For the short-distance dayhiker, the Highline Trail probably offers some of the best day hiking in the Wind Rivers. Views of jagged Wind River peaks and flat-topped Squaretop Mountain open up nearly from the first, and are simply lovely over…
Alternate Views of Famous American Wilderness Areas
Ever wondered what the Grand Canyon looks like from a small distance away? The Tetons from the less-visited western side? Canyonlands from the other side of the canyon? The Statue of Liberty from New York Harbor? So many famous places…
Lava Mountain: No Trail, but Awesome Views!
I suppose any trip isn’t complete until we’ve been off-trail. On a recent trip to Wyoming, though, we did a bit more than just leaving the trail behind: we did a hike that was entirely without a trail. No signs,…
Blog Sneak Peak: The Wyoming You Never Knew
I just got back from a couple glorious weeks in the state of Wyoming, hiking, seeing new sights, and generally discovering a side of the US I’d never experienced before. When most of us think of Wyoming, we think of…
Up the Cleft in the Rock: Table Rock
I don’t go to New England much. I’m not exactly sure why; maybe I’m spoiled by the mountains west of the Mississippi, or maybe it’s just so hard to find free (or even cheap) places to camp that trips to…
Cooper Spur: Snow, Ice, and Rocks
Sometimes we just have to do a hike twice. It’s just that epic; that worth redoing that we’ll drive 100 miles out of our way just to do a single hike again. Such is Cooper Spur, high on the side…
Celebrating 20 Years of Family Vacations
This week we’re celebrating 20 years of traveling together across the US! Wow! It’s been an exciting adventure together, and all the more exciting that we’re still (more or less) able to travel all together in the big green van…
The 6 Best Day Hikes in Grand Canyon (South Rim)
Grand Canyon National Park tops our list for the number of times we’ve visited a park. At last count, between the North Rim, South Rim, and Toroweap Area, we’ve visited a total of 10 times – more than any other…
Pictures: Lake Ann Trail to Swift Creek
We really didn’t need to hike another trail. We’d already hike most of the best-of-the-best around the Mt. Baker Highway, including Ptarmigan Ridge, Heliotrope Divide, Artist Ridge, and Skyline Divide. Still, it was supposed to be rainy in North Cascades…
Biking the Auburn Trail / Lehigh Valley Trail
A few weeks ago, I celebrated a birthday. It was a bit of a milestone, I suppose. Anyway, I decided that I’d like to really celebrate – like, something that lasted more than an hour or so. So it was…