The Big V is a Daily Delight

A young woman alone. A used Mazda truck. An open highway. Sounds like the makings of a great adventure story. And it is. Only this story is happening now in real time. Viktoria Ciostek is a Buffalo photographer whose work focuses on issues of urban decay and the effects of modern development. She has traveled to Southeast Asia, India, the Mediterranean, and many parts of North America, but she’s never done anything quite like The Big V. That’s what she calls her latest photo-expedition which began on March 1 in Anchorage Alaska. From there Ciostek is traveling down to Texas, then up to Maine (which on the map forms a jaunty looking V). And she’s not taking expressways; she’s driving along back roads and small highways. Along the way she stops to document everything of interest she sees, and chat with the locals.

Each day Ciostek posts several images she has taken, along with a journal account of her day’s travels. Very few of the sights Ciostek documents are tourist attractions. She’s more interested in what you pass between attractions. She often sleeps in her truck, living on provisions she stocked at the start of the trip. For the first few days, she had a friend along as a companion, but that’s all over, and now the photographer (in her mid-twenties) is on her own traveling some mighty big country. What makes this so engrossing is that Ciostek has a way of describing things so you feel like you are right along with her, missteps and all. For instance, on March 18, she attempted to visit Antelope Canyon in Arizona, but due to an erroneous GPS reading, she missed her destination by one state. No problem, Ciostek explores Utah, including the Skull Valley Indian Reservation. Then she turns and heads to Antelope Canyon. That’s the beauty of Ciostek’s plans; she doesn’t have any. Except for a rough timetable and that big V, she decides on her itinerary day by day, sometimes minute by minute. Ciostek also delves into her state of mind along the way, and shares a few philosophical insights. It’s something like a National Geographic story that unfolds as it happens, without editorial cuts.

If you want to follow Ciostek’s progress, check out her website. I would start from the beginning and catch up. One word of caution though: the font on the first few posts is almost painfully fine and difficult to read. On day seven Ciostek corrects this, and from there out it’s a pleasure.

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