Spring Break ‘22

I know, I know - I cried alllll last week about how much I have going on, and now I’m hitting you with a spring break post.

HEAR ME OUT - it’s my last one. ‘Twas in pursuit of a goal. And I got a LOT of work done during my flights and down time 😏

THE 50 STATES

Sometime in college, I set a personal goal of visiting all fifty states.* I’m from Illinois and grew up trekking all over the Midwest, plus up and down the IN-OH-KY-TN-GA route to see family in the south (and Disney!). I also have an uncle who lived in Hawaii/Florida and a few relatives around Virginia, so I hit those pretty early. By 18, I’d visited most of the Midwest and Southeastern states, as well as one-offs like New York and Rhode Island.

Then I went to the Air Force Academy (Colorado) and hit about 10 more West/Southwest states with the track team! That’s when I decided that seeing all fifty was in the cards. From there, I hit Montana/North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota while stationed in Minot; the entire east coast during two pre-HLS trips (before I knew I’d live in Mass for three years!); and Louisiana/Mississippi during a NOLA trip with friends. At the start of 2022, I only had three states left to see: Washington, Oregon, and Alaska.

*For reference, I don’t count layovers or flyovers as ‘hitting a state.’ I have to be on the ground, outside an airport, and preferably consuming a local meal for it to count. Also, someone asked this week if I collect something from each state, or have a map of where I’ve been so far. No to both…I just have a running list on my phone and a bunch of pictures. So lame.

SPRING BREAK 2022

That said, we quickly arrived at my last spring break EVER. At first I planned to go somewhere warm and relaxing, but I realized this would be a great time to fly across the country - COVID stuff is somewhat relaxed, I’m not feeling super burnt out this semester (yay!) and my husband wouldn’t be home so it was an ideal time for a solo trip (boo, but yay for purposes of trip planning).

I also want Alaska to be my Big 5-0, so I (loosely) planned a round trip to Seattle with a road trip to Portland. When traveling to a new place, I like to keep things flexible between start- and end-flights so I can adjust according to how much I like/want to do in a certain place. I did the same here and of course, nothing turned out as originally planned. For the best!

WASHINGTON (#48)

Capitol Hill

I flew into Seattle last Saturday and stayed at the CUTEST AirBnB in the Capitol Hill area(ish). It had a dedicated parking spot, easy car/bus access to downtown Seattle, and was just a short walk from multiple food places. The apartment was super private and well-furnished, and I felt like I got to see “real” Seattle life away from the tourist spots. This was by far the most relaxing leg of my trip; the fireplace/heater was constantly on and I LOVED the Japanese Garden right down the road!

Seattle

I crammed sooooo much into my Seattle time and would do it all again! I started with the classic, Pike Place, and literally wandered/ate at random places for an entire morning. Storyville Coffee? Le Panier? Beecher’s Cheese? All to die for.

When I was full of cheese (a recurring theme on this trip) I walked about 20 minutes to the Museum of Pop Culture and the Space Needle, because of course! It was foggy so I skipped going up the Needle, but still snapped an obligatory pic. The MoPOP was SO cool…it had displays on everything from Disney costumes, to horror/sci fi/fantasy films, to the history of hip hop. Standing in front of Emma Watson’s Beauty and the Beast costumes was legitimately magical, I’m not even being dramatic.

Okay, maybe a little dramatic. But it’s Emma Watson.

The Great Outdoors

I couldn’t properly do the PNW without a little outdoor time, and hiked Rattlesnake Ridge at the advice of a Seattle native. It was a 50 minute drive outside the city (I did contemplate Mount Rainier but it was twice as far and GAS PRICES) and about a 75 minute hike.

Overall, I’m very glad I went with Rattlesnake. The weather was chilly/rainy, I wasn’t properly outfitted for a harder hike, and I ventured out alone. This was a good compromise and I still got to see the mountains in all their misty glory! I can’t lie though, I thought about Twilight the entire time. The whole forest was straight out of the movie.

COLORADO (A THROWBACK)

This was the “unplanned” part of my trip, as Colorado has been decidedly crossed off my 50 States list. Two weeks ago the Air Force Academy track and field head coach, Ralph Lindeman, passed away unexpectedly from complications after surgery. It was a huge blow to the track team and the Academy as a whole. “RL”, as his athletes called him, built the USAFA track program from the ground up over 33 years. He was an incredibly kind man who genuinely cared about each athlete’s well-being and development on and off the track. I truly owe RL for letting me - a mediocre pole vaulter - be on/lead his team for four years.

RL’s memorial service and “last lap” on the Academy track were held on Tuesday, March 15. I never could’ve made it back during classes, but life has a weird way of working out. I also got to see my parents, brother, and uncle (my dad’s birthday was March 16, so I was able to celebrate that too!), my sponsor family, teammates, and coaches. It was the exact definition of “bittersweet.” RL’s passing was a huge loss, but the Colorado trip really felt like a celebration of his life. I’m so glad I could make it.

OREGON (#49)

Amidst a good ole Colorado snowstorm, I then flew back to the PNW to round out the week. I had two goals with Oregon: first, to visit Portland, and second, to see the famous Oregon Coast. Done and done! I would have loved to do/see more and will likely go back, but the trip was obviously shortened by the CO detour and I was committed to staying in/flying out of Seattle.

Portland

To be honest, I didn’t love downtown Portland as much as I expected. I went to the famous Voodoo Doughnuts and grabbed some Portland Pizza (called “campfire” - it had blue cheese on it? And was oddly delicious? Idk). But I didn’t feel comfortable sticking around after dark or getting wild with the St. Patrick’s Day masses, so that may be why it was just okay.

I DID love Powell’s Books, the largest independent bookstore in the freakin’ WORLD - it had nine different rooms (each large enough to be its own store) and was legitimately overwhelming. But amazing. I also really enjoyed the Northeast Portland area, a super eclectic few blocks (with free street parking!!) where I grabbed a biscuit + gravy monstrosity at Pine Street Biscuits, mini donuts from Pip’s Original, and visited the McMenamin’s Kennedy School (weirdest place ever).

Somewhere in here, I stumbled across one of the Ninth Circuit courthouses and reflected that I wouldn’t have even noticed it just a few years ago, much less taken a picture of/Googled it afterward. Law school has ruined me.

Oregon Coast

It drizzled for the entire last part of my trip, but the drive up the 101 was absolutely stunning. The ocean was grey and misty, the forests were dense and beautiful, and it was all so BIG! Luckily, my 4runner rental had a retractable sunroof so I was able to enjoy fresh air the entire time. Unluckily, I took a bunch of videos of said gorgeous coast and can’t figure out how to upload them here.

I hit the Tillamook Creamery for the sole purpose of getting cheese curds and they did NOT disappoint (I also entered a contest to win free cheese for a year - wish me luck). I am a little sad that I missed the Crab Races in Garibaldi…not sure if those involved people chasing crabs or just crabs racing each other, but I’m interested either way.

I flew back to Boston last night and slept for almost 11 hours (multiple time zone changes and daylight savings have my body so so confused). Overall, the past week was the most jam packed SB of all time but I have zero regrets about how it worked out. My family + friends bucket is full, a wonderful man was honored, and states 48 and 49 are officially checked off my list.

I’m coming for you soon, Alaska!