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A whirlwind weekend in Philadelphia (part II) – touring Eastern State Penitentiary
Our final Philadelphia destination (if you missed it, you can read part I of this series here) was the one that actually ended up being my favorite: Eastern State Penitentiary. I learned about this place from Lyssy in the City, and I’m so glad I did because it was fascinating! Eastern State Penitentiary was built… Continue reading
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A whirlwind weekend in Philadelphia (part I) – Independence Hall & the Liberty Bell
Philadelphia is a city steeped in history. Founded in 1682, it was not only the largest city in the US for a time, but also the most diverse. It was initially just a port city, but became an important meeting point for the colonial government prior to the Revolutionary War and later served as the… Continue reading
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A winter encampment – Valley Forge National Historical Park, Pennsylvania
Despite our best efforts, we moved away from the east coast with quite a few things left on our east coast to-do list. We just ran out of time to see everything. But we usually head back at least once a year for one reason or another. This year, it was for a wedding. As… Continue reading
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Colorado Hikes: Green Mountain (Denver)
April May showers bring May June flowers. That’s how that saying goes, right? Here in Colorado this year, at least, that’s what happened. In a 45 day period spanning from May through the second week of June, we received almost 11 inches (27 cm) of rain; that’s about 3/4 of our average annual total! Now,… Continue reading
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72 hours in Los Angeles, part II
Have you ever heard of the comedian Brian Regan? He’s my favorite because he takes everyday things that are super relatable and makes them hilarious. For example: feeling out of place in a conversation about art. As someone who isn’t knowledgeable about art, I can very much relate when he jokes about walking up to… Continue reading
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72 hours in Los Angeles, part I
Prior to this trip, I would have said there’s a zero percent chance I’ll ever move to southern California. It’s hot, crowded, noisy, expensive, the air quality is terrible (upon arrival, I invented a game; it’s called ‘Fog or Smog?’ and, as it turns out, it’s often difficult to determine the answer), and traffic is… Continue reading
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Springtime in Santa Barbara, part II
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 didn’t depart until evening, so we had almost the entire day… Continue reading
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Springtime in Santa Barbara, part I
My sister moved to southern California years ago, but until recently I’d never visited her there. It’s not for any dramatic reason. It’s just that she shares a small place 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 until… Continue reading
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Snapshots from the sky: Colorado to California
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
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Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park, Montana
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
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Backpacking 101
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
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Colorado Destinations: Chautauqua Park
The Flatirons are a prominent facade of five slanted rock slabs that rise above the town of Boulder, Colorado 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… Continue reading
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Day Hikes in: Conifer, Colorado
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. Over the years,… Continue reading
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Colorado Hikes: Hartenstein Lake
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
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Colorado Destinations: Mount Princeton Hot Springs
Until I moved to Colorado, I wasn’t aware of its plethora of hot springs. But if you spend any amount of time in the state – or do a google search of ‘best things to do in Colorado’ – you will quickly discover the popularity of the state’s many hot springs. While there are a… Continue reading
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Playing tourist for a day in Estes Park, Colorado
About a year and a half ago, C and I concocted an idea: spend a day in Estes Park. It’s a town we drive through frequently en route to our hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park. But aside from a quick stop for coffee or beer on the way home, neither of us has actually… Continue reading
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Rocky Mountain National Park Hikes: Two Rivers Lake & Lake Helene
We haven’t had a lot of luck with this hike. The first time, we began our hike under blue skies, but as soon as we sat down at Lake Helene to eat a snack it began to rain. Between the precipitation and the low-hanging clouds obscuring the mountains, it wasn’t very enjoyable and we couldn’t… Continue reading
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Walking in a winter wonderland – Lava Lake, Montana
A while back, I saw photos of this snow-covered wonderland and I knew I had to see it for myself. It took a few years to find the opportunity, but I finally managed to squeeze it in. We arrived at the trailhead around 10:00am on a Friday to find an icy road to the parking… Continue reading
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Nuclear science & history at Manhattan Project National Historical Park – Los Alamos, New Mexico
Well, we’ve finally reached the end of Thanksgiving in New Mexico. After four nights in Albuquerque and one night in Santa Fe, we headed north to Los Alamos for the final three days of our trip. The first two were spent visiting Bandelier and Valles Caldera, leaving the final day to hang around town. Like… Continue reading
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Life inside a volcano – Valles Caldera National Preserve, New Mexico
Last week, I wrote all about Bandelier National Monument, which protects the cliffs, canyons, and Ancestral Puebloan ruins south of Los Alamos, New Mexico. This landscape was created by the two massive eruptions of a nearby volcano more than 1 million years ago. After the final eruption the volcano collapsed, leaving behind a caldera 14… Continue reading
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