Goodbye Rockies, Hello West Coast!

Our 5 state, 26 hour and 1000+ mile road trip west to our second travel contract

It's not goodbye, just a see ya later, Colorado!

During my time off while my contract in Colorado was cancelled I began looking for new travel opportunities - at that time, there were no open positions near us in Colorado. We had accepted that instead of staying in Colorado for the fall season like we had wished, we would have to move somewhere else. An open position in Santa Barbara, CA caught our eye and we accepted the position mid-July for a start date at the end of August. While we were excited about this position we were also really sad to be leaving Colorado - we both still feel like our time there is not finished... hopefully we can take another contract there in the future!

I finished the last day of my Parker contract on a Thursday and then traveled to Oklahoma City for Tabi's (Tyler's sister) bachelorette party that weekend; while Tyler, Tanner (Tyler's brother) and Lucy hiked Byer's Peak near Winter Park, CO. Following our busy weekends, Tyler and I had one last adventure planned in Colorado.

We drove to Canon City to ride the Royal Gorge Route Railroad as our last touristy activity in Colorado. This had been on our bucket list of things to do and we are so glad it worked out to go before we left. The route is so gorgeous and it was relaxing to sit and enjoy the Arkansas river and admire the gorge from below before our long road trip a few days later.

T H U R S D A Y

Our road trip west was split into just over 2 days. We did not do much pre-planning as far as stops for this trip - we were both fairly exhausted from packing and we just did not have the energy to put towards it. For once, we were going to wing it. The first day we drove from Castle Rock to Salt Lake City, Utah. Neither of us had been to Utah before so stopping there was an obvious choice for us! Before leaving Colorado, we stopped at the base of the ski resort in Vail and at the Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction. Vail was just a dream - think elevated European mountain town vibes. I was obsessed with the colorful flower boxes on almost every building.

The National Monument was very cool and beautiful with the red rocks - we were so amazed at how different the mountains were in Grand Junction compared to others we've seen in Colorado. Once again, we were in awe of just how creative God is - how many different types of mountains can there be?! Although we did not have time to hike the canyons at the National Monument, Tyler was able to fly his new drone and capture some awesome footage of the scenery (Tyler has now taken on the role of videographer during our trips).

We arrived in Salt Lake City that evening and went on a short hike to a view overlooking the Great Salt Lake and downtown. Our time in the city was short - we definitely have it on our list of places to go back to. We were intrigued by the history of the city and would love more time to explore.

F R I D A Y

Friday morning we left Salt Lake City to head to Victorville, California. During this part of the trip we drove through four states - Utah, Arizona, Nevada and finally, California! Our first stop was in Saint George, Utah. We explored Pioneer Park and stumbled upon a really neat slot canyon - the temperature there was a very hot 100 degrees - needless to say, we did not stay long.

Viva Las Vegas was our next stop! I had never been to Las Vegas, so Tyler drove us down the strip to get a quick taste of the glitz and glam. Although Vegas is not exactly our scene, it was fun to see the energy of the famous strip and flashy lights.

That evening we finally crossed the state line into California! We were happy to be there and beyond ready to have dinner and rest before our short drive the next day to our new home.

S A T U R D A Y

Saturday morning we drove our final leg of the trip and 3 hours later made it to our new town - Carpinteria, CA! Carpinteria is located about 15 miles south of Santa Barbara. It is quiet, beautiful and has the cutest beach chic feel. We found our housing on Airbnb and really love it (we have a dishwasher and oven again woo!). The owner of the Airbnb is a photographer and each wall of the apartment shares his original framed photographs. It is decorated so beautifully and is bright and cozy - not to mention only a 2-block walk to the dog-friendly beach! Yes, Lucy is now a beach girl and she is loving it!

Tyler's parents just so happened to be in Santa Barbara for one of his mom's work conferences a few days before we moved to the area, so luckily we were able to explore Santa Barbara and Carpinteria with them on Saturday and Sunday! It was so comforting to see familiar faces in a completely new place.

Our time in Colorado was incredible and an experience we will never forget - but we found ourselves to be always on the go. Because we lived a couple hours from the mountains, we looked forward to the weekends to be able to hike and explore what Colorado had to offer. While our weekend trips were amazing and allowed us to see so many new places we felt very busy. Our time in Colorado reminds me of the mountain ranges in the sense that our peaks were our weekend trips and the valleys were the weekdays. We were always wandering towards the peaks - leaving our home to wander up different trails and different hikes - a lot of going.

We are looking forward to the next 13 weeks of allowing ourselves to be still - and to enjoy what is offered to us within walking distance in our little beach town of Carpinteria.

To be still, and hear the waves crash gently upon the shore

To be still, and see the pastel colored sunrises and sunsets on the beach

To be still, and feel the sand beneath our feet and between our toes

To be still, and smell the crisp, fresh salty air

To be still, and connect with our Creator while soaking in His elements

After a lot of going, we are welcoming the still.

with love and gratitude,

The Wandering Wrights