May 24 to June 3: Arcata, California

Hungry from a long drive, we arrived in Arcata and immediately ate some of the best burritos we’d ever had. For the next few weeks, Arcata continued to envelop us in coziness. Being there felt like visiting a delightful, hippy relative with a childlike curiosity. We enjoyed wandering through quirky art galleries, and health food markets, and peeking through the chainlink fence at the local minor league baseball game for the “Humbolt Crabs.”

Serendipitously, we happened to be in town for the annual Kinetic Grand Championship, which turned out to be one of our favorite moments in Arcata and our time in California. We were drawn to the lively spectacle with what seemed like the entire town, eager for the tradition to continue after a two-year Covid-induced hiatus. Community members drove, towed, and cheered on homemade vehicles of all shapes and sizes. We rented simple student bikes and followed the crowds out of town to the nearby beach, pedaling through a misty Pacific Northwest afternoon and past decorative floats, costumed kids, and other damp onlookers. At the beach, we watched some of the vehicles struggle through the sand until they were out of sight, moving on to the next town. The following morning, we drove to Eureka to watch the start of the final leg of the race as the vehicles launched into the water, which was exhilarating. It was incredible to get a small glimpse of this tradition across the land, sand, and sea.

Before we left Arcata, we went to the local park. Driving into the park felt like we were driving into a dark forest. We stared in awe up at the giant redwoods, amazed they were so close to where we’d been staying. As we drove north out of town, we were already dreaming about our next trip to Arcata.