Paco

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Obligatory shot of tonight's full moon.
Thought I'd photograph two things that don't show up very often in my feed: me and the van's interior. Inviting Paco into the shot may not have been the smartest choice. πŸ™„ Swipe to see just a *few* of the outtakesΒ πŸ‘‰πŸΆπŸ‘‰πŸ€¦πŸΌβ€β™€οΈ
Today marks one year since leaving Austin. While the process of uprooting my life was hard and painful, I'm so grateful I made the decision to move into a van full time. I posted a reflection on my last morning in Austin on my website. The morning I handed my keys over to the new owner and drove away from 18 years in Austin.Β  I sure am glad the weather was drastically different last year from what Austin is experiencing now! πŸ₯Ά @daysohappy and @fcleff69, your visit and coffee that morning meant more than I was able to communicate at the time. Thanks for crying with me and supplying coffee.Β β€β˜• Link in bio. (If you're subscribed to my mailing list, the post will hit your inbox on Wednesday)
This little tree reminded me of a lovely post I recently saw on @brainpicker β€œGreat love is never justified. It’s like the little tree that springs up in some inexplicable fashion on the side of a cliff: where are its roots, what does it feed on, what miracle produces those green leaves?” Such loveliness from WisΕ‚awa Szymborska
We blaze our own trails. I may not always choose the easiest routes, but the views never disappoint. πŸΆπŸ•πŸœ
I never knew jackalope shed their antlers. πŸ€”πŸ˜‰
Our last night at Ironwood Forest National Monument did not disappoint. We had electric skies at both sunrise and sunset! It has been one of my favorite places to camp in the area, but it's time for us to move on.
Rain in the desert. 🏜🌧🌬🌨🌡
I don't usually enter Instagram contests, but I have a deep love for @benchmarkmaps and would love to have a complete set, so I can't resist this one. ⁣ ⁣ When I was in Montana, I used their Road and Recreation Atlas religiously. I'd go weeks without a phone signal (and Google maps aren't always accurate when it comes to Forest Roads anyway), but I never worried because I could always whip out my atlas and navigate with confidence. It's easy to identify boundaries of National Forests, BLM lands, parks, state lands, Indian Reservations, and private lands, which is superb. Forest Roads are differentiated by thickness of line, so I know my van is not equipped to travel down the thin red squiggles, no matter how enticing the area might look. I love that even the most obscure trailheads and campgrounds are noted, along with useful tidbits such as Bigfoot sightings. So much more information than any apps can provide (at least that I've found). ⁣ I now have a small library of Benchmark Road and Recreation Atlases from my travels. I've still got a lot of ground to cover though, but living in a van and traveling around the country, I've no doubt I'll find my way - and new ways - easily using these atlases. I'm also the nerdy type who loves studying maps, so there's that too. πŸ€·πŸΌβ€β™€οΈπŸ€“β£ ⁣ I've got my Arizona atlas out now to figure out where @punkypaco and I will head next. We've been in the desert so long, I'm fairly certain Paco is looking for a lake. πŸΆπŸŒ΅πŸ– 🀞🐾🀞