Welcome to Miami, Buenvenidos a Miami!

So after a local tip from some friendlies in Indiantown, we speed packed the tent and gear just before the rain started to fall. Seeing as how we didn't want to sleep in the car again we high tailed it to Miami. We arrived at our destination around 9:30 and were greeted by the ever majestic Luis Nassar.

We were happy to taste the newest batch of Nassty brews and grab some showers before we passed out for the night. During the next day we relaxed by the pool and waited for Luis to come home from school. That night Nadine threw a rager for her friend who was turning 50! The party was awesome! Lets just say some Nassty brews and a few munchkin games later and Danny was crushing the salsa out on the dance floor for hours. 

 Gaia looks over the pool area

Got the boats out for a bit

Big man back flips

On Friday night Dan flew into town. Cue best weekend ever!

The next few days were filled with friends, food, laughter and football. We got to see our friend Emma and for the weekend we were all a happy family. Cant get much better than that. We would like to thank Nadine, Luis, and Dan for all of the hospitality, and the police for keepin' it real.

We left Miami today and the plan was to go straight to Alabama but unfortunately our car was having some questionable lights come on so we decided to stop back in Orlando for the night and fix the car tomorrow. 

Things I Learned Camping in the Everglades

After leaving Orlando we spent a night on a beautiful beach South of Tampa at a bougie lil campground. Danny and Eric had a jam session as the sun went down and we watched some movies in the tent using the provided power outlet.                                                                                                                                                               

                                      

 In the morning we found a free campground in the Dupuis Management Area, East of Lake Okeechobee. It is one of the Northernmost points on the "Everglades Trail," according to the pamphlets, and was set to be closed for hunting only a few days after we arrived. It was one of my favorite areas we've gotten to explore since we started the trip and I learned a lot about life in my time there:

-Alligators don't want to wrestle
-Snakes are everywhere
-Every single spider looks terrifying
-Screaming from excitement scares away wild piglets
-Egrets are always in the way
-Things go bump in the night
-Palm fronds burn really well
-Trust the locals for weather reports

 

   Danny's loves of subway and small talk with clerks earned us a hot tip on an incoming rainstorm. We packed up after two days and headed for Miami..

Our 500 mile journey

Our early morning started at a fresh 11 am, in the beautiful Potomac Maryland region, at the lovely home of my (Danny) aunt and uncle's Naomi  and Johnny.  The provided us with a quick breakfast and then it was off with us to the Smithsonian zoo in D.C.  Along the way we called upon an old camp friend Jane Johnston to come and join in on the the amazing deal at the zoo.  FREE.  We actually were able to make it to two zoo's since the first one we went to looked a little bit more like a man in a lawn chair in front of his house than a zoo but that's what the gps told us.  Then we made our way to the second zoo which looked a little bit more like a zoo and less like a rural neighborhood. We then met up with Jane at the zoo and spent the afternoon seeing some beautiful animals here is some of what we saw.


After the zoo we spent an amazing evening at Luke's mom's house in Virginia for dinner. We had some delicious Thai soup and a party for his sisters birthday.  In the picture to follow you will see Luke and his beautifully carved pumpkin.  After dinner we headed back to D.C to meet back up with Jane and meet another former camper in Ben Kessler.  We ended up at a bar in D.C with some great live jazz band playing just for us.  We ended our night with see you laters and headed back to my aunt in Maryland.  The next morning we woke up bright and early (11 am) to head out on our next leg, the 9 hour drive to see Kellianne in Kentucky.

Kentucky to Florida

 We saw tobacco fields in Kentucky.

 Ranger Rick, Tour Leader, Mammoth Cave National Park.

 The longest cave system in the world at 400 miles.

 The most notable feature of the caves is the fact that one cannot enter the caves without buying a tour lead by a park ranger.

Some parts of the cave were huge and we would have to stop and listen to Ranger Rick. I liked the small parts of the cave the best.

 Danny got the other ranger's number.

 Eric and Danny and the bus driver.

 The trail behind our campsite in Mammoth Cave National Park.

 It was a fresh campsite, next to a ferry crossing.

 Then it started to rain and we found out that in the future we should test the things we assume to be waterproof before we actually deem them waterproof.

So we slept in the car. Shouts out to Danny for packing up the soaking wet campsite at the crack of dawn

Early in the morning we left for the fairer weathers of the retirement villages found only in...

A cabin in the woods to AC to Virginia

We left on our journey on Monday, October 19th. Our first stop was the Licker's cabin in the woods. The cabin is a very quaint, two story, two room building sitting peacefully in the woods of Prattsville, NY. There is no running water and you have to crank your shit around at least 8 times. Now in order to successfully complete this trip, our minds need to be in the right place and on the same page. So naturally we stayed at the cabin for two days doing some deep breathing exercises. Here are some pictures of the cabin.

Pond

In between breaths we shot stuff

After sitting inside the cabin while the cold rain came down for two days, we decided to make a ROUTE CHANGE! Seeing as how we all grew up in the north east and are familiar with most the area, we decided to pull a 180 and head south. We drove to Atlantic City where we stayed at Danny's nannas apartment. The tables however, weren't smokin' hot like they usually are and we left the next day and headed to Virginia where we now reside at Danny's aunts. The plan? THE ZOO!

View from the AC apartment

Virginia sleeping digs

NEXT STOP: Kentucky?

If you're not first, you're last

Hello friends, family, and acquaintances around the nation! Welcome, and thank you for tuning in to the blog that will take you on a journey throughout the wonderful country that we live in. That's right folks we are talking about the mother fucking US of A. Land of the free, home of the brave! 

Over the next few months, three men will valiantly ride along the great roads Mr. Eisenhower himself designed, to explore this great country of ours. Let me introduce you to the brave souls that will be embarking on the Quest for Gitchi!

Daniel Licker:

Height: 5' 11''

Weight: 220

Favorite TV show: Ellen D

Daniel Licker is born and raised in New Rochelle, New York. This high energy talkaholic will be sitting front left to start the trip and is expected to win the pool in two window tahoolas.

Luke Clemmons.

Height: 6' 4''

Weight: 220

Favorite TV show: China, IL

Luke Clemmons was born and raised in Burlington, Vermont. This tall glass of water will melt your heart and take your jockstrap if you cross him. Look out for the left!

Eric Markow.

Height: 5' 11'

Weight: 170 (traveling with a bunch of lard asses)

Favorite TV show: Shark Tank

Eric Markow has locks of love and a golden arm. Will play music for hot dogs!

There you have it folks. We are currently sitting in New Rochelle and plan to head out on the journey this Tuesday. First stop? Danny's cabin in upper state New York. Please stay tuned for more updates!

Here is a picture of the map we are using to plan this trip!

Start in the North East

Head west and south

More south

and then west for the gold!