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Chasing sunbeams in Upper Antelope Canyon
Do you ever find yourself visiting a place and having that moment of, wow, I never thought I’d be here? That was me with Upper Antelope Canyon. I’d seen photos – many photos – over the years. And I’ve always wanted to visit. But when I first looked into it years ago, my main takeaways Continue reading
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48 hours in Page, Arizona
Technically, the title of this post isn’t 100% accurate. We did spend roughly 48 hours in and around Page, Arizona. But I’m going to extend the time and distance covered in this post by about 6 hours and 70 miles (115 km), respectively, so I can also share some photos of our drive from Utah Continue reading
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A photo a day: desert southwest edition
Two years ago, shortly after we returned from Glacier National Park, I put together a post sharing one photo from each day of the trip. I ended up writing many additional posts detailing our time in the park, but in the meantime, that post gave me the chance to share some of my favorite images Continue reading
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Campsite roundup: best spots we’ve ever pitched a tent
Back in May, we were relaxing at our campsite in Hovenweep National Monument and enjoying the view, and I remarked that it had been a while since we’d had a scenic campsite like this. My husband agreed, and then joked that I should write a blog post listing our best campsites. He should know better Continue reading
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Visiting the lesser-known parks and monuments in the Four Corners area
As you’ve been reading about for the last month, this summer’s eight-day roadtrip took us on a loop from Colorado to northwestern New Mexico and then across the border into northeastern Arizona. The largest chunks of time were spent in the four parks and monuments I’ve already covered, but we also made a few shorter Continue reading
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A driving tour of Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, Arizona
If you’ve seen Forrest Gump, you’ve seen Monument Valley, at least from a distance. But seeing it onscreen isn’t the same as being there in person. And I’d wanted to visit Monument Valley in person for a really long time! From Canyon de Chelly, we headed north toward our final campground of the trip. Like Continue reading
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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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Hiking in Arizona’s Superstition Mountains – Siphon Draw Trail to the Flatiron
Although ‘volcano’ and ‘Arizona’ are two words that seem like they shouldn’t go in the same sentence, in fact it’s a very appropriate combination. Most of central Arizona is volcanic in origin, including the Superstition Mountains, which formed about 20 million years ago when three supervolcanoes deposited a 1000 foot (305 m) thick layer of Continue reading
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A day in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest
I first heard about the Superstition Mountains years ago. I don’t even remember exactly when or where, but the photos I saw were imprinted in my mind from that moment on. So when we planned our trip to Phoenix, this was a non-negotiable addition to the agenda. The Superstition Mountains lie within the Tonto National Continue reading
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Four Days in Phoenix, Arizona
I kind of dropped the ball last year on planning our Thanksgiving trip. Actually, that’s not entirely true. I had an entire itinerary put together months ago, but by that point we knew my husband would be starting a new job and we didn’t know what his vacation schedule would be, so I didn’t actually 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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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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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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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
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