Runaway to the Sea - Leap Day in Hilton Head Island

This past February I kept getting strong intuitive messages that I needed to ride a bike by the sea.
Not exactly sure how, when or where this would happen, but the messages would not subside.

Being a human, I kept playing the brain/heart tug of war.

Heart:
Ohhh cruising on a beach comber in the bright sun while waves crash against your tires would be SO NICE!

Brain:
It's too expensive, you shouldn't waste your PTO, pay off your debt first, DON'T GO.

Well, the last weekend of February rolls around, and guess who won.

And as usual it was pure magic.

We decided to drive down to beautiful Hilton Head Island to bring this daydream to life.
What a quiet, whimsical, hidden gem...

This island is the land of retirees. Loaded with golf courses and stunning retirement homes, it's a great place to go for some peace & quiet.

It also has THE BEST bike trails of any place I've ever been.

We stayed at the Oceanside Marriott Resort - the same place we stayed for our One Year Anniversary. (See the link for the full story) -- If you've been a long time follower of this blog, you might remember our last visit to this hotel was not a very fun one. But we decided to give it another try since it was off season and we loved how easy it was to rent bikes on site. That and the oceanfront views can't be beat!

When we arrived and checked in I briefly mentioned our last stay and the hotel manager immediately said you know what? Since you're giving us a second chance, here's $100 credit towards anything you want.
(!!!!!!)

And in that moment all of my brain stressing out about not being able to afford this little getaway vanished.
That $100 credit paid for our bikes, meals, everything.

Everything always works out.
A mantra I will forever sware by.

So not only is Hilton Head great for bike riding, but the beaches are out of this world. I see at least one dolphin every time I visit the lowcountry. Every time!

We woke up before the sun on Leap Day so we could watch the sunrise while riding our bikes down the beach. And wouldn't you know it, a dolphin decided to swim directly next to me, so close to the shore I could have walked out there and touched him.

Not a bad way to spend a day that only comes around every few years.




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If you ever plan a trip to Hilton Head Island and want some ideas for fun things to do and great places to eat, let me know! And of course I'm going to recommend staying at the Oceanfront Marriott. They really are the best. Multiple pools, hammocks, bars, an awesome spa... and right on the ocean. Heaven.

As for eats, we found a really great gluten free cafe called Watusi. You can eat outside in the sun and the food was delicious! It was my first time eating a 'sandwich' in so long since going gluten free. The bread was gluten free but you would never know....that good.

Oh and the coffee was strong ;)

I went to Colorado

The second I returned home from this trip out to Colorado I wanted to share every single moment, every single photo, and grab my loved ones and return to show them.

But in just 5 short days I saw so much beauty I was blown away.

When I got home I kept thinking, how will I ever summarize this trip into words?
Every time I close my eyes now I feel the perfect mountain breeze, I see the most bright white sunlight and hundreds of vibrant gold aspen tree leaves raining down on me.

 

Time, to me, seems to be accelerating with each passing day, week, month....does anyone else feel that?
It's October. I'm exactly 2 short months away from bidding 26 farewell and welcoming my 27th year of life.

Whoa.

Our trip to Colorado, like most, was very spontaneous and not really planned. We started in Denver, drove West to Breckenridge then South to Crestone where we spent majority of our time.

We took these Aspen Tree photos on Boreas Pass in Breckenridge. What an adorable little ski town... I would love to spend a Summer there!

I mean, they paint their trees Blue ...what's cooler than that?
;)


So after doing the cliche Colorado touristy things: visiting a marijuana store and stopping in South Park (yes the cartoon is based off a real town in Colorado) we made our way to Crestone where we would stay the rest of the trip.

in the middle. of. nowhere.

Every time we told friends or strangers that we were staying in Crestone they gave us a confused look and said:
Where?!

 

How we found this place I will never know. Actually, we didn't find it.
It found us.

I was searching Air Bnb a week before we left trying to find a place to stay in Colorado.
I kept circling back to This Rental and kept receiving signs that that's where I needed to go.

So, off we went!

Ahh here it is. The entire space was ours.
This is actually a holistic healing retreat called Haelan Lifestream Center owned and operated by a trauma surgeon turned holistic physician named Dr. John Day.

Extremely smart guy who makes you feel very welcomed as soon as you arrive. He fed me fresh snap peas and cherry tomatoes from his greenhouse and answered some questions I had about my Hashimotos Thyroid disease.
Guess who can no longer eat gluten.

The retreat was out of this world. It was so still and quiet that I could hear a bunny hopping through a big tumbleweed bush. The sound of a blue jay echoed. Getting up with the sun, bundled in cozy sweaters, watching the first peeks of sunlight come up over these mountains is something that will live with me forever.

The property has a few meditation stations where you can sit in peace and stare at the mountains. To add more to the experience, you can bang on some meditation gongs which were the coolest ever.

Crestone is a very spiritual, health and eco conscious tiny community. A place where every single item at the only grocery in town is organic and most bakery items come gluten free. We spoke to a local one morning at the cafe over breakfast and he said while they are trying to grow the community they enjoy how small and tight knit it is, everyone loves and supports each other. Right in their downtown they have a 'Give & Take' box where people exchange clothing or housing items in return for something else they need.

There may not be much in this tiny run down town, but it sure is full of love.

Crestone has a history of being a hot spot for aliens. They even have a UFO Watch Tower...it was so fun to hear stories from the locals. There was even a college class there on a field trip. They were taking a class geared towards thinking outside the box...
(omg- get with the program SNHU)

 

But our favorite part was an hour South of Crestone.....
The Great Sand Dunes National Park.

I sware you guys.
Just last month....well, wait. August. So 2 months ago
(See! time...)

I was sitting on Hunting Island with happy tears in my eyes because I got to capture on film my first tornado/water spout. After the storm I sat in a hammock under two palm trees thinking,
There's no way it get's better than this. I will never see anything this cool again, at least not for a long time!!


Then September 24th came around.

 I felt like I was on a different planet while playing on these massive sand dunes.
A planet where nothing mattered anymore. I didn't have to pay bills, I didn't have to worry about what my future looked like or what other humans thought of me.
It was only joy and love.
and SO MUCH FUN!

A group of middle aged tourists arrived shortly after us and they were running and giggling and sliding down the dunes...it was so adorable and, refreshing. To see that no matter what physical age you are, you can always let your guard down and be a 'free spirit' again ;)

Don't let the world make you hard.

 The National Park Service has said that walking on these dunes in the full moon light is similar to walking on the moon. I can totally see that, because as the sun sets and the quiet darkness begins to  creep in... it turns into another world.

You're hundreds of miles from any major metro area. It's so dark, and so quiet.
So still...

We wrapped up this short trip with a visit to Garden of the Gods then made our way back to Denver to fly out.

This trip changed me.
I was just starting to feel like OK, I want to buy a house and settle down into a routine life.
But now I feel like... no way. I want to live in an RV and live in each state for a week!
There's so much out there to see!!!

But then again, owning a house with a yard where I can run around with chickens and cats and dogs while growing my own food & flowers sounds pretty darn enticing.

Back and Forth
Hot and Cold.

Story of every 20-somethings life?
lol

All I know is it's raining, and I've got a cup of tea waiting for me in the kitchen.
Time to kick my feet up and pretend like I'm sitting here:

Ahh travel.
It truly is the only thing you can buy that makes you richer.


Sending you lots of love friends.

How To Find Adventures.

I get asked quite frequently how I find the places I venture off to.

My adventure style is thinking outside the box: find places that very few people know about....

Here's my process:

My main weapon of choice is social media. 

Pinterest is an awesome place to get ideas for where to eat in a new city, popular places to visit, etc.
Just type in the name of the state/town you want to visit and you'll be overwhelmed with ideas!

But when I really want to discover a hidden, quiet place.... I resort to my Instagram Fam.

Yup. I'd say this is where I find a solid 75% of my adventures.
I find and connect with popular photographers in my area on Instagram -- they always know the good spots ;)
But I also look under popular tourism hashtags on Instagram. #VisitNC is a great one for North Carolina, and #DiscoverSC is awesome for South Carolina. Scroll through the photos found under these hashtags to see what everyone else is posting...find a cool photo, make a new friend & ask the owner where they took it...then off you go!

Through Instagram and Pinterest I've found a Pub Cycle in Asheville, several Key West hideouts, and my favorite find,  Botany Bay.

While social media is definitely a tool us adventure junkies are lucky to have, I must tell you, never underestimate the power of a good ol' fashion map.

One of the first things we purchased when we moved down here.
A giant map.

This picture is something you'll see on daily basis in our apartment. Me wearing the same sweats every day, unbrushed hair, and staring at this map planning my next adventure.

What I look for are 'green' areas on a map. That indicates a park or a wildlife area. I zoom in to get the name, plug it into a GPS, and go.

Very wild and unplanned, but you know what?
Take it from a seasoned traveler; the best trips are always unplanned.

Like this sunflower field we found this past weekend. All I did was google 'Sunflowers SC' and this wildlife management area popped up. In the middle of nowhere, South Carolina. Hardly anyone was there besides for a few locals just fishing.

I don't have any major trips coming up, so the blog might be a little quiet. Which feels bizarre, but It's my norm for the Summer time. Did you know Summer is the most expensive time of the year for flights/hotels? Because of the perfect weather and school vacation. Knowing this, I try to stick to local road trips to get my adventure fix during May-August. But as soon as Fall and Winter roll around....See ya!

Especially around My Birthday.

Did you know the first week of December is the cheapest week out of the entire year to travel? Because it's nicely wedged between Thanksgiving and Christmas - Everyone's so busy with holiday planning and shopping, the last thing on their mind is taking vacations.
I'm talking rows to yourself on the plane and no lines at Disney Land.
I knew hospitality school in Las Vegas would pay off someday.
;)

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PS. Mitch and I started a natural-health based instagram account! Our name is @evolve2health.
Our goal is to open your eyes to things you probably never knew about the American diet.
We also throw in a few mental health tricks here and there.
I love posting on it, I just shared our 'earthing' hike the other day which was so cool.
Be sure to check it out!

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.
<3