Reno or bust.

Josh just got a teaching job in Reno, Nevada so on December 26th, we started the 1,823 mile journey west. After a fabulous Christmas day filled with friends and family we left at 5:30 in the morning. My mom and dad were in the moving van and Josh and I were in Josh's Honda. Our trip took us through Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, and Nevada.

Our goal for the first night was to make it to Rawlins, Wyoming, but 'Blue' (Josh's Honda) had a different idea. Right outside Cheyenne, Wyoming we completely lost power. We ended up calling AAA and got towed to the local Honda dealership. Since it was already later in the evening, they were closed and we ended up staying at the Motel 6. Lucky us, the motel was located right next to a train track and a train sat there all night long hissing and making obnoxiously loud noises.

Frost on the trees in Nebraska.

Me and the madre with the didgeridoo wedged between us.

Pretty sunset.

Chillin in the Motel 6.

By 5 am we were all up and ready to go, but the dealership didn't open until 8 so we had to wait. Luckily the only problem was that a screw came loose so we were on the road by 10 am. Our goal for day 2 was to make it to Elko, Nevada. The terrain steadily became steeper and steeper as we made our way into the mountains. It was gorgeous. We got to contemplate things such as what's the difference between a butte and a mesa, and other geological/geographical ponderings. At some point it felt like the car might get pushed off the road with how strong the wind was, but thankfully there was enough crap in the Honda to keep it on the road! In the middle of the day we arrived at 'Little America.' Since we had been seeing signs for it since the second we entered Wyoming and LA is located on the complete opposite of the state, I was expecting some form of spectacle. But alas, it was a overly nice truck stop. At least the bathrooms were clean.

Lincoln in Wyoming! Who knew?

Mountains and the Uhaul.

The Uhaul barely visible through the snow.

Wild horses! :)

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful until we reached Park City, Utah. Once again we lost power to the car and had to call a tow truck. At this point AAA and me were becoming very good friends! We got towed to a place in Salt Lake City that was closed and wouldn't open until the next morning at 8, so we asked if there was any place still open. Thankfully there was a Pep Boys that was open until 9. The tow truck driver put in the coordinates on the GPS and unfortunately for him, technology was not on his side. It took us about 30 minutes driving in circles until we gave up on the GPS and just used a map. We finally got there and found out that the car had the same problem as before. Turns out the piece that the screw went into was missing half of the threads, thus the screw kept falling out. Luckily they had the piece in the shop so we were able to get back on the road.

Broken down outside Park City, Utah.

About 5 minutes out of Salt Lake City we hit a huge patch of fog. We went to get gas and dinner and then drove for another 45 minutes until we got out of the fog. After about another hour and a half we made it into Elko, Nevada. We stayed at a Comfort Inn and all passed out the instant we got into the room.

We left early in the morning for the final stretch into Reno. We got in around noon and it is gorgeous!! I'm super jealous that Josh gets to live there! We got to Josh's apartment and got all his stuff moved in. We then went on a major shopping spree to get him groceries/household staples. We went out to dinner and after a tiny bit of sleep said goodbye to my parents at the ungodly hour of 4 in the morning!

Amazed that the car actually made it to Reno.

View from Josh's apartment complex.

Moving in all of Josh's stuff. I think half of it was instruments! :)

Lucky for me I got to stick around and annoy Josh longer! We spent a lot of time hanging out and getting him settled into the apartment as well as running countless errands. For new years we went to Josh's co-worker Tony's house. It was great to see who Josh would be working with, and I approve of all of them! :)

The next morning I said goodbye to Josh and headed for my favorite place on the west coast, Oregon!

**Also, some of the photo credits go to my mother! :) **