Vero Beach Sailing

Vero Beach is my home base for dinghy sailing. I’m lucky there is an adult sailboat club here that is less then two minutes from my house. The club offers a variety of small sailboats including Hobie Catamarans, Lasers, Sunfish, Mariners and a large number of dayboats. I use an app to schedule reserve a sailboat and just show up. The club staff will tow the sailboat out of the protected docking canal out into the Indian River Lagoon.

For this adventure I invited Kelsey along for her first sail. She is a natural. We sailed from the canal launch out into the Indian River and then northward. We practiced tacking and spent the morning talking about wind mechanics and forces on the sailboat. Kelsey picked up the tacking skills quickly and started calling out when she was preparing to tack.

We sailed up to Riverside Cafe and dropped anchor but the winds were so strong we were getting blown into the mangroves. We ended up pulling anchor, sailing south where we radioed the staff to tow us back into the canal. We ended up securing the sailboat and driving the jeep over to Riverside Cafe for that delicious lunch.

Taking Kelsey out and having her get excited about sailing was a highlight. Life is short and its almost impossible to always be on the same page as my daughter so any moment I can share something I love with her and have her respond in a positive manner is a huge win. Can’t wait to take her out again this fall when she gets back from her summer adventures in Alaska. This will be her first summer away from Vero Beach in four years. I am looking forward to her videos and pictures from her trip.

Vero Beach Surf Fishing

In 2012 Mindy and I rolled into Gainesville Florida after a months long road-trip that started in Portland Oregon. We had spent the previous summer remodeling the interior and updating the engine, drive train and wheels of a 1986 Class C Minnie Winnie. We pulled our oldest out of first grade that Fall and started the motorhome adventure of a lifetime.

Vero Beach Surf Fishing

The cross-country trip was a grand adventure that ended in Gainesville Florida after spending all but $12 of our $10,000 in savings. We quickly found jobs, rented and apartment, sold the motorhome and settled into Gainesville to reinvent our lives together. The plan was to further our education and move towards jobs that allowed us to work less days of the week so we could maximize our time adventuring together.

Vero Beach A1A Sunset

I choose to further my education and training into the medical field where I would only work three days a week. I could set my schedule for three shifts at the start of one week and then work the end of the following week giving me eight days in-between for adventuring.

Vero Beach Fishing

At the end of 2018 I had finished training and started looking at Florida coastal towns to move to. I found a job in Sebastian Florida and Mindy found a rental house in a amazing neighborhood in Vero Beach with access to canals leading to the India River. This neighborhood is perfect for those looking for easy access to the water with a small boat or kayak.

Vero Beach Surf Fishing for Sharks

I instantly fell in love with Vero Beach and my neighborhood so much so that in early 2019 we bought a small bungalow a couple blocks down from the rental we were in. We named the house Margaritaville, built a tiki bar and started throwing parties for our new Vero Beach friends.

Vero Beach Surf Fishing at Night

It has now been three years and my love for the Vero Beach life style has only grown exponentially. It only takes seconds to grab my kayak and be in the water and only a few minutes to drive out of the neighborhood, over the Indian River Lagoon to South Beach for world class surf fishing.

Catching the moonlight in Vero Beach

I am so grateful to have found such a cool little beach town to finish raising my daughters and enjoy exploring with Mindy. Vero Beach is truly one of the best small beach towns we have ever been to. The best permanent basecamp ever.

The Gnarly Donner Peak

There are some hikes that instantly take my breath away, and the Donner Peak trail was one of those. With this hike being less than 4 miles and under a 1,000 ft elevation gain, I wasn’t expecting the views I was about to receive! Nor did I realize what gnarly beauty I was about to witness. Against all odds these epic trees have somehow discovered the pure grit required to survive in this windy, sheer, and rocky terrain.

As you’re hiking this trail, the predictable pattern of the wind becomes obvious because you can literally feel it as you turn each corner. But you can also see it in the way the landscape has adapted. The trees in particular have been forced to grow in the direction of the wind and the result is truly breathtaking. To me, they looked like massive bonsais that a master arborist must have carefully sculpted into these stunning shapes. But nope! Nature.

After exploring this epic rocky terrain (and filming our beer pairing video), Vance and I took our obligatory selfie from the top and he grabbed some shots of me taking photos and doing handstands. I seriously lucked out with the best insta husband ever 😉

I didn’t want to leave the mountain, and kept lamenting the fact that I should have brought a hammock tent. But Vance finally convinced me to leave with the promise of a craft beer at the Truckee Brewery. And I have to say… it was worth the hike back down.

And of course, a Wired to Explore adventure would not be complete without a proper craft beer pairing. Enjoy 😉

Summer Lake Hot Springs Magic

So it turns out that a lack of planning can lead to ridiculously amazing experiences when you’re traveling 😉

Vance and I discovered Summer Lake Hot Springs totally by chance. Our destination on this leg of our journey would ultimately be Reno, but luckily we had a handful of free days to play with and hearts that yearned for fresh wonder.

While driving south from Boise, Vance mentioned he had heard Oregon is filled with loads of natural hot springs across the state. He suggested that maybe we should try to find one on our route.

It only took a few clicks for Google to blow my mind when it displayed a handful of natural hot spring that were yes indeed, right on our route. After reviewing our options (seriously?!), there was one in particular that stood out to me… yep you guessed it, Summer Lake Hot Springs!

There’s something mystical about these natural hot springs located in the far-reaching, desolate deserts of the Oregon outback. The vastness of the dry, open space silhouetted by stunning mountain views creates a quiet serenity that is truly unmatched. And don’t even get me started with the stars…

Summer Lake Hot Springs in Paisley, OR

Sounds pretty great already, right? And I haven’t even mentioned the ancient healing waters! The original bath house was built in 1929 and today it boasts a large indoor pool (98 F) and three outdoor rock hot tubs (104 F), which arguably provided me with the most incredible stargazing experience I’ve ever had in my lifetime.

Located nearly one mile below ground, the fresh water is heated by volcanic conditions before it travels to the surface, collecting a variety of healing minerals along the way. Needless to say… we never wanted to leave and I cannot wait to return. Two days was not enough!

As a side adventure, we also took the opportunity to briefly explore the Paisley Caves. This cave system includes four caves located in the Summer Lake basin, and it was only a 15 minute (or so?) Jeep ride from the hot springs. Incredibly, one of these caves apparently contains archaeological evidence of the oldest definitively-dated human presence in all of North America. Pretty cool find!

At the end of each adventure (or relaxation) filled day, we have been grateful for our Wired to Explore basecamp retreat. This modest, unassuming portal to adventure has been absolutely dreamy for just the two of us. We are smitten with our cozy ‘Opt Out’ (aka the motorhome) and our unstoppable getaway ‘GOAT’ (aka the Jeep)!

The Wired to Explore basecamp taking in the rays at Summer Lake Hot Springs.

Of course, no Wired to Explore adventure would be complete without a proper beer pairing. Every beer deserves its very own adventure of a lifetime!

Exploring Lake Okeechobee

Exploring Lake Okeechobee without becoming gator bait is definitely winning! This behemoth body of water is the eighth largest freshwater lake in the United States and it is absolutely teeming with life. Vance was particularly excited to explore the area due to its reputation for being the premier fishing region of Florida. Looking for some bass? This is definitely the place!

Our trusty Bote allowed us to navigate the area quickly and comfortably while catching plenty of fish. I could not believe how much of the lake we were able to see on this little inflatable kayak!

The Bote Rover Motorized paddleboard. Highly recommended!

Adventures on Lake Okeechobee are truly unforgettable—I cannot wait to return to this magical spot. Until we meet again, enjoy a few photos from our explorations below!

Mossy Creek Fishing & Beer

PSA: When fly fishing the Mossy Creek in Virginia it is proper etiquette to bring your own craft beer. It’s not polite to attempt to bum a sip off your fishing partner. Who in this beer loving universe would share a 32 ounce single serve can? That is a rhetorical question because the obvious answer is “NO ONE.”

Walking Tree Brewery

Hinderance Belgian Strong Dark Ale

11.4 ABV

Perfect for a day of fly fishing