in transit

Visual journal of Dec 2025.

Rules

  • no cardio after 11am

  • walk on left side

scenes from the river walk

finding familiarity

culture - holiday break until Mid January

Cheers

A woman is sitting at an outdoor picnic table, eating a salad, with a food truck and parked cars in the background.
Two people wearing winter clothing, close together outdoors, with a landscape and sky in the background during sunset or sunrise.
A person in a blue jacket, beige pants, and a red helmet rollerblading down a sandy desert dune during overcast weather.

departing the Sierra, we couldn’t miss an opportunity to earn a few turns - sand boarding Death Valley National Park (middle), a taco stand in Lone Pine outside Whitney –the best of our entire trip– (left), Lee Vining outdoor mecca Woah Nellie Deli closed for the season (right)

Breathtaking view of layered desert mountains with a prominent peak, distant mountain range, and clear sky in a desert landscape.
A woman stands outside the entrance of a closed building at night. The building has a window with a blue 'CLOSED' sign and a glass door with a white paper sign that says 'CLOSED SEASON.' There are a few chairs on the right side and some signs on the walls.

Zabriskie Point (left and right) overlook shots midday before a playful trail run through the grain. Thank you Sierra Trail Run guide book for the recommendation.

The Grand Canyon displaying layered rock formations and deep valleys with shadows from late afternoon sun.
A person in a red puffy jacket and black pants sitting on a stone wall at the Grand Canyon with a clear blue sky and distant canyon formations in the background.
Black and white photograph of barren, rocky terrain with large, rounded formations and textured surfaces.
Black and white photo of a rocky canyon with the moon visible in the sky above
Aerial view of the Grand Canyon with layered rock formations and shadows emphasizing the depth of the canyon.

Our meander to Minneapolis brought us to Flagstaff, another integral community in the trail running scene. However, we were greeted with snow. We took refuge with a day running the trails of Sedona, a bit south and lower elevation. Our next stop was the Grand Canyon. Fearful the steeply shaded north facing trails out of Kaibab were out for the season, we visited Pizzicletta as word on the street was their pizza was as divine as the trail wisdom from the employed pipeline of NAU running athletes (highly recommend). Abby and I enjoyed the most scenic leg-day descending and ascending Bright Angel trail.

Pics left to right: GCNP from South Rim, sunset supermoon rise above the Canyon, GCNP from South Rim.

Person standing on rocks at the edge of the Grand Canyon, holding a drink.

Stuart being Stuart (left), Abby at Gooseneck State Park (middle), I would never quit running… (right)

A view of a rock formation, likely a butte or spire, seen through an opening in a wooden structure under construction, with construction materials visible.
A person walking on a deserted open road in a desert landscape with mesas in the distance and a clear blue sky.
A woman in beige pants, a white hoodie, and a beige beanie poses outdoors in a desert landscape with mesas in the background. She has one foot on a chair and is wearing sunglasses, smiling, with snow visible on the ground.
A vast landscape with dark foreground hills, distant mountains, and rock formations on the horizon under a clear blue sky.

Our time on the road cultivated so much childlike play, days of the week faded away and movie locations, trails, and the most scenic spots to see the stars and make coffee were our guiding lights. On our way north from Arizona, spent a frosty night outside Monument Valley to see the famous Mittens at sunrise and experience the Navajo taco, detoured into Gooseneck State Park to make cowboy coffee and enjoy the view (bottom right), and act out classic scenes from Forrest Gump (imagery from location in left and top right). Moab provided the comforting milestone of intercepting two of Abby’s dearest pals - Saydee and Tessa - who were on a Heart Song adventures backpacking trip. After a couple days in Moab, including an epic of a canyon trail run, and an easy touristy morning in Arches, we were onto Grand Junction, and our last leg of the roadtrip.

Two hikers resting on a rocky trail in a desert canyon, with backpacks and gear, one sitting and one standing, smiling, with a picnic table in the background.
Two people dressed in winter jackets, one woman smiling and holding a drink, and a man with a bottle in his mouth, posing together.
Two people, one carrying a large backpack, smiling as they stand near a desert landscape with red rock formations and leafless trees, with a person taking a photo and a few cars in the background.

The last of our southern detour brought us to Grand Junction, Colorado to stay with some family friends. We indulged in a shower and a bed, chatted climbing stories, shared opinions on Bloody Mary mixes, and career pursuits of the healthcare flavor. Next on the itinerary was early Christmas in Minneapolis with my family, and a week of the holidays on the east coast. A looming storm in the Rockies prompted us to expedite our stay in western CO. A loaded up Subaru Outback lovingly named Ingrid (proxy payload test) at 6am over Vail Pass in storm conditions surely supplements any necessary caffeine to keep vigilance. We rested in Frisco and deliberated our options with Loveland pass ahead. We drew two Tarot cards from the cafe which determined our fate. Miraculously surviving the descent into Denver the plains of eastern Colorado and Nebraska welcomed us with beyond pesky winds - annoyance boarding dangerous.

We pulled into my family’s driveway and embraced what would be the rest of our December: love, comfort, and family.

Cheers.

Tarot cards (1) tune out the noise, when confronted with uncertainty, trust your intuition, listen to your gut (2) you are empowered to manifest your desired strengths