Category

Down South

09.01.14

Goal #18 :: Trust a Stranger Down South | (0)
When I originally added this goal to the list, I had no idea what it would entail. It has the good kind of ambiguity that lends itself to interpretation. At the same time it's such a juicy goal there exists the pressure come out with a great story. This was Dan's first day on the trip. He flew into Nashville that morning and we had planned on checking out a few more sites, including the Country Music Hall of Fame and an open-bar Thrillist party (that Dan's friend would be attending). After a day walking through scorching heat, we were pretty ...
08.28.14

Goal #4 :: Record a Song Down South | (0)
While the majority of the road trip was unplanned, Third Man Records is probably the only sight-seeing I had to do while in Nashville. I'd heard about the fully restored Record Booth when it was first publicized on the website and now I'd have my chance to experience it in all of its glory. [caption id="attachment_835" align="alignnone" width="614"] Arriving at Third Man Records[/caption] Dan & I made our way over to the record shop shortly after abandoning our attempt to ride bikes around East Nashville (it was ghastly hot and we were clearly riding in the wrong places in an up-and-coming neighborhood). We ...
08.24.14

Goal #16 :: Barter for an instrument Down South | (0)
[caption id="attachment_824" align="alignnone" width="614"] Reid and his handmade SG pickups[/caption] While visiting Nashville, I stayed with my friends Reid and Jocelyn. Reid has always been a big inspiration to me; his self-taught projects run the gamut of guitar building, tube amp construction and car restoration. Lately he's been winding custom pickups for Fender Strats and Gibson SGs. This is especially exciting for me, since those happen to be my two electric guitars. The problem with the SG's humbucker pickups is that the high-mids get lost on the bridge pickup. That means the sound gets rather muddy when you add effect pedals ...
08.22.14

Goal #16 :: Give Something Away Down South | (0)
[caption id="attachment_815" align="alignnone" width="614"] Erin and her gift[/caption] When I first drove in to Nashville, my navigation brought me to the main drag on Broadway. It's similar to Times Square, in the sense that locals don't really go there. Despite the drive I just made, I had to get back in my car, it wasn't where I wanted to be. I asked some over-make-up'd women where I could find a 'non-chain' cafe for some java and grub. The younger of the two recommended a spot called Fido on the west side of town. Fido is a large cafe with a lot of ...
08.22.14

Ash to Nash Down South | (0)
[caption id="attachment_804" align="alignnone" width="614"] Morning fog outside of Asheville[/caption] The leftover turnip-potato-bacon mash made an incredible breakfast. The drive to Nashville runs through some of the Smoky Mountains. I picked a picturesque time to make the drive. IMG 5646 from mike k on Vimeo.
08.22.14

One day in Asheville Down South | (0)
Since I decided to take a road trip to Nashville, I've been hearing about Asheville. When I realized it was also the home of the Moog headquarters, it became a new highlight on my itinerary. My five hour drive stretched closer to seven, after taking the time to blog about all of the hiking at a Starbucks. I pulled into town at 5:15pm, headed directly to the Moog shop that'd only be open for the rest of the hour. I'll admit that I went straight for the guitar pedal demo area, even though it's Moog's modular synths that put him on ...
08.21.14

On the Road to Asheville Down South | (0)
[caption id="attachment_844" align="alignnone" width="614"] Tunnel on Skyline[/caption] VA to Asheville Road Diary from mike k on Vimeo.
08.20.14

Drinking Waterfall Water Down South | (0)
Just to be clear, I came prepared with iodine capsules for treating freshwater. It takes half an hour to purify, but well worth the wait. IMG 5598 from mike k on Vimeo. IMG 5599 from mike k on Vimeo.
08.20.14

Goal #10 :: See some Wildlife Down South | (0)
bearmorning from mike k on Vimeo. Sunday morning I awoke to loud rustling around 7am. It had the familiar pace of an animal negotiating obstacles. Luckily, I slept with the rain fly off my tent, so I could watch the shooting stars after my hike. My eyes still at a soft focus, I searched the brush for where the sounds were originating. I hear the crunch and chew of an animal eating. But where is it? Then came the thud of an apple striking the ground. I looked up to see the black bear up near the ...
08.20.14

Skyline Parkway Timelapse Down South, Timelapse | (0)
Skyline720 from mike k on Vimeo. I've been using two action cameras during my trip. A GoPro Hero 3, lent to me by my buddy Carlos, and a knock-off GoPro simply called the SJ4000. Since the SJ has an lcd on the back, it's nice for handheld use. I recorded the cliff jumping video with the SJ, but realized after recording that it left the dumb time stamp on the video! Bad default settings (which always seem to go back to default). The SJ doesn't offer as many timelapse settings, so I have been dashboard mounting the ...
08.20.14

Hike a Mountain – Part 2 Down South | (0)
Since the Skyline Parkway runs along the top of the mountain, it makes for reverse hiking, meaning climb down the mountain and back up. My trail was no different, and I began my descent on Cedar Run, a 3 mile trail that follows a creek. The White Oak Canyon trail has its own shorter trail, which seemed to be the popular choice (and 2-3 miles shorter). I would’ve ordinarily done that hike, but the rangers insisted that this loop was the proper way to see the trail. [caption id="attachment_862" align="aligncenter" width="409"] Cedar Falls (the first of the two)[/caption] The first waterfall I ...
08.18.14

Goal #2 :: Find a Waterfall or Cliff Jump Down South | (0)
I'm happy to say I did both! Even though I made this epic list of 21 goals, I never divulged them to Matt, my buddy who recommended the trail. I guess waterfall hikes are really what everyone wants to do when it comes down to it. I recorded a few jumps; two of my own jumps and one of Dan "Real Deal" McGrill doing a backflip (two cams for this!). As far as footage is concerned, my second jump gives the best visual experience so I'll post that first. Enjoy! My2ndcliffjump720 from mike k on Vimeo.
08.18.14

Goal #1 :: Hike a Mountain Down South | (0)
If the rest of my trip is any bit as satisfying as Shenandoah I couldn't ask any more. After my first night of backwoods camping, I decided I needed to find a proper campsite so I could make a fire. After speaking with a friendly park ranger at Skyland, the highest summit of the Skyline Parkway, I called ahead and found plenty of vacancies at Big Meadow. I quickly setup my tent on site A23, a tent-only area, to avoid the hustle & bust of the RV families that populate much of these campsites. Figuring that my hike would place me ...
08.17.14

Shenandoah – Backwoods Camping Down South | (0)
Made it to Shenandoah National Park around 4:15. The nice older woman at the gate broke the news that the campsites are full, but if I am equipped for backwoods camping, that is an option I have besides camping outside of the park. You need to fill out a permit to backwoods camp, so getting to the visitor's office by 5pm is crucial. The caveat of backwoods camping is that fires aren't allowed. What's camping without nature's TV (as my friend Ben calls it)? The other condition is that you need a bear-proof solution for food; they make special bear-proof containers ...
08.16.14

Hittin the Road! Down South | (0)
After a full day of packing and preparation, it's finally time to roll. I found it hard to sleep, giddy with anticipation. I spent the last hour or so mounting a bike rack (thanks Mick!) and a GoPro on the dash (thanks Los!). I'm trying a 5sec timelapse for the ride down (doing the math to stretch 8 hrs out of 64gb @ hi-res). I went over-board on the Trader Joes, but from what I hear about the lack of veggies in the South, I'll err on the side of healthy to account for all the bbq and pie ...
08.15.14

Roadtrip :: 21 Goals for an Epic Journey Down South | (0)
As a kid, my father would devise treasure hunts as a way of giving me a gift. They would result in a toy of some sort (like a He-Man figure), but the true gift was the treasure hunt; a series of hand-drawn pictorial clues on a Post-It note. He is an amazing illustrator, so these clues were as good as photographs made of a few eloquent lines. I still remember one of the treasure sites being buried under a large rock in a lot across the street. Adventure is still as enticing as in my childhood, so I devised a similar ...
08.15.14

Roadtrip in T minus 14! Down South | (0)
Getting ready to kick off my 10-day trip to the South. Haven't blogged consistently for a few years now, so I'm taking my first trip to the South (NC, SC, TN, GA) as an opportunity to start publishing again. Instead of planning the trip around attractions, I've made an adventure list, made of 21 goals, which I'll be documenting along the way. Some of the goals are social by nature, such as "dinner with strangers," which should mix things up a bit. My roommate, Dan, will be joining me in Nashville and we'll drive to Savannah together. He's a great writer, so I ...
08.14.14

Later NYC Down South | (0)
New York, I think we need some time apart. I'm driving down to see Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia for 10 days. I think it's for the best. <3 Mike