It’s time to go again.  Spring is in the air and the edge is on my mind.  I’m leaving in a couple of weeks.  This prep time is a confounding period of excitement, worry, and careful consideration of all potentialities. First on the list are a few vehicle additions. I’ve crafted a set of storage drawers for the truck that provide a nice level load platform and two big storage drawers, one for the kitchen and one for the tools/recovery gear.  This allows me to keep everything organized and out of the way while giving more usable space luggage and water.  I’ve also reached out (again) to the marvelous folks at Equipt1 Outfitters (www.equipt1.com) who supplied the K9 roof rack before the last trip.  This time I’ve purchased a new awning from them.  Gone is the old home made one which, while serviceable, was proving to be a pain in the butt to set up alone in the wind.  Arriving soon is the Eezi-Awn Bat Manta Swift.  Look for it in the photos from the road.  And do use Equipt1 anytime you need overloading gear.  They are the very definition of great service and great product.

Next, of course, is some sense of route.  I have to get back to the western edge, just north of Los Angeles to pick up where I left off and, on paper, this would be (another) long drive across the country via mostly I-20 and I-40.  I can’t bring myself to do that route again. So I’m going to head north and loop through the great grasslands before dropping diagonally across Nevada into Needles, CA and from there over to the coast.  It will take a little longer, but it will be different country.  I’m into that.  After that, the edge is pretty easy — or it would be if the Pacific Coast Highway wasn’t busy falling into the Pacific.  I will use it as much as I’m allowed, and venture inland when required.  One trip inland will be to see Pinnacles National Park, but other than that, I will hug the edge up California and Oregon and Washington camping mostly on the beaches of various state parks.  In Seattle I will pick up my son and we will visit Olympic National Park and maybe Ranier and Cascades before we are joined by the rest of the family for a little stay on Vashon Island.  After that, it’s a turn to the east, staying on the northern border as long as my stamina allows before diving south to home.

So, it’s time to snap the picket stake again and set off.  I hope you can join me via the nightly notes and photos I post.  For now, I will spend a couple weeks organizing and packing, with the siren of adventure ever in my ears.