In search of the continuous road trip
“Why don’t you climb up on that ledge to take a photo,” Paul said. “That way you’ll cut out all that stuff in the foreground.” I mumbled a response about how I kind of liked the stuff in the foreground, but what I was thinking …
That’s what everyone says, right — “Ithaca is Gorges.” We have, at last count, three items in our (downsized) house that bear those three words. You can’t go anywhere here without seeing these three words stamped or printed or carved on every object imaginable. The …
I keep having this recurring nightmare: Paul and I are standing on the edge of a canyon. One after the other, we fall in. Paul falls in, then I fall in. I fall in, then Paul falls in. Over and over. Sometimes we fall in …
Yes, Dinosaur National Monument has dinosaur bones. The best bones have long been removed and placed in museums, but they’ve left a few in place to illustrate the amazing forces that made these bones find-able in the first place: first, lots of animals and dinosaurs died in …
The most famous view of Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park is the vista from Glacier Point. That’s where everyone heads, and you’ve got to see it, but try this first: stop at the Sentinel Dome trailhead and hike the 4.9 mile Sentinel Dome/Taft Point …
Hiking isn’t like walking in the city. In the city, you’re just trying to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible while avoiding eye contact at all times. Sometimes people bump into each other, sometimes they step in dog poop, sometimes …
The Trail of Terror starts with the flat and easy 1.4 mile stroll to Third Beach near La Push, WA along Olympic Park’s Pacific shore area. Walk south down the beach towards the waterfall. Look for the trail sign near where the beach narrows. It’s …
After a few visits, we’d exhausted all there is to do in Arches National Park, but since we were in the area, we couldn’t resist stopping again for a scramble around the Fiery Furnaces and a Delicate Arch revisit. Hiking in the Fiery Furnaces is …
After our haphazard trip across mid-central-south Utah, we ended up in Capitol Reef National Park and wanted to chill for a few days in the relative warmth. Much to our surprise, so did a few hundred other people. Capitol Reef is always listed as one of …
Zion National Park is my favorite place in the country, beating out even Death Valley. The trails and vistas in the park are so fantastic that they sometimes defy belief. These trails wouldn’t be built today, and I live in fear that they’ll finally be closed …
Hiking in the desert is dangerous, right? Wrong. Dead wrong. It’s just like walking along the beach. There’s sand, there’s sun, you may even see some mirage water. If you can walk along the beach, you can hike in the desert. First: remove your shirt. …
I wanted to go to Lee’s Ferry, because I wanted to see the place where Grand Canyon rafting voyages begin. I’ve been working up my courage for a Grand Canyon rafting trip for years (I’m still a few years away). In my mind, Lee’s Ferry …