Taking the Road, Unexpected

Saying yes to opportunities is much more fun than saying no.  When you say no, you are saying yes to the same, the predicted, and the comfort of the expected.  Even though there might be the feeling of unease of not knowing in a yes, the rewards are far greater.  You learn lessons, you try something new, you push yourself and take away something good from a yes.

When I was camping in Kernville, I decided to take a day trip to visit an old ghost town called "Silver City."  It was listed on my roadside attractions app for my iphone so I thought it might be worth a stop for some pictures.  It was just ok.  Imagine walking into an old Hollywood studio of a small ghost town and that's what you get at silver city.  As I walked in, I asked the ticket taker/owner/curator, "where are all of the cowboys?"  He said, "maybe they might come later." I knew it was a nice response when he really thought, "good luck lady..this is a ghost town."

While walking around the "city" and taking pictures, I found more interest in the local cat following me around the town and into the jail.  So I did a cat photo shoot in the jail.  After about 15 minutes, I saw everything there was to see so I decided to wander back to the car.  As I was settling in, the caretaker came out and said, "hey, you still want to see some cowboys?"  I said, "sure." He then told me to "drive up that-a-way for about 10 minutes and you'll see some gun slingers for the Havilah days celebration."

I wasn't really sure what he was talking about or what direction he was pointing me in but I decided to give it a shot.  I drove up a steep road with twists and turns for about fifteen minutes not knowing where I was going but low and behold the small town appeared with two buildings and a few people gathered so I knew I was in the right place.

Some of the locals were dressed up in old western wear so of course I had to take pictures of them.  It was too late to participate in "chicken poop bingo" but I am sure that it was a sight not to be missed.  All of the locals came up to me to tell me about it.  Even one gentleman told me to pull up a chair while he told me the history of the town.  Everyone there was friendly and happy to be photographed.  Even Wild Bill Cody wanted to be sure I put his photograph in sepia tone.  He said, "do you know what sepia is?"

Sometimes you will find the most interesting places from word of mouth.  If you take a chance and say yes, you never know what you will find.  I am glad I did and I look forward to more "yes" moments.

Next time I will arrive early enough to play chicken poop bingo.

California Sisters On The Fly

This past weekend, I joined the California chapter of Sisters on the Fly for a weekend at the Kern river in Kernville, CA.  What fun we had!  As you might know, I love taking portraits of people and especially love taking pictures of women and their rigs.

All of the sisters in this group gave me a warm welcome (being the newbie and all) and I instantly felt comfortable being there among about forty or so women that gathered at this campsite for the weekend.  As social as I might seem, I get shy meeting new people and sometimes it takes me a while to feel comfortable in a group situation.  Having a camera around my neck allows me to hide at times, but it didn't take long for me to unwind and be myself.

I love the fact that these women camp solo with their trailers.  Since this was not an "official" sisters trip, dogs and husbands were welcome to join.  It's perfect for me because I prefer to travel with my dog, Max and I think a lot of the husbands were happy to be included with the group to see all of the fun the women have together.  It was cute to see some of the husbands with a sad face when the sisters were announcing upcoming trips and said it was a "sisters only" trip.  I think it's great that the husbands are so supportive of their wives running off with a trailer in tow to meet up with other women doing the same.

For a lot of women, camping solo may seem like a daunting task.  I receive emails from women every so often asking how I am able to travel solo as a women and feel safe.  I usually trust my gut and try to camp where there are people around, however I have made some mistakes here and there and I've learned some big lessons from them.  I think this group is great for women who are afraid to make the leap to solo travel.  You can find meet ups in your area with these women and believe me, you won't feel so alone.

I enjoyed my weekend with these ladies and I hope to come across more sisters on my travels when Max and I head out on the open road.  For more pictures of these women, click HERE.