The BEST of 2022! 🎉 (Our TOP destinations, hikes, food, & MORE!)

Happy Holidays! In case you missed our last video, we are back in Texas And we're currently at a super cute Airbnb about an hour away from San Antonio for our first ever Adventures of A plus K company retreat! I just love saying company retreat because this is the company. It's just us. It's just us and Kona But she doesn't really do much, but she's very very cute But we had a bunch of expiring Airbnb credits and thought it would be nice to get a change of scenery so we could focus On a bunch of business related tasks that we just don't have time for on the road So we rented this tiny house that is located on a gorgeous property full of trees and wildlife Including a blackbuck antelope and has a beautiful design inside plus an amazing outdoor area with a grill hot tub soaking pool and a fire pit We basically spend our days having meetings and then in the night cooking delicious dinners and enjoying the outdoor space and relaxing Which has been a really nice way to unwind after this year and speaking of this year That's why we're filming this video to chat all about 2022 Y'all seem to really enjoy our recap video from last year So we thought we'd film one from this year and wow what a year it has been We hit the road in mid-january from Austin, Texas and explored a bit of West, Texas Headed to Southwest, New Mexico and spent a few weeks in Arizona before spending a couple months exploring all over California from the San Diego area to Death Valley back to the coast and then up to Northern, California From there We went up the Oregon coast for a bit hopped inland to visit Bend Checked out a new area of the Oregon and Washington Coast and then crossed the border into Canada where we spent a couple weeks driving All around Vancouver Island and then tackling the beautiful drive up British Columbia and through the Yukon on the Alaska Highway Finally making it to our goal for the year, Alaska We spent two and a half Incredible months in Alaska before heading all the way up to the Arctic Ocean in Canada and then driving back down through the lower 48 visiting a few new states for us All of this was over 30,000 miles and we visited 13 states with four of them being brand new for us two countries including a Canadian province and two Canadian territories 12 national parks with seven of them being new for us and slept in 163 different places So as you can see we did a lot this year and it was definitely the best year of our entire lives We made so many incredible memories that we will cherish forever for the next part of this video We're gonna try to narrow down all the amazing places. We visited to share with you our absolute favorites However, before we get started we wanted to know we're not including any spots from Alaska in this video We just didn't think it was fair to all the other places We visited this year because we probably would have picked all of our answers from Alaska because it was definitely the highlight of our year But we did make an entire recap video for Alaska So to hear all about our favorite spots and tips for Alaska check out that video which we'll link to below in Typical a plus K recap fashion. We have not shared our answers with each other So our answers will be a surprise for you as well as for each other and for our first category We have top three destinations. I will say even not including Alaska I found this to be so hard because we visited so many amazing places this year We spent most of our year on the west coast, which is our favorite part of the u.s So it's just it's just really really hard to narrow it down run, but I did pick three and they're not in any particular order This is just what came to mind first, but my number one is Vancouver Island I knew we'd have this one in common. Yeah, but yeah, Vancouver Island. It just it just has it all I think we said in our video it kind of feels like they took the best parts of the Pacific Northwest and just put it All on one island. It has unique beaches mountains waterfalls cool towns and cities And even though we spent two weeks on Vancouver Island We barely scratched the surface of everything it has to offer One of the top things on my to-do list for when we go back is to go backpacking at Strathcona Provincial Park that area was just so gorgeous It was just too snowy when we went there and we loved Vancouver Island so much that while we were there We're even googling. How do you move to Canada as a US citizen? Turns out it's very hard. Look for real estate Yeah, we were like all in we're like we're moving to Canada I just loved all the small towns the beaches like I I surfed there didn't go very well, but I did Yeah, like that surf culture laid-back vibe. I love the European like feel and culture of Victoria It was I love it there. Yeah, I can't get over this island everywhere. We go just makes me happy I just can't wipe the smile off my face my first answer or other answer. I guess I'm gonna stay in the PNW area is Oregon all right destination the whole state Yeah, I guess specifically where we went was Bend, Oregon had a blast there. There's so much hiking there tons of good food It's a cool little town Like all around the town is like different kind of high desert ecosystems You got a little bit of desert over here. You know you got tons of forest Volcanic you know prior volcanic activity again amazing hikes waterfalls everything you want snow stuff Yeah, I loved it there, and then also in Oregon the southern Oregon coast Yeah, I mean we had a really rainy time there, but it's so it didn't dampen our spirits. Yeah, it's just so beautiful Yeah, just Oregon is amazing we love it there well, I do agree with that I will touch on it later, but I my second answer was the Yukon as a whole Really no I It's hard like we left out Alaska, and then a lot of the stuff around Alaska Yeah, I didn't I didn't pick some spots from there But I just didn't want to pick all my spots because yeah, I could have picked all my spots there I I couldn't not mention the Yukon because it is one of My favorite places. I think I've ever been it's a place that I never in my lifetime thought I would go to you just don't hear much about it growing up in Texas No one talks about going to the Yukon territory, but it's just so wild vast and remote There are more moose than humans that live in the Yukon. It's just basically everywhere you go There's just nature surrounding you we could drive hours without seeing any civilization It also has really cool history with all the Klondike Gold Rush history Which was super fun to learn about and I especially in the Yukon love Kluane National Park Tombstone Territorial Park, and then of course Dawson City because it just felt like walking back in time. Yep All right my next pick which is my last pick is again. I'm picking a giant region, but California Sorry mine mine's also from California, but I specifically said the central coast That's one of the reasons why I picked California, but we just had a great time there loved eating all we could in San Diego And touring around the town a little bit drove Big Sur again. That was so much fun Yeah, slow San Luis Obispo so much fun loved that area and then also we went up to Reading and Went to Alaskan National Park and Reading was just a big surprise and so much fun so much to do there And it's just beautiful. It's just hard to be California. There's so much to see and do all over the state It's one of the most diverse states I mean Death Valley Joshua Tree the coast the mountains there's so many parts we didn't go to because once again it was too snowy that we are so excited to go back and Hike and backpack one day in the future in the summertime, but yeah, California is incredible one of our favorite states for sure We could spend the whole year out there. Yeah, I mean there's so much that we haven't even done yet Yeah, but I specifically said the central coast of California Which is the San Luis Obispo Pismo Beach Montaña de Oro State Park Morro Bay Big Sur area that we went to I? Just loved the vibe of that area. It has a very just like calming chill Beach vibe it's just I don't know something about being there Just makes me feel once again Just very happy and just very content there has a really cool mix of smaller cities and towns and beaches there's mountains There's valleys. There's these really cool cliffs. It's just Gorgeous, it's just gorgeous. It's my favorite part of the California coast hands down next category top three hikes I had a really hard time narrowing down my top hikes here We just did so many amazing hikes and again these are in no particular order But my first one is our backpacking trip in the Superstition Mountains in Arizona me, too We we just it was just we just did one night out there, but we just had amazing sunset amazing sunrise The I don't know the rockiness and just the geology out in the Superstition Mountains is just a little different from Just the regular desert scenery you would think of you know it's it's a little more green a little more Yeah, kind of crazy. I wrote that too. I go. It just feels different than many desert areas that we've been to They're very unique mountains. They have interesting shapes. Yeah, the look is just different, but I don't know how to explain it There's this really cool rock formations like the weavers. Yeah, yeah, we got camp right in front of that it was It was a hard trip though, I will say so you know being in the desert There's no water so we had to carry all the water we needed for both ourselves and for Kona And it wasn't even that hot I think we went in February, but with the Sun out it feels so much hotter So we were just really thirsty the whole time. We really had to ration our water We used way too much water to cook food so that part was a struggle But we learned a lot of lessons that would make us better desert backpackers in the future But yeah that hike was definitely one of the most epic ones we did in the lower 48 my first one and this is my number one because I I Loved this hike so much, but our hike at to Grizzly Lake at Tombstone Territorial Park So I know that kind of goes again with like the Yukon in Alaska really close together Not sure if this answer totally counts But there's no way I could not mention this hike because it is one of the most gorgeous places that we have ever been It has so many just jagged granite peaks which are my favorite type of mountains has all this wide open tundra landscape where you can just see for miles and we got to hike To an alpine lake plus we went in the fall and the colors were just popping off. It was late August So that's not what you think of you think of the fall, but up there That's the fall and it was just gorgeous It was so colorful and even though the weather was kind of crappy the first part of the hike it cleared up and it was just Unreal, it was a perfect day. Really? It was just a perfect hike. It was amazing This one you already mentioned this place, but the hike we did at Kluane National Park. Yeah, the Kings Throne Trail This trail was extremely difficult Yeah, it was brutal and we didn't make it all the way to the end of the hike But I mean if you go out there, which it's a trek to get out there obviously But if you ever make it out there and you do this trail just any as far as you can get Up the hill up the mountain is gonna be amazing because just get up above that lake just a little bit and your view is Just amazing. And that's just a beautiful National Park. Yeah, the mountains were so stunning out there and then that lake had like Just crystal clear turquoise. Yeah, like edging on it. It was so beautiful. We turned around because the weather your thunder We got really kind of nervous about that being above the tree line Plus it was so just slick and steep. I just think we were really tired There were a lot of factors that went into that decision and we were really bummed about it but yeah, like well, like Adam said what we got to see was So worth it. Alright, so my third one I guess and this is the one I struggled the most with because it's I was struggling between picking the hikes that had the most epic view versus ones that were a more Interesting hiking experience because sometimes you go on a hike and you're in the trees the whole time It's kind of boring, but the end view is great Whereas other times you have pretty good scenery the whole time, maybe not the best of your life, but it's a really fun hike There's unique features So I leaned more into the unique features Angle on this one and I picked the Condor Gulch High Peaks and Bear Gulch loop at Pinnacles National Park Pinnacles I believe is the smallest National Park in California. It's located kind of in the Bay Area So it's really convenient to get to and I don't know like that park was just a really nice surprise I didn't know what to expect I didn't really hear many people talking about it over the years But this hike itself was just really beautiful you kind of start out with just nice views of the mountains around and all the pinnacle rock formations and then there's a section where you kind of Climb along like these steep rock cliffs and they have these these railings to help you So I guess you know, you don't fall and die in some parts of it We're like a little bit kind of scary or hairy and pretty narrow ledges there, but I thought it was so fun There's all these steps put into the rock and then you reach this Reservoir, which is a nice little water feature along the way and then probably my favorite part You get to crawl through a cave at the end and when we went both of the caves were open That's not always the case. And so we got to go in the cave That's not always open that was really tight and narrow. We were crawling we got lost It was just a ton of fun. Oh my gosh. This is tight in here You know caves aren't always my favorite thing, but it was a ton of fun and just really fun. It was just different Yeah, it's just different than any other high water variety. Yeah. Yeah. All right, my last one again in, California I think I saw that and that's the one I almost bitch. I think I saw what you wrote Yeah, so the Castle Crags hike near Redding, California. That's the one I went back and forth on Yeah, just this scenery on this hike just really blew me away You can see Mount Shasta there's forest mountains as far as you can see and other major mountains out there and then the rocks up at the top are just super jagged and You get to actually walk between them. It's just a really unique and You know just amazing Setting at the top of that hike. It's so unexpected because once again, we never heard many people talk about that part of, California And it was stunning. I almost picked that one because just the mountains are so jagged and Mount Shasta, Mount Shasta is Gorgeous just looks very similar to my favorite mountain of all time Mount Rainier. So yeah, that was an incredible hike So that was my honorable mention Next up the top three things we ate and y'all know we love to eat. So this was a hard category because We truly do love everything we eat if we say we love it We truly love it And I know people don't always believe us that that's true or they don't understand how we could always be so happy with our food But we spend hours researching places to eat reading blogs reading reviews Just trying to ensure that where we spend our money is going to be worth it for us and that we're going to enjoy it So the level of quality for the places we eat is always Very high and everywhere we ate this year was so good that they're all like right there with each other It's so hard to figure out which ones kind of just went a little above the others But for my first one, I picked the pork belly taco and the queso at Cochinito Taqueria in Spokane, Washington I mean that queso was one of the best ones I've ever had and I am a self-proclaimed queso snob I have very... connoisseur We eat in Texas Queso is a very popular food item and I have yet to find any that beat Torchy's tacos queso But that was the one that I have found that's come the closest to beating it It was so good. Then that pork belly taco was Heavenly, I don't know what else to say besides it was heavenly and it was a really cool spot too that adds to it You know the vibe can make a big difference and it was just a really neat spot The Aguas Frescas we got were so good So my number one food item that I had all this year is the picanha sandwich from Dr. Custom And at the Mother Road Market in Tulsa, Oklahoma This sandwich, oh boy, man, it was on this delicious roll and they stacked so much meat on there Oh, man, it was so smoky. So tender It was one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. I snuck a bite or two of that and it was Very very good. Very very good. So my second one is Yaks on the Five near Redding, California I got this I think it was called the garlic obsession burger or you're gonna breathe garlic or I don't know or keep the vampires Away or something something like that. It was basically a garlic burger and it was so strong with garlic It's that kind that just burns your tongue. It's so garlicky. I'm still smelling it Months later. I cannot get rid of this garlic breath. It was so strong, but it was delicious. The burger itself was just so good we also got the Scott's tots which were these loaded tater tots with a funny name and They were delicious as well. The environment of the place was really cool You get to draw a name out of like a bucket and that's the name they call when your order's ready And what were we do you remember miss America? She sent you over the intercom it was just so funny It was just such a cool spot my number two So my last my next two picks are gonna be biased because it's what I like But it's gonna be Little Miss barbecue in Phoenix, Arizona I have been wanting to try this place for a really long time and it lived up to all the hype We of course got brisket and some ribs. But yeah, just the meat was perfectly smoked perfectly delicious I'm so glad we finally got yeah, my final one is a very recent one cafe cacao and Oklahoma City We ate like Kings and Queens in Oklahoma City. That was one of our favorite food cities We've been to in a while everything we ate there was so so good But this was just one of the best breakfast I've ever had in my entire life Especially because I normally can't eat a lot of breakfast items because of some dietary restrictions Even though I do cheat often but breakfast is kind of a hard meal for me But I was basically able to have this like Latin American feast for breakfast. We had tostadas. We had the most Incredible pancakes we have ever had in our entire life. Oh my god, so fluffy so dense so sweet They were straight-up dessert. Oh It was so so good We ate that for a couple days as leftovers and then we both had these really delicious savory dishes and the gorgeous Coffee mocktails the vibe of the place is cool. The owner is incredibly nice. It was just One of my favorite food experiences of the year for sure. All right, my last pick I'm making a last-minute adjustment here. Yeah, because Yeah, so my pick my last pick is gonna be Muchachos. Oh, yeah No, it's in Lincoln, Nebraska. Yeah the barbecue and there was amazing and You know, they also serve coffee there Yes, those two as a combo is the perfect combo for us. We love barbecue We love coffee and then they had a coffee. That was a cereal milk latte. Oh so good And then again the barbecue we got like you got nachos, right nachos And then we got the macaroni and cheese with brisket on top and they give you so much meat on both of those And we got some tacos. Yeah, we feasted there. We like to eat Yeah, so is that not your answer? No, my other my what I wrote down was Miller's. Okay similar vibe so similar Yeah, Miller's they have you know a great Texas barbecue my favorite thing But then they also have a really high quality specialty coffee bar right in there Yeah, that was my pick but I'm making a last-minute switch. All right. Yeah, they're kind of similar Well, there's coffee and barbecue so you really cannot go wrong our favorite coffee shop We drink a lot of delicious coffee. We love finding local coffee shops local roasters It's since we don't drink it's kind of our equivalent of going to a brewery when we travel We just we love going to coffee shops in one place stood out for many reasons for me One best pumpkin spice latte I've ever had well one of the best because we've had we had some really good ones after that one too, but one of the best pumpkin spice lattes, which is my Favorite just kind of sweet coffee drink, especially in the fall and it just had the coolest vibe It was this little kind of just outdoor stand you walk up to and you ordered and they had this really cool seating area It was just it was just so different than any coffee shop Plus the town of Smithers is just so cute. We really loved it there. I'm still shaking off the fall vibes I Better go back to the van put my flannels on get my jeans on put my my boots my My shin high boots my best Because it is fall is officially fall. Every sip is more like I'll get the potpourri out the Halloween candy I can smell the turkey roasting. He can't stop. It's just it's fall. It's official. All is in him now But my pick is also in Canada and mine is the cold shoulder cafe in Jordan River on Vancouver Island Is that the one that we didn't mean to go to and then we know yeah it was a last-minute decision that morning and We drove by it on the way to where we were going. I think the one of the beaches over there and Yeah, I don't totally remember the coffee I know it was really good I'm pretty sure I got an Americano, but and it was very high quality But the main reason I picked it is because of its location and just like the overall vibe of it It sits right across the water. There's the ocean right there And it's just like this little beach shack that they turned into a coffee shop. It's like the coastal version of Bugwood Yeah, yeah, it's like kind of a hut. Yeah. Yeah I just yeah love the vibe of it and the location and really good coffee and and just to give some behind-the-scenes Insight, you know We typically have a plan of where we want to go in every video because we've done a lot of research and you know We try to narrow it down, but that was a last-minute decision. We turned around the banks. We drove by it One we're really tired. We need coffee to that place looks so cool Let's just go and get a quick coffee and it was amazing and I'm so glad and that's one of the best things about traveling Is when you just stumble upon something that you didn't plan to go to that ends up being an awesome surprise best ice cream We had so much amazing ice cream this year, but my favorite one was coneflower creamery in Omaha, Nebraska that's what I settled on to but uh Yeah, I went back and forth and I've been telling Adam over the last week as we as we've been working on this independently How stressed I was about the ice cream choice Why and I'm like because they were all so good and it's so hard to pick because once you reach a certain level of Ice cream quality. They all are equally good So I chose based off of the flavor as well as the ice cream quality Like what flavor like if I were to go buy a pint of any ice cream we had this year What would I want? So that's why I picked coneflower. Yeah, I mean the ice cream itself, you know Every flavor we tried was super high quality within the different specific flavors I got two fruity flavors, which I normally don't get but they were just so good I remember that lemon bar one, which I can't remember if it was But yeah, it had little lemon pieces in there and then also the little like lemon bar pieces And then you had the butter butter Brickle Brickle, which is why I picked coneflower Yeah, because I loved the butter Brickle I just loved the toffee and the chocolate and it was just so buttery the little crunchy. We got a pint of it Yeah, that's our telltale sign of stamp of a plus K approval is if we go back in and buy a pint before we leave Town which sometimes we don't just because we don't want to eat ice cream every day or we want to we don't need to eat Ice cream every day. So sometimes we don't that doesn't mean we didn't love the place But if we buy a pint that means we especially loved it Yeah, but yeah, we went to so many awesome ice cream shops Boomtown and OKC was so good that Allison Braun place in Squamish was yeah One I was also kind of stuck between because it was such a unique experience where they make the ice cream in front of you It's New Zealand real fruit style ice cream So they blend ice cream in the fruit Kona said Kona wanted us to tell you guys that that was her favorite of the year because she got a scoop dog there So just so much incredible ice cream. I know I just named like three more I just can't pick but yeah, you can't go wrong with any of them. Next category is our favorite city or town I tried to think of this category as which city or town would I want to live in the most and I had I think Four total that I could definitely see us living in and enjoying but I ultimately decided on Bend, Oregon Bend is one of our favorite places We had been there once before this visit and we've now been in the summertime and in the spring time So we got to experience it kind of in two different seasons and it's just a gorgeous Gorgeous place. It's the perfect size town for what we like or city. We just like that smaller medium-sized city It has tons of outdoor recreation gorgeous mountains It has that high desert scenery Adam mentioned beautiful rivers amazing restaurants coffee shops and gelato And on this past trip, it was still snowy So we got to snowshoe to a warming hut Which was a blast and one of my favorite things that we did this year and on a previous trip It was the summertime so you actually could go higher up into the mountains and we hiked in the Cascades and the hiking out There is just top-notch. It's a place that I could see us going to many many more times in the future going backpacking Yeah, I could definitely live there for sure obviously, but my pick I guess I might be maybe pick this Where I would have like the best day, I don't know my perfect day. So I picked Pismo Beach We mentioned earlier the it's in the San Luis Obispo Central Coast of California area And just like you said earlier like that feeling you had there. I just felt like I belong there or something I love the Pismo Pier It had a huge beach the dinosaur caves park was so fun And I just think it would just be the perfect place to have the perfect day I could wake up in the morning and go surf. I'm still not very good at it. Obviously, you've seen all my attempts And then have some awesome food and then I can go play golf in the afternoon. There's tons of golf courses around there Yeah our top National Park So as we mentioned earlier We went to 12 National Parks this year with seven of them being new three of those were in Alaska So those ones do not count so out of the four, I guess remaining new ones My favorite hands down was Channel Islands National Park. Not you. I thought we were gonna have the same Okay. Well, I guess I'll take it away then but it is just such a unique National Park experience first You have to take a boat to get to it because they are islands and the boat ride itself was so fun We saw dolphins. We saw a whale or two It was just a gorgeous boat ride that the boat ride alone would have still probably made me pick this National Park as my favorite It made us feel like we were back in Hawaii when we've been to Maui and done like whale watching tours It just felt like that and then the island itself Which I'll kind of talk more about that later spoiler alert, but just being on the island was incredible It's so beautiful They're all the wildflowers the island foxes and we hiked across most of the island and we hardly we didn't see anyone for The majority of the day and that's exactly how I like my National Park experiences My favorite National Park of the year was Death Valley. Yeah, that one's good, too Yeah, it was fun It is the largest National Park in the lower 48 and it just has amazing Diversity in its landscapes of mountains desert sand dunes, you know crazy geologic formations And there's even a waterfall in the park And then if you go at certain times of the year, you can see snow and then you can go down to the desert It has the most dramatic vertical relief in America of over 11,000 feet You have telescope peak and then you can look down into the Badwater Basin, which is the lowest point in North America And there's also lots of history there ghost towns fun gravel roads to drive in on It had tons of fun stuff for me. Yeah, we had the best time at that park Well, one of the best times Channel Islands was was my best time, but my second best time was Death Valley that's the one I would have picked next because Yeah, it just felt like we were on another planet the whole time It's a very very very special place. My honorable mention though was Lassen We didn't get to do a ton there, but we knew of a lot of things to do there But we couldn't do them because of the time of year But it just kind of was like a mini Yellowstone with a lot of those geologic geothermal is the right word features So can't wait to go back there I know that when we get to go back to that park in the summertime and do all of the Hikes that were closed because of the snow it will go up very high up on the list of favorite national parks It feels like a hidden gem It's just nowhere near as popular as Yosemite or you know, Yellowstone in Wyoming But it has a lot of similar features. And yeah, that would be fun. I can't wait I cannot wait to go back to that part of California our favorite place. We slept Yeah, I have two as well. And I feel like we're gonna have the same number one one But I feel like we're cheating on that one We pick that And it's the Salmon Glacier. Yeah. Yeah, it's not cheating though because technically it's not in Alaska so the Salmon Glacier is that Epic campsite we had on our way down from Alaska on the Cassier Highway Where we had that glacier just out of our back windows. It was insane It's one of the largest glaciers in Canada, I believe and it's just unreal It was the most gorgeous scenery to have outside of our van I don't think anything will ever top that the journey to get to it's a bit rough It's kind of a rough road But if you're willing to make the drive even just to go see it for a day, it's incredible. But so You get to it through Hyder, Alaska, but it's technically in Canada So I think it counts but I did have a second answer too because the more the merrier my my other one that Isn't you know, definitely not accessible very accessible and not It's just It's just really cool to be able to say you're there I guess is at the Arctic Ocean sleeping with the Arctic Ocean right outside your window again How many times can you say that something I never thought I'd say until recently Sleeping with the Arctic Ocean outside my back window But my real pick is definitely much more accessible and you can definitely get there is the TV Tower Road in San Luis Obispo We had an amazing time up there. There's cell service. We had this cloud inversion a couple of times we were up there and Ridiculous sunsets and it just never was really that busy for even being the only Boondocking spot really in the area and Yeah, locals would come out to watch the sunset but then pretty much everyone would leave we had one night where we I think we Had a handful of neighbors. We were up there off and on for like over a week. It was just Insane you have the valley below you have the mountains around you have the ocean you can see all the morrows It's just the most sweeping view and it's free So, I mean you can't beat that but even if we had to pay I'd pay for that view. Yeah, we will say though That boondocking spot is not meant for RVs like big RVs or trailers It is a very narrow windy road to get up there not a ton of space once you're up there So we would not advise it for something larger than our van It also may not be great for tents because it's super windy up there So I know a lot of people complain on the different apps about how windy it is It definitely was shaking the van at night But for us that view especially with how hard it is to find free camping and on the California coast That view was more than worth some wind and if you go up there just like any other, you know free or any You want to sleep it just? Respected because again, like I said, it's one of the few boondocking spots out there and it's amazing spot that we want to keep, you know Open and available to anyone who wants to visit it. So yeah, just take care of it We did see a lot of trash a lot of broken glass, which is really disappointing So I think it's like a hangout spot for some local Remember that one day when it was like st. Patrick's Day weekend. Yeah, and all the college kids came out to party It was there was a DJ up there Music in their car or something. There were a lot of college kids partying. It was super loud. I'm not gonna lie We were very annoyed. There was a lot of noise pollution. Yeah, at least they I don't think they trashed it Yeah, I mean they were having a good time good for them But we were trying to work and we were just like when will this end? This has been going on for five hours and then the cops came We did not call the cops just to make that clear in case any of them are watching But the cops came and cleared them out. So besides that it was very peaceful up there our top three Experiences hands down my top three experiences of the year We're driving up the Alaska Highway Driving up the Dempster Highway to the Arctic Ocean where we saw the Northern Lights for the first time and got in the Arctic Ocean As well as seeing a brown bear catch and eat salmon, which was just like National Geographic It was one of the most spectacular things I've ever seen and while none of those well Technically the bear was in Alaska. Well, those were not really in Alaska. We didn't cover them in our Alaska recap I still don't want to make those my final answers because it just like we said earlier It doesn't feel fair to compare everything to that because how do you compare with seeing a bear eat salmon? We're seeing the Northern Lights. You just can't compare with that So instead I wanted to mention those as my true my true answers But I also have three answers that are from the lower 48. So my first one is Backpacking on the Channel Islands Yeah, I wanted to include it twice in this video because I just Love the Channel Islands so much and I put this under the experiences section versus the hiking section because it was a whole Experience doing that trip from the boat ride Like I mentioned earlier to backpacking across the island camping in different campsites as well as doing day hikes like that whole trip was just an Experience. It was so fun. It was one of my favorite things we've done in the US. It was You have to do it even just go camp there for a night at the one campsite that's just about a quarter mile walk Scorpion Ranch or Scorpion Cove Like that it if you can go just camp there for a night So you have more time on the island highly recommend it my other top experience. One of them is learning to surf. Whoo Yeah, so I took a lesson in California in Ventura, California And I had one I couldn't have asked for a better instructor And I actually got up a couple times on the board and it was just so much fun in my mind as you're on the Board, you know standing on you feel like you're ripping through the waves and then you go back and watch the footage and it's very Slow and not that impressive. But hey, I did I was impressed Yeah, and then I also got to surf in Tofino on Vancouver Island and that one did not go as well But it was still a huge learning Experience. I would really like to make surfing a big part of my life One day it's kind of tough just we're not always by the coast, but I had a blast and I'd love to do it more But I'm glad I finally got to learn to do it and do it a couple times in 2022 I I had so much joy watching you surf, especially when you like we're actually shrimp shredding Just a smile on your face. It made me so happy my Second one is tanking in Nebraska. That's my other one We just had way too much fun out there in that stock tank So tanking is this Nebraska thing where you float down a river in a stock tank and it is just so fun You you're spinning around in our case. We ran into some trees You know, we didn't really paddle much we just kind of Enjoyed it as a relaxing experience until you hit a tree less relaxing, but it was just a blast It's such a simple activity, but it brought us so much joy so many laughs. This is the funnest thing I have done in a long time We were the only ones out there because we went in a weird time of year in October Yeah, only ones out there was just so fun during the summer. It is popping off It's the little rivers are packed with people and I can see why it would be so fun on a nice warm day to get In the water and then float down the river with a bunch of your friends in a stock tank Yeah, jump in the river. It'd be so fun. Sorry, you're done, right? Well, so I had picked tanking but then I also wanted to mention Whitewater rafting in Spokane. Yeah, I almost picked that one as well Yeah, that was also a blast in the same category. Yeah up on the water. That was so much fun ride the bull Yeah, that rafting experience was Also just brought out so many giggles and that's how you know, we're having a good time is when Adam it's like We kind of talked about the Redding area earlier in this video it's in Northern, California It was such a surprise the town itself's that really good small medium size that we like there's mountains around there's rivers There's Mount Shasta. There's lakes. There's waterfalls and one thing that we did there that was so much fun as we went on ebikes on the Sacramento River National Recreation trail which basically took us from right in town all the way to the Shasta Dam Where we had views of Mount Shasta We had views of a lake just views of all the mountains around and it was just so much fun We got to ride through a tunnel go over a cool bridge Go up and down a bunch of hills in the scenery Even though that area had been impacted by wildfires a while back was still so gorgeous Dwayne back at the shop He said he has toothbrushes for people when they come back because they're smiling so much So he's got to get the bugs off their teeth. I can't wipe the smile on my face, but no bugs No bugs bugs. I'll hit my forehead though and our final category best surprise I'm very curious what you're gonna pick. I think you're gonna know mine But I'm very curious what you're all right my best surprise of the year was in Nebraska Mine's very very similar. Mine was Oklahoma. Okay, what I loved about, Nebraska Specifically was the Panhandle area. There's Scotts Bluff Fort Robinson State Park Chimney Rock Nice little towns and then also we drove pretty much the whole drive of the Sandhills Scenic Byway, which was just a gorgeous area And then again, like we mentioned earlier we tanked there. That was so much fun. And then also Cool more of their major towns are on the east side So Omaha and Lincoln really loved exploring those what we got to see delicious food the Panhandle region Especially is not what you think of what we thought of when we thought of Nebraska. Oh in the toadstool area Oh the yeah, the toadstool geological. Yeah. Yeah the badlands they had there It was just unlike what we thought Nebraska was it was a complete surprise Yeah, and I'm also just remembering this I've really been hankering for a Runza Those Runzas were surprisingly good So ever since we went to Oklahoma I've constantly just said out loud and to our videos just how much I've been surprised by, Oklahoma Yeah, we grew up in Texas the state below, Oklahoma never went to, Oklahoma Honestly never had a desire to go to, Oklahoma didn't know what there was to do in, Oklahoma And it just blew me away I mean The cities are just so cool and you can tell they're just getting cooler that you can just see that there's a lot of growth In both, Tulsa and, Oklahoma City They just have some really trendy areas, and we didn't get to explore that much of Tulsa But what we got to see in, Oklahoma City we explore a lot there and like we said earlier the food was delicious The areas were all super cool. They had some really unique activities, and I was just super impressed by both of those cities Plus driving on Route 66 in, Oklahoma is a ton of fun and takes you through some of the smaller towns Which are also really neat, but what really tipped it over the edge for me was the nature Growing up I thought, Oklahoma was flat and a few years ago I started to learn more about the nature in, Oklahoma, and I was like But seeing it for yourself is something else the Wichita mountains are those really cool Just deserty mountains some amazing sunrises and sunsets plus you get to see bison which is always fun The Ouachita mountains were so green and lush and we got to go during the fall foliage Which just kind of reminded us like I said in the video of skyline drive or driving the kink I mean the mountains are smaller, but they're still mountains, and there's kind of like the layers of mountains It's just not ever when I thought I'd see in, Oklahoma And it was such a beautiful drive And then you also have the waterfalls and rivers at Turner Falls and Beaver Bend State Park Which is an area that we would love to go camping in and it's not that far from where we live here in, Texas So we have no excuse not to go back. I just loved, Oklahoma Maybe it's because we just it's the most recent place we went, but I don't think that's why I think I just truly loved it and It was further proof that there may and same with Nebraska There are states that you may not be I can't wait to go to Nebraska But there's cool stuff everywhere every state has cool stuff. You just have to open your mind sure You know look for cool things to do and you will find it and both of those states were amazing surprises this year We had so much fun on our drive home because We were going to places that just completely blew our minds around every single corner 100% So you may be wondering what our plans are for 2023 and we have quite a bit in store Instead of doing one big journey like we did this year with getting to Alaska instead We're gonna be doing at least five separate series is what we're gonna call them both here in the US and abroad So our current plan is to spend the first four months of the year going on some flying trips both in the US as well As to at least two other countries, which we are so stoked about and then around May until probably Thanksgiving time We're gonna hit the road again full-time in the van with the goal of not only Finishing up our final seven states here in the US, but also visiting a brand new part of Canada So if you have any suggestions for our final seven states Please let us know Since plans can change we want to keep y'all on your toes a bit that way you stick around to see what we're up to We're not gonna share much more than that But it's going to be an amazing year with a mix of US and international adventures Which is how we plan to travel Moving forward and as much as we love living in the van and we especially love having Kona with us And we are very sad that she will not be able to join us on the international adventures We are so excited to experience new foods cultures languages and just be completely out of our comfort zone But before we start really thinking about 2023 We want to say a huge thank you to all of you for all the love and support You showed as we journey to and around Alaska. We could not have done all this without you We won't have a video for at least two more weeks because we're kind of in a travel transition period right now and we're focusing On some other things, but we'll see you soon and we can't wait to kick off 2023 but before you go since y'all loved it so much in last year's video stick around for another few minutes for a blooper reel from 2022 My heart is beating so fast Are your pants okay? The Kona shake These are creepy-looking women look at her I love tea Staring into my soul. I love tea the most We're both really loving our looks today I've got this Bonnet look Little Adam on the prairie Little Adam in the saguaro. They call me a little squirt gun Trying to get rid of this farmer's Farmer Adam with his bonnet. You should wear your bonnet. Yeah Don't mind my large pizza San Diego German for Wales That's a grayling We're halfway there But are they pillowy on the inside they got to know they have to know we have to let them know Instant pot fail I'm coming through the path. It's just me. I won't hurt you. Don't hurt me I'm the king of the world The way the reflection is it makes it look like Adam's wearing a speedo Just realized I've had my pants on backwards the whole day I was like these just don't feel like they're supposed to We came to a place called a happy burrow chili and beer and as the name implies they serve chili and beer And they have fun hungry cats. It'll hop right on the table with you It's a small little bar there I've named the cat chili and chili really likes my strings on my jacket This is one of the best days we've had in a while non-stop smiles They're so nice and so calm and so sweet and so fluffy and I love you and you can apparently adopt one of these burrows, so With we might be coming. I might be coming home with a cat and a burrow Kona would be so mad Now you're embarrassing me