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By Giselle Langley
Inspired by their passion for the great outdoors, Giselle and her partner Stephen launched a blog about their backpacking and camping adventures across the world. In this article, Giselle describes how the pandemic changed her perspective towards domestic travel, and reveals her newfound favourite destinations.
How we rediscovered our backyard
The saying goes: adventure is out there. But what happens when you can’t venture far beyond your backyard? You might just discover that your backyard is full of natural landscapes and intrepid adventures you had missed out on.
That’s what we realised when the pandemic lockdowns hit in 2020. We couldn’t hop on a plane and jet around the world, but we could rediscover our home state of California. Instead of a plane, we jumped into a car and delved into the art of road-tripping.
The pandemic travel restrictions made for an interesting challenge. We could no longer travel to the internationally-feted corners of our state – Los Angeles and San Francisco. Instead, we drove through the vast and diverse landscapes that had been hiding within driving distance from our homes. Our love of hiking, backpacking and camping came back in full force. My partner Stephen and I discovered a new passion: photographing these beautiful California landscapes.
At the end of it, we came away with a realisation. Before the pandemic, we had thought “real” travel involved plane flights to exotic locations on the other side of the world and wasn’t something that could be accomplished on a weekend due to our nine-to-five day jobs. But the pandemic stripped away these misconceptions and sparked our love for local travel to new and incredible natural destinations.
Planning for a road trip
We kept our weekend getaways jam-packed by planning every trip detail during the week before. Our primary resources were blogs and content-creators on various social media sites, map platforms and guidebooks. We also researched campsite regulations and hiking guidelines in advance to ensure that we follow Leave No Trace guidelines.
We converted Stephen’s 4WD into the ultimate camping rig by adding storage space and an interior sleeping platform so that staying organised and well-rested during our excursions was much easier.
Mapping the best route
Highway 395 and the surrounding areas was a favourite and often-repeated road trip of ours. Here are some spots along the way to keep your eyes out for.
Stop 1: Death Valley National Park
Start your road trip by heading to Death Valley National Park, one of our favourite National Parks because of its incredible natural diversity. Golden Canyon, Sidewinder Canyon, the salt flats at Badwater Basin, and Mesquite sand dunes are all highlights. If you have more time, add a stop at Dante’s View for an incredible view of the valley or check out the Eureka Sand Dunes, the tallest sand dunes in California.
Stop 2: Trona Pinnacles
The Trona Pinnacles are a unique and otherworldly geological area outside of the California Desert Conservation area with more than 500 gorgeous spires. A vehicle with off-road capability may be helpful to reach the more remote pinnacles in the area.
Stop 3: Alabama Hills
Take a drive to the Alabama Hills, a gorgeous range of hills and rock formations outside of Lone Pine, California. Our favourite time to visit is at sunrise when you can see the sun’s first light hit the tops of Lone Pine Peak and Mount Whitney, the tallest mountain in the lower 48 states. Give yourself time to hike to Mobius Arch and walk down the famous Movie Road.
Stop 4: Mammoth Lakes
If you like hiking, relaxing in natural hot springs, viewing gorgeous glacial lakes, skiing/snowboarding or mountain biking, Mammoth Lakes has something for you every season. Highlights include a sunrise over Convict Lake, the Geological Hot Creek (off-road capable vehicle helpful) and sunsets in the Owens River Valley.
Stop 5: Yosemite National Park
Finish with our favourite national park: Yosemite. Be sure to check out Glacier Point, Valley View, and Tunnel View for epic views of Half Dome and El Capitan. The Mist Trail is a classic Yosemite hike that will lead you to some of the most beautiful waterfalls in California.
Road trips can be exhilarating, fulfilling and exciting. What’s most important is keeping the experience fuelled by your love for adventure, a four-wheel-drive vehicle and the right camping gear. Thoughtful preparation can allow you to go “off-grid” and be immersed in nature without any logistical nightmares
One piece of equipment that has gone a long way for us has been the Jackery Explorer 1000 Portable Power Station. We all know the nightmare of our electronic gadgets running out of charge. It can be a massive inconvenience when you’re on the road and a charged gadget would require a miles-long trip into the nearest town.
The Jackery power station powers our fridge, portable shower, camera equipment and camping accessories for an entire weekend, which is a blessing as we travel on a budget. It’s also solar-powered and completely silent, allowing for a full charge by the time you power up your coffee maker in the morning. Using Jackery allows us to camp in our cars, which is much more affordable and makes for a truly immersive nature experience.
Pro tip: keep your eyes open for this year’s Jackery Day, so you can get the best deal on this gadget.
So get cracking! With the right preparation, packing and mindset, adventure can be found in your very own backyard And remember to keep your eyes open for this year’s Jackery Day where you can get the best deal on the powerful Jackery Solar Generator 2000 Pro.
