Day 1: Let the adventure begin.

ON THE ROAD

Ready or not, here I go

No one and I means (almost) no one’s vacation ever starts off without last-minute stresses, panic attacks, complications, and hiccups. I mean that. I have traveled multiple times per year for several years now. Both, for business and pleasure, solo and with groups of varying sizes. All of them. So, like most people, I have an anxiety-driven tendency to over-plan, over-check, and double-check my lists of everything I need, might need, and don’t need. Fortunately, I had backup plans as a few last-minute delays had me running an hour or two behind schedule. However, smart planning ahead of schedule had us with multiple routes to our destination. This trip will see us traversing the southern United States towards a festival that could mean many things to either of us.

I am a podcaster from Oklahoma, that was given media credentials stemming from my work with the Rocklahoma music festival here in Pryor, Oklahoma. With me, is a good friend I had made in the years I’ve been attending the said festival. Angel Lee has been in the “ROK” campgrounds community for a while and was nominated for “Miss Darkside”, in her own right. Since then I’ve taken notice of her photography on Photography By Angel Lee and invited her to join my team, this past Labor Day, at Rocklahoma. It’s her outstanding work that led us to get outstanding photos this year which had been seen all over the world thanks to connections we’ve made with artists in the media tent. From the seeds of hard work, we begin to reap rewards in the form of reach and opportunity.

Late this fall as I was visiting with some of my friends in Rocklahoma, I found myself approved for the ROK Island Music Festival. I’ve been talking about this festival for several months on the show, as it is one that sees several of the same folks that make Rocklahoma happen also involved here. Therefore I have been super anxious to see what is similar, what is different, and how the community is involved and feels about it. Our festival here in Oklahoma is one that has been very much embraced by its hosting community of Pryor which also benefits from its tourism. These are all answers that will be answered in this trip as I will see many similarities, even their differences. Fortunately, my new partner just so happened to be available for a spontaneous road trip across the country in order to feed her passion for photography while promising more adventures like what we saw this past Labor Day.

With everything situated at home and last-minute crisis averted, I’m off from Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and set to pick up my pilot for this adventure in Missouri, three hours away. The whole way my mind races going over all my lists, double checking everything I checked. Compounded by all the excitement and fear of this long drive we are undertaking. I pass by the Rocklahoma sign which reminds me of what’s been accomplished and head for the long path toward the unknown, with nothing but possibilities.  

In what seemed like but an hour’s drive, rather than three, I reached my colleague’s home. We loaded up after double-checking the road weather, road, and traffic conditions for the first twelve hours’ worth of road. It’s 1pm now, and we’ve got a daunting amount of highway ahead of us and more time in a car than either of us has ever spent with someone not considered family. Fortunately, we both are extremely positive people and very scatterbrained and have similar senses of humor. That and a drive for seeing where our project’s could take us kept us filled with a sense of professionalism that kept us excited to see what kinds of people we would be meeting. What stories we would have to bring back home with us. Let’s not forget the tropical paradise that we would be calling home for the next week.

With the pilot and co-pilot comfortably secured in their seats and all luggage properly stored in the designated compartments, we are off for an eleven-hour portion of the estimated twenty-three-hour drive. This is where clear communication will play a major role in the success of our journey.

Both of us had previously communicated some of our anxieties about the trip along with our concerns, goals, and hopes, in terms of what we wanted to accomplish, what we wanted to see, and what we wanted to do before we leave six days later. Both of us, being talkers and communicators had already established preferences in terms of how we drive, how we ride, and what we prefer from each other along the way. Why this comes crucial is many individuals often clash on drives. On this trip, we will learn and demonstrate the value of good communication and fulfilling the roles in our respective traveling. All this to say. Folks, we both agree. Remember your roles. Passengers navigate and assist the driver with clear information in enough advance that your driver can safely maneuver. When not navigating, help your driver watch for obstacles, traffic, and signs. I only bring this up, because, in fifty-eight hours on the road, we did not have a single disagreement in the car. This is something we still are amazed by; but, agree it only happens when consideration, communication, and positive attitudes are maintained. That, and we are both distracted too easily to get too annoyed at each other. Like Forrest Gump says, when you’re tired, sleep. When you’re hungry, eat. Do what you got to do to be comfortable and get in that zone. The hours will seem like minutes.

After driving in the dark for about three hours, we agree not to push ourselves on the drive, we wanted to get as far as we could before we begin to feel fatigued. Opting for a good night’s rest and an early start, agreeing it would be a safer strategy and reduce the risk of hitting wildlife or other obstructions in the night. We settle on Birmingham, Alabama for our first stop. Tomorrow will be our first test to see how we can handle the long stretch.

Day 2: First Full Day of Travel

Birmingham-Daytona

Jan 18th

We awake in our Hotel in Birmingham, Alabama to A daunting Drive. This is the day that was going to test our mettle on whether these sorts of trips are practical and follow our good fortune that had held strong the day before.

Having rolled in a few hours after dark on Day 2, we didn’t see a lot of scenery or landscape that is drastically different from Oklahoma or Missouri Ozarks. However, fortunately, we had streaming services to keep our attention or car karaoke with a positive mindset as well as excitement for places we’ve never been. This would be needed today.

The day is a little foggy. Seriously, over half of the day was varying between Silent Hill and Walking Dead. Fittingly, that it’s where it’s filmed. In so many respects it did feel familiar. So, the right kind of creepy. This did prove useful as it kept us both more alert to be on the lookout for deer and road obstructions. However, this, unfortunately, led to a limited experience in terms of anything to, literally, “write home about”. The theme set, thus far, would continue through Atlanta.

My first experience of the city would be limited due to all the larger buildings evaporating into the sky as though Thanos has snapped his fingers.

We make a pit stop to refill, stretch and jump back in the car, in order to keep our pace to missing traffic. With empty bladders and full bellies, we jump back in the car. Back on through the fog.

Before we cross the state border, we find some crazy pines in a natural forest along the road. It took everything we had not to run through and reenact Mortal Kombat. But, people kept walking by and we didn’t have time to convince people we weren’t mental escapees. Matching grey sweats didn’t help. So, here’s what we were thinking.

We find our pace and get into our car karaoke and conversations through the rest of Georgia and before we have too much time to get bored, we see the first signs of our final state to traverse, Florida.

These signs come in the form of the palm trees we have been so excited to see. This does prove problematic, though, as both of us shrill in excitement, like a couple of teenage girls, when we see these. In said rush and excitement I reach for my phone to catch the Florida sign and, instead, fling it up to the roof of the car and drop it in time to see it go by. It really was pretty, though! So, unfortunately, you will have to settle for some of the first palms I saw. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.

Now that we are laughing like hyenas and reenergized, we must make the determination on if we want to push onward towards our destination, where we would arrive later in the day but get off to an earlier start.

Or not… we give into our impatient impulses and make our way to the nearest coast and skirt down the coastal side of the state. We correct our course and make way for the coast.

Not only the coast but the iconic Daytona Beach at sunset!

I’m not a NASCAR guy. Farthest thing from a “gearhead”. But you can’t pass the Daytona International Speedway and not be taken aback by the iconic status of what takes place here and what it represents. So for benefit of those who are, I had to catch some images as we sped along toward sunset on the beach. Destination, “Bahama House”

I’m about 80% sure I’ve seen this place in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Now to maintain our excitement long enough to check in and make our way to the beach.

I’m like a kid on Christmas morning as this is my first time on the coast, you can imagine my rush to get things situated so I can get there before dark.

Finally checked in, we make a dash for the balcony.

At this point, I can’t stand it anymore. After a shot of Jack to calm my nerves so I don’t fall down the stairs or something, we head for the beach to wash our feet in the sea.

Next time, we’ll be digging into arriving at our boat, the SS Capt. Andy. Or as we dubbed her, the “S.S. ROK Yacht”. Once settled in, we began our adventure into exclusive areas, interacted with legendary musicians and much much more. Check back to SurvivingRocklahoma.com and follow us on all the socials.