Southwestern US
Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico
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Colorado Hikes: Ouray Perimeter Trail
Last week, I wrote up a long and detailed post about the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway, which passes through the scenic mountain town of Ouray (pronounced ‘you-ray’). We were only in town for a few hours so there’s a lot I still don’t know about the town. But I do know that the Ouray… Continue reading
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Colorado Bucket List: Driving the Million Dollar Highway
It only takes a few minutes of researching ‘best things to do in Colorado’ – or some form of that sentence – before the Million Dollar Highway turns up. This 23 mile (37 km) section of Highway 550 stretches from Ouray to Silverton, and it’s iconic for a reason. The views are indescribable, the steep… Continue reading
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Life on the Edge of a Cliff – Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado (part II)
(Read part I of this post here) Most people don’t know this, but I took a bunch of anthropology classes in college because for a while I thought I wanted to be an archaeologist. I eventually changed my mind – long story – but I still find archaeology to be incredibly cool. So for me,… Continue reading
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Into the Past – Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado (part I)
A couple years ago, I wrote all about Mesa Verde based on my previous visit to this fascinating park. But my fiance had never been there and it’s a place I was happy to return to, so last summer we headed out for a week long exploration of southwestern Colorado, including 2.5 days at Mesa… Continue reading
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In the crater of a volcano – Capulin Volcano National Monument, New Mexico
My fiance has been wanting to visit New Mexico since the day we arrived in Colorado. He didn’t really know anything about the state and, as a result, I think there was an aura of mystery surrounding it. So we headed off for our first camping trip of the year, about 30 minutes south of… Continue reading
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Fit for the Gods – Garden of the Gods, Colorado
After waving goodbye to the beauty of Great Sand Dunes, my mom and I continued making our way north. Our next stop was just outside Colorado Springs at the Garden of the Gods. Garden of the Gods is a large public park that is home to towering red rock formations. Its beauty is said to… Continue reading
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One Step Forward, Two Steps Back – Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve, Colorado
When I say sand dunes, you probably think of a beach somewhere with mounds of sand in one direction and the vastness of the ocean in the other. But what if I said the sand dunes were in Colorado? Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve is located northeast of Alamosa, CO in the shadow of… Continue reading
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A world underground – Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico
Carlsbad Caverns is a depiction of two very different worlds: the one above the ground, and the one below. Up above the sun is hot, the air is dry, and every plant and animal has to be very resilient and adaptable to survive in this niche where the Guadalupe Mountains meet the Chihuahuan Desert. And… Continue reading
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Left Foot New Mexico – Four Corners Monument
If you’ve been following me for a while, you may remember our failed attempt to visit Four Corners Monument (and if not, you can read about it here). Well as it happened, we found ourselves in the area once again the very next summer. And so this time – after calling ahead to confirm that they… Continue reading
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Spectacular Speleothems – Timpanogos Cave National Monument, Utah
(The posts about our previous stops on this summer roadtrip have been updated to reflect my more recent visits to these parks.) Because the drive home would have been a very long day, we broke it into two days with a stop just south of Salt Lake City at American Fork Canyon in the Wasatch… Continue reading
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The place where 4 states don’t quite meet
(The posts about our previous stops on this summer roadtrip have been updated to reflect my more recent visits to these parks.) After Canyonlands National Park, our next destination was Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado. The two parks are only about 3 hours apart by car, but we drove at least an hour out of… Continue reading
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Above – Dead Horse Point State Park, Utah
Since we’d had so much fun in southern Utah before, we decided to head back to the area the following summer. My mom had visited Arches National Park many years ago, but none of us had ever been to Canyonlands or Mesa Verde. So we pulled out a map and plotted out our journey! It… Continue reading
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An Unexpected Surprise – Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah
It took a bit of convincing for me to get my family on board with adding Cedar Breaks National Monument to our itinerary. It’s tiny and was somewhat out of our way, located about 30 minutes east of Cedar City. Getting to Cedar Breaks is an adventure of its own. From the Grand Canyon, we… Continue reading
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Interrupting Deer and White-tailed Squirrels – Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona (part IV)
The next morning, we headed off to explore the north rim of the Grand Canyon. There’s only one campground inside this section of the park, located near the visitor center at Bright Angel Point. From the visitor center, a 0.5 mile (0.8 km) round-trip paved trail leads out to Bright Angel Point, which was where… Continue reading
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From Rim to Rim – Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona (part III)
After two wonderful days exploring the south rim of the Grand Canyon, it was time to pack up and head to the north rim. From Mather Campground, we followed Desert View Road east out of the park, stopping at the viewpoints we’d skipped on the way in. Continue reading
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Ooh, Ahh, and Ugh – Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona (part II)
The names of most of the viewpoints in Grand Canyon National Park are of Native American origin. Hopi Point, Yavapai Overlook, and Mohave Point, to name a few. Whoever named the rest was apparently not feeling very creative. Case in point: when we hiked down into the canyon, we found ourselves at Ooh Ahh Point.… Continue reading
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A Vast Expanse – Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona (part I)
It’s difficult to describe the Grand Canyon without using the words enormous and spectacular. And while both adjectives are correct, I couldn’t really fully appreciate the immensity of the canyon until I saw it for myself. Our visit began on the south rim of the canyon, which is the most popular half. The canyon itself… Continue reading