a former gymnast with a neverending case of wanderlust
After a drizzly and wine-filled first day in Santa Barbara, my sister and I woke to clouds hanging low over the mountains – mountains we never actually saw the top of during this trip. But at least it had finally stopped raining. Our train back to LA didn’t depart until 6:30pm, so we had almost… Continue reading Spring break in Santa Barbara, part II
My sister moved to Los Angeles in 2016 and, until March 2023, I’d never visited her there. It’s not for any dramatic reason. It’s just that she shares a small apartment with a roommate and they both work from home, the roommate often on evenings and weekends, so having overnight guests isn’t super feasible. And… Continue reading Spring break in Santa Barbara, part I
Sometimes I think I should have been a pilot. I’m not actually sure the realities of that job would be the best fit for me – and I love my actual job – but I know for sure that I’d never get sick of gazing down at our beautiful planet from the air. I’m forever… Continue reading Snapshots from the sky: Denver to Los Angeles
A couple years back, my mom – an avid blog reader since day one – wrote her first ever guest post. She really enjoyed the process and offered to write more posts in the future should the opportunity arise. This one had actually been in progress for a while and, since my California trip still… Continue reading Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park, Montana
Back in March, I spent part of my spring break in southern California visiting my sister. The weather left something to be desired, but everything else about the trip was wonderful and I came home super excited to share it with you all! That was six weeks ago and – as evidenced by the fact… Continue reading Summer 2023 adventures!
This post was originally published in May 2020 amidst the upheaval of everyone's travel plans, including ours. With the stay-at-home orders in place, our planned travels for the summer were replaced by local outings, including multiple backpacking trips through the Colorado mountains. Even as we've been able to travel more widely again, we've continued to… Continue reading Backpacking 101
The Flatirons are a prominent facade of five slanted rock slabs that rise above the town of Boulder and are probably one of the most recognizable features in the entire region. Their outline and/or name appear all over logos and businesses in Boulder and their sharp profile is visible from many miles away on a… Continue reading Colorado Destinations: Chautauqua Park
Located on the southwest edge of the Denver Metro area, Deer Creek Canyon Park is open to hikers, bikers, and equestrians. The park isn’t huge, but there are 14 miles (22.5 km) of trails including routes to the park’s two highest points: Plymouth Mountain and Bill Couch Mountain. Like all Jefferson County Open Space parks,… Continue reading Colorado Day Hikes: Deer Creek Canyon Park
A while back, I put together a post about a handful of short hikes near the Colorado mountain town of Evergreen. Today I’ll be doing the same thing for a different – but nearby – location: Conifer. The town of Conifer is located along Highway 285 about 30 minutes west of Denver. As 285 is… Continue reading Day Hikes in: Conifer, Colorado
I’m not going to sugar coat it: this was not an overly enjoyable hike. It was a combination of factors. The snow conditions were terrible; it was soft and squishy and slippery, and at times it felt like we were walking on sand in our snowshoes. We also hadn't been at such high elevation in… Continue reading Colorado Day Hikes: Hartenstein Lake
Handstands Around the World 