Bonus Episode: Mining Rainbow Obisidian

On my way down to Tahoe I stopped in Davis Creek to collect some rainbow obsidian and when I got there it turned out I had arrived at a knap-in, where knappers gather and make arrowheads and such together.  In this day and age the majority of knappers or older folks so it was really neat to meet up with these old timers that knew where all the best rock was and who were absolutely generous.  I didn't even film any while I was there because I was so consumed with interacting with these people and learning.  This was such an important part of the trip so I decided to drive the 4 hours back up on one of my two days off.  I mined all day and got a bucket load of obsidian.  This is more than enough to last me a few years.  All in all I'm glad I seized the opportunity to get some material that I will likely never have access to again.

Episode 1.32: Critters in California

This episode has some interesting back story.  You'll notice my hair goes from short to long and back to short.  I was looking for work starting in Oregon and wasn't getting anything interesting as I went so I had made it to California and kept looking.  I was on my way out of Tahoe about an hour where I caught that scorpion then after that I got a call for an interview back in Tahoe so I drove back and got a hair cut and landed a sweet gig as a valet for some fancy hotels.  At that point I had decided to stay in Tahoe for the Summer because everything was just so perfect there for living in a van.  In the two months of working there I paid off the entire trip and had about 800 bucks left over when I got home.  I was glad I got to work in such a special place and really stay in an area to explore it and get to know it on a little bit of a deeper level.

Episode 1.31: Crater Lake Cliff Diving

I'm in love with mountain lakes.  They're clear, deep, and absolutely gorgeous.  The only drawback is that they're always freezing cold!  Even on a warm day the lake will have you turning purple in a matter of minutes.  It was almost comical how quickly I forgot about this because Every lake I came across I just had to get in it.  This attraction may have been partly due to my need to for clean water to bathe in.  I pretty much bathed in every mountain lake that I came across and each time I was jumping out just as soon as my lather was rinsed off.  

Crater lake is amazing and everyone needs to go there.  There's a 15 foot cliff at the end of the trail that goes to the water's edge and you have to go take a jump.  There's usually a fit group of people hanging around there on a warm day jumping in.  A few of the alpha males will have to keep one upping each other on their jumps.  I just walked up and did a gainer to assert my own dominance... which, was quickly revoked as I whimpered like a puppy due to my inability to withstand the sub-sixty degree water.

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Episode 1.30: How to get free food plus SEALS!!!

As I drove into a small coastal town in Oregon I glanced at the church sign and at the bottom it had an announcement about their free breakfasts on Saturday morning.  I decided that was something I had to check out.  I met the pastor and she was super welcoming and told me all about the history of the church and showed me around.  With the little fishing port town being regulated out of the fishing industry many residents were struggling in every way imaginable.  The church served two other meals during the week and that's about all they could afford.  With the town dwindling the church was also dwindling but the pastor was keeping focused on what a church's role in a community should be.  She kept the main thing the main thing and that was a refreshing thing for me to see.  

I didn't really think about seals being around but I kind of just stumbled across some and it was really pretty neat.  This is an animal that I had never seen in the wild before.

Episode 1.29: Slugs, Salamanders, Newts, and MORE!

Oregon and my home are divided by a few mountain ranges and thousands of miles.  This geographic separation will inevitably produce completely different types of wildlife, especially when it comes to the creepy crawlies.  I had such a blast finding animals that I had never seen in my life and some that I didn't even know existed.  This trip was all about discovery and that is certainly the theme in this episode!

Episode 1.28: Waterfalls

I'm a water lover.  Since I was a kid I growing up in Florida, I was always near water and learned to swim at a young age and water has been a constant in life.  However, I never did see many waterfalls.  I saw more waterfalls in one day in the Columbia Gorge than I've seen in my entire life.  This was a really neat experience seeing the power of these free falling streams and rivers and among such a beautiful landscape was the cherry on top.