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TRAVEL

Goldfish crackers, granola bars and apple sauce squeeze packets, and O’Bryan makes traveling with her daughter Sequoia a priority because
any comfort items her son may need, like a blanket or stuffed animal. she believes these experiences will teach her appreciation and respect
She planned the trip around her son’s schedule, starting long drives for nature. She enjoys capturing photographs of these experiences
early in the morning in order to be settled at their destination before his through her daughters’ eyes and teaching her a sense of adventure,
afternoon nap. This left them ample amounts of time to explore once hopefully fostering a wanderlust heart.
he woke up. She suggests to anxious parents to look for potential hazards when you
“We found that two hours is maximum amount of time that we all arrive to your destination like poison oak, steep drop offs and water.
could spend in the car before we needed to get out,” said Strong. “As Once secure, let your kids explore and get dirty. Messy faces and
my husband drove, I Googled where two hours would put us and from scraped knees are part of the experience shared O’Bryan, and they turn
there, I researched restaurants or pit stops. This made us feel like we into fond memories.
did something that day besides drive.” Through the direct interaction with parks and historical places,
Be Prepared and Expect the Unexpected creativity from exposure to different people, places and things and a
love for the simple things in life, O’Bryan hopes she is giving her daugh-
Packing for the trip is an arduous task in itself, especially if you are ter memories that will help her grow into mindful and grateful adult
planning a trip that is longer than a few days. Minimizing the amount with a love and respect for the outdoors.
of clothing she packed, Strong ensured in between each day of camp- “Some of my best memories have been on the open road, unplugging
ing, there was a stay at a hotel. This guaranteed a hot shower and the and enjoying each other,” said O’Bryan. “Road trips helps us remem-
opportunity to do laundry. ber the bigger picture and provide our children with moments they will
Strong suggested purchasing a cargo carrier for the roof of the car to look back on fondly and cherish.”
avoid feeling like a marshmallow in your car. Other essentials include
a tent, camping chairs, sleeping bags, extra blankets, air mattress, air
pump, camping grill, lighter fluid, matches, water, bug spray, sponge
and soap for dishes and paper goods.
“All campgrounds are not created equal,” said Strong. “Some of the
places we visited, like Joshua Tree, didn’t even have water, so it is good
to be over-prepared because you never know what you actually have
until you are there.”
Having a plan and a back-up plan is very important when traveling to
destinations you have never been to. Strong printed out maps near her
destinations before hitting the road to prevent the anxiety that comes
with not having cellular signal. This can add to the nostalgia of the trip,
remembering a time when maps were the only means of getting us from
point A to point B.
Even the best plans can be foiled so keep an open mind and be flexible.
Strong recalled having to re-route to Lassen Volcanic National Park on
her trip unexpectedly one of the days of their trip.
‘It was not part of our plan but it was super cool,” shared Strong. “It’s
one of those hidden treasures with wildflowers, streams and a lake to
go canoeing. It ended up being one of the best days of the trip, and it
wasn’t even part of the plan.”
Capturing the Moment without Losing the Moment

Sabrina O’Bryan is a mother who is passionate about capturing the
beauty of nature in her photographs. O’Bryan got engaged on a Yo-
semite camping trip and shared during the 15 years that her and her
husband have been together, there has not been one year the couple
has not gone on at least one camping or backpacking trip.
“I have a camping journal I bring on every trip,” said O’Bryan. “I write
in it on every trip or draw pics of things we’ve seen or did. It dates back A map of California’s National Parks
to our first few trips and pretty cool to look back on those.”