you Joep and Jean!). A giant home that is. The opposite of what I would love to have for myself. Why not?! At almost 9000 feet. There is a roaming bear in the area, so do not leave any food in the car Frieda… Okay.

See you soon. With lots of Tiny Houses!

(From July the 22nd to August the 23rd, I’m in the US to visit the Tiny House Jamboree in Colorado Springs. The biggest event so far. On my way up and down, I hope to see some more Tiny Houses and their owners and builders. I drive around with my car and tent in the back).