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…

Pictures: Lake Ann Trail to Swift Creek

DIY Hand Sanitizer Holder
I think I must be a germaphobic. Actually, it comes from being around a lot of little children and being sick constantly as a child, myself. I just don’t want to get sick – even a common cold –…

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…

Sahale Arm Revisited: Incredible Views!
If you could only do one long hike in North Cascades National Park, I’d recommend the trail up to and along Sahale Arm. It somehow manages to get some of the best scenery in the Cascades into one 13.4 mile…

12 Trails that Require Hands & Knees, River Crossings, and Other Adventures
Getting to the most rewarding views can be hard. In fact, it can be very difficult. Sometimes we just have to leave the comforts of a defined trail behind to cross the waist-deep rivers, scramble up scree and talus on…

Hole in the Rock: Scramble to Lake Powell!
I was shocked the other day when I found out that I’d never done a post on Hole in the Rock, at the end of Hole in the Rock Road in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (one of my favorite parks…

The Mist Clears Away: A Stroll at Ruby Beach
We arrived at Ruby Beach in Olympic National Park very early in the morning. We hadn’t slept nearby – after hiking Third Beach the day before, all we wanted to do was find a place for supper and then go…

eBook Review: Hidden Gems of the Western United States
Imagine a travel book that overviews about 130 off-the-beaten-path destinations in the western US states? A book that gives historical, geological, and zoological information for a wide variety of parks that will pique the interest of almost anyone? That’s what…

Holden Beach Rental House Review: Starboard 899 OBW
Every time we decide to go to Holden Beach, the houses that are available are different. It doesn’t help that we’re usually making our reservations last-minute, often within a week or two of the rental dates. Still, it’s always exciting…

Table Mountain near Mt. Baker
Ok, so maybe you can’t do Ptarmigan Ridge. You’d love to see those views, but you just can’t make such a long hike, especially over permanent snow fields. Well, don’t despair. There are two trails that give you similar (if…