22 Jul Road Trip to My Site

When I applied for my internship, I was so excited about the prospect of getting to travel across the country from my home near Atlanta, Georgia all the way to the San Francisco Bay Area in California. When I eventually received my offer letter and accepted the position, I immediately started making plans for my road trip. Although my parents were not particularly excited about me doing the trip solo, I finally convinced them that it would be a good experience for me. After lots of packing and planning, I rolled out of my driveway of the home I lived for over 20 years to start my eight-day journey.

My first eventful stop was in Kansas City where I went to a rock-climbing gym that was 10 stories underground.

The next big stop was in Colorado where I actually got to stop at the EFTA office! I got to meet the amazing team (including the dogs) and eat lunch with them while enjoying the beautiful view. I loved getting to actually meet everyone in person that I had been talking to over zoom and email.

Driving through the mountains of Colorado was breathtaking. I made some stops at waterfalls and overlooks before arriving in Glenwood Springs where I stayed for the night. While I was there, I went to the natural hot springs for a few hours and decompressed.

Utah was the next state I passed through, and I was able to visit four of the five National Parks there! I visited Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion. I’d never seen anything like these landscapes before, so every single moment was exciting. My dad even got to meet me at Zion National Park because he was working nearby. It was nice to see a familiar face in the middle of my trip.

The next big destination was the Pacific Coast Highway. I was able to drive all the way up from Los Angeles to Santa Cruz along the California Coast. I made many stops at little beach towns, saw elephant seals in San Simeon, and overlooked the giant cliffs in Big Sur. I wish I could have spent an entire week just on the coast. As you can tell from the many photos below, the elephant seals were my favorite part.

Eventually, I made it to Berkeley, California to my apartment and it was time to unpack and start the next phase of my adventure!

Overall, my solo trip across the country is the best thing that I have ever done. It was so wonderful to be able to have all of that time to myself and make decisions all on my own. It was therapeutic to see so much beautiful nature on the way to my new home! I highly recommend solo traveling (safely).