🇺🇸 Hurricane Hilary - Los Angeles to Hurricane, UT 8.21.23

I left Ventura early in the morning so I could squeeze in a little more beach time. There’s a whole lot of population here living on 4-wheels along the coast. High end RVs to compact cars to two bicycles tied together. I drove down the coast into Malibu… and this is surf culture. Thousands of people and their boards… in the sea.. walking to and from… peeling off wets suits by their cars. I was amazed how many. I had plans to try surfing this summer… I was shopping for a wet suit and everything while I was in EastBay… another time… totally dude.

My brunch plan in Los Ángeles was abandoned because the hurricane Hilary… now tropical storm showed up earlier than predicted. It quickly enveloped L.A. and yup, I drove through it. Heavy winds and rain… I wouldn’t even call it rain becuase you’re the clouds are ground level. I was on an elevated highway with limited traffic and managed to get out of the city and the brunt of the storm after an hour of driving.

Lighting had struck a utility pole in Barstow, CA shutting down the I-15. Traffic was rerouted through town and was backed up for miles.

I hit another leg of the storm in Nevada going into Las Vegas. It was as heavy as it was in Los Angles. There’s was literally standing water in the desert for as far as you could see. It looked like a massive lake. Just as I hit Vegas it calmed. I pulled over at a gas station to get my bearing and a bag of Doritos. Strange people in that town… I didn’t stick around.

My rental car had been broken into in San Francisco and I had taped it up for the journey back. I planned on trading it in when I hit Las Vegas… but i was so pleased with my MacGyver skills I decided to stick with it for the rest of the trip. That thought didn’t last long.

The rest of Nevada was heavy winds and my window tape job began to shred. Literally at the moment of my thought of how impressive my efforts for hurricane proofing my window. Boom. There she goes!!! More winds as I clipped AZ and much of the same into Utah. Things eased up as I went into Saint George and with some mild irony I land for the night in place called Hurricane, Utah to conclude a four State day.

I had never been through the town but it’s squeaky clean with lots of new buildings. They have all the things there. There not a lot of my tribe there but the place is beautiful and plenty of beautiful nature things around.

One thing about a tropical storm crossing the western part of the continent. Hot summery desert temps are now mild. Some rain and clouds and the temps are hovering around 73°. That means a comfortable hike and I spent my morning exploring the trails on foot. Very few people out and about… the storms and late summer I guess?

I had one more stop in Utah planned. Mystic Hot Springs on the edge of the town of Monroe, UT. I had been through once before on my way to Vancouver Island. Claw foot tubs built into the mineral deposits on the hill. The storm was still working it’s way through and it was a bit winding and rainy at times. I guess it’s enough to scare off the people because I had the place to myself. There’s was a care-taker there adjusting water temps because of the cooler weather. I had to sit in my car for 15 minutes and wait out a heavy burst of rain… other than that… nothing but blissful moments.

I stopped in town for a small town burger drive thru. I wanted some water and the teenager was quite confuse about it. He eventually figured out he could charge me 50¢ for a soda cup and fill it with tap water and ice. Worked for me… I just sat in a hot springs for 2 hours and was dying of thirst. We were both pleased with the transaction. It’s all about the simple things folks.

I pushed into to Colorado to rest in the small town of Fruita with a disintegrating window cover and totally exhausted. I roll into Denver to unload the gear I liberated in San Francisco and this adventure is coming to a conclusion.

And note… if you want to lead a nomadic free spirit existence by leaving caches of gear all around the world… be prepared to go gather them up at at any given moment. Also, can I store some gear at your place? Just a pack and some hiking boots… and a motorcycle. 🙏💙☺️