meeting big sur

This is a tale of introductions.  It’s a tale of adventure, daring, and intense connections.  This is a tale of love at first sight.

In early February of 2009, i flew across the country and landed in central California. I liked it instantly and spent the first month taking a walking tour of the area to get better acquainted with what was one of the best towns i’ve called home.

Seriously, one of the best ever.

Shortly after settling in, i agreed to go on a camping trip to a place only half an hour’s drive away.  I didn’t have a car (in fact, i didn’t have much at the time and i’d pretty much been living out of a pack for the past few months), so i carpooled with other people in the group.  On the afternoon before a four-day weekend, we piled into a couple of cars and drove down to Big Sur.

Looking back on it, it’s a fortunate thing i wasn’t driving.  As soon as those dramatic cliffs and crashing waves came into view, i forgot all about our driver’s horrific lack of driving skills.  If i’d been behind the wheel, i probably would’ve driven us off of the cliff and into the gaping maw of a humpback whale.

You eat only krill and small fish?  Yeah right…  I heard what you did to Jonah!

Seriously though, i’m not convinced words can describe how i felt during that drive.  All i know is that it was love at first sight, and that love grew more intense with each passing day.  I’ve been on many trips to Big Sur since then and it never fails to stun and impress.  But this isn’t the story about those times.  I’m still talking about that first trip and the hilarity that ensued…

First of all, i’m a little ashamed to admit that we weren’t exactly prepared for this trip.  I checked the weather beforehand and packed my back expecting the forecasted low of 58 degrees to be easily handled.  It wasn’t until we actually got there that i found out our campsite was actually in a valley.  Oh yeah, and we were camped out near the Big Sur river.  And it just happened to be a notably windy weekend.

We were so damn cold.

The first night there, i actually shivered so much that i woke up the guy sleeping next to me.  By our second night, we had come to the conclusion that the only way to get a full night’s rest was to make one big bed and share body heat.  And that’s how i ended up being the smallest spoon in a stack with three men behind me.

Anyway, to make a long story short, it was awesome, i fell in love with Big Sur, and i went back many, many times.  I think that weekend was probably when i first realized that living in California was going to be one of the best places i’d ever lived (empirical evidence from subsequent adventures proved this to be totally true).

And since i’m sleepy and don’t feel like writing any more, here are some pictures i took on that trip:

the most brief of verbose introductions

As much as i would like to fit everything into one bag, life sometimes steps in to say, “Don’t be a punk.”  That’s why this blog exists.  I love to be on the move, have adventures, and explore.  Since my pre-existing blog is very heavy on social, political, and anthropological commentary, i felt like it would be out of place to chronicle my travels there as well.  They just don’t always fit in the same bag.

So with that said, i’d like to welcome you to tralmix: tales of intrepid stumblings.  For those of you who aren’t already familiar with me, here’s some quick background info:

-      I’m a total nerdjock.  True story.

-      I’m an American, but i spent a fair amount of my childhood living abroad and i’ve never lived in one place for more than three years at a time.  Rumor has it i’m secretly more European than American.

-      I love collecting new experiences.

-      Despite my comically low tolerance for spicy stuff, i love Indian food.

-      I never feel more at peace than when i am in the mountains and within sight of the ocean.

-      I have not one soul mate, but two.  My love is tragically divided between Spain and California.

And that’s really all you need to know about me.

So as i’ve mentioned, this blog is to be a collection of stories about my travels and adventures.  I love photography, so you might get some photos now and then.  Okay, that’s a lie.  You most definitely will get some photos.  All the time.

I have two cameras and the length of my trip and risk factors determine which camera i take with me.  Sometimes, i use this:

It’s a great camera and i’ve never gotten my hands on a better one.  I feel like i can do plenty with it and i tend to stick with two of my three lenses.  Unfortunately, it is both bulk and expensive, which is why this next one is [not] secretly my favorite:

Typically, i avoid Sony products.  I have issues with the fact that you can only use them with other Sony products and accessories.  On the other hand, i do have to admit that their products are generally pretty high quality.  Both statements apply to that little sucker.  I ended up getting it because although it’s not top-of-the-line anymore, it’s still pretty damn decent.  It was also very cheap.  The one i got was the floor model in the store and they had discontinued, so the manager on shift took a big chunk of the tag price.   All of that, combined with its size (smaller than my cell phone), make it an awesome camera for long hikes and backpacking trips.

I also have a slight problem with fancy cameras, like the first one i mentioned.  All too often, i find that people rely too much on their cameras to do good work for them.  SLR cameras can take an otherwise mediocre shot and make it look a bit better.  However, i firmly believe that even junky little point-and-shoot cameras can be just as good.  The difference is that the latter puts more pressure on the photographer.

But i digress.  That’s a bitchfest for another time.  All i really had in mind when i started this post was to give you folks an idea of what to expect from this new endeavor.  I hope i’ve done just that…