MAD DREAM DESIGN: explore

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Central California Roadtrip

One of the best parts of California, in my opinion, is PCH. Pacific Coast Hwy, or CA-1 runs along most of the coastline in California and is home to some of the best views in California. The section of PCH we ventured through this trip was from the Monterey Bay area all the way to Gaviota State Park area, so most of the central coast. I have not done that drive in awhile, since I was a kid, so it was almost like seeing it for the first time, from a different perspective (the front seat, rather than the back seat ;) ) and with new eyes. I got to say it is a must drive sometime in your lifetime kinda deal, especially if you are a Californian and you love the ocean which = a lot of us!

Friday
Monterey!

We got up early and packed up the car, to depart by 5:30 am, to jump on the 5 Fwy and head toward the Ranch House. When we arrived at the Ranch House Coffee Shop in Gorman, ready to eat, we were surprised with snow on the ground! The smell was horrible on the 5, so we hopped over to the 101 to complete our trip to Monterey.

Jimi has family in Monterey so we spent most of the afternoon exploring the bay, walking downtown and spending time with them. For happy hour and dinner we went over to the Cannery Row Brewing Co. for the San Diego Beer Invasion. It was pretty cool, even though I do not drink beer. They had all the big SD big hitters when it comes to beer on tap. The Cannery Row Brewing Company is this old brink building with tons of character, good vibes and friendly people.

Saturday
Big Sur!

We had a slow start..breakfast, play with the kids, packing up, grocery shopping and just taking our sweet time..the weather was so amazing that weekend that it was just nice to be outside enjoying no matter what were doing.

Around lunch time we hoped on the one and drove down to Nepenthe. Nepenthe, Big Sur has one of the best view in the house, a cool tree house like restaurant, a fun store and little cafe all set up into this cliff looking over the water on the central coast of California...doesn't really get better than that. The food is good, the vibe is hip and the nice weather and view made it a really popular spot that afternoon.

After lunch, we made our way to Pfeiffer Big Sur Campground and stacked our clam in the shadows of the some large redwood trees that climbed up this hill and opened into a nice grassy meadow across the way from our camp. It was quite a bit cooler in the shade, since the tress were so dense back in where we were, but the weather was so nice that it didn't matter much.

The rest of Saturday was spent walking around, exploring the river, building a fire, cooking up lots of food, eating lots of food, campfire conversations, s'mores (of course!) a lot of laughs and good times.

Sunday
Pacific Coast Hwy!

My Favorite!

After packing up and saying our goodbyes to everyone, Jimi and I were headed down to Pfeiffer Big Sur Beach which is 2 miles from the highway on this little one lane road. It was a beautiful drive into the park where you land yourself in on of the most gorgeous beaches! Tons of sand to walk on...a pebble stream running through the center out into the ocean, and gorgeous rock formations getting slammed by the crashing surf. We ate lunch here and Ozzie was having a blast finally being at the beach (his favorite place)! The sun was so nice warming us through. Then we got back on the road and had a major stretch of driving to do until we made it to our next stop.

This drive was (plus the drive from Monterey to Big Sur on Saturday) was just insane. There are no words to describe the beauty that is the central coast. large rock formations, large, expansive cliffs overlooking dark crashing waves with the sun shinning and clear air. I have so many pictures from the drive, I cannot share them all but these are the best of the bunch.

We finally made our way to Jalama Beach from CA-1 on a beautiful county road with rolling green hills and nothing for miles but green, lush land. It looked like we should be in the English countryside, rather than central California! Soon the road opens up to the ocean and this long stretch of beach with a little campground that was hopping because of the long weekend. In the park they also have a store and grill home of the famous Jalama Burger. It is huge and delicious. I can see Jalama being the perfect place for a beach and camp kinda weekend.

We made it to the end of PCH (that part of it anyway) where it hits the 101 at Gaviota State Park right at sunset. Perfect way to the end weekend. You can always follow along with our weekend adventures on Instagram @maddiedierkes.

Enjoy!

Dream Big

We all dream big, but what is the one thing that we all have that can compile all of those dreams into one?

That would be...the Bucket List!

I recently found Kate Conner's Blog where she has her Life List...a wish list of sorts for her life. I have this list, you have this list, we all have this list. This is a list that lets you dream without limits, plan for the future, find inspiration, and it can be a great reminder about what life experiences are really all about!

The best way to make it a great reminder is to write it down, share it, and LOVE IT! By writing it down...not only is it the perfect page to come back to year after year, but it will become a reminder for what you really want in this lifetime.

This is a great time of year to be putting your bucket list into writing. We are recovering from turkey, dusting off the Christmas decorations, and ramping up for the new year, making this a wonderful time for reflection. At this time of year we become aware of what it is we love, what makes us happy, what we are thankful for and what we want in the new year, which makes writing this list a bit of a breeze! Then when the holidays are gone and the hustle and bustle of the new year takes us by storm, we have our bucket list to remind us of what we want to really accomplish, not just during the holidays, but throughout our entire life.

This list does not have to be long, but it should be big, as in dreaming big. What are your wildest dreams, what do you want to find, and what sounds like so much fun? These are the things you should be writing down, these are not your goals for the year (even though the bucket list is a great place to start when you sit down to set your 2013 goals!), but the goals that you might not always believe you will accomplish or find the time for...but you want to do it anyway.

Now, this list should not be a ball and chain. This list is completely for fun, it about dreaming, and creativity. This list will change throughout your lifetime, it will evolve and that is what makes it even better. It can be added to, it can be changed and it has a life of its own.

Once you have written your list, share it with someone. I would like to share mine with my boyfriend, Jimi, and see what we can go accomplish together. If you are not comfortable sharing it, that is okay! Writing your bucket list down, alone, sends it out into the universe for you! You may come to realize, that without even noticing in the first place, you start to pick things off of that list just because you wrote them all down!

Here are a few from my Bucket List:
1. Start my own business.
2. Travel to the 7 Wonders of the World.
3. Go to the Baja 1000 with Jimi. (This is on his list!)
4. Go on a volunteer expedition in another county.
5. Teach art to children. (could be in another country :))
6. Paddle in another country. (This is probably on his list, too)
7. See every kind of whale, dolphin, and porpoise possible, from a boat in the ocean.
8. Experience the love and gentle nature of elephants in their natural habitat on a safari.
9. Drive from northern Alaska to the southern tip of S. America with Jimi. (This is on his list!)
10. Marry my best friend!

Now write a few of your dreams down and start that bucket list..it's fun!

Enjoy!

Los Padres National Forest

Over the weekend Jimi and I embarked on a little adventure into the woods.

This is what happened!

We explored multiple camping spots, did some offroading, did some hiking, had some fun trying to keep a fire going in the rain, and found some amazing new places only a few hours from home.

I was inspired by the Traveling Triplets' Kylie and her explorations of the Los Padres National Forest, to take this trip, and see what it was all about. You can check Kylie out at Traveling Triplets and on her own blog, Fly Bird. She has a ton of fun footage of her adventures in the woods with her hubby!

I was pleasantly surprised that this is the perfect weekend trip for us. There are three national forests that surround LA County, Los Padres, Angeles, and San Bernadino National Forests. On a rainy weekend like this one was you can really get out there, where you are the only for miles, and get away from it all. This is a great time of year to go since camping is not as popular in the winter months, and the national forests are full of huge pine trees...add in the fog and it makes for some great winter loveliness. We all got to experience the ending of fall...the colors are amazing right now in California!

The Adventure Pass will get you in for only 5 dollars a day, or 30 dollars for the year. There are plenty of campsites to stay in (for free!) and explore...we spent most of our time down in Reyes Creek, where the trees are shedding all their leaves and a nice creek runs right through the campground that makes it very peaceful.

The Los Padres National Forest is known as the most rugged forest in all of California, making it a place where you need to know what you are getting yourself into, so always go prepared...a map is a must, since you do not always have cell reception.

If you are in California, check out your local sports or gear store for maps and the Adventure Pass!

Our goal for 2013...camp at least once a month in one of the four forests covered under the Adventure Pass and stay in each forest at least once. I am sure we will have our favorites, but we are excited to explore them all!