Outrageous Octobers

This October was the cherry on top of our crazy year... and it seems to be continuing into November and December. It's hard to believe almost 12 months ago we were getting on a plane to go to Costa Rica. We sure haven't slowed down at all. I am thankful for the home we have made in Oregon and the winter we are about to spend here!

Umpqua Hot Springs // 35mm Film

Toketee Falls // 35mm Film

In my last post, we were just returning from Phish for Kyle's birthday. We had high hopes of making a home for ourselves in Hood River, OR, so that's where we headed. But first, we checked out Umpqua Hot Springs, because our friends recommended it. We camped nearby and checked out the springs that evening. The pools are on the steep hill leading down to a river. The path there is steep and rooty, so bring a flashlight if you're going to be walking in the dark. The springs were pretty crowded and I questioned the cleanliness of them. They were a good stop, but not my most favorite hot springs I've been to. I'm looking forward to checking out more hot springs around these parts!  I really enjoyed the short hike nearby that leads Toketee Falls. I'll never get over how the water has carved gorges in the rock formations, like this waterfall. The real estate market turned out to be quite tough in Hood River. We camped out for 2.5 weeks at a nearby campground, Wyeth. Wyeth Campground has saved our skin on more than one occasion. There is an overflow lot where you can camp for free for 14 days in a row. We used all 14. This campsite doesn't have drinking water either, which made practically living there interesting. We bathed in the icy rivers and made our meals on the camp stove, which had to be retired after that stint. That was a faithful camping stove.

You spend a lot of time at the library when you're homeless... at least there's a view!

Of course one day, mid-house search, my car broke down. It broke down right next to a bakery, Knead, and the lady working there brought me out some treats because she could tell I was having a bad day. It was really sweet, literally. We got stranded in town, so we caved and booked a room at the Hood River Hostel. For a hostel, this place is kind of pricey... but it's brand new and in Hood River, so that's to be expected. There's also a recreational store connected to the hostel, so all the youngins can buy marijuana conveniently during their stay (as of October 1st). We ended up being really thankful for the bed and showers at the hostel, so we didn't mind spending the money. We got my car fixed at River's Edge Automotive and I just have to take a second to praise them. After getting completely screwed by the VW service department a few months before, I found this team's helpful attitude refreshing. They didn't price gouge me, they knew exactly what was wrong with my car, and had it back to me in a timely manner. They have earned a loyal customer. The days we spent camping blurred together in ways to entertain ourselves, which is easy around the Gorge. We became fixtures at Dog River Coffee, where we'd sip our coffees slowly and use their internet. We hiked to Punchbowl Falls and impressed a bachelor party by jumping into the fairly cold waters. We even convinced one guy to do it with us! We hiked to some new places too. One of them being Spirit Falls, which is right across the Columbia River in Washington. We had a little difficulty finding these falls, because there is no trail and all the directions I found online were a little iffy. The "trail" is off Cook-Underwood Road, park at mile marker 2, cross to the right side of the road, and use your common sense to find your way down to the Little Salmon River. We decided to tackle Mt. Defiance one day, which is the hardest day hike and highest recognized point in the Columbia River Gorge. Starting at 130 ft. above sea level, you are left with a 4,830 foot elevation gain, summiting at 4,959 ft. We climbed a mountain!!!! This hike was definitely challenging, an over 10 mile round-trip. Early on, you pass three waterfalls. One is called Hole in the Wall Falls, where water literally spills out of a hole that was blasted by the crew building the highway back in the 30s. They were having a problem with flooding, so they redirected the water through the tunnel. From the top of Mt. Defiance, you have an amazing vantage point where you have the opportunity to see a variety of mountains including, Rainier, Hood, Adams, St. Helens, etc. This hike needs to be done on a clear day so the visibility isn't messed up. We were lucky to do it on a beautiful blue skies kind of day. I will say, at the top there is a radio tower, which really ruins the serenity. You hiked all that way through the woods and you turn the corner and see all these cables and metal. Wah wah wah... I thought getting up was hard, but I would hike up that mountain 10 times before I would walk down it. The tight switchbacks we encountered coming up, were now steep switchbacks going down. Our legs were exhausted and a few times the dirt gave way beneath my feet. I thought I was going to tumble all the way down. The views of the Columbia River are incredible on the way back!! All in all, the hike made me feel very accomplished and I got to see this place from a new perspective. That being said, I'm not sure I'd do it again!

This park was just opened this summer!

Between open houses, we hung out at the skateparks around here for hours on end. The two closest to us are Rotary Skatepark, right here in town, and Daubenspeck Park, right across the bridge in Bingen, WA. We managed to catch two skate competitions while we were bumming it. The 6th Annual Grominator was hosted at Rotary. It was fun to watch all the groms shred and receive awards, which were hooked up (snowboards, fresh decks, skate shoes, the works!). The Huckleberry Festival, which was going on over in Washington, hosted a skate competition at Daubenspeck. Kyle was going to enter, but not enough people in his age group showed, so they gave him a free pair of Vans just 'cause. This place know how to hook it up with the prizes! In between all this, we were still house searching and getting turned down. Everything happens for a reason though and our dreams came true: we signed a month-to-month lease on the most lovely barn that was converted into a house. It's a duplex and we have the top. It's more than we could have asked for.

Out spot!

Of course, we didn't get too settled in our new home before we had to go down to California for some work. We worked on an organic farm for a month, taking trips to San Francisco for time off. Our first break just happened to coincide with Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival. This is a completely free festival that takes place in Golden Gate Park. It's "hardly strictly" bluegrass because there are all types of music. A few acts we caught were folk singer Conor Oberst, Leftover Salmon, and an Old & In The Way contributor, Peter Rowan. Honestly, this festival is way too crowded to enjoy the music. We spent most of our time walking around Golden Gate Park, which we discovered is HUGE! Neither us had ever walked around the entire park and we still probably haven't--- but we did cover a large majority of the grounds. It's nice because the park is centrally located, close to shops and not too far away from the beach. We ventured out of the park one evening to eat at an Indian restaurant called Noori. If you're in Golden Gate and hungry for some delicious naan and curry, this place is worth the walk!! We had a bunch of friends in town too. Our friend, Zach, was working for a vendor called Homeslice Pizza, where we visited often to grab a slice or two. Our friends, Dana and Logan, who are on a trip around the world, just happened to be in SF that weekend. Another friend, Dom, was in town too! All of these people are from our old stomping grounds, St. Augustine, FL... how miraculous is that? No matter how far you are from home, home will find you. I made a new friend too: Elsa. We first connected on Instagram about a year ago (the internet is crazy), through a Ween related hashtag. She loves the boognish too. Elsa lives in Hawaii, but spent this summer on the mainland. We have been at many of the same events over the summer--- multiple Phish shows, Fare the Well in Santa Clara, the list goes on. We FINALLY met at Hardly Strictly and I know this is the beginning to a lifelong friendship.

Beach bonfires with friends from all around!

Since we had such a crew of old and new friends, we had a bonfire on Ocean Beach after the festival ended. Beach fires get shut down if you have them out in the open, so we walked all the way to the north end of the beach where some rock outcroppings mask the flames. This became our spot. Of course, a San Francisco trip is not complete without a trip to Haight Street to buy a record at Amoeba or some novelty smoke accessory, found in almost every store in the area. We got a new bowl, but I can't remember where, because all the head shops blue together. The bowl was beautiful, resembling an Alex Grey piece. It was so beautiful one of our friends offered to buy it off us for triple what we paid, because it was "worth that much!" He loved it and it was the right price, so we let it go only a few days after buying with an extra hundo in our pockets.

Elsa and I, front and center!

For our next time off, we went to three Dean Ween Group shows. I have seen the Dean Ween Group 8 times, but THIS was going to be different. Since the Dean Ween Group's beginning in March of 2014, they have hosted a rotating cast of members. Originally, the only members from Ween were Deaner and the bassist, Dave. This West coast run they were doing was to consist of 4 of the 5 members of Ween. Gene Ween, that final 1/5th of the band hadn't come around... yet. That was until, the keyboardist, Glenn, had to back out due to a prior commitment. They replaced him with Harry Waters, the bassist of Pink Floyd's son. He killed it and so did the other 3/5ths of Ween: Mickey Melchiondo a.k.a. Dean Ween, Dave Dreiwitz, and Claude Coleman. I had never seen it this close to Ween before!! Claude was also the last member of Ween I haven't seen live. He's a beast. The first show was in San Francisco, at The Independent, the same place we saw the Meat Puppets a couple months earlier. It was waaay more crowded than the Meat Puppets. We got there early, so had a front row spot. I almost regretted that later because it was so packed. I love being close enough to see everything unfold before you though! They are all so talented. Unlike other Dean Ween Group shows I had seen, they play almost entirely from their Ween catalog. I honestly shed a tear during "She Fucks Me." That song is haunting and I never expected to hear it live. They played "Hey Fat Boy" and set the mood perfectly with all red, murderous lighting. I heard so many songs I've never heard. I got really butt-hurt at the end of the show. I had been waiting to ask for the setlist for awhile and no one was paying attention to me, so I just hopped on stage to grab it. I did the same thing at the first ever DWG show in Baltimore that I drove 12 hours to attend, so I didn't think it was a big deal. Anyways, the stage security like freaked out on me and ran over and stomped on it so I couldn't have it, THEN gave it to someone else. Like jeeze, this is supposed to be rock 'n roll and I can't even get a setlist off stage. I was bummed, to say the least, but on the way out of the venue someone we had talked to in line stopped me and gave one of Dave's (the bassist) picks he got. He said he saw what happened and thought it was L-A-M-E too. That random act of kindness really turned my night around. Ween fam! <3 The next night, I was extra excited because my new friend Elsa, sister in Boognish, was meeting us there. This show was at Sweetwater Music Hall (Bob Weir's bar) in Mill Valley, CA. It was super intimate venue. Elsa just happened to have sung with Deaner one night in New Hope at his hometown bar, John and Peter's. So, he gave her a head nod when he came on stage. I felt like a celeb!! I will say I was a little disappointed in the redundancy of the set lists from the three nights, but it made me appreciate when they did switch it up. For instance, they played a super jammed out, creepy version of "I Play it Off Legit."

Ladies and gentlemen, Les Claypool and Mickey Melchiondo sharing one stage!

THEN, Les Claypool, of Primus, came out on stage. It was a complete surprise. Deaner then taught him the riff for "The Mollusk" and he played Dave's bass. Over a year ago, we had gone to a show in NJ where Dean Ween Group was opening for Primus, because we were sure the two would collab. We were shocked when they never did, but it happened when we least expected it. Elsa and I both got the set lists from this venue because the stage managers were not mean! The final show was at the Crystal Bay Casino in Lake Tahoe, CA and we got a cheap hotel within walking distance. This venue was really weird because it is literally inside a casino, you can gamble before, during, or after the shoe. Casinos are weird... Our friend, Sadie, met up with us and so did Zach, from Homeslice Pizza. Concerts are always more fun with your friends. We had made a few friends from the shows who went to all three nights, so we hung out with them too. We didn't rage very hard after the show like we had expected, because we were pretty worn out from the previous nights. Overall, the three day run was amazing. I heard songs I never have before, saw Claude kill the drums, met new friends, danced with old ones, got a pick and a setlist... Just gets me pumped for the next 3-day run I'll be doing: the Ween reunion in Broomfield, CO at the 1st Center Bank. Yes, that's right!! Ween just announced they will reunite for a 3-day run over President's Day weekend and Valentine's Day. I never thought this day would come and I'm counting down the days till it gets here!

Chillin' in the VIP area.

We worked on the farm until our plane left out of Portland. We had gotten one-way plane tickets to my house in Georgia awhile back for many reasons: we had to get Kyle's truck from my house for the Oregon winter, get new tires, drive it across the country, go to Hulaween with our friends in Florida, and see our families. You could say we like to kill two birds with one stone! We immediately went down to Florida after we flew in, because the campground for the festival was already open and some of our friends had set up camp. You have to get to Suwannee Music Park early to get a good spot around the lake! We were shocked to see how crowded it already was. We didn't even get a lake front spot and Kyle's sister, Shannon, had gotten there Sunday! Our spot was still in an ideal location, I just couldn't believe how fast it filled up!! This Hulaween was the biggest festival Suwannee has ever put on. I've been to all the Hulaweens and it's crazy how much it has grown. Last year, Kyle and I were working long hours as food vendors. Kyle didn't get off once to see music and I only got off to see the Dean Ween Group, who were randomly played last year. I obviously WAS NOT going to miss it... Needless to say, we were thankful to get to play this year. Since they canceled my favorite festival, Bear Creek, I am happy to settle with Hulaween as a tradition. Suwannee is the most magical place and I want to always go back. For starters, you still feel like you are camping at Suwannee unlike many venues that hold festivals. The campground feels like a swamp, with huge Cyprus trees, cloaked in Spanish moss. During Hulaween, these trees are lit up with color changing lights. Suwannee is a huge expanse of land, something like 300 acres. Kyle and I walked farther and explored more than we ever have this festival. I gained a new appreciation for the park. There's a bat cave, where you can watch the bats leave at night and return in the morning. There's an enu. There's a river you can swim in. It's truly a farm! Then you also just happen to get see some of the most mind-blowing shows of your life in the exact same place! Since Suwannee is a campground in operation all year long they have all sorts of other amenities, like a general store, a pool, an arcade room, and a little diner. I just can't explain how incredible this place is. If you've never been to Suwannee go, even if it's just camping and a festival isn't going on (but really try and make it for a fest). You will not be disappointed. Hulaween is on Halloween weekend. You think people dress crazy at festivals? EVERYONE is in a costume the whole festival. I will say that this year was 20 degrees warmer than last year, so Kyle and I did not pack accordingly. Most of our costumes were waaaay too hot, but we still dressed as silly as possible. One unique thing about Hulaween is the effort that goes into "Spirit Lake," which is a giant art installation around half of the lake (camping is usually allowed around the whole lake, except for this festival). It is a playground for adults. There are interactive exhibits, swings and things you tap to make lights go off. There are giant sculptures you can climb on. The whole lake is a laser show, lit up like a nebula. Everything is glowing and beautiful and unexplainable inside Spirit Lake. You can get lost for hours in there.

My mom and her boyfriend in the Hulaween spirit!

This year was going to be special because my mom was attending! My mom and her boyfriend did it right and got us all V.I.P. Being young kiddos, we didn't really think V.I.P was that special. With the package, you got a cabin (we still camped with our friends), 2 meals a day, and special viewing areas for the shows. We did take advantage of the viewing areas a few times. My mom and her boyfriend were in heaven though! They are now officially Cheese heads too! The lineup was on point this year. The pre-party was amazing. It started off with a local Jacksonville band, Herd of Watts. I've seen them a few times around St. Augustine and loved it every time. They did not disappoint, especially when they covered a Ween song, "Voodoo Lady." I knew immediately it was going to be a good weekend. Dumpstaphunk, one of my favorite funk bands from New Orleans, took the stage next. They covered a Funkadelic song I love, "Red Hot Mama." I literally heard every cover that weekend I could have asked for. The stars were aligned. We saw Joe Russo's Almost Dead (the bassist from Ween plays in this band) end the pre-party night on a high note. Friday night was probably the wildest night of the festival. I mean, come on, Primus was playing on my favorite stage in the park, the amphitheater. Usually, the amphitheater, which is a natural depression in the ground with railroad ties as the stairs descending to the stage, is littered with hammocks in the trees. That's another cool thing about Suwannee--- you can hang your hammock anywhere and lay in anybody's! Since this festival was so big and Primus was playing at this little stage, they weren't allowing hammocks this year to free up some room. We both love Primus, but they kind of play the same catalog and Les even uses a similar banter at every show. It's a little disappointing. This show was incredible though, based on location alone! We met this gypsy girl in the crowd who gave us a piece of black tourmaline that I will treasure. I love little momentos acquired at shows from kind strangers. Other bands that blew us away throughout the weekend were Earphunk and Lettuce. In fact, Lettuce's set at Hulaween this year was probably my favorite performance by them. AND I finally got to meet Baby Jesus, the bassist, whom I have been manifesting meeting for a while now. We just ran into him walking around. We also ran into Bill Nershi, of String Cheese in the V.I.P. booth. Kyle and I honestly spent a lot of this festival wandering, hanging with friends, intermittently catching sets... Of course, we did boogie at every single set of The String Cheese Incident. Halloween night was incredible, where they did a "Ghoul Train" themed set. GZA from Wu-Tang Clan was the M.C.A. They played hits like "Carwash," "Brick House," "Dancing in September," and "We Are Family." My mom loved the set, especially when they busted out Sly and the Family Stone, one of her favorite bands. On the last day, Cheese played an extra bluegrass-y set where Sam Bush and members of Elephant Revival sat in with them. I couldn't believe it when they played, Birdland, a Weather Report cover I've been wanting to hear for over a year!! I just don't have enough good things to say about the weekend. We had one of the biggest groups this year at our campsite. Suwannee is home--- it is a place where I see my family and friends, have the most fun possible, see my favorite bands perform, and enjoy Mother Nature. It doesn't get any better than that. I'm going to have a serious case of the festie blues when I get home.

Hulaween officially marked the beginning of November, but not the end of our journey... YET! We still had some family to see and then a cross country road trip with a few friendly stops.