Sustainable Sights from Vancouver to Vegas

Earlier this summer my friend and I went on a road trip from Vancouver, BC to Las Vegas, Nevada. I know, a road trip doesn’t sound like the most sustainable type of trip, but we were heading to Vegas to see a nostalgic band and it was a far cheaper and more fun way to travel than by air. We rented a vehicle so we had a more fuel efficient car to drive and hit the road for a 9 day tour of 6 states. Why not make the most of our time on the road?!

Our Road Trip Itinerary

With nine days on the road we had an ambitious itinerary. The goal was to take advantage of our time in new places and I think we did a good job of accomplishing that!

We started out driving through mountain passes with snow(!), and took a brief touristy stop in Leavenworth, WA.

Night 1: Wenatchee, Washington

From Wenatchee we stumbled upon the Ginko Petrified Forest on our way to Boise.

Night 2: Boise, Idaho

Travelling from Boise we stopped by the “Niagara Falls of the West,” Shoshone Falls.

Night 3: Ely, Nevada

Leaving from this very cool, old town which gave us a break on our way to Vegas, we headed to the big city.

Nights 4-6: Las Vegas, Nevada

We spent little time in actual Las Vegas except for our big concert at the Sphere experience. We took an amazing day trip to the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, and Oatman, Arizona. Leaving Vegas, we took a drive through the Redwoods National Forest with its awe inspiring trees.

Night 7: Redding, California

Our goal was to drive up the Oregon Coast on our way back home to see the spectacular ocean views, so we headed through California over to the coast with one night’s rest on the way.

Night 8: Tillamook, Oregon

Nature at it’s finest

Krista and I are very lucky to live in a part of the world where nature is always on full display. Whether it is mountains, forests, oceans, or lakes and rivers, we have access to all of these. We can see something beautiful every day without even trying and that is a gift. Getting out into nature can be such a healing thing, so stopping on our road trip to see the natural beauty of each state was a pleasure and a must.

I got to be in awe at the natural ways of the world at the Ginko Petrified Forest, marvel at the power of water while standing at the top of Shoshone Falls, and be reminded of nature’s magnificence while standing at the base of the California Redwood trees.

From vast desert landscapes to the Oregon coast, putting myself in nature reminds me what it is we are trying to save and preserve as we live our sustainable lifestyle.

Sustainable Energy Sightings

Where I live in British Columbia you can’t see very far in any one direction because there is usually a mountain standing in the way. On our road trip, the landscape on certain days was vastly different and we could see for miles. It was also a far less green and less inviting landscape, though beautiful in its own right.

What struck me was the amount of unused space in areas that looked uninhabitable. As I started to think about practical uses for this type of land, we started to see mirages in the distance that, at first, looked like lakes. What they turned out to be were large solar farms. Miles and miles of solar panels were lying out in the desert. Less interesting and pleasant to look at were the huge power lines and towers that travelled out from the solar farms, taking the energy away to be used, but it was still a fascinating sight.

For an area where there does not appear to be much life to be put to such a practical use, seemed like a great idea to me! I have never seen something like this close to home, so I enjoyed seeing a huge sustainable energy sighting while on the road.

As the days went on, we spotted multiple solar farms and also one wind farm with large wind turbines.

In British Columbia we are far more familiar with hydro power as a sustainable energy source, but we don’t often get to drive past the dams on our roadways. On this trip, we did drive past multiple hydro dams of various sizes. The biggest, obviously, was the Hoover Dam, but there were a number of smaller ones along the way. Each state we drove through seemed to be harnessing clean energy with the resources they had to work with.

Small Town Vibes

One of our fun memories from this trip was a brief stop in a small town outside of Ely, Nevada. Instead of souvenirs we took to sending post cards back home with notes of our adventures. In a stop to find a post office, we talked to a small town local who spoke about the simplicity of life, including travelling around town by horseback, supportive family and community, and local farming.

Many of these older, small towns kept a lot of their character, some with more dirt-like roads, many with their heritage buildings intact. There was so much history and tradition preserved in each of these small places. Of course, Oatman, Arizona had an extra bit of charm with their wild Burrows wandering the streets.

Perspectives from the Road

One of the great things about travelling, whether near or far, is it gives you a new perspective on life and living. It was encouraging to see so many renewable energy sources being used as we travelled through each state. I can’t say that I previously knew how prevalent renewable energy was in the States. Being on the road through so many landscapes–from desert to the pacific coast–it is a reminder that we each have different challenges when it comes to living sustainably. The resources and realities that each area faces can be vastly different one to the other.

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