I made my way across the U.S. to report on food security as a storytelling fellow for Planet Forward and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. I also worked on a project about abandoned spaces in the U.S.
If you’re looking for a streamlined account of my cross-country travels, this isn’t it. This page is my untidy anthology of things I noticed along the way.
Home — Boston
And, done! Here are the stories dispatched from the road:
Glenn Hening strives to keep the ‘selfish’ out of surfing — Christian Science Monitor
‘Word of mouth still means a lot’: How sustainability spreads — Planet Forward
Dollars and diversity: Why young farmers need investment, representation — Planet Forward
Town molds community-driven model for new farmers to buy land — Planet Forward
Sustainability is the goal. Here’s what young farmers need to get there — Planet Forward
I met a woman and her sweet old dog at a coffee shop in Princeton, New Jersey. She picked up from Colorado when the pandemic hit and moved into a camper van. We chatted for a while about how exciting and exhausting it is to live life from the road. I stopped sleeping out of my car by the time I hit D.C., so my travels were coming to a soft end. Shauna, the woman in the van, has another six months to go. I wanted another six months, and I didn’t.
It’s hard to pinpoint the exact end to an adventure. I got home and felt like I should keep moving. …
A message from a friend on Mark Twain’s “Roughing It”: “Clemens had spent the previous 20 chapters describing a grueling month-long stagecoach trip to the West, traveling on a jolting carriage night and day, trying to sleep on top of lumpy and moving mailbags, sweltering and coated with dust.
“Arriving in Nevada, he writes: ‘We were approaching the end of our long journey. It was the morning of the twentieth day. At noon we would reach Carson City, the capital of Nevada Territory. We were not glad, but sorry. It had been a fine pleasure trip; we had fed fat on wonders every day, and we were now well accustomed to stage life, and very fond of it, so the idea of coming to a standstill and settling down to a humdrum existence in a village was not agreeable, but on the contrary, depressing.”
That about sums it up. Until the next voyage!
Virginia — Blue Ridge Parkway
It really is so blue off in the distance. I picked up a pound of chocolate at Nancy’s Candy Co. in Meadows of Dan, and a loyalty card.
Georgia — Savannah
Spooky and beautiful! This city is a lot bigger than “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” makes it feel. Camped out in Gallery Espresso and edited some stories.
Florida — Deerfield Beach
Florida tested me with (a) a colony of ants moving into my car, (b) an infection from a piece of wild burr that is still embedded in my finger (anyone know “The Ocean at the End of the Lane”?), and (c) a tropical storm. It all ended well, though, with friends, shrimp & grits and a manatee sighting!
Ruddy Daggerwing 
Eastern Gray Tree Frog, maybe? 
Eastern Lubber Grasshopper
Louisiana — New Orleans
Beignets! Coffee! Jazz! I did a really fast tour through the French Quarter and stuffed my face with beignets at Café du Monde, where the line was queuing up even at 9 a.m. Also had a delicious catfish Po’ Boy.
It is humid as anything in Louisiana, but that means that everything is lusshhhh and leafy. The houses in the city look like they’ve been scooped out of the jungle.
Kansas — Wichita
Thus begins the part of the trip where I drive right through a bunch of cool places without stopping in order to make it to Miami on time. I had a coffee here and a really good scone. The winds are wicked. The sunbeams through the clouds are beautiful.
Colorado — Boulder to Denver
The mountains! The cool air! The smoke… Boulder is very cute and very crunchy. There is an amazing coffee shop/bookstore here called Trident Café, no relation to the also amazing coffee shop/bookstore called Trident Café in Boston. Boulder Trident has a very fun back patio, spicy chai teas and a group of chess-playing regulars. Boston Trident has more books and more food. Pick your paradise.
Went to the Denver Art Museum and meandered around the city a bit. The smoke from the wildfires is crazy… Sat in a café and read more of “Bad Feminist” by Roxanne Gay. She has an amazing mind.
Arizona — Grand Canyon
I mean, what to say? It looks unreal. It’s amazing. I sat on the edge and watched bats flit by below me, and raptors soar slowly in the winds. Swallows kept whooshing by my head on the canyon’s slipstream. To have wings…
Slept on a forest road outside of the park. The stars were so clear and bright. In the morning I found several bleached bones and spines near my campsite, which was interesting and a little unnerving.
California — SF to San Diego to Encinitas
840 miles of beautiful California coastline.
I LOVE these guys. They’re just huge sacks of blubber. What you don’t realize about Elephant Seals from photos is that they all sound like they have serious breathing problems, and also they can move backwards like inchworms!
San Francisco (Or “SF” if you’re cool) is a great city. You can snag a free FULL chocolate bar at the Ghiradelli Store if you give them your email, which seems like a pretty good trade to me. The cafés here seem to be fighting valiantly against café campers. There are time limit signs everywhere, and outlets are few and far between.
Other highlights: Talked about knitting with the guys behind the counter at Hot Cookie, drank way too much coffee, counted beer pong tables at Mission Dolores Park, didn’t have nearly enough time with old friends.
SF wildlife:
Headed to easy breezy San Diego and jumped in the sea. The city is always in a pocket of beautiful weather, apparently. Had a home-cooked meal for the first time in a month.
Went back up the coast to Oxnard and Encinitas to report a story, and ran into a fourth-generation surfer who has ridden 22-footers off the coast of Mexico. He took me surfing! I was pretty terrible and my knees are all bruised from the board, but it was cool as hell. WHAPPA!
Drove through a bit of the Mojave National Preserve but figured that my persistent but somewhat unreliable car might not make it through the desert in 108 degree weather. Turned around at the first and only landmark I saw: a “SLOW — Tortoise” sign.
I’m missing a lot about sunny California from this post, but it was pretty freakin awesome.
Oregon — Astoria to Ashland
Scenes from Astoria.
1. Bach N’ Rock dog. He didn’t move (or breathe, that I could see) but I was told that he’s definitely alive. Questionable.
2. Wise words from the bathroom stall at Pier 39.
3. Camera-shy bird at Coffee Girl café. Otherwise not shy at all. Almost stole my scone.
We cannot spare ourselves the agony of learning by doing.
Agnes Callard, re: my horoscope in the Astoria free paper. 🙂
Stopped in Portland for just one night and left early the next day. The homeless population has exploded during the pandemic. There’s a great WaPo article that explains how complicated the situation is for the people without housing and for housed Portland residents: ‘The mansion on Emerson Street’
Not sure the poster board flyers in Ashland helped me understand the political leanings of this place. Getting some mixed messages…
Ashland is fun! The library is very nice and the burritos from Burrito Republic are also very nice. Ran around and saw a deer harassing picnickers in the park. Jumped in the Klamath River. Scrubby mountains in the distance.
Washington — Seattle to Ranier to Olympic
This natural beauty of this state is really special. I saw a dust devil on my way to Seattle, and the incredible Puget Sound at sunset. Seeing the lights at night as I drove into the city was like that scene in “The Hobbit” when the dwarves are traveling into Rivendell. Sparkly and beautiful.
Super cool art by Todd Fischer (check him out!) at Rainshadow Coffee Roasters in Sequim. The baristas here asked me if I wanted my cappuccino wet or dry (I had never heard of this, but apparently it’s an option). No one in Seattle offered me up extra coffee options. Just sayin. Sequim’s where it’s at.
Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park. The stacks were incredible, but the piles of washed up driftwood were my favorite part. It’s like a huge, beautiful, precarious jungle gym.
Driftwood 
Interesting how nature repeats patterns. 
Turkey tail fungus. I think they look like butterfly wings.
Jumped in Lake Crescent and got a brain freeze. The water is so clear, even at twenty feet deep.
Foxglove, and “Mouse on a stick” or Anemone occidentalis. I think these are where the Whos live.
Asked some volunteer rangers about the red streaks on the surface of some of the snow patches near Mt. Ranier. Turns out they’re algae blooms, and little worms in the ice eat it up. It’s unclear what the worms do for the ecosystem, according to NPR: It’s Summer, And That Means The Mysterious Return Of Glacier Ice Worms
Idaho — Coeur d’Alene
Potatoes! There’s other stuff here, too, like the beautiful Lake Coeur d’Alene, and the beautiful Coeur d’Alene Library. And Calypsos Coffee Roasters. None of which I photographed. I did, however, take a photo of this cool walnut fruit!
Felt like a kid at summer camp here. I hopped from the library to the café to the lake all day.
So a mechanic in Coeur d’Alene told me my car was toast, and I spent the next day shopping around for other cars and feeling depressed about losing my adventure buggy. It’s a goofy car, but a good one. I called a mechanic in Seattle and after describing the problem to him, he told me that I could “maybe” drive it the four hours to the city. I took that as a “go for it.” I made it to Seattle, took it to a different mechanic and got a way better diagnosis. The PT cruises on!
Montana — Bozeman to Missoula
Everyone in this state is insanely sporty, and every single person and their ten closest friends are either currently on or just getting back from a road trip.
Bozeman is great, but Missoula has THE. BEST. CUPCAKES. EVER. I wandered into Bernice’s Bakery and snagged the very last white wine lavender buttercream cupcake. Oh man, it changed my life. And I didn’t even get a photo of the desserts or the bakery, other than this cute poem in the bathroom.
Didn’t spend too much time hiking because I had a lot of work to do and because of this ominous sign.
(The scribbled add-on: “And not the fun, sexy kind.”)
Drove my cruiser up a windy, bouldery mountain road to get to this beautiful campsite. It might’ve been a bit unusual to see a PT Cruiser crawling up the mountain, because several other campers (in more suitable vehicles) came to check on me.
Wyoming — Big Horn to Yellowstone
Took a dip in a freezing trout pond in Wyoming. I guess I looked a little reluctant at first because the Russian man doing easy laps offered this encouraging advice: “If you get cold, swim faster.”
Interesting mud formations at Gooseberry Badlands. Somebody from Missouri left this review of the park in the visitor register: “Def Different.”
Sagebrush (possibly) and bluebonnets.
Stopped in Bighorn National Forest for the night. A little boy who belonged to the family camping in the R.V. next to me brought me a s’more because he thought I might be lonely ❤
South Dakota — Badlands
Never seen anything like it. It’s stunning.
I gambled on a first-come-first-serve campsite in the middle of the park — just a spit of land with a ring of campsites. A colony of prairie dogs lives in the center of the ring, and they were scampering around when I arrived at dusk. There aren’t any designated trails from this part of the park, but I was advised by my neighbors to simply walk out into the prairie and follow the buffalo paths. I love hiking here. You can see for miles into the distance, and there’s something reassuring about following the buffalo, who know more about these fields than I ever could. It’s hard to feel totally peaceful alone in the woods, but it’s easy on the prairie. I think I fell a little in love with this place…
The prairie dogs at the campsite weren’t very afraid of humans, so I could get within a couple of feet of this this guy. They tamp down the dirt around their burrows with their heads!
Nebraska — Omaha
I Googled “things to do in Omaha,” and an article from The Dodge Voice popped up: “14 Cool Things You Can Only Do in Omaha, Nebraska.” Underneath “Explore one of the best zoos in the country” and “Be in both Nebraska and Iowa at the same time” was this line item: “Watch raccoons eat dinner.” This is a real thing, people. I will now forever bring up the Alpine Inn raccoon tipline at parties.
A snapshot: “We got a window seat and enjoyed watching about 23 raccoons dine on leftover chicken just outside the window in this family friendly restaurant. Bring the kids to check out this hidden gem and remember to bring cash, since they do not accept credit cards. The chicken dinner was the best I’ve had in over a year! Great food, great view!”
It’s not just steaks here! Omaha was unexpectedly fun. I drove down to see if anyone at Big Muddy Farm would talk to me if I knocked on the door, and I met two of the current residents, Decker Woods and Sophia Cooper, who showed me around. Big Muddy is an urban farm and its plots are spread out, so we got to meander the neighborhood. Apparently there’s an underground punk scene in the city (a bit thinned-out since COVID), and there was an open mic night at Culxr House. There’s also an artist co-op and a couple of old bookstores. I wandered into a Japanese place for dinner and had the best freaking bowl of vegetables that I’ve probably ever had. Then I went to the first movie I’ve seen in a year — Summer of Soul, a Questlove jawn, so predictably thoughtful — and it and the popcorn were so good. Nothing like pumping liquid butter on food to make it freaking amazing.
Minnesota — Minneapolis
Minneapolis and I didn’t jive, although it’s probably my fault for expecting to find lots of entertainment on a Sunday morning on a major holiday weekend… The city is very spread out and it’s a bit hard to avoid driving everywhere, although Minneapolis is apparently one of the most bike-friendly cities in the U.S. It is also very fireworks friendly, so July 4 was a blast (hah). There was no big show like in Boston, but little bursts of fireworks popped up all night across the city skyline. And also right next to me while I was walking on an overpass.
HowEVER, Minneapolis had the cooooolest café. (Caffetto. Go there.) Everything was old and wooden and there were fun tchotchkies (sp?) everywhere. The downstairs had arcade games and there was no AC and one corner smelled like mold and people sat around drinking wine and reading the newspaper at 11 a.m. I would illustrate this in a photo, but I forgot to take photos of the café part, of course. I did take lots of the bathroom, as you can see at left. Deep questions from a toilet lid.
Ate a mulberry from somebody’s yard in Excelsior, MN. It tasted a bit like arugula.
Iowa — Decorah
I drove over to Iowa to talk to Humble Hands Harvest about the unusual way they acquired the land for the farm — through a neighborhood-led LLC. One of the biggest barriers facing young farmers today is access to land, and Humble Hands challenges the traditional, generational model of land acquisition.
Wisconsin — Madison
Swissconsin? Wiscomtesin?
Madison, another great city. I was there for about a minute, but it was a nice minute. Explored the university area and strolled Willy Street in the morning. Had breakfast at Lazy Jane’s Café and read this incredible NYT article: Stolen Picasso and Mondrian Paintings Found Stashed in a Ravine in Greece. It’s “Crime and Punishment” in 800 words.
There’s a couple of these poster pillars around Willy Street. There is no way they’re not full of mold. I poked one. It was very squishy.
(This yellow flyer was quite good: “Squares and fame seekers need not apply.”)
Illinois — Chicago to Wheaton
Ok, so I’ve never considered myself a suburbs gal but after spending three days in Wheaton, I think I could get into it. Or at least, I see the appeal. Seriously, this town fills all the suburbia bingo squares: little league games on the diamond, high school band concerts in the park, senior card game nights at the library … The LIBRARY. It was expansive and open until 9 p.m. every night!! I was holed up there working on an animation assignment, and I think it was finals week at the nearby college because there were a ton of other stressed-out, pajama-clad twentyish-somethings in the building. (I’m definitely too old to lump myself in with college kids, but I was wearing my pajamas.) I had planned to spend this week balling out in Chicago, but it’s surprisingly hard to car-camp in the city. So, thank you Wheaton for letting me crash.
Got a coffee and a sandwich at Café Jumping Bean in Pilsen. Picked up a copy of the South Side Weekly, an excellent local newspaper. And it’s in print! And it’s free! And it’s in PRINT!
Indiana — Warsaw to Gary
I’m going to be honest, I didn’t do a whole lot in Indiana. Spent a night in Warsaw and jumped in Winona Lake (or was it Pike Lake?), got to know the local Starbucks really well while I was working on an assignment, ran around the dunes and got monched by black flies. There are tons of pretty black birds with red shoulder feathers in Indiana. I can’t figure out what they’re called…
Hairy puccoon. It grows in sand hills and pine barrens.
Ohio — Columbus to Versailles
Ran around Columbus and the Short North Arts District. Another cool city, and not enough time to hang around. I forgot to take pictures, so just imagine a lot of street murals and happy people on bar bikes. Headed to Yellow Springs and fell asleep watching the fireflies high up in the trees.
Pennsylvania — Centralia to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is COOL! “City of bridges” is not false advertising. There are 446 in total, according to Heinz History Center. I was standing on the 10th street bridge when this huge barge full of gravel (?) came chugging along below.
So appanerantly you pay nine bucks at Panera and get unlimited coffee for a month??? I’ve already made that back and then some. It’s the new WeWork.
Big fan of Big Dog Coffee in Pittsburgh. Coffee was good, café was cool, people were nice, and there were plenty of big dogs hanging around being adorable. 10/10.
Note to self: coffee is not a substitute for water. Caffeine is not substitute for sleep.
Washington, D.C.
D.C. is a swamp! The forest is incredibly lush in the summer. A blue iridescent butterfly flew alongside me while I was running along the Potomac River, and later, a cicada flew into my face. Nature is beautiful.
As the miles rolled away, it was if a great weight slowly fell away from me. I reveled in the feel of the ground through my shoes, the taste of the air, the quiet hush of wind brushing through the spring wheat in the fields. I found myself grinning for no good reason, save that I was happy.
The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss
Peaks Island, Maine
First stop of the road trip, and site 1 of 4 for my abandoned places project. This graffiti-plastered gun battery off the coast of Maine turns into a local arts festival every year near the harvest moon. In recent years, the “Sacred and Profane” festival has drawn hundreds of outsiders, leaving organizers to wonder whether the event is getting too rowdy for the little island of 864 year-round residents. (Population data according to the 2010 US census.)
JULES STRUCK 
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