Erika Lambreton: The Wanderlust Chronicles

[email protected]

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles April 17-21 Sheffield Lake, OH Back roads of Tennessee Hot Springs, Arkansas

Sunday morning arrived quicker than I expected in New York. We had spent a dizzying weekend in the big city and I was ready to move on. We quickly gathered our things and rushed out of the shared Airbnb I had reserved for the weekend. We left in such a rush that we did not even stop to think of quieting down our actions to accommodate the other guests in the three bedroom apartment. “We’re in New York,” I thought “who gives a shit?” Plus we had been on this trip for long enough that we perfected our art of sneaking away to a tight 30mins and the other Airbnber’s still had a 3-hour window before checkout.

We traveled nearly 9-hours to Sheffield Lake, OH where we could stay with Max’s grandparents. Their warm welcome, pizza dinner and unlimited access to a washer and dryer was the stuff of road-warrior dreams and we took full advantage. Their comforting smiles and reassuring laughs filled our hearts with joy and the home-cooked meals lulled us into a deep-dream-like state. Having recently lost a very beloved grandfather in December, I found calm and reassurance while in Ohio. I also found myself day-dreaming of my grandfather- a firefighter and goddamn badass in his own respect. He is and shall forever remain an important figure in my life but I digress.

Ohio revealed a bigger obstacle than originally thought. Due to circumstances beyond my control, our beloved Papagallo was no longer welcomed in the city of Boston. Plans were quickly changed and I decided to make the log trek back to Dallas on my own and two weeks early.

Thankfully the Internet has made road tripping easy and manageable. I quickly booked a guest room in a beautiful Nashville, TN home and then slowly made my way back to Hot Springs, AR

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Days: 12, 13 and 14 New York City, NY Flushing- Manhattan- Jamaica Queens

“New York is the most expensive city in the world.” This is a cliche I had heard time and again which I always was thought was an exaggeration. It is not. The city demands payment for even breathing the smog-filled air and driving on the cracked streets and highways. We spent nearly $50 on tolls and we hadn’t even made into Manhattan yet. We sat in traffic waiting to cross the George Washington Bridge which, much to my surprise, pales in comparison to rush-hour in Austin, Tx. We navigated New York City with relative ease and our excitement grew. Late that afternoon, we arrived to our Airbnb-private room which was located in a three bedroom- two bathroom apartment in the heart of Jamaica Queens. Unfortunately I I chose the wrong the location, as this apartment was about an hour away from the city. We were so far in that we had to take an Uber just to get on the F-Train which we then had to ride for 45 mins. We spent our first night having dinner and drinks with a friend in Williamsburg- aka the hipster Mecca- roaming around until the wee-hours of the morning, stumbled into a ($40) cab and headed home. The next morning we loaded up our pup, picked up breakfast and headed to the Flushing Meadows Park where the Queens Museum, Citi Field and the World’s Fair is located. I only recognized the park from that one scene in the original Men In Black movie. After spending the morning with our dog, we decided to let him nap while we headed to the city for an afternoon of being obnoxious tourists. We grabbed a slice and had a few beers in a few bars and make friends along the way. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: New York, I like you but I’m not in love with you. Take me back to the woods!

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day eleven Hurricane Campground Sugar Grove, VA.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day ten and eleven Hurricane Campground Sugar Grove, Va

This by far was both the most rewarding and most difficult campsite we’ve been to. When doing research for these campsites, I was vigilant to choose sites that had hot showers and flush toilets. Unfortunately, this campsite was opened a month earlier then usual and there was no hot water. This Meant that we spent three days and two nights without running water. Luckily there was a frigid creek near by where we were able to wash up. The water was as cold as the nights with temperatures dipping into the low 30s. We cuddled up and I forced my dog to sleep in one of my sweaters just to make sure he was ok through the night. The campsite itself was amazing especially with the warm welcome we recovered from the campground-host: Ed. A kindly older fellow who had been working in parks for most of his life. He offered us firewood and gave us a couple of Smoky The Bear bookmarks and then disappeared back into the woods. We made dinner (cheese-stuffed-bacon-wrapped hot dogs) and breakfast (onion and pepper scrambled eggs) the next day. Then we ventured out into the woods and hiked up the Comers Creek Falls trail to the cutest waterfall I’ve ever seen. Ed had mentioned that this portion of the forest was considered a “jungle forest” due to dense vegetation and the vast amounts of rainfall. This was all proven to be true on our hikes that carried between tall trees and dense bushes littering the trail. It felt as though we kept traversing into different worlds which was mind-blowing. We survived the trip and packed quickly as early as possible to prepare for the nine-hour drive to New York where we rented a private room through Airbnb.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day nine Myrtle Beach, SC. We decided to treat ourselves to a night in a hotel on the road to Virginia. We stopped in Myrtle Beach where we were treated to a circus of a town. Neon lights littered the board walk and street salesmen yelled loudly and aggressively as we walked by. We fell for the tricks and ended up spending more money than I care to mention. The food was magical and the arcade around the corner proved to be in our favor. Myrtle Beach is not for the faint of heart but it was a good experience despite the expensive parking ticket that came with it.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day eight cont. Jacksonville, FL Jax Beach

Today was a wonderful and exhausting day. The weather was a cool 70 degrees for most of the day but it felt like a little colder on my skin. We started the second half of our morning doing laundry, which was much needed at this point. Once we were ready to hit the beach, our sweet papa decided he wanted to stay on the boat for a nap. Mainly because instead of trying to climb up the stairs he jumped into our bed and snugged up on my pillow. He has been an incredible companion throughout our trip. Max and I ran quickly to the beach to soak up the sun while Papa napped away.

Side note: Jax Beach does not allow dogs between the hours of 9am-5pm but we were able to bring him to the beach for a quick walk.

We returned to the boat just in time to watch the sunset over the marina with a six-pack of Bold City’s Killer Whale Cream Ale. The seagulls laughed as we toasted to another great night in this crazy adventure.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day eight Jacksonville, FL

After spending three days in the Alabama forest, we decided to sleep on the water. We found the aptly titled ‘Sol Searcher’ on Airbnb and booked the sailboat for two nights. The first night was great with only one downside: no on board restrooms. There is a locker room with toilets and showers located near by however construction has made it a little more difficult to access. Nevertheless, the experience of sleeping on a sailboat will forever be ingrained in my memory. Getting papa up and down from the boat and up and down the stairs into the cabin was quite the bonding experience for Max and I. Traveling with a dog can be difficult but the memories and the smile on his face make it all worth it in the end.

The rest of the day will be spent soaking up the sun on the Jacksonville beach and exploring this little town. We will spend the night here then pack up and head to Myrtle Beach for some much needed hotel-time. Then it’s off back into the wilderness for two more night of camping at the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest.

Remaining places on our road trip: New York, Cleveland, Boston and finally the Appalachian Trail.

[erikalambreton]

Breakfast of champions. House latte (mocha, vanilla and coconut) with a cereal rice treat. Not pictured is the heathy spinach and egg pita that I devoured too quickly to capture. #pastryforbreakfast #breezycoffeeshop #jaxeats904 #jaxbeach #jaxeats #jacksonvilleflorida (at Breezy Coffee Shop*Cafe)

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Talladega National Forest to Jacksonville, FL Day seven

I woke up especially early to a bitter frost. I immediately grabbed papa and snuggled him closer between us for warmth. We took our camp down with relative ease and loaded up the jeep for a 7-hour trip to Jacksonville, FL. The drive was long and relatively boring save for Atlanta, GA.

We arrived to Florida and went directly to our Airbnb-rented sail boat. The boat was docked in the Interacostal Waterway just minutes from Jax Beach. We setup shop and taught papa how to go down the stairs of the boat and settled in for the night.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day five and six. Talladega National Forest Fruithurst, AL

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles: Day five and six Talladega National Forest/ Coleman Lake Campground Fruithust, AL.

We drove into Alabama with high hopes. After being spoiled by daisy state park we had high hopes for all the campsites planned on this trip. Coleman Lake in the Talladega National Forest did not disappoint. We arrived late Thursday afternoon (April 7) and had only a half an hours worth of sunlight. We quickly set up tent and built a measly fire to cook steak sandwiches. It wasn't before long that the rain drove us into the warmth of our tent and we spent the night lulled by the sounds of rain and thunder in the distance. The next morning we made a quick breakfast and began our hike through the forest. We stumbled upon a floating bridge that overlooked the campsite and decided to return with a picnic and a couple of beers. I'll never forget this afternoon spent drinking, eating and relaxing as the rays of sunlight and songs of the mountain birds lulled us into an intense state of relaxation. I am forever grateful to this place and the feelings that overwhelmed us. The temperatures may have dropped well into the 30s but our hearts grew a little warmer. We spent three nights at the Coleman Lake Campgrounds and the next couples of posts will be an image dump of all the pictures I took. Bare with me.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day four: Memphis, TN. Lunch: Robata Ramen and Yakitori Bar Definitely a lunch worth documenting. Nestled in the popular Midtown district in the historic Griffin House, Robata Ramen and Yakitori Bar was amazing. Please note the dog nose that crept into the first picture of food. We ordered the Miso Tonkostu- a pork-broth ramen topped with bbq pork and veggies- and the Yasai- seaweed and soy broth with veggie and tofu- respectively. Both were amazing. Not pictured was the garlic edamame which was so good we devoured it in seconds.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day four: Memphis, TN.

The morning started off a bit rough. The small cottage we stayed in had very thin walls and the neighbors decided to leave their dogs out all night. Their barks were intense but luckily they settled down and while we did get a few hours of sleep, it wasn’t long until the Memphis morning birds started singing.

Lack of sleep aside, we packed up and left the Midtown cottage in our rear view and headed up the road to Muddy’s Bake Shop which is located in an old house on Cooper Street. The pastries were calling my name so loudly I couldn’t think straight. I decided on a Strawberry cheesecake cupcake and an iced latte because I am an adult and these are the tough decisions that we make. After indulging my inner fat kid, we headed over to the Overton Park where we got lost in the nature trails. The weather is a perfect 65 degrees and it’s a great day for a picnic.

Now we’re off to have some ramen before hitting the road towards the Talladega National Forest in Alabama (about a 5-hour drive.) Here we will camp for two nights before setting our sights on Florida.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day three: Memphis, TN.

Wiseacre Brewing CO.

After spending the morning and afternoon at Graceland, we decided to take a tour of the Wiseacre Brewing Company. This turned out to be in our favor as we were able to take a private tour of the facility. We learned that Memphis has some of the greatest water for brewing purposes and these beers are proof. From pilsners to barley wines and gin-barreled IPAs, this brewery is top notch. Nestled in warehouse row just north of Midtown, the brewery has a loyal following and is making quite the name for itself in the brewing competition scene taking in Bronze for their Tiny Bomb Pilsner.

I’ve seen my fair share of breweries and have been spoiled living in North Texas. Craft breweries are in abundance in the states, and I can’t help but smile seeing so many take part in the dream.

Drink local! Cheers.

PS: The Fifth Element reference really made my day.

[erikalambreton]

When in Memphis. #memphisbbq #memphiseats #eat901 #centralbbq #backatitagain (at Central BBQ)

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day three cont. Hall of gold and his final resting place.

[erikalambreton]

The Wanderlust Chronicles Day three cont.