Travel

One of the questions I get asked the most is, "do you get lonely?". The short answer is yes. Although I am alone most of the time, I don't get lonely that often but yes, sometimes I do. I have a routine each day with Max and I try to keep busy when I have spare time. Taking photographs is something I do everyday and that's fulfilling and challenging to me to create new images each day. I usually travel to a new place on a daily basis so the excitement of what's to come keeps my mind busy. When I am alone in my surroundings and a bit bored, sometimes I take self portraits to pass the time. All of the photos below are taken with my iPhone on a timer(except i am holding the iphone out of the water in the head shot). I never really know when it will take the photograph so it's always a surprise to see what I captured. Posting photographs on this blog, Facebook and instagram makes me feel a little connected to the outside world and being connected helps when I ha...

I was honored to receive an email from a photographer researching women who travel the "American open road." He found me online and read my story and thought French women would be interested in an American who quits her job to wander around the country.  That pretty much sums up my life for the past few years.  At first, I thought it was a joke.  I researched the photographer to see if he was the real deal and then wondered why he would be looking for me instead of a writer?  I pushed the doubts aside and kept an open mind.  He asked me if I knew of other women doing similar things and I immediately thought of my friend, Kristiana Spaulding!  She designs beautiful jewelry and knows a thing or two about Airstream trailers.  In fact, she towed her trailer up this steep hill in Big Sur for this photo! I don't know what the article says since it's in French, but I am sure it has something to do with women taking it upon themselves to travel solo.  For...

It's about that time... time to pack up everything I need to live in a 6x10 foot space full time.  Yes, I am going to live in my van with my dog, Max in a few weeks. This is our fourth year on the road and I am looking forward to this year more than ever.   I don't have a set agenda, rather I am going to stay open to the possibility of changing direction depending on who I meet or what a local might say about what "not to miss."  I am going to blog and share portraits of people I meet on the road here on this blog.  I plan to write more, take more photos and talk to more people along the way.   Eventually, I would like to put together a book or show with the images I take of Americana throughout the states.  But with most projects (including cost of gas to get to places to take photographs), it costs money.  I thought about starting a Kickstarter project to help the project of documenting Americans I meet by chance, but time slipped away and my house i...

If you have never heard of Bombay Beach, you might think the name would be fitting to a place that is similar to a tropical paradise.  You would be right, except that it no longer is the thriving community that it once was in the mid century. I've always been curious about the Salton Sea and the surrounding areas and decided to take a visit a few years ago to wander around neighborhoods and see what I could find.  As I turned the corner to the community of Bombay Beach, it was as I imagined it to be.  Very few of the homes are lived in today.  When I visited a few weeks ago, I heard an explosion and once I headed in the direction of the smoke, I noticed that one of the trailers was engulfed in flames.  I asked a passerby what happened and if everyone was ok and he said that the owner crossed the wires to the propane tank, and he's ok...as he walked by me and disappeared around the corner. I came to visit the town alone with my dog, Max.  At the time of the ...

Last year I traveled South a few hundred miles from the shore through some national parks and then down to the gulf.  This year I decided to drive along the coast as much as possible.  As you might know, Max and I drove along the coast of Delaware then stopped in Virginia.  From there, I headed West a bit and back down South to Charleston. I received a tip to go to Folly Beach so that's what I did.  Max and I went on the beach and took a walk after I had a nice lunch at the lost dog cafe.' Of course I had to do another photo shoot of him on the beach.  The best part of our trip is when we are able to get out and enjoy the area together.  Since he's my travel companion, it's important that he gets to do most everything I get to do.  Most beaches allow dogs on them during the winter months.  We took full advantage of that. Charleston is a great city.  Right on the water, the city mixes culture, history and southern charm.   Here are some p...