The Plan

Of course we have a plan. We are flying to Buenos Aires, Argentina on Tuesday via scenic Toronto. We reserved 3 nights in a hostel downtown. After exploring the city we will hop a bus, endure a 14 hour bus ride to Mendoza, where our friend Augustina lives. Augustina worked with us up at The Mountain Institute a few years back, and we are looking forward to catching up with her.

After our visit with Augustina, we will...ummm, uhhh, hmmm (ponderous sigh). We really haven't solidified anything further, but we will be heading south into Patagonia all the way down to Tierra del Fuego to camp and fish and explore as long as possible.

We have been lining up other opportunities around the continent. Beth has been contacting organic farms to work on in trade for experiences and a place to stay. We have contacted The Mountain Institute in Peru to volunteer as well as Future Generations in Peru. We also plan to visit Bolivia and Ecuador for sure, maybe Brazil, and then make our way home overland if possible.

I have set a goal to fish at least 30 days on our trip, Beth wants to visit as many farms as she can in hopes to use what she learns when we have a home some day. As we get down to the wire, we are running around like crazy people trying to get all of our business affairs in order. It is amazing how many details there are to take care of. I mean, for Beth to take care of. I have been furiously tying flies to achieve my fishing goals.

So I suppose we do have plans. They're just very "big picture" and less focused on the details. But really that's how we seem to operate best anyway and we know the journey will unfold itself as we go.

Newfoundland or Bust!

We weren't planning on going to Newfoundland, but the giant squid on the side of our 24-foot Uhaul is quite obviously lobbying for that destination. Beth, the giant squid and I are still in deep negotiations regarding where we'll actually end up. Most likely we won't be in Newfoundland, although I hear it is beautiful this time of year.

Thursday had us driving into the big city of Elkins to get our 17-foot Uhaul. I am not sure what exotic creature was on the side of that one. We crawled up into the 17 footer and scratched our chins. "We better get the bigger one." So we got the bigger one and it's a good thing. We filled the 24-footer to the brim. Our friends Kevin, Cree, and Brent all came up the mountain to help us fill our truck. Harlan and Amanda Judy stopped by in the morning as well and helped move heavy things and send us their farewells. They are all awesome and great and it's these kind of friendships that are the hardest things to leave.

I must say that the packing mastery is evidenced by the picture. It is practically a work of art. I am sure all of you would find it awe-inspiring. One of the last challenges of the day was getting the parts motorcycle into the truck. "Doesn't everybody have a parts motorcycle?" I wonder. Of course. We had to run it up the ramp onto another car ramp to clear the lip. What could possibly go wrong? We waited for Beth to run and get the camera because we knew it was going to be good. With no hesitation (well maybe a little), we ran that thing up the ramp to success. About half way onto the car ramp, I did get a little scared, but the rest of the team rose above and got the job done. It was a good way to finish the day.

Tubbies upon Tubbies

Welcome to the blog! We figured it was the best and easiest to keep everybody updated on our travels. It's gonna be an epic trip, but we have a few things to do before we leave. Right now, I am proud to say that we have approximately 63% of our house packed for the move. If you haven't heard, here is the latest from Beth and I.

We're moving before we leave. I have been up on the mountain at The Mountain Institute for 7 years and Beth for 5. I decided it was time to move on from my position at TMI and see what lies ahead for me. Since we live on property, it means we have to move. So we're moving. To where you ask. Well, we don't know for certain. It does seem that New York is in our future. Since I resigned and we therefore have to move, Beth lobbied for an epic adventure. So South America it is.

Right now the weather looks good for The Great Move off the mountain. We have been a little worried about getting the Uhaul up the mountain. I think we can do it (68% sure). I think we can get if off the mountain too (86% sure depending if we can get it up the mountain). It is difficult to wrap our heads around The Great Move. A lot of who we are is wrapped up in this place, so it will be an adventure in itself figuring out what is next.

More to come...