Why do we bother with travel? (and other thoughts on my trip to Redwoods)
Recently, I took a road trip from Portland to the Redwoods National Park in California with my friend, Roland. I must admit it was not the smoothest trip I’ve ever taken. It rained all weekend, which at first was a concept we were excited about until we realized most of our plans involved being outside. We both aren’t great at logistics and we left things for the last minute or up to fate. We scrambled to find a rental car and propane to cook with while camping. Plus, we were spending more money than we would have, had we planned ahead. I was stressed on multiple occasions and the fact that we were spending half of our trip driving rather than in Portland or in Redwoods bummed me out. And it all had me wondering, Why do people travel? What’s the point?
But, as we drove into the forest and I got to witness the ethereal and misty landscape that is Redwoods, I felt such peace. And I got to share this peace with a friend who normally I only get to see a few hours out of the week if that. We were joking, laughing, and singing along to our collaborative playlist, it was pure quality time that we would never have if not for this trip. The stress and hunger I had been feeling earlier was nowhere to be found. I didn’t care about when we’d have to leave in order to return our car on time, and I didn’t care about the mistakes we’d made along the way because we were here.
We’d made it.
And there was still more to discover.
Elk chilling on the side of the road.
To assume that traveling is meant to be fun and relaxing at all times is the first mistake anyone can make. Surely the first one I made on this last trip anyway. The word travel in itself stems from words that mean work, struggle, and a Roman torture device. That’s right, traveling means pain. On top of that, it’s not cost effective to travel and may leave you puking your guts out in front of a Toyota car dealership in Vancouver, Washington (my friend got car sick from all the bad uber drivers we were blessed with that day).
So then, why travel? Why put yourself through all that?
Well, it’s in our DNA first of all. Before air conditioning and free shipping internationally, we humans were nomadic hunter-gatherers. We moved to avoid conflict with other nomads and to keep things fresh since there weren’t any YouTube conspiracy videos to dive into. Nowadays, people do it for a variety of reasons. They want to eat new foods, experience different cultures, learn new ways of life, they want adventures for new stories to tell, to make new connections, and to undertake new challenges. Traveling can even be a form of therapy that enhances your empathy, creativity, attention span, and mental clarity. I know I personally have come back from trips feeling enlightened and energized to try a new idea I came up with on the road. This blog is testament to that.
Roland before he noticed me and mooned me.
I asked Roland why he traveled and he told me he liked to put himself in uncomfortable situations. That falls under new challenges, and usually after overcoming them it can give you a sort of buzz that makes you feel capable to take on anything. I asked another friend of mine their reason for traveling and they said they get bored if they don’t. Traveling breaks up the mundanity of life and exposes you to new restaurants, new locations, perhaps even a new you. When I asked my uncle, he told me that it’s not worth doing unless he’s visiting or spending it with family members. That’s traveling to connect, to socialize, and to build lasting memories.
All these reasons they gave me, I’m sure can be further explored if we dived deeper into each of their psyche. And I’m sure everyone’s reasons can differ slightly from those answers. In the end I feel like it is a mixture of everything - which I understand is a non-answer that makes this whole post moot. Each person will find their own reason based on their desires and interests.
Therefore, I’ll focus on my own reasons. Why do I travel?
There are multiple things I could be prioritizing in my life right now rather than traveling. For one, I could be spending more time developing a structured writing schedule or finding a job (as my parents love to point out). And yet, I can’t help but say yes whenever the prospect of a trip is brought up by my brain or by my friends.
When Roland and I drove through the Redwoods, I remembered the main story my dad brings up when he talks about me as a baby, about how I behaved during long car rides. I was a peaceful child, didn’t cry much or cause any sort of fuss in general, but in the car I would “zen out” - his words. I would pass out so quickly in a state of blissful sleep, you’d think I was dead. But during stoplights, the gentle swaying of the car would seize and often wake me up and lead to crocodile tears until the car started moving again and rocked me back to sleep. A detail that never fails to crack my dad up when he tells it.
Thinking about it now, I’m amazed to learn that I’m still very much that child. I’ve written about my love of driving before, but I think it goes deeper than that, it’s about traveling. I love moving, I love the journey, I love changes in my environment. If I’m stagnant or have no destination I’m trying to reach I become distraught, I lose myself, and then come the waterworks. And in a cyclical sense, when I lose myself, I choose to travel to cope with the restless energy that builds up. The story my dad tells is a perfect explanation of how the child is reflected in the adult.
Because of that stagnant energy built up, I quit my job in 2020 and moved away from my hometown right before the beginning of COVID in the United States. Plans had to be scrapped and there was a standstill. The world underwent a collective “dark night of the soul.” Now my perspective on life has evolved, as I’m sure it has for many others. As soon as I felt I could, I began to drive alone through the city and I would explore its surroundings. Shortly after I began to drive further. The restless energy from that stagnant period transformed into a life - a new life - that I don’t fully understand yet, but I’m excited to explore it.
Travelling gives me hope. It reminds me that wherever you are right now, it can change. It helps me be grateful for the moment I’m living now and to make the most of it. It also reminds me that there’s always another destination out there for me to go and grow in and it might not be the one I expect. In the end, that’s the journey we are all on, looking for a place to grow, to become the best version of ourselves.
That best version of myself is someone that has learned a lot from her travels. I want to learn as much as possible about the world through experience and through different people. I never want to feel like I can’t change my mind about something or that I’ve got life all figured out. Frankly, that’s impossible to say and it would be BORING. I do, however, want to tell the stories of what I have figured out and how that has changed from what I used to think. I want to live life with awareness of my surroundings, not just with open eyes but with an open mind and an open heart.
Acting a fool.
At Redwoods we parked the car to go hike Fern Canyon. Boy, was it something. I felt so stupidly giddy surrounded by running water and lush greenery. It felt like we stepped into a scene from Jurassic Park (when the humans were full of hope and before they got ripped to shreds). I felt like a goofy little kid climbing over fallen trees and splashing water on my pants. Roland also seemed to de-age 15 years the way he was marveling at everything like it was his first time on Earth. The jokes we made got stupider and there was an endless amount of giggling throughout. We weren’t the only ones acting that way. A couple in their 50s asked us to take a picture of them as they posed, mouths frozen wide in a silent scream as if they were witnessing a dinosaur. Apparently the husband had gotten pretty good at photoshop and wanted to place a t-rex in the horizon. There was also a family hiking around without their shoes like Tarzan’s long lost family. It was weird and off putting, but it goes to show you what beautiful places can make you feel like.
It was the best time.
If this past year has taught me anything it’s that you have no control over the circumstances of the world. I only have so much time and I will never get to see everything, spend enough time with everyone, or do everything I want to. But traveling is trying at life. It’s worth every penny and every second, to go somewhere new, maybe with someone new, maybe with only yourself. I want to make every trip a purposeful one, connecting with people and places I can only dream of right now. I know I’ll be there soon though, and I hope I’ll see you along the way as you go on a journey that is all your own too.
Dive deeper:
Why travel should be considered an essential human activity | National Geographic
The Point of Travel | School of Life
The Problem with Travel | School of Life
