Everybody's going surfing

Leon, Nicaragua lies near a string of volcanoes known as the Cordillera Los Maribios. The youngest is Cerro Negro and is just over 700 metres in height and we decided to surf it and it was super, super fun! What this means is:

• You hike up the volcano, with a sled in hand to the top - which ends up being around 500m

• You check out the volcano, the craters and the awesome view from the top

• You discover that if you dig up the black ash below your feet about 10cm deep, which is like gravel, you can feel the heat radiating from beneath you

• You suit up - elbow pads, knee pads, canvas suit, goggles and gloves

• You walk to the edge with your sled

• Sit on the sled and go!

Discovering Nicaragua through the Northern Highlands

Ok, so we are in the Northern Highlands of Nicaragua and it is absolutely stunning. Gorgeous mountains with pine trees you would see in North America but intertwined with a tropical landscape - palm trees and lush green colours, all fed by the highly nutrient soil in the area. You go outside and the air smells of roasting coffee beans - you almost can't escape it. Even being a non coffee drinker, the smell is devine.

There aren't a lot of tourists in this area. As you drive along the brick or dirt roads, many small towns are driven through. The maps we have access to aren't entirely accurate - even the most recent National Geographic maps aren't 100%, and there isn't a lot of tourist information available - so we have been lost a few times but found our way out again. The trick is if two or more of the maps we have access to match, then it is a safe bet that the roads exist.

Many people stare as we drive by; while everyone stares, especially at the ginger, when we walk by. Even photos are taken of us in some instances. When we spent some time up in Jalapa, the owner of the property said on average about 2 tourists stay in the area a month...which explained a lot to us.

It has been interesting seeing how the locals live in the smaller towns. All seem to have electricity, even satellite dishes placed outside their small shacks, with wells out the front. Horses are regularly used as transport, oxans used for pulling carts, chickens, pigs and other livestock roam around the streets looking for food - like many other Central American towns, but somehow here it all seems quaint. Maybe it is the remoteness and small populations, perhaps it is the stunning landscape used as a backdrop? Or it could even be that we feel a little bit safer in this area, and I don't have the emergency beacon sitting on my lap as we drive along any more.

As we have travelled through the US, Mexico, then onto Cuba, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras we have seen the changes from first world countries, to second world countries through to third world countries gradually. Now in Nicaragua, it feels like there is money around again, and it is shifting into a second world status - this can obviously be explained based on the funding provided by the UN. Who knows what additional funding will create? And how long will this gorgeous country continue being relatively untapped for?

One of the small towns we passed through, Ciudad Antigua - where, erm, Jesus was a pirate

The island of pirates...well their descendants anyway

Utila, one of the bay islands in Honduras and this is where I got the chance to do my advanced open water diving course and Dan got to dabble a bit with enriched air and wreck diving.

All I can say is - the diving is cheap, cheap! The wreck is awesome and the phosphorescent nightlife was amazing.

Here is a short clip of me, under the sea, in an octopus's garden - having a bit of a play...

You better Belize it!

We didn't spend a lot of time in Belize but we did make the most of it. We went to a small town called Placencica located on a long, thin peninsula. The town was perfect from the Caribbean feel, Bob Marley accents, jerk chicken, gelato, beach side accommodation to the most amazing dives!

Beachside accommodation

Abres Los Ojos

While in Mexico, we decided to do a cenote dive (a sinkhole from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater underneath) as we had heard so many good things about them.

We headed off to a place called Los Dos Ojos to see what everyone was going on about. On our briefing we found out that part of the dive would be quite dark as there were areas of the cenote where no light can penetrate. At this point I was a tad nervous. Anyway once we were in the water, and had our flash lights on, it was amazing! We were diving in fresh water and it was crystal clear. We saw stalagmites growing, surfaced up into a bat cave and saw the most amazing rock formations. I would definitely do that again!

Our photos didn't turn out really well, but this will give you an idea...

Thoughts on Cuba

Whilst in Cuba museums were visited, and many propaganda messages were read that it made it so easy to support the revolution. However talking to people about how life is now compared to earlier years, especially the years where support from the Soviet Union was provided, makes for a very different story. When Cuba was opened up to Tourism in the 90s's to substitute the lack of funding from the Soviet Union, that is when things began to change.

The average weekly wage for Cubans equates to around $US25 to $US30 a month. Education, health care is all provided, and other necessities are either rationed or subsidised.

Those who deal with tourists, get to charge tourists in tourist money. Casas often charge around $US25 for one nights stay. A taxi from the airport can charge $25 for a lift into town. A private car for the day with a driver can be $60. Meals which are bought in the local currency for a $1 are then sold onto tourists for $30...and this is when things don't add up.

Cuba, as beautiful as the old colonial buildings, classic cars (despite the smelly exhaust), lush green landscapes, the vivacity for life, dancing, cigars and rum are, does show it's ugly side. Touters are constantly at you in the towns, hustlers trying to get you into some deal, it is often hard to know when people are genuine and want to chat, especially if they are sporting some kind of gold bling.

Most Cubans are well educated and can see what is happening around them. Pedro, a Cuban who we met when buying some bus tickets said he studied to be a Nuclear Physicist however after he completed his studies, there were no jobs available where he could utilise his new found knowledge. Frustratingly he gave up that dream and sells bus tickets and earns around $US10 per month. He like many other Cubans, can't make a difference, not yet anyway.

It seems as the Castros are decaying, so to are the foundations that modern day Cuba was built on. The ideology which Che fought and died for is long gone. Who knows what Cuba will be like in five or 10 years time. It seems that many Cubans are now in it for themselves.

UNESCO Fever

Cienfuegos...
A UNESCO town with lots of colonial buildings by the water, interesting but nothing amazing.

Just one of a number of colonial buildings

Trinidad...
A UNESCO town with lots of colonial buildings by the water, a little bit more interesting than Cienfuegos as they had lots of sugar cane fields and mountains to explore nearby.

We headed off to Topes de Collantes for a walk through the mountains were coffee is grown and a swim at the waterfalls.

Waterfall time!

Then it was off to Valle de los Ingenios to check out a 44metre tower where slaves were watched from in the early 1800's and were shot at if they tried to escape...there were nice views of the sugar cane fields from there.

The view looking up from half way up the tower

Vinales

A small town a couple of hours away from Havana that is surrounded by forests with limestone rock faces (mogotes), and tobacco fields (where we learnt how cigars were made). Absolutely gorgeous!

Mogotes 

Learning the magic of cigar making

A terrible view

The city of not so delightful smells...Havana

After a restful nights sleep we ventured out into Havana after we met a local lady who was genuinely friendly (and who was also a neighbour of the owner of the Casa). She was kind enough to help us find a new, more central Casa in Centro Habana and we then wandered the streets and started to take in present day Havana.

To describe Havana in a few short words, lets say...
Smelly - lots of erm, lovely aromas
Alive - the Cuban passion for life, music, dancing and rum
Hustling - many Cubans are trying to make some extra dollars
Backwards - an economical split in society has taken shape and is growing

The Malecon

Our Casa

Our first moments in Cuba

The not so legit Casa...
We arrive in Havana in the evening. It is dark outside and we get a taxi to take us into town to see a lady who we had been put in touch with, who could help us find a casa to stay in. As the taxi pulls up in the back streets, in an area a little outside the Centro Habana area we look around the streets with some caution. We find out from our contact that she could organise somewhere for us to stay, but it was only at casas which are not registered with the government (which would have been nice if she told us earlier), we were a bit hesitant about it but then worked out that it would be them who could be arrested and not us, so it was ok with us. Before our very kind taxi driver drove off into the night, we had a quick chat and checked with him if we were in a safe neighbourhood and he provided the necessary reassurance we needed. We were then shown to our casa, set up camp for the evening and all was well.

The first mojitos...
Our stomachs were then grumbling and calling out for rum, so we walked off in search of food and booze. As we were in Cuba, we thought it very appropriate to make our first beverage a mojito. Our waitress delivered our drinks to our table, then waited for us to have a sip, and kindly asked if we needed some more rum - which seemed to be the approach many Cubans take when offering you a mojito - hey I am not going to complain! The mojitos were slurped with enthusiasm, and more were ordered.

The not so spectacular spectacular show...
Our entertainment venue for the evening involved a spectacular show full of music and comedy, well so we were told. As the evening progressed, we realised the music component of the spectacular evening were some less than entertaining Latin American music videos. And as for the comedy, well we left before that started...somehow the UV lights guided us out into the night.

Zacatecus

Writers block...

... OK, we have been lazy and not updated anything in a few weeks, so if you want to see where we have been, just check out this google map...
Basically this is everywhere that we have been AND written about...

View Larger Map

This is everywhere we have been since and not written about... Click on the balloon to see where/what it is. Will add some more images an videos shortly.

View America's Road Trip: Pt 2 in a larger map

The other view of La Paz

Well when it wasn't raining, we got the chance to hang out by the beach and enjoy the
awesome views...though we were a little hesitant to go swimming due to the storms and
what may have run off into the water...

The view from the Malecon (boardwalk)

Having a final drink before we take the ferry over to mainland Mexico

Say "Hello" to our little friend...

Underwater Misadventures in La Paz

We knew that the chances of Miriam becoming a hurricane were very low as we drove into La Paz, however that did not stop it bringing heavy amounts of rain to the city. 50km or so out, heavy rains and wind lashed our top heavy car as we wound around mountain roads, on one hand making some nerve-wracking driving (the locals still do not slow down), on the other hand meant that several weeks of dust were at last washed off the car. Mother natures touchless car wash.

As we approached the city limits, the evidence of the lack of rain on this city in general was evident. Streets were pooling water, roads were flooded and the locals were not sure how to drive through. One family had flooded their engine with uncompressable water when they took their coupe through water too deep. Everyone else, even those in pickups, were unsure about crossing after witnessing that mistake. Having seen water crossings like this in places such as Australia's Kimberley region, I was confident in Loretta's ability to easily wade through with care, the problem was that cars on both sides of the road blocked us being able to get through as they drove to any empty spot of the road to take a look but then not committing to a crossing. 

Eventually someone at the front in a larger vehicle led the way and allow the trucks and larger cars to start crossing. This was not one stream crossing the road, just the first of many that over the few days we were in La Paz led to serious road erosion and potholes being formed. As we neared the city centre, the city sewers were bursting through manhole covers, creating what I referred to as a turd fountain.

The city was by no means prepared for this type of weather - the streets had no form of drainage and what did not run off into the sea pooled on the streets and roads until the sun would evaporate the water. However for us there was little problem getting around - Loretta was factory built for official depths of 50cm, but as we had raised the car through bigger tyres and stronger suspension, and that the air intake was at the top of the bonnet, realistically we could cross anything up to about a meter and a half (though that may result in water getting into the cabin. The problem that we encountered could actually have ended up being far more serious than what actually happened two days after arriving in the town.

We had been staying at a new hotel in the city centre for a couple of days and the rains were still coming down. I had hoped to venture out of the city for a couple of days of kite surfing but with the heavy rain decided to stay put. On Friday night we had been in our room and at around 8:30pm the concierge from the front desk knocked on our door and said that we had to move our car. I assumed that it was blocking someone, despite parking at the rear of the car park next to the neighbours wall. As I walked outside there were several people standing around, which was strange given the quiet street we were. As I turned the corner I was confronted with a gaping hole in the neighbours 30 foot stone wall. In front of me was a mass of rocks and boulders that had given way from the rain and lack of drainage. The wall had collapsed onto our car and another Land Cruiser in the lot. In effect, our car had prevented the wall from tumbling further.

Parked nose to the wall and boulders behind the car, there was little way to manoeuvre the car out and aside from which, despite the locals telling me to move the car before the rest of the wall collapsed, I was hesitant about getting into a car that appeared to be supporting several ton of rock. If the rest of the wall gave way, the chances were that it would either trap or crush me in the cabin. Shortly after some emergency services turned up. We were told it was the fire department, but rather it was four men in a pick-up. The photos and video below do more to tell the story of getting Loretta out than I could describe and given context to the situation. Amazingly, apart from dented and scratched panels, she works as before and it appears that the Mexican insurance we bought are going to cover the damage. As for the other Land Cruiser? He was parked nose to the wall that gave way. He simply reversed his car out and apart from a smashed headlight, again everything worked fine. Unfortunately he did not have insurance and is likely to have a hard time getting money out of the owner of the collapsed wall.

So the three lessons learnt:

1. Buy as much insurance as you can
2. Land Cruisers appear indestructible 
3. Don't park near walls that appear poorly constructed

Baja cuisine

So we have been in Baja for just under two weeks and have sampled a variety of foods. Here is a peak at some of them...

A Mexican fiesta

Ceviche tostados

Fresh fish...

...which turned into yellowfin sashimi

Sushi...yes sushi!

Fondue - including mariachi band!

Success!

A morning visit to Walmart and we found a new tent! Pictures to come!

The long and somewhat winding road

We had a fairly long drive ahead of us to La Paz so left Santa Rosalia early-ish. The roads to La Paz were really well maintained so the drive was relatively easy. While we drove along the eastern coast of the peninsula, we could see how the landscape was changing from something desert like to something more tropical, with lots of lush green areas. We drove past an area called Bahia Concepcion and put that on the list of places we would like to visit when we return - small beaches dotted along the coat with small islands scattered throughout the water. Then, when we were about an hour outside of the town, a tropical storm decided to hit. When the winds picked up, I gladly handed over the driving to Dan and a few minutes later, rain poured from the sky and Loretta got a wash. For the first time the Vado signs (where the road dips and can flood with water) came in handy. There where a few water crossings and traffic jams started to build up as low cars got caught in the middle of the water, and others just could not pass through. Lorretta didn't hesitate and managed to get to the front of the jams and cross through the water safely.
As we got closer to La Paz and the town centre, there was some interesting looking water covering the roads (accompanied by some lovely aromas)...then we noticed the sewer covers had popped open and were overflowing. Needless to say, when we went for dinner that night, we avoided crossing the road where the water had pooled.
We managed to find some great accommodation at a fantastic price and decided to stay for a couple of nights.

Water crossing time

Hasta La Vista Miriam

While at Asuncion, we learned of a hurricane off shore heading our way - called Miriam. We started tracking her movements and decided we should head towards Santa Rosalia or La Paz so we could have an escape route to the mainland via the ferries. So we packed up and headed east.
On our journey, we drove past some of the most amazing coastline I think Mexico has to offer. We drove through a town called Punta Abreojos and saw amazing surf (possibly courtesy of Miriam) that Dan equated to a surfers wet dream. We got the chance to drive on a beach which was covered in the softest and smoothest of shells and do a bit of off roading.
We stopped off in a town called San Ignacio for lunch and some very tasty fish tacos and continued on to Santa Rosalia, where we spent the night.
Santa Rosalia was an interesting town, it had an old mining and industrial feel to it and felt "large" compared to Bahia Asuncion. Whilst there, we went on the hunt for a new tent, but with no success. So we decided to head towards La Paz and hit the shops there.

Driving over shells

Swimming with Lions of the Sea

At Bahia Asuncion, Juan and Shari took us out on their boat to check out Asuncion Island, the numerous Sea Lion colonies and to go swimming with the Sea Lions! After going around and checking out the different beaches and colonies, we picked our swimming location and jumped in the warm water. Some of the sea lions were hesitant at first (and maybe I was too) but once we got going it was so much fun - they were just as curious as we were! The sea lions were swimming underneath us, in ones, twos, threes or even sixes and were blowing bubbles, yawning or even trying to growl at us, all under water. It was a fabulous day in and out of the water - Thanks Juan and Shari!

I can see Sea Lions!

Hello there!

Bahia Asuncion...

A fishing town on the Pacific Coast of Baja. It is large enough to have a good community and some facilities but still small enough for everyone to know everyone. We were lucky enough to spend three lovely evenings there.
Our accommodation host, Shari, was very welcoming and immediately treated us like family. We were introduced to some of her friends in the town as well as other travellers and everyone had their stories to share.
Whilst here, many a good meal was had, and a few beverages drunk. We checked out La Bufadora (the water geyser in the town) and some awesome sunsets.
All in all it was a great, relaxing visit.

Sunset time

Oh no, she broke!

Don't worry, we aren't talking about the Loretta here...
After coming to the conclusion that the east cost of Baja was a tad warm, we decided to head back to the west side and ended up at a town called Bahia Asuncion - a destination chosen on the recommendation of a fellow Gringo. Accommodation was by the beach at Campo Sirena (run by the lovely Juan and Shari) and this is where the glitch happened...one of our lovely (or not so lovely) carbon tent poles decided to snap! Dan managed to rig the tent up to the car awning for the night and that did the job. We repaired the pole the next morning (before our morning fish and prawn tacos) and success...for about an hour, then the blimmin pole snapped in a second location. We fixed the pole again and all was well, for five minutes, then uh-oh it snapped again, in a third spot!
The lovely Shari had some alternate accommodation available and we were able to shack up for a couple more nights in a room overlooking the beach so we could soak up some more of the Asuncion air.
So now, the hunt for a spare tent begins, plus the adventures of a new pole being sent to us begins...we will keep you in the loop!

Not looking too good

Five ways to maintain personal hygiene whilst on the road

One of the big things that a lot of people (particularly females) have told me that puts them off camping is the whole hygiene thing - much of this is based from attending music festivals where the concept of using urine for neutralising jelly fish stings has somehow transgressed into a belief that it can also neutralise what is commonly known as "Hippy Aroma" - the smell that is associate with people who think that for a weekend at a festival they can transcend into complete hippy-ness and then back to normal again by Monday for their desk job. Real hippies secrete a special enzyme that whilst creates a smell, is not unpleasant unlike that of the pseudo-hippy.

Anyway, I am transgressing. Camping need not mean smelling bad. Here are five ways to maintain a more comfortable situation for you and your companions.

Shower when you can - depending on where you are camping there may not always be showers available. Sometimes you will not want to use the showers given the state of them. But when you find one, use it.  Then there is the camp showerl. Fill some container (such as a saucepan) with water (if you are a bit soft heat some up on the stove.) wet yourself (with water), lather, pour water over head.

Carry Wipes - baby wipes, facial wipes etc… these can be useful. Guys, I know that the idea of this is a bit "girly", but you do not need to use them everyday, but trust me, if you do not clean your "best friend", it could turn a colour that is not in the rainbow. There are plenty of unscented wipes out there and to be honest, they are preferable. Just make sure that you pick up the right ones - I discovered what makes old ladies smell a certain way when I borrowed what I refer to as a " 'gina wipe" aka feminine hygiene wipe, that a friend had bought without reading the pack.

Go Swim - camping by a lake? Go swim in it. That will get the grime off. Just don't use soap - it ruins the eco-system. You can also do this in the sea as well, but I would reserve this for really desperate times as you will be left with dry salt residue on you that can make you sweat more than a… better stop here before I offend someone.

Wear Merino - anyone who has proper merino (type of wool, generally from New Zealand or Australia) will know how amazing this stuff is. I am obsessed with it. Merino produces a natural enyme that helps prevent odours from occurring. Apparently the record is one guy who wore a pair for 183 days straight. I would not recommend this, but you can go 3-4 days in a pair of these before you need to wash them. I quite happily travels for months with 3 pairs of their pants, socks and t-shirts. They are light, dry fast, stay warm when when, fire proof and completely sustainable (unless you eat the sheep as well). There are a few brands out there, but for quality, style and damn good customer service, stick to Icebreaker. And if you are a sucker for cool marketing, they tick that box too.

But of course if you are Bear Ghrylls you would not dream of doing any of these - how else would you get that dry rub seasoning for the ribs you just ripped out of a passing aardvark?

The Rules of Road - Part 1

1. If it is bigger than you and in your lane, get out the way
2. If it is coming straight at you in your lane, get out the way
3. If it has four legs and is in your lane, get out the way
4. If it has a siren and is in your lane, get out the way
5. Check that you are driving on the correct side of the road.

Splish, splash

It was at Bahia de los Angeles - the Bay of Angels where we first got a glimpse of the Sea of Cortez. It was after a 5 hour drive through the desert, surrounded by mountains and numerous giant cacti that the most amazing blue water seemed to appear out of nowhere. Islands were scattered throughout the water and desert landscape surrounded the shore line.
We decide to stay in town for a couple of days and relax after being on the road for quite a few days. On our first morning, we wake up and it is already about 30 degrees outside. We drive around to La Gringa point, take Loretta on to the beach which we have all to ourselves. We have breakfast by the water, go for a swim, or two, or three in the gorgeous tropical water and check out some of the small whiting in the bay. The pelicans were on watch for food and were successful with their diving on numerous occasions and we were treated to a special show by a couple of dolphins swimming by.
Now I have always thought that in Far North Queensland, where the rainforest meets the ocean, was pretty spectacular, but where the desert meets the sea certainly gives it a run for its money!

First view of the Sea of Cortez

Camping in an olive grove

Realising we could not make it to our next destination in daylight hours, we decided to have an overnight pit stop in a place called San Quintin, which lies on the pacific coast line, but is primarily an agricultural town. Here we got to stay at a gorgeous camp ground called Los Olivios and got the chance to camp among an olive grove. We think Loretta enjoyed the scenery, we know we did!

There she blows

After camping near Ensenada for our first night in Mexico, we head to La Bufadora (or The Snorter), a blowhole where incoming swells push seawater into an underground canyon and out through a hole in the rocks. She was pretty impressive, blowing about 20 or 30 metres...and also happens to be the second largest marine geyser in the world! All around the area are vendors selling food, clothing, hats and cheap knock offs at 99% off. We get ripped off by 10 pesos by the churros vendor but oh well, we learnt our lesson.

12 steps to crossing the border (or the frogger experience)

Step 1: drive through the gates
Step 2: car gets semi inspected - all relatively quickly
Step 3: park car
Step 4: go to immigration
Step 5: pick up tourist card form
Step 6: go to bank to pay for tourist card
Step 7: return to immigration to process tourist card
Step 8: go to Banjercito to sort out vehicle paperwork
Step 9: go to pharmacy to get photocopies of the paperwork for the Banjercito
Step 10: return to Banjercito to finalise vehicle paperwork
Step 11: stick vehicle sticker on car
Step 12: we are legally allowed to enter Mexico!

Surfing USA

• Cliff top camp site with beach views...tick
• Barbie and Ken spotted in a little black corvette (sadly it wasn't red)...tick
• A swim at Malibu beach...tick
• Shiny greased up old man spotted on the beach sunbathing...tick
• Life savers that looked like the Hoff minus the rug...tick

Here comes the sun

Santa Barbara, a bustling town. Lots of lovely shops and a few sites to see.
We ended up staying a couple of towns over at Carpinteria beach. A cute beach side town, great location for the campsite which was by the beach, but the neighbours, well let's say we could have down without them.

Essentials for being on the road

• GPS or old school maps when necessary
• A large bag of kettle corn to keep hunger at bay

Step back in time

Cambria, a cute little town you reach after you drive along the the Big Sur.
Lots of great antique shops, food stores, a cute little church, weekend markets, a lawn bowls club, and a lot of retirees. The best part, the fresh Tacos from the food truck...mmm, bring on Mexico!

Big Sur

Late in the afternoon, early in the evening, we got the chance to drive along the Big Sur. All I can say is "wow". We have been driving along most of western coastline on this trip, and this by far was the best. As Loretta meandered her way down the road, we took in the spectacular views. This is a must for everyone!

We went to camp at the state park, but didn't have a registration, and didn't quite think about the fact it was a Friday night...so there was no room at the campsite for Loretta and us. We drove from campsite to campsite and all was full. We sadly had to finish the big sur drive in the dark and drive on to the next town Sansimeon, just below Hearst castle, to shack up at one of the motels there for the evening.

The Big Sur. I know, this is a tiny photo, will post a bigger one soon!

Wearing flowers in our hair

We packed up early on Friday morning and we headed into San Fran. Dan of course wanted to drive as he wanted to be the one to take us over the Golden Gate Bridge...later I was very grateful considering the road etiquette...or lack there of among San Fran drivers.
We ate, wandered around, explored Golden Gate park for awhile, and ate some more. We got our San Fran fix so it was time to take the flowers out of our hair and move on.

Driving over a misty Golden Gate Bridge

Wanker...I mean pondering in Golden Gate Park

Fee fi fo fum - walking with giants

As we headed towards San Francisco, we got the chance to drive through the Redwood National Forest along the Avenue of Giants. The redwoods are fantastic, old, massive and the fact that their bark is fire resistant and repels bugs is pretty impressive. The road is windy, and you need to drive slow, but hey, we weren't complaining, it gave us a chance to enjoy the serenity...I mean scenery.

Recipes on the road: flame grilled pork ribs

Ingredients

• Fresh pork ribs - your 2kg variety is enough for two people, no need for 5kg
• Olive oil
• Garlic - about 4 to 6 cloves
• Paprika
• Salt
• Pepper

Method

• Drizzle olive oil, then sprinkle a decent amount of paprika, salt and pepper over one side of the ribs. Using a garlic crusher, add at least 1 clove of garlic to the same side (use at least 2 garlic cloves per 1kg rack of ribs - one for each side. Add more if you like your garlic!). Then rub the oil, spices and garlic into the ribs.
• Turn ribs over and repeat.
• Cover and leave the meat to marinate - aim for at least an hour or longer if you can.
• Start your fire - make sure you give yourself time for your coals or wood to die down a little for some good cooking embers.
• Using a grill over the fire, add your pork - fleshier side down. Turn when ready to cook the other side.
• Chop up, serve and eat!

A love hate relationship

Floras Lake - where Dan went kite surfing.

Love...

• The sun
• The beach front view from the tent
• The most amazing night sky
• Lack of mossies

Hate...

• The blimmin wind
• Cool weather
• The blimmin wind

Kiters in the distance - the view from our campsite

In action

On the road again

We hit the road again, trying to put some more distance between us and our starting point, Vancouver. We stop at Cannon Beach for a night where we stay at the retro Wrights Camping site. We check out the cute sea side town in the morning and move on.
Our next stop is Oregon Dunes, where we felt a little left out as we were the only people without an ATV (all terrain vehicle). Dan was tempted to take Loretta out, but at the last minute, decided it was probably best not to...don't think we would have gotten too far!

Holidaying and the art of zen

Last time we were in Portland, we sadly missed going to the Japanese Gardens as they were closed on the day we went there. This time we weren't going to miss them! The sun was shining and the gardens, which are supposed to be the best gardens outside of Japan, were at their best. Waterfalls, lanterns, tea rooms (where sadly you couldn't drink tea), raked pebbles, pagodas, fish ponds...it all looked pretty close to me! All that was missing was the big sake barrels! Mmmm sake.

The city of food trucks

Portland, no matter where you go, you always get a good feed. We had to stop in Portland purely to get some good grub...and perhaps do a spot of tax free shopping. The verdict...stomachs were very happy!

Mt St Helens

I haven't always had a fascination with volcanos, it took a while to get there. Years of volcano talk in geography and science classes bored me and then in year 12 something resonated with me - most likely it was partly due to the best science teacher ever, Mr Watson, or Mr Watty as we all called him. I remember learning about Mt St Helen's at various times during school and I think the fact that it had erupted so "recently" really interested me.
Needless to say, I was very excited to go check out big Helen. We drove around and got some pretty good views of Helen from various sides and checked out the surrounding landscape, which looks like it is still trying to recover from the last eruption. I reckon where she blew her top off gives her some character :-)

Mt St Helens

A hospital visit

Well we were anticipating that one of us would be getting ill on this trip,but weren't expecting it to happen so early, nor in the States!
Anyway, late in the evening while we were camping at Mount Rainier, Dan wanted to get some attention. So he decided to go pick up for the evening and took some bug to bed. As a result he had a pretty rough night being sick.
The next morning we pack up the camp (well I did, somehow) and off we went to try and find a pharmacy and a motel. We spoke to a ranger and the nearest pharmacy was about 45 minutes away. So our search began.
Whilst driving we noticed a sign for a hospital and decide to head in that direction. Not long afterwards we arrive at Morton General Hospital where the wait time at emergency was only a few minutes - we were very impressed!
Dan was seen to by the lovely Dr McCurry, who was fantastic, and was happy to have a chat, and was helped by a couple of nurses to get quite a bit of IV fluids in him and was on his way to getting better. After a few hours he was good to go. We bunkered down in Morton that night and all was well.

Wandering through Paradise

Mount Rainier is an active volcano in Washington State. It has a glaciated peak and spawns six major rivers.
We arrive at Rainier late in the day (following our shopping spree) so we find a great camp site on the south side of the mountain and set up camp there.
The next day, we thought we should do a little bit of walking and head towards a place called paradise. We did the skyline high trail, on the south west side. It was absolutely stunning, with gorgeous wild flowers in the lower meadows. As we got closer to what was known as panorama point, there were patches of snow which still had not melted, and we got close up to the glaciers at the top of the mountain. Once at panorama point, we got the most amazing view of Mount Adams, Mount St Helens and Mount Hood (which is in Oregon).
On our descent we heard avalanches occurring on the north side, and chatted with a lovely elderly couple who do this walk about twice a year and rate this as the best of them all, so we were pretty chuffed with our choice! Check out the picture below and see what you think!

What Bear Grylls didn't tell you about survival: Five Ways To Start a Camp Fire

Let's face it, Bear Grylls may be happy knawing down on a rotting sheep carcases eyeball or swimming across crocodile-eating pirahanna infested water, but the reality is, most of us are a little more soft around the edges and setting up a tent alone is feat in itself. So this is an urbanists guide to surviving in the "wild".

Five Ways to Start a Campfire:

Nothing does more to define the campsite than a fire. We have been sitting around them for tens of thousands of years and the ability to light one without battering an eyelid is the definitive measurement of how manly a man is in the wilderness (or local campsite). Unfortunately we seem to have lost our knack for rubbing a couple of twigs together in order to create something that would put the Great Fire of London to shame. Here are some cheating tips on how to get a fire going but with a bit of flair.
First up, you need some DEAD and DRY wood. You can just buy this as most campgrounds will not allow you to collect it from the forest floor. The problem is that when you buy this, there is no kindling - that easy to light and fast burning accelerant to get logs burning through the night. If you buy fire starters, you are going to be shunned as the person who could not do a "proper" camp fire. Below are cheating methods as well, but at least you will be held in awe by your fellow campers:

Corn Chips:

Corn is used an alternative clean fuel, which means that corn must have some flammable properties right?

Pros: Slow burning with a small flame; almost guaranteed that someone would have packed some; feel like some new age environmental hippy
Cons: Temptation to build a burning pyramid for the corn chip gods will result in nothing for you to dip in the salsa except your dirt-coated fingers: feel like some new age environmental hippy

Lighter Fluid/Petrol:

Who has not done this?

Pros: Easily available; highly flamable
Cons: likely to put too much on the fire and at best loose your eyebrows; your fellow campers realise that you are a bogan

Hair:

I had a friend who demonstrated how flamable hair was by sitting in a tent and taking a lighter to his leg hairs. Needless to say many hours were wasted at his cost

Pros: unless you have a hair condition, easy to find; renewable fuel source
Cons: Burns very fast; smells funny; likely to find your fellow campers "trimming" you in the night

Farting:

OK, you can't really not have this one in there. It is the ultimate in juvenile male behaviour, but if you actually manage to get a fire started by this method, you will be written in the book of legends

Pros: Cheap to produce; opportunity to achieve legendary status
Cons: Follow through; excessive gas resulting in losing your manhood

Shopping Spree

Now this wasn't your typical shopping spree. First of all, this little (or not so little) spending spree was all about Dan, rather than me...

Driving into Seattle

It was time to put some distance between us and Vancouver, so our next stop was Mount Rainier, in Washington State. Before we left Burlington, we had come to the realisation that we had too much stuff in the car - and before you say anything, it is not because I packed too many shoes or handbags. So we decided to purchase a top box for the car. On the way to Mount Rainier, we detoured via Seattle to visit the mothership of all REI stores (a travel/outdoor store. Personally, I reckon Dan brought along too many of his toys so we had to visit this store). We arrived at REI, and were treated to an outdoors wonderland. There was a mini hiking trail and bike route around the store, and once through the large wooden doors with Italian pick axes for door handles there were 2 levels to explore. A lock box was selected, and a few other items were picked up. We re-jigged how the car was packed (well Dan did, I got my priorities in order and went and got lunch) and we were set to go!

Packing the car...again