Digital Nomad Life: Month 111

Month 111 was another busy month for work with some short trips sprinkled between shows.

I started the month working Tyler Childers and Nathaniel Rateliff at the Gorge and it was a crazy one weatherwise with torrential downpours and a venue evacuation due to lightning.

After the show, I headed to Seattle for a couple of nights via Snoqualmie Pass to hike and North Bend for lunch. And then it was back to the Gorge to prepare for our biggest show of the year: Dave Matthews.

It was insanely busy but it went well and I was happy to have the biggest show behind us.

I only had two days off between shows so I stuck local, hiking and swimming at Frenchman Coulee, and picking up Toby’s visiting cousin in Ellensburg where we had lunch, shopped, and visited a local brewery.

We had two back-to-back shows next: Hozier and Glass Animals and although I hurt my leg, I still made it in to see Hozier and he was AMAZING. 

I needed a proper break after that so I headed to Winthrop and North Cascades National Park for the three days before the next show and I was so happy to finally get to explore this hidden gem.

The second to last show of the month was another back-to-back weekend with Everything Always and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. Our friend Griff came out to work with us for that one and it was fun to catch up. 

One of my last breaks of the month I drove up to Kelowna in Canada to visit a friend and we had a fun couple of days biking, hiking, and swimming in the lake.

The last show I was working this month was Sturgill Simpson and Lord Huron, a very chilled event with – finally – some cooler weather. Then I headed up to Vancouver to visit a friend in my favorite city where I finished the month.

Now onto the stats!

Countries Visited: Canada, USA

Places Visited:

• Washington: George, North Bend, Seattle, Wenatchee, Ellensburg, Winthrop, Concrete, Newhalem, Marblemount, Sedro-Woolley, Issaquah, Everett
• Canada: Penticton, Kelowna, Vancouver

National and State Parks, Monuments, and UNESCO Sites: North Cascades National Park, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

Islands Visited: Granville Island in Vancouver.

Best Meals: Fried egg, hashbrowns, and a biscuit from Twede’s Cafe in North Bend; Pho Ga from Pho Than Bros in Seattle; Crab cake and coconut prawns from Dukes Seafood in Seattle; Appetizer tower with salmon dip and bread, calamari and garlic prawns from Wildfin in Issaquah; Chicken souvlaki Greek-style gyro from Parthenon in Vancouver (every time I have this it is one of the eating highlights of the month); Margherita pizza from Sopra Sotto in Vancouver.

Best Craft Beer: Pink Shoes Huckleberry Sour Ale from Elysian Brewing Company in Seattle; Tiramisu Death Dark Ale by Iron Horse Brewery in Ellensburg; Blueberry Beret Sour Ale from Barn Owl Brewing in Kelowna.

Hikes/Walks:

• Lodge Lake Trail from Snoqualmie Pass, WA 4.4 miles
• Seward Park loop trail in Seattle, WA 2.75 miles
• Frenchman Coulee Waterfall trail in George, WA 4.2 miles
• Thunder Knob trail in North Cascades National Park, WA 4 miles
• Ladder Creek Falls trail in North Cascades National Park, WA 0.6 miles
• Sauk Mountain Trail in Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest WA 4.1 miles
• Knox Mountain Trail in Kelowna, Canada 3.6 miles

Watching: Unsolved Mysteries, The Bear Season 3.

Reading: The Pleasing Hour by Lily King.

New Posts: No new posts this month – too busy!

Highlights

Short Seattle Break

I only had two nights there but I definitely made the most of my short Seattle break. I based myself in Georgetown in an arty Airbnb hotel and visited a couple of the local breweries there, took the ferry to the city from West Seattle, visited Pike Place Market, Pioneer Square, Capitol Hill, and the Titanic Exhibition, had an evening walk at Alki Beach followed by amazing seafood, and walked the perimeter trail in Seward Park.

It was a pretty successful visit if you ask me.

Getting Into the Mountains

After spending a couple of weeks in the desert, I was definitely missing the mountains and the color green so on the way to Seattle, I stopped to do the 4.5-mile Lodge Lake trail from Snoqualmie Pass. It was a short and beautiful hike with wildflowers, mountain views, and wild berries along the way and it felt so good to be back in the mountains.

I followed the hike up with lunch at one of my fave diners, Twede’s Cafe in North Bend, where they have the best hashbrowns and Twin Peaks memorabilia (they filmed the show here).

Seeing Hozier at the Gorge

I wouldn’t have called myself a Hozier fan. I really only knew one song – Take Me To Church – and I like it, but I didn’t really know anything else by him. But I think his voice is incredible so I decided to go in and check out the show and was completely blown away by how amazing it was.

I really liked pretty much all of his songs, I loved the lighting and visuals, and the backup singers were incredible too. I missed the encore where he called for a ceasefire in Gaza unfortunately, but this guy couldn’t get any better and he definitely has a new fan in me.

A Cousin Visit To the Gorge

We were lucky enough to have Toby’s cousin Ticia visit us at the Gorge this month for two shows – Dave Matthews and Hozier/Glass Animals. We don’t get to see family as much these days as we used to now that we spend the summer in Washington so it was really fun to hang out and show Ticia our life here.

Finally Experiencing North Cascades National Park

After fires, smoke, and COVID had stopped me from visiting on previous attempts, I finally made it to North Cascades National Park and it was so beautiful!

I spent a day inside the park driving North Cascades Highway and hiking Thunder Knob for Diablo Lake views, paddling and eating lunch at Diablo Lake, doing the short hike at Ladder Creek Falls, visiting the Visitor Center, and stopping at numerous viewpoints along the way.

The next day I did a short but steep hike just outside the park to the top of Sauk Mountain and that was incredible too with beautiful views and an up-close pika encounter.

Visiting a Friend in Kelowna

I finally headed up to Kelowna to visit a friend in one of my three-day breaks this month and it was so fun to spend time with my friend and explore more of Kelowna as I had only visited once before in 2009.

We biked the beautiful Myra Canyon rail trail, hiked Knox Mountain, tried local beer at a couple of breweries, visited a farmers market, swam in the lake, ate at a couple of excellent restaurants, and walked the lakeside trail in town. It was an excellent couple of days and I am hoping to head back for another visit next year.

Return To My Favorite City: Vancouver

I returned to Vancouver for a couple of nights for the third time this year to visit a friend and although it was cloudy and rainy during my time there, I still enjoyed being back in my favorite city.

Website Traffic Up

After losing half of my website traffic overnight in May I was very surprised to recover my traffic and then some with the August Google update. I know the recent update was even more devastating to a lot of bloggers so I feel very lucky and I just hope it lasts.

Lowlights

Bad News

I had some pretty devastating news this month and I can’t really say much more about it than that because it is a sensitive issue with someone close to me and I want to protect their privacy. 

Hurt My Leg

I somehow jerked my leg while I was working Hozier/Glass Animals and was limping around in quite a lot of pain for a few days. I limped in to see Hozier but decided against going in for Glass Animals because I didn’t want to make it worse. Luckily it did end up fixing itself before my hiking trip to North Cascades National Park. The joys of getting older.

Thwarted Again at North Cascades National Park

While I did finally get to drive the North Cascades Highway and see all the popular and beautiful sites along the way, the road to one of the most beautiful hikes on the western side of the park was closed due to fire activity so I didn’t get to do it – again. Maybe next year.

Car Issue

On the hike that I did instead, there was a 20-minute drive on a steep gravel road up a mountain and just as I was nearing the end, my car started making a horrible noise. I freaked out and immediately turned around and went to the nearest mechanic, a 30-minute drive in the wrong direction in Sedro-Woolley.

Luckily it was just a rock stuck in the brakes and the mechanic fixed it fast and didn’t charge me. While I was in town, I thought I might as well explore the town and I ended up talking to the owner of a mountaineering shop about his incredible adventures which definitely inspired me, so it wasn’t all bad.

Site Down

The day after my car mishap my website was down and my host couldn’t figure out why for a while, which freaked me out. Luckily they were able to fix the problem and get it back online within a couple of hours of me noticing it was down.

Spending

I don’t include international flights in my recaps. Some of my costs are shared with Toby or other travel partners.

Total: USD$1777.50

Pretty similar to last month because I was working just as much and just did a few short trips.

Accommodation $388

My six nights of paid accommodation for the month consisted of two nights at an Airbnb in Seattle, two nights at a hostel in Winthrop, one night car camping at a campground in Marblemount, and one night at an Airbnb in Everett.

My 25 nights of unpaid accommodation for the month consisted of 22 nights in our staff RV onsite at the Gorge, two nights staying with a friend in Kelowna, and one night staying with a friend in Vancouver.

Food and Drink $620

Clothing $0

Transport $224.50

• Gas $212.50
• Water taxis in Seattle $12

Activities $38.50

• Titanic Exhibition in Seattle $38.50

Other $345

• U.S. Phone plan $35
• Spotify $12
• One Drive storage $2
• Garmin monthly subscription $15
• Netflix $3.50
• Hulu $8.50
• Toiletries $108
• Cat stuff $32
• Candle $11
• Cleaning Spray $3
• Prescription sunglasses $55
• 2 x pairs prescription glasses $40
• Canada tote bag $20

Website Costs $12

• Monthly payment for Keysearch $12

Vehicle Costs $149.50

• RV and van insurance $79.50
• Oil and air filter change $70

What’s in Store For Next Month

I’m starting the month with another night in Vancouver followed by a day hiking at Mount Baker and a night in a treehouse in Bellingham, then it is back to the Gorge to work the last two shows of the season – Imagine Dragons and Luke Combs.

Between the shows, I am planning on doing some Larch hikes around Winthrop – my last mini Washington trip of the year.

After a day of packing and cleaning, I will be leaving the Gorge for Colorado, with quick stops in Boise and Salt Lake City along the way. I am planning to spend around five nights in Telluride and I am really hoping to catch at least the tailend of the fall colors there. It is my favorite place for fall colors in the world.

From Telluride, I will be heading north to Denver to be reunited with Toby and Joni and we will spend the first few days catching up with friends and family before starting an 11-night stint at one of our favorite RV parks, Clear Creek RV Park in Golden.

I’m looking forward to having some downtime and doing lots of hiking and catching up with friends and family.

To read additional Monthly Recaps, you can find them here