Banff and the Canadian Rockies

Posted on August 18, 2011 by Brad Christensen

I suppose I’m guilty of the assumption that travel destinations increase in awe-inspiration the further they are from home.  Yet, in practice, I find that it’s far from the truth.  I’d put the serene lakes of the Boulder Whitecloud Mountains in Central Idaho against any other beauty on earth.

So I’m not sure why I find it such a surprise that nothing could have prepared me for the breathtaking beauty of the Canadian Rockies.  I was excited about our motorcycle loop and I expected to be wowed, but I figured mountains were mountains.  Oh how wrong I was.

It’s as if God were angry when he began to carve those mountains into the earth.  With utter disregard for suitable angles and pitches, the peaks rise with sharp, jagged edges.  While you might expect a few dramatic summits here and there, you’d never imagine there would be such a profusion of

And yet to temper the ferocity of the scene, he filled the valleys with placid lakes and meandering rivers of a color so clear and blue, you might mistake it for the sky.  An abundance of wildflowers cover the ground floor in yellows and purples, striking a contrast to the deep, luscious green that covers all but the most exposed peaks.

It is a veritable wonderland, and it’s hard to manage anything that can truly compare.  I’m sure I would enjoy the view from the comfortable seat of a car, but seeing it from the seat of motorcycle, with nothing to do but to ponder the wonder of it all, I was in a state of genuine peace.  It’s that feeling that provokes the wanderlust.  It’s a feeling of deep satisfaction that everyday life doesn’t bring.  I suppose I’m addicted, but so what?

If travel is your vice, as well, we hope worldwanderlusting.com will help you seize the opportunities to descend further into reckless abandon.  Casual travelers, we suppose, are welcome as well, but we’re looking to build an army of travel-zombies, anxious to take the world by storm.

Wanderlust with us.  If you haven’t seen how we mapped out a path to use 8 free nights in Starwood Hotels to explore Europe, check out this post on Starwood Hotels in Europe.

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Salt Lake Sheraton

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Brad Christensen

Driving down to Salt Lake for the weekend is always painful because I always feel like I’ve gotta either infringe upon someone’s house, or pay $60 per night for a hotel.  That bums me out as well because if you go for two nights you’re out $130 by the weekend is over and you haven’t even accounted for food, gas, entertainment, or shopping.  I’m always looking for ways to make my life more frugal, and to save on my travel expense.  I’ve found a great way to enjoy weekends at the hotel in Salt Lake without paying for the room.

The Starwood Preferred Guest credit card is your ticket to this deal.

The Salt Lake Sheraton is a Category 3 hotel.  This means that a night will cost you 7000 points per night.

It has great access to the I-15 freeway and is right in the heart of downtown SLC.  You can visit Temple Square on foot if you would like.  Bring your kids to the hotel and swim in their outdoor pool. Soak up the rays while your children splash around the pool.

This location is also great for the person who enjoys skiing one of the many resorts that surround Salt Lake, but don’t enjoy waking up so early in the morning to drive there and then once the long day of skiing is over then they would be required to drive home.  Wouldn’t it be nice to just soak in the hot tub after a long day of hitting the trails? Either way it is a simple stay at the hotel, and then a quick drive to world famous ski resorts like Brighton, Deer Valley, Park City, Alta, Snow Bird, and more.

This hotel also provides a shuttle to the Salt Lake International Airport.  Remember that when you are flying on Frequent Flier miles you might not be catching the 11:00 AM flight, it might be more like the 6:00AM flight because all of the other flights were full.  Instead of waking up at 3:00AM (Which I’ve done a number of times) and driving like a zombie to the SLC airport and hoping that you aren’t late to catch your flight, you could get a full night’s sleep before a long trip.  You can be shuttled to the Salt Lake Airport for free and leave your car at the hotel while you’re on your trip.  The airport charges $7 per day.  That means you save $49 per week!!

 

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Blog update

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Brad Christensen

We’re working on what will be a pair of totally amazing trip report posts – one from our recent motorcycle ride through Banff and Glacier National Park, and one from Tyler’s escapade to Jordan with stopovers in Amsterdam and Paris.  Keep your eyes peeled for those, as they’re both sure to have you anxious to get wandering.

Also, maybe you have noticed we’re changing the hosting on our site.  We’re trying to make some adjustments that will allow us to post video, use javascript, and other web-geek terms that we use without really knowing what they mean.

We’re loving the way our blog and our following is coming along and we are anxious to keep sharing any travel tips and ideas we come across.  If anyone is interested in making a guest post, please let us know.

If you haven’t applied for the Starwood Card, you may want to jump on that opportunity before the offer expires on August 22nd.  We’ve made a number of posts on where it might take you.  If you have any questions about this card, any of the trips we’ve mentioned, or anything else, we’d love to correspond with you.  Just post a comment on this blog or send us a message.

Thanks for wanderlusting with us!

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Airport hotels

Posted on August 12, 2011 by Brad Christensen

Here is a great idea about how you can save on your airport parking:

Before you pay the horrific fees at the airport for parking call around to airport hotels to see if you can park there for free while you are on your trip.

For example, I’ve stayed at different hotels close to the Salt Lake airport and paid $60 for the night in the hotel and then left my car in the hotel while I was on the trip. Normally to leave your car at the airport and then pay $7 per day while you are gone. That means that if you are gone for 7 days you would pay $49 in parking fees at the airport. Wouldn’t you rather pay an additional $11, get a night in a hotel, and free breakfast in the morning?

Keep in mind that the Salt Lake Sheraton, which is a Starwood Hotel, will allow you to leave your car there and shuttle you to the airport for free. They will pick you from the airport when your trip is over.

This is a great choice. Do the research and find an airport hotel that will allow you to stay there and leave your car.

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Missoula-Banff-Glacier Motorcycle Loop

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Brad Christensen

As Sheldon already posted, for the moment, the focus of our wanderlust has narrowed to the isolated stretches of road that will carry us to paradise in the coming days.  My conversion to motorcyclism was predicated on my insatiable desire for travel -well, that and my testosterone.

If our sole intention were to ride the road and allow the serentity of the road to escort our minds into caverns of thought for which ordinary life never allows, the trip would be sufficient for our purposes.  Yet, it will be so much more than that. We will stand at the edge of panoramic mountain vistas which beg the very same question asked by Cicero,

“Who is he, to whom human affairs seem great, when one contemplates the Earth in all of its glory?”

We will build a bond of brotherhood, sharing experiences which excite our senses – experiences like cliff jumping into the icy clear waters of glacier-fed lakes, sharing stories over delicious meals in roadside cafes, and immersing ourselves in the grandeur of God’s creations.

The road is ours.  We long for the smell of pine, for the warm-to-cool transitions from sun to shadows, and for the sensation of flying through narrow valleys between steep, towering walls of granite.

We do not have souls.  We are souls who have bodies.

 

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Wanderlust: Motorcycle Style

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Brad Christensen

It all started last year when one of my friends purchased a motorcycle.  It lit a different type of wanderlust in my blood.  I borrowed a bike from my father-in-law, and I took a trip from Idaho Falls to Glacier National Park and back in 48 hours.  The drive was spectacular and the scenery was breathtaking.  I was in love.

Next thing I knew everyone was buying a motorcycle.  I was pretty excited about the prospects of having my own bike and not having to borrow, so I invested (I usually don’t use the word invest when it comes to vehicles, but I’m investing in experiences this time) in a 2006 Suzuki Boulevard.

This is my machine and I can’t wait to ride it.

As everyone started buying bikes we all got excited about doing a big ride, a Big Awesome Ride, to be specific.  It would be nicknamed the BAR 2011, in the name of the Big Awesome Ride.   The itinerary that was created was a little steep for me.  It was going to encompass over 3000 miles in 10 days.  I decided to cut that in half by only driving 1500 miles over 5 days.  This would be a pill that I could swallow.

I know that this is a travel blog, but I’m telling you that a motorcycle ride across the west is incredible.  High mountains, sharp turns, potatoes, and lakes are all around you.  We’re planning the following itinerary:

It has us leaving out of Idaho Falls headed toward Salmon, ID.  This city shares the name with the “River of No Return.” It is famous for its steelhead fish that are abundant in the fall.  Then the road will take us over the Lost Trail Pass into the Bitteroot Valley in Montana. Our first night will be in Missoula, MT.

The next day has us taking the 90 over to northern Idaho, so we can explore Couer d’Alene, Idaho and Lake Pend Orielle.  Lakes abound in the Northern part of Idaho.  I’ve heard about its beauty all my life and never been there.  I’ve been to 25 countries and never been to certain parts of my own state.  The elevation is lower up there than it is Eastern Idaho.

We will then explore into British Columbia, and Alberta Canada going as far north as Banff, Canada.  I wish that I could continue on the Jasper, but we want to keep our rides right around 300 miles per day.  The ride then takes us down the Canadian Rockies and dumps us right in front of Glacier National Park.  We would love to stop at Waterton National Park, which is just north of Glacier, but we will see how time permits.

We will then take the east side of Flathead Lake and stop and fill our cavities with delicious ripe cherries.  I’m sure that we will take some home as well to share with our loved ones.  The ride then takes us back down to Missoula, where we will have our final descent into Idaho Falls via the Lost Trail Pass.

I’m very excited to soak in secluded hot springs across the west.  All in all it is going to be 1500 miles of beauty.  I only wish that my wife could come along, but with a new baby it would be impossible.  We’ve committed to to a couple’s BAR next year, so let us know if you would like to join us, or where we should stop along the way if you’ve been there.  We need to sleep, eat, and see the sites the whole way up and down.

Not from Idaho?

If you’re interested in a ride like this you might consider flying into Idaho Falls via the Allegiant Air flight from Las Vegas.  The Idaho Falls airport is also serviced by Delta and United Airlines.  Grand Teton Harley Davidson rents motorcycles by the day

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Winter Getaway with Starwood Hotel Points

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Brad Christensen

You’re not thinking about it right now, but if you’re like half of the people in the US, at some point here soon the leaves will start to change color and we’ll leave this sunny weather behind for another six months.

If you get started now, you could be lazing on this amazing beach at the Westin Resort in Cancun for at least 4 nights, entirely free of charge.  As you’ve heard us rave about, there is a great promotion at the moment for the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express which will entitle you to 30,000 Starwood points after you meet the $5000 spending requirement.

Sheldon posted not too long ago about the Alaska Airlines card, that would help you connect the dots with some free flights as well.

You may want to check out our post on some of our experiences in the Yucatan… by the time you’re finished you may be well on your way to planning a winter getaway.

If you like this idea, also check out these other posts:


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