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A tour of Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona
I don’t remember when I first decided I wanted to visit Canyon de Chelly. I think it was one of those things where I heard about it or saw a photo that really captured my interest, and from that moment on, it was on my list of places to visit one day. So when we… Continue reading
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A colorful visit to Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
After three days in New Mexico’s Chaco Canyon, our desert southwestern adventure continued at Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. It was a bit of a drive, though we’d be gaining an hour because Arizona does not observe daylight savings time. I’ll admit, after visiting Escalante Petrified Forest State Park in Utah a few years… Continue reading
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A guide to visiting Chaco Culture National Historical Park, New Mexico
Never go to New Mexico and Arizona in July. This isn’t a lesson we’ve just learned. After previous family summer vacations to southern Utah and the Grand Canyon, we weren’t at all unfamiliar with the unpleasantly high temperatures and dehydratingly low humidities of the southwestern US in the middle of summer. In fact, we initially… Continue reading
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Colorado Hikes: Arapaho Pass and Lake Dorothy
It was the beginning of July and my husband had a couple days off, so we decided we’d take advantage of the opportunity for a mid-week hike at a trailhead that’s typically far too crowded on weekends. I, of course, already had a list of hikes that fit the bill, but some research revealed most… Continue reading
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Colorado Summits: Saint Vrain Mountain
My birthday is in the summer and, in most cases, you could pretty confidently plan an outdoor celebration and assume the weather will cooperate. In the Rocky Mountains, as it turns out, it’s not such a guarantee. In fact, it snowed on my 8th birthday and my planned outdoor party had to be moved indoors;… Continue reading
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Colorado 14ers #14: Mount Sherman via Fourmile Creek Trail
Despite what some people might say, there are no easy 14ers. Unless you spend a substantial portion of your life at very high elevation, nothing over 14,000 feet (4267 m) is ever going to be easy. But there are easier 14ers and, by most accounts, Mount Sherman is one of them. If you can make… Continue reading
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LBJ National Historical Park and Presidential Library, Texas
Despite falling somewhat in the middle of the “which state is home to the most US presidents” list, Texas actually tops the list of “which state has the most presidential libraries” with three. Of those three, though, only one commemorates a president who was actually born in Texas: Lyndon Baines Johnson or, as he’s commonly… Continue reading
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Hiking in Texas Hill Country: Inks Lake State Park and Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge
In the past few years, my uncle has rediscovered his love of hiking and has pretty thoroughly explored the trails around Austin. Sharing some of his favorite hikes with us was one of the things he was most excited for during our visit, and my mom and I were looking forward to getting out into… Continue reading
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Spanish colonial history at the San Antonio missions
If you say the words “San Antonio” and “missions,” the first thing to come to mind for most people would probably be the Alamo. And while the Alamo is indeed a former mission, it’s just one of the more than twenty Catholic missions built by the Spanish in the early 1700s. It’s also – and… Continue reading
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Springtime in Austin, Texas
My aunt and uncle moved to the suburbs of Austin, Texas almost six years ago, and they’ve been trying to get us to come visit ever since. But my extended family is spread across multiple states. Add in my inlaws, and now we’re up to over a dozen. In other words, they’re everywhere, which makes… Continue reading
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Chimney Rock, Yucca House, and other southwestern Colorado snapshots
For the past couple weeks, I’ve been recounting our Memorial Day weekend trip to southwestern Colorado to visit the Ancestral Puebloan ruins of Hovenweep and Canyons of the Ancients. We also made brief stops at two other nearby national monuments, a roadside attraction, and spent some time in the town of Cortez. Since none of… Continue reading
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A guide to visiting Hovenweep National Monument, Colorado & Utah
For at least 10,000 years, the desert southwest has been inhabited by humans. Initially, nomadic groups roamed through the region, but starting in about 500 CE, as farming proliferated and life became more stationary, permanent settlements were constructed. Over the next 700 years, thousands of dwellings of many types were built throughout the region, generally… Continue reading
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Desert dwellings – Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, Colorado
Memorial weekend is a tricky time of year for Colorado adventures. Three years ago, we went to the drier and more desert-like western part of the state and the weather was perfect. Two years ago, we went into the mountains and got snowed on. So when I sat down to plan this year’s Memorial Day… Continue reading
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Colorado Hikes: Mitchell and Blue Lakes
Last week, I wrote about one of the two most popular hikes in beautiful Brainard Lake Recreation Area in the Indian Peaks Wilderness west of Boulder: Lake Isabelle. It’s a close call, but as lovely as Lake Isabelle is, in my opinion it’s actually the least scenic of the two. This one – to one… Continue reading
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Colorado Hikes: Long Lake and Lake Isabelle
A couple weeks back, I published an informational post about Brainard Lake Recreation Area, a popular destination that encompasses the eastern side of the Indian Peaks and surrounding wilderness area. This area is popular for a reason. Actually, there are many reasons, including its relatively short distance from the Front Range, ease of access, and… Continue reading
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Uncovering my inner umbraphile – total solar eclipse 2024
When I asked my husband what he wanted to do for his birthday this year, he answered immediately and without hesitation: travel to see the total solar eclipse! For perspective, I typically ask him this question months in advance because he’s usually quite indecisive. Given the certainty in his answer this time, I started planning… Continue reading
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Colorado State Parks: Roxborough
About three weeks ago, I went hiking in Roxborough State Park with some friends. It wasn’t my first hike in the park; in fact, I’ve written about Roxborough before. But in the aftermath, I realized this post was published more than four years ago, prior to not only this recent visit but another one a… Continue reading
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A guide to visiting Brainard Lake Recreation Area
(Updated May 2025) Brainard Lake Recreation Area was one of the first places we visited after moving to Colorado and has been a frequent destination of ours ever since. It’s a great place to take out-of-town visitors for some lovely scenery and short, relatively easy hikes. The longer hikes at Brainard are some of my… Continue reading
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Sisters weekend in Seattle
You may recall that I flew to California last year to visit my sister for her birthday. We had a great time together; nonetheless, this wasn’t meant to become an annual occurrence. But then, a few months back, she mentioned that her favorite band would be performing in Seattle around the time of her birthday.… Continue reading
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Snapshots from the sky: spring 2024 edition
In retrospect, flying to Seattle for 3 days, Austin for 5 days, and Dallas for 4 days – all in a 5 week period – was overly ambitious. I definitely overbooked myself, and in the aftermath I very much paid the price. I don’t regret it, per se, because all three trips were fun. But… Continue reading
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