When Dan and I became fully vaccinated in April, we made the realization that we could be in for a jam-packed summer. With work picking up and social lives getting back to normal, there would be less time for van trips than usual. So we put our calendars together and realized that if we left in a week, we’d have a whole 9 days free! OK great…now the more important question— where to go? We’d originally dreamt of road tripping out to Alaska this year, but with the Canada restrictions, this just wasn’t realistic. Instead, we decided to pick a destination that we’d never been to: Alabama Hills!

This pocket of BLM land lies just east of the Sierra Nevada and is filled with more hills and rock formations than you could ever imagine. Dan and I joked it was a playground for adults, and we spent our days climbing as far and high as we could. We proclaimed Ollie a desert dog, as he seemed more in his element than ever. And when we all got too hot to function, we made “van margaritas” and watched the sun set over the Sierra with smiles plastered to our faces. On the drive out and back, we slept at Mt. Shasta, Bishop’s Buttermilk Boulders, June Lakes Loop, Mono Lake, and Mt. Hood. This trip was such a special way to celebrate being able to safely travel again, and I’m already itching to get back to the California Desert.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, and If you’ve spent any time enjoying these areas, I’d love to hear in the comments below!