Val in Real Life LLC

Tag: dragon con

A Visit to Georgia
Ah, Georgia, my former home state. Last month I flew back to send Fred off to college and attend Dragon Con with George. This was my first visit purely as a tourist since finally selling my loft in Roswell earlier this year.
It’s a strange feeling to visit somewhere I called home for so long. There’s a freedom, though. I know enough about the places and people to slip in without the uncertainties of traveling to an unfamiliar place.
Playing tourist in Fred’s new college town, Lagrange.
Off to college
As is typical for my time in Georgia, I hit the ground running. The first few days were a gauntlet of jeg-lagged chasing about. Shuttling Fred and George to various appointments and having quick meals with friends that felt like speed dating. Without a moment to spare, I grabbed George and set off to Lagrange to help get Fred set up at school and check out his new stomping grounds .
It may sound like I was on track to match the FrankenTravel experience of this past spring but I was actually quite successful in ramping the chaos down once Fred was ensconced at school. Call it a travel lesson well-learned. My solution to several days of hectic activity? Retreating with George to a secluded cabin getaway.
- Fred listens attentively to George’s advice about college.
- George tidying up the flags in downtown Lagrange.
- A silly farewell to my college kid.
Catching our breath at Chattahoochee Bend
Over the course of the twenty-plus years I lived in Georgia, I spent a lot of time in the state parks. I mean a LOT. Camping, hiking, and geocaching. In cabins, yurts, and tents. We’ve done just about everything, in every park and historic site the state has to offer. So when the plans for this visit began to take form, my first resource was my beloved Georgia State Parks.
Not far from Fred’s college is the nearly 3,000-acre Chattahoochee Bend State Park. The park recently added a few cabins to the amenities and I was all over it as the solution to outdoor fun before the urban adventure of Dragon Con. The brand-spankin’-new cabins are simply marvelous. Our little home-away-from-home was perfect for decompressing and as a base for some light outdoor adventuring.
- Catching up in the peace and quiet of Chattahoochee Bend.
- Enlisting George’s help with dinner in our cozy cabin.
- Our slick loaner for the trip, a convertible Mini Cooper.
- Our little home away from home.
- Our cabin at Chattahoochee Bend.
- The sanctuary of the back porch.
- Cozy little cabin.
Paddling the Hooch
One of the draws of a visit to Chattahoochee Bend over other nearby parks is the paddling opportunities, including kayak rentals. I enlisted the help of one of my Georgia besties and her daughter to help shuttle boats between the put in and take out and paddle with us for pure entertainment value. It’s never a boring day with Amy and Piper on board for the adventure.
Paddling the Chattahoochee River is fairly easy going. There are a couple of “rapids” to break up the stretches of smooth, turbid water but it’s largely peaceful. The temperate forest hugs the banks in its lush green arms. Countless turtles bask in the sun on the exposed bits of submerged logs. Birds swoop and hunt overhead.
Sadly, George was not impressed. Compared to paddling the crystal clear blue waters of Lake Tahoe surrounded by jaw-dropping mountain views, and having lived his entire 15 years in Georgia, the subtle beauty of the Chattahoochee River doesn’t light his outdoor fire. He enjoyed the trip, but isn’t exactly excited about a repeat adventure on the Hooch.
- Braving the Chattahoochee River rapids.
- A friendly race with Piper.
- Georgia is really muddy, in case you didn’t know.
- Let the paddling begin!
Geocaching
George doesn’t do much geocaching these days but he’s happy to come along and help me. My visit to Chattahoochee Bend was over five years ago and quite a few caches have been added to the park since then. Nabbing some seemed a good reason to get us out of our ever-so-comfortable cabin and stomping about in the woods.
Here’s where the feeling-like-a-tourist part really sets in, though. For crying out loud, y’all, I lived in Georgia for a long time but I am decidedly NOT acclimated to the southeast anymore. First, I forgot how many ticks and spiders there are. I picked up quite a few invertebrate companions in our short time in the woods. For about a week after, I had the ongoing twitchiness of feeling like bugs were crawling on me constantly.
And the humidity? It’s crushing. Apparently you can actually take the southern out of someone because I have can no longer tolerate it.
- George on the hunt for geocaches.
- Georgia’s lush forests support gorgeous fungi and lots and lots of insects.
- The cool tower along the river in the park.
- Vandalism in the park is always disheartening.
Off to Dragon Con
Our brief respite at Chattahoochee Bend was the vaccine to manage the coming challenges of Dragon Con. Jumping suddenly from a peaceful park to urban sci-fi/fantasy chaos is like teleporting to another planet . I’m seasoned in travel whiplash so I dance from one to the other reasonably well.
Sunrise in downtown Atlanta before Dragon Con.
For all of the fun, time with great people, and oddities of trips like this one, flying home always puts everything right again.
The view on the way home.
Adventure on, friends! In every way imaginable.
September 18, 2018
Travel Whiplash
Life is a funny thing. While I prefer the rhythm of extended travel, the obligations on my calendar don’t allow for it at the moment. With that limitation, I’ve been bouncing between smaller adventures to satiate my wanderlust. With a frenetic August and September now behind me, I’m amazed at the volume of diverse experiences I crammed into such little time.
Going full steam
In just six weeks I:
- took a 10-day motorcycle trip through Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia in the midst of crushing heat and wildfires,
- turned around three days later to meet Fred and George for a six-day Seattle adventure,
- returned home to Nevada with George for a whopping two days,
- flew to Atlanta for 10 days to attend Dragon Con,
- then promptly flew back to Nevada for the Virginia City Camel and Ostrich Races.
Then I collapsed in a heap at home and slept. And slept. And slept! All of these events and travels were amazing but clearly I need to make my travels less chaotic. Disjointed yo-yo travel is hard. Historically I’ve found it far less rewarding than the arc of being on the road for weeks at a time.
In addition to the hectic pace, the disparity between all of these events was mind boggling. Transitioning from independent motorcycle travel to urban travel with the boys was challenging just by itself. Thankfully, experience helped make that obstacle more of an annoyance than a real problem.
From a sunrise obscured by wildfire smoke in Squamish, British Columbia…
to being immersed in urban travels with teenagers in Seattle.
Urban and Rural
Going directly from Dragon Con to the Camel Races on back-to-back weekends for the second year in a row is a different beast. It makes my head spin. Both events share epic quirkiness, which I love, but the differences in culture, geography, and context are shocking.
Dragon Con is as urban as it gets. Eighty thousand people descend on downtown Atlanta for non-stop events over five days. It’s a mecca of sci-fi and fantasy. It’s metal, concrete, and make-believe. The creativity and passion of the people who attend is marvelous. It’s also too much stimulation. It’s constant people and input. There’s little room for this introvert to take a necessary giant breath. But it’s a reunion with friends and a tradition for me and the boys that I wouldn’t miss so it’s a matter of learning how to manage all of the chaos.
And then, only a couple of days later, I find myself riding a camel in a rugged, historic, western, desert town of a few hundred people. It’s rural, organic, accessible. It’s wood, dirt, and animals. There’s a rugged reality to it that is hidden underneath the fun and entertainment. It’s also an event I wouldn’t miss. The people, the laughter, the tradition.
The strange common thread between the two, oddly enough, is costumes. Dragon Con is fantasy, steampunk, sci-fi. In Virginia City, it’s corsets, history, and the Camel Hump Ball. That I wear the same costume to both events is both bizarre and a comforting connection between them.
Time with some of my besties amidst the chaos of Dragon Con is time well spent.
From the fantasy of Dragon Con to the wild west of Virginia City, the odd common link is my leather corset cosplay.
Building travel savvy
So as a traveler, are there benefits from taking on all of this in a short time? I think so. Mainly it’s knowing I can respond and adapt quickly while still enjoying myself. Any time you can travel in a different way builds a new set of skills.
The rapid succession of these eclectic travels brings a different perspective to the adventure equation. It’s a surprise bonus that helps highlight the differences, details, and value of each of them. I’m not certain that would be as apparent if it were more spread out. The experiences would lose their heightened contrast.
But this is not a pace I wish to maintain. It doesn’t come naturally to me. So until the next big adventure, I’m going to slow down a bit and give myself time to process these experiences and cement them in my memories.
Getting fantastical with Fred and George at Dragon Con.
Happy travels, friends.
div class=”alignleft”>
Until next time, here are some more shots from Dragon Con and the Virginia City Camel and Ostrich Races. Enjoy!
November 7, 2017