a former gymnast with a neverending case of wanderlust
Follow along as I work my way toward my goal of climbing the highest point in every US state
On September 24, 2022, two of my travel goals collided when I summited my eighth Colorado 14er… which also happens to be the highest point in Colorado! A few days later, as I sit down to begin writing this post, I’m conflicted about whether to title it ‘Colorado 14ers’ to match my other 14ers posts… Continue reading On Top of Colorado (and Colorado 14er #8): Mount Elbert
Summer out here in the west has become very unpredictable. Afternoon thunderstorms used to be the main concern, but in the last couple years forest fires and air quality have become the two main factors that influence our travel plans. Colorado was lucky in 2021 to receive adequate rain and avoid a repeat of our… Continue reading On Top of New Mexico: Wheeler Peak
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
When we told people we were heading to Oklahoma for the weekend, the typical response was a raised eyebrow followed by a confused “why?” In their defense, it’s not exactly a hopping travel destination, especially the panhandle region. But aside from the fact that I had the entire soundtrack of Oklahoma! stuck in my head… Continue reading On Top of Oklahoma: Black Mesa
In late April of 2021, Pat and I set out for our first camping trip of the season. Our ultimate destination was the Oklahoma panhandle to climb the state high point. As it turns out, when one drives from Denver to Oklahoma there’s quite a lot to see along the way. So naturally, we stopped… Continue reading On Top of Kansas: Mount Sunflower
The highest point in Nebraska, Panorama Point, is located just across the border from both Colorado and Wyoming in the middle of basically nowhere. The elevation at Panorama Point is 5424 feet (1653 m) – higher than I would have expected for a plains state. But one thing differentiates this high point from most of… Continue reading On Top of Nebraska: Panorama Point
During the course of our two days in the Smoky Mountains – in addition to all the hikes I talked about in last week’s post – I managed to check two more state high points off my list. Admittedly, not in the “proper” way. After all, to be a high pointer don’t you have to… Continue reading On Top of: Tennessee & North Carolina
In my quest to summit all the state high points of the northeast, Mount Washington long seemed so out of reach. It was a 4-hour drive from our house, making it too far for a day trip. It was even really too long for a normal weekend trip, considering it takes a whole day to… Continue reading On Top of New England: Mount Washington, New Hampshire
Labor Day weekend 2016 was finally upon us, and Pat and I had an exciting goal to accomplish: summiting the highest point in Vermont. The weather forecast was solid and we’d climbed the highest mountain in Massachusetts the weekend before in preparation. We were ready for this! Mount Mansfield rises to an elevation of 4393… Continue reading On Top of Vermont: Mount Mansfield
Handstands Around the World 