California — After Five Years
Travel has never been about collecting places for us. It's about the moments that quietly shape who we are — the ones that don't announce themselves as important until years later. This story isn't about a road trip through California. It's about returning to the places where love, partnership, and intention first took root — and realizing how much has grown since then.
7/16/20265 min read
Five years ago, we started an adventure without having any idea we'd be standing right here today. We started dating in July of 2020, and things felt so right so quickly that by August we were already planning a road trip to California. Neither of us had been there before, and we knew we wanted to experience it together — for the first time, side by side. We knew one thing for sure: we wanted to drive down the coast. We were chasing those dramatic cliffs, the open ocean, and the feeling that only long coastal roads seem to give you. So we packed up and headed west, driving from Colorado through Utah and Nevada, all the way to Northern California.
Our very first stop was Big Lagoon. That place will forever hold one of the most special memories of our lives. Standing right there by the beach, with the ocean in front of us and the quiet of Northern California surrounding us, we said "I love you" to each other for the very first time. Five years later — on November 3, 2025 — we returned to that exact same spot. And somehow, we loved each other even more than we did the day those words were first spoken.
Big Lagoon.
After spending time eating, wandering, and soaking up Trinidad's quiet charm, we moved on to our next adventure. We drove the Avenue of the Giants, making our way through Humboldt Redwoods State Park, where we parked and went on one of the most incredible hikes of our lives. Walking among those ancient redwood trees makes you feel impossibly small — in the best way. It's humbling, grounding, and powerful all at once. Funny enough, we did the exact same hike in the exact same place five years later, and it still felt like we were doing it for the first time — and it remains one of the most incredible hikes we've ever done.
From there, we continued on to Trinidad — a small, charming coastal town with the cutest little shops and restaurants. It felt cozy and unpretentious, the kind of place that invites you to slow down. Our favorite breakfast spot was Trinidad Bay Eatery and Gallery — and yes, five years later, on November 3, 2025, we found ourselves eating breakfast there again. Still amazing. We also made sure to stop by Seaside Restaurant, our favorite lunch spot, just to see if it was still around. Thankfully, it was — and it felt comforting in a way that's hard to explain.
On our first trip, we camped at the Redwoods, and the experience was nothing short of spectacular. There's nothing more adventurous than camping under the tallest trees in the world, just a short drive from the beach and the endless ocean — an old, vast forest that felt almost unexplored. But we were doing it in the fall, and that added a whole different layer to the adventure. Camping got a little more challenging: it was colder by the water, and the wind helped the cold along as it danced through our tent. The mornings came with a denser fog, leaving everything around us a little damp and mushy. At night, starting a fire took a bit longer, and our food cooled faster than we expected — but somehow, that all just became part of the adventure. Early morning hikes among the giants, slow and grounding afternoons reading and watching the trees while lying on the ground, spotting banana slugs along the way — and at night, a campfire, dinner, s'mores, and lying on our backs watching a sky full of stars. After a couple of days, we made our way back toward the ocean, stopping at Westport Landing State Beach, where we camped for a few more days surrounded by ocean breeze and endless skies. The stars seemed brighter out there. The sound of the waves never stopped. It was one of those moments where everything feels aligned — quiet, present, and full.
Once our camping adventures came to an end, we kept heading south toward Santa Barbara. But it wasn't the destination that defined that part of the journey — it was what happened along the way. On our last day of camping, we packed everything up and started driving. A few hours in, hunger hit hard. There was nowhere to stop — no restaurants, no stores, nothing nearby. Without hesitation, we pulled over on the side of the road. We took out all our cooking tools and ingredients, right there on the roadside, and together — as partners — we made sandwiches. No stress. No frustration. Just teamwork, laughter, and the simple act of taking care of each other. And it was in that quiet, unplanned moment that we both realized the same thing, without even saying it out loud: I want to do this forever with you.
Five years later, California still feels like more than a place to us. It feels like the beginning of a story we're still living. On our latest trip we didn't camp, but we did make our way back to the ocean after a wonderful full day in the redwoods — stopping along seaside towns to grab coffees, browse organic stores, and occasionally settle into a cozy meal. After a while, we stopped for a couple of days in La Quinta, California, and allowed ourselves to sit with everything we had experienced — returning to the places that shaped our relationship and gave us the certainty that we wanted to be with each other forever.
This is what travel has always meant to us at Sound Tracks Travel. Not just movement, not just destinations — but moments that become part of who you are. California didn't just give us views and memories. It gave us proof that the quiet, unplanned moments are often the ones that last the longest.
If you’re planning a similar route, we put together a simple guide to our California road trip — from coastal campsites to redwood forests.
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