a former gymnast with a neverending case of wanderlust
Includes all states from North Dakota east to Ohio and south to Oklahoma
Back in April, fellow blogger The Travel Architect contacted me with an invitation to join her and The Husband on a trip to northern Minnesota to summit the state’s highest point. Initially it seemed like a long shot, but as the logistics of our summer came into focus, I realized we might actually be able… Continue reading On top of Minnesota: Eagle Mountain
If you look at a map of Lake Superior, you’ll notice that its northern shore is in Ontario. Minnesota actually forms the western(ish) shore of Lake Superior. But for whatever reason, Minnesotans refer to this region as the North Shore, so that’s what I’ll go with as well. After three days in Wisconsin, we were… Continue reading Exploring Minnesota’s North Shore
Geologically speaking, the Apostle Islands were formed through glaciation and erosion. Over thousands of years during the last ice age, the glaciers advanced and deposited layer upon layer of sediment, and then carved out the enormous bowl that is now Lake Superior as they receded. In the years since, the constant action of the waves… Continue reading Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin (part II): touring the sea caves
Until this roadtrip, Lake Superior was the one Great Lake I hadn’t seen from the ground. I’d flown over it before, so I had some comprehension of its immensity. But as I stood there on the lakeshore for the first time, I might as well have been gazing out over the vastness of the ocean.… Continue reading Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin (part I): cruising Lake Superior
As our travel plans for 2023 began to take shape, it was beginning to seem as though it would be another year in which I maybe, possibly, hopefully squeezed in one single state high point. After only managing one high point in 2022 as well this was a little disappointing, but I had so many… Continue reading On top of Wisconsin: Timm’s Hill
After summiting the North Dakota high point the day before, Chelsea and I set out to stand on the highest point of South Dakota. Our hotel was only about 30 minutes from the trailhead, so this one involved much less driving. The hike, however, was a little more substantial. The highest point in South Dakota… Continue reading On Top of South Dakota: Black Elk Peak
Chelsea and I both have the goal to summit as many US state high points as possible. Up to this point, we’d both stood on a few of them… separately. This time, we decided we’d visit a couple together! The states? North and South Dakota. And so, two days after the end of my semester,… Continue reading On Top of North Dakota: White Butte
Following our stops at two of Nebraska’s national monuments, Chelsea and I made our way to the Oglala National Grassland for our final stop in the state – Toadstool Geologic Park. Basically, Nebraska’s version of the badlands. The formations at Toadstool date back more than 30 million years, to a time when now-extinct animals roamed… Continue reading Badlands and Bentonite – Toadstool Geologic Park, Nebraska
After exploring Scotts Bluff and learning the history of the Oregon Trail, Chelsea and I continued north to our next stop: Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Here, we would learn about a very different time in Nebraska's history. With my semester wrapping up just a couple days prior to our departure, I hadn’t really had… Continue reading The Devil’s Corkscrew – Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Nebraska
Back in May, Chelsea and I headed to the Dakotas for a long weekend to do some highpointing. Since we were driving all the way up there, we decided to take advantage of the opportunity to detour through Nebraska along the way and visit some national monuments in the western part of the state. Our… Continue reading Landmark on the Oregon Trail – Scotts Bluff National Monument, Nebraska
Handstands Around the World 