EXPLORE THE PLANET Newsletter
National Parks Trip
July, 1999

...and sometimes the bear eats you"- Jim Croce, songwriter (damn good one too)

Hey friends-

It's Kyle & Grayson here at Adventurebus...the 'down to earth' adventure company for those who love to be outside and hike, bike, kayak, run, swim, soak in hot springs, watch shooting stars, make new friends and all those other great things without spending a bundle!

(If you've forgotten who we are, were the guys with the bus that sleeps 30, carries all your toys, and takes you away from all those things that bug you:)

Welcome to yet another calorie packed, fun filled newsletter from the fine folks at Adventurebus- the funnest(the spellchecker says funnest is not a word-hmmm) way to explore the USA and Mexico and beyond!

IN THIS July ISSUE OF "EXPLORE THE PLANET"...
#1 inspiration...perhaps
#2 another fine National Parks Trip...
#3 Whets left this summer???
#4 Best new website we've discovered-Veggiedate.com
#5 Book of the month...
#6 Wanted...your inspirational thoughts, quotes, recipes, book titles and more…
#7 Tasty recipe for the Month of July...

*********** So here we Go! **********

#1.....Quotes for July and life ~
These are my own that I thought I'd share with you all. Its been quite a rough month and when times are a little heavy I revert to the times when I have felt most free and un-tethered...
Pieces from my journal during my last trip around the world-
For those with un-confronted dreams that are soiling in the back of their soul...
"Fools wait and wait and wait and wait"
And for those with too many dreams...
"If you try to see it all,
If you try to touch it all,
If you try to feel it all,
If you try to understand it all,
and if you want and chase it all,
...it all escapes you-
-both my thoughts

#2... So about that last national parks trip... Every time I think we've had the best trip ever, along comes another to match!
Another quick yet amusing summary of the last "Best of the National Parks Trip"...After just leaving LA, one mile from the state line of Nevada and California- kapow! we blow a tire- this kind of makes us late for our pick up in Vegas where 6 bewildered people got their first real feel of what 'flexible' schedule and "your on Adventurebus time now" really means. Things went well the next morning in Zion as several people faced their fear of heights by climbing to 'angels landing' high above the valley floor on a narrow footpath accompanied by chains and poles to hang onto.(This place still gives me the willys when I get up there and supposedly I'm a rock climber)
Later that evening we make a little stop along the Sevier river for some fishing. For some reason the bus doesn't want to take us any further that day so we call it a night after some roadside pesto pasta and a big ol salad... Good morning and the bus wants us to go to Bryce so we don't argue. off we go and for another day things are great until the next morning just 200 meters outside the West Yellowstone entrance in Montana/Wyoming? Our air compressor goes byby as well. So compliments of AB our group goes zipping around Yellowstone and The Tetons in their own little rental cars. At first I was so worried that folks would be a little upset by the mechanical setbacks(of which we had none in the previous 10 months...ladyluck?)but then one night at this pizza place, just four days into the trip I realized the group had made the magical bond and fully understood what Adventurebus stood for when the owner of the place shut off the music and our group had gathered in front of our tables and sang the following song ( to the tune of 'Leaving on a jet Plane'

"Well my bags are packed, I'm ready to go
I'm standing here outside the casino-
get me out of here before I'm broke
there's only 16 of us on board
bet you none of us have scored
there's at least two women for every lucky bloke
chorus:
So oil me and tend to me
work the parts into a frenzy (this section referring to the bus of course;)
Ride me like you've never done before
Cause I'm leaving on Adventurebus- Don't Know if our compressors bust-
Bugger this, lets get to Yellowstone!
But we love you Kyle and Grayson too
Don't let the sodding bus make you blue
When all goes wrong we promise not to moan-
(Repeat chorus)
but were sure we'll make it through the trip
all you have to do is get a grip
and lets hope we don't have another tire blown"
repeat chorus and cry a little inside knowing that these people are exactly the kind of people that we hoped to have aboard from the beginning of this dream we call Adventurebus...

p.s. those who left that trip in Las Vegas weren't lucky enough to experience the last of the lovely chaos when not one exit from our finally drop off in Los Angeles, we blew another tire...
So the rest of the trip was flawless and perfect. the group turned to family and even with all the mechanical difficulties, the trip was perfect. The ages ranged from 19 to 50-something and everyone played a role in making the trip successful.

After this trip, I finally realized that there is no 'best trip'. Every trip is just so unique that it boggles my mind. I have a good size stack of letters that are worth every penny that I have put into this company that contain the words "this trip changed my life, thank you"
I don't know how it happens but like Kevin used to say..."I'm just sure it's magic buddy"

#3... What's left this summer??? The "Best of the National Parks Trip"- This trip leaves only 3 more times this summer and the trip itself is a 16 day adventure. On this trip we hike, bike, raft, kayak and explore 11 different national parks and monuments here in the west…Yellowstone-Grand Tetons- Grand Canyon-Flaming Gorge-Dinosaur National Park- Arches- Bryce-Zion- Canyonlands-Valley of the Gods-Monument Valley, the Colorado river, lake powell and all those great spots along the way! Bring your bike- fishing pole- easel and paints- tripod and camera- open mind…whatever you like to make you comfortable and join us for some summer fun. Don't ask us how we do it but this trip is 489 samolians (buckaroos- clams-bones-dollars…you know, $) oh yeah, + food fund 151.

#4... Veggiedate.com- This is Cool and useful if your looking for someone green to love and kermit is not your style, you can place your soulmate wanted ad here along with your picture. It has other links as well to greenpeople.com It lists Eco friendly businesses all over the USA. It also has a 'safe food' link too. All in all its one of the better sites we've bumped into online. If the Adventurebus doesn't Bring us wives soon, we've decided to put ourselves into the veggiedate system under 10 different names and disguises- were bound to find somebody to crunch carrots with;)(We are actually not practicing vegetarians but since that's kind of the theme of the food on our trips- we thought we'd let you in on that site info)
Check it out- knowing what your eating couldn't hurt.

#5 Book of the month to check out...
I haven't read this but its been suggested more than once so go pickup "Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis. Especially part one and two. These are children's books but they're full of magic and wisdom and they are ideal to be read around a campfire or fireplace at night.

#6…Always WANTED… We still want your input- it's what makes it so easy for me to write this up.
Recipes- books- quotes-good links- suggestions- herbal remedies- and things to make life all around easier. We will be revamping our web site very soon to accommodate things like FAQ's and will be posting Photos from trips as often as possible.

#7...Recipe of the month- If your looking here for my new delicious recipe, well I'm dieting this issue- sorry. Drink lots of water and pretend its wine, and make believe all the carrots your eating are chocolate. Not really yummy or romantic or too tasty- perhaps in august ;)